Justin SchlosbergBirkbeck, University of London Things are not looking good for the Murdochs in their latest attempt to buy out Sky via 21st Century Fox. As well as coinciding with a snap election, the merger review is being conducted in the shadow of unfolding allegations and lawsuits, all of which point to a culture of …Continue Reading

Vian Bakir & Andrew McStayBangor University In January 2017, the UK Parliament’s Culture, Media and Sport Committee set up its Fake News Inquiry to investigate ‘the growing phenomenon of widespread dissemination, through social media and the internet, and acceptance as fact of stories of uncertain provenance or accuracy’. It was a response to the public …Continue Reading

Gordon RamsayKing’s College London Writing in the midst of the 2017 election campaign, the EU Referendum can seem a long way in the past. Perhaps unsurprisingly, with the exception of the pause in campaigning as a result of the tragedy of the terrorist attack in Manchester, the 2017 campaign – and the techniques employed by …Continue Reading

Stephen CushionCardiff University It was billed as the Brexit election, but events have influenced a campaign few predicted. I have been monitoring election coverage with a research team at Cardiff University, comparing TV news across the main UK evening bulletins. The opening part of the campaign began fairly predictably, with the Conservatives tightly controlling their …Continue Reading

David Deacon, John Downey, David Smith, James Stanyer & Dominic WringLoughborough University In media terms (and several other ways) the 2017 General Election has been quite a different campaign to the previous one fought only two years ago. This is primarily because, according to our research, Brexit has returned the issue of the UK’s relationship …Continue Reading

Jen Birks & Abi RhodesUniversity of Nottingham The role of civil society in election debates this time around has been as sparse as in past years. Individual voters, yes, have told roving journalists who they intend to vote for, and even given responses to particular policy pledges, in their droves. But organised publics in civil …Continue Reading