2023-11-30 20:21:18
Appeared on the media landscape a little over eight years ago, The Conversation France proposes a collaboration between journalists and teacher-researchers to “illuminating public debate through independent analyzes on current issues”. The association of these two worlds which often ignore each other is reflected in the refined interface of the site, halfway between the front page of a newspaper and the home page of a scientific journal. Classified by section, the articles highlight the university or research center to which the researchers are affiliated.
At The Conversation, the absence of subjectivity is a principle. «L“Journalists purify the analyzes of any trace of opinion, whether it is contained in a paragraph, a sentence or even an adjective”, explains Fabrice Rousselot, editorial director of The Conversation France. A salutary initiative, at a time when editorialists or presenters are taking the place of journalists on TV sets and where social networks are undermining the hierarchy of information.
It was in Australia that the idea of using the potential of the university in a media was born. Concerned about preserving the credibility of the press and the trust of readers, The Conversation offers reliable and put into perspective information.
Proliferation of disinformation
“Expertise was already of paramount importance in 2011, when The Conversation launched in Australia, believes Fabrice Rousselot, who was editorial director of Release. It is even more so today, in the era of disinformation and the proliferation of so-called specialists. »
To prevent contributions from transmitting a partisan point of view under the guise of popularizing knowledge, The Conversation has put in place a set of safeguards. Thus, researchers can only write on subjects within their field of expertise. ” During of the Covid-19 crisis, many people wanted to write about the pandemic. We have limited contributions to specialists,” says Fabrice Rousselot.
“We, researchers, benefit from the rigor of journalists, who help us improve our text through suggestions and corrections,” affirms Michel Wieviorka, sociologist and historical author of the media. “The Conversation offers a forum for researchers, whose work does not necessarily fit with the times but sheds light on current events. »
For researchers, the platform is also a springboard, which allows them to reach a larger and more diverse audience than that of scientific publications. Especially since third-party media can reprint articles published by The Conversation free of charge.
“This media was a catalyst, an accelerator, insists Julien Pillot, teacher-researcher in economics at Inseec. It has sparked new meetings and new research projects, both fundamental and applied, particularly when the research subjects correspond to the concerns of public and private decision-makers. »
The success of expertise
The media’s financing is based on contributions from universities, foundations and donation campaigns. « Our economic model works and allows us to retain an ever-increasing number of readers,” rejoices Fabrice Rousselot.
Made up of 6 people at the launch in 2015, the team now has 24 employees. The media site has 1.5 million unique visitors to its site and more than 6 million page views per month. “During the last survey carried out, 96% of our readers said they were very or somewhat satisfied, welcomes the editorial director. There is real satisfaction in working daily to restore readers’ trust in the press. »
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