We are excited to announce the release of the project’s first publication: “On the Impossibility of Managing Diversity as Polyphony: Swedish Radio – a Case Study of the Media Diversity & Inclusion Paradox”.
Over the past few decades, the conceptualization of diversity in the media has evolved from a traditional definition based on psycho-sociodemographic individual differences to one emphasizing polyphony and a plurality of voices. We exemplify this shift’s paradoxical nature on the example of Swedish Radio. While the management of the station is working to manage diversity as polyphony, former and current employees of Swedish Radio come out with a public appeal calling out racism at the station, exposing what scholars refer to as the media diversity & inclusion paradox.
Using a mixed methodology involving quantitative and qualitative research, which includes 11 in-depth interviews with current and former Swedish Radio employees, we draw theoretical inspiration from ethnographically inspired organizational research. We argue why achieving ‘diversity as polyphony’ seems impossible in and through journalism. In doing so, we contribute to research on epistemologies of journalistic news production, news diversity, and the role of media in democratic societies.
Gober, G., & Jupowicz-Ginalska, A. (2023). On the Impossibility of Managing Diversity as Polyphony: Swedish Radio – a Case Study of the Media Diversity & Inclusion Paradox. In F. Haumer, C. Kolo, & J. Mütterlein (Eds.), Reorganization of Media Industries: Digital Transformation, Entrepreneurship and Regulation (pp. 1-13). Munich. The German Communication Association. https://doi.org/10.21241/ssoar.90875
The article is Open Access & can be found here.
The research leading to these results has received funding from the Norwegian Financial Mechanism 2014-2021. Research project no. 2020/37/K/HS2/03773 titled Diversity management as innovation in journalism.
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