A study focusing on journalistic production and the working and living conditions of journalists.
The author, Rita Araújo, a researcher at CECS, provides an abstract of her most recent publication as follows:
“Journalism has faced countless challenges and transformations in recent decades, not only due to technological and digital developments, but also because of structural constraints within the media industry, which is currently characterised by increasing concentration of ownership and a visible collapse of business models. The deterioration of working conditions, job insecurity and violence against journalists can contribute to emotional strain, impacting not only their physical and mental health, well-being and quality of life, but also the quality of journalism itself. Whilst many of these issues stem from structural problems within the media industry, such as declining sales and advertising revenue, there are contextual factors that exacerbate the situation. The COVID-19 pandemic was one such moment, and several surveys of journalists were already pointing to a growing deterioration in the conditions under which journalism was being practised (Araújo et al., 2023; Camponez et al., 2020). However, there was as yet no data available to help us understand the emotional strain experienced by journalists and its relationship with the factors outlined here. The aim of this study was to understand Portuguese journalists’ perceptions of emotional strain in their daily practice, its causes, consequences, and the existence of support strategies. To this end, semi-structured interviews were conducted with 50 journalists from various types of media organisations.
The results reveal a worrying reality, one that should give us pause for thought as a society. Journalists in precarious employment are not free journalists, just as those who fear for their safety are not free journalists either.”
The book is available as open access here.
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