Playing by a Different Set of Rules

Abstract

The notion that journalists in an interconnected world increasingly share values typically associated with the so-called “professional model” has gained considerable currency with scholars arguing that ideas such as a belief in journalistic autonomy, public service, objectivity, and the significance of ethics are widely espoused by journalists on a global scale. Underlying this conceptualization is a taken-for-granted assumption regarding the adoption of journalistic values that originated in Western democracies which neglects how they are embraced in non-Western contexts. This paper examines newsroom values in India’s regional television channels, which have emerged as a major news source in the country. Findings indicate that in the case of Indian regional television, local socio-political and economic factors undermine the adoption of professional norms derived from the Anglo-European model by Indian journalists who see such norms as having little functional value or relevance to their work.