Matthias C. Kettemann Appointed to Task Force “Internet Governance” of the BMDV

Prof. Dr. Matthias C. Kettemann has been appointed to the Internet Governance Task Force by the German Federal Ministry of Digital Affairs and Transport (BMDV). The task force has six months to develop future scenarios for the development of German digital policy up to the year 2040.

A second task force is dedicated to the topic of “AI Governance”. In each task force, 14 scientists, business representatives and representatives of technical committees will develop a strategy paper for the German government’s international digital policy.

The two kick-off events took place on 6 September 2024 in Berlin.

Call for Papers for a Special Issue M&K "The Datafication of Communication – New Methodological Approaches and Challenges"

For a special issue on “The Datafication of Communication – New Methodological Approaches and Challenges” in our journal “Medien & Kommunikationswissenschaft” (Media & Communication Studies), we invite submissions in German and English. Guest editors are Julia Niemann-Lenz, Tim Schatto-Eckrodt, Emese Domahidi and Merja Mahrt.

The ongoing digitalization of mass and interpersonal communication processes has led to an unprecedented level of datafication—where various aspects of (social) life are transformed into data. Today, virtually all types of media content and user interactions generate data that can be collected and analyzed. This growing availability of digital traces offers new ways to address traditional and contemporary questions in digital communication research. However, the datafication of human behavior is not only reshaping the subject matter of media and communication studies, but also transforming the discipline itself—primarily through new forms of data access and methods. Computational communication science has emerged as a research field that places digital trace data at the center of media and communication research (Domahidi et al. 2019).

Central to this discourse on the datafication of both communication and the field of media and communication studies lies a methodological question: (How) can large datasets be used for reliable and valid measurements of social reality? As a discipline that has been conceptualizing and investigating these processes of datafication since its inception, media and communication studies are well placed to make significant contributions. Innovations and expansions in methods, such as data donation, AI-supported content analysis procedures, and other machine learning techniques, offer new possibilities for analyzing social phenomena. For instance, generative AI holds great potential in creating stimulus material for media effects experiments and in automating the coding of media content. These methodological improvements not only provide deeper insights into the dynamics of a datafied society but also help develop t models that better capture the complexity of social interactions.

However, critics challenge the idea that human behavior can be neutrally and objectively represented through data alone (boyd and Crawford, 2012). Large online platforms’ role in this process has been described as “data colonialism” (Couldry & Mejias, 2019), a theoretical concept that likens the exploitative, extractive practices of historical colonialism to the abstract quantification methods of computer science. Additionally, the ideological basis of datafication is characterized in the literature as “dataism” (van Dijck, 2014), or the misguided belief in the objectively and neutral quantifiability of all human actions through digital systems. The inclusion of new types of data in research or media production raises new legal and ethical concerns (Spirling, 2023).

This special issue of M&K aims to bring together current topics related to datafication, particularly in relation to the methods of media and communication studies, and to foster reflection on how the discipline is evolving as a result of these innovations. The editors welcome methodological and empirical contributions that address questions such as:

Data Accessibility and Availability: How can researchers gain access to relevant and meaningful data? How can data be collected transparently? How can it be archived and reused in the spirit of open science while respecting copyright and personal rights? What collaborative efforts are necessary or desirable within the discipline?
New Methods and Research Areas: What new research methods and approaches do the availability of large datasets and advances in the field of machine learning (e.g. large language models) offer for communication research?
Measuring Change in Communication Processes: How can the effects of datafication and data-processing algorithms on social communication, public opinion, and social interactions be captured?
Ethics and Accountability: Who collects, processes, enriches, uses, and protects data, and for what purposes? What role do transparency and control play in the use of algorithms in communication?
Reflection on the Topic: Does the datafication of communication also imply a quantification of the subject? What is the ongoing role of qualitative methods and paradigms?

Contributions in both English and German are welcome.

Scholars wishing to contribute to this special issue are invited to send an extended abstract of their manuscript proposal (max. 6,000 characters including spaces) to the editorial team by November 30, 2024. On the basis of the abstracts, the editorial team, together with the guest editors, will develop a concept for the issue and invite the respective authors to submit a manuscript by the end of March 2025. Decisions on the acceptance of manuscripts will be made according to M&K’s usual review process. The special issue is planned for publication in the 4th quarter of 2025.

