"El inicio del siglo XXI ha venido marcado por los debates que, en el plano internacional, están sometiendo a revisión la comunicación para el desarrollo con el fin de proponer otras alternativas como comunicación para el cambio social o comunicación para el empoderamiento ciudadano y ecosocial
...
. El debate conceptual que tiene lugar está lejos de resolverse con una respuesta fácil e inmediata, en la medida en que todos los términos que entran en escena requieren de un trabajo genealógico que permita identificar las tensiones, los actores sociales y las perspectivas de investigación en conflicto." (Editorial)
more
"Citizen journalism has become a prominent term referring to a variety of newsgathering and reporting practices conducted via a range of new digital technologies. The scholarly literature on citizen journalism, however, has tended to concentrate on its significance for journalism theory and practice
...
while comparatively neglecting underlying questions about the theories of citizenship utilized within citizen journalism. This article examines the range of theories of citizenship at work in citizen journalism, highlighting problems in trying to locate citizen journalism practices and practitioners within definitional debates around citizenship. It explores how some theories construct citizen journalism as a tool for citizenship whilst others construct it as constituting a form of citizenship in its own right. The article identifies a range of problems within these theories in terms of their capacity to understand the relationship between citizen journalism and citizenship. It argues that fully understanding and situating citizen journalism requires moving beyond the journalism-centered focus which dominates the literature towards a consideration of citizen journalism that incorporates theories and practices of citizenship alongside those of journalism." (Abstract)
more
"L'article examine en particulier la relation entre les radios dites communautaires et la gouvernance locale. Se fondant sur l'exemple du Sénégal, elle montre comment la décentralisation politique et administrative d'une part et l'émergence des radios locales d'autre part ont été deux dynamiqu
...
es concomitantes et intimement liées. Elle souligne combien certaines radios peuvent effectivement contribuer à améliorer la gestion de la chose publique au niveau local, mais relève aussi le caractère relativement isolé de ces bonnes pratiques." (Introduction, page 8)
more
"Este artigo é o relato de um exercício realizado para o desenvolvimento de categorias de análise do uso de mídias por coletivos e movimentos sociais no Brasil. Parte-se do pressuposto que os conceitos teóricos do campo da comunicação popular, alternativa e comunitária, construídos principa
...
lmente entre as décadas de 1960 e 1990, vêm sendo desafiados por práticas novas ou adaptadas, influenciadas, entre outros elementos, pela introdução de recursos digitais. A pergunta que se faz é como esse fenômeno interfere no desenvolvimento de práticas midiáticas levadas a cabo por esses coletivos, especialmente no que se refere ao potencial de participação das comunidades a elas associadas. O exercício tomou como base os relatos de experiências apresentados durante o 8º Mutirão Brasileiro de Comunicação (MBC), realizado em Natal (RN), no final de outubro de 2013. Além de testar o modelo de análise, os resultados apresentam um quadro de tendências sobre o uso de mídias, sobretudo por coletivos católicos no Brasil. A primeira seção do artigo explica a fundamentação das categorias de análise. A segunda, descreve a amostra utilizada. Na seção final, discutem-se os resultados obtidos, incluindo as tendências observadas nos casos analisados e os limites da proposta metodológica." (Resumo)
more
"The conference called the 'Global Media Forum: The role of media in realizing the future we want for all' was hosted by the Government of Indonesia in 2014 [...] The event brought together journalists, media experts and young communicators from South East Asia and around the world, as a contributio
...
n to the ongoing international debate about the importance of media and information and communication technologies for peace and sustainable development. The goal was to advance participants’ understanding of how a free, pluralistic and independent media can contribute. This was in the context of efforts to have media issues being recognised in the UN debates about the post-2015 Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs). The output of the Global Media Forum was called the Bali Road Map, a key document that is included at the end of this book." (Introduction, page 6)
more
"From Tehran to Tahrir Square to Gezi Park-to mention only three key sites of protest made prominent in 2013-social media has been lauded as one of the key factors enabling popular uprisings and social movements. This has provided further hype for new or digital media, which were already being toute
...
d as a tool for social change, liberation, and the representation of marginalized or oppressed voices. In this essay, I argue not against new media per se but against technological determinism and fetishism. I argue that the transformative or repressive potential of different media changes dramatically across different sites of research and depends on the sociopolitical realities of the region being studied, including factors such as censorship, access, and infrastructure. Drawing on my research in Afghanistan, Iran, and Tajikistan, among other neighboring countries, I show the striking differences in the degree of effectiveness and ineffectiveness of different media in bringing about social change in those respective countries as well as regionally. Comparatively speaking, I focus on television and social media's catalytic role in stirring popular uprisings and the subsequent backlash and attack on those media. I also examine the gendered dimensions and dangers of media use and activism. In the case of Afghanistan, I consider the impact of international and transnational funding of media and human rights efforts. I conclude that in order for international interventions into local social movements to succeed, international experts in development, human rights, and media must take the lead from local residents and contexts, technologically and culturally, and work collaboratively with them." (Abstract)
more
"Leading media scholars from nine Asian nations focus on three main questions: How frequently do Asians use social media to access and discuss political information? Does the use of social media increase political participation? What political, social and cultural factors influence the impact of soc
...
