Cultures of Debate and Media in Transition

Basic data for this project

Description

The debate is a specific cultural technique based on the exchange of reasonable arguments between participants who are reciprocally recognised as equals. In democratic societies in particular, debates are held in high esteem. This applies to politics as well as to academia, as debating represents the core of the political and academic communication cultures. The debate and its cultural conditions are however increasingly contested with the significant role that has been attributed to media transformation in this respect. The topical program "Cultures of Debate and Media in Transition" take such current developments as a starting point while examining them in a larger context: As a cultural technique, the debate occurs in multiple and changing forms in different epochs and cultural contexts. Furthermore, processes of media transformation have led to changes in cultures of debate in the past with, for instance, the dissemination of print media. Only through interdisciplinary exchange that connects different approaches from various disciplines is it hence possible to understand such developments more precisely and to examine them in a cross-cultural perspective. The interdisciplinary orientation of the research initiative is already reflected in the group of principal applicants that consists of Barbara Winckler (Arabic Studies; spokesperson), Ursula Frohne (Art History), Philip Hoffmann-Rehnitz (History) and Annie Waldherr (Communication Science). It is significantly enriched by the participation of more than 20 scholars from various branches of the humanities and social sciences - including political science, sociology, anthropology, literary and cultural studies, philosophy and theology - from the University of Münster and other universities in Germany and abroad.