"Over the last two years, Fiji has worked to build a Communication and Community Engagement (CCE) platform that embeds advanced two-way communication capabilities in the national disaster response system. While it is common to think of “platforms” as a technology service, the intent here is much
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broader. While technology is an important component, today’s best-in-class national CCE “platforms” include a broad network of organisations that collaborate on communications efforts, create resources such as guides and training that support efforts, and provide governance structures that support an integrated communication framework. This is critical work. As a Pacific island nation, Fiji’s nearly 900,000 people are exposed to the ongoing threat of tropical cyclones and earthquakes. At the beginning of 2020, Fiji faced two tropical cyclones in a period of three weeks and then in April experienced land fall from the category five Tropical Cyclone Harold. These weather crises coincided with the public health challenges arising from the COVID-19 pandemic." (Page 1)
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"Building effective CCE capabilities is particularly important in Vanuatu, a Pacific nation spanning 83 islands, which is vulnerable to natural disasters ranging from tropical cyclones and volcanic eruptions, to disease and agricultural threats. 2020 has been a particularly challenging year for its
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300,000 citizens, with the landfall of Category 5 Tropical Cyclone Harold in April and the concurrent rise of the COVID-19 pandemic. Over the last two years, the Australian Department of Foreign Affairs and Trade (DFAT) has sponsored a programme to build sustainable next-generation CCE capability within Vanuatu. This nationally grounded initiative has been led by Vanuatu’s National Disaster Management Office (NDMO) with coordination support from the CDAC Network and Ground Truth Solutions (GTS). CARE provides additional CCE Technical Advisory and Secretariat support." (Page 1)
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"The digital divide in rural areas is an important social issue, especially in developing countries. Although Internet and broadband penetration have increased in the world generally, there are many obstacles for rural China to get access to ICT (Information and Communication Technology) and its ser
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vices. The mobile platform is regarded as a novel and effective tool to reduce the digital divide. Based on a case of one mobile platform, namely WeCountry in Chinese rural areas, this study illustrates how a mobile platform bridges the digital divide and helps rural areas achieve social inclusion. Results show that: (1) the mobile platform mainly acts on the digital capability divide elimination, and it has to guide and increase users’ usage capability; (2) the mobile platform can empower villagers in structural, psychological, and resource dimensions, achieving political inclusion, social participation inclusion, and economic inclusion; (3) platform providers and government are key organizations during the divide elimination process. This paper concludes with theoretical and practical implications." (Abstract)
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"This volume provides a critical examination of the evolution of platform economies in India. Contributions from leading media and communications scholars present case studies that illustrate the social and economic ambitions at the heart of Digital India. Across interdisciplinary domains of busines
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s, labour, politics, and culture, this book examines how digital platforms are embedding automated systems into the social fabrics of everyday life." (Publisher description)
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"Digital media histories are part of a global network, and South Asia is a key nexus in shaping the trajectory of digital media in the twenty-first century. Digital platforms like Facebook, WhatsApp, and others are deeply embedded in the daily lives of millions of people around the world, shaping ho
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w people engage with others as kin, as citizens, and as consumers. Moving away from Anglo-American and strictly national frameworks, the essays in this book explore the intersections of local, national, regional, and global forces that shape contemporary digital culture(s) in regions like South Asia: the rise of digital and mobile media technologies, the ongoing transformation of established media industries, and emergent forms of digital media practice and use that are reconfiguring sociocultural, political, and economic terrains across the Indian subcontinent. From massive state-driven digital identity projects and YouTube censorship to Tinder and dating culture, from Twitter and primetime television to Facebook and political rumors, Global Digital Cultures focuses on enduring concerns of representation, identity, and power while grappling with algorithmic curation and data-driven processes of production, circulation, and consumption." (Publisher description)
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"With particularly low internet penetration rates, intense state censorship and heavy Chinese investment, Pakistan presents elements of an authoritarian internet culture where surveillance is a barely-questioned norm, unless probed by civil society organizations or journalists. Social media giants s