Address: Editorial Office Medien & Kommunikationswissenschaft, Christiane Matzen, c.matzen@leibniz-hbi.de

References

boyd, d., & Crawford, K. (2012). Critical Questions for Big Data. Information, Communication & Society, 15(5), 662–679. https://doi.org/10.1080/1369118X.2012.678878

Couldry, N., & Mejias, U. A. (2019). The Costs of Connection: How Data Is Colonizing Human Life and Appropriating It for Capitalism. Stanford University Press.

Dijck, J. van. (2014). Datafication, Dataism and Dataveillance: Big Data between Scientific Paradigm and Ideology. Surveillance & Society, 12(2), 197–208. https://doi.org/10.24908/ss.v12i2.4776

Domahidi, E., Yang, J., Niemann-Lenz, J., & Reinecke, L. (2019). Computational Communication Science | Outlining the Way Ahead in Computational Communication Science: An Introduction to the IJoC Special Section on “Computational Methods for Communication Science: Toward a Strategic Roadmap”. International Journal of Communication, 13. https://ijoc.org/index.php/ijoc/article/view/10533

Spirling, A. (2023). Why Open-Source Generative AI Models Are an Ethical Way Forward for Science. Nature, 616(7957), 413. https://doi.org/10.1038/d41586-023-01295-4

Photo by Alexander Andrews on Unsplash

AfD Attack on Public Service Broadcasting

What would be the consequences if AfD politician Björn Höcke were to cancel the MDR state broadcasting contract as Minister President? The media magazine ZAPP asked media law expert Dr. Tobias Mast.

The German far right party AfD is planning a frontal attack on public broadcasting: If Björn Höcke became prime minister in Thuringia after the state elections in automn, he wants to terminate the MDR state treaty and abolish the broadcasting fee. But is it that simple?

ZAPP reporter Hans Jakob Rausch took a closer look at the election promise, took a look at the ÖRR past and obtained legal assessments from Tobias Mast, head of the research program “Regulatory Structures and Rule Formation in Digital Communication Spaces” at the Leibniz Institute for Media Research | Hans Bredow Institute. Could the parliamentary groups in the Thuringian state parliament protect broadcasting from Höcke’s grasp by amending the constitution? And how does MDR’s legal advisor protect his station from the AfD’s attack?

To the ZAPP report (19 minutes) from 24.07.2024 (in German)

Worlds of Journalism: How is Journalism Doing in Germany?

In the podcast “Satzzeichen”, Anna von Garmissen talks about how journalism is doing in Germany and the findings of a recent study.

What about diversity, political orientation and the self-image of journalists? Answers to these questions can be found in the study “Journalism under Duress: Risk and Uncertainty in a Changing Mediascape“. It is part of the world’s largest journalism study “Worlds of Journalism” and examines many facets of the profession in a representative survey.

The host of the Hanns Seidel Foundation podcast Satzzeichen [Punction Marks], Christian Jakubetz, talks to Anna von Garmissen about the findings. She works at the Leibniz Institute for Media Research | Hans-Bredow-Institut (HBI), which is entrusted with the realization of the project. From September 2022 to February 2023, the opinion research institute Ipsos conducted a representative survey of full-time journalists under the direction of the HBI.

Episode 219 of the podcast “Satzzeichen” [Punction Marks] has been released in two parts on Spotify:

What Is the State of Journalism in Germany?

The average German journalist is male, 45.3 years old, has an academic degree, works full-time in the print or online section of a newspaper or magazine, and often feels stressed. The findings of our latest journalist survey are now summarized in a video (in German) on YouTube.

Although our average journalist is still male, the proportion of women in the industry has increased in recent years, rising from 40 to 44 percent since 2015. Traditional print houses are still the most important employers. Just over half of German journalists work for a newspaper or magazine publisher. Television and radio each account for 17 percent. Like our average journalist, almost 90 percent of those surveyed work full-time. 80 percent are permanent employees.

This data, which is now summarized in a video, was collected by our researchers Wiebke Loosen and Anna von Garmissen in their study. They interviewed over 1,200 journalists in Germany to find out how things are going in German journalism. The survey was representative. The data can therefore be used to draw conclusions about the industry as a whole.

The study is part of the global research series “World of Journalism”, which is led and coordinated by Ludwig-Maximilians-Universität München. The video was produced by Alma Bartels and illustrated by Yuliia Ukrainets.

Experiences with Stress and Discrediting of Work

Many journalists in Germany are under pressure. Every second person states that they have “often” or “very often” suffered from stress at work in the past six months. The majority of respondents have also experienced humiliating or hateful comments in the last five years. Around 62 percent have experienced public discrediting of their work.

