Disrupt Adapt: New ways to deal with current challenges in media and communication

Abstract

In the last couple of years, our world has undergone rapid and far-reaching transformations. Digitalization is changing society through the adoption of new technologies, and influences our ways of living and working. Furthermore, a seemingly never-ending pandemic, an increasingly polarized public, the rise of political conflicts, the threats of the Russian war of aggression against Ukraine, and climate change are fundamentally changing our way of life and changing the way we communicate. This dynamic, complex and uncertain new environment disrupts familiar workflows. Because communication is always strongly embedded in the environment in which it takes place, the latest changes inevitably bring obstacles for communication professionals as well. But instead of feeling intimidated by these developments, why not confront them head on and grow through them? This publication aims to give impulses on how to master and overcome the multifaceted challenges of an ever faster changing, globalized world. The six studies - developed over the course of a yearlong research seminar at Leipzig University - focus on current trends in the fields of journalism and strategic communication and examine what is currently occupying practice and science: digital sustainability storytelling as contributor to corporate success and the potential of corporate podcasts in branding, the use of remote work for employer branding, the pressure companies face to take a stance on socio-political issues, how German political parties use new campaign tactics on social media, and the effects of the increasing threat of violence against journalists. The results show how professionals are dealing with these challenging times, formulate implications for the practical field, and open the pathway for future research.