Suchergebnisse

Values are central concepts across all social sciences. Communication and media research, however, has not systematically contributed to the field. Merja Mahrt addresses questions on the relationship between mediated value patterns and values of the audience. What role do values play in selective exposure? How are genre and channel preferences intertwined with individual values? What changes does the drastic expansion of a media system bring about? The author analyzes large-scale representative surveys, covering German media users from 1986 to 2007. She finds patterns linking social and materialist values with preferences and usages of print and electronic media. Implications for the role of values in behavior and in media planning are discussed. This book is essential reading for researchers and students from the social sciences, in particular communication and media sciences, interested in a deeper understanding of values.

Während Massenmedien üblicherweise integratives Potenzial zugeschrieben wird, wird dem Internet eher eine schädliche Wirkung auf den gesellschaftlichen Zusammenhalt unterstellt. Entsprechende Metaphern zu "Filterblasen" und "Echokammern" haben inzwischen auch in den öffentlichen Diskurs Einzug gehalten. Studien, die entsprechende Wirkungen einer digitalen Fragmentierung nachweisen, sind allerdings bisher eher selten. Der empirische Forschungsstand stützt Befürchtungen zu einem deutlichen Verlust an gesellschaftlichem Zusammenhalt durch das Internet somit nicht. Allerdings gibt es bei Extremgruppen am politischen Rand Anzeichen für digitale Fragmentierung. Angesichts des heterogenen Forschungsstands systematisiert der Beitrag theoretische Annahmen und empirische Befunde und argumentiert, dass die Erfassung digitaler Fragmentierung und ihrer Wirkungen weiter notwendig ist. ; While mass media are generally ascribed integrative potential, scholars assume negative effects on social cohesion for the Internet. Respective metaphors such as "filter bubbles" and "echo chambers" have meanwhile found their way into public discourse. However, empirical research that documents detrimental effects of digital fragmentation remains the exception. The state of research thus does not support fears about a stark loss of social cohesion due to the Internet. Yet there are groups on the fringe of the political spectrum that appear to be digitally fragmented. Given these heterogeneous results, the article systematizes theoretical assumptions and empirical findings and argues that it remains necessary to assess the extent and effects of digital fragmentation.

Are online audiences today fragmented into echo chambers or filter bubbles? Do users only see what digital platforms (like search engines or social media) let them see? And if so, what are the consequences for the cohesion of a society? Concerns like these abound in recent years. They attest to widely held assumptions about a negative influence of digital media or even the Internet in general on society. Empirical studies on these phenomena are, however, not as unequivocal. To understand why results from previous research are so far inconclusive, this study investigates the role of the Internet for social integration from a more general point of view. The integrative potential of the Internet is assessed to compare it with other media and ultimately better understand to what degree and due to which factors the Internet may or may not help bring society together. Using survey data, clickstream data on actual usage of websites, and data on content structures, the present work investigates how user behavior and structural features of the Internet determine its positive or negative effects on social integration. The results reveal that the Internet in general is not as bad as popular accounts of digital fragmentation may suggest. How much integrative potential can be realized via online offerings, however, depends on numerous factors on the side of the users as well as content and platform providers.

Abstract
For decades, scholars have been interested in the relationship between community integration and local media use. Some have argued that the use of the local media furthers integration. Others have seen integration into a community as a prerequisite for attention to the media. In this study, a survey explored whether a relationship between the two dimensions actually exists and whether personal conversations about media topics could link both phenomena. The results show that social integration is not only related to media use, but also to conversations specifically about media content. Thus, the media's contribution to community integration could be an indirect one, by facilitating conversations and by helping integrate individuals socially through conversational topics.

'Soziale Integration ist seit langer Zeit Forschungsgegenstand verschiedener Disziplinen, die sich dem Konzept auf die unterschiedlichsten Weisen genähert haben. Dabei reicht das Spektrum der Arbeiten von abstrakten systemtheoretischen Modellen der Integration von Individuen, kollektiven Akteuren und gesellschaftlichen Systemen bis zu Studien über die Integration von Zuwanderern in ihre Aufnahmegesellschaft. Ein besonderes Augenmerk galt jedoch einer bestimmten Form von sozialer Integration, der Integration in local communities, also lokale Gemeinschaften zum Beispiel in einem Dorf oder einem Stadtteil. Sei es aus Interesse für demokratische Prozesse auf kleinster Ebene oder weil Integrationsfragen leichter beantwortet werden können, wenn klare Grenzen einer Gemeinschaft bestehen: Local communities sind ein bevorzugtes Studienobjekt in der Integrationsforschung. Dies gilt auch für die Frage, die sich der vorliegende Beitrag stellt - und damit eine Antwort auf eine häufig in der Kommunikations- und Medienwissenschaft gestellte Frage zu finden sucht: Fördern Medien sozialen Zusammenhalt?' (Autorenreferat)

