"This edited collection explores the role of digital inclusion in the welfare and social inclusion of vulnerable people. With interdisciplinary contributors from six continents, working in diverse fields such as digital media studies, social computing, community informatics and cultural studies, the
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collection brings together theoretical and applied research evidence on three vulnerable population categories: ethnic minorities, older people and people with disabilities. Each section is accompanied by a critical commentary on the research insights presented, from third sector community and policy experts. The collection explores whether vulnerable populations face similar experiences and challenges in relation to their digital inclusion status, stressing the central presence of intersectionality, and arguing for the inclusion of the age, ethnicity/immigration status and disability aspects of one's identity. At the same time, it argues for multi-directional action that tackles intersectional discrimination in the digital realm on behalf of more than one single population category or group. Challenging popular discourse on the overcoming of digital inequalities in the West, this essential book contends that accounts of non-western contexts do not focus on the parameter of vulnerability or on particular population groups." (Publisher description)
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"This research brings together scholarship across the Americas and Caribbean to examine digital inclusion initiatives in the following countries: Uruguay, Chile, Peru, Brazil, Mexico, Cuba, Jamaica, the United States, and Canada. Across the cases, several themes emerge that offer important indicator
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s for future digital inclusion initiatives. First, public policy can effectively reduce access gaps when it addresses the trifecta of network, device, and skill provision. Second, this triple-crown of public policy is highly effective for longitudinal effect when implemented early via educational institutions. Third, rural-urban digital inequality is resistant to change such that rural populations benefit less from policy initiatives than their urban counterparts. Fourth, digital inclusion in rural areas and among marginalized populations is most effective when cocreated with communities to ensure community investment, participation, and control. Fifth, stay-at-home orders during the COVID-19 pandemic are rapidly increasing our dependence on digital technologies, making digital inclusion more important than ever for education and rural communities. We therefore close the article with discussion of how the COVID-19 pandemic is amplifying digital disadvantage and exclusion across the Americas, the Caribbean, and the globe. (Abstract)
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"There is a large body of research that has examined digital inequities, inequalities, and divides—i.e., those countries, communities, and individuals digitally left behind or disadvantaged. Whereas we know quite a lot about what is lacking and for whom, there is less focus on what works to allevi
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ate these inequalities and divides in a variety of cultural contexts. This thematic issue brings together scholarship on digital inclusion initiatives and research from over 20 countries and in the context of numerous aspects, including different types of initiatives as well as different types of target audiences for these initiatives. Each article provides unique insights into what does and does not work in various communities, making recommendations on what could be done to improve the examined initiatives. We hope that the breadth and depth of articles presented here will be useful not just for academic audiences seeking to broaden their understanding of digital inclusion and ‘what can be done’ rather than focusing on ‘what is amiss,’ but also for policymakers and digital inclusion initiatives who are eager to expand and advance their digital inclusion work within their communities." (Abstract, page 132)
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"Images and visual artefacts shape international events and our understanding of them. Photographs, film and television influence how we view and approach phenomena as diverse as war, diplomacy, financial crises and election campaigns. Other visual fields, from art and cartoons to maps, monuments an
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d videogames, frame how politics is perceived and enacted. Drones, satellites and surveillance cameras watch us around the clock and deliver images that are then put to political use. Add to this that new technologies now allow for a rapid distribution of still and moving images around the world. Digital media platforms, such as Twitter, YouTube, Facebook and Instagram, play an important role across the political spectrum, from terrorist recruitment drives to social justice campaigns. This book offers the first comprehensive engagement with visual global politics. Written by leading experts in numerous scholarly disciplines and presented in accessible and engaging language, Visual Global Politics is a one-stop source for students, scholars and practitioners interested in understanding the crucial and persistent role of images in today’s world." (Publisher description)
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"In this moment of unprecedented humanitarian crises, the representations of global disasters are increasingly common media themes around the world. The Routledge Companion to Media and Humanitarian Action explores the interconnections between media, old and new, and the humanitarian challenges that
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have come to define the twenty-first century. Contributors, including media professionals and experts in humanitarian affairs, grapple with what kinds of media language, discourse, terms, and campaigns can offer enough context and background knowledge to nurture informed global citizens. Case studies of media practices, content analysis and evaluation of media coverage, and representations of humanitarian emergencies and affairs offer further insight into the ways in which strategic communications are designed and implemented in field of humanitarian action." (Publisher description)
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