Lubomír Kopeček’s main areas of research are Czech politics (past and present) and comparative political science. He studied history, political science and law at Masaryk University and received his doctorate in 2003. He habilitated as an associate professor in 2007 and was appointed a full professor ten years later. This year's recipient of the MU Rector's Award works at the Department of Political Science at the Faculty of Social Studies.
You received the Rector’s Award for Outstanding Teachers, for which you were nominated by your students. So how do you go about teaching?
That’s probably a better question to ask my students, not me. In my opinion, you should keep them engaged and convey the things you think are important. I guess I am lucky when it comes to my subjects. I teach politics and modern history, and these offer a wealth of topics, situations and statements from which to build a story, to illustrate things neatly, to explain the context and connections. To give an example, the rise of political entrepreneurs, which has been so prominent in the Czech Republic in recent decades, can be well explained on the example of Silvio Berlusconi, one of the first colourful pioneers of this phenomenon. To create a political party, Berlusconi used the managers of his holding company, the television station he controlled and the network of fans of his football club, AC Milan. It made for a very interesting political animal, at fist.
What works with students? Is there a method to get them interested?
I think I mentioned one already, but I wouldn’t necessarily call it a method. You have to be prepared for the class, but of course sometimes you have to improvise a bit. Teaching is part theatre. Without daring to compare myself to him, the famous Czech actor Vladimír Menšík once said, when asked a similar question, that he just acts, but he doesn’t know exactly how he does it. I suppose it’s similar with me.
You often appear in the media. In your lectures, do you take into account the importance of the media for political science and do you give advice on media communication?
Broadly speaking, the media is a much more important factor influencing politics today than it was, say, in the 20th century. The other thing is that the media landscape today is much more fragmented and difficult to navigate, which of course has big implications for the study of politics. I think these are things that become very clear when you study political science. At the department, we teach a master’s specialisation that is popular with students because it combines political communication, campaigns and elections.
As for the other thing, I’ll have to disappoint you, because I personally don’t do any special media training with students. I just occasionally make an observation, such as that they should try to explain things in the simplest terms possible. It increases the chances that what you say will be understood. Also, don’t be upset if the headline – usually written by the newsroom editor, not the author of the article – doesn’t match the content. Headlines are there to sell the article and there’s not much you can do about it. Try to make sure that you’re only talking about things you have expertise in. But be prepared for the journalist to move on to other topics.
Apart from political science, what are your interests and what have you enjoyed recently?
I have been avoiding big dreams lately and enjoying the little things in life, like a good meal, a nice chat with friends or a decent film. To answer the question with a cinema reference: “Thanks for Every New Morning”.