Journalism under Duress

The project investigates risks and uncertainties journalists are facing in Germany, Austria and Switzerland as well as around the globe. Its aim is to better understand the ways in which journalism adapts to and copes with different levels of risk and uncertainty in the three countries and in different political, socio-economic, and cultural contexts. The major goal of the study is to compare results across the three German-speaking countries as well as across a wide range of societies, to trace developments over time, and to identify key factors that drive cross-national differences in the way journalists conceive of, and deal with, risk and uncertainty. In addition, the project continues efforts to track the state of journalism in Germany, Austria and Switzerland as well as the situation of journalism around the world, as was the case in previous waves of the Worlds of Journalism Study. Conceptually, we understand risks and uncertainty in journalism as a complex and dynamic relationship between sources of risk (areas of threats), forms of risk (manifestations of risk), and perceptions of risk by journalists (areas of uncertainty). We study risks as primarily emanating from four contexts: politics, economy, technology, and culture. They have the power to generate significant uncertainty among journalists, news organizations, and within the institution of journalism as a whole. We focus on journalists perceptions of risks in seven key areas: editorial autonomy, influences on journalism, journalistic roles, journalistic epistemologies, professional ethics, safety of journalists, and conditions of labor. The proposed project has two components: (1) a regional focus on Germany, Austria and Switzerland, and (2) a global-comparative focus. With the regional focus, the study aims to assess and compare journalists perceptions of risk in Germany, Austria and Switzerland. With the global-comparative focus, the project aims to compare the state of journalism around the world and trace changes in journalists perceptions over time and across different cultural contexts. In each country, we conduct surveys of two groups of journalists: a main sample of professional mainstream journalists, and (as an effort to better represent areas of transformation in journalism) a secondary sample of peripheral actors who operate at the margins of journalism. Journalists are surveyed based on a unified methodological framework (including a common questionnaire along with instructions for defining populations, constructing samples, selecting respondents, conducting interviews as well as proper re- cording and handling of survey data), which allows for tight comparison across countries. Project partners: Prof. Dr. Thomas Hanitzsch, LMU Munich (Germany) Prof. Dr. Wiebke Loosen, Leibniz Institute for Media ResearchHans-Bredow-Institut (HBI) (Germany) Prof. Dr. Vinzenz Wyss, Zurich University of Applied Sciences (Switzerland) Dr. Josef Seethaler, Austrian Academy of Sciences, Vienna (Austria) Prof. Dr. Folker Hanusch, University of Vienna (Austria)

For the third time, the international Worlds of Journalism Study (WJS3) was conducted in Austria in 2023 by a team of researchers from the Institute for Comparative Media and Communication Studies at the Austrian Academy of Sciences (ÖAW) and the Department of Communication at the University of Vienna. 856 Austrian journalists provided information on working conditions, self-perception, ethical principles, professional influences and current developments that are putting increasing pressure on journalism. The alarming result: more than a third of Austrian journalists have experienced harassing or hateful comments and public discrediting of their work in recent years. An equally large proportion are concerned about their emotional and physical well-being. Added to this are time pressure and resource shortages - two factors that 64% and 54% of respondents respectively experience as having a strong influence on their work, and the trend is rising. However, the highest growth rates are related to the perceived influence of superiors and editorial colleagues, which was reported by well over a third of respondents. The self-perception of journalists is also changing. In addition to the neutral dissemination of information, the fight against disinformation is now considered one of the two most important tasks of Austrian journalism. The aspiration to practise solution-oriented journalism that highlights future implications of events but also social injustices is also widespread. In addition, there is an increasing focus on the audience being able to form their own opinions. When it comes to ethical attitudes, the vast majority of journalists adhere strictly to journalistic ethical standards. Only limited relativism can be observed, which leaves room for ethical flexibility in exceptional situations. At 47.3 years of age, Austrian journalists are on average a good four years older than in the previous survey from 2014/15. The proportion of female journalists (50.7%) in the profession has risen, as has the proportion of university graduates (70%). Most journalists work in the politics department (21%), followed by culture (15.2%), chronicles (14.4%) and service/lifestyle (12.8%). Almost two-thirds now produce journalistic content for a web outlet, slightly more than half for a print product and 35% regularly for social media.