THE INFLUENCE OF PROFESSIONAL VARIABLES ON JOURNALISTS’ USES AND VIEWS OF SOCIAL MEDIA

Abstract

This article explores the uses of social media by journalists and their views about these tools in four European countries. It examines how professional variables, namely media sector, length of professional career and size of organisation, influence use of and views about social media. The analysis is based on findings from a questionnaire survey of journalists in Finland, Germany, Sweden and the United Kingdom. It demonstrates that patterns of uses and opinions, while sharing some features, do vary across the four countries, with UK journalists being the most avid users of social media and those with the most positive attitudes towards these tools. The findings also reveal that influences of the examined professional variables vary and they do not explain overall patterns in social media use and attitudes. Thus, these variables do affect practices in some contexts, but they do not provide an overall explanation of social media appropriation in professional practices. The article argues that journalists, similar to audiences, are increasingly fragmented and their professional practices are influenced by a myriad of different variables.