ial media on political engagement in each nation? To answer these questions, contributors first analyze the current state of social media in their nations and then present the findings of a cross-national survey on social media use that was conducted with over 3,500 Asian respondents. By employing a comparative approach, they analyze how social media function and interact with the cultural and political systems in each country - and how they might affect political engagement among individual citizens." (Back cover)
more
"In the early 1990s, Ethiopia’s ruling party, the Ethiopian People’s Revolutionary Democratic Front (EPRDF), drafted one of Africa’s most ambitious constitutions, allowing for ethnic federalism, decentralization and democratic reforms. The constitution has been highly controversial and many of
...
its aspirations remain unrealized. This article explores how the EPRDF sought to use the media to explain and encourage acceptance of the constitution. It offers a framework for analysis that is relevant for countries beyond Ethiopia by examining: the role of media policies in providing domestic and international legitimacy for constitutions; the ways in which media can provide a space for non-violent political conflict or negotiation, where elites can navigate political struggles and debate ideology; and the use of media to implement the constitution’s most ambitious goals." (Abstract)
more
"The study will begin by defining and classifying social media and will go on to explain the reach and role of these media in developing contexts, in particular when used for political communication, interaction and decision-making processes. In a second chapter, risks and benefits of social media a
...
nd political participation in developing contexts will be reviewed. The heart of the study will be the third chapter, where 10 case studies will demonstrate the bandwidth of use of social media for political participation. The case studies offer insight into different forms of citizen to government and government to citizen interaction using different types of social media. They have been authored by people directly involved as creators or users of the projects featured from different countries in Asia, Latin America and Africa. The study will provide an assessment on the impact social media can have on the work of German development cooperation in the area of good governance and conclude with a set of recommendations how to incorporate social media into their good governance programmes." (Introduction, page 4)
more
"This research presents a picture of a public in Burma that, to varying degrees, lacks knowledge, confidence, motivation and opportunity to participate in governance processes and make their voices heard. However, the study provides objective evidence that a relationship exists between people’s me
...
dia access and their level of citizen engagement. Access to public service oriented media increases the likelihood of being formally engaged rather than disengaged. Even when accounting for those characteristics that can act as barriers for the individual to engage in governance processes – being female, being poor and living in rural areas – the effect of media on engagement is significant." (Key findings)
more
"Es lässt sich also feststellen, dass der Dokumentarfilm der Demokratie insofern zuträglich ist, da er seinen Schwerpunkt auf der Gewährleistung der Validierungs-, Orientierungs-, Informations-, Bildungs- und Sozialisationsfunktion hat, während das citizen journalism footage sich insbesondere da
...
durch auszeichnet, dass es der Beobachter-, Informations-, Artikulations- und Kritik- und Kontrollfunktion verstärkt gerecht wird. Indem also das citizen journalism footage durch professionelle Instanzen in eine den gängigen Konventionen entsprechenende Form des etablierten Dokumentarfilms gebracht wird, können so die demokratieförderlichen Attribute ,alter‘ und ,neuer‘ Medien ergänzend kombiniert werden." (Conclusio, Seite 75-76)
more
"Nas próximas páginas queremos dar uma olhada ampla sobre a prática e os desafios da radiodifusão comunitária no Brasil e em outros países. Convidamos uma turma diversa de 11 autoras e autores, entre elas e eles jornalistas, radialistas, acadêmicos e advogadas. As suas abordagens são origina
...
is, convidam-nos para conhecer a radiodifusão comunitária de perto de um ângulo tanto crítico como solidário. São expostos nos textos como organizações internacionais e nacionais influenciam sobre o acesso e o uso do espectro eletromagnético, nos contam dos problemas cotidianos das emissoras independentes no Brasil, México e nos Estados Unidos para conseguir uma outorga. E perguntam por que as rádios comunitárias reproduzem a falta de interesse no esporte feminino, não conseguem romper por completo com tendências homofóbicas da imprensa e não defendem com maior vigor o acesso de migrantes aos ondas eletromagnéticos." (Página 4)
more
"This dissertation explores the role of community media in democratic civil society governance through an examination of participatory communications under socialist administrations in Latin America, with a primary focus on the Bolivarian government of Venezuela. In so doing, it seeks to establish a
...
theoretical framework that will facilitate publicly supported democratic media systems capable of displacing hegemonic commercial and state models. One major axis of investigation is the utility of public sphere theory for the structuration of participatory media institutions that function within a system of civil society governance." (Abstract)
more
"This article uses interdisciplinary insights and a critical review of relevant literature to identify research opportunities that stand to advance mobile political communication theory. Contributions and limitations of studies focused on ICTs and political participation are reviewed and discussed.
...
Analysis of studies focused on the political participation outcomes of mobile media use is synthesized with theory from user-focused mobile communication literature to highlight the unique qualities that distinguish mobile media and the implications of those distinguishing features for studying political participation. Recommendations are made for research directions that would further investigate the association of mobile media's distinctive features with online and offline forms of political participation. This analysis indicates opportunities for scholars to unpack mobile media's unique features in ways that potentially redefine political participation, and, accordingly, further the development of research questions and theories that investigate the relationship of mobile media and political participation. It is concluded that research is needed that explains mobile media use in finer detail, accounts for shifting conceptualizations of political participation, and contributes to the development of cross-cultural comparative frameworks." (Abstract)
more