Please tell us about your background
I am Professor of International & Comparative Media Research at the University of Zurich. Previously I was assistant professor at the University of Mainz and the University of Missouri (Columbia), and visiting professor at the University of Oklahoma (Norman), University of Texas (Austin) and the University of California (San Diego).
Parallel to my BA/MA studies in Mass Communcations in Germany, I also completed a postgraduate degree in International Journalism at City University London.
Today, my main interest is in cross-national studies of news journalism and political communication.
But my publications cover several broader categories: Methods of comparative (political) communication; mediatization of politics; news cultures and journalistic traditions; political publicity (‘spin doctoring’) and media-on-media reporting (‘metacoverage’); democratic news performance; populism; and socialization of young people. Most of my research has a strong content-analysis component yet some studies also include surveys.
Due to my interest in comparative research, I am well integrated in the leading networks and associations of our field. I am currently Chair of the Political Communication Section of European Communication Research and Education Association (ECREA) and was previously Chair of the Journalism Division of the International Communication Association (ICA). I am in the steering board of the Network of European Political Communication Scholars (NEPOCS) and of an EU-funded Consortium in Science and Technology (“COST”) on Populist Political Communicaiton.
In Zurich I am Co-Director of a 80-person strong national research center in democracy research (NCCR Democracy).
What will be the focus of your work at IMK?
In Oslo I am interested in establishing institutional links with the planned Center for Political Communication and in initiating collaborative links with colleagues inside and outside the Department of Media and Communication who share the same resarch interests.
The Professor II position is a fascinating opportunity to expand my network to Norway and perhaps to Scandinavia more broadly. The people I have met from the Department of Media and Communication so far have been extremely receptive and supportive. I am looking forward to meet many more.