Of the People, by the People, for the People – Re-inventing public media to support democracy and social change

Karin Assmann, served as head of AEJMC’s Cultural and Critical Studies Division; moderated two panels and the division’s Top Paper Research Session and served as discussant for the Community Journalism Interest Group’s research paper session.

Karin Assman, International Communications Association (ICA) conference, Toronto: Organizer and panelist: “Of the People, by the People, for the People – Re-inventing public media to support democracy and social change” and participated as panelist with a presentation about German public broadcasting, its role in regional news coverage and the emerging crisis of confidence in the publicly funded system in light of recent scandals around misappropriation of funds and lack of oversight. The system, modeled after the UK’s BBC, has long been considered a reliable source for independent information and, as such, the foundation for a strong democracy. In recent decades these public broadcasters have been criticized for their lack of appeal to younger audiences and attacked as “system media” controlled by the state. Mis- and disinformation about the funding structure, coupled with ongoing scandals are putting Germany’s public media democracy at risk.