Philosophical considerations

journalism. The philosophical positions of this research are stressed due to that the ontological and epistemological underpinnings illustrate the viewpoints that researchers take regarding ‘reality’ and the knowledge they adopt to answer the research inquiry. The philosophical underpinnings of this research are constructivism and critical theory. As Denzin and Lincoln (2011) mention, constructivism believes ‘a relativist ontology’, ‘a subjectivist epistemology’, and ‘a naturalistic methodology’ (p.13). With

constructivist perspectives, this research assumes ‘multiple realities’ can be interpreted by researchers.

Critical theory, such as Marxism, assumes ‘a materialist-realist ontology’, a

‘subjectivist’ epistemology and a ‘naturalistic’ methodology (Denzin and Lincoln 2011: 14). With the viewpoints of critical theory, the inequality of ‘race, class, and gender’ can be revealed. This research adopted constructivism and critical theory to construct professional practices and the power relations between the government and journalists. The following paragraphs will discuss the ontology, epistemology, and methodology of constructivism and critical theory.

4.1.1Ontological position

The essence of ontology is to consider ‘worldview’ (Creswell 2009: 6) and ‘the nature of the reality’ (Lincoln et al. 2011:102). The ontology of ‘constructivism’ refers to that the realities are ‘not “out there” but socially constructed’ (Parisi 1992: 5-7 as cited in Skinner et al. 2001: 346). ‘Relativism’ stresses that ‘multiple realities’ are constructed by individual subjects (Guba 1996 as cited in Lincoln et al. 2011:102). This means that realities and knowledge are constructed and interpreted by reflecting on the experiences

of subjects (Lincoln et al. 2011:103). Different ontological assumptions and worldviews lead to different processes of thinking and research methods. As Lincoln et al. (2011) have mentioned, constructivists obtain knowledge by interpreting or constructing viewpoints of subjects (p.102). Furthermore, this research leans towards an

‘anti-foundational’ stance. For anti-foundationalists, ‘truth’ or ‘knowledge’ is formed by, and constructed from the ‘agreements’ or ‘negotiations’ between subjects. (Lincoln et al. 2011:120). This study takes a constructivist position to understand the reality of journalists’ professionalism in the nature of governmental paid-for news production. This indicates that the ‘multiple realities’ are constructed between interviewees and me. Although the knowledge that this research explores is not universally true, the reality is constructed based on journalism in the context of Taiwan.

This study assumes not only that the nature of journalists’ professionalism is

constructed, but also that the power relations and historical transformations are affected by the government, the news media and journalists. From this perspective, the

ontological position is ‘critical theory’. According to Lincoln et al. (2011), the reality of critical theory is shaped in particular economic and social structures in which the subjects might not be aware of ‘historical realities’ regarding ‘oppression’ or injustice or they might be aware of these, but ‘unable or unwilling ’ to change due to ‘conflicts’ (p.119). For example, some interviewees might not be aware of the influence of governmental paid-for news, but some might complain about the influence but without the ability to change it. For critical theorists, both ‘social critique’ and ‘social change’ are essential because ‘ the possibility of positive and liberating social change’ might occur (Lincoln et al. 2011:100, 119). This research constructs a ‘historical realism’

(Lincoln et al. 2011:100) of journalism to understand the influence of governmental paid-for news on professionalism with regard to ‘social’, ‘political’ and ‘economic’ values (Lincoln et al. 2011:100).

4.1.2 Epistemological position

After underpinning the ontological positions, the epistemology of this research is also constructivism and critical theory. The epistemology is related to the way in which researchers see knowledge and how the research questions of researchers are generated (Guba and Lincoln 2005; Lincoln et al.2011: 106). According to Lincoln et al. (2011), the epistemology of ‘constructivism’ is ‘subjectivist’, which means that knowledge is shaped by ‘experiences’ and ‘subjects’ (p.104), or by the interactions between

researchers and subjects (Guba 1996 as cited in Lincoln et al. 2011:104). The knowledge of this research is generated by journalists and the researcher.

Furthermore, the epistemology of ‘critical theory’ focuses on the structure of ‘power and control’ (Merriam 1991 as cited in Lincoln et al. 2011:103). According to Lincoln et al. (2011:106-107), critical theorists view knowledge as ‘socially constructed’ by the experiences of subjects (Kilgore 2001:51), and meanwhile, as ‘productive of

fundamental social change’ (Merriam 1991:53 as cited in Lincoln et al. 2011:103). Following the perspectives of critical theory and constructivism, the knowledge of professional journalism is ‘socially constructed’ to explore the ‘power and control’ under the influence of governmental paid-for news production.

subjectivist; however, the subjective and objective dualism is argued. Schwandt (1998) argues that the dichotomy of subject and object should be dissolved in the future

direction of constructivism (p.249). Similarily, Pouliot(2007) mentions that the inquiries of constructivism develop not only ‘subjective’ but also ‘objectified’ knowledge (p.359). Furthermore, Pouliot (2007) agrees with Guzzini (2000) and Adler (2002) with regard to constructivism positions and argues that the reflexivity of social reality and

knowledge is ‘mutually constitutive’ (Pouliot 2007:361). This indicates that the process of constructing knowledge is ‘sobjective’ regarding to reality and knowledge. The epistemology of constructivism is ‘sobjectivist’ (Pouliot 2007: 359). It is suggested that constructivism places an emphasis on ‘the reflexive relationship’ between ‘knowledge’ and ‘the social world’ (Guzzini 2005:499).

Furthermore, the epistemology of critical theory might not be simplified as a

subjectivist –objectivist dichotomy. As Park (2001) argues, the sobjectivism of critical theory examines the values of individuals and the consideration of ‘structural factors’, such as political and economic systems (p.243). In fact, subjectivism and objectivism are embedded in the implication of critical theory. As Morrow and Brown (1994)

mention, meanings, languages, and discourses are the subjective experiences with which to construct realities; meanwhile, structures are ‘a kind of objective facticity that

appears independent of immediate actors’. Meanings and structures are not a dualism, but are ‘reproduced (statically) and produced (dynamically) across space and time’ (Morrow and Brown 1994: 24). As mentioned above, the epistemology, the process of seeking knowledge, in this research, is ‘sobjectivist’. This study constructs social realities via journalists’ experience, and meanwhile, explores the political and economic

factors that influence the values of individuals. Haywood (2008) stresses the engaging relationship between epistemology, methodology and theory (p.2). Following

Haywood’s suggestion, the epistemology of this research examines professional

journalism under the influences of neoliberalism. The methodology explores journalists’ practice in the nature of paid-for news production, and in doing so the theories about power relations are drawn on. Methodological considerations and theoretical

approaches will be discussed in the next sections.