Professor Richard Berger
- Professor
- Weymouth House W210, Talbot Campus, Fern Barrow, Poole, BH12 5BB
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Biography
Richard Berger is Professor of Media & Education in the Department of Media Production, Faculty of Media & Communication at BU. Richard also Chairs the University's Social Sciences and Humanities Research Ethics Panel. He is a BU Learning & Teaching Fellow and a Teach BU mentor and assessor.
Richard teaches and researches in the areas of media education, migrant studies, SEND education, research ethics, literacy education and adaptation/remaking studies. He is founding editor of the Media Education Research Journal (MERJ) and currently sits on the editorial board.
Richard has taught at universities in the US, South Africa, Singapore and Nepal. His research has been funded by Advance HE, the BBC Trust, the UK Literacy Association (UKLA), the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) and most recently, the European Research Council (ERC).
An experienced doctoral supervisor and examiner, Richard is keen to work with any early career researchers who have interests in the lived-media experiences of refugee youth and neurodiverse youth - as well as those working in the fields of adaptation/remaking cultures and media education...
Richard is a Senior Fellow of the Higher Education Academy (SFHEA), and has externally examined at the University of Bath, Bath Spa University, Teesside University, the University of Wolverhampton, the Open University and the University of Exeter.
Richard is in his third term as member of the ESRC and AHRC's peer-review colleges, where he also chairs moderation panels. Since 2018 he has been a member of the UKRI Peer Review College, and in 2019 was appointed as a mentor to the UKRI Future Leadership Fellowship scheme.
Richard is currently working with BU colleagues and students, on a research project with Linwood School (Dorset).
moreJournal Articles
- Berger, R. and Adrian, B., 2025. The SEND Television Studio: A Pilot Study. Journal of Research in Special Educational Needs.
- Berger, R. and Neag, A., 2020. Childhoods in Transition: Mediating 'in-between' spaces. Interactions: studies in communication and culture, 11 (3), 281-286.
- Berger, R. and Zezulkova, M., 2018. A remaking pedagogy: adaptation and archetypes in the child’s multimodal reading and writing. Education 3-13, 46 (1), 64-75.
- Berger, R. and McDougall, J., 2017. Media Education in the Time of 'Brexit'. Media Education Research Journal, 7 (2), 5-9.
- Berger, R., 2016. Everything Goes Back to the Beginning: television adaptation & remaking Nordic noir. Journal of Adaptation in Film and Performance, 9 (2).
- McDougall, J., Mihailidis, P., Hobbs, R. and Berger, R., 2016. Buidling a Global Community for Media Education Research. Journal of Media Literacy Education, 7 (1), 1-3.
- Berger, R. and McDougall, J., 2016. CEMP 10: Where are we now? Media Education Research Journal, 6 (2), 5-11.
- Berger, R. and McDougall, J., 2015. Et Tu Media Education? CitizenFour, The Panoptic Web and the new ‘Usersphere’. Media Education Research Journal, 6 (1), 5-12.
- Berger, R., Hobbs, R., McDougall, J. and Mihailidis, P., 2015. We're in this Together: building a global community for media education research. The Media Education Research Journal, 5 (2), 5-10.
- McDougall, J., Berger, R., Fraser, P. and Zezulkova, M., 2015. Media Literacy, Education & (Civic) Capability: A Transferable Methodology. Journal of Media Literacy Education, 7 (1), 4-17.
- Berger, R. and McDougall, J., 2013. Reading Videogames as (authorless) Literature. Literacy, 47 (3), 142-149.
- Berger, R. and Mcdougall, J., 2013. Reading videogames as (authorless) literature. Literacy, 47 (3), 142-149.
- Berger, R., 2013. Media Pedagogy Research: are we there yet? The Media Education Research Journal, 3 (2), 5-11.
- Berger, R., 2013. Dial ‘M’ for Media Education. The Media Education Research Journal, 4 (1), 5-10.
- Berger, R. and McDougall, J., 2012. What is Media Education For? Media Education Research Journal, 3 (1), 5-20.
- Berger, R. and McDougall, J., 2011. Media Studies 2.0: A Retrospective. The Media Education Research Journal, 2, 5-10.