How do journalists in Germany see their role in society? For them, one of the most important tasks is to provide information and enable people to form an opinion. It is also very important for them to counteract disinformation, classify current events and observe them impartially.

Journalistic Ethics and Freedom

Journalists in Germany continue to hold the standards of their industry high. 98% of those surveyed stated that they would not accept money from information sources under any circumstances. Gifts of products or services would not be accepted by 87 percent under any circumstances.

According to more than three quarters of respondents, freedom of expression in Germany is “very” or “completely free”. Time pressure and the availability of resources for reporting are perceived as the strongest influences on journalistic work. In the eyes of the respondents, government officials and state censorship have the least influence.

These and other findings on German journalism can be found in a working paper by Wiebke Loosen and Anna von Garmissen (in German).

Illustration: Yuliia Ukrainets

The Educational Mission of ZDF

The Second German Television ZDF asked its audience what they understand by education and what expectations they have of ZDF. The HBI helped design the survey.

For the majority of the population (80.6%), it is (very) important that ZDF makes a contribution to the education of the population. Even the majority of those who use ZDF less share this expectation. This is the result of a comprehensive, representative study conducted by ZDF on its educational mission from the perspective of the population. It provides important insights into the expectations, perceptions and usage habits in connection with ZDF’s educational function.

From the ZDF Press Release

Expectations of ZDF Are Diverse

The study reveals a broad understanding of education in the public service mandate. In addition to political education and media education, it also includes general knowledge and cultural education. The expectations of ZDF in this area are correspondingly diverse: these include the communication of respectful coexistence, the role of a reliable source in times of crisis, support in distinguishing between reliable and fake information, the contribution to democracy education, the easy accessibility of ZDF content and the responsibility to keep the memory of German and European history alive. 70 percent of ZDF viewers believe that ZDF fulfills its educational mission (largely or fully). The more frequently people use ZDF, the better they rate the service.

Use and Perception of ZDF

The use of ZDF is related to the general educational orientation and basic mood towards society. Typologies of respondents according to educational orientation, satisfaction with democracy, confidence in the future and perceived division in society revealed significant differences in expectations of ZDF and perceived services. The study underlines findings from social science studies that show a high proportion of the population who are critical of democracy as it exists in Germany, whose confidence in the future is low and who perceive a division in society.

The “Terra X plus Schule” Website Is Being Expanded

The study thus provides valuable insights for the future direction of ZDF and its educational programs. ZDF continues to work on fulfilling its educational mandate and meeting the needs and expectations of the population in this area in the best possible way. A central starting point is the uncovering of fake news. People should be supported in exposing them.

A further step: ZDF is strengthening its verification teams during elections and making the educational offer for pupils and teachers easier to find and use. To this end, the “Terra X plus Schule” [Terra X and School] website will be expanded, made more accessible and better adapted to the needs of school lessons.

More about the study

The survey was conducted between October 25 and November 17, 2023 by the mindline Institute for Media Research (Berlin) and the Leibniz Institute for Media Research | Hans-Bredow-Institut (HBI, Hamburg). A total of 1237 respondents took part; a mixed-mode approach was used (CATI telephone sample: 40 percent, CAWI online access panel: 60 percent).

Further information in German about the study and the results can be found here.

14th Hamburg Media Symposium: On the Pacemakers of Social Conversation

About 200 experts and guests came to the Hamburg Chamber of Commerce on June 18th to discuss the drivers of social conversations and the challenges of current media communication. Discourses and groups seem to be drifting further and further apart, while at the same time journalism is expected to keep the common social conversation alive. The symposium offered space to exchange ideas from different academic and media-practical perspectives: What is happening right now? How are journalism and other stakeholders reacting to the changes? What expectations do we have of traditional media companies and social media? And how can politics and regulation ensure a joint discourse between diverse voices?

Impulses – What Is Changing Right Now and How Does This Affect the Foundations of the Media Order?

The event was moderated by PD Dr. Jan-Hinrik Schmidt. After a welcoming address by Michaela Beck, Managing Director of the Hamburg Chamber of Commerce, and Eva-Maria Sommer, Director of the Hamburg/Schleswig-Holstein Media Authority (MA HSH), four presentations followed, which addressed the changes in public communication from the perspectives of communication science, media law, journalism and media regulation.

