Gender and Journalism Education in Finland from the 1960s to the 1980s

Authors

• Heidi Kurvinen Oulun yliopisto

Abstract

The number of university students increased rapidly in Finland during the 1960s. The development took place also among journalism students among which the majority of students were female. At the same time, self-made journalists still entered the profession. The question whether journalists should have a higher education was discussed among the profession from the late 1960s onwards. In this article, the writer analyzes the discussion from the perspective of gender. She argues that the ideal of a self-made journalist was masculine. Because of that the profession was sustained as a free profession although more and more journalists were acquiring a degree in journalism. The source material for the article consists of media texts and committee reports.