University of Tennessee, Knoxville TRACE: Tennessee Research and Creative Exchange Doctoral Dissertations Graduate School 8-2011 Journalism under Siege: An Investigation into How Journalists in Macedonia Understand Professionalism and Their Role in the Development of Democracy Katerina Spasovska [email protected] Follow this and additional works at: https://trace.tennessee.edu/utk_graddiss Part of the Journalism Studies Commons Recommended Citation Spasovska, Katerina, "Journalism under Siege: An Investigation into How Journalists in Macedonia Understand Professionalism and Their Role in the Development of Democracy. " PhD diss., University of Tennessee, 2011. https://trace.tennessee.edu/utk_graddiss/1128 This Dissertation is brought to you for free and open access by the Graduate School at TRACE: Tennessee Research and Creative Exchange. It has been accepted for inclusion in Doctoral Dissertations by an authorized administrator of TRACE: Tennessee Research and Creative Exchange. For more information, please contact [email protected]. To the Graduate Council: I am submitting herewith a dissertation written by Katerina Spasovska entitled "Journalism under Siege: An Investigation into How Journalists in Macedonia Understand Professionalism and Their Role in the Development of Democracy." I have examined the final electronic copy of this dissertation for form and content and recommend that it be accepted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy, with a major in Communication and Information. Peter Gross, Major Professor We have read this dissertation and recommend its acceptance: Catherine A. Luther, Benjamin J. Bates, and Anthony J. Nownes Accepted for the Council: Carolyn R. Hodges Vice Provost and Dean of the Graduate School (Original signatures are on file with official studentecor r ds.) To the Graduate Council: I am submitting herewith a dissertation written by Katerina Spasovska entitled “Journalism under Siege: An Investigation into How Journalists in Macedonia Understand Professionalism and Their Role in the Development of Democracy.” I have examined the final electronic copy of this dissertation for form and content and recommend that it be accepted in partial fulfillment of the requirements for the degree of Doctor of Philosophy, with a major in Communication and Information. ______________________________ Dr. Peter Gross, Major Professor We have read this dissertation and recommend its acceptance: ______________________________ Dr. Catherine Luther ______________________________ Dr. Benjamin Bates ______________________________ Dr. Anthony Nownes Accepted for the Council ______________________________ Carolyn R. Hodges Vice Provost and Dean of the Graduate School Journalism under Siege: An Investigation into How Journalists in Macedonia Understand Professionalism and Their Role in the Development of Democracy A Dissertation Presented for the Doctor of Philosophy Degree The University of Tennessee, Knoxville Katerina Spasovska August, 2011 ii Copyright © 2011 by Katerina Spasovska All rights reserved. iii Dedication I dedicate this dissertation to my beautiful family – my husband, Iso Rusi; my 6-year-old daughter, Sara; and my 3-year-old son, Aljosha. Your love, encouragement, patience, and support made possible the successful completion of this project. I am eternally thankful for each of you. iv Acknowledgments I am deeply indebted to the four professors who served on my dissertation committee. To Dr. Peter Gross, my committee chair: Your knowledge and wisdom on media and journalism in Eastern Europe enabled me to focus my topic and organize my writing, two factors that led to the successful completion of this project. Your editorial eye and constructive criticism throughout the process greatly improved this work. Thank you for your encouragement and for seeing me to the finish line. To Dr. Catherine Luther: Your knowledge of international journalism brought an important perspective to this study. Thank you for your support and the valuable comments in the process of writing this manuscript. To Dr. Benjamine Bates: Your knowledge of issues in journalism and methodology helped me find my way through grounded theory. Thank you for your comments that challenged me to think more clearly about every aspect of this study; I’m a better researcher because of it. To Dr. Anthony Nownes: Thank you for your patience, understanding and support during this process. Your keen editorial eye and love for the English language made me more aware of my writing. Your knowledge of political parties and interest groups made me more aware of the impact such groups have on media especially in a country like Macedonia. I also want to thank the journalists who participated in the study and those with whom I consulted and discussed during the research and writing of the project. Your candidness and iv willingness to devote time to me are appreciated. I hope you and other journalists and media scholars in Macedonia find this study beneficial. I would like to thank my parents Dafina and Trajan Spasovski and my sisters Svetlana and Vesna for encouraging me to pursue my dreams and believing in me all the way. I would also want to thank my colleagues and friends Allyson de Vito, Arsev Umur Aydinoglu, Lei Wu, and Charlie Gee for their support throughout my studies. Special thanks to my friends Joey Kok and Pam Strickland who patiently copy edited the numerous drafts of this manuscript. vi Abstract The financial decline of the traditional media; technological advances and 24/7 news cycles; and the rise of new media are transforming journalism in ways that are seen as problematic and leading towards less professional practices. In Eastern Europe this transformation tops off the still ongoing systemic transformation from communist systems, ongoing since the late 1980s. This study examines how journalists in Macedonia perceive their profession today, what they consider professional journalism, and how they define their role in Macedonian society and democracy. Macedonian media system is fragmented and financially fragile, providing an opening for political and business influence. Foreign capital in the media market is limited and only present in the print media. The ethnic diversity of the country is reflected in the mass media, thus there are number of media working in languages other than Macedonian. The research takes a humanistic approach, employing grounded theory. The researcher discovered five themes in the analysis of interviews with 32 participants: (1) Ideal vs. reality, or when journalists do not behave according to professional standards, even as they define them; (2) Self-censorship, as a rule; (3) The blame game, with older journalists blaming younger journalists, and vice versa, for the problems experienced in journalism; (4) Education, the acknowledged and ignored problem; and (5) Agents of change that cannot change anything, another exhibit of the tensions between the ideal and desired journalistic roles, and reality. These themes constitute the theoretical framework of journalism in transformation. Table of Contents CHAPTER I: INTRODUCTION .................................................................................................................. 1 Outline of the Research and Expectations .............................................................................................. 10 Background ............................................................................................................................................. 12 Rationale for the Study ........................................................................................................................... 21 CHAPTER II: A REVIEW OF RELATED LITERATURE ...................................................................... 29 Journalism ............................................................................................................................................... 29 Professionalism and Professionalization ................................................................................................. 30 Journalistic Autonomy and Influences on News Content ....................................................................... 38 Journalism Education .............................................................................................................................. 42 Journalistic Standards and Ethics ............................................................................................................ 45 Role Perceptions ..................................................................................................................................... 47 Journalism and Media Transformation in Eastern Europe ...................................................................... 51 CHAPTER III : THE MEDIA SYSTEM IN MACEDONIA ...................................................................... 56 Media Fragmentation and Ownership Concentration ............................................................................. 58 Broadcasting System ............................................................................................................................... 60 Print Media .............................................................................................................................................. 65 Journalists and the State of the Profession .............................................................................................. 67 CHAPTER IV: THEORETICAL