Research

Research at the Institute of Media Studies includes every media type (print, radio, film and TV, online media) and the entire range of media forms. They include journalism, PR, advertising and marketing, entertainment formats and fictional genres. The research perspective decides whether the focus will be on the media production, the content or the reception.

The understanding of the methodology is intellectually and social-scientifically oriented. All the research is based on the principle that, far from being mere carriers of content, media influences society and culture with a tremendous inherent dynamism and effectiveness. Media communication is aimed at changing a society’s behaviour, attitudes and the development of knowledge.

Scientists at the Institute of Media Studies apply their research in practice and with the aim of promoting the clarification of the media society. This kind of fundamental orientation is confirmed by a wealth of publications on current challenges in journalism, on scandal reporting, on political communications and on the digital media. Current research projects, many of them international, express the main idea of creating and sharing knowledge that is of benefit to society.

The range of topics and research projects currently being processed, planned or prepared at the Institute of Media Studies ranges from the “Media use of migrants” and “Advertising in Germany” to the “Rhetoric of writing” and “Comparative studies of media culture”. The Institute of Media Studies stages a number of conferences on the subject of journalism and media research, and arranges lecture series on topics such as advertising communication, scandal research, media convergence and entertainment formats on TV. Teaching/research projects deal with changes in competence profiles in professional communication, attention economy in the media society, the emotional dimensions of virtual experience or the strategies for staging casting shows.

Scientific research flows directly into the seminars. In research-based learning, students address current scientific findings and positions, practise the methodology of scientific working, learn the techniques of data collection and how to analyse and interpret media forms and content. They acquire the ability to judge expert opinions and to participate in scientific discourse “at eye level”.

Students with exceptional abilities can complete a doctorate at the Institute of Media Studies, and receive excellent support during their colloquium. The Institute develops cooperative programmes to familiarise graduates with international research cultures. A number of scientists of the next generation have the opportunity to participate in the Institute’s lecture series and conferences as speakers. In order to commence a graduate project at the Institute, the candidate must have prepared an acceptable research programme on a media studies subject that must be accepted by one of the chairs.