Martin Hirst – författare

This book provides journalism students with an easy-to-read yet theoretically rich guide to the dialectics, contradictions, problems, and promises encapsulated in the term ‘journalism ethics’. Offering an overview of a series of crises that have shaken global journalism to its foundations in the last decade, including the coronavirus pandemic, the Black Lives Matter movement, and the 2020 US presidential election, the book explores the structural and ethical problems that shape the journalism industry today. The authors discuss the three principle existential crises that continue to plague the news industry: a failing business model, technological disruption, and growing public mistrust of journalism. Other topics covered include social media ethics, privacy concerns, chequebook journalism, as well as a new analysis of journalism theory that critiques the well-worn tropes of objectivity, the Fourth Estate, freedom of the press, and the marketplace of ideas to develop a sophisticated materialist reimagining of journalism ethics.This is a key text for students of journalism, mass communication, and media ethics, as well as for academics, researchers, and communications professionals interested in contemporary journalism ethics.

This book provides journalism students with an easy-to-read yet theoretically rich guide to the dialectics, contradictions, problems, and promises encapsulated in the term ‘journalism ethics’. Offering an overview of a series of crises that have shaken global journalism to its foundations in the last decade, including the coronavirus pandemic, the Black Lives Matter movement, and the 2020 US presidential election, the book explores the structural and ethical problems that shape the journalism industry today. The authors discuss the three principle existential crises that continue to plague the news industry: a failing business model, technological disruption, and growing public mistrust of journalism. Other topics covered include social media ethics, privacy concerns, chequebook journalism, as well as a new analysis of journalism theory that critiques the well-worn tropes of objectivity, the Fourth Estate, freedom of the press, and the marketplace of ideas to develop a sophisticated materialist reimagining of journalism ethics.This is a key text for students of journalism, mass communication, and media ethics, as well as for academics, researchers, and communications professionals interested in contemporary journalism ethics.

There have never been so many ways of producing news and news-like content. From podcasts, to YouTube, blogs and the phenomenal popularity of social media, seismic shifts are underway in global media.News 2.0 bridges the gap between theory and practice to present an integrated approach to journalism that redefines the profession. Key ideas in journalism theory, political economy and media studies are used to explore the changing cultures of journalism in an historical context.Hirst explains the fragmentation of the mass audience for news products, and how digital commerce has disconnected consumers from real democracy. He argues that journalism requires a restatement of the role of journalists as public intellectuals with a commitment to truth, trust and the public interest.

Journalism Ethics: Arguments and Cases for the 21st Century explores the major ethical dilemmas facing journalists in the digital age. Engaging with both the theory and practice of journalism ethics, this text explains the key ethical concepts and dilemmas in journalism and provides an international range of examples and case studies, considering traditional and social media from a global perspective. Journalism Ethics offers an introductory philosophical underpinning to ethics that traces the history of the freedom of expression from the time of Greek philosophers like Aristotle, through the French and American revolutions, to modern day. Throughout the book Patching and Hirst examine ethically-challenging issues such as deception, trial by media, dealing with sources and privacy intrusion. They also explore continuing ethical fault lines around accuracy, bias, fairness and objectivity, chequebook journalism, the problems of the foreign correspondent, the conflicts between ethics and the law and between journalists and public relations consultants. Concluding with a step-by-step guide to ethical thinking on the job, this textbook is an invaluable resource for students of journalism, media and communication.

Journalism Ethics: Arguments and Cases for the 21st Century explores the major ethical dilemmas facing journalists in the digital age. Engaging with both the theory and practice of journalism ethics, this text explains the key ethical concepts and dilemmas in journalism and provides an international range of examples and case studies, considering traditional and social media from a global perspective. Journalism Ethics offers an introductory philosophical underpinning to ethics that traces the history of the freedom of expression from the time of Greek philosophers like Aristotle, through the French and American revolutions, to modern day. Throughout the book Patching and Hirst examine ethically-challenging issues such as deception, trial by media, dealing with sources and privacy intrusion. They also explore continuing ethical fault lines around accuracy, bias, fairness and objectivity, chequebook journalism, the problems of the foreign correspondent, the conflicts between ethics and the law and between journalists and public relations consultants. Concluding with a step-by-step guide to ethical thinking on the job, this textbook is an invaluable resource for students of journalism, media and communication.