Jan Rau (RISC Hamburg/HBI) spoke about the polarization dynamics and communication strategies of right-wing actors in social media and their social impact using suitable nautical metaphors. He recalled the sinking of the Pamir in a storm in 1957: the loaded cargo ship did not sink due to the storm but was torn apart from the inside out when the cargo was hurled back and forth with enormous force. With this image in mind, solutions now need to be found to make digital democracy seaworthy – from the inside out. The existing political energy must be channeled into political participation and the (digital) public sphere must offer a space to make social grievances visible and workable in a constructive exchange.

Prof. Dr. Eva Ellen Wagner (Faculty of Law, University of Augsburg) explained challenges from the perspective of media regulation and pointed out that democratic discourse should be oriented towards both conflict and understanding. Resonant social communication does not only consist of harmonious consonance.

Prof. Dr. Barbara Hans (Institute for Media and Cultural Management, Hamburg University of Music and Theatre) explained the changes and challenges facing journalism in terms of the triad of social media/platforms, artificial intelligence, and media use. She described the developments in these three fields as a “cycle of arbitrariness and dispensability”: everyone can do it (arbitrariness in the distribution of content), the machine can do it better (dispensability in the production of content) and nobody wants it (indifference/rejection of the reception of content). This spiral leads to a fragmentation of discourse and a lack of resilience in dealing with crises. To counteract these developments, a political debate about the consequences of the declining legitimacy of traditional journalism must be held and alternative financing models discussed. After all, journalism and democratic society can deal with dissonance and resonance; the real challenge lies in ignorance.

Eva-Maria Sommer referred to the work of the state media authorities in the fight against hate and hate speech online. The MA HSH reviewed 5,000 pieces of content last year and reported them for prosecution. Together with other media authorities, around 1,300 legal violations have also been reported to the EU since the Hamas attack on Israel. According to Sommer, this is just a “drop in the bucket”, “but even that can steam up”.

Panel Discussion: How Do Social Actors in Different Public Spheres Respond to the Challenges?

In the second part of the event, Anna von Garmissen (HBI) moderated a discussion between political consultant Martin Fuchs, Vanessa Bitter (dpa, #UseTheNews), NDR State Broadcasting Director Hendrik Lünenborg and Tim Klaws (Public Policy and Government Relations Expert, TikTok). It became clear that there are no simple solutions: The tension between freedom of expression and the spiral of outrage, fragmented subpublics, floods of information and self-reinforcing divisive tendencies is becoming increasingly complex. According to the panel, there is still too little potential to make the public communication space friendlier, more relevant and more diverse again by strengthening media literacy – across generations (!) –, improving the networking of actors who advocate a democratic and diverse society, and through dialog and concrete encounters with citizens.

The 14th Hamburg Media Symposium was organized by the Leibniz Institute for Media Research | Hans-Bredow-Institut (HBI), the Hamburg section of the Research Institute Social Cohesion (RISC), the Media Authority Hamburg/Schleswig-Holstein (MA HSH) and the Hamburg Chamber of Commerce. The symposium was recorded by TIDE – Hamburg’s citizens’ channel and educational channel and will be broadcast on the station’s program on July 18 starting at 7 pm.

The recordings of the presentations and the panel are available on TIDE’s YouTube channel.

To the program of the event

Photo: Hamburg Chamber of Commerce/Ulrich Perrey; on the podium from left: Anna von Garmissen, Tim Klaws, Hendrik Lünenborg, Vanessa Bitter and Martin Fuchs

How Do We Protect Academic Freedom, Freedom of the Press and Freedom of Opinion?

On deck of the MS Wissenschaft, we held a public discussion on three fundamental values as cornerstones of our social coexistence: freedom of the press, freedom of opinion and academic freedom. What is the state of these freedoms in Germany and worldwide? Where and how are they under threat? In what ways do they differ from each other? And how do they influence each other? The discussion was moderated by Korinna Hennig, team leader in the science department at the NDR.

Press Freedom under Pressure

Prof. Dr. Wiebke Loosen, senior researcher at the HBI and deputy head of the Hamburg section of the Research Institute Social Cohesion (RISC), provided insights into the German sub-study “Worlds of Journalism“. In Germany, journalists are not intimidated and remain true to their professional self-image. Their most important tasks are to provide information to enable people to form an opinion and counteract disinformation. However, assaults, stress and financial worries are part of journalists’ everyday work and threaten the freedom of the press.

This is also confirmed by Malte Werner, journalist and project manager at Netzwerk Recherche e.V., where he runs the “Helpline” project – a support service for journalists with psychosocial problems – which is experiencing a high level of demand. According to Malte Werner, the search for new revenue structures for journalism oriented towards the common good is also noteworthy. This is increasingly happening in rural areas, for example, where traditional media companies are leaving gaps that media start-ups financed by foundations or donations are trying to fill.

