Barbara Thomass is visiting us in September and October of 2008. She is Professor for International Comparison of Media Systems at the Institute for Media Studies, Ruhr-University in Bochum, Germany. Prof. Thomass has lectured and researched in communication science at the universities of Hamburg, Goettingen, Lueneburg and Bremen and at the universities in Vienna and Paris.

In addition, she has worked with international organisations as European Journalism Center, European Search for Common Ground and the European Institute for the Media for several years in courses on journalism standards and ethics in different parts of Eastern and South Eastern Europe.

Her main fields of interests are media systems in Western and Eastern Europe, media politics, media and journalism ethics. Prior to her academic career, she worked as a journalist.