Journalists in Poland. Changes of the system, the image and the profession
The essence of the change affecting the media system in the early 21st century by no means lies only in technological developments, increased content commercialisation and structural changes in media ownership. Nor is it linked exclusively to professional transformations in the status of journalists and journalism as one of the professions associated with professionalised communication. It seems that looking for the causes of the change only on the level of organisations, stratification of ownership structures and growing pressure to generate profit is too simplistic. Similarly, pointing primarily to ethical and professional issues does not explain all the changes affecting journalists and journalism in the world and, in our perspective, in Poland. The author of the article presents a catalogue of areas and levels of change associated with contemporary journalism understood as an element of the media system, profession, industry as well as element of the awareness and self-description of participants in democratic discourse.