Els De Bens was professor at the Department of Communication Sciences at Ghent University. Her main teaching and research activities were situated in the field of media economy, media policy, journalism studies and ICT. She was an active member of several international networks, including the Euromedia Research Group and the ESF Changing Media, Changing Europe Programme. Els De Bens was visiting professor at the universities of Berkeley (US), Nurnberg, Lille, Stellenbosch (South Africa), Dortmund and Moscow. Furthermore, she was co-editor of the European Journal of Communication and promotor, co-promotor or contractor of four international and two national research projects. She was also member of several evaluation commissions (teaching and research) in Portugal, Switzerland and Netherlands. She was Chairman of the Flemish Media Council. Her scientific publications include 8 books, 29 chapters in international books, 14 refereed articles in international reviews and 35 articles in national and international journals. Els passed away in November 2025.