“Mediatization Studies” is an international, bilingual academic journal devoted to mediatization and media studies. The journal aims to create a space for the exchange and dissemination of the results of theoretical and empirical research on mediatization processes, developing a critical understanding of mediated communication. In particular, the journal's topics include mediatization processes occurring in the fields of politics, culture, society and business. “Mediatization Studies” is indexed: CEJSH - The Central European Journal of Social Sciences and Humanities ERIH Plus IC Journals Master List CEEOL - Central and Eastern European Online Library DOAJ The journal is published in the form of a yearbook. Points MEiN: 20 ISSN: 2451-1188 e-ISSN: 2720-6106 Contact Mediatization Studies Wydział Politologii i Dziennikarstwa UMCS ul. Głęboka 45 20-612 Lublin mediatization.studies@gmail.com Publishing House: http://www.wydawnictwo.umcs.lublin.pl/ Find us on portals: LinkedIn Academia.edu Facebook
Wydawnictwo Uniwersytetu Marii Curie-Skłodowskiej
Full copyright statement can be read here
Copyright (c) 2026 Ewa Nowak-Teter http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Large Language Models as Revolutionary Media Objects: Rethinking Relationality, Agency, and Knowledge in the Age of Generative AI
The rise of generative AI, like large language models (LLMs), highlights a profound shift in the contemporary media landscape. LLMs produce deep mediatization effects, being part of the emerging generative infrastructure of contemporary digital capitalism. This paper conceptualizes LLMs as revolutionary media objects, drawing on theories from actor-network theory, object-oriented ontology, and critical AI studies to argue that their generative capacities enable new forms of non-human forms of machine semiosis, synthetic subjectivity, and recursive epistemologies. These generative models decenter anthropocentric frameworks and showcase a need for reevaluation of the relationship between humans, objects, and meaning and knowledge production via the phenomena of machine semiosis and digital habitus. Through a systematic literature review and theoretical synthesis, this work introduces concepts such as synthetic relationality, generative ecologies, and agentic co-entanglement to analyze how LLMs reconfigure sociality, power, and epistemology. The paper offers a novel framework for understanding the role of generative AI in reshaping contemporary platform infrastructures, with significant effects toward central concepts like agency, sociality, and knowledge production. This paper contributes to ongoing discussions within media theory and critical studies on AI about the role of LLMs in contemporary society.
Copyright (c) 2026 Bogdan Andrei Lungu http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
The “Estranged Self”. Selfie Through the Gaze of Amateur Drone
The aim of this article is to investigate the practices of mediatization of the self through the analysis of the dronie, i.e. the custom of taking selfies using the amateur-drone camera. Given the increased presence of commercial and amateur drones in our “media habits”, it is necessary to investigate their characteristicsand the consequences of integrating these technologies into domestic user interaction. This paper, therefore, focuses on the personal use of the amateur drone, on the subject–object relationship, and on the consequent, mediatized, subject’s experience. Starting from the concept of hybrid agency between the media-object and the user, the analysis focuses on ten flight and shooting experiences from a subjective point of view. Adopting an exploratory approach to the topic, the research is conducted through an auto-drone-technography that allows two main elements to be observed: the relationship between operator–drone–subject; and the mediatization of the self through the estranged gaze of the dronie. These two elements are then discussed from the principles underlying the logic of the selfie, highlighting the continuities and differences between the two practices.
Copyright (c) 2026 Gaia Casagrande http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Negotiating Digital Terrain: European Union Public Sector Communication Between Social Media, Civil Service and Political Demands
As government institutions increasingly adapt to the logic of social media, questions arise about how these changes align with public service norms and democratic ideals. This article investigates the European Union’s use of social media from an organizational perspective, contributing to research on the mediatization of public bureaucracies. Using an institutional logics framework, it explores how communication officials across five EU institutions negotiate tensions between social media logic, civil service logic and political logic and what new goals, practices, and structures emerge in this process. The analysis draws on 27 semi-structured interviews with communication staff and internal communication strategies. Findings show that social media integration has led to significant organizational change, particularly in centralization, departmentalization, audiovisual production, and reliance on private-sector expertise. In terms of practices and goals, communication is shaped by algorithmic pressures, data-driven targeting, and an emphasis on positive engagement. Normative ideals of transparency, objectivity, and inclusion are increasingly displaced by strategies of curated visibility and institutional promotion. By focusing on social media units rather than traditional press offices, and comparing multiple institutions, this article offers new empirical insights into the evolving logic of government communication in a platform-driven media environment.
