Assoc. Prof. Jesse Owen Hearns-Branaman 

 International Journalism/Media and Communication Program,

 Beijing Normal University - Hong Kong Baptist University United International College (UIC) 

Research Area:
Comparative media; Critical linguistics; Discourse analysis; Epistemology; Ideology; Political economy

Brief introduction of your research experience:

Dr. Jesse Owen Hearns-Branaman is an Associate Professor and the Programme Director of Media and Communication Studies at  UIC. He holds a PhD from the University of Leeds, an MA in  International Communication Studies from the University of Nottingham,  and a BA in Radio and Television from San Francisco State University. He  has taught communication, media, and journalism studies at the  University of Sheffield, University of Leeds, and Leeds Beckett  University in the UK, Zhejiang Wanli University and the University of  Nottingham in China, and the National Institute of Development  Administration in Thailand. His research interests include  post-structuralism, ideology, critical linguistics, political economy of  news, comparative journalism, and epistemological theory. He has  published two books, Journalism and the Philosophy of Truth: Beyond  Objectivity and Balance (Routledge: 2016), and The Political Economy of  News in China: Manufacturing Harmony (Lexington: 2015).

Speech Title:
Comparing Journalistic Professionalism in China, Thailand, USA, and UK

Abstract:

While it is often argued that journalism should have universal professional standards, it is clear from the diversity of the output of news media outlets within countries and between different countries that this is not the case. The function and performance of news media professionals is dependent on each country’s individual media ecosystem made up of the interaction of government, politics, economy, society, education, and the journalists themselves.

Evidence gathered from interviews with journalists in China, Thailand, the USA and the UK will be presented in this lecture to show to what extent journalists’ discourse about topics such as truth, ethics, and power is similar and to what extent it varies. The sociological and political-economic conditions which underpin these differences and parallels will then be examined. In this way we can get a more holistic view of the influences on news media production which will, in turn, inform a more sustainable way to compare journalistic professionalism around the world.

Personal WebSites：

https://dhss.uic.edu.cn/en/info/1158/2599.htm