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E-book Journalism as the Fourth Emergency : Service Trauma and Resilience

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Penilaian

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Trauma in journalism is not a new phenomenon? From the battlefields to the city streets, humani-tarian crises to the courtrooms, trauma has plagued the profession whether directly or indirectly, vicariously or through lived experience, since the ink dried on the first newspaper sheets in 1566?A systematic review of studies conducted between 2010 and 2022 revealed significant numbers of journalists who reported either PTSD, PTSD symptoms, depression, and/or substance use (Flannery, 2022)? Whilst it could be expected that these journalists would include war reporters and foreign correspondents given the nature of their job, it also includes “lower level” reporters whose jobs are perhaps not perceived as being so glamorous, but who cover, day in day out, the epitome of human misery? The build-up of this work-related trauma has long been considered to be just part of the job, but the increasing numbers of those leaving the industry because of mental health disorders (MHD) or associated medical conditions, to say nothing of new starters resigning after being forced to watch graphic videos just days into the job, all point to a broken, or even non-existent, support system that we can no longer ignore? If journalism, an essential and key part of democracy, is to be preserved, this darker side of the industry must be addressed?Journalism has been called the fourth emergency service, rushing towards the danger rather than away? Unlike the fire, police and ambulance services, however, the role of a journalist is not to provide immediate help but rather to observe and report? An inaction that some would say is traumatic in itself (Osofsky et al?, 2005; Osmann et al?, 2021)? However, journalists suffer in similar ways to the emer -gency services, witnessing the same horrors and victims (Cote & Simpson, 2000), but are additionally affected by their inability to act and provide direct help immediately? Moreover, unlike the emergency services, counselling or mental health support is not routinely offered to journalists?The demand for trauma training is now at the forefront of the industry debate? In the UK, the National Council of Training for Journalists (NCTJ) has included safety and resilience in its accredi-tation requirements for training centres for 2024? This means that all journalism training courses that intend to deliver the NCTJ diploma must demonstrate how they educate their students in trauma iteracy, resilience and safety awareness, both physically and mentally? The aim is to equip the next generation of journalists for the ever-growing harsh realities they face, as an increasing number of jour-nalists work remotely, or hybrid, without the camaraderie or immediate support from senior and other journalists? Trauma is no longer seen as “just part of the job”; instead, there is an emerging recognition from newsrooms that reporters need to learn how to take care of themselves and their own mental health to do the job to the best of their abilityAnd this starts in the classroom. The debate about trauma and its impact on journalists has been gaining attention over recent decades, and a substantial body of literature already exists concerning the psychological and emotional effects that journalists are exposed to as a result of work-related stressors?The Dart Centre (2007) makes the distinction between stressful and traumatic incidents, defining trauma as follows:Any event to which a person is connected, that is unexpected, outside that person’s usual range of human experience, and that involves some form of loss, injury or threat of injury, whether actual or perceived?Post Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), a narrower definition of trauma, is widely used as a trauma identifier and emerges frequently throughout this book’s chapters? It is defined by the American Psychiatric Association (APA, 2023) as follows:A psychiatric disorder that may occur in people who have experienced or witnessed a traumatic event, series of events or set of circumstances? An individual may experience this as emotionally or physically harmful or life-threatening and may affect mental, physical, social, and/or spiritual well-being?The APA goes on to emphasise that whilst PTSD may have been initially linked to combat veterans, it can manifest in all peoples, ages, locations and jobs? However, the academic literature suggests that PTSD is more likely to arise as a result of severe stressors such as war or terrorist attacks (Backholm & Björkqvist, 2010; Brewin et al?, 2000)? The relevance to journalists and their daily work cannot go unnoticed?Osmann et al. (2021), in their mapping review, which complements systematic reviews by Macdonald et al? (2017) and Aoki et al? (2103), identified seven themes according to which aca -demic literature on trauma grouped potential triggers of trauma among journalists? These include war reporting, terror attacks, state-sponsored violence, natural disasters, local unrest, domestic stressors, and exposure to images of violence? The severity of a particular trigger compounds the trauma that is suffered? Added to this is the cumulative effect of repeated trauma? The cumulative effects of trauma can have different definitions, including discrete traumas experienced over long periods of time, repeti-tions of the same trauma, or the effect of all traumatic events of all types over a lifetime? Whatever the definition, repeated, cumulative or prolonged, exposure to traumatic events may generate more serious adverse outcomes than single events of trauma (Turner, Finkelhor, & Ormrod, 2010)?Journalists are at increased risk of exposure to potentially trauma-triggering events and therefore also to the aggregate effect of the multiple trauma types mentioned above? Their emotional, psychologi-cal and behavioural reactions can range widely from PTSD (Feinstein et al?, 2002; Flores Morales et al?, 2012; Lee et al?, 2018; Newman et al? 2003) to depression (Feinstein, 2012; Feinstein et al?, 2002) and maladaptive coping strategies such as alcohol or drug abuse (Buchanan & Keats, 2011; Feinstein et al?, 2002, 2016)? While informal coping strategies abound among journalists in their attempts to address the traumatic effects of their role, further research is needed not only to understand the multiple layers of trauma experienced by journalists but also to address them by incorporating training and awareness into teaching curricula.

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Ketersediaan

Informasi Detail

Judul Seri

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No. Panggil

616.85 AHM j

Penerbit

Switzerland : Peter Lang International Academic Publishers., 2024

Deskripsi Fisik

280 hlm

Bahasa

English

ISBN/ISSN

9781636671987

Klasifikasi

616.85

Tipe Isi

text

Tipe Media

computer

Tipe Pembawa

online resource

Edisi

-

Subjek

Miscellaneous Diseases of Nervous System

Info Detail Spesifik

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Pernyataan Tanggungjawab

-

Versi lain/terkait

Lampiran Berkas

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