"Established in 1957, the International Association for Media and Communication Research (IAMCR) has facilitated international exchanges and research collaborations among academics, journalists, and other practitioners, addressing media and communication problems and influencing theory and practice
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through research and participation in global, regional, national, and local debate. The chapters focus on prominent areas of research that have attracted the interest of scholars; political struggles of a membership engaged in research across East and West, global North and global South divides; selected country and regional contributions to the association; and reflections on significant scholarly and institution-building contributions to the association by George Gerbner, James Halloran Stuart Hall, Herbert I. Schiller, and Dallas W. Smythe. Readers will find a history of an academic professional organisation and insights into the controversies, conflicts, failings, and achievements of IAMCR members who developed the field of media and communication research and journalism practice." (Publisher description)
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"The book contains 85 chapters written by persons who have been on those frontlines of communication and development [...] A variety of case studies appear in the book. For example, Kriss Barker and Fatou Jah – in a chapter titled “Entertainment-Education in Radio: Three Case Studies from Africa
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” – explore in detail projects in Nigeria, Burundi and Burkina Faso that used a communication intervention approach advanced by the Population Media Center. Other chapters in the Handbook take the reader to Spain, Kenya, South Africa, Kazakhstan, and beyond. Song Shi examines “ICTs and Modernization in China,” revealing that assumptions and theories of the modernization paradigm have significantly influenced the policies and projects on ICT4D in contemporary China. And, Song Shi writes, discussion on the potential of other approaches in ICT4D in China has also emerged among scholars. Hina Ayaz discusses the “Multiplicity Approach in Participatory Communication” in Pakistan – wherein the country adopted the Global Polio Eradication Initiative – only to run into negative perceptions and banning of polio vaccinations. However, a shift to a more successful approach, grounded in UNICEF’s social mobilization and communityinvolvement communication strategy, brought significant success. While many of the Handbook case studies incorporate participation as a significant development factor, they also address a wide range of social and political issues including, for example, civic engagement, sexual harassment, empowerment, and community voices. In addition to an abundance of case studies from around the world, the Handbook delves into various research methods that are being used to understand and design communication for development and social change interventions [...] Handbook editor Jan Servaes' own chapter (with Rico Lie), “Key Concepts, Disciplines, and Fields in Communication for Development and Social Change ” identifies five clusters of concepts and practices that are evident in the field today and which determine the activities and approaches in communication for sustainable development and social change interventions: The clusters are (1) a normative cluster of concepts; (2) a cluster of concepts that sets an important context for communication activities for development; (3) a cluster of strategic and methodological concepts; (4) a cluster of concepts that relate to methods, techniques, and tools; and (5) a cluster of concepts that addresses the practices of advocacy, (participatory) monitoring and evaluation, and impact assessment. The authors extend their discussion into three subdivisions: (1) health communication, (2) agricultural extension and rural communication, and (3) environmental communication (including climate change communication). This leads the reader into issues related to (1) right to communicate; (2) education and learning; (3) innovation, science, and technology; (4) natural resource management; (5) food security; (6) poverty reduction; (7) peace and conflict; (8) children and youth, women, and senior citizens; and (9) tourism. Some of the forerunners of development communication have not been forgotten. In “Daniel Lerner and the Origins of Development Communication”, Hemant Shah links Lerner’s 1958 book Passing of Traditional Society to today’s modernization and faith in technology to solve social problems. Also contributing to the foundation of this field is Paulo Freire who contributed much to idea that participation should be a vital part of the development dialogue. Ana Fernández-Aballí Altamirano’s chapter on "The Importance of Paulo Freire to Communication for Development and Social Change" highlights his main work Pedagogy of the Oppressed as a "before-and-after" in the fields of education, research, and communication, initially in Latin America and later in both North and South. Particularly in the case of development communication and communication for social change, the author stresses, Freire’s work had a definitive impact ..." (Review by Royal Donald Colle, Journal of Development Communication, vol. 30 (2), page 92-94)
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"The summarised reports in this chapter show that the scope of safety and sacrifice is far greater than each actor alone or their sum can account for. Although the discussion did not offer an investigation into the USA and other mature democracies, it is clear from the survey in the European territo
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ry that safe havens are few and in between, and that even in stable democracies the conditions for journalism and free expression remain vulnerable and can deteriorate surprisingly fast." (Abstract)
