Search

Most scholars argue that cross-national research is indispensable for establishing the generalizability of theories and the validity of interpretations derived from single-nation studies. Another important aspect of comparative studies is that they force us to test our interpretations against cross-cultural diferences and inconsistencies. In journalism studies, the advantages of cross-national research are obvious. While the empirical inquiry into news-making has generated a vast quantity of data, some of the more fundamental questions in journalism research remain largely unresolved: What shapes the news and the structures of journalism most? Is it politics, economy, or culture? How do the conventional Western values of objective journalism ft in with non-Western cultures? In this article, I would like to propose the creation of a “World Journalism Survey”, modeled after the World Values Survey, for a better map of the cultural diferences in journalism practices around the world.

In Germany, the study of journalism has a long tradition. Löff elholz (2004b) identifi ed the work of the writer and literary historian Robert Eduard Prutz (1816-1872) as being the ancestor of journalism theory. In 1845, long before the establishment of newspaper studies (“Zeitungskunde”) as a fi eld of research, Prutz published “The History of German Journalism.” In later years the theoretical study of journalism was dominated by normative approaches, which continued for many decades. The belief that journalistic talent, similar to artistic talent, lies in the personality of the journalist (see Dovifat 1962) endured well into the 1970’s. At this time the scholarly discussion was mainly centered on the journalist as an individual who could barley live up to the normative expectations placed on news people. The result was a long-lasting (into the 1990s) array of often romantic demands on journalists which they could hardly fulfi ll.