Media users need information and knowledge to act as free citizens. From this basic democratic assumption, news standards for media performance can be derived. Porto's (2007) model of the 'interpreting citizen' assigns a central role to the diversity of interpretive frames. These frames enable citizens to make judgments about societal issues and related political positions. However, a theoretical foundation for classifying these frames in terms of their content is missing. We propose to derive such a basis from democratic theories of citizenship, which assume that values define a citizen's position vis-à-vis the political sphere. Building on the cleavage approach from political science, we characterize which values organize political debates. The results of a large-scale content analysis of German news media demonstrate which empirical insights into media performance can be gained with a theoretically derived classification of value frames (most notably, measuring the substantive content of plurality). Based on this, we discuss additional avenues for future research.

Media users need information and knowledge to act as free citizens. From this basic democratic assumption, news standards for media performance can be derived. Porto's (2007) model of the 'interpreting citizen' assigns a central role to the diversity of interpretive frames. These frames enable citizens to make judgments about societal issues and related political positions. However, a theoretical foundation for classifying these frames in terms of their content is missing. We propose to derive such a basis from democratic theories of citizenship, which assume that values define a citizen's position vis-à-vis the political sphere. Building on the cleavage approach from political science, we characterize which values organize political debates. The results of a large-scale content analysis of German news media demonstrate which empirical insights into media performance can be gained with a theoretically derived classification of value frames (most notably, measuring the substantive content of plurality). Based on this, we discuss additional avenues for future research.

In vielen westlichen Ländern hat sich die Parteienlandschaft in den letzten Jahren pluralisiert und polarisiert. Die daraus resultierende zunehmende Vielfalt politischer Positionen stellt Medien, die es sich zur Aufgabe gemacht haben, den Bürger:innen Orientierung zu geben, vor die Herausforderung, diese vielfältiger werdenden Positionen adäquat wiederzugeben. Der Beitrag untersucht am Beispiel von Deutschland, Österreich und der Schweiz, wie sich einerseits Parteien in den Parlamenten selbst darstellen und wie ihre Positionen in den nationalen Medien wiedergegeben werden. Die Positionen der Parteien werden über Value-Frames erfasst, die drei zentrale Grundkonflikte (Cleavages) westlicher Gesellschaften widerspiegeln. Es zeigt sich, dass die Parteien unterschiedliche Kombinationen von Positionen zu diesen Grundkonflikten vertreten. Insbesondere der globalisierungs-bezogene Grundkonflikt ist deutlich polarisiert, zwischen rechtspopu-listischen Parteien auf der einen Seite, konservativen Parteien im gemässigten Bereich und den linken bzw. linksliberalen Parteien am anderen Pol des Konflikts. Medien geben die Positionierungen der Parteien überwiegend ähnlich zu deren Selbstdarstellungen im Parlament wieder. Die rechtspopulistischen Parteien werden in den Medien jedoch polarisierter dargestellt, als die Parteien sich selbst positionieren. Somit erfüllen die Medien ihre Orientierungsfunktion nicht im gesamten Parteienspektrum gleich. Many Western countries have seen a pluralization and polarization of the political landscape in recent years. The resulting increase in diversity of political positions poses challenges to media that aim at providing citizens with orientation. Using Germany, Austria, and Switzerland as examples, the article analyzes how parties present themselves in the respective national parliament and how domestic media relay these utterances. The parties' positions are examined via value frames that reflect three central cleavages of Western societies. The results show that parties express different ...

Drawing on the experience of leading international Twitter researchers from a variety of disciplines and contexts, this is the first book to document the various notions and concepts of Twitter communication, providing a detailed and comprehensive overview of current research into the uses of Twitter. It also presents methods for analyzing Twitter data.