Research Project Beyond the Here and Now of News

Project Duration: 09/01/2018 - 08/31/2022

When it comes to understanding news audiences, the stakes are high. Their practices establish everything from journalism’s economic feasibility, to its democratic impact, and sociocultural role. However, there is limited research on what causes people to become news consumers.

This project aims to understand the conditions that make news matter. It investigates the emergence, disappearance and (re)formation of news repertoires in everyday life and across the lifespan to address:

1) What causes news habits to form? Why do they change?
2) How does this impact public attention to social issues?
3) How can news organizations facilitate engagement?

By going beyond the here and now of news, this project provides fundamental insights into what underlies people’s shifting patterns of use.Its findings will improve our knowledge of how citizens view the civic potential of digital journalism and offer innovative ways for the news industry to reconceptualize its public mandate and economic models.

Contact

Chris Peters // Project manager // Professor (MSO) // cpeters@ruc.dk

Kim Christian Schrøder // Project manager // Professor // kimsc@ruc.dk

Researchers

Josephine Lehaff // Project participant // lehaff@ruc.dk

Julie Vulpius // Project participant // julievg@ruc.dk
Laura Ahva, Senior Research Fellow, University of Tampere

Stuart Allan, Professor, Cardiff University

Marcel Broersma, Professor, University of Groningen

Dennis Christensen, Head of Audience Research, Danish Broadcasting Corporation (DR)

Ulrik Haagerup, CEO, Constructive Institute

Lea Korsgaard, Editor-in-chief, Zetland

Bent Steeg Larsen Director of Research, Politiken

Stine Lomborg, Associate Professor, University of Copenhagen

Mette Mortensen, Associate Professor, University of Copenhagen

Henrik Örnebring, Professor, Karlstad University

Zizi Papacharissi, Professor, University of Illinois at Chicago

Steen Steensen, Professor, Oslo Metropolitan University

Karin Wahl-Jorgensen, Professor, Cardiff University

Funding

'Beyond the Here and Now of News' is generously supported by a 5.4 million DKK grant (approx. €725.000) provided by the Independent Research Fund Denmark. In their letter, the Research Council noted that “the project’s quality and originality, and qualifications (of the applicants), are of the highest level.”

The international committee assessing the grant proposal concluded that ‘Beyond the Here and Now of News’ was, “an excellent project that contains an innovative perspective on news, journalism and audiences with the potential for great public impact in national and international settings. This project has high international significance and excels in its overall aims and objectives."

Publications

Digital News Report 2021: Denmark
Schrøder, K. C., Ørsten, M. & Eberholst, M. K., 23 Jun 2021, Reuters Digital News Report 2021. Newman, N., Fletcher, R., Schulz, A., Andi, S., Robertson, C. T. & Nielsen, R. K. (eds.). University of Oxford, p. 74-75 2 p.
Research output: Chapter in Book/Report/Conference proceeding › Report chapter › Research › peer-review
(Against a) Theory of Audience Engagement with News
Steensen, S., Ferrer-Conill, R. & Peters, C., 9 Sep 2020, In: Journalism Studies. 21, 12, p. 1662-1680
Research output: Contribution to journal › Journal article › Research › peer-review
Stakeholder Collaboration in Audience Research: From Why to How
Mathieu, D., Schrøder, K. C., Bolin, G., Runnel, P., Pruulmann-Vengerfeldt, P., Nani, A. & Theodoropoulou, V., 2020, In: Baltic Screen Media Review. 8, 1, p. 112-125 14 p.
Research output: Contribution to journal › Comment/debate › Research › peer-review