"Oft setzen wichtige Veränderungen in so genannten Randbereichen, also außerhalb der Mainstream-Medien, ein und werden schon deshalb nicht genügend wahrgenommen. Eine Schlussfolgerung, die ich aus meiner Arbeit ziehe, ist, dass der von ›Rändern‹ ausgehenden Dynamik, gerade auch in der Entwic
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klung multilingualer Formate, erhöhte Aufmerksamkeit gebührt. Solche Dyna miken sind nicht zuletzt außerhalb der westlichen Welt zu beobachten, die in Theoriebildung und Methoden der Kommunikationsforschung noch zu oft als verbindlicher Maßstab herangezogen wird. Aus Sicht der Zentren kann beispielsweise, was auf dem informellen Sektor passiert, ebenso unterschätzt werden wie der (sprachenpolitische) Impakt, den internationale Dienste wie BBC, Voice of America oder Radio France Internationale in verschiedenen ›lokalen‹ Kontexten rund um die Welt besitzen. Meine Arbeit versteht sich als Aufforderung, sich gerade solcher blinder Flecken vermehrt wissenschaftlich anzunehmen. Aus den in diesem Buch bearbeiteten Beispielen wird erkennbar, dass eine gewisse Tendenz zu einer größeren Sichtbarkeit gesellschaftlicher Mehrsprachigkeit in Medien besteht. Die Entwicklung multilingualer Formate ist zwar für den Moment v. a. in solchen Situationen zu beobachten, wo bewusste Sprachenpolitik im Medienbereich betrieben wird. Sie kommt aber auch in wenig reglementierten Medienbereichen zum Vorschein und kann von dort langsam in den Mainstream vordringen." (Schlussfolgerungen und Ausblick, Seite 279-280)
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"Radio has long been seen as an important tool in the social, economic and political mobilization of developing countries. There have been volumes (Fardon & Furniss; Head Manoff; Wedell; Hyden, Leslie & Ogundimu) written about social development and the utility of radio in addition to how radio migh
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t be used in post-conflict and nation building scenarios. However, there has been little, if any, examination of a more holistic approach of how both these bodies of work might be melded together providing some insight into how media, and more specifically radio, might be used as a peacebuilder. This paper seeks to draw elements from both social development and conflict resolution theories, bringing them together to examine how radio could be used in post-conflict and conflict resolution situations. An examination of Radio Okapi in the Democratic Republic of Congo (DRC; former Zaire) will serve as a case study of the role radio can play as a post-conflict or peace-building tool." (Introduction)
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"Charts the planning and implementation of a digital publishing programme over a three-year period at the Human Sciences Research Council, a large South African social science research body. The case study is contextualised in the need to overcome the digital divide to give African scholars a real v
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oice in the global community. It deals with the challenges faced by African scholarly publishers and organizations wanting to use digital media to disseminate their research findings: the importance of strategic choices, finding the right mix of technologies, managing the technical and organizational process of getting a digital publishing programme up and running, and putting effective promotional and distribution strategies in place to ensure the success of a digital publishing programme. The case study also examines how applicable its findings are to other countries in Africa and, in particular, explores the limitations of digital dissemination in a South African context and identifies the ways in which a multi-pronged approach, using digital, print, e-mail and fax, can most effectively reach a wider market. It concludes that such a multi-pronged approach can be an effective way of ensuring the international reach of Africa scholarship." (Hans M. Zell, Publishing, Books & Reading in Sub-Saharan Africa, 3d ed. 2008, nr. 2069)
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"This collection of eighteen essays of uneven richness underserved by an overly thin two-page introduction brings together some of the best known names in Development Communication in an attempt to understand African aspirations, experiences, challenges and the place of communication in development.
