News Agencies and Media Diversity

On behalf of the State Media Authority NWR, the fög is investigating the influence of news agencies on media diversity in Germany. News agencies occupy an important position in the media market. The research project explores the question of how diverse the German news agency market is in times of digitalization, how news agency reports are handled in newsroom practice and how agency material can influence diversity, especially in regional and local news coverage. The project started in September 2021; findings will be published in 2022.

More information can be found in the News from 3 August 2021 (in German only).

As part of a follow-up project, the fög is collaborating with the University of Applied Sciences Macromedia Cologne to investigate the future of news supply and the importance of news agencies in Germany. This second study offers in-depth insights into the importance of news agencies for journalism over time, journalistic due diligence in dealing with news agencies, and the future viability of news agencies' business models.

For more information regarding the follow-up project see the News from 8 November 2022 (in German only).

To the website of the State Media Authority NRW