Journalism can and should be recognized as academic research output only if it reflects the same level of rigour and impact as any other academic research output. Scholars need to understand what their colleagues, supervisors and peers expect and then deliver exactly that. This commentary first defines journalism and academic research output. Then, it considers the problems of how to measure research impact and understand epistemology. Finally, this essay discusses the implications for journalism from the requirements of the ‘institutional review board’ (IRB) with research that involves human subjects in the United States.
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