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Coming at this stage in a debate that has generated much conventional and critical scholarship, one would have expected the editors to aim at much more than simply providing space for contributors to offer "a fillip and not necessarily a panacea for development" (Page x). The "desirable and useful" (Page x) approaches the book explores would certainly have served their purpose better, within a framework of the need to critically rethink conventional scholarly assumptions about communication and development, especially in relation to Africa [...] Nonetheless, a good number of the contributions competently discuss competing perspectives on development communication (e.g. Pye, Servaes, Jacobson), drawing attention to how practices on and in Africa have tended to impair or enhance the participatory and emancipatory potential of development communication. Some focus closely on communication technologies and their applications (e.g., de Beer, Melkote and Steeves, Eribo), advocating strategies and approaches informed by varying degrees of faith in the capacity of modern information and communication technologies (ICTs) to transform individuals and societies in the name of development. Most of the book makes a strong, even if not always substantiated or negotiated, case for the importance of "indigenous African cultures," if media and communication practices are to adequately serve and service African thirsts for development (Asante, Mazrui and Okigbo, Okigbo, Hachten, Stevenson, Amienyi, Akhahenda, Moemeka, Singhal et al., Okumu, Nganje and Blake). A conscious effort to engage similar debates in anthropology and cultural studies for example, could have yielded further insights." (https://www.h-net.org/reviews/showrev.php?id=10843)
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"Rural African women’s disadvantaged position in relation to accessing developmental information and participating in education is well-known. It has been posited that radio broadcasting is potentially a tool which could help overcome some of their disadvantages. Through an empirical case-study of
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radio broadcasting in Eritrea, the research examines the extent to which radio is fulfilling this potential educational and developmental role in relation to rural women. The practical and socio-cultural factors influencing the production of educational and developmental programmes by broadcasters are explored as well as the meaning and attraction that such programmes hold for listeners. For rural women, a model is proposed, based on the research results, which shows the determinants of interest in and uptake of educational and developmental radio. It identifies the obstacles to hearing and understanding the radio, as well as four important factors, namely, the need to feel the relevance of radio content, to like it, to have a sufficiently positive self-image in relation to radio listening, and to believe it. For broadcasters, a second model is proposed, showing a range of factors which are mostly negatively influencing the production of programmes for rural women in Eritrea. These are related mainly to broadcasters’ self-images, their organisational constraints, their working ethos, and the ideological and political factors governing the way broadcasting is planned and structured." (Abstract)
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"The inception of the research project came from the realization of the tremendous potential of the Sabido Method Entertainment Education Dramas. The Sabido method dramas have been tried out and proven to have a remarkable success in many countries in promoting pro social issues. The thesis thus too
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k the two Sabido Method Entertainment-Education Serial Radio Dramas, the Amharic Yeken Kignit and the Afan Oromo Dhimbiba dramas as practical examples and examined the contribution of the dramas to the HIV/AIDS prevention endeavors in the Ethiopian context." (Abstract)
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"Another special issue of Bookbird with articles on various aspects of children’s literature and writing for children in Africa, some of which are individually abstracted in this section." (Hans M. Zell, Publishing, Books & Reading in Sub-Saharan Africa, 3d ed. 2008, nr. 1554)
"A comprehensive review of the new Kenya 2001 Copyright Act, which was passed by the Kenyan Parliament, after several rounds of consultations between the government and the different stakeholders and industry players. It came into force in February 2003 and repealed the 1966 Copyright Act. The most
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distinctive new features of the new Copyright Act include the introduction of an anti-piracy security device; the registration and supervision of collective management societies in Kenya; the appointment of public prosecutors and inspectors who deal with copyright cases and help the enforcement of the rights protected under the Act; the provision of enhanced criminal sanctions; and the protection of rights management systems and technological protection measures. The author welcomes the 2001 Copyright Act as a step in the right direction, yet “the success of the new law can only be seen if it is effectively enforced; a good law without the proper enforcement is of no use to those it seeks to protect. Along with the new law, Kenya needs to have strong mechanisms to fight piracy, a well educated population on matters of copyright and related rights, strong and efficient collective management societies, and a functional administrative infrastructure." (Hans M. Zell, Publishing, Books & Reading in Sub-Saharan Africa, 3d ed. 2008, nr. 1797)
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"This study examines the empowerment effects of film and video among participants of various nonformal education programmes. It provides recommendations for changes in the legal system as well as in the use of video in development co-operation." (Cat. IKO 2004)