Sonnenglas Bright Minds: Maren Urner

Maren Urner holds a doctorate in neuroscience. Together with Han Langeslag, she founded Perspective Daily, an online magazine dedicated to promoting constructive journalism in German-speaking countries. More than 13,000 members have already joined Perspective Daily. Every day, they receive an elaborately researched article that not only presents the facts but also possible solutions and is intended to stimulate discussion.

(Image) Maren co-founded Perspective Daily / © Perspective Daily

Dear Maren, what is Perspective Daily?

Perspective Daily is the first online magazine in the German-speaking world, that reports ad-free and solution-oriented. This means that we always ask ourselves: How can we move forward without burying our heads in the sand in the face of problems and challenges? Our independence is particularly important to us - and we are a little proud to be financed almost entirely by our members. The website, app and everything else are handmade and our authors not only know what they are writing about because they are "in the business", but also bring a great deal of passion to the table.

(Image) The two editors-in-chief Maren Urner and Han Langeslag / © Perspective Daily

How do you see the current media landscape? What do you criticize in particular?

Like everything else, the media situation in Germany is relative compared to other countries: for example, we enjoy a comparatively high degree of freedom of the press here and have high-quality public media. However, the most important problem I see is that the media report too negatively on average and thus ensure that media users - i.e. all of us - are left with an overly negative view of the world.

Well, not so bad, you might think. But on a psychological level, this causes stress, hopelessness and the feeling of so-called learned helplessness. This means that we "learn" in the face of the doomsday presented to us every day that we can't do anything about the big problems from climate change to inequality and "those up there" anyway. This is exactly where the constructive, solution-oriented approach comes into play, giving a more complete, realistic view of the world. The easiest way to think of it is like a pair of glasses that we put on as journalists, because we are always asking: What can happen next? This completely changes reporting - regardless of the topic.

How do you choose the topics for your daily articles?

The most important thing is the expertise of our permanent Authors: They are passionate about their respective fields and pitch their ideas for articles in the editorial conference. Of course, they also focus on current events in order to increase the urgency and proximity for our readers.

(Image) An editorial conference at Perspective Daily / © Perspective Daily

What future plans do you have for Perspective Daily?

Many and great! We are currently building the Audio-area and thus offer our members access to our content in various ways. At the same time, we are working on other formats, planning campaigns (such as the #MeTwo campaign last year) and want to engage even more with people: live and digitally. Modern online journalism is no longer a one-way street, but an exchange between journalists and recipients.

(Image) The Perspective Daily team / © Polarstern

How can Perspective Daily contribute to a more sustainable world?

Definitely my favorite question - although I would rephrase it slightly: How does Perspective Daily contribute to a more sustainable world? Answer: With every article and every discussion between members and authors. Because regardless of whether we write about more "classic" sustainable topics such as renewable energies and waste avoidance, the desire and hope for a world that is sustainable resonates in every article - even when it comes to conflicts, weapons and women's rights. Our # is our program: #zeigenwasgeht

Click here for our latest "Bright Minds" interview with Polastern founder Florian Henle.

The questions were asked by Saskia Lössl.

<div class="copyrights">photo in header © Perspective Daily / Norman Maurer</div>

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