Perceptions of the media's role and job satisfaction: a survey of journalists in Xinjiang

ABSTRACT

Based on a comprehensive survey, this study presents a portrait of working journalists in Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region in China. A typical Xinjiang journalist in this survey is a well-educated, local minority, married woman in her mid-thirties with limited experience living inland or overseas. Compared with their counterparts in the coastal regions, they are more loyal to their media organizations, have lower incomes, and are less satisfied with their jobs. Xinjiang journalists surveyed have strong political awareness, high degrees of self-censorship and divided views on journalistic professionalism. Their professional aspirations influence their job satisfaction through various mechanisms, echoing ethnic variations. Among surveyed journalists, those who agree with the watchdog function of the media have higher levels of extrinsic satisfaction; journalists who emphasize the propaganda function of the media enjoy higher intrinsic satisfaction; while journalists who subscribe to the information function of the media are more satisfied with their relationships with co-workers. In addition, journalists who are supportive of local media are more satisfied with their jobs, in all respects. These empirical findings offer a window into further discussion of the social and political dynamics of the region.

KEYWORDS:

• journalists
• job satisfaction
• professional aspirations
• journalistic professionalism
• journalism culture
• Xinjiang Uyghur Autonomous Region

Acknowledgements

The authors thank Mei Yang, Chun Yang, Pei Zhi, Benjamin Ross, Emma Moore, Xiaomeng Geng and Weiqi Guo for their assistance. The authors also appreciate the editors and reviewers’ insightful suggestions.

Disclosure statement

No potential conflict of interest was reported by the author(s).

Additional information

Funding

The work described in this paper was supported by a grant from the Research Grants Council of the Hong Kong Special Administrative Region, China (Project No. CityU 11608717) and the fund for building-world-class universities of Renmin University of China (No. 2019)

Notes on contributors

Xiaoning Han

Xiaoning Han is Associate Professor and Deputy Dean of the School of Journalism and Communication, research fellow at the Research Center of Journalism and Social Development, in Renmin University of China. His research interests include new media effects, media industry and regulation, media production, and journalists and media workers. He has published four books and over 50 journal articles in Chinese and has launched several surveys on journalists over China. He worked on secondment as Deputy Dean in the School of Journalism and Communication at Xinjiang University, in the Xinjiang Uygur Autonomous Region of China (2015-16). He was also a visiting scholar in the Annenberg School for Communication at the University of Pennsylvania (2011-12). Dr. Han obtained his BA in Journalism (2002), MA in Communication (2004) and PhD in Journalism & Communication (2007), all from Renmin University of China.

Fen Lin

Fen Lin is Associate Professor at the Department of Media and Communication, committee member of Center for Communication Research, Assistant Dean of School of Graduate Studies in City University of Hong Kong. Her research interest includes media and social change, media-court relation, political sociology, communication technology and policy innovation. Her articles have been published in various journals and edited books, and she has received prizes and honors including the Visiting Scholarship of Columbia University, Top Faculty Paper Award of the International Communication Association, William Rainey Harper and Social Science Visiting Committee Fellow, and Robert E. Park Lectureship Award of the University of Chicago. Dr. Lin obtained her BA in Economics from Peking University; MS in Statistics and PhD in Sociology from the University of Chicago.