The issue of social cohesion has experienced a remarkable resurgence in recent years. From a communication studies perspective, the media are attributed a central role in social cohesion; the assumption that the media play an integrating role in society is a decades-old cliché. It is assumed that the shared use of media brings society together and, conversely, that fragmentation of media use in a high-choice media environment carries with it a substantial potential for division. Given the postulated importance of the media for social cohesion, it is surprising that, whilst there are many theoretical texts on the integrative or cohesive role of the media, there are comparatively few that systematically test this assumption empirically. This doctoral project addresses this gap and examines the central research question: To what extent do the use and perception of news coverage across different media contribute to social cohesion?
As a first step, the cohesive function of the media is examined from a theoretical perspective. It is assumed that the media contribute positively to social cohesion when their reporting adequately reflects the heterogeneity of pluralistic societies. This ensures that members of society perceive themselves as being publicly represented and can thus feel that they are part of society. It is therefore the representation of various social groups within the public sphere as portrayed by the media that acts as a crucial mediating mechanism contributing to social cohesion. In a second step, this assumption is examined using a representative cross-sectional survey of the population. Using the repertoire approach, the study investigates how different combinations of various media types within more or less diverse media repertoires affect perceptions of media representation and, consequently, social cohesion.
Project team members:
