Fremd ist der Fremde nur in der Fremde-A stranger is strange only in a strange land (Karl Valentin) This paper explores issues concerning the media situation of ethnic minorities and migrants in Austria. It is based on the premise that ethnic minority groups that have been present in the country for centuries and contemporary migrants encounter similar problems in preserving their languages and culture within the society at large. This situation results from an asymmetrical relationship between majority and minority. In contrast to migrants, semi-autonomous minorities are well-integrated into Austrian society. Yet, there are a number of parallels between ethnic minorities and migrants in reference to the ways they are dealt with by agents such as the media, politicians and the general public. The Austrian media landscape reflects the conflict-ridden situation of ethnic minorities and migrants.

This paper deals with transcultural ethnic media, that is, ethnic media with at least two additional fundamental benefits: (1) They provide space for and aim at different ethnic communities and (2) connect them to the major society. Additionally, they include inter-and transcultural content and provide (semi-)professional journalism. Content analyses with particular focus on the conveyed values as well as the perception of such a magazine -biber, published in Vienna, Austria -by traditional print media reveal that in reporting on issues not covered by mainstream media, transcultural magazines promote counter-public spheres on the one hand. On the other hand, they offer the majority society insights into ethnic communities. Mainstream media report much more frequently about such a transcultural magazine than about 'classic' ethnic media, evaluate it positively and see it as an important contribution to the media landscape. Overall, transcultural media play an important role in gaining bridging social capital.