"Children growing up in homes with many books get 3 years more schooling than children from bookless homes, independent of their parents’ education, occupation, and class. This is as great an advantage as having university educated rather than unschooled parents, and twice the advantage of having
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a professional rather than an unskilled father. It holds equally in rich nations and in poor; in the past and in the present; under Communism, capitalism, and Apartheid; and most strongly in China. Data are from representative national samples in 27 nations, with over 70,000 cases, analyzed using multi-level linear and probit models with multiple imputation of missing data." (Abstract)
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Publishing and Alternative Licensing Models in Africa (PALM Africa) has been a two-country research programme conducted in South Africa and Uganda, using action research to explore the potential of open access and flexible and open intellectual property licences with the aim of enhancing the impact
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of African publishing.
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"The Pak Institute for Peace Studies (PIPS) organized a series of policy dialogues to seek expert opinion on a PIPS research report titled ‘Understanding Militants’ Print Media in Pakistan and its Impact’. The report maps the militants’ media, its genesis and evolution, and impact on the Pak
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istani state and society. The report also profiles publications of the militants’ media, colloquially known as ‘jihad media’, along with publications of madrassas, sectarian groups and/or associated individuals, and mainstream media groups which support the narrative of the militants’ media. Besides content analysis of the four types of publications, the report also discusses at length the parallel propaganda campaign by militants in the form of leaflets and Shabnamas (night letters). The report finds that the militants’ media is gradually expanding its influence and outreach, having frustrated government efforts to close it down by continuously resurfacing under new names." (Page 1)
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"Leading researchers from different regions of Europe and the United States address five major interrelated themes: 1) how ideological and normative constructs gave way to empirical systematic comparative work in media research; 2) the role of foreign media groups in post-communist regions and the e
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ffects of ownership in terms of impacts on media freedom; 3) the various dimensions of the relationship between mass media and political systems in a comparative perspective; 4) professionalization of journalism in different political cultures—autonomy of journalists, professional norms and practices, political instrumentalization and the commercialization of the media; 5) the role of state intervention in media systems." (Publisher description)
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"Since the 1990s journalism education programs have expanded exponentially around the world, but media freedom has not. Globally comparative, this edited volume assesses journalism education and the challenging environment in which it is delivered in countries with a partly free or not free status a
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ccording to global press freedom. The countries covered include China, Singapore, Cambodia, Palestine, Oman, Egypt, Kenya, Tanzania, Brazil, Russia, Romania, and Croatia. Contributors demonstrate through careful analysis that wealthy nations are able to set the terms of their journalism education while less affluent countries are more open to the influence of foreign NGOs. Although this book evidences the disconnection between what is taught and what can be practiced, it also illustrates the degree to which journalism education can be an agent of change." (Publisher description)
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"The broad purpose of this study undertaken between March and June 2010 was to document the working of two rural community radio (CR) stations (owned and managed by community-based organizations) and two campus-based CR stations that have completed at least one year of broadcasting. We examined the
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origins of the CR stations, the philosophy of the organizations owning and managing the stations, and also indicators such as their notions of community, levels of community listenership/participation, community mobilization practices, financial and social sustainability, appropriate content, capacity-building of marginalized social groups and incorporation of participatory monitoring and evaluation methods in the overall operations of the CR stations." (Objectives, page 2)
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"Das erste deutsch-russische Wörterbuch der Journalistik bietet Praktikern und Wissenschaftlern 30 umfangreiche Fachartikel zu Nachricht, Kommentar, Interview, Reportage und weiteren Genres. Zahlreiche Beispieltexte aus Geschichte und Gegenwart des Journalismus unterstreichen seinen Gebrauchswert f
