About – Instructional Materials
We would be grateful if you could highlight the services offered by FID Media in tutorials and workshops and encourage users to make use of the Specialised Information Service alongside the resources and services provided by their local library.
You may also refer users to our Frequently Asked Questions (FAQ).
The material provided here is available under the Creative Commons Attribution 4.0 International (CC BY ND 4.0) licence and may be reused with appropriate attribution and without changes.
FID Media is designed as a complementary specialised information service. Our aim is not to replace local library services, but to supplement them with subject-specific resources and services for communication, media, and film studies.
When registering with FID Media, users select a home library. Wherever possible, FID Media then highlights resources already available through that library:
- Monographs and other resources with an ISBN or OCLC number: FID Media displays whether a title is held by the home library and, where applicable, provides links to available e-books. Information on current loan status is not available.
- Journal articles: Through integration with the Electronic Journals Library (EZB) and the German Union Catalogue of Serials (ZDB), FID Media checks whether the home library provides access to the relevant journal and issue. Where access is available, users can follow a direct link to the resource, provided they are connected via their institution’s network, VPN, or another institutional authentication method. Print holdings are also displayed.
- Databases: Through integration with DBIS, users are presented with a list of freely accessible and home-library-licensed databases. Access is provided directly via links to the respective resources, where applicable through institutional authentication or VPN access.
Anyone working, researching, teaching, or studying in communication studies, media studies, film studies, or related disciplines may register for FID Media. Registration is also open to interested members of the public. The service is therefore not restricted to professors or academic staff but is equally available to students and independent researchers.
In addition, FID Media offers the following services:
- A free account with the ability to save searches and create an unlimited number of personal book lists.
- Access to New print publications relevant to the disciplines. These titles are continuously added to the catalogue and can be discovered via dedicated search filters. Registered users may request newly published books on loan for an Initial loan period of 30 days. Books are delivered directly to the user and do not need to be collected from a library. After the loan period, they must be returned to Leipzig University Library, where they become part of the library’s collection and are subsequently available through interlibrary loan.
- A document delivery service for journal articles that are not licensed by the home library, as well as for parts of monographs within the limits permitted by copyright law. Requests can be placed directly through the FID Media catalogue. If a required article or book cannot be found, users may suggest it for acquisition via the Contact Form or by email.
- Direct access to freely available resources published under Open Access conditions.
- Access to FID-exclusive licensed resources, where permitted for the respective user group.
This mailing list is intended to facilitate communication and networking among subject librarians and information specialists responsible for communication studies, media studies, film studies, and related disciplines.
All subscribers may send messages to and receive messages from the list. Messages are not moderated.
The mailing list is open to discussion of all topics relevant to the community. Contributions from all subscribers are welcome, and discussions are explicitly not limited to matters relating to FID Media.
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Please note: This mailing list is not the FID Media newsletter. To receive news and updates from FID Media, please create an account with FID Media.
In this six-minute introductory video, we explain the main features of the FID Media Search catalogue.
The development of FID Media is continuously supported by scholarly evaluation and research. We regularly publish reports and articles on the progress and outcomes of the project. A list of publications and further information about FID Media can be found on the website of Leipzig University Library.