Paper short abstract:

How is the social milieu of a small town involving its communication practice? We will describe specific communication practices in Telč (UNESCO heritage, CZE) and use this empirical data as an example of limitations that may occur in settlements of similar size and importance.

Paper long abstract:

The presentation focuses on the advantages and limits of (not only professionalized) communication in the social milieu of a small town. The paper is based on the research of the communication environment of the city of Telč (5.5 thousand inhabitants). Gained data are interpreted in the context of the theory of local communication supplemented by Bourdieu's theory of capitals and serves us as an example of a community we can describe as Gemeinschaft.

We will follow a simple analytical division, which consists of professional (media) communication on the one hand and informal or semi-formal types of communication within the city on the other. We will provide concrete examples of the limits/advantages of the social environment of a small town in both types of communication: Specifically, we will show (1) how these analytically divided spheres of communication intersect and influence each other, and (2) how this interaction is related to the city/municipality. Furthermore, we will focus on (3) the agenda-setting, and we will show that the city cannot always actively influence the image that is produced about it. Finally (4) we point out the limits of effective communication in the environment of a small town, where the social practice of local actors is often at odds with the expectations of visitors, tourists, or newly immigrants.