The Objects and Objectives of Journalism Research During the Coronavirus Pandemic and Beyond

Abstract

The most immediate and important effects of the coronavirus pandemic concern public health. But the crisis also raises a number of key questions for journalism research. As scholars, we should pause, when so much of our working lives seems thrown out of routine, and critically consider what has brought us, individually and collectively, to this juncture in our research and where we aim to go in the future. I suggest two areas of journalism research that are worth pondering during this period: our objects (what we study) and our objectives (why we study). By honestly acknowledging our shortcomings-for example, in giving overweight attention to certain objects of analysis at the expense of others, or in failing to develop a stronger public voice as part of our scholarly objectives-we can reorient our research agendas to be simultaneously responsive and reflective as we address the current crisis and prepare for the uncertainties ahead. We might take the present situation not simply as an opportune moment to pivot to Covid-19 research and collect real-time data about news and journalism in transition, but also as an invitation to rethink our research enterprise in a much larger and longerlasting sense.

Journalists on COVID-19 Journalism: Communication Ecology of Pandemic Reporting

“…He saw his work as a journalist as helping the public cope. This is the type of emotional labor that often gets overlooked as a result of journalists working on deadlines and attempting to be objective in their process ( Lewis, 2020 ; Wahl-Jorgensen, 2020 ).…”

“…In a commentary, Lewis (2020) calls on journalism scholars to ponder the COVID-19 pandemic as a time to consider that “the news media landscape on the other side of the pandemic may look very different (and vastly diminished) from the one we knew before” (p. 682), and hence, researchers should consider “under-emphasized certain dimensions of journalism” (p. 683). The present study seeks to do that by examining how journalists navigate the relationships embedded in the COVID-19 communication ecology.…”

“…In a research commentary released in the early stages of the pandemic, Lewis (2020) argued that the COVID-19 did not solely add new issues for journalists to work through but also compounded existing issues and enlarged “the blind spots in our work” (p. 683). In particular, Lewis (2020) explained, “Journalism research . .…”

Digital Press Criticism: The Symbolic Dimensions of Donald Trump’s Assault on U.S. Journalists as the “Enemy of the People”

“…By way of a conclusion, the arguments we have made about digital press criticism can be extended out to journalism and political communication scholars as wellespecially at a moment when exogenous forces such as the Covid-19 pandemic and a widescale reckoning over racial injustice have made it increasingly apparent that we need to be more self-reflexive as researchers (Callison and Young 2019;Lewis 2020). What is needed is a more robust understanding of Trump as a particular symbol whose prominence comes at a particular moment owing to a constellation of interlinking forces and a changing media environment.…”

The Value of Local News in the Digital Realm – Introducing the Integrated Value Creation Model

“…The purpose is to enhance the understanding of this complex interplay between social, individual, and business interests, which may or may not converge. The model concerns possibilities and perils of news publishers' revenue generationa comparatively neglected object of analysis in journalism research (Lewis 2020)and provides insights in response to calls for a more nuanced understanding of the effectiveness of local media subsidy systems (Gulyas and Baines 2020). By identifying and combining three key perspectives on local news publishers' value creation from the research literaturea societal responsibility perspective, a business perspective, and an audience gratification perspectivethe paper develops the integrated value creation model as a step-by-step process.…”