Introduction: Since the late 20 th century, media observatories, or watch groups, have played an important role among the institutions devoted to the promotion of media reform, since they constitute an essential tool for the monitoring and analysis of the media by citizens. This article presents the results of a pioneering study aiming to map the landscape of media observatories in Spain and to systematise their main features, such as origin, evolution, objectives, promoters and fields of specialisation. Methods: Based on an extensive literature review, the study identifies 28 observatories which are subsequently analysed through an observation protocol and qualitative interviews with the directors of 10 of the observatories. Results and conclusions: The results confirm the existence of a heterogeneous landscape, characterised by a predominance of observatories focused on auditing activities and observatories promoted by universities. Nevertheless, most observatories are characterised by unsustainability and by an irregular research activity.

A Barranquero Carretero, N Limón Serrano (2017): "Dominant objects and methods in communication for development and social change in Spanish PhD thesis and research projects (2007)(2008)(2009)(2010)(2011)(2012)(2013) Based on the incipient interest that communication for development and social change has progressively acquired in Spain, the objective of this article is to evaluate the state of the art in research in this field through the content analysis of the PhD theses and R&D projects developed between 2007 and 2013 in the 56 public and private Spanish universities that offer communication degrees. Methods and discussion: After defining the discipline and setting its theoretical boundaries, the article describes the main analytical categories of the sample of PhD theses and R&D projects, which delve into their identifying dimensions -like authorship, university affiliation and year of publication -and their dominant research objects, perspectives and methods. Results and conclusions: The results point to the progressive consolidation of a field whose thematic diversity is related to milestones in contemporary history and certain influence coming from the Latin American school of thought.