Transforming Communications : Media -related Changes in Times of Deep Mediatization

As part of its work over the last five years, the Communicative Figurations research network developed a research programme on investigating Transforming Communications; that is, how our present social world changes with deep mediatization and the related transformation of communication. In 2016, this research programme was submitted as a proposal within the frame of the 12-year Collaborative Research Centre (SFB) funding scheme financed by the German Research Foundation (DFG). Our idea was to build up a centre comprising the two locations of the Universities of Bremen and Hamburg (a so-called Transregio). While an international on-site review committee supported our proposal and recommended it for funding, the responsible senate committee of the German Research Foundation decided not to go ahead in view of comparison with other initiatives across all disciplines. As we think the programme design we developed is of value in itself and might stimulate other research initiatives, we decided to publish our research idea in the form of this working paper. Our research network will continue its collaboration and is currently looking for alternative funding sources in order to realise the research programme.