infonews.co.nz
INDEX
NEWS

Media Perceptions of the European Union

Tuesday 6 September 2016, 6:10PM

By Impact PR

332 views

Europe House at Auckland University of Technology (AUT) played host on 13 July to a lively debate on media perceptions of the European Union (EU). Thirty academics and media professionals joined forces to share insights and consider options for addressing New Zealand’s media perception of the EU.

The event featured decades-long research by Professor Martin Holland and Dr. Serena Kelly from the EU Centers Network at the University of Canterbury in Christchurch, NZ. The New Zealand Herald topped the list of media that most report on the EU, followed by the Dominion Post and The Press. News agencies such as Reuters and Associated Press (AP) were decreasing as international sources of EU news, whereas the UK The Times and the Telegraph were increasing.
“Media can no longer afford the ‘luxuries’ of a variety of news feeds,” a participant explained.

Examining the United Kingdom (UK) media perspectives on the EU, Professor Karin Wahl-Jorgensen of Cardiff University and Dr. Agnes Gulyas of Canterbury of Christ Church University (UK) focused on the role of emotions and of social media. Are “echo chambers” replacing the “public sphere” that the internet had promised, one participant asked in response to their findings.

Moderated by Radio New Zealand’s Colin Peacock, participants shared their thoughts and opinions. They concurred that there is still a number of media stereotypes in New Zealand that are affecting local perceptions of the EU. Among more negative views focusing on trade and the Euro, several positive images exist: EU as a peacemaker, as a “land of opportunity for the young”, that has also managed to take in millions of refugees.

A wider discussion among participating academics, journalists and EU representatives focused on options on how the EU might address these in the future: media travel grants to the EU, more visibility on EU aid to the Pacific and an EU public broadcasting, a sort of BBC on the EU level, among many others.