- Berger, R., 2011. The Inbetweeners: exploiting the gaps in learning spaces and experiences. Networks.
- Berger, R. and McDougall, J., 2011. Doing WikiLeaks? New Paradigms and (or?) Ecologies in Media Education. The Media Education Research Journal, 1, 7-12.
- Berger, R. and McDougall, J., 2011. Apologies for cross posting: a keynote exchange. The Media Education Research Journal, 2, 5-28.
- Berger, R. and McDougall, J., 2010. Media Education Research in the Twenty-first Century: Touching the Void? The Media Education Research Journal, 1, 7-17.
- Berger, R., 2008. Are there anymore at home like you? Rewiring Superman. Journal of Adaptation in Film & Performance, 1, 87-101.
Chapters
- Woodfall, A. and Berger, R., 2024. Dick And Dom’s ‘Bogies’: Goodbye The Irreverent? The Children's Media Yearbook 2024. The Children's Media Foundation.
- Berger, R. and Woodfall, A., 2024. Dick and Dom in the Place/Space to Be: ‘Bogies’ as Situationist-Carnival (Forthcoming). In: Noel, B., ed. Radical Children’s Television. Edinburgh: Edinburgh University Press.
- Berger, R., 2023. “Something’s lost in the translation!” Hemimetabolic Adaptation (or Incomplete Metamorphosis) in David Cronenberg’s The Fly. In: Cutchins, D.R. and Perry, D.R., eds. Revenge of the Remakes: Adaptation and Influence of 1950s Sci-Fi Films. Jefferson, North Carolina: McFarland & Company, 95-109.
- Berger, R., 2022. Deserted parks and empty swings: Remaking the disappearing child in Nordic crime and horror. The Scandinavian Invasion: Nordic Noir and Beyond. 249-269.
- Neag, A. and Berger, R., 2018. Always on, but never there? Political parody, the carnivalesque and the rise of the "nectorate". Discourses of (De)Legitimization: Participatory Culture in Digital Contexts. 211-227.
- Berger, R. and Woodfall, A., 2016. Remediated Pedagogies? The Secret Life of Six Year Olds. In: Readman, M., ed. Teaching and Learning on Screen: Mediated Pedagogies. London: Palgrave MacMillan.
- Berger, R. and Jackson, D., 2015. Empowering the Learner, Liberating the Teacher? Collaborative Lectures Using New Technologies. Collaborative Learning in Media Education. California: Informing Science Press, 59-74.
- Berger, R., Wardle, J. and Zezulkova, M., 2013. No longer just making the tea: media work-placements and work-based learning in HE. In: Ashton, D. and Noonan, C., eds. Cultural Work and Higher Education.. Basingstoke: Palgrave Macmillan., 87-109.
- Berger, R., 2013. Hang a Right at The Abbey: Jane Austen and the Imagined City. In: Raw, L. and Dryden, R.G., eds. Global Jane Austen: Pleasure, Passion, and Possessiveness in the Jane Austen Community. London: Palgrave Macmillan., 119-141.
- Berger, R. and Readman, M, 2013. The Femininity and the Body: Spectacle and Signification. In: Bennett, P. and McDougall, J., eds. Barthes' Mythologies: Readings of Contemporary Media. London: Routledge, 75-79.
- Berger, R., 2013. Cultural Disneyland? The History of an Inferiority Complex. In: Fraser, P., ed. Current Perspectives in Media Education: Beyond the Manifesto. Basingstoke, UK: Palgrave Macmillan, 145-159.
- Berger, R., 2012. Adaptation Nation: Medium Specificity in the UK. In: Bahloul, M. and Graham, C., eds. Lights! Camera! Action and the Brain: The Use of Film in Education. Newcastle: Cambridge Scholars, 33-60.
- Berger, R. and Woodfall, A., 2012. The Digital Utterance: a cross-media approach to media education. In: Ibrus, I. and Scolari, C.A., eds. Crossmedia Innovations: Texts, Markets, Institutions, Education.. Oxford: Peter Lang., 111-125.
- Berger, R., 2011. How Mick Learned to Love the Devil. In: Dick, L. and Reisch, G.A., eds. The Rolling Stones and Philosophy: It's Just A Thought Away. Chicago: Open Court, 231-240.
