The results of a new survey on Intercultural Trends in the Euro-Mediterranean region launched by the Anna Lindh Foundation reveals that the region is not a victim of a clash of civilisations, as is often reported, but rather a ‘clash of ignorances’ based on historical stereotypes and the ‘culturalisation’ of conflicts promoted by some media and political narratives.
The survey investigated what people see as critical aspects of life in the Euro-Mediterranean region, and the key similarities and differences they find between themselves and those from other countries, cultures and backgrounds. It also examines trust of different types of media sources across different countries and age profiles.
More than 13,000 people across 13 countries were interviewed by Ipsos-Mori during the second half of 2016 for this study about their expectations, concerns and values. The countries studied included eight in the EU (Austria, Croatia, Finland, France, Italy, Poland, Portugal and The Netherlands) and five Southern and Eastern Mediterranean (SEM) countries (Algeria, Israel, Jordan, Palestine and Tunisia).
Some of the key findings of the survey were:
The survey reflects that levels of distrust are seemingly far greater among those who have taken input from media than among those who have reached their opinions without media influence.
Under this backdrop, the Anna Lindh Foundation is also launching a Media Observatory, attached to the Euro-Mediterranean Foundation, which will observe how media cover issues of intercultural relations and provide evidence-based resources and material for journalists and the media.
The key components of the Media Observatory will include:
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