Cristina Ponte

ABSTRACT Based on theoretical and methodological orientations from authors’ previous research on media and generations, this article presents a research and learning process involving supervised field work conducted by graduate students from a Master Seminar on Media Studies at FCSH, New University of Lisbon. Acting as facilitators of focus groups composed of older participants, exploring intergenerational and intragenerational differences and similarities that emerge from different age cohorts, and critically reflecting on this experience on their individual essays, students were able to build a contextual knowledge of media uses among their grand-parents’ and parents’ generation in Portugal. The choice of focus groups as a tool for research and the topic of generations to be investigated within Media Studies proved to be very productive. The article argues on the potentialities of this intergenerational relation between facilitator and focus groups’ respondents as a way of activating the interactions inside the groups, leading –for instance– the participants to assume an «explaining» attitude in self-accounting. Final notes are presented about the educational gains of this methodology for Media Education and for different branches of Media Studies, such as media and social history, journalism and the news or political participation.

Based on theoretical and methodological orientations from authors’ previous research on media and generations, this article presents a research and learning process involving supervised field work conducted by graduate students from a Master Seminar on Media Studies at FCSH, New University of Lisbon. Acting as facilitators of focus groups composed of older participants, exploring intergenerational and intragenerational differences and similarities that emerge from different age cohorts, and critically reflecting on this experience on their individual essays, students were able to build a contextual knowledge of media uses among their grand-parents’ and parents’ generation in Portugal. The choice of focus groups as a tool for research and the topic of generations to be investigated within Media Studies proved to be very productive. The article argues on the potentialities of this intergenerational relation between facilitator and focus groups’ respondents as a way of activating the i...

A partir de orientaciones teóricas y metodológicas previas sobre medios de comunicación y generaciones, este artículo presenta un proceso de investigación y aprendizaje a partir de la supervisión del trabajo de campo desempeñado por estudiantes licenciados en el Seminario del Máster en Medios de Comunicación en la Facultad de Humanidades y Ciencias Sociales de la Universidad Nueva de Lisboa. Los estudiantes implicados lograron construir conocimiento contextual sobre el uso de los medios en la generación de sus abuelos y en la de sus padres en Portugal, actuando como facilitadores en los grupos de discusión, formados siempre por participantes de mayor edad, explorando las diferencias y similitudes intrageneracionales que emergen en grupos de diferente edad y llevando a cabo una reflexión crítica sobre la experiencia en sus informes individuales. La elección de los grupos de discusión como herramienta para la investigación y la elección del tema en el marco del Estudio de los Medios de Comunicación resultó muy eficaz. Este artículo pretende defender la potencialidad de esta relación intergeneracional entre los facilitadores y los miembros de los grupos de discusión como forma de activar la interacción entre grupos, permitiendo, por ejemplo, que los participantes asuman una actitud explicativa para consigo mismos. Las notas finales que se presentan contemplan las ventajas de esta metodología para la Educación en Medios y para diferentes ramas del Estudio de los Medios, como la historia de los medios de comunicación e historia social, el periodismo o la participación política.

PATRIARCHE, G., BILANDZIC, H., CARPENTIER, N., PONTE, C., SCHRODER, K., ZELLER, F. (eds) (2014) Building Bridges. Pathways to a Greater Societal Significance for Audience Research. Brussels: Cost Action TATS. Abstract: The COST Action ‘Transforming Audiences, Transforming Societies’ (2010-­-14) has been coordinating research efforts into the key transformations of European audiences within a changing media and communication environment, identifying their complex interrelationships with the social, cultural and political areas of European societies. One of the tasks of the Action participants as initially labelled in the work plan was ‘to reflect on the significance of their research results for civil society, industry and policy players in the field, and provide them with insightful recommendations for their future activities and responsibilities.’ Thus the Action also had among its target groups policy makers, regulatory bodies, media industries and professionals, civil society (including community media) and the public at large. The report Building Bridges is one the Action’s main responses to the question why, how and for whom academic audience research has (or could have) public value.

Este artigo explora o conceito dos jornalistas como comunidade interpretativa (Zelizer, 1993), transnacional (Traquina, 2002), com base numa pesquisa com-parada de jornais de 13 países europeus (outubro-novembro de 2007), realizada no âmbito do Projecto EU ...

In this book, Zelizer runs through the history of Journalism and tells how it has come to expand its agenda and methodologies. For a long time, the study of journalism was centered on the so-called hard news. For a broader research agenda, more views are necessary than ...

Moisés de Lemos Martins & Manuel Pinto (Orgs.) (2008) Comunicação e Cidadania - Actas do 5º Congresso da Associação Portuguesa de Ciências da Comunicação 6 - 8 Setembro 2007, Braga: Centro de Estudos de Comunicação e Sociedade (Universidade do Minho) ...