NEPOCS stands for Network of European Political Communication Scholars. We are a group of 17 social scientists, all of whom share an interest in political communication research from a comparative international perspective. Each member is an expert on a particular European country, meaning there are currently 17 countries represented in the network. Our mission is to further internationally comparative political communication research.
On the 10th anniversary of our foundation in 2018, we have taken the opportunity to look back on our successes to date. We have summarized our achievements under Past Achievements 2008-2017 on this website. The section explains a lot about our identity, commitment, motivation, and our ambitions.
The 10th anniversary also marks the transition to a new phase – NEPOCS 2.0, so to speak – in which the focus is on new goals. This transition coincides with a phase of organic change in the composition of the group. We said goodbye to some deserving members and in return accepted some new ones. NEPOCS is more than just a professional network; it is also a circle of reliable friends. In this spirit, we will stay friendly with our past members as well.
In its new composition, NEPOCS is an exceptionally strong, internationally networked group characterized by its expertise and creativity in the field of comparative international political communication research. This became very clear at the first meeting of NEPOCS 2.0 in June 2018 in Zurich, where we started planning our next projects. On the one hand, we want to continue the extremely successful work of the first 10 years, and on the other hand, of course, we want to break new ground.
NEPOCS meetings are characterized by an unusual intensity and energy, which whet the appetite for the future. We recently had great meetings in Antwerp (2018), Trondheim (2019) and Poznan (2019). Unfortunately, our meetings in 2020 and 2021 could not take place in person due to CORONA. However, the Zoom meetings during this time were highly productive. In 2020 and 2021, we produced a whopping 10 papers (see Joint Publications).
We are currently working on two major research projects:
1) A comparative two-wave survey study in 17 countries to investigate the effects of different conditions of the political information environment on the opinions, attitudes, knowledge, and behavior of citizens regarding media and democracy. Dr. Laia Castro Herrero (University of Zurich & Universitat Internacional de Catalunya, Barcelona), who contributes significantly to the success of the project, assists us in coordinating the complex design.
2) A second project is entitled THREATPIE: The Threats and Potentials of a Changing Political Information Environment, funded with ~1.5 million EUR by NORFACE.
More information on our current projects, can be found under Current Activities 2018-today.