"Discussion of the visual politics of solidarity, in relation specifically to the representation of suffering and development, has been grounded in analysis of images. This paper seeks to expand this debate by exploring the organizational politics that shape and are shaped by these images. The paper
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is inspired by production studies in the cultural industries and draws on interviews with 17 professionals from 10 UK-based international development and humanitarian organizations, who are engaged in planning and producing imagery of international development and humanitarian issues. It discusses how power relations, tensions, and position-taking shape the arguments and choices made by NGOs producing images of suffering and development. I focus on two arenas of struggle about how to visualize solidarity: (a) intra-organizational politics - specifically tensions within NGOs between fundraising and/or marketing departments, and communications, campaign and/or advocacy departments, and (2) inter-organizational politics: the competing tendencies towards convergence, cohesiveness, and collective identity of the humanitarian sector, and competition, distinction, and divergence between organizations on the other. I show that NGOs' visual production is an area of conflict, negotiation and compromise, and argue for the crucial need for attention to organizational politics in the production of visual representations of distant suffering in order to uncover diverse and competing motivations, and the forces driving current humanitarian and development communications." (Abstract)
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"This article critically examines Unicef’s campaign in Slovenia, aimed at helping children in Ruanda, which caused huge public support in terms of the raised finances and visibility, but it also provoked a serious opposition from African people living in Slovenia and some academics. The article in
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vestigates the role of negative stereotypical consequences of such African images. The method of our research was a detailed visual analysis of the campaign including profound interviews with different parties that gave us their point of view. The campaign was financially very successful, especially because of the big media coverage. The marketing company had no ethical hesitations in designing this campaign, although they received some hindrances from the Slovenian African Centre. The main goal was to raise as much money as possible to help these children, but helping in this way has never enabled Africa to develop into an independent continent. One article, which may present a true image of a certain area, is not problematic, but a continuous representation of only one image can lead to stereotypes that trigger discrimination. The Slovenian public received a confused, muddled and incomplete picture of Africa, because the images were taken out of context and portray the whole continent as helpless and in need of the ‘West’ to prosper. The used images consolidate the status quo of the European superiority. Overall, that kind of analysis can provide useful insights into some of the strategies for a more positive image of Africa in the future." (Abstract)
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"The cases from B&H and Kosovo show that three straightforward regulatory practices can make a significant impact in a relatively short time. What is needed is an independent and legitimate regulator, a set of laws and guidelines against incendiary media, and an accompanying set of laws in protectio
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n of free speech. Obviously, this three-pronged framework does not constitute an entire regulatory regime for media. It cannot guarantee peace, but it can enable individuals at all levels of society to make better decisions about whether or not to support or participate in a conflict. The scope of regulatory practice in conflict must be seen as a long term process. On one hand, media regulation exists to prevent the escalation of conflict. On the other hand, it exists to maintain a media environment conducive to promotion of a functioning democratic society. Media democratization is a long-lasting process of legal reform and a purview of legal experts, and it usually evolves with the rest of the democratic processes. It requires legal, technical and even engineering expertise. The end goal of the process is to develop a modern regulatory framework for the media which supports and protects general media freedoms. In the short term, the initial phase of the media democratization process must be concerned with the prevention of conflict escalation and protection of media and their rights and freedoms." (Conclusion)
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"The objective of the press freedom mission conducted by the Vienna-based South East Europe Media Organisation (SEEMO), an affiliate of the International Press Institute (IPI), was to the assess the media situation in Montenegro following several developments: a) the introduction of new media-relate
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d laws, including decriminalisation of defamation and libel; b) follow-up of the activities related to attacks on journalists, including the 2004 assassination of Dusko Jovanovic, editor-in-chief of the daily Dan; c) fact-finding about pressures on media; and e) evaluation of the steps taken towards the establishment of self-regulatory bodies." (Commentary)
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"Seit jeher provozieren Kriege heftige Emotionen. Mit dem Fortschritt militärischer Techniken und Propagandamethoden ging aber auch eine Veränderung der Wahrnehmung von Kriegen durch die Künste einher. Bis heute konstruieren die Literatur, die Fotografie, der Film und das Fernsehen Abbilder von K
