Amanda Williams, Maria Victoria Guglietti and Sally Haney, all of Mount Royal University, conducted a case study of how students in an undergraduate Canadian university’s journalism program are conceptualizing the journalistic profession in the contemporary context. The study is the first stage in a multiyear investigation of students’ development of a professional identity.

The students’ reflections reveal that the professional identity of journalists is contested on many levels in different ways. Their views of the profession are largely aligned with high-modernist views, but some of the ideals (objectivity, the role of the public watchdog, and ethical practice) are being negotiated.

The article “Journalism students’ professional identity in the making: Implications for education and practice” was published by Journalism. It is available here.

Picture: Your gadgets by Serge Seva, licence: CC BY 2.0