The project revolves around an annual report that surveys media products (TV, radio, press, advertising campaigns) and measures LGBT-related attitudes, gauging each media’s social impact in Italy.
The report is produced in cooperation with Universities and Think tanks, that analyze media products according to internationally-recognized standards.
Our panel gathers scholars from 9 different Universities. They are tasked with sharing, endorsing and validating the report.
MIXED METHODS
Quantitative longitudinal research
The Pavia Media Watch surveyed the main Italian newscasts (Tg1, Tg2, Tg3, Tg4, Tg5, Studio Aperto, prime-time editions) and retraced their coverage on LGBT issues, starting on 1 January 2005 through 30 June 2015.
The Watch recorded 1,359 relevant news instances and classified them by event, topic, and source, identifying the leading issues.
The result is a unique 10-year database.
Qualitative analysis
An interdisciplinary research group (42 scholars from 11 Italian Universities) analyses the most relevant media content published or aired between 1 July 2014 and 30 June 2015. To ascertain relevance, researchers put in place a permanent monitoring mechanism, collecting data on LGBT-related topics in movies, radio programmes, advertising campaigns, tv series, etc.
Every product undergoes a socio-semiotic analysis, and each team evaluates every product using a protocol that has been shared and validated by the Scientific Board.
This evaluation aims at gauging whether the media message is positive or negative, respectful and fair. It also aims at evaluating the message’s effectiveness, i.e. whether it is able to engage the audience in a positive way.
