Post-communist Media: From democratic ideals to authoritarian backlash?

What are the major trends of democratization vs. authoritarianism in Central and Eastern Europe? How do authoritarian and semi-authoritarian regimes control media in different post-communist regions? How do old and new media genres contribute to sustaining and / or opposing authoritarian regimes? And how could media studies be reinvented to reflect on changing geopolitical realities and media landscapes?

The aim of the workshop is to paint the big picture of Central and Eastern European media today: their democratic vs. authoritarian performance, political status, pluralism and policies, within the global trend of strengthening authoritarian tendencies.

CEU Press will highlight three books which it has published with the CMCS: "Media, Nationalism and European Identities," "Media Freedom and Pluralism  - Media Policy Challenges in the Enlarged Europe," and "Comparative Media Systems: European and Global Perspectives".

Morning panels on Media Policy and Pluralism in Central and Eastern Europe will include Boguslawa Dobek-Ostrowska, Beata Klmikiewicz, Péter Bajomi-Lázár, Jan Zielonka, Amy Brouillette and Kate Coyer.

An afternoon panel on Media, Democracy and Authoritarian Temptations in Central and Eastern Europe will include Ellen Hume, Amer Dzihana, Péter Molnár and András Bozóki.

Further afternoon panels on Confronting Authoritarian Models and Legacies will include Miklós Sükösd, Joan Barata, Ferenc Hammer, Andrei Soldatov (remotely) and Pál Nyiri.

Markos Kounalakis will place the day's presentations in the broader context: Whose Ideals and What Backlash?

Download the full program or read more on the CEU Press website.