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- FoDiRa-Projekc: : Effects of media on racial assaults and their impact on local labor markets and regional migration
FoDiRa-Project: Effects of media on racial assaults and their impact on local labor markets and regional migration
The numerous racist and right-wing extremist attacks of recent years have made it clear that racism is a pressing problem for society. Against the backdrop of these developments, the research project will examine the role of media coverage in the formation of racist attitudes and the incidence of racist attacks. In particular, the focus is on analyzing whether and to what extent negative reporting on immigration and refugees leads to an increase in racially-motivated assaults. A local perspective is explicitly adopted by focusing on coverage in regional media and by considering regional characteristics and differences (e.g., age structure, unemployment rate, educational structure, average income, party preference) in the analysis. Subsequently, the consequences of racist attacks for the affected regions are examined in more detail. In addition to increased out-migration, racist attacks can also have a negative impact on the public image of a region. The resulting diminished attractiveness of the regions can reduce immigration from abroad but also from other domestic regions to the affected regions. This may make it more difficult for companies to fill vacancies with the necessary skilled workers and may create or exacerbate a shortage of skilled workers in the local labor market. In addition, domestic and foreign investors may be deterred by these events, preventing business start-ups and the creation of new jobs. Racist attacks can thus also lead to reduced economic growth in the affected regions.
Research questions
- How does media coverage influence the incidence of racist assaults?
- What are the consequences of such events for regional economic development, especially the labor market and internal migration?

Contact
Dr. Julia Bredtmann
Head of the research group "Migration and Integration" at the RWI - Leibniz Institute for Economic Research
Julia.Bredtmann(at)rwi-essen.de