Minority Language Media

Building upon a parallel involvement in topics and initiatives concerning the nexus between minority issues, language rights, economy, media and discourses (see the list of publications below, as well as some of the publications listed in Minority Communities and Local / Regional Development), the ECMI has recently increased its role in this field of minority language media (MLM), both through a rejuvenated research focus but also from an organisational perspective. The Politics and Civil Society Research Cluster researchers Dr. Sergiusz Bober and Craig Willis have joined the recently established International Association for Minority Language Media Research (IAMLMR), thus connecting them with scholars and practitioners across Europe and beyond.

This particular research focus includes such subtopics as: the media of the local minorities in the Danish-German border region, most prominently represented by Der Nordschleswiger and Flensborg Avis newspapers; the implementation of media-relevant articles of the Framework Convention for the Protection of National Minorities (FCNM) and the European Charter for Regional or Minority Languages (ECRML) by different state parties, the public service broadcasters of the British Isles and Spain with their socio-economic impact in terms of regional development in minority language-speaking areas; the long-term impacts of the COVID-19 pandemic on MLM contexts across Europe; a shift towards a digital paradigm as a challenge and opportunity for MLM.

Publications

Bober, S. & Willis, C. (2020). How has the COVID-19 pandemic affected Minority Language Media (MLM)? The findings from a series of expert interviews. ECMI Infochannel
Boglo, A. (2020). Resolving minority language disputes: A new approach to language rights in Northern Ireland? ECMI Minorities Blog
Bober, S. (2020). The Spanish Roma community in the time of coronavirus. A narrative perspective. ECMI Minorities Blog
Bober, S. (2018). National minorities vis-à-vis political developments in their kin states. The case of Flensborg Avis newspaper, ECMI Research Paper #114

Events

International scientific conference Multi-platform and Connecting Communities: Contemporary Challenges for Minority Language Media, 31 March - 1 April 2022 (conference postponed from October 2021 due to the COVID-19 pandemic), Flensburg (Germany).
Co-organised by the ECMI (Sergiusz Bober, Craig Willis), University of the Basque Country (Miren Manias Muñoz), The International Association for Minority Language Media Research (IAMLMR) and Europa Universität Flensburg.
The 11th Annual ECMI Summer School on National Minorities in Border Regions – National Minorities and the New Digital Paradigm, Flensburg (Germany), 22-29 August 2021
Sergiusz Bober, Craig Willis and Aziz Berdiqulov co-organized a module on the digitalization and minority / indigenous language media, consisting of an online lecture “Media Landscapes and Minority Languages: How Media Can Make or Break Linguistic Vitality” by Elin Haf Gruffydd Jones and a lecture / workshop “The Debate around the ‘Indigenous’ for Indigenous Language Media and the Limits of a Cybertarian Utopia” by Enrique Uribe-Jongbloed.
More information
Indigenous Language Media in Africa 2021 Research Seminar, North-West University, Faculty of humanities (South Africa) / online, 18 August 2021.
Guest lecture by Sergiusz Bober & Craig Willis “Minority Language Media in Europe and the Covid-19 pandemic: A study of 10 linguistic spheres”
More information
Workshop Rahmenübereinkommen zum Schutz nationaler Minderheiten: Umsetzung, Möglichkeiten und Defizite im Kontext der Bundesrepublik Deutschland, ECMI & Der Minderheitenrat der vier autochthonen nationalen Minderheiten und Volksgruppen Deutschlands, 23-24 June 2021 (online)
Sergiusz Bober presented “Implementing Article 9: Assessing minorities’ access to media in Germany (Artikel 9 implimentieren: Beurteilung des Zugangs zu Medien für Minderheiten in Deutschland)”
More information
KURS-Kolloquium, Europa Universität Flensburg (Germany) / online, 9 June 2021.
Guest lecture by Sergiusz Bober & Craig Willis “Minority Language Media in Europe and the Covid-19 pandemic: A study of 10 linguistic spheres”
More information
XVIII International Conference on Minority Languages (ICML), University of the Basque Country (Spain) / online, 24-26 March 2021
Craig Willis presented “Impact of the European Structural and Investment Funds in the traditional minority language speaking areas of Celtic nations”

Panel “Focal points in the development of Minority Language Media research”
Craig Willis presented “The impact of the COVID-19 pandemic on Minority Language Media in Europe: a comparative analysis”

Panel “Focal points in the development of Minority Language Media research”
Sergiusz Bober presented “On the efficiency of monitoring mechanisms: minority language media in ECRML and FCNM”