Copyright (c) 2026 Svenja Katharina Scholz http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Investigating the Preliminary Antecedents of Instagram Addiction: Evidence from Baze University’s Undergraduate Students in Nigeria
There is no doubt that Instagram is one of the most popular social media platforms that meets users’ specific needs. However, the effects of addictive use on undergraduate students in developing countries, like Nigeria, have not been thoroughly studied. To fill this gap, this study, based on the Uses and Gratifications Theory, sought to find connections between the desire for fame, shortened attention spans, social validation, and Instagram usage addiction among undergraduate students at Baze University in Abuja, Nigeria. We used a quantitative research method to gather data and test our hypotheses. The findings showed strong and positive links between desire for fame, shortened attention spans, social validation, and Instagram addiction. The desire for fame was the most significant predictor of Instagram addiction among the respondents. Furthermore, the three independent variables accounted for a large portion of the variance in Instagram usage addiction. Our study suggests that addiction to Instagram among respondents is primarily driven by psychological rewards related to visibility, external approval, and cognitive engagement. Therefore, the study highlights the need for tailored digital literacy programs that address the desire for fame, dependence on validation, and attention management in academic settings.
Copyright (c) 2026 Chinedu Eugenia Anumudu, Chinonyelum Gladys Nwankwo, Rhema Adaolisa Ogugua http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Utopia or Reality? Will It Be Possible to Create an Effective Artificial Intelligence Standards System?
Artificial intelligence (AI) is found in all areas of modern life, and its practical importance continues to grow. It creates opportunities, generates problems and risks. Its development is connected with ethical and formal issues related to legal regulations. The purpose of the article is to raise awareness of the achievements to date in the field of international AI standards and to reflect on the possibility of developing such cooperation. This article addresses the issue of universal standards for the security of AI, rather than all the ways and circumstances related to its application. It seems that in view of the dynamic development of AI, the challenge for today is the adoption of universal AI standards consistent with the principles of democracy, human rights and the rule of law, and the most effective would be the adoption of such a system in the dimension of global international cooperation (as the universal system of human rights was formed years ago). Also fundamental to this essay is the question of whether regulation of even selected aspects of AI is possible today on a global level – whether it is still a utopia or already a necessity arising from the need of today.
Copyright (c) 2026 Joanna Hołda http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Artificial Intelligence and Disinformation in Public Relations: Challenges and Countermeasures
The rapid development of artificial intelligence (AI) has increased the threat of disinformation and deepfakes, significantly affecting public trust, political stability, and media credibility. Despite growing academic interest in AI’s benefits, a research gap remains in analyzing its manipulative potential in modern public relations. This study examines how AI-generated content contributes to the spread of fake news and deepfakes and evaluates the effectiveness of existing legal, technological, and educational countermeasures. It also aims to examine the extent to which AI-generated content impacts public trust, political discourse, and media credibility. The research questions include: How does AI contribute to disinformation in PR? What legal and technical solutions exist across different countries? The analysis reveals that AI is intensifying information manipulation, while detection tools and regulations remain fragmented. A multi-level approach combining legal frameworks, education, and international cooperation is essential to address AI-driven disinformation effectively and protect public communication.
Copyright (c) 2026 Sofiia Vavrin http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
The Paranormal Counter-Public: The Impact of Platform Mediatization on the UAP Disclosure Discourse in American Politics
This paper examines how mediatization processes in digital environments fundamentally transform political authority construction and democratic knowledge production. Drawing on mediatization theory and platform studies, the research analyzes how different media logics create divergent information ecosystems, enabling non-traditional actors to construct alternative forms of epistemic authority that can influence mainstream institutions while operating outside traditional gatekeeping mechanisms. Using UAP (unexplained anomalous phenomena) discourse as a critical case study, systematic analysis of media platforms from 2017-2025 demonstrates the migration of political discourse from institutional to algorithmic curation, facilitating the formation of “paranormal counter-public” that transcend conventional left-right divisions. The study reveals how platform-specific factors – especially algorithmic amplification and parasocial relationships – alter epistemological frameworks through which audiences evaluate evidence and expertise. These findings illuminate broader democratic transformations in how societies negotiate boundaries between legitimate and illegitimate knowledge claims, allocate speaking authority, and legitimate political action in an increasingly mediatized world.
Copyright (c) 2026 Philipp Kneis http://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0
Review of "Artificial Intelligence in Journalism. Changing the News", by Tony Silvia, Jefferson: McFarland 2025. ISBN: 9781476694085 (pp. 204)