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riegsschauplätzen in aller Welt, die ihr Publikum durch die Aufrufung bestimmter ideologischer Rahmungen, Raster oder auch Pathosformeln gezielt zu emotionalisieren versuchen. Namhafte Autorinnen und Autoren aus der internationalen Literatur-, Kultur- und Medienwissenschaft untersuchen verschiedenste Phänomene der historischen und der aktuellen Kriegsinszenierung - in der Literatur seit dem 18. Jahrhundert, im Kino und in den neuen Medien." (Verlagsbeschreibung)
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"The book consists of six chapters on Slovenian media history. All the subjects (censorship, political struggles, the economic crisis, the Balkans, folk songs and racism) are as topical today as they were at the time when they were discussed. What has changed then? Obviously, “time” has changed,
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since “space” is more or less consistent. And yet, this is only partly true. Symbolic-geographical space is like an accordion that stretches and shrinks under the pressure of historical change. Furthermore, topicality depends on writing style, among other things: by combining traditional historical analysis and a journalistic-literary style, we have tried to relativize the image of the contemporary media landscape and lend it a historical dimension. To achieve this, we quoted interesting passages from old newspapers whose archaic discourse illustrates the language of Slovenian journalism of the time." (Pages 5-6)
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"This study brings journalists back to the centre of inquiry about the media’s role in covering ethnicity and religion. It asks: What professional norms guide editors and journalists when reporting on ethnicity and religion? What news gathering tools are most commonly used? What are the institutio
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nal constraints in producing reports? What could have been done better? What makes excellent coverage? What type of journalistic work fuels intolerance instead of providing information that supports intercultural understanding? Based on extensive interviews with 117 journalists and editors in nine EU countries and analysis of 299 news stories, it offers a review of reporting practices as related to the coverage of ethnic and religious issues. The study finds that the main obstacles to good reporting are the poor financial state of the media, overloading of reporters, lack of time, lack of knowledge, and lack of in-house training." (Executive summary, page 2)
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"At an international level, the media development community should advocate for standards governing media cross-ownership limitations, best practices in media licensing, and the licensing of the broadcast spectrum. States should adopt net neutrality and support increased uncensored access to social
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media and Internet news sources. They should scrutinize media ownership sales and declare non-transparent sales of media companies illegitimate and make their ownership visible. Media owners, governments, and media development funders and practitioners must modify the belief that advertising will always automatically support independent media. It won’t. It is not in any advertiser’s business model to underwrite news reporting; first and foremost, it is their fiduciary duty to build their own customer bases. If that means redirecting marketing strategies to more effective platforms, they will. And they have. The media development community should commit to aggressively accelerating the financial management, business, advertising, and digital media skills of media managers, particularly in transitional countries. When entering transitional markets, media outlets should first conduct audience research to establish a baseline for advertising rates. Cronyism and coercion lack force when advertisers, particularly large international advertisers, are given legitimate choices among alternatives. Media developers should support independent community and investigative reporting, especially local radio, through multiple funding sources, including helping to build local revenue bases, even if they exist outside traditional media business models." (Recommendations, page 31)
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"Ein Teil der Subkulturen des russischen Internets unterstützt heute offen und aggressiv das Regierungslager. Insbesondere sind dies die sogenannten padonki („Prolls“), die mit ihrer falschen Orthographie und obszönen Lexik früher gezielt provozierten, deren Wortschöpfungen heute aber Teil d
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er Populärkultur geworden sind. Der scheinbare Widerspruch zwischen dem einst rebellischen Auftreten dieser Gruppen und ihrer heutigen staatsnahen Position löst sich bei näherer Betrachtung auf. Zur psychosozialen Disposition der padonki gehörte von Beginn an das Ressentiment. Das herrschende Regime hat sich diese Disposition erfolgreich zunutze gemacht und profitiert heute mit von der Bekanntheit der ehemaligen „Prolls." (Abstract)
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"Picturing Afghanistan is an in-depth account of the Euro-American visualization of the conflict in Afghanistan. Comparing images in public affairs, psychological warfare, journalism and the photobook, the author argues that there are no strong boundaries between photography in war and photography a
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bout war. He shwos how and when the media have adopted, extended and counterframed the public affairs discourse of militarism and humanitarianism, and how and when public affairs rely on the aesthetic codes of photojournalism. Instead of enforcing a unified interpretation, the author considers photography's ambiguous and contradictory aspects. It is argued that, even within the conventionalized genre of photojournalism, photographs of conflict do not merely promote unity and social cohesion but express anxieties associated with the breakdown of imagined communities." (Back cover)
