Journalists and Editors

Political Proximity as Determinant of Career and Autonomy

Bibliographic Data

ID12977447
AuthorsAndrea Ceron (0000-0002-6686-5969, University of Milan), Sergio Splendore (0000-0001-5324-4496, University of Milan, corresponding author), Thomas Hanitzsch (0000-0002-7104-6300, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München), Neil Thurman (0000-0003-3909-9565, Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München)
Year2019
Volume24
Issue4
Pages487-507
Publication date2019-07-17
Peer ReviewedYes
Open AccessYes
TypeARTICLE
VenueThe International Journal of Press/Politics (JOURNAL)
Journal identifiersISSN: 1940-1612 • E-ISSN: 1040-1620
PublisherSAGE Publishing (PUBLISHER • US)
DOI10.1177/1940161219862489
OpenAlexW2959869548
LanguageEN
Citations received13
References cited41

Political economy suggests that media owners try to influence the process of media production by providing career incentives to like-minded journalists and adjusting the level of professional autonomy granted to them. Accordingly, we analyze whether the political distance between editors and journalists (i.e., reporters) affects the careers of journalists in terms of rank and salary, as well as their perceived professional autonomy. We hypothesize that editors reward and allow freedom to journalists whose political viewpoints coincide more precisely with their own. Political proximity to editors should lead to a better salary and rank for reporters and to a stronger perception of editorial autonomy among reporters. We tested our hypotheses through statistical analysis using data from the Worlds of Journalism Study. We analyzed the answers of 3,087 journalists interviewed between 2012 and 2016 in six European countries: Germany, Ireland, Italy, the Netherlands, Spain, and the United Kingdom. The results support our hypotheses. The analysis reveals a polarization of media outlet editors, and robust results were achieved via a measure of political proximity that takes into account the particular influence of left-leaning and right-leaning editors. Such partisan leaning, however, seems less relevant in countries belonging to Hallin and Mancini’s Atlantic model

Autonomy · Economics · Incentive · Journalism · Media studies · Perception · Polarization (electrochemistry · Political economy · Political science · Politics · Public relations · Salary · Sociology · Viewpoints · Law · Media Influence and Politics · Media Studies and Communication · Political Influence and Corporate Strategies · Psychology

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