The master's thesis examines the role of RTV Slovenia’s foreign correspondents, focusing on the distinction between influences on journalistic independence and journalistic autonomy. It analyzes the changing roles of correspondents in the context of modern media trends, economic pressures, and technological advancements that affect their work. The first theoretical part of the thesis provides a systematic overview of the factors contributing to the changing role of foreign correspondence in the digital age. In the second part, through in-depth semi-structured interviews, we explore how the dominant functions of RTV Slovenia’s correspondents are (re)configured due to changes in journalistic independence, defined as the absence of external influences or “freedom from”, and journalistic autonomy, which means “freedom for” or the realization of internal factors. Findings show that in the era of so-called information overload, artificial intelligence, and instant free news on the internet, foreign correspondents face increasing pressures. Due to financial constraints, RTV Slovenia’s correspondent network is shrinking, while the workload of its members is increasing. Despite multitasking and the resulting time pressure, which appears to be a dominant trend in the reconfiguration of correspondent roles, the findings indicate a strong moral duty among correspondents to maintain professional and autonomous journalistic practices at RTV Slovenia, a commitment to the public interest, and dedication to their viewers, listeners, and readers.
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