Identity Fluidity in Current Journalism: the View of Professionals.

The article aims to identify the changes that occur in the professional identity of journalists and also the factors of these changes. For this purpose, expert interviews were conducted with acting Russian journalists in two groups – with more than 20 and less than 7 years of experience in the media. The research is based on the hypothesis that at present, the community preserves the basic values and representations on identity derived from the traditional professional ideology, and at the same time variety and individualization in relation to the profession are increasing. One of the differentiation factors is the age and the related experience in the media industry. As a result of the study, the hypothesis was mainly confirmed. On the one hand, the ideals of citizenship, public service, and moral duty, traditional for the Russian press, are still present in professional ideology and determine identity, but this is more typical for the older generation. On the other hand, there is an increasing tendency to individualization of the profession representations and the choice of a behavior model as well as a deviation from universal standards and norms, which is especially evident among young experts. Thus, there is no grounds to talk about unified identity, whereas in reality it becomes heterogeneous and fluid. This research is an integral part of the comprehensive interuniversity project "Professional Ideology of Journalism" initiated at St. Petersburg State University. The results of expert interviews significantly complement the objective strong data obtained in other sections of the project. [ABSTRACT FROM AUTHOR]