Challenges for the European Union from the Perspective of Journalism, Political Communication and Digital Platforms

Dear Colleagues,

Democracy continues to be challenged. The public sphere is suffering the effects of a global crisis marked by international conflicts, populism, and disinformation. At the same time, citizens show disaffection and distrust towards politics and the media. A strategic communication plan is urgently needed to address a new agenda, determined by new actors in social media.

Journalism also shares moments of crisis to defend credibility and public transparency. The traditional media do not achieve the necessary hybridization with the new media, nor do they know how to resolve the disconnection with the public. At the same time, social media are increasing the power of algorithms and monopolizing the trust of a digital community incapable of distinguishing lies. Nor do fact-checking agencies activate verification dynamics that guarantee the quality of information, beyond the denial of hoaxes and fake news.

The protagonist of this Special Issue is the European Union, and the main objective is to know how the EU's geopolitical discourse is projected in the media and digital platforms, in Europe and in the world. In the context of the forthcoming elections to the European Parliament, relevant topics are war conflicts, electoral processes, immigration, climate change, sustainability, or the effects of artificial intelligence at a time of extreme disinformation. The EU's need to strengthen its voice in the world and face the dangers of digitalization is a major communication challenge.

A second actor, no less important, is Journalism. How to deal with a post-truth era, marked by emotional rhetoric and populist propaganda, by the lack of contrast of sources and by the triumph of opinions over facts. The European media must face challenges inherent to the profession itself, such as the economic viability of the written press, competition in the digital sphere with semi-professional media or influencers, ideological pressures at the business and political level or public disaffection. In addition to all this, there is the need to offer quality journalism on complex issues, but which must be explained, on community or global issues.

Finally, a third actor is the Citizenry. This sector shows a lack of interest in public affairs, a lack of knowledge of an institution such as the EU and its weakness in the face of the influence of populism, lobbies, and artificial intelligence. Citizen activism continues to be questioned in times of crisis and instability of democracy.

In conclusion, the EU ‘political and institutional communication needs to design a strategic plan to strengthen its voice before the governments of the member states, integrating the media and public opinion itself in this project. The future of the European Union depends on strengthening community institutions, favoring internal cohesion at the supranational level, and demonstrating its usefulness for European citizens. In all this, communication and journalism play an essential role.

This Special Issue is linked to the R&D project with reference RED2022-134652-T, funded by MCIN/AEI/10.13039/501100011033/ and 'FEDER, A way of making Europe'.

Lines of research

- Institutional and political communication strategies of the EU in the public sphere. Risks, Challenges and Resilience.

- International Political Journalism. Europe as an object of study.

- Political communication and journalism as drivers or hinderers of the European project.

- Elections to the European Parliament. Political, media and citizen agenda.

- EU migration policies. A journalistic and media vision of the conflict.

- Social media and political communication: leadership, parties, and European governments.

- New agenda and new actors in European communication: far-right populists, pundits, influencers, digital media and fact-checkers.

- Information verification and fact-checking agencies at EU level.

-Fake news, disinformation and information disorders affecting the Europeanization process.

-Cyberactivism and communication citizen campaigns in the EU.

- Public Diplomacy. The EU in the world through the media and social media.

- Europeanism or Euroscepticism in the media.

- Treatment of national and European identities in the media.

- European Digital Agenda and Journalism. New issues and new actors.

Prof. Dr. Concha Pérez Curiel
Dr. Ricardo Domínguez-García
Dr. João Pedro Baptista
Guest Editors

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• political communication
• journalism
• European Union
• social media
• international conflicts
• populism
• disinformation
• cyberactivism
• media