Programme
Online workshop of the International Association for Minority Language Media (IAMLMR) Research, 28 January 2021
Sergiusz Bober & Craig Willis presented “The Findings of the Covid-19 Minority Language Media Blog Series”
The 4th European Conference dedicated to minority and local media, Novi Sad (Serbia) / online, 26 November 2020
Craig Willis presented “Minority media in Europe and the Covid-19 pandemic”
Programme
International conference - Crowded out or limitless horizons? Minority language-media in the digital age, University of Edinburgh (United Kingdom), 16-17 October 2019
Craig Willis attended as the ECMI’s representative
Programme
ASN European Conference – Nationalism in times of uncertainty, University of Graz (Austria), 4-6 July 2018
Sergiusz Bober presented “Danish minority in Schleswig-Holstein vis-a-vis Denmark’s policy towards persons of foreign origin after June 2015 parliamentary election: the case of ‘Flensborg Avis’ newspaper”
Programme

Multimedia

Craig Willis’s presentation “Minority media in Europe and the Covid-19 pandemic” delivered during the 4th European Conference Dedicated to Minority and Local Media in Novi Sad (Serbia), 26 November 2020.

Minority language media and the COVID-19 pandemic - a series of interviews

The COVID-19 pandemic obviously affected every single aspect of daily life across Europe and beyond, including in minority contexts. The purpose of this interview series was to provide a comparative overview of how minority language media have been affected and covered the pandemic in different minority linguistic situations. The series focused on one minority language setting for each interview, utilising both scholars and practitioners (oftentimes two roles held by one person) to provide a comprehensive overview of what has occurred to date and how the future is envisaged. Whilst we use the term interview, we would like to state that the quality and work put into the posts by the interviewees is extensive and backed-up with relevant empirical data and academic references. The editorial work and concept of the series was undertaken by Dr. Sergiusz Bober and Craig Willis.

The interviews were conducted between July and October 2020. All 10 conversations can be viewed below.

A subsequent special issue of the Journal on Ethnopolitics and Minority Issues in Europe (JEMIE) focusing on the findings of this series and developments reaching beyond the initial lockdowns has been launched. Please see the JEMIE subpage for more information.

The case of Welsh: an interview with Prof. Elin Haf Gruffydd Jones (published on 8 July 2020)

The case of German and Ladin in South Tyrol: an interview with Marc Rüggla (published on 15 July 2020)

The case of Basque in Spain: an interview with Dr. Miren Manias-Muñoz (published on 23 July 2020)

The case of Irish: an interview with Dr. John Walsh (published on 30 July 2020)

The case of Catalan in Spain: an interview with Prof. Aida Martori Muntsant (published on 5 August 2020)

The case of German in Denmark: an interview with Gwyn Nissen (published on 20 August 2020)

The case of Swedish in Finland: an interview with Dr. Jenny Stenberg-Sirén (published on 26 August 2020)

The case of Frisian in the Netherlands: an interview with Onno Falkena (published on 17 September 2020)

The case of German in Poland: an interview with Rudolf Urban (published on 26 October 2020)

The case of Scottish Gaelic: an interview with Dr. Douglas Chalmers (published on 30 October 2020)

The findings from a series of expert interviews (published on 26 November 2020)

2020-11-26

How has the COVID-19 pandemic affected Minority Language Media (MLM)? The findings from a series of expert interviews

The present text summarises the findings of the series "Minority language media and the COVID-19 pandemic" which consists of expert interviews looking at the effects of the Covid-19 pandemic on minority language media across Europe. The individual interviews in this series have been posted as 10 different pieces since July, featuring expert scholars and practitioners who focus on one specific linguistic sphere. This post provides an overview and comparative analysis of the series, which was divided into six different themes discussed for each case.

2020-10-30

Minority language media and the COVID-19 pandemic – the case of Scottish Gaelic. An interview with Dr. Douglas Chalmers.

In our tenth and final expert interview in the series on minority language media and the effects of COVID-19 pandemic, we return to the British Isles for an in-depth analysis of Scottish Gaelic. Dr. Douglas Chalmers, Senior Lecturer in Media and Journalism at Glasgow Caledonian University, provides a thorough overview of the situation for that linguistic sphere, in particular by focusing on the public service broadcasters BBC Alba and Radio nan Gàidheal.

2020-10-26

Minority language media and the COVID-19 pandemic – the case of German in Poland: An Interview with Rudolf Urban.

Our ninth interview on the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic on minority language media, features an interview with Rudolf Urban outlining the situation for the German minority in Poland. As editor-in-chief of the Wochenblatt.pl weekly newspaper, Rudolf is well-placed to provide insight into the situation in this linguistic sphere which also has radio, TV and a sizeable online presence. This interview highlights the new practices which the newspaper has had to adapt to, as well as outlining how the activities of the German minority had shifted to be mostly online.

