integrating sustainability themes into media - Collaborating Centre ...

Organisation of project 19 employees:
• editorial staff: 5
• Web team: 4
• Community: 3
• Marketing & Sales: 3
• Assistants: 2
• Board: 2
Short description of media
system/legislation
Stakeholders involved
Media legislation:
In Germany freedom of the press is established by the Basic Constitutional
Law. It prohibits any exertion of influence on or censorship of contents of the
press by external actors like government organisations or NGOs. The press
is subject to the legislative powers of the states (lands). Each state has an
individual state press law, although the legislation in each state is nearly
identical.
The German Press Council, which is formed by large publishers and
journalists associations, defines the professional ethics of the press and is
responsible for the self monitoring of the press. When a press company has
violated an aspect of the professional ethics, a complaint can be submitted
to the Press Council, which has several options to impose sanctions, the
most rigorous of which is the public rebuke (with obligation of publication 1).
Print media landscape:
A diversity of opinions is supposed to be ensured by competition, meaning
that opinions are distributed by a large number of commercially independent
publishers. In order to prevent the formation of monopolies, the law on
restriction of competition, the so-called "press clause” was enacted in the
mid 1970s. Nevertheless, a concentration process has taken place in the
print media market over several decades. There are about 1,200
independent publishers, but the majority of Germany’s 354 daily
newspapers and at least 2,750 magazines are held in the hands of very few
companies.2 The ten largest newspaper publishing groups have a market
share of 58%, the five largest of which hold 45%.3 The four largest
magazine publishers – Bauer, Burda, Springer und Gruner & Jahr – share
62% of the market.4
Political stakeholder To date there are no government organisations involved with the Utopia.de
initiative, although Utopia did make application for public funding to support
its sustainable shopping guide.
There is a loose cooperation network with the German Council for
Sustainable Development (RNE) to exchange information.
Media stakeholder Who: natur+kosmos, DIE ZEIT, MySpace, Jetzt.de …
1 About 95% of all publishing companies have committed themselves to publish a public rebuke.
2 Mediadaten-Verlag, IVW
3 Der Kontakter am 10.9.2008 http://www.kontakter.de/kontakter/news/artikel/2008/09/107417/index.html unter Berufung auf den
Dortmunder Medienforscher Horst Röper, der mit seinem Formatt-Institut in mehrjährigem Rhythmus regelmäßig den
Zeitungsmarkt analysiert.
4
Vogel, Andreas (2008): Stabile Position in schrumpfenden Märkten. Daten zum Markt und zur Konzentration der
Publikumspresse in Deutschland um 1. Quartal 2008. In: Media-Perspektiven, Nr. 9/2008, 467-448, S. 468.