Assessing the discipline : an analysis of Australian journalism review articles 2000-2010

In recent years, there has been much discussion about the quality of research published by Australian journalism academics, without much empirical evidence about what kind of work the field actually engages in. This paper attempts to map the relatively young field of Australian journalism research by presenting the results of a comprehensive meta-analysis of articles published in the Australian Journalism Review between 2000 and 2010. Our findings show that, contrary to evidence elsewhere, a gender balance exists in terms of absolute numbers of authors, although a "glass-ceiling effect" is still discernible. Queensland universities dominate the publications, and most studies employ qualitative rather than quantitative methods. Journalism education is the most popular topic, yet a large variety of topics are evident overall. Despite a heavy focus on Australia, and to a smaller extent New Zealand, the journal also displays a sizeable international touch.