Press Release – December 3rd

Press release

The Public Opinion Research Unit at the University of Macedonia Research Institute has been conducting opinion polls and producing studies and reports on issues that are at the top of the news agenda and public discussion at national and European level. It has been collaborating with private entities, public and private organizations (state, international and regional), academic institutions, news agencies, research institutions and NGOs from Greece and abroad.

For instance, it has, so far, collaborated with the international news network Bloomberg, with the Universities of Oxford and Zurich among others, the television network SKAI (Greece) and the daily newspaper Kathimerini, the Hellenic Foundation for European & Foreign Policy (ELIAMEP), the Research and Policy Institute “DiaNEOsis” and the Dukakis Center for Public and Humanitarian Service.

Each research project is being conducted and implemented on the basis of a thorough application of the code of ethics of science and academia. The findings of our researches are published very often and thus submitted openly and transparently to the judgment of public opinion.

In recent times we studied the public opinion attitudes with regard to the “name dispute” between Greece and FYROM, the “Skripal case” and its presentation in the Greek media, the expulsion of Russian diplomats from Greece and the image of big countries (Russia, United States and Germany) in the Greek public opinion and the factors which shape it, the rise of the far right and the issue of populism in politics.

As scientists and researchers, we conduct studies and produce reports which enable us to interpret various tendencies as well as aspects of many phenomena. We are not receiving any instructions from whomsoever about what we should think and say, nor do we ask for permission about where we should focus our research interests. We state, categorically, that we do not participate in any “dark network”, conspiracy or organization. In this period, we have been observing with great interest the conspiracy theories that are affecting the public discussions. Apparently, we are not surprised that some media are reproducing them.

With regard to recent articles in certain media, we confirm our collaboration with the charityorganization “The Institute for Statecraft” which is based in Scotland. Our contract with this Institute, as it happens with all the contracts of the Public Opinion Research Unit, was approved by the Board of the University Research Institute.In the context of our collaboration, we designed and conducted opinion polls, workshops and studies about the presentation of Russia in the Greek Media.

Besides all this, all documents that supposedly contain information, comments and analysis about us and do not relate to our research activities, are beyond our knowledge and are either the product of the imagination or the erroneous perception of their supposed authors.

Finally, we should remind that our country is a liberal democracy, a member of the European Union which encourages the freedom of expression, of research and the cooperation between its members.

Professor Nikos Marantzidis, Scientific Coordinator

Dr. Georgios Siakas, Research Director

Dr. Panagiotis Paschalidis, Research Associate