- Berger, R., 2010. Converting the Controversial: regulation as 'source text' in adaptation. In: Albrecht-Crane, C. and Cutchins, D., eds. Adaptation Studies: New Approaches. Madison, New Jersey, USA: Fairleigh Dickinson University Press, 150-159.
- Berger, R., 2010. Out and about: Slash fic, re-imagined texts, and queer commentaries. LGBT Identity and Online New Media. 173-184.
- Berger, R., 2010. Screwing Aliens and Screwing with Aliens: Torchwood slashes The Doctor. In: Ireland, A., ed. Illuminating Torchwood: Essays on Narrative, Character and Sexuality in the BBC Series.. Jefferson. North Carolina.: McFarland & Company., 66-75.
- Berger, R., 2010. Never Seek to Tell Thy Love: E-Adapting Blake in the classroom. In: Cutchins, D., Raw, L. and Welsh, J., eds. Redefining Adaptation Studies. Lanham, MD, USA: The Scarecrow Press, Inc., 31-43.
- Lin, T.-B., Wardle, J. and Berger, R., 2010. Balancing work and study: the inter-relations of professionals, industry and higher education. In: Clews, D., ed. Stepping out: studies on creative and cultural sector engagement with arts HE. Brighton, England: Higher Education Academy / Department for Culture Media and Sport, 39-52.
- Berger, R., 2009. Just Because You Can Tweet, It Doesn't Mean You Should. In: Clews, D., ed. Dialogues in Art & design: Promoting & Sharing Excellence. Brighton, England: Higher Education Academy/GLAD., 232-237.
- Berger, R., 2008. GINO or Dialogic: What does "Re-imagined" really mean? In: Tamplin, T. and Steiff, J., eds. Battlestar Galactica and Philosophy: mission accomplished or mission frakked up?. Chicago, USA: Open Court, 317-328.
- Berger, R., 2004. Digital Media Futures. In: Gauntlett, D. and Horsley, R., eds. Web Studies. Bloomsbury Academic, 274-284.
Conferences
- Berger, R., 2024. Pass the Source: social media, podcasting and sympatric adaptation. In: Adaptation Beyond Film 3 June 2024 University of Birmingham.
- Berger, R., 2017. Is Winter Coming? Adaptation in the time of fan fury. In: PCA/ACA Annual Conference 12-15 April 2017 San Diego.
- Berger, R., 2015. Challenges and Opportunities of Moving from Platform-Centric towards Experience-Centric Approaches to Media Pedagogy and Research. In: Media Education Summit 20-21 November 2015 Emerson College, Boston, US.
- Berger, R., 2015. Young People’s Mental Health: the challenge for media education researchers. In: Media Education Summit 20-21 November 2015 Emerson College, Boston, US.
- Berger, R., 2015. The Trial: the autopsy of an adaptation. In: PCA/ACA National Conference 1-4 April 2015 Marriott Hotel, New Orleans.
- Berger, R. and McDougall, J., 2014. Mapping MIL to Education: a pilot study. In: The Media Education Summit 20-21 November 2014 Goethe Institute, Prague.
- Berger, R., 2013. “Why? What do you think happened to her?” Activating Arya Stark. In: Adventures in Textuality: Adaptation in the 21st Century. 3-4 April 2013 University of Sunderland, UK..
- Berger, R. and Jackson, D., 2012. Empowering the learner, liberating the teacher? Collaborative lectures using old and new technologies. In: Exploring Collaborative Learning in Media Studies Programmes 3 May 2012 University of Winchester, England.
- Berger, R., 2012. Active adaptations: Killing the girl with the dragon tattoo. In: 42nd Annual PCA/ACA National Conference 11-14 April 2012 Boston, MA, USA.
- Berger, R., 2012. Meeting in the Middle: remediating the lecture theatre as a collaborative space. In: Fusion Conference: sharing educational enhancements 6 June 2012 Bournemouth University.
- Berger, R., 2012. Digital Transformations: reading games as (authorless) literature. In: The Media Education Summit. 11-12 September 2012 Bournemouth University, UK.
