SEMANTIC CONTENT OF THE WORD “JOURNALISM” IN SCIENTIFIC AND PUBLIC DISCOURSES

Abstract

Based on conceptual analysis involving 220 respondents, the research reveals a significant divergence between academic and everyday interpretations of the concept of journalism. The study establishes that in mass consciousness, journalism is perceived much more narrowly than in scientific discourse: only 5.9% of respondents associate it with science, 10.9% recognize it as a social institution, and 17.3% categorize blogging as journalism (under certain conditions). The analysis of the results of the study makes it possible to reconstruct the individual semantic content of the concept for each respondent and to form an integrative model of the average semantic content of the concept of “journalism” in the mass consciousness, based on the existential experience of the respondents. The boundaries of the term’s conceptual sphere in public perception are clearly defined: digital professions with English-language names and auxiliary structures are predominantly not included in the semantic field of journalism, indicating the preservation of a traditional, activity-oriented understanding in mass consciousness. The research results contribute to the theory of linguistic conceptualization and can be applied to improve communication between the journalistic community and its audience.