Emotional labour in journalism: a systematic review

This chapter focuses on emotional labour in journalism – efforts that journalists exert when they manage emotions that arise in relation to work in order to satisfy professional requirements of their roles. It reports the systematic review of scholarship in English language engaging with the concept of emotional labour in the context of journalistic work drawing on the SPIDER approach and following PRISMA guidelines. The analysis of this literature reveals a sharp rise of interest in this practice and area of study since 2020 and the Western-centredness of the scholarship. Trauma reporting, experiences of online abuse, challenges of everyday work and working conditions are identified as key triggers, while individual-level processing of emotions is found to be the most frequently employed emotion management strategy. Burnout, anxiety, stress, and self-censorship are most commonly reported consequences of emotional labour. The chapter ends with the agenda for future research.