"Underperformance of the Arabic book translation industry is attributable to (among other factors) severe coordination failures. This is a state of affairs in which the inability of the different agents (translators, book publishers, suppliers, customers, and supporting organizations, state, and so
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forth) to coordinate their behavior (choices) leads to suboptimal outcomes. Since the economic performance of the translation industry often involves complementary investments whose return depends on other investments being made by other agents, coordination is crucial. Obviously, neither market forces nor the state have undertaken this coordination activity sufficiently. The Arabic book translation industry seems to suffer from both market failure and government failure. In light of these results the Arabic book translation industry offers great economic potential that should be mobilized systematically in the future. This paper discusses how this can be achieved, based on a well-designed and implemented process of upgrading and innovation in companies, industries, and clusters related to translation activities. Public policy, properly understood and adequately implemented, can play an important role in this process." (Summary, page 1)
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"Since September 11, 2001, and the wars in Afghanistan and Iraq, many television viewers in the United States have become familiar with Al Jazeera as offering an alternative take on events from that presented by mainstream U.S. media, as well as disseminating anti-American invective. Westerners have
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tended toward simplistic views of Arab newspapers, radio, and television, assuming that they are all under government control and that freedom of press is non-existent. William A. Rugh, a long time observer of the Arab mass media, offers a more nuanced picture of the Arab press as it relates to the political situation in the Arab world today. Although governmental influence over the media is stronger in the Middle East than in Europe or the United States, Rugh argues that there is more diversity in the Arab media than most people in the West realize. In reality, the Arab media are coming to reflect the diversity and wide range of opinions of those within the Arab world itself. In particular, the advent of privately owned Arab satellite television in the 1990s has led to significant liberalization of the media throughout the region. Rugh concludes that a democracy of ideas and voices is slowly growing in the Arab world, and he remains guardedly optimistic about the positive role the Arab media can play in processes of democratization and nation-building." (Publisher description)
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"In these two volumes, readers will find comparative, in-depth essays on the press systems of 232 countries and/or territories. World Press Encyclopedia (WPE) is unique and valuable to users because, in addition to essays on each country’s press system, WPE also contains custommade graphs and stat
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istical tables, as well as regional maps, useful appendices, and an extensive index. This comprehensive, authoritative source of information allows for easy comparison between essays with a standard format or set of “rubrics” used whenever possible (see section titled “Essay Components”). Each essay also features basic data information—such as official country name, literacy rate, language(s), and number of daily newspapers—clearly marked with headings at the beginning of each entry. Additionally, WPE’s contributors include scholars, professionals, and educators from across the United States and around the world; each essay has a byline. Although this is the second edition, WPE has been completely reconceptualized and 100 percent revised from the first edition, which was published in 1982." (Introduction)
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