Welcome to Action IS0906 “Transforming Audiences, Transforming Societies” website

The COST Action "Transforming Audiences, Transforming Societies" coordinates 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. Four interconnected but distinct topics concerning audiences are being developed, all of pressing importance to both European communication research and European societies: (1) New media genres, media literacy and trust in the media; (2) Audience interactivity and participation; (3) The role of media and ICT use for evolving social relationships; and (4) Audience transformations and social integration. The Action offers a perspective which is different from that of conventional ICT-focused audience research, by (a) bringing together experts who study a wide range of media, ‘old’ mass media included, to understand how these relate to each other and to everyday life, and (b) paying equal attention to audience-focused issues (especially media interpretations and mediated experiences) and user-focused issues (both adoption and use of technologies). The Action will be of benefit to the scientific and education communities, to media, communication and ICT industries and professionals, to policy-makers and regulatory bodies, and to media-oriented NGOs and citizen initiatives.

For an overview of the project, see the poster in attachment below. For a full description of the project, see the Memorandum of Understanding (MoU).

The Action "Transforming Audiences, Transforming Societies" is a network funded by the European COST programme (European Cooperation in Science and Technology). COST provides support for all types of networking activities (such as workshops, conferences, and short-term scientific exchanges), but not the research itself. Its goal is to coordinate nationally funded research on a European level, connect researchers on a regular basis and reduce fragmentation in the research field. A project funded by the COST programme is called an "Action". The COST framework is organised around 9 scientific domains. The Action "Transforming Audiences, Transforming Societies" belongs to the ISCH domain (Individuals, Societies, Cultures and Health). More information on the COST framework can be found on the COST website at: http://www.cost.eu.