The Media and Democracy Karol Jakubowicz Award 2025: Winner and Nominees
Three publications were nominated for this year’s edition of the international Media and Democracy Karol Jakubowicz Award. The Award was granted to Marius Dragomir – the editor of the Media Capture Monitoring Report project - for the Media Capture Monitoring Report, a research report by the Media and Journalism Research Center and the International Press Institute (co-authored with Zsuzsa Detreköi). A special Media and Democracy Karol Jakubowicz Award 2025 was awarded to Basil Kerski for his book Europejczycy z kantonu Polska (Eng. Europeans from the Canton Poland; Kraków; Budapeszt; Syrakuzy: Wydawnictwo Austeria, 2024).
On April 7, 2025, the Selection Committee reviewed proposals submitted for this year’s edition of the Media and Democracy Karol Jakubowicz Award – a mark of acknowledgment and support of significant publications in media systems, media policies, media ethics, and public service media. Scholarly contributions to the research and practice of media and democracy in 2024 and 2025 were submitted by members of the Leadership team of the International Association of Public Service Media Researchers (IAPMR), Editors, and Associate Editors of “Central European Journal of Communication” (CEJC), previous Award winners and the Selection Committee.
The Committee evaluated all of the submitted publications through three highly interwoven criteria:
- methodological correctness,
- contribution to media knowledge,
- potential impact on democratic society.
The Media and Democracy Karol Jakubowicz Award in 2025 was granted to:
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Marius Dragomir – the editor of the Media Capture Monitoring Report project - for the Media Capture Monitoring Report (Vienna, Austria: International Press Institute, 2025). For the originality and thoroughness of his research, offering a systematic and pioneering perspective on media ownership, regulatory frameworks, and the complex relationship between media and politics; the report was co-authored with Zsuzsa Detreköi. |
Dr Marius Dragomir is the Director of the Media and Journalism Research Center, a researcher at the University of Santiago de Compostela and a visiting professor at Central European University (CEU) in Vienna, specializing in journalism, research design, advocacy, and media policy. Formerly Director of the Center for Media, Data and Society (CMDS), he has spent over two decades designing and managing global media research initiatives. He leads projects like the Media Influence Matrix, the State Media Monitor, and is the editor of the Media Capture Monitoring Report, a pioneering study of media ownership and political influence. A former journalist in Romania, dr Dragomir also founded Media Power Monitor to explore the intersections of media, business, and politics worldwide.
The following publications were also nominated for the Media and Democracy Karol Jakubowicz Award in 2025:
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1) Václav Štetka & Sabina Mihelj (2024). The Illiberal Public Sphere: Media in Polarized Societies. Cham, Switzerland: Palgrave MacMillan. For their unique perspective in research on media, communication, human rights, and democracy, as well as for their meticulous analysis of the role of media in the rise of illiberalism, based on original theoretical frameworks and extensive empirical research conducted in Eastern Europe. |
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2) Tales Tomaz (2024). Media Ownership and Control in Europe: A Multidimensional Approach. European Journal of Communication, 39(5), 498–511. https://doi.org/10.1177/02673231241270994 For his theoretical and methodological contribution to research on media ownership transparency by applying a broader understanding of media control that goes beyond public policy and market structures. |
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Moreover, the Selection Committee acknowledged Europejczycy z kantonu Polska (Eng. Europeans from the Canton Poland; Kraków; Budapeszt; Syrakuzy: Wydawnictwo Austeria, 2024), a book written by Basil Kerski, with a special Media and Democracy Karol Jakubowicz Award 2025. This publication is a collection of essays devoted to the determinants of the crisis of democracy and the responsibility of the media and journalists for shaping perceptions of reality and public sentiment.
The author presents the cultural values of Europe, seeing in them an opportunity to redefine the Community. He resonates with the message of this book, which addresses the categories of European patriotism, subjectivity and citizenship in the context of global geopolitical changes.
The Award Ceremony will take place during the 7th Congress of the Polish Communication Association, dedicated to the theme of the human being at the center of contemporary media transformation. The Congress will be held in Katowice (Poland) on September 22–25, 2025, with the Award Ceremony scheduled for the first day of the event.
On behalf of the Committee and all the stakeholders, we warmly congratulate the Winners and the Nominees!
Dagmara Sidyk-Furman and Michał Głowacki