The Austrian Media Act allows media organisations to establish editorial statutes (Mediengesetz, 2021: para. 5); stricter rules apply to the public service broadcaster. The law (ORF-Gesetz, 2021: para. 33) requires editorial statutes, which are in place and required to be published online (ORF, 2002).
In 2008, about 61 per cent of Austrian journalists worked in media organisations that provide statutes (Kaltenbrunner et al., 2008: 64). A decade later, in 2019, this percentage increased to 65 per cent (Kaltenbrunner et al., 2020: 200). Several leading news media in our sample did not have such statutes.
According to our respondents, democratic practices in newsrooms are less common at the local level, where owners appoint editors-in-chief without the participation of the journalistic staff council, as it was a decade ago (Grünangerl & Trappel, 2011). At the national level, this important staff decision is also taken by the owners, but only after intensive internal hearings including newsroom staff.
There are a few exceptions to such a rule. Some newspapers have established rules on democratic participation of the newsroom council, especially regarding appointment of the editor-in-chief. The newsroom assemblies of Die Presse and Profil, for example, can reject the editor’s proposal for a new editor-in-chief with a two-thirds majority (Kurier, 2011; Die Presse, 1974: para. 7). In fact, such rejections have already occurred in both newspapers. Nevertheless, opportunities to make autonomous proposals are few, and participation in other management or staff decisions, or in framing future formal rights, are also relatively rare. This also has remained the same over the past decade (Grünangerl & Trappel, 2011).
As far as ORF is concerned, by law, all leading positions have to be publicly announced, and staff-appointment decisions are largely transparent. Nevertheless, influence of the newsroom council and its representatives is still limited to an advisory function (Grünangerl & Trappel, 2011; ORF-Gesetz, 2021: para. 33; ORF, 2002: para. 5). Participation rights concerning changes in programme schemes and journalistic content exist; however, there is no participation in management or supervisory boards. According to our respondents, journalists appeared to be quite aware of their participation rights and practiced them seriously, as they did a decade ago (Grünangerl & Trappel, 2011). Before being appointed by the ORF Council, candidates for the position of editor-in-chief are required to present themselves in hearings to newsroom journalists.
