Today, the importance of opinion polls must be discussed in the context of an increasing "doxophrenia", i.e., the obsessive need to quantify opinions, and an increasing mistrust (of citizens as well as political actors) towards opinion polls. The focus of this conference is thus on questions of legitimacy and legitimation as well as opinion polls as an instrument of political communication: polling expertise considered both as a method of forecasting and political framing.

Presentation

PROTAGORAS is an academic think tank bringing together researchers and professionals in political and public communication. This think tank, based in Brussels, is attached to the Institut des Hautes Etudes en Communications Sociales (IHECS).

PROTAGORAS will hold his Annual Symposium "Polls as a means of political legitimation" in collaboration with CELSA-Sorbonne Université, FHWien der WKW and Universität Innsbruck.

Today, the importance of opinion polls must be discussed in the context of an increasing "doxophrenia", i.e., the obsessive need to quantify opinions, and an increasing mistrust (of citizens as well as political actors) towards opinion polls. The focus of this conference is thus on questions of legitimacy and legitimation as well as opinion polls as an instrument of political communication: polling expertise considered both as a method of forecasting and political framing.

The presentations and discussions will focus on two thematic areas:

1. The reception of polls by actors in the media
2. The instrumentalization of polls by political communication

Practical informations

Book your ticket and find more information on the dedicated Eventbrite page: https://bit.ly/3sIr7Us

Fees

• Academics financially supported by their institution
  • on site : 100 euros (lunch and diner included)
  • on line : 40 euros
• Independant researchers
  • on site : 60 euros (lunch and diner included)
  • on line : 30 euros
• Students
  • on site : 20 euros (lunch and diner included)
  • on line : 10 euros

Programme

9:45 – Welcome of participants

10:00-10:05 - Opening Statement by Frédéric Moens, Director of IHECS

10:05-10:30 – Keynote (French)

• Les sondages comme générateurs narratif, Philippe Marion (UCLouvain)

10:30-11:30 – Panel 1 (French)

Moderator: Thierry Devars (Celsa-Sorbonne Université)

• Les sondages dans les campagnes présidentielles françaises : vecteurs de polarisation et / ou outils de communication massive ?, Alexandre Eyries, (IUT Dijon)
• Qu’est-ce qu’un-e présidentiable ? La contribution des sondages sur les « traits d’image » à la construction médiatique des qualités implicitement attendues des candidat-e-s, Anne Jadot (Université de Lorraine) & Alexandre Borrell (Université Paris-Est Créteil)

11:30-12:30 – Panel 2 (French)

Moderator: Isabelle Le Breton-Falézan (Celsa-Sorbonne Université)

• Les sondages dans la vie politique tunisienne sont-ils fiables ?, Amel Njehi (Avignon Université)
• Sondage Politique et orientation du vote en Tunisie, Hamza Dhifallah (Université de Sfax)
• Mesurer l’influence par les sondages : le cas de la communication publique de la Chine, Olivier Arifon (Université Catholique de Lille)

12:45-14:30 – Lunch

14:30-16:00 – Panel 3 (English)

Moderator: Nicolas Baygert, Protagoras (IHECS), ULB & Sciences Po Paris

• Faked surveys and the Austrian corruption scandal – How recipients evaluate thetrustworthiness of political media coverage and polls, Gisela Reiter (FHWien der WKW)
• How the Results of Opinion Polls Are Framed in Contemporary Russian Media, Irina Dusacova (Independent Researcher)
• When polls become the issue. Revisiting the clash between politicians, journalists, andsocial scientists in the Spanish public agenda, Miguel Vicente Mariño (Universidad de Valladolid)

16:00-17:00 – Masterclass (English)

• Opinion polls in the context of election campaigns: between hatred and fascination, Bruno Jeanbart, Vice President of OpinionWay

17:00 - Conclusions