Perceived influences and trust in political institutions of public vs private television journalists in Spain

Abstract

The goal of this paper is to describe the level of trust in political institutions and perceived influences among Spanish TV journalists, comparing TV vs. other media, as well as private TV vs. public TV. As part of the international Worlds of Journalism Study we surveyed 390 Spanish journalists (70 from the TV sector). We found that: private TV journalists had significantly higher levels of trust in government than those from public TV; and that TV journalists were more influenced by political and organisational dimensions than those working for other media. Moreover, data shows that private TV journalists perceived economic and group of reference influences to be higher when compared with those from public TV. In all cases, professional and organisational influences were higher than political, economic and group of reference influences. We discuss how media type and ownership were related to journalists’ perceptions of their own profession and cultural routines. Finally, more theoretical efforts are suggested in order to build models that explain journalists’ perceived influences and trust.