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"To support joint efforts to protect journalism, there is a growing need for research-based knowledge. Acknowledging this need, the aim of this publication is to highlight and fuel journalist safety as a field of research, to encourage worldwide participation, as well as to inspire further dialogues
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and new research initiatives. The contributions represent diverse perspectives on both empirical and theoretical research and offer many quantitatively and qualitatively informed insights. The articles demonstrate that a new important interdisciplinary research field is in fact emerging, and that the fundamental issue remains identical: Violence and threats against journalists constitute an attack on freedom of expression." (Back cover)
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"Is journalism under threat? The image of journalists, as helmeted war correspondents protected by bullet-proof vests and armed only with cameras and microphones, springs to mind. Physical threats are only the most visible dangers, however. Journalists and journalism itself are facing other threats
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such as censorship, political and economic pressure, intimidation, job insecurity and attacks on the protection of journalists’ sources. Social media and digital photography mean that anyone can now publish information, which is also upsetting the ethics of journalism. How can these threats be tackled? What is the role of the Council of Europe, the European Court of Human Rights and national governments in protecting journalists and freedom of expression? In this book, 10 experts from different backgrounds analyse the situation from various angles. At a time when high-quality, independent journalism is more necessary than ever – and yet when the profession is facing many different challenges – they explore the issues surrounding the role of journalism in democratic societies." (Publisher description)
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"The 59 chapters in this volume, written by leading researchers from around the world, provide scholars and students with an engaging and authoritative survey of current thinking in media and gender research. The Companion includes the following features: With each chapter addressing a distinct, con
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crete set of issues, the volume includes research from around the world to engage readers in a broad array of global and transnational issues and intersectional perspectives. Authors address a series of important questions that have consequences for current and future thinking in the field, including postfeminism, sexual violence, masculinity, media industries, queer identities, video games, digital policy, media activism, sexualization, docusoaps, teen drama, cosmetic surgery, media Islamophobia, sport, telenovelas, news audiences, pornography, and social and mobile media." (Back cover)
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"This article investigates the flow of communication policy principles across the supranational, international and national levels, through the lens of policy transfer. Policy transfer is a new concept for the field of media and communication studies. The article utilizes and expands on the concept
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to study the case of digital policy flows between leading regional powers, the EU and USA and MERCOSUR. The article argues that EU and US policy priorities are reflected in the Latin American policy framework, which shifts from a focus on audiovisual and culture-centred objectives to the digital economy paradigm. MERCOSUR then functions as a policy broker between 'outside' interests and those of its member states through the influence of international key players whose interests clash with those of regional goals." (Abstract)
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"Featuring specially commissioned chapters from experts in the field of media and communications law, this book provides an authoritative survey of media law from a comparative perspective. The handbook does not simply offer a synopsis of the state of affairs in media law jurisprudence, rather it pr
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ovides a better understanding of the forces that generate media rules, norms, and standards against the background of major transformations in the way information is mediated as a result of democratization, economic development, cultural change, globalization and technological innovation." (Publisher description)
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"Bringing together the perspectives of more than 40 internationally acclaimed authors, The Handbook of Global Media Research explores competing methodologies in the dynamic field of transnational media and communications, providing valuable insight into research practice in a globalized media landsc
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ape; provides a framework for the critical debate of comparative media research; posits transnational media research as reflective of advanced globalization processes, and explores the role and responsibility this bestows it with; articulates the key themes and competing methodological approaches in a dynamic and developing field; showcases the perspectives and ideas of 30 leading internationally acclaimed scholars; offers a platform for the discussion of crucial issues from a variety of theoretical, methodical and practical viewpoints." (Publisher description)
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