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uch as Facebook and Twitter have come into minor clashes with the Pakistani government where enforcing content blockage/regulation is concerned. For example, the government in 2018 expanded the remit of the Pakistan Telecommunication Authority (PTA) to allow the regulator to block various types of content.[1] Journalists have begun to self-censor out of threats to their lives. Nearly 88% of Pakistan’s journalists said that they selfcensored, according to a 2018 survey carried out by Media Matters for Democracy, a local NGO. China, with its China-Pakistan Economic Corridor and One Belt One Road initiative, is exporting its regulatory model of surveillance to Pakistan, thus worsening the situation. A handful of digital human rights civil society organizations have sprung up over the past few years such as Media Matters for Democracy, Digital Rights Foundation and Bytes4All, all with the aim of fighting back against invasion of privacy, freedom of speech, and safety of journalists, and raising awareness about the issue of internet and human rights in Pakistan." (Page 4)
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"L’étude suggère que les médias sociaux ne sont pas toujours la panacée pour l’engagement citoyen des jeunes. Internet n’est pas un monde isolé en soi dans le sens où il ne fait que prolonger les usages éprouvés dans la vie citoyenne. Son rôle dans l’essor des Révolutions arabes a
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quelques fois été surestimé. Sans aucun doute, les médias sociaux permettent aux jeunes hommes et femmes, déjà engagés dans les champs civils et politiques, de se structurer davantage, mais ils peuvent difficilement faire germer des vocations nouvelles envers la chose publique, notamment auprès de groupes auto-exclus de la sphère citoyenne comme les jeunes vulnérables, les jeunes femmes ou encore les populations rurales. L’originalité de l’étude tient en premier lieu à l’examen des « contenus participatifs », c’est-à-dire les divers types de contenus et de messages publiés par les usagers des plateformes jugées populaires auprès des jeunes. Ainsi, l’étude analyse savamment les dispositifs techniques ou technologiques, susceptibles d’accroître le succès et l’interactivité des plateformes web dirigées par et pour les jeunes, ainsi que les contenus qui y sont produits et relayés. Elle apporte des enseignements précieux dont la nécessaire agrégation de contenus et de ressources ciblant simultanément différentes tranches d’âges et d’usage, la nécessité de favoriser des sujets relatifs à la situation concrète des jeunes, et l’impératif d’alterner intelligemment des activités en ligne et des actions en présentiel (face-to-face). D’autres facteurs semblent susceptibles de rehausser l’attractivité et le dynamisme des plateformes, comme par exemple, la mise en avant de personnalités influentes et identifiables, la garantie de l’anonymat et de la sécurité des usagers ainsi que la lutte contre la censure, notamment dans les contextes de crise marqués par une réduction des libertés. Fait inattendu, l’étude relativise l’importance, sinon l’attrait, des dimensions graphiques et purement visuelles pour le succès et la pérennité des plateformes." (Préface, page 7)
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"Convergence of services usually affects the quality and price of services offered by providers. However, this has not been the case in Romania yet. People benefit from a very competitive market and enjoy fairly cheap services, but the implications of convergence on the content made available to con
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sumers are less beneficial for citizens. If three major companies start controlling both the infrastructure and the media content, the production of good quality journalism is likely to be affected and tastes and ideas could be shaped in unexpected ways. If these companies establish ties with the political elites as well and start endorsing certain ideologies, they can start having an unwarranted impact on society. Although these concerns are now hypothetical, they are grounded in practices that could be observed already for years in Romania. Social media is becoming increasingly influential as a source of information, with more than two-thirds of Romanians getting their news from Facebook, YouTube and other social media platforms. Recent debates surrounding fake news have prompted calls for regulation of the online media in a similar way broadcast activities have been regulated for decades. Civil society organizations have been critical of such initiatives, fearing that they could pave the way to the reintroduction of censorship disguised as user protection." (Page 4)
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"This study investigated the differences in usage of different social media platforms within the South African context, broken down by user characteristics, specifically gender and age, in addition to investigating the correlation between usage of differing social media platforms. This was carried o
