Journalists and scholars: A short manifesto

Abstract

Media and journalism practitioners and academics do not and should not do the same thing. Their approach to what they do – and the result – is entirely different. Yet many academics see journalists as their ‘subjects’, or the targets of their research. Despite this, scholars rarely have practitioners in mind when writing and publishing their research. The language they use, as well as the methodologies, philosophies and theories they employ, are all alien to journalists and the way they operate. As a result, practitioners pay little heed to the work of academics. They see their job as providing – in simple language – the kind of information and analysis that will allow citizens to make the most informed choices in the way they live their lives. This editorial note outlines how practitioners view academic research and what they think academics need to do to make their work relevant, useful and practical. Second, it highlights the hurdles that prevent the two sides from bridging the existing gaps. Third, it proposes three important ideas as to how the two camps can work together to meet the editorial goal of the Journal of Applied Journalism and Media Studies (AJMS), which is, ‘devoted to research with an applied angle in which a clear link is made between the prevalent theories and paradigms media and communication scholars work with, and the real world where media and communication activities take place’.