“Because Genius Enchants”: The Relationship Between Elisabeth Noelle-Neumann and Paul F. Lazarsfeld

Elisabeth Noelle-Neumann (1916-2010) and Paul F. Lazarsfeld (1901-1976) cultivated a close and mutually inspiring friendship, as may be gathered from their correspondence that Ralph E. Schmidt and Thomas Petersen review in an article published in January 2022 in the International Journal of Communication. Lazarsfeld inspired Noelle-Neumann in her endeavor to transform German Publizistikwissenschaft (science of public communication) from a humanistic into an empirical social science discipline. The complementarity of American and European traditions in social research is reflected in their correspondence and exemplified in their collaboration.

Ralph E. Schmidt & Thomas Petersen: Beyond Marienthal: The Relationship Between Elisabeth Noelle-Neumann und Paul F. Lazarsfeld. In: International Journal of Communication, 2022, 16, Forum pp. 664-672.