There’s No Good News: Journalism, Crisis, and Philosophy of Praxis is a searing critique of contemporary journalism and its complicity in sustaining capitalist hegemony. Drawing on a rich tapestry of political philosophy, media theory and historical analysis, the book reworks the classic ‘propaganda model’ of Herman and Chomsky through a Marxist lens, introducing the dialectical potential of Gramscian ‘common sense’ as a tool of critique and renewal. At its core, this book argues that journalism, far from being a neutral arbiter of truth, functions as a powerful ideological apparatus—manufacturing consent, distorting reality and reinforcing dominant class interests.Set against the backdrop of the Gaza conflict and the global crisis of capitalism, the book dissects the failures of Western media to report truthfully on war, politics and resistance. It exposes how propaganda, failures of logic and the illusion of objectivity shape public discourse, while journalists—sometimes unwittingly—serve as ‘quotidian intellectuals’ of the ruling class. The text challenges the foundational myths of journalism, including the Fourth Estate and the marketplace of ideas, and critiques the normative philosophical frameworks that underpin journalistic practice. In a time when the ‘moral algebra’ that animates freedom of speech is weaponised to silence dissent, the book interrogates the limits and contradictions of liberal democratic ideals. It explores how speech, protest and journalism are policed under the guise of combating extremism, revealing a chilling erosion of civil liberties.Through a dialectical and materialist approach, the book redefines truth as historically contingent, socially constructed and inseparable from class struggle. Drawing on Antonio Gramsci’s ‘philosophy of praxis’, the text insists that truth must be more than an intellectual exercise—it must be a guide to action. Journalism, reimagined through a materialist and dialectical lens, becomes a tool for informing the public and empowering the oppressed. This vision of ‘integral journalism’ demands that reporters commit to truth as a weapon in the struggle for justice. With philosophical rigour and political urgency, There’s No Good News offers a bold vision for journalism beyond the confines of propaganda, towards a future where truth serves liberation, not power.

There’s No Good News: Journalism, Crisis, and Philosophy of Praxis is a searing critique of contemporary journalism and its complicity in sustaining capitalist hegemony. Drawing on a rich tapestry of political philosophy, media theory and historical analysis, the book reworks the classic ‘propaganda model’ of Herman and Chomsky through a Marxist lens, introducing the dialectical potential of Gramscian ‘common sense’ as a tool of critique and renewal. At its core, this book argues that journalism, far from being a neutral arbiter of truth, functions as a powerful ideological apparatus—manufacturing consent, distorting reality and reinforcing dominant class interests.Set against the backdrop of the Gaza conflict and the global crisis of capitalism, the book dissects the failures of Western media to report truthfully on war, politics and resistance. It exposes how propaganda, failures of logic and the illusion of objectivity shape public discourse, while journalists—sometimes unwittingly—serve as ‘quotidian intellectuals’ of the ruling class. The text challenges the foundational myths of journalism, including the Fourth Estate and the marketplace of ideas, and critiques the normative philosophical frameworks that underpin journalistic practice. In a time when the ‘moral algebra’ that animates freedom of speech is weaponised to silence dissent, the book interrogates the limits and contradictions of liberal democratic ideals. It explores how speech, protest and journalism are policed under the guise of combating extremism, revealing a chilling erosion of civil liberties.Through a dialectical and materialist approach, the book redefines truth as historically contingent, socially constructed and inseparable from class struggle. Drawing on Antonio Gramsci’s ‘philosophy of praxis’, the text insists that truth must be more than an intellectual exercise—it must be a guide to action. Journalism, reimagined through a materialist and dialectical lens, becomes a tool for informing the public and empowering the oppressed. This vision of ‘integral journalism’ demands that reporters commit to truth as a weapon in the struggle for justice. With philosophical rigour and political urgency, There’s No Good News offers a bold vision for journalism beyond the confines of propaganda, towards a future where truth serves liberation, not power.

So you want to be a Journalist? Unplugged is a fully revised guide to the world of journalism. This new edition of Bruce Grundy's guide for journalists takes us through new media's impact on the structure and practice of journalism today, with its 24-hour news cycle of multi-platform, interactive media audiences. The book contains instructions on writing for news media as well as practical advice on all facets of reporting. Skills involved in finding information, interviewing, writing news and features, research and investigation, basic subbing, layout and design are covered, along with the essentials of grammar, the law, and practical tips on ethical and professional behaviour. New to the second edition: • online journalism incorporated throughout the text • vignettes and case studies that bring the text to life • examples from Australian, New Zealand and international media • extended section on ethics • extensively updated research section, to help students recognise quality internet research • extensive companion website including further writing practice

Public trust in the once powerful institutions of the News Establishment is declining. Sharing, curating and producing news via social media channels may offer an alternative, if the difficult process of verification can be mastered by social journalists operating outside of the newsroom. Navigating Social Journalism examines the importance of digital media literacy and how we should all be students of the media. Author Martin Hirst emphasizes the responsibility that individuals should take when consuming the massive amounts of media we encounter on a daily basis. This includes information we gather from online media, streaming, podcasts, social media and other formats. The tools found here will help students critically evaluate any incoming media and, in turn, produce their own media with their own message. This book aims both to help readers understand the current state of news media through theory and provide practical techniques and skills to partake in constructive social journalism.

Public trust in the once powerful institutions of the News Establishment is declining. Sharing, curating and producing news via social media channels may offer an alternative, if the difficult process of verification can be mastered by social journalists operating outside of the newsroom. Navigating Social Journalism examines the importance of digital media literacy and how we should all be students of the media. Author Martin Hirst emphasizes the responsibility that individuals should take when consuming the massive amounts of media we encounter on a daily basis. This includes information we gather from online media, streaming, podcasts, social media and other formats. The tools found here will help students critically evaluate any incoming media and, in turn, produce their own media with their own message. This book aims both to help readers understand the current state of news media through theory and provide practical techniques and skills to partake in constructive social journalism.