Introduction

[Teun A. van Dijk]

With many others, I welcome the new DISCOURS List, and congratulate the
listowneners with this timely initiative. I hope the discussions on this
list may be fruitful and help constitute an international and
multidisciplinary community of scholars and students of discourse.

I am glad to introduce myself to those who don't know me:

Since 1980, I am professor of discourse studies at the University of
Amsterdam, where I also obtained my doctorate after earlier MA-studies
in French Language and Literature (Free University of Amsterdam) and
Theory of Literature (at the University of Amsterdam). After earlier
work on 'text grammar' and then on the psychology of text processing
(mostly with Walter Kintsch), my work in the 1980s focused on the study
of racism in discourse, and on the analysis of news in the press as a
discourse genre. In the 1990 I continued my work on discourse and
racism, but also added another big project, namely the study of ideology
and discourse. My current research project, Racism at the Top (in
cooperation with Ruth Wodak and others), studies the ways politicians
speak about immigration in 7 EU parliaments. After that, in 2000, I hope
to begin research for my second book on ideology, tentatively called
"Ideology and Social Cognition". Most of my lecturing abroad is in
various countries of Latin America. For my CV, list of publications, as
well as for recent publications, and information about current research
projects and teaching, please visit my homepage.

Especially relevant for readers of this list: I am also editor of the
two international discourse journals DISCOURSE STUDIES (starting in
1999), and DISCOURSE & SOCIETY (since 1990), both published by Sage, Ltd
(London), also in electronic format. For instructions to authors and
criteria for preferred papers for these journals, see also my homepage.
Before sending/submitting papers, please contact me by e-mail.

Address:

Teun A. van Dijk
University of Amsterdam
Program of Discourse Studies
210, Spuistraat
1012 VT Amsterdam
E-mail: teun at hum.uva.nl
Homepage: www.hum.uva.nl/~teun