Times journalists backing English state (7)
I believe the answer is:
express
'state' is the definition.
(synonyms)
'times journalists backing english' is the wordplay.
'times' becomes 'x' (x resembles the multiplication or times sign).
'journalists' becomes 'press' (the press can mean the newspaper industry).
'backing' says to put letters next to each other.
'english' becomes 'E' (abbreviation).
'x'+'press'='xpress'
'xpress' after 'e' is 'EXPRESS'.
(Other definitions for express that I've seen before include "air" , "clear > couch" , "Of train, travelling rapidly with few or no stops" , "Convey in words; train" , "Quick -- exact" .)