DC6 – Global logics in local contexts: Reinventing partnership strategies for Public Interest Media

For more than 50 years, the Vrije Universiteit Brussel has championed freedom, equality, and connectedness — values deeply embedded in campus life for both students and staff. At the VUB, you will find a diverse collection of personalities, and, above all, people who are 100% their authentic selves.

With some 4,000 employees, we are the largest Dutch-speaking employer, in the private sector, in Brussels — an international city with which we are only too happy to connect and where (around) our 4 campuses are located. Add to this our principle of free research — in which self-reflection, a critical attitude and an open, creative mind around scientific and social issues are central — and you have a university that is groundbreaking in education and research. The VUB is also a member of EUTOPIA, an alliance of like-minded European universities, all ready to reinvent themselves.

SMIT (Studies in Media, Innovation and Technology) is a research centre within the Faculty of Social Sciences & Solvay Business School at the Vrije Universiteit Brussel and a core research group of imec, Flanders’ leading institute for nano-technology and ICT innovation. For over three decades, SMIT has conducted cutting-edge social scientific research on media and ICT, with a strong focus on innovation, policy, and socio-economic developments.

The candidate will be based within the Media Economics and Policy (MEP) unit of SMIT, which examines how digitalisation, internationalisation, and platformisation reshape media markets, business models, and creative ecosystems. Its researchers explore how traditional and emerging media actors innovate, compete, and collaborate, as well as how public policy can strengthen diverse cultural and creative sectors, including publishing, heritage, broadcasting, film, gaming, music, and documentary production.

The PhD project is titled: Global logics in local contexts: Reinventing partnership strategies for Public Interest Media.

As part of their digital transformation, Public Interest Media organisations are increasingly evolving into content platforms. Yet their mandate and operations remain largely oriented toward domestic audiences, which limits their potential scale. To sustain and expand their activities, many have explored partnerships with global streamers and video-sharing services. However, this reliance on major third-party platforms introduces new dependencies in content dissemination and raises challenges related to data management and protection, editorial autonomy, and the preservation of cultural distinctiveness.

This project develops and evaluates scalable models for content dissemination that balance the use of global platforms, Public Interest Media’s own channels, and collaboration between public media organisations.

Areas of research for the PhD project include, but are not limited to:

• Key organisational transformations and challenges for Public Interest Media
• (Existing) cross-border and cross-domain partnership strategies, and (recommendations for) successful collaboration practices
• Existing practices and potential models for collaboration strategies within and across media ecosystems, both with public and private third-parties
• Future scenarios based on research findings
• Recommendations and best practices for meaningful collaborations in the public interest.

The project explores and assesses collaborations and interdependences between Public Interest Media and third parties in relation to global platforms and to other public interest organisations, while striving for an ‘Information’ or ‘Digital Commons’. Methods can include the following:

• Extensive desk research and empirical mapping
• Fieldwork consisting of expert interviews, complemented by ethnography and/or on-site participatory observations at public media institutions
• Semi-automated data collection and automated data and textual analysis
• Comparative case study analyses
• Scenario-building.

The position requires relocation to Belgium as the candidate will be enrolled in the Vrije Universiteit Brussel’s PhD programme in Communication Sciences. The project is conducted under the supervision of Tim Raats, Associate Professor at Vrije Universiteit Brussel, and Ulrike Rohn, Professor at Tallinn University. It will involve close collaboration with other Doctoral Candidates in the RePIM doctoral Network Project, and an academic secondment of approximately 2 months at Tallinn University. The candidate will also carry out 3-month internship at Nordvision, a cooperative venture between five Nordic public service broadcasters which aims to safeguard and promote the interests of the Nordic public service media organisations, with offices in Oslo.

The PhD position is part of RePIM – Revisioning Public Interest Media, a four-year Marie Skłodowska-Curie (MSCA) Doctoral Network dedicated to reimagining the role and future of Public Interest Media in a data-driven, platform-dominated environment. RePIM brings together leading European universities, industry partners, and 12 Doctoral Candidates in an interdisciplinary, cross-sectoral training and research programme. The network investigates how public interest media can remain relevant, sustainable, and impactful by transforming how content is produced, packaged, distributed, and supported organisationally and technologically. Through its focus on strategic innovation, organisational change, and media management, RePIM equips its doctoral researchers with advanced analytical and managerial skills to help reshape Public Interest Media across diverse European contexts.

MSCA eligibility requirements

• At the time of recruitment, candidates must not already hold a doctoral degree.
• Applicants of any nationality are welcome to apply. However, researchers must not have lived or carried out their main activity (work, studies, etc.) in the host country (in this case: Belgium) for more than 12 months within the 36 months immediately preceding their recruitment date. Candidates must be willing to move to Belgium for the duration of the PhD research.

Project-specific profile requirements

• Master’s degree in media and communication studies or a related social sciences discipline (political sciences, international studies, economics, management, sociology, urban studies)
• Excellent knowledge of social sciences research methods (qualitative analysis, interviews, document analysis, quantitative analysis); experience with fieldwork and/or digital research methods is an asset
• Strong academic track record, with particular emphasis on research, analytical, and writing skills
• Demonstrated knowledge of, or strong interest in, media research, media economics, and European audiovisual markets
• Strong team orientation, a reliable work ethic, excellent time-management skills, and the ability to take initiative and work independently
• Proficiency in written and spoken English; knowledge of Dutch or Nordic languages is an advantage
• Willingness to engage in international mobility in line with the MSCA-DN framework (meetings, training sessions, research stays, industry stays, etc.).

In this role, you will work with researchers at two prominent European institutions in media and communication research. You will collaborate closely with other researchers in a European consortium of leading studies institutes in the field, as well as conduct an international secondment with a relevant organisation in your field of research.

The planned starting date is 1 May 2026.

We offer an attractive compensation and benefits package, including the following:

• A full-time PhD scholarship for 48 months
• An attractive salary in accordance with the MSCA Call 2025 regulations for Doctoral Researchers, including a monthly living allowance, a mobility allowance of €710, and a family allowance of €660 (only if applicable). The salary is in line with salary scales for PhD fellows available here, and calculated based on factors such as years of experience, nationality, and indexation.
• Excellent holiday arrangements with 35 days of leave, closure between Christmas and New Year and 3 extra leave days
• Cost-free hospitalisation insurance
• Other VUB employment conditions and benefits
• International mobility for academic secondment (at Tallinn University) and industry internship at Nordvision (Oslo)
• A wide range of training possibilities and participation in international conferences
• Support and guidance by an experienced team of academic supervisors and senior researchers
• A dynamic and stimulating work environment with enterprising young scientists and experienced senior research staff in an international setting.

Applications are now closed.

Application process:

• Step 1: initial selection based on application file
• Step 2: first round of interviews with long-listed candidates (est. February–March 2026)
• Step 3: second round of interviews with short-listed candidates (March 2026)
• Starting date: est. 1 May 2026.