Journalism in the Time of Global Crisis: Analyzing Hazardous Experiences of Bangladeshi Journalists during COVID-19
DOI:
https://doi.org/10.21831/informasi.v55i2.84027Keywords:
Covid-19, Bangladesh, Journalists, Global Crisis, Mainstream MediaAbstract
Since the outbreak of the COVID-19 pandemic, traditional journalism has undergone a profound transformation. Journalists had to battle not only the spread of false information but also a slew of new obstacles they had never encountered before. This study demonstrates what sort of challenges Bangladeshi mainstream journalists had to endure and how they continued journalism amid the global crisis. The study adopted a mixed-method approach. 60 working journalists -20 each from print, electronic, and online media- were surveyed profoundly. Also, in-depth interviews with three journalist leaders were conducted to investigate this matter deeply. The findings suggested four types of challenges were the most dominant- health, professional, financial, and technological. Most of the respondents echoed similarly that economic challenges hit them the hardest. Alongside this, the unpreparedness of both the journalists and news organizations to face such a sudden global crisis led to severe physical and mental health distress.
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