Institute for Communication Studies and Media Research at the University of Zurich
The Institute for Communication Science and Media Research Zurich (IKMZ) is a research and teaching institute of the University of Zurich . It focuses on media-mediated communication through television, radio and print media, as well as digital and mobile communication. With 11 professorships and more than 1,100 students, the IKMZ is the largest communication science institute in Switzerland and, according to international university rankings, one of the leading communication science institutes in Europe.
history
The IKMZ emerged from a professorship for newspaper studies that was established in 1903 at the University of Zurich. The institute was significantly expanded in the 1990s by Ulrich Saxer and Otfried Jarren as the first institute directors. In 1997 the subject became a major at the University of Zurich and the institute expanded due to the sharp increase in the number of students. The institute also gained thematic breadth through the influence of Heinz Bonfadelli and Kurt Imhof , who from 2001 built up the research area Public and Society (fög). In 2018 the institute was renamed from the “Institute for Mass Communication and Media Research” to the “Institute for Communication Studies and Media Research”.
profile
The Institute for Communication Studies and Media Research comprises four research and teaching focuses:
- Political communication (content, structures and actors of political communication as well as effects of political communication) . For example, questions like: Who is shaping political communication? Which media is used for communication and how does political communication affect the formation of public opinion?
- Internet & Society (conditions of media change, Internet governance and economy, online communication and use of social actors and their effects) . For example, questions like: How does people's communication behavior change - and what does that mean for their privacy, their data, their well-being? What competencies will media users need in the future? What role do technologies and algorithms play in social communication? How do you regulate globally operating media and technology groups?
- News & entertainment . This is about questions such as: What consequences does the lack of personnel and financial resources in journalism have for news production? How do news and entertainment influence the audience's ideas of reality and world views? And how does media use affect well-being and social relationships?
- Strategic communication . This involves questions such as: What are the goals of internal and external strategic communication? How do the communication strategies or testimonials used affect the audience? To what extent does the media change or the social change in values influence strategic communication?
These main research areas are currently being worked on by eleven chairs with more than 80 employees:
- Internet Use & Society ( Eszter Hargittai )
- International comparative media research (Frank Esser)
- Media & Politics ( Otfried Jarren )
- Media and Internet Governance (Natascha Just)
- Media use & media impact (Thomas Friemel)
- Media Economics & Media Management ( Gabriele Siegert )
- Media Psychology & Media Effects (Werner Wirth)
- Media Socialization & Media Competence (Daniel Süss)
- Media change & innovation ( Michael Latzer )
- Public & Society (Mark Eisenegger)
- Science, crisis and risk communication ( Mike S. Schäfer )
Emeriti
- Heinz Bonfadelli
- Christian Doelker
- Kurt Imhof
- Werner A. Meier
- Ulrich Saxer
Course offers
The IKMZ offers the following bachelor, master and doctoral degree programs:
- the bachelor's degree with a major in "Journalism and Communication Studies"
- the Bachelor's degree with a minor in "Journalism and Communication Studies"
- the master’s degree with one of the following four main areas:
- "Political Communication"
- «Internet & Society»
- «News & Entertainment»
- "Strategic Communication"
- various doctoral programs