The journalistic discourse of the mega-grant 'Man in a Changing World

The article analyzes the interaction between the Laboratory for Social and Anthropological Research of the Tomsk State University History Department and mass media under the mega-grant 'Man in a Changing World...' Thanks to this interaction, the research topics of many laboratory fellows became known to the public at large through newspapers, radio and television. Internet users got access to different research materials on the laboratory's website. However, in the course of that interaction of the research with the media, there were a number of problems encountered that this article focuses on. First is the question of the way laboratory research staff can help journalists deal with newsmakers in terms of forming the so-called 'second reality'. Second is the question of why the mass media express interest in some research works and pay no attention to others. Third is the question of what holds back the media's close attention to the development of science. The section 'What we achieved...' has a list of newsmakers who talked to the mass media and of research issues covered from 2013 to 2015. The section 'The metallurgy of the "second reality" in modern anthropology' deals with the mechanisms of interaction with the media editorial offices. In the section 'Problems that we encountered -an attempt of analysis', the interaction of the research laboratory with the media is considered through the lens of Luhmann's triad 'information, utterance, understanding'. The perception of researchers' work by the mass media is considered through the dichotomy 'information / non-information'. The section 'Problems of the journalistic perspective' analyzes the influence of the media's audience and media owners on editorial policy. The article concludes that the turning of cooperation with journalists into a separate line of laboratory activities in fact contributes to the interaction of the research staff with the mass media; that the division line between 'information' and 'non-information' also goes along the borders of today's Russian regions; that the conflict between the research discourse and the journalistic metaphor and the commercialization of mass media influence the contacts of researchers with journalists; and that the public demand for research materials also has an impact. Conclusions are drawn on the current state of the relationship between the educational function of the mass media and their ability to be sensitive to the everyday needs of the population.

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