In 2021/22, the research project "Analysis of Islam Reporting in the German Media" provided the Independent Expert Group on Muslim Hostility (UEM), based at the Federal Ministry of the Interior, with data on the mass media's treatment of Islam and Muslims in Germany.

A systematic survey of Islam coverage in German mass media made it possible to draw representative conclusions. The survey examined opinion-leading media in the television and print sectors to determine the thematic contexts in which Islam and Muslims are reported. In doing so, we categorized the topics (domestic politics, foreign policy, culture, etc.) as well as the sub-topics. This gave us an overview of the fields in which Islam and Muslims are discussed in principle and, by specifying the topics, we also learned something about concrete journalistic foci and whether and how problematic news factors seem to be the guiding factors.
In selected topics (domestic politics and culture), an in-depth analysis of the actors and source names was also carried out. This allows conclusions to be drawn about which actors actually have their say in connection with Islam topics and who is merely being talked about.

The study has thus contributed to providing the UEM with an empirical basis for further recommendations for action, training and media literacy campaigns to combat Islamophobia.
The results will be published by the UEM in spring 2023. The full project report will then be available on this website.

The project team consisted of:

Prof. Dr. Carola Richter (project leader)

Dr. Sünje Paasch-Colberg (research assistant)

Dr. Katharina Nötzold (research assistant)

Judith Friede (student assistant)

The project was funded by the German Federal Ministry of the Interior, for Construction and Home Affairs.