- Berger, R., 2012. Digital Transformations: reading games as (authorless) novels in the English literature curriculum. In: International Conference of Education, Research and Innovation. 19-21 November 2012 Madrid, Spain..
- Berger, R., 2011. Balancing Work and Study. In: UKadia: Culturing Growth: the contribution of specialist arts education to the UK economy & society 8 February 2011 Sadler's Wells Theatre, London, England.
- Berger, R. and McDougall, J., 2010. Publishing Teachers' Research. In: MLC 2010: The Media Literacy Conference 19-20 November 2010 The Queen Elizabeth II Conference Centre, London.
- Berger, R., 2010. Another 5 Years: How the Centres for Excellence in Teaching & Learning rewired pedagogy in UK Higher Education. In: International Society for the Scholarship of Teaching & Learning 19-22 October 2010 Liverpool Conference Centre.
- Berger, R., 2010. Time to Grow Up: Adaptation and Media Literacy. In: Media Education Summit 7-8 September 2010 Birmingham City University, Birmingham, England.
- Berger, R., 2010. Digital Utterances: adaptation, education and cross-platform practice. In: Educational Challenge: Innovation in Creative Industries 26-27 March 2010 Baltic Film and Media School, Tallinn, Estonia.
- Berger, R., 2009. Learning 2.0: Why Adaptation is good for you. In: The International Society for the Scholarship of Teaching & Learning annual conference 22-25 October 2009 University of Indiana, Bloomington, USA.
- Berger, R., 2009. New Processes and Practices: adaptation as pedagogic tool in film studies. In: Filmsense: a symposium on Film and Education 24 April 2009 Dun Laoghaire, Ireland..
- Berger, R., 2009. Teaching New Dogs, Old Tricks: Adaptation, Blogging and Pedagogy. In: PCA/ACA National Conference 8-11 April 2009 New Orleans, LA, USA.
- Berger, R., 2009. What’s The Deal? Peter Morgan & Michael Sheen, Tony Blair & Gordon Brown. In: PCA/ACA National Conference 8-11 April 2009 New Orleans, LA, USA.
- Berger, R., 2008. Framing the Subversive: Journalism, Celebrity and the Web. In: The End of Journalism? Technology, Education and Ethics Conference 2008 17-18 October 2008 University of Bedfordshire.
- Berger, R., 2008. The Dissertation: New Approaches - A Releasing the Potential Project. In: BU Education Conference 21 May 2008 Bournemouth University, England.
- Berger, R., 2008. Converting the Controversial: regulation as 'source text' in adaptation. In: PCA/ACA National Conference 19-22 March 2008 San Francisco, CA, USA. New Jersey, USA: Fairleigh Dickinson University Press.
- Berger, R., 2007. Re-designing the Designer: Adapting Polytheism in Battlestar Galactica. In: BSG 2007: The Politics, Poetics and Philosophy of Battlestar Galactica 28 July 2007 Buckingham Chilterns University College.
- Berger, R., 2007. Learning Through Doing: student generated content and blended learning. In: Bournemouth University Learning and Teaching: Re-inventing the student experience for an academically-led university 15 May 2007 Bournemouth University, Poole.
- Berger, R. and Ireland, A., 2007. Changing Tracks Without Derailing: The difficulties associated with regenerating The Doctor. In: PCA/ACA National Conference 4-7 April 2007 Boston, MA, USA.
Reports
- Berger, R., 2013. Review of 'Unhitched: The Trial of Christopher Hitchens' by Richard Seymour (London and New York: Verso, 2012).. The American Studies Association of Turkey. Available from: http://www.asat-jast.org/.
- Berger, R., 2011. BBC Trust - Persian Television Review. London: BBC Trust. Available from: http://www.bbc.co.uk/bbctrust/index.shtml.
Internet Publications
- Berger, R., 2020. "Remain Indoors" and other lost television classics.. CST Online. Available from: https://cstonline.net/remain-indoors-and-other-lost-television-classics-by-richard-berger/.
- Berger, R. and Neag, A., 2019. For young refugees, a mobile phone can be as important as food and water when arriving in a new country. The Metro. Available from: https://www.metro.news/for-young-refugees-a-mobile-phone-can-be-as-important-as-food-and-water-when-arriving-in-a-new-country/1758640/.
