The Gap between Educators and Professional Journalists

Abstract

Journalism education has been subjected to criticism from professional journalists and journalism for years for not doing enough to prepare students for media jobs. Highton (1967), for example, wrote more than three decades ago, Newspapering is becoming a sidelight, if not an afterthought, of journalism (p. 10). More recently, several reports made for organizations of professional journalists have attacked journalism education. For example, Electronic Media Career Preparation Study (Roper Organization, 1987) concluded that broadcast education fell short in providing practical knowledge for real world (p. 5). At about same time, a survey of 1,900 journalism faculty by Associated Press Managing Editors Association found that approximately half of felt there was antipathy or estrangement between themselves and working press. Mabrey (1988), however, concluded: There is no argument that journalism educators, by and large, and editors, by and large, want same thing: young reporters and editors who read, inquire, write, spell, and have an inner sense of cause. The problem here may be in (p. 42). The rhetoric continued in a 1990 study by American Society of Newspaper Editors Committee on Education for Journalism, which concluded: Looking at journalism education through eyes of editors ... one finds signs of dissatisfaction that should be troubling to both ASNE and educators (ASNE, 1990, p.1). Dennis (1990) summarized professional journalists' complaints this way: They do not like what is taught in communication schools, and they do not much like or trust those who teach it (p. 9). Both Lovell (1987) and Dennis (1988) called debate between journalism and professional journalists over content of media education the dialogue of deaf. Lindley (1988) urged journalism faculty to bridge gap between themselves and professional journalists. However, Weinberg (1990) wrote that doing so would be difficult. He noted, many newsroom professionals are far less optimistic than I, seeing not a glimmer of hope in evidence I have presented (p. 28). Indeed, harsh criticism of journalism education continued unabated. For example, publisher of Electronic Media called on journalism schools to close reality gap that separates journalism schools from journalism and suggested that journalism schools might fall victim to academic Darwinism if they don't make themselves more relevant (Alridge, 1992, p. 30). Also, chief executive officer of National Newspaper Association told participants at 1993 convention of Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication (AEJMC) that journalism were ignoring needs of newspaper industry and were soaking up tremendous resources and intelligent people's time writing things that industry doesn't need (Corrigan, 1993, p. 44). Dennis (1994) stated about such criticisms that the same tired debates continue decade after decade. These range from whether communication and journalism schools should exist at all to relative balance between theory and practice. The debate is deeply class-conscious and apparently unending (p. 8). In face of continued criticism of journalism education by professional journalists, AEJMC Vision 2000 Task Force concluded, the separation of journalism and mass communication units from their industrial moorings was becoming increasingly defensible (AEJMC, 1994, p. 21). Other journalism educators, however, have joined professional journalists in criticizing journalism education for distancing itself from needs of media professions. In a report funded by The Freedom Forum, for example, Medsger (1996) concluded that journalism education had drifted too far away from its practical roots. …