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ür Ausbildungskurse. Das Wörterbuch ist nicht nur zweisprachig deutsch/russisch gestaltet, das Herausgeberteam aus den Partneruniversitäten Rostov a.D. und Dortmund hat sich auch um eine Annährung der beiden journalistischen Kulturen bemüht. Wo es möglich war, sind die Fachartikel gemeinsam von deutschen und russischen Autor(inn)en verfasst worden." (Verlagsbeschreibung)
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"There is a lack of comparative statistics on media and communication, and this is a fundamental problem. National media statistics are very poor in many countries. But some comparative statistics already available within different international and regional organisations and institutions could be m
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uch more elaborated. Still, compiling comparative media and communication statistics is not an easy task. Despite the challenges, Nordicom has made an attempt – though on a very limited scale – and the results are presented in the current publication. Nordicom has collected and compiled statistics from a large number of sources in order to provide a more comprehensive overview of international media and communication statistics, primarily concerning television and the Internet." (Foreword, page 7)
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"It's evident that not all aspects of Traber's 1978 report adequately appeal to our present concern in Nigeria, but there are certain proposals that are still very much relevant. An example is its proposal to establish a Catholic National Weekly Newspaper and a National Monthly Magazine. This is dea
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r to the heart of Nigerians - even bishops. "They (Nigerians) need to have a central paper sponsored by all with branches in every diocese," Fagun, bishop of Ekiti said. "Nigerian Catholic Newspapers inform, educate and entertain the people." For Adeyemi Peter Oluseyi, one of our respondents, "There is a need to have one national newspaper that will be the active voice of Catholic faith in Nigeria." He said this national newspaper should be made to be "equal. in standard to the popular national dailies like the Punch and Guardian newspapers." Erengwa, a board member of the Catholic Herald in Lagos said, "At the moment I am working on a national monthly Catholic magazine with Bishop Emmanuel Badejo. We are also working with him on a monthly Yoruba Catholic devotional magazine." (Conclusion, page 92)
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"Around the developing world, political leaders face a dilemma: the very information and communication technologies that boost economic fortunes also undermine power structures. Globally, one in ten internet users is a Muslim living in a populous Muslim community. In these countries, young people ar
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e developing their political identities—including a transnational Muslim identity—online. In countries where political parties are illegal, the internet is the only infrastructure for democratic discourse. In others, digital technologies such as mobile phones and the internet have given key actors an information infrastructure that is independent of the state. And in countries with large Muslim communities, mobile phones and the internet are helping civil society build systems of political communication independent of the state and beyond easy manipulation by cultural or religious elites. This book looks at the role that communications technologies play in advancing democratic transitions in Muslim countries. As such, its central question is whether technology holds the potential to substantially enhance democracy. Certainly, no democratic transition has occurred solely because of the internet. But, as the book argues, no democratic transition can occur today without the internet. According to this book, the major (and perhaps only meaningful) forum for civic debate in most Muslim countries today is online. Activists both within diasporic communities and within authoritarian states—including Iran, Saudi Arabia, and Pakistan—are the drivers of this debate, which centers around issues such as the interpretation of Islamic texts, gender roles, and security issues. Drawing upon material from interviews with telecommunications policy makers and activists in Azerbaijan, Egypt, Tajikistan, and Tanzania and a comparative study of seventy-four countries with large Muslim populations, this book demonstrates that these forums have been the means to organize activist movements that have lead to successful democratic insurgencies." (Publisher description)
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"This is a comparative case study of the church-run, Radio Maria and non church-run, Radio Explorers in the Eastern Province of Zambia. The work compares and contrasts the (1) content and management of the stations, (2) the process of selection of programmes and content development, and (3) accessib
