On the cusp between global and local: Young journalists at the Straits Times

This article portrays the induction process of young journalists into the newsroom at the Singaporean English daily, The Straits Times. The enquiry, part of on ongoing world-wide study, is premised on the fact that professional journalistic education is greatly influenced by the newsroom socialisation process. The Straits Times is bound to its parent company’s editorial policy, which has as its “main concern the survival and continuing success of the Republic of Singapore”. This editorial policy impacts on what and how the young journalists learn. Front-end controls make the young reporters work in close cooperation with their assigned supervisor. This way the young reporters are inducted into the style of the paper, and its ethical requirements. These, unlike at other researched papers, are learned on the job. However, within these perimeters, the young journalists feel no less ownership of their stories than do young journalists at other papers.