Journalists in the 2020s: Two thirds of UK journalists experience hate speech, finds new study

Two thirds of journalists in the UK have experienced hate speech, according to a new report co-edited by Dr Neil Thurman, Senior Honorary Research Fellow in Journalism at City St George’s, University of London.

The UK Journalists in the 2020s study gives a temperature check of the industry.

A nationally representative sample of 1,130 UK journalists in 2023 were surveyed on their demographics, how they work, how they use technology and experience safety threats, and asked for their views on editorial ethics and their role in society.

It found that journalism in the UK remains white and elite. Just 4% of UK journalists are Black or Asian, compared with 13% of the UK population. Only 12% come from working-class backgrounds. For context, about 20% of the UK workforce worked in working-class jobs and around 50% in professional ones.

The industry is becoming more insecure. Only 65% of journalists had permanent job contracts—a nine percentage point drop since 2015.

Nearly all UK journalists now produce content for multiple platforms—on average, more than five. Although this shows adaptability, the demands of working across platforms can be gruelling. The more platforms a journalist worked across, the greater their concern for their mental and emotional wellbeing. Still, three-quarters of journalists continue to produce for print.

Between 90% and 95% of journalists used social media for newsgathering and to promote their work. However, less than a third had never experienced hate speech, making it the most commonly reported safety threat.

The study found a shift in journalists’ attitudes toward their role in society. Over 80% expressed a strong belief in the need for interpretation—adding context to help audiences understand the facts—while nearly 70% believed objectivity is still possible in reporting. Although “being a detached observer” remains valued, it has become less central since 2015.

Monitoring and scrutinising those in power was considered more important by journalists working at legacy media organisations like The Guardian and The Times, compared to those at internet-native outlets like HuffPost.

Publishing stories containing unverified information has become slightly more acceptable than it was a decade ago, which the study authors link to the relentless pace of online news.

Compared to their international peers (e.g., in Finland and Sweden), UK journalists are more likely to consider it acceptable to accept gifts like free dinners from sources.

Panel speakers at the report launch event at City St George’s included:

• Mitali Mukherjee, Director of the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism and event moderator
• Dr Glenda Cooper, Head of Journalism at City St George’s
• Dr Neil Thurman, Senior Honorary Research Fellow in Journalism at City St George’s
• Robyn Vinter, North of England Correspondent, The Guardian
• Kira Richards, travel and food journalist at National Geographic Traveller.

One issue raised in the report is the lack of a clear pathway for working-class and younger journalists to enter permanent roles at national outlets.

Kira Richards, who graduated from City St George’s three years ago, completed three internships before landing a job at the Financial Times. Her six months of fact-checking there continue to benefit her current work at National Geographic Traveller.

Press Gazette reported that almost 300 local newspapers have closed since 2005, removing many of the early training grounds for national journalists. Dr Thurman reflected:

So much advertising spend has moved from traditional newspapers to online outlets that aren’t employing many journalists.

Structurally, that’s something we think about.

How do we support local journalism which provides reporters a training ground?