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ut to determine which social media needs do the different population groups aim to fulfill when using different social media platforms. Based on the results, the study confirmed the existence of preferences between types of social media platforms and groups of social media platforms in South Africa, based on frequency of use by age group and gender. Social media can thus be seen as a useful tool for collaboration and sharing knowledge to users in a South African context but must be tailored for specific audience needs." (Abstract)
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"In the last few years, the world information ecosystem has been flooded by the “fake news” phenomena, augmented by the widespread use of social media. The fragmentation and scale of the new communication tools help spread old ideologies, that uphold racism, homophobia, and oppression. This phen
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omenon particularly afflicts developing countries, because of the persistent inequality and political polarisation. The results of this socio-economic inequality, like the digital divide, high rates of illiteracy and the lack of trust in institutions, pave the way to an expansion of indiscriminate hate as a political tool Christian evangelicism provides a conducive environment for neoconservatism and intolerance. This policy brief analyses the weakest points in Brazilian information ecosystem and demonstrates how that structure created a nurturing environment for disinformation and hate speech before and after the 2018 elections. It concludes with short- and medium-term strategies for governments, institutions and civil society, as well as tech and social media companies that will mitigate the negative societal disturbances of hate speech and disinformation." (Abstract)
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"Die vorliegende Studie untersucht, mit welchen Mitteln der ursprüngliche emanzipatorische Anspruch der erhofften neuen Freiräume mit Hilfe digitaler Instrumente eingelöst werden kann. Es werden digitale Plattformen für Projekte der Auswärtigen Kultur- und Bildungspolitik (AKBP) analysiert sowi
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e neueste noch in der Entwicklung befindliche dezentrale Technologien aufgezeigt, die für negative Entwicklungen des Netzes neue Lösungen anbieten." (Seite 6)
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"The challenges to humanity posed by the digital future, the first detailed examination of the unprecedented form of power called "surveillance capitalism," and the quest by powerful corporations to predict and control us. The heady optimism of the Internet's early days is gone. Technologies that we
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re meant to liberate us have deepened inequality and stoked divisions. Tech companies gather our information online and sell it to the highest bidder, whether government or retailer. Profits now depend not only on predicting our behaviour but modifying it too. How will this fusion of capitalism and the digital shape our values and define our future? Shoshana Zuboff shows that we are at a crossroads. We still have the power to decide what kind of world we want to live in, and what we decide now will shape the rest of the century. Our choices: allow technology to enrich the few and impoverish the many, or harness it and distribute its benefits. The Age of Surveillance Capitalism is a deeply-reasoned examination of the threat of unprecedented power free from democratic oversight. As it explores this new capitalism's impact on society, politics, business, and technology, it exposes the struggles that will decide both the next chapter of capitalism and the meaning of information civilization. Most critically, it shows how we can protect ourselves and our communities and ensure we are the masters of the digital rather than its slaves." (Publisher description)
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"Technology plays an important role for news media distribution in Bulgaria: 88% of Bulgarians get their news online, first and foremost on the online platforms of popular television channels and their social network pages. Bulgarians are some of the most active social media users in the EU (ranked
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6th among all EU Member States), and use Facebook overwhelmingly more than all other platforms – among other purposes, for news consumption. Because of its astounding popularity, Facebook is the most popular online platform for news media, and the audiences of news outlets attract on their Facebook pages often surpass in numbers those of their own websites. For the same reasons, the platform is notable for its major role in promoting fake news in Bulgaria, which had a particularly strong impact on voters before the last parliamentary election in March 2017.
Google is another international technology company with a dominant position in the market for digital media distribution. Google occupies an overwhelming share of the search engine market across all platforms, and its YouTube is ranked as the second most popular social media platform in the country. On the other hand, Google is the sole international technology company that has contributed finances to the local journalism in Bulgaria: its Digital News Innovation (DNI) Fund has awarded €450,000 in funding to journalistic projects in Bulgaria since its launch in 2015. The fund’s overall influence in the Bulgarian media is insignificant for now, but it did help multiple innovative projects get off the ground.
