"The essays collected here capture the richness of current discourse about democracy and cyberspace. Some contributors offer front-line perspectives on the impact of emerging technologies on politics, journalism, and civic experience. What happens, for example, when we increase access to information
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or expand the arena of free speech? Other contributors place our shifting understanding of citizenship in historical context, suggesting that notions of cyber-democracy and online community must grow out of older models of civic life. Still others consider the global flow of information and test our American conceptions of cyber-democracy against developments in other parts of the world. How, for example, do new media operate in Castro's Cuba, in post-apartheid South Africa, and in the context of multicultural debates on the Pacific Rim? For some contributors, the new technologies endanger our political culture; for others, they promise civic renewal." (Publisher description)
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"Presents case studies from 12 countries and lists 69 organisations working with media as conflict prevention and/or peacebuilding tool." (commbox)
"La mission a visité 18 radios communautaires dans la période prévue. Elle s'est focalisée sur une sélection de radios représentatives des différents types de régions (à l'exception de la région de Diffa, trop éloignée géographiquement pour que la mission puisse s'y rendre), de géograp
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hie, de climats, d’environnements (villes et petits villages) du Niger. Au moins une radio par bailleur a été visitée. De plus, la mission a veillé à rencontrer des radios créées au début du projet Ruranet et d'autres nées récemment. Cet échantillonnage avait pour objectif d'arriver à des conclusions applicables à l'ensemble des 66 radios communautaires du pays. La mission a trouvé la plupart des radios dans une situation 'fragile', en matière de personnel et d'équipements. Les résultats et l'impact du projet Ruranet, bien qu'ils soient positifs, sont donc 'fragiles' aussi. Parmi les premiers impacts, le personnel des radios ainsi que certains de leurs auditeurs ont remarqué que la station a offert un moyen de s'informer, et de s'exprimer, de communiquer. Un résultat indéniable est que « les gens du village commencent à se connaître, et à connaître les gens des autres villages », selon un des auditeurs à Goudel. Cet impact a beaucoup renforcé la culture de la paix, surtout concernant les conflits 'traditionnels' entre éleveurs et agriculteurs. Une fois devant le micro, et lorsque les arguments des deux parties sont exposés, les gens arrivent à se comprendre, et mê me à aboutir à des accords. Ces remarques ont été entendues non seulement à Radio Goudel et Bankilaré, mais aussi dans des villes plus éloignées comme Abalak, Tamaya, Dolé, Gagama, Sassoumbroum, Tchirozérine." (Conclusions et recommendations)
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"Small Islands Voice focuses on small island developing states and islands with other affiliations in the Caribbean, Indian Ocean and Pacific regions. This initiative, started in 2002, aims to combine new information and communication technologies with print, radio, television and other media, in or
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der to promote the effective participation of the general public in sustainable island development and in the 2004 review of the Small Island Developing States (SIDS) Programme of Action and its follow-up. Six islands played an active role in Small Islands Voice in 2002: St Kitts and Nevis, St Vincent and the Grenadines, San Andres Archipelago in the Caribbean; Seychelles in the Indian Ocean; Cook Islands and Palau in the Pacific. Activities in the islands include opinion surveys, meetings and workshops, debates, radio talk shows, interactive displays, and newsletters. Inter-regional activities include two internet-based discussion fora, one for the general public and one for youth, inter-regional conference calls, and an inter-regional workshop held in Palau in November 2002. The internet is being used to link the regions together. An internet-based forum was developed to connect the general public in the three regions in a discussion on key issues in the environment-development arena. This internet-based forum links up with local newspapers so the debate can reach a wider audience; and the potential exists to further extend the reach of this forum using community radio and television. A similar forum focusing on secondary school students is proving successful and has potential as a distance learning tool. Limited and costly internet access in small islands is a serious constraint to such initiatives; however, the islands involved are developing innovative ways of overcoming these constraints, such as negotiating special rates with internet service providers and at internet cafes." (Executive summary)
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"There are considerable regional variations in media exposure across and within African countries. Take access to daily radio news bulletins, which is higher in Southern Africa (except Lesotho) than in West Africa: whereas 71 percent of South Africans listen to radio news daily, only 44 percent of N
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igerians and 41 percent of Ghanaians do so (see Figure 3). Moreover, while radio listening is widespread, other media are used mainly in urban areas: town dwellers are four times more likely than rural residents to read a daily newspaper (23 percent versus 6 percent) and five times more likely to watch television every day (44 versus 8 percent). As such, urban news consumers have a wider choice of news sources than their country cousins, who tend to rely mainly on government-controlled national radio broadcasts." (Page 3)
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"This book examines the importance of participatory video as a catalyst for development. It shows how powerful video images have been used to promote changes in attitudes and social behaviour, helping communities identify development solutions that are within their reach. Video has been used to reac
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h policymakers, to empower women and to rescue the culture and heritage of indigenous people. As a mediation tool, the power of video has been used to resolve conflicts, achieve consensus and find common ground for collective action. This book brings together practical information on innovative experiences with the use of participatory video." (Publisher description)
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"The Legal and Human Rights Centre (LHRC) in Dar es Salaam and World Comics- Finland arranged a joint comics workshop in April 2003 in Dar es Salaam. The workshop trained 18 cartoonists and comics artists in how to make anti-corruption campaign comics in close collaboration with an organisation. The
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artists had been chosen from among the the members of Tanzania Popular Media Association (TAPOMA). LHRC provided the professional knowledge on corruption issues. The participants made three to six pages long stories, which are all collected in this report." (Page 1)
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