Visual portrayals of fun in the sun in European news outlets misrepresent heatwave risks

This is the author accepted manuscript. Available on open access from Wiley via the DOI in this recordData availability statement: The data that support the findings of this study are available from the corresponding author upon reasonable request.The ways in which news media communicate about heatwaves can influence how society conceptualises and addresses heatwave risks. We examined visual news coverage of the 2019 heatwaves in France, Germany, the Netherlands and UK, using content and visual critical discourse analyses. Many visuals were positively valenced (in contrast to article texts), framing heatwaves as ‘fun in the sun’. The most prevalent type of images in all countries were photographs of people having fun in or by water. When images did depict the danger of heat extremes, people were largely absent. We conclude that this visual framing of heatwaves is problematic: first, by displacing concerns of vulnerability, it marginalises the experiences of those vulnerable to heatwaves; and second, it excludes opportunities for imagining a more resilient future. We conclude with suggestions to diversify the visual discourse on climate change and heatwaves in the news media.Leverhulme TrustEconomic and Social Research Council (ESRC

Towards a ‘virtual’ world: Social isolation and struggles during the COVID‐19 pandemic as single women living alone

This article is a personal reflection of how the current COVID‐19 pandemic affects our working lives and wellbeing, as single female academics who live alone in the UK. We offer a dialogue of our daily lives of being confined at home with lockdown measures extended. In particular, we focus on the experience of, and coping with, isolation and loneliness. Is isolation making us more socially connected? Through ‘virtual’ working and changing learning environments for us as teachers and learners, we explore changes in our working life and subsequent changes in the domestic environment. By capturing our lived experiences, we create an intellectual and safe space to voice our emotional struggles — as ‘invisible’ isolated individuals containing and consuming loneliness on our own. We foster alternative conversations as to how we might engender new perspectives from single female academics to combat social isolation in the workplace

Spin state behavior of iron(II)/dipyrazolylpyridine complexes. New insights from crystallographic and solution measurements

The isomeric complexes [Fe(1-bpp)2]2+ and [Fe(3-bpp)2]2+ (1-bpp=2,6-di[pyrazol-1-yl]pyridine; 3-bpp=2,6-di[1H-pyrazol-3-yl]pyridine) and their derivatives are some of the most widely investigated complexes in spin-crossover research. This article addresses two unique aspects of their spin-state chemistry. First, is an unusual structural distortion in the high-spin form that can inhibit spin-crossover in the solid state. A new analysis of these structures using continuous shape measures has explained this distortion in terms of its effect on the metal coordination geometry, and has shown that the most highly distorted structures are a consequence of crystal packing effects. Second, solution studies have quantified the influence of second-sphere hydrogen bonding on spin-crossover in [Fe(3-bpp)2]2+, which responds to the presence of different anions and solvents (especially water). Previously unpublished data from the unsymmetric isomer [Fe(1,3-bpp)2]2+ (1,3-bpp=2-[pyrazol-1-yl]-6-[1H-pyrazol-3-yl]pyridine) are presented for comparison. Modifications to the structure of [Fe(3-bpp)2]2+, intended to augment these supramolecular effects, are also described

Energy transfer by exciton-polarons in RbMnF3

Energy transfer in RbMnF3 was studied by time-resolved spectroscopy of the 4T1g-exciton luminescence. The threefold orbital degeneracy of the 4T1g-state is lifted by a Jahn-Teller coupling to eg-modes. The JT-effect leaves an orientational degeneracy of distorted MnF6-octahedra, which is lifted by application of uniaxial stress. The dynamics of exciton and trap luminescence after pulse excitation was investigated with and without stress. It was found that stress reduces the excitonic transfer rate considerably. The most striking effect was obtained with [110]-stress which produced a very slow nonexponential decay of the exciton luminescence. This behavior was interpreted as evidence for [110]-stress induced 2-dimensional energy transfer

Foreign women in academia: double strangers between productivity, marginalization and resistance

This article examines the professional experience of foreign women academics working across geographic boundaries in today’s neoliberal academia characterised by liquidity. Framed within an intersectional perspective, we use the concept of the ‘double-stranger’ to examine data stemming from 20 in-depth semi-structured interviews conducted with scholars at different stages of their career in the social sciences. This paper advances understandings of academic careers theoretically by identifying a temporal and hierarchical dynamic in the intersection of two categories of difference (gender and foreignness) that constitute a position of simultaneous belonging and non-belonging for foreign women academics; and empirically through a qualitative investigation that explores three areas in which academic professional experiences are mobilised for double-strangers: (1) transnational career moves; (2) productivity and performance in today’s neoliberal academia; and (3) self-induced estrangement as a form of resistance

The benefit of issue management: anticipating crises in the digital age

Purpose The purpose of this paper is to find out how issue management and media monitoring is exercised in the digital age to anticipate crises. More specifically, it was investigated how these practices differ across communication professionals, organizations, and sectors in the Netherlands. Organizations are nowadays confronted with a fast-changing environment. Anticipating dicey issues, being in control of the flow of messages, and managing various stakeholders on diverse channels becomes a primary concern for organizations these days. Design/methodology/approach The study relies on qualitative interviews with 17 communication professionals working in various industrial sectors in the Netherlands. Professionals were recruited from distinct organizations and from diverse sectors, including media, public affairs, technology, consultancy, municipality, lottery, oil/gas, cultural, insurance, and the financial industry. The interview data were analyzed by means of an inductive analysis and in-depth reading. Findings Practitioners seem to acknowledge the importance of issue monitoring. However, professionals differ with regard to their expertise in online media monitoring, depending on the sector they work for. Stakeholder mapping and the monitoring of competitors has been found to be crucial for issue management, but also to vary among large and small organizations. Eventually, monitoring in times of crises was seen indispensable. It also has the potential to empower practitioners within their organizations. Originality/value New technologies, external services, and automized monitoring processes have facilitated issue monitoring for professionals to a great extent, making it possible to analyze great amounts of data efficiently in short time and with fewer resources. Furthermore, the focus of media monitoring is increasingly moving toward the online sphere, including the active engagement of stakeholders. Eventually, the empowerment of practitioners through online monitoring practices in times of crises can be considered as a further step toward the positioning of communication professionals within the dominant coalition