Changing the Media Repertoire in the Process of Transnational Migration: A Case Study of Russophones

The process of changing the media repertoire, from the stage of potential migration to the stage of the act of migration and during a limited time of living in a new society, remains unexplored. Another underresearched area in the studies of media consumption of individuals with migration background is the analysis of the media repertoire of speakers of one language living in different countries. The present study contributes to filling these gaps in scientific knowledge. We aim to compare the preferences of media consumers before and after moving to another country, as well as to find out motivations that lead to specific changes in the media repertoire (or their absence). Due to this, we focus on individual choice and the process of changing the media repertoire during migration rather than on how media consumption is influenced by the degree of integration, the media landscape of a particular country or the peculiarities of relations between the country of residence and the home country of the migrant. The study of the media repertoire of Russian speakers with migration experience is of particular interest in terms of these research questions. To answer these questions, in April 2021, we conducted an online survey among Russian-speaking Internet users who participate in groups for migrants on Facebook and Telegram platforms. Of the 104 respondents, 26 % are men, 74 % are women. 18.27 % of the respondents are people under the age of 25, 32.69 % are from 25 to 34 years old, 35.58 % are from 35 to 49 years old, and 13.46 % are people over 50 years old. The geography of our survey, in terms of the country of residence, covers different regions of the world. The results of the survey show that the consumption of online media, on average, remains popular both before and after moving, while the share of those who prefer social networks/blogs increases by 10 % relative to the share of those who preferred this type of media before moving. The share of TV viewers decreases after moving. A significant share of the respondents (16 %) note that they avoided news media consumption before moving. Among the media that the respondents prefer after moving, “global media with a common global agenda” dominated. Every second respondent consumes media published in the language of the country of residence, and every fourth consumes foreign media in Russian. We identified four patterns of motivation for the consumption of media of the home country after moving: maintaining ties with the country/city, maintaining strong social ties, information needs, and maintaining habits. The results obtained allow us to conclude that the formation of a migrant's media repertoire is influenced not only by the needs associated with the act of migration, but also by the established habits of media consumption.

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