Academic Freedom Less Protected Worldwide

Dr. Lars Lott, researcher at the Institute for Political Science at Friedrich-Alexander-Universität Erlangen-Nürnberg, used data from the Academic Freedom Index to explain that academic freedom is becoming less and less protected worldwide. Although Germany ranks 11th according to the latest data from the index and academic freedom is protected in the constitution, academics in this country are also coming under increasing pressure. Considering current debates, Lars Lott emphasized that not everything that scientists express is protected by academic freedom and that researchers should make it clearer in public debates what constitutes a personal expression of opinion and which aspects are scientifically derived. Such positioning also protects academic freedom from abuse.

Navigating Freedom was a joint event organized by the HBI, the Hamburg section of the Research Institute Social Cohesion (RISC), the ZEIT STIFTUNG BUCERIUS and the MS Wissenschaft.

Science Year 2024 – Freedom

The MS Wissenschaft is a project funded by the Federal Ministry of Education and Research as part of the Science Year 2024 – Freedom. It will be touring Germany from 14 May to 15 September 2024. The exhibition is being realized by Wissenschaft im Dialog (WiD). Children from the age of twelve, young people and adults will become researchers and experience science at first hand. The exhibits are from different scientific disciplines and illustrate how multifaceted research on the topic of freedom is. In addition to the exhibition, there is a varied program of events including discussions, readings and workshops for school classes at many tour venues.

Photo: Leibniz Institute for Media Research | Hans-Bredow-Institut (HBI)/Christiane Matzen; from left: Dr. Lars Lott, Prof. Dr. Wiebke Loosen, Korinna Hennig, Malte Werner

Tobias Mast Appointed to the Advisory Board of the Coordination Office for Digital Services under the Digital Services Act

Tobias Mast, head of the research program “Regulatory Structures and the Emergence of Rules in Online Spaces” at the HBI, has been appointed to the advisory board of the Coordination Office for Digital Services.

Tobias Mast represents the field of science on the advisory board together with Prof. Dipl.-Journ. Christina Elmer from TU Dortmund University and Prof. Dr. Henrike Weiden from Munich University of Applied Sciences and Arts.

Further advisory board members are

for the civil society: Josephine Ballon from HateAid, Lina Ehrig for the Federation of German Consumer Organizations (vzbv), Matthias Spielkamp for the F5 alliance (AlgorithmWatch, Gesellschaft für Freiheitsrechte, Open Knowledge Foundation Deutschland, Reporters Without Borders and Wikimedia Deutschland), Teresa Widlok for LOAD and Svea Windwehr for the Center for Digital Progress D64;
and for the trade associations: Alexander Rabe for eco – Association of the Internet Industry and Susanne Dehmel for Bitkom.

The members of the advisory board will be elected by the German Bundestag this week on the proposal of the coalition parliamentary groups.

From the press release of the SPD parliamentary group in the Bundestag from June, 2nd:

When selecting the candidates, it was important to the coalition parliamentary groups not to base the proposals on party political issues, but solely on digital policy expertise in the respective field. The coalition parliamentary groups expressly welcome the fact that – also in discussions with the CDU/CSU parliamentary group – all democratic parliamentary groups in the German Bundestag have succeeded in proposing a convincing and powerful advisory board that will support the Coordination Office for Digital Services in implementing the DSA.

Jens Zimmermann, digital policy spokesperson for the SPD parliamentary group:
“The Digital Services Coordinator, which is based at the Federal Network Agency, will play a crucial role in enforcing the DSA. I am sure that the outstanding expertise of this advisory board will be an important support in fulfilling this task.”

Tabea Rößner, Chair of the Digital Committee and responsible rapporteur:
“In sensitive regulatory procedures, which may also affect content on the net under the DSA, independence must be a given. However, a non-governmental advisory board can also provide important impetus for enforcement. In the parliamentary procedure for the Digital Services Act, we were able to strengthen the advisory board as an institution, for example with its own rights to information, and are now getting the appointments underway in good time before the summer break.”

Maximilian Funke-Kaiser, digital policy spokesperson for the FDP parliamentary group:
“Now the DDK will receive the expert support it needs for the very different areas of responsibility of the Digital Services Act in Germany. The input from civil society and research will help the DDK to do its job in the best possible way. If the DDK draws on the technical expertise of the Advisory Board, it will be able to do justice to the wide range of tasks arising from the Digital Services Act.”