Media bourgeoisie and media proletariat in post‐communist Romania

Abstract

The fall of communism and the appearance of a free press have led to the birth of a new professional body of journalists in Romania. This situation offers a unique laboratory in which researchers can study a living, growing organism, the way a profession creates its legitimizing ideology, internal systems to control the professional body, and new power relations. On the basis of data derived from a shortened version of the Weaver-Wilhoit questionnaire, completed by 400 Romanian journalists, this paper aims to identify the social and professional composition of this new body of journalists. In the second part, analyzing the discourse of media representatives and the transformations of the newsroom, the study presents the processes of settling that have appeared since a small group of journalists-turned-owners has taken control of the professional field. From this perspective, the study stresses the idea that transition in the mass media should not be regarded from a normative view, but should be understood rather as a battle for power, the ultimate goal being the closure of the professional field and the legitimation of a new media bourgeoisie.

Framing a Kidnapping

“…Post-communist Romanian media, particularly the newspapers, are pervaded by a propensity toward reporting rumors and hypotheses rather than verified FRAMING A KIDNAPPING 461 facts and official information (Coman, 2004;Gross, 2003;Petcu, 2000). This study confirms that after 16 years of democracy Romanian print media still rely on speculation as a main reporting style.…”

“…This propensity toward making assumptions rather than reporting rigorously verified facts seems to be a characteristic of the Romanian print media, as Coman (2000Coman ( , 2004, Gross (2003), and Petcu (2000) noted. Thus, this project brings further support to Petcu's conclusion *two of the most influential and largely circulated Romanian newspapers still rely on subjective and biased reporting after 16 years of democracy and freedom of the press.…”

“…Despite the profound political and social changes that occurred after the communist regime fell at the end of 1989, it seems that the Romanian media (especially the newspapers) have retained a character or ideology that has existed ever since the early 19th century (Coman, 2004). Most notable traits of this ideology are the ''missionary ideal'' and the ''intellectual aura'' attached to the journalism profession, as well as its ''militant role of promotion of one cause or demolition of another'' (Coman, 2004, p. 46, original italics).…”

The EU Foreign Policy Analysis

“…On the one hand, journalists have been deterred by the owners of their publication or by political elites through the use of the justice system from pursuing certain topics and expressing their opinions accordingly (Gross, 2008). Nonetheless, political pressures have dwindled during the last ten years as a result of the privatization of the media and their increasing economic self-reliance (Coman, 2004a). Conversely, journalists themselves have often employed a rhetoric centered on the freedom of expression in order to cover up blatant mistakes or unethical behavior and interests (Coman, 2009, p. 190).…”

EU membership and the press

“…Furthermore, the social position of journalists in postcommunist countries differs from that of Western journalists, leaving them under pressure from the political arena and the so-called 'barons' (former journalists, now powerful business men) (Coman, 2000(Coman, , 2004. Coman (2000: 45), arguing from Romanian evidence, suggests that the majority of journalists are 'not protected against the abuses of bosses, not by law, not by clear conventions, not by a professional tradition'.…”