- Berger, R. and Neag, A., 2019. For young refugees, a mobile phone can be as important as food and water when arriving in a new country. The Conversation. Available from: https://theconversation.com/for-young-refugees-a-mobile-phone-can-be-as-important-as-food-and-water-when-arriving-in-a-new-country-122077.
- Sarian, H., Bradley, P. and Berger, R., 2018. SOCIAL MEDIA CASTING: THE ULTIMATE DEMOCRATISATION OF TV?. CST Online. Available from: http://cstonline.net/social-media-casting-the-ultimate-democratisation-of-tv-by-hayley-sarian-peri-bradley-and-richard-berger/.
- Neag, A. and Berger, R., 2018. Hungary elections: it's the most popular party on Facebook, so why haven’t you heard of the Two-Tailed Dog?. The Conversation. Available from: https://theconversation.com/hungary-elections-its-the-most-popular-party-on-facebook-so-why-havent-you-heard-of-the-two-tailed-dog-94587.
- Berger, R., 2012. Headhunting: Bakhtin and adaptations of least resistance.. Available from: http://www.adaptationstudies.org/.
- Berger, R., 2009. The ‘Trombone Shot’: From San Francisco to Middle Earth via Amity.. Available from: http://thebigpicturemagazine.com/.
Theses
- Berger, R., 2005. Rewiring the Text: Adaptation and Translation in the Digital Heteroglossia. PhD Thesis. Bournemouth University; The Media School.
PhD Students
- Ashley Woodfall, 2015. Children's cross-platform media preferences: a sense of kindness and a want for learning?
- Marketa Zezulkova, 2015. Whole Person Hermeneutic Media Learning in the Primary Classroom: An Intercultural Grounded Philosophy
- Thinus Mathee, 2017. Towards a dialogic pedagogy that promotes the values of craftsmanship in a media practice programme
- Adam Twycross, 2018. How did social and cultural processes shape the evolution of adult comics in Britain between 1932 and 1986?
- Marzenna Hiles, 2018. COHORT CULTURE AND THE STUDENT VOICE IN CREATIVE AND MEDIA SUBJECTS IN UK HIGHER EDUCATION
- Simon McGuire, 2019. Crafting the Pedagogy
Grants
- Marie Sklodowska Curie Individual Fellowship (MediaLitRefYouth) - Annamaria Naeg (European Commission H2020 MSCA, 01 Sep 2017). Awarded
- Journalism Staff Development Workshops in Nepal (Bournemouth University - Fusion Fund, 01 Nov 2013). Completed
- (Digitally) Transforming the Discipline: reading games as (authorless) literature (Arts and Humanities Research Council, 01 Feb 2012). Completed
- BBC Persian Television - Cotent Anaysis (BBC Trust, 29 Jan 2010). Completed
External Responsibilities
- University of Exeter, External Examiner (2019-2022)
- UK Research & Innovation, Member of the Peer Review College (2018-2022)
- Arts & Humanities Research Council, Panel Chair (2014-2022)
- The Open University, External Verifier (2010-), http://www.open.ac.uk/
- Arts & Humanities Research Council, Member of Peer Review College (2010-2022)
Conference Presentations
- International Conference of Education, Research and Innovation, Digital Transformations: Reading Games as (Authorless) Literature, 14 Nov 2012, Madrid, Spain
- Media Education Summit, Digital Transformations: Reading Games as (Authorless) Literature, 07 Sep 2012, Bournemouth University
Qualifications
- PG Dip in Research Degree Supervision (Bournemouth University, 2010)
- PhD in Literature & Cinema (2005)
- PG Cert in Academic Practice (2001)
- MA in Film Studies (1999)
- BSc (Hons) in Media & Communications (1995)
Memberships
- National Association for Higher Education in the Moving Image (NAHEMI), Member (2010-), http://nahemi.org/mission/
- Arts & Humanities Research Council, Peer Review College Member,
- Higher Education Academy, Senior Fellow,
- Popular Culture Association, Member,
- UKRI Leadership Fellow Programme, Mentor,
- UKRI, Peer Review College Member,
Networks
- Association of Adaptation Studies
- Popular Culture Association (PCA)
- Advance HE
