The pioneering European Journalism Observatory (EJO), which is designed to bridge the gap between academia and journalism practice, is moving to City, University of London.

For more than a decade the award-winning, agenda-setting network has been influencing reporting practices and inspiring new research with powerful collaborations and thought-provoking publications such as:

• How Europe’s newspapers reported the migration crisis
• Do European media take climate change seriously enough?
• How media worldwide are covering the coronavirus crisis

From September 2020, City’s Department of Journalism will take over the reins from the Reuters Institute for the Study of Journalism based at the University of Oxford, which has hosted the EJO’s English-language website since the network moved into the Anglo-Saxon world in 2013.

Funded by the Stiftung NRZ and City, University of London, the network will bolster the Department of Journalism’s research profile, providing new opportunities to participate in pan-European projects devoted to topics and issues that journalists and journalism scholars prioritise.

Dr Colin Porlezza, EJO’s new director at City, said: “We at City are excited about the prospect of joining the EJO family – particularly at this critical moment when major topics such as pandemics, climate change, attacks on press freedom, surveillance, datafication, and the potentials and perils of artificial intelligence are impacting journalism all around the world.

“We look forward to collaborating with our EJO partners to foster a symbiotic relationship between academia and journalism practice, and help bring the latest research to the desks of academics, journalists and media managers.”

Since its creation by Professor Stephan Russ-Mohl in Switzerland in 2004, the EJO has taken root in a number of European countries and now has 13 active websites in 13 different languages.

Collaboration between the non-profit institutes has facilitated the sharing of media research and journalistic best practice across borders. Its projects have also influenced the news agenda, attracting coverage in leading global media outlets across Europe and the US.

In 2019 the network was awarded the prestigious Günter Wallraff Prize for its contribution to a richer understanding of different journalism cultures.

The new partnership will focus on building on the strong foundation of the EJO’s successes to further extend the network’s reach across Europe and North America.