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ility. The core purpose of this intense comparison is to contribute to the further understanding of whether faith-based broadcasting or non-faith based stations offer greater community participation and sense of ownership. To achieve this goal, the study employed triangulation. A total of 200 people were interviewed for quantitative data collection. Focus group and in-depth interviews provided invaluable additional information and insights. The outcome of the research indicates that there is no substantive difference between the sense of ownership and management between the two stations. Quantitative findings were high for both. For example, 83 percent of the respondents said Radio Explorers was accessible and 75 percent said the same of Radio Maria. Qualitative responses in focus group discussions and in-depth interviews revealed similar patterns. However, findings indicate that church-run are more participatory than nonchurch run radio stations. These findings indicate that there is essentially no difference in the operations of faith-based radio stations and the non-church stations." (Abstract)
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"En general, la legislación de cada país obedece al grado de intervención del Estado en su economía y su impacto depende de la capacidad de cada sector de enfrentar las condiciones del mercado. Siendo el sector editorial altamente sensible a los cambios en la economía local, regional y mundial,
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el éxito en la implementación de leyes y políticas públicas depende de la integración de sus agentes y de la claridad de objetivos legislativos. Por ello, en términos del Centro Regional para el Fomento del Libro en América Latina y el Caribe (CERLALC), dada la interrelación entre todos los agentes del “ecosistema del libro”, el impacto que genera la implementación de políticas públicas en un agente, afecta, inevitablemente al resto de ellos, alterando el funcionamiento de todo este ecosistema. Considerando lo anterior, CERLALC propuso la “Ley tipo de Guayaquil”15, elaborada por sus especialistas, que constituye una herramienta de promoción sectorial de indiscutible valor. En resumen, esta ley tipo se divide en siete secciones y utiliza temas y elementos comunes a cualquiera de nuestros países: Objetivos generales, Autoridad de aplicación, Fomento de la oferta editorial, Fomento de la demanda editorial y de los hábitos de lectura, Control de ediciones y protección de derechos de autor, Sanciones, Reglamento y vigencia. No se busca proponer que la legislación de los países con sectores editoriales menos desarrollados sea reemplazada por esta “ley tipo”, sí queremos sugerir su revisión y análisis, a fin de corregir las imperfecciones de nuestras leyes y potenciar su desarrollo." (Comentarios finales, página 68)
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"Formal journalism ethics, as laid out in codes of ethics by journalism associations and the like, is part of a wider debate on media ethics that has been triggered in the Middle East due to the advent of global media in the region. This study compares journalism codes from Europe and the Islamic wo
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rld in order to revisit the widespread academic assumption of a deep divide between Western and Oriental philosophies of journalism that has played a role in many debates on political communication in the area. The analysis shows that there is a broad intercultural consensus that standards of truth and objectivity should be central values of journalism. Norms protecting the private sphere are, in fact, more pronounced in countries of the Near and Middle East, North Africa, and in the majority of Muslim states in Asia than is generally the case in Europe, although the weighing of privacy protection against the public's right to information is today a component of most journalistic codes of behavior in Islamic countries. Obvious differences between the West and many Islamic countries are to be found in the status accorded to freedom of expression. Although ideas of freedom have entered formal media ethics in the Middle East and the Islamic world, only a minority of documents limit the interference into freedom to cases where other fundamental rights (e.g., privacy) are touched, whereas the majority would have journalists accept political, national, religious, or cultural boundaries to their work. Despite existing differences between Western and Middle Eastern/Islamic journalism ethics and in contrast to the overall neoconservative (Islamist) trends in societal norms, formal journalism ethics has been a sphere of growing universalization throughout the last decades." (Abstract)
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"In the great debate about ‘cultural imperialism’ in the 1970s and 1980s, the advertising industry was singled out as a key mechanism by which the economies and societies of the ‘Third World’ countries were seen to be dominated by the rich countries of North America and Europe. Yet, relative
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to critical research on the other international communication industries also held to exert such dominance, notably television and news, the advertising industry as such has since been rather neglected. The research presented in this article is based on material gathered by a collaborative team of researchers reporting on the recent state of play within the constellation of interests which make up the advertising industry in Brazil, Mexico, Argentina and Chile. The article thus provides a detailed empirical account of the modes in which the advertising industry now binds these leading nations of Latin America into both economic and cultural globalization." (Abstract)
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