Kamppi Chapel of Silence in Finnish Media Soili Ahoinpelto Bachelor’s Thesis Degree Programme for Multilingual Management Assistants 2013 Abstract 28 May 2013 Degree Programme for Multilingual Management Assistants Author Group or year of Soili Ahoinpelto entry 2009 Title of thesis Number of pages Kamppi Chapel of Silence in Finnish Media and attachment pages 42 + 5 Supervisor Mark Badham Kamppi Chapel of Silence is an Evangelical Lutheran chapel situated in Helsinki, in Narinkka Square. It was opened to the public in 2012 and is operated by various Helsin- ki parishes and the Social Services Department of the City of Helsinki. This thesis anal- yses the media reaction evoked by a spiritual building being created in the heart of a commercial city centre. The objective of this thesis is to examine the media attention focused on this chapel, and to determine how relevant information regarding this was communicated to the public by the parties involved in the chapel’s creation. This is researched empirically, based on media monitoring conducted by Helsinki Parish Union between August 2011 and July 2012. Both qualitative and quantitative research methods are used. In addition to the empirical research, theories on communication and the media are utilised in the theoretical framework. How do the media work? Do they really influence us? If so, how? Can media influence be utilised in communicating one’s own messages to the public? The research shows that the media attention focused on the chapel followed the Parish Union and Social Services’ common communication plan. Most of the core messages outlined in the plan were clearly portrayed in the media during the monitoring period. Some themes got more attention than others, which formed a basis for further analysis. Keywords media publicity, mass communication, media research, Kamppi Chapel Table of Contents 1 Introduction .......................................................................................................................... 1 1.1 Objectives of the Thesis ............................................................................................. 1 2 Communication .................................................................................................................... 3 2.1 Messages in Different Schools of Communication ................................................ 3 2.2 Mass Communication ................................................................................................. 4 2.2.1 Media ................................................................................................................. 5 2.2.2 Influencing the Media ..................................................................................... 5 2.2.3 News Values ..................................................................................................... 6 2.2.4 Mass Media Research ...................................................................................... 8 2.3 Media Effects ............................................................................................................... 8 2.3.1 A Brief History of Media Effects Research ................................................. 9 2.3.2 Examples on Media Effects Models ............................................................. 9 2.3.3 Individual and Aggregate Effect .................................................................. 10 2.4 Agenda-Setting Theory ............................................................................................. 11 2.4.1 Basics of Agenda-Setting .............................................................................. 11 2.4.2 First Level Agenda-Setting ........................................................................... 12 2.4.3 Second Level Agenda-Setting ...................................................................... 12 2.4.4 Need for Orientation .................................................................................... 12 2.4.5 Media Influence Not Absolute .................................................................... 13 2.4.6 Utilising Agenda-Setting ............................................................................... 14 3 Case: Kamppi Chapel ........................................................................................................ 15 3.1 Communication Plan ................................................................................................ 16 3.2 Communication Channels and Actions.................................................................. 17 3.2.1 Slogans and Chapel Launching .................................................................... 17 3.2.2 Visits for Media, the Public and Interest Groups ..................................... 18 3.2.3 Social Media ................................................................................................... 18 3.2.4 Media Contacts & Press Releases ................................................................ 18 4 Research Methods .............................................................................................................. 22 4.1 Qualitative or Quantitative? ..................................................................................... 22 5 Research Process Description .......................................................................................... 24 5.1 Themes ....................................................................................................................... 25 5.1.1 Chapel Purpose .............................................................................................. 26 5.1.2 World Design Capital .................................................................................... 26 5.1.3 Architecture .................................................................................................... 26 5.1.4 Inauguration ................................................................................................... 26 5.1.5 Number of Visitors ....................................................................................... 27 5.1.6 Unveiling ......................................................................................................... 27 5.2 Theme Analysis ......................................................................................................... 27 6 Research Findings .............................................................................................................. 28 6.1 Timing ......................................................................................................................... 28 6.1.1 Theme Visibility through Time ................................................................... 29 6.2 Themes Compared to Each Other ......................................................................... 30 6.3 Contents of the Media Hits ..................................................................................... 33 6.3.1 Chapel Purpose and WDC ........................................................................... 33 6.3.2 Architecture .................................................................................................... 33 6.3.3 Inauguration, Visitors and Unveiling .......................................................... 34 7 Summary of the Results .................................................................................................... 36 7.1 Conclusion ................................................................................................................. 36 8 Evaluation of the Thesis Process ..................................................................................... 38 8.1 Validity and Reliability .............................................................................................. 38 References ................................................................................................................................ 40 Appendices ............................................................................................................................... 43 1 Introduction Kamppi Chapel of Silence is an Evangelical Lutheran chapel situated in Helsinki, Nar- inkka Square. It was opened to the public on 1 June 2012 as part of the World Design Capital Helsinki programme. The Chapel was designed by Kimmo Lintula, Niko Sirola and Mikko Summanen of K2S Architects Ltd. The Chapel is operated by Helsinki par- ishes and the Social Services Department of the City of Helsinki. It is meant to be a place of silence in the crowded city centre but also a place for meeting people. Helsinki Parish Union, Helsinki Social Services and the World Design Capital team all collaborated in making the Chapel project known to the public, and as a result, the Chapel received a vast amount of media attention all over the world. The target audiences for the Chapel’s communication process were originally not strictly determined. The Chapel was considered to be a pioneering project due to the new cooperation between the Parish Union and the Social Services, and it was not known what kinds of people it would attract. However, it was thought that those inter- ested in architecture, silence and a moment’s rest, people in search of help and young- sters spending time around the shopping centre could be potential target audiences. The Chapel’s messages were directed to as broad audiences as possible to enable peo- ple to decide for themselves whether the Chapel would be something they could bene- fit from. The core messages to be communicated to the