In statements to Lusa agency, Gustavo Cardoso, professor of Communication Sciences at ISCTE, explained that the discussion will focus on the role of media and journalists in the current context experienced both in Europe and other continents, marked by an “extremely polarized discourse in terms of public opinion.”
“People are not willing to listen to the other side, and there is a refusal to even try to create some kind of negotiation or consensus on the issues. It seems that the world has suddenly been reduced to ‘either all white or all black’ with no grays or shades of white or black,” he specified.
For the professor and researcher, this results largely from the fact that it’s no longer just journalists publishing, but “the general population publishing as well.”
“So, if at other times the discussion was about whether there were places where journalism was taking overly polarized or partisan positions – in the 60s, 70s, 80s, 90s of the last century and even the first decade of this century – the situation now is to ask how journalism can avoid embarking on the same polarized dynamics present in social networks, how it can contribute to dismantling this discourse, and how it can be heard,” he emphasized.
According to Gustavo Cardoso, the fact is that “from the moment there was no longer a monopoly on the publication of public opinion by journalism, conditions changed.”
“Journalism continues to be central and important, but it’s not enough to just exist. It also has to be heard, and it has to be heard without trying to copy the recipe of polarized discourse, which seeks out people who are already willing to hear what they want to hear. That’s the challenge,” he argued.
Today’s seminar includes, among other participants, RTP journalist Vitor Gonçalves, Spanish Antena 3 TV Digital Area editor Mónica Prado, RAI Vatican correspondent manager Raffaele Luise, Salomé Leal and Filipe Pardal from Polígrafo, and Michaëla Cancela-Kieffer from France Presse (AFP) agency.
The meeting takes place within the framework of the European initiative “DepolarisingEU,” which aims to “create an interdisciplinary network to improve common understanding of radical polarization and identify successful interventions to reduce partisan hostility.”
The goal is to contribute to addressing “the strategies needed to respond to polarizing representations with a view to their de-escalation,” ensuring the creation of “safe discursive spaces for users and the public, in which different points of view can be brought together.”
It also aims to develop “tools that bring together civic-communicative depolarization skills” and “guidelines to avoid involuntary involvement in increasing polarization,” as well as disseminate examples of good practices.
