I’m working on the paths to social advancement taken by journalism students by examining these career paths through the analysis of personal networks. The most prestigious journalism schools remain socially and academically exclusive institutions: they provide a prime setting for observing upward mobility, in an environment where social capital is often cited as a determining factor in career progression. My thesis is therefore based on a two-fold inquiry: What effects does social mobility have on an individual’s personal network? And, conversely, How do this network and the changes it undergoes influence the very trajectory of social advancement itself?
Building on this work, I am also taking part in a research programme focusing on the ’social and cultural openness« of journalism (entitled JOUVERT). This programme leads me to examine the recruitment of beneficiaries of Luck, a scheme to ’open up« journalism to the public, which – alongside recognised journalism schools – forms one of the areas covered by my thesis.
I also teach questionnaire methodology, academic research methods, and various sociological paradigms – both classical and contemporary – to first- and second-year sociology students at Aix-Marseille University.
Summary : Against a backdrop of social and educational barriers to entry into the most prestigious journalism schools, this thesis examines the path to social advancement taken by the beneficiaries of Luck and students from so-called «recognised» schools, by analysing changes in their personal networks through a longitudinal study combining biographical analysis and analysis of social networks.
Summary : At the intersection of the sociology of journalism, the sociology of social mobility, and information and communication studies, the JOUVERT project analyses the effects of ’social inclusion« schemes on the career paths of their beneficiaries, as well as the emergence of new types of journalists within the profession.