While the digital news distribution market overall is dominated by the international tech giants Facebook and Google, there are local digital media platforms in Bulgaria, too. The most notable one is Netinfo, the largest digital media company in the country, covering 85% of the users with a wide range of information, communication and entertainment services." (Page 4)
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"Sinteses de las recomendaciones: Incentivar la creación de tecnologías de evaluación del cumplimiento de la neutralidad de red en las capas lógica y de infraestructuras; Incentivar la creación de piezas procesuales de referencia para la creación de jurisprudencia, usando como base tanto el Ma
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rco Civil de la Internet como las leyes de protección al derecho del consumidor; Presionar para aumentar el poder de los órganos reguladores para imponer sanciones a las operadores de red y proveedores de acceso a la internet en el caso de neutralidad de red, así como incentivar la transparencia en relación a los procedimientos y sanciones pertinentes, especialmente en Brasil, Colombia y México; Incentivar la producción de más estudios con el objetivo de investigar la influencia de algoritmos de las redes sobre la neutralidad de la red; Incentivar la producción de conocimiento sobre transparencia en la gestión del tráfico en las capas de infraestructura; Incentivar la producción de investigaciones sobre los efectos de los planes de tarifa cero sobre la diversidad de contenido a que se tiene acceso." (Página 89)
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"L’auteure considère que des stratégies d’acteurs sont observables au coeur de la filière en construction de l’information en ligne et qu’il existe une redéfinition des rôles autour de la production, de la diffusion et de la consommation de l’information en ligne. L’ouvrage envisage
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ces stratégies d’acteurs comme participant à une reconfiguration de l’espace médiatique numérique, avec des éditeurs de presse qui tâtonnent dans leur positionnement, des autoéditeurs orignaux dans leur démarche mais qui peinent à trouver un modèle économique viable et des infomédiaires, dominé par les portails, aux stratégies relativement offensives. Le terrain investi est celui de l’Afrique de l’Ouest francophone en l’occurrence le Burkina Faso, la Côte d’Ivoire et le Sénégal. Grâce aux travaux universitaires existants et à une démarche empirique éprouvée, l’auteure présente les spécificités des médias en ligne africains parfois éloignées des références reconnues dans le domaine." (Dos de couverture)
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"Zunehmend ist es nämlich nicht mehr die Frage „Was wird verbreitet?“, sondern die Frage „Was wird gefunden und kann verarbeitet werden?“, die über die Vielfalt der von uns wahrgenommenen Inhalte entscheidet. Vordergründig ist die Zahl der zur Verfügung stehenden Informationen ins Unerme
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ssliche gestiegen. Dort, wo früher teure und begrenzte Verbreitungswege zum Nadelöhr wurden und nach Spielregeln verlangten, dominiert heute die Grenzenlosigkeit des Netzes mit seinen letztlich unendlichen Ressourcen. Die Intermediäre, die hier den Nutzerinnen und Nutzern bei der Orientierung helfen, beurteilen Relevanz nicht mehr allein nach der gesellschaftlichen Bedeutung der Inhalte, sondern messen Relevanz primär an den spezifischen Interessen des einzelnen Nutzers bzw. der Nutzerin. Dennoch haben die Intermediäre mit ihren Leistungen auch einen mittelbaren Einfluss auf gesellschaftliche Kommunikationsprozesse. Wer über Algorithmen, Empfehlungen oder redaktionelle Kuratierung den Wahrnehmungshaushalt der Bürgerinnen und Bürger mitgestaltet, der trägt daher auch demokratische Verantwortung. Hier geht es nicht um düstere und netzkritische Verschwörungstheorien, sondern um Spielregeln für die strukturbildenden Angebote der öffentlichen Kommunikation, um die Stabilisierung von berechtigten Erwartungen, damit das nötige Vertrauen entstehen kann." (Vorwort, Seite 5-6)
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