The efficacy of professional experience in the ethnographic investigation of production

Abstract

ABSTRACTThis article addresses the general problem of gaining access to media production settings for ethnographic research, and discusses evidence that professional media production experience in the field of study is increasingly becoming an essential criterion in gaining access for long-term ethnographic investigations. The question of prior experience further relates closely to the classic quandary of participant observation versus ‘pure’ observation of media production. The authors explore dilemmas posed by a decrease in scholarly distance, such as the potential loss of objectivity and an increased researcher effect due to intimacy with research subjects. The article reflects on the authors’ experiences as ethnographic researchers and former practitioners and the extent to which prior professional experience facilitated or inhibited ethnographic investigation as well as on the views and comments of contemporary media production researchers informally surveyed by the authors.