Informed citizenship, journalistic professionalism, and democracy: what is old, what is new, and what is unresolved?

Abstract

Journalistic performance in democracy varies depending on a number of factors. Changing governmental policies, economic crises and challenges imposed by new technologies are frequently listed among significant forces curtailing media freedom and affecting ideals of professional journalism. While most comparative analyses apply professionalism criteria defined and framed within Western experience and understanding, lesser attention is paid to the situation in the younger democracies of Central/Eastern Europe where not only contextual conditions are disruptive and rapidly changing, but ways of public access to media and participation in politics are taking novel turns. This essay seeks to fill this gap. It has several ambitions. It starts with a review of the two classical pillars of democracy, namely informed citizenship and journalistic professionalism. It also looks at the experiences of the younger European democracies (predominantly in Central/Eastern Europe) and exposes the main reasons working against the early visions of journalistic professionalisation and rapid democratisation in the region. Finally, it tackles a number of issues that journalism in the older European democracies is also required to address