Prof. Dr. Thomas Friemel

Professor of Media Use & Effects
Department of Communication & Media Research, University of Zurich

Thomas N. Friemel is head of the division on Media Use and Media Effects at the Department of Communication and Media Research at the University of Zurich (Switzerland), lecturer at the Swiss Federal Institute of Technology (ETH Zurich), and CRSA board member. He received a master degree (Media and Communication Research, Economics, and Social Psychology) in 2004 and a PhD in Media and Communication Research from the University of Zurich. Previous appointments include professorships in Germany at the University of Bremen (2013-2016) and Augsburg University (2011-2012). He has been visiting scholar at various leading institutes in the USA including Harvard University (Department of Sociology), the University of Pennsylvania (Annenberg School for Communication), and the National Institutes of Health (National Human Genome Research Institute, Social and Behavioral Research Branch), as well as in China (Renmin University Beijing), and the Netherlands (University of Groningen, Faculty of Behavioral and Social Sciences).

Friemel is a Fellow of the Digital Society Initiative at the University of Zurich and his research interests are centered on media use, media effects, social network analysis, and health communication campaigns. His research group on Networked Communication at the University of Zurich is concerned with social phenomena that emerge through the increasing interconnection of interpersonal communication and mass media. The research group focuses on theoretical and methodical challenges that are connected to these new processes of communication as well as their implications for individuals’ everyday life and our society.

Hepp, Andreas/Breiter, Andreas/Friemel, Thomas N. (2018): Digital Traces in Context. An Introduction. In: International Journal of Communication 12, S. 1-11. Link

Bixler, Matthias/Friemel, Thomas N. (2017): The 12th Player Online: Second Screen Usage and Social TV Behavior during the 2014 FIFA World Cup. In: Ihle, Holger/Meyen, Michael/Mittag, Juergen/Nieland, Joerg-Uwe (Hrsg.): Global Mega-Event und nationaler Konfliktherd. Die Fussball-WM 2014 in Medien und Politik. Wiesbaden, Springer VS, S. 241-253. PDF

Friemel, Thomas N./Bonfadelli, Heinz (Ed.) (2016): Road Safety Communication Campaigns. In: Accident Analysis and Prevention”, p. 289-291. doi.org/10.1016/j.aap.2016.11.011

Friemel, Thomas N. (2016): The digital divide has grown old: Determinants of a digital divide among seniors. In: New Media & Society, p. 313-331. doi.org/10.1177%2F1461444814538648

Friemel, Thomas N. (2015): Influence vs. Selection: A Network Perspective on Opinion Leadership. In: International Journal of Communication 9, p. 1002-1022. PDF

Ruggieri, Sabrina/Friemel, Thomas N./Sticca, Fabio/Perren, Sonja/Alsaker, Françoise (2013): Selection and Influence Effects in Defending a Victim of Bullying: The Moderating Effects of School Context. In: Procedia Social and Behavioral Sciences 79, p. 117-126. PDF

Friemel, Thomas N. (2012) Network Dynamics of Television Use in School Classes. In: Social Networks, 34/2, p. 346-358. doi.org/10.1016/j.socnet.2011.08.002

Friemel, Thomas N. (2011): Dynamics of Social Networks. In: Procedia Social and Behavioral Sciences, p. 2-3. doi.org/10.1016/j.sbspro.2011.07.050

Friemel, Thomas N./Signer, Sara (2010) Web 2.0 Literacy: Four Aspects of the Second-Level Digital Divide. In: Studies in Communication Sciences 10/2, p. 147-170. Link

Wirth, Werner et al. (2010) Agenda Building and Setting in a Referendum Campaign. Investigating the Flow of Arguments Among Campaigners, the Media, and the Public. In: Journalism & Mass Communication Quarterly, 87/2, p. 328-345. doi.org/10.1177%2F107769901008700207

Friemel, Thomas N. (2008) Anatomie von Kommunikationsrollen. Methoden zur Identifizierung von Akteursrollen in gerichteten Netzwerken. In: Kölner Zeitschrift für Soziologie und Sozialpsychologie 60/3, p. 473-499. [engl. title: Anatomy of Communication Roles. Methods for Identifying Actor Roles in directed Networks] Link

Friemel, Thomas N./Schnell, Kevin (2005) Überschätzte Meinungsmacher. Auf der Suche nach Opinion Leaders. In: Media Trend Journal 20/1-2, p. 56-58. [engl. title: Overestimated Opinion Leaders] PDF

See full list of publications