2020-09-17

Minority language media and the COVID-19 pandemic – the case of Frisian in the Netherlands: An Interview with Onno Falkena.

Returning to a non-kin state setting for our eighth interview in the ongoing series, Onno Falkena details the case of Frisian in the Netherlands. A seasoned journalist for regional public broadcaster Omrop Fryslân in the province of Fryslân / Friesland, Onno is well-positioned to provide first-hand experience of the situation during the lockdown months earlier this year.

2020-08-26

Minority language media and the COVID-19 pandemic – the case of Swedish in Finland: An Interview with Dr. Jenny Stenberg-Sirén.

The seventh interview in our ongoing series sees Dr. Jenny Stenberg-Sirén detailing the case of Swedish in Finland. With vast experience as an academic and a journalist, Dr. Stenberg-Sirén is able to provide an extensive analysis of the Swedish language media in Finland, which includes national public TV and radio, as well as a large array of daily newspapers.

2020-08-19

Minority language media and the COVID-19 pandemic – the case of German in Denmark. An interview with Gwyn Nissen

The German minority in Denmark is the focus of the sixth post in our ongoing expert interview series on minority language media and the effects of the COVID-19 pandemic. Chief Editor of Der Nordschleswiger, Gwyn Nissen, gives us an insightful overview of the situation for the German minority’s daily newspaper and its online news site, and the mixed effects the pandemic has had and is having.

2020-08-05

Minority language media and the COVID-19 pandemic – the case of Catalan in Spain. An interview with Prof. Dr. Aida Martori Muntsant.

Our fifth interview on minority language media (MLM) during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic focuses again on a case in Spain, with Prof. Dr. Aida Martori Muntsant (Universitat Autònoma de Barcelona) discussing the situation of Catalan language media in Catalonia. An MLM sphere with a substantial array of institutions including many local TV and radio stations as well as and print and online newspapers, the situation for Catalan media was nonetheless greatly affected by the pandemic.

2020-07-30

Minority language media and the COVID-19 pandemic – the case of Irish. An interview with Dr. John Walsh.

We return to the Celtic linguistic sphere for our fourth post on the situation of minority language media (MLM) during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic. Dr. John Walsh, Senior Lecturer in Irish at the National University of Ireland in Galway, details the case of Irish language media on the island of Ireland. Dr. Walsh begins by comprehensively outlining the various TV, radio, print and social media which operate in the Irish language, as well as a brief history of their development.

2020-07-23

Minority language media and the COVID-19 pandemic – the case of Basque in Spain. An interview with Dr. Miren Manias-Muñoz.

In the third interview of the new series discussing the situation of minority language media (MLM) during the ongoing COVID-19 pandemic, Dr. Miren Manias-Muñoz (University of the Basque Country) presents the case of MLM in Basque Country and Navarre. Spain has been particularly harshly affected by the pandemic, with its repercussions spilling over to MLM outlets as well. Production of radio and television content was halted, programmes well-liked by the audience were cancelled, while newspapers’ economic situation worsened even with readership increasing. Besides this, broader trends concerning broadcasters’ and local / regional authorities’ priorities further complicate the picture.

2020-07-15

Minority language media and the COVID-19 pandemic – the case of German and Ladin in South Tyrol. An interview with Marc Röggla.

In the second interview of our new series focused on minority language media during the COVID-19 pandemic, Marc Röggla (EURAC Research / Midas), discusses the case of German and Ladin language media in the Autonomous Province of Bolzano, South Tyrol in Italy. Officially trilingual, there are an array of media institutions producing content through different mediums, yet, as Marc explains, despite a general increase in media consumption during the recent crisis there has been a significant drop in revenues due to reduced advertising income. Marc outlines the implications of this trend for the broader MLM landscape in Europe as well, from his unique perspective as a scholar and practitioner.

2020-07-08

Minority language media and the COVID-19 pandemic – the case of Welsh. An interview with Prof. Elin Haf Gruffydd Jones.

In the first of a new series of expert interviews in the field of minority language media across Europe, Prof. Elin Haf Gruffydd Jones of the University of Wales Trinity Saint David provides an in-depth overview of Welsh media during the COVID-19 pandemic. As she explains, Welsh language media organizations have acted quickly during COVID-19 to inform and connect communities across Wales. New conversations, content and groups have been created on social media in Welsh too. But faced with the impending economic downturn, exacerbated by Brexit, there are challenging times ahead for the sector.

Minority language media and the COVID-19 pandemic - a series of interviews

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