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"Das Buch 'Fremdsprachige Publikationen in Deutschland' ist das erste Verzeichnis der Zeitungen und Zeitschriften, die in der Bundesrepublik für Einwanderer, Minderheiten, Touristen, Sprachschüler und germanophile Ausländer produziert werden. Hier findet man Adressen und weitere Angaben zu Publik
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ationen in über 30 Sprachen - von A wie Arabisch über Dänisch, Englisch, Russisch und Sorbisch bis U wie Ungarisch. Allein im Kapitel "Russisch" sind weit über hundert Druckmedien aus Deutschland aufgeführt, die in keinem anderen Nachschlagewerk stehen." (Verlagsbeschreibung)
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"This document includes an analysis and assessment of the present situation for digital radio introduction in Sweden with emphasis on small-scale broadcasting (community radio) and with an international perspective. In Europe there are conflicting viewpoints regarding the viability horizon of differ
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ent digital systems as DAB+ and DRM+. Or even if digital radio is a good idea at all." (Introduction)
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"The author analyzes the presence of Lebanese organizations on the Web and shows the transnational links between associations from different countries, starting from a case study including France and Canada. The nature and density of these connections are partly attributable to the importance of lin
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guistic, religious and/or political factors.. The graphs indicate that, while there is a real attempt to transcend the divisions in the diaspora cyberspace, the fragmentation of collective dynamics remains important. The most important alliances revolve around a few of individual portals and some institutional websites. However, the weakness of the Lebanese government does not allow its institutions to play a unifying role for the Lebanese diaspora. In fact, economic initiatives are more active than political ones. The connections between websites claiming to be apolitical show the persistence of selective alliances, which reflect the usual Christian/Muslim divide. Transnationality is thereby limited, and the Lebanese Canadian and French organizations are interconnected only through portals that are not representative of the grassroots community dynamics." (Abstract)
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"In einer repräsentativen Face-to-Face-Befragung wurden im Mai/Juni 2011 zunächst grundlegende Kommunikations- und Mediennutzungsstrukturen in Familien mit Kindern zwischen drei und 19 Jahren ermittelt, wobei alle Familienmitglieder einzeln befragt wurden. Ergänzend wurde eine Tagebucherhebung du
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rchgeführt, um allgemeine Tätigkeiten, Freizeitbeschäftigungen sowie die Mediennutzung und Kommunikation im Tagesablauf zu erfassen. Familie bedeutet für die Befragten vor allem Zusammenhalt, Zusammengehörigkeit und Geborgenheit. Familien sind sehr gut mit Medien ausgestattet: Computer, Internet, Fernseher, Radio, Handy und verschiedene Geräte zum Aufzeichnen von Fernsehinhalten gehören zur Standardausstattung fast aller Haushalte. Auch die Kinder der untersuchten Familien verfügten über eine breite Medienausstattung. Die Betrachtung der Mediennutzung der Eltern und der Kinder machte deutlich, dass dem Fernsehen in den Familien eine besondere Bedeutung zukommt. In der FIM-Studie lag der Fokus auf der gemeinsamen Mediennutzung. 71 Prozent der Eltern sahen regelmäßig, also mindestens mehrmals pro Woche, mit ihren Kindern fern. Beim Internet war die gemeinsame Nutzung eher selten: Nur 13 Prozent der Eltern gaben an, regelmäßig gemeinsam mit ihren Kindern das Internet zu nutzen – am häufigsten Shoppingseiten, Angebote von Sendern und Sendungen sowie Spielseiten. In aktuellen Fragen der Medienerziehung schätzten sich 21 Prozent der Eltern als sehr kompetent ein. Die Mehrheit mit 60 Prozent der Eltern formulierte dies mit „etwas kompetent“ deutlich zurückhaltender. 14 Prozent schätzten sich weniger kompetent ein, und 5 Prozent schrieben sich hier gar keine Kompetenz zu." (Zusammenfassung)
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"Blickt man auf die Statistik aller derzeit angebotenen Kirchensendungen, zeigt sich, dass die Radio-Verkündigung schon rein quantitativ keineswegs eine zu vernachlässigende Medienaktivität der Kirchen darstellt. Die neun öffentlich-rechtlichen ARD-Sender sowie Deutschlandfunk und Deutschlandrad
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io veranstalten 94 Hörfunkprogramme. 69 davon werden als klassische Hörfunkwellen terrestrisch ausgestrahlt (vgl. Funkkorrespondenz 37/2012). Von diesen 69 Wellen enthalten 42 Wellen konfessionelle Verkündigungsbeiträge. Die Arbeitsgemeinschaft der kirchlichen Senderbeauftragten in der ARD, die eine Statistik über Formate, Umfang und Reichweiten dieser sogenannten Verkündigungssendungen führt, hat im November 2012 erhoben, dass in der Summe allein in katholischer Verantwortung bundesweit monatlich etwa 50 Stunden Hörfunkprogramm ausgestrahlt werden. Die Daten auf evangelischer Seite sind entsprechend. Waren es in den Anfängen des Radios zumeist klassische Wortbeiträge nach Art der „Worte für den Tag“, haben sich die Formate kirchlicher Sendungen in den zurückliegenden Jahrzehnten deutlich diversifiziert und nach Zielgruppen spezifiziert. Die Formatvielfalt reicht von anderthalbminütigen Spots bis zu Halbstunden-Features. Dabei bedient man sich einer bunten Palette radiophoner Gestaltungselemente (Musik, O-Töne, Atmo, Interview). Nicht zu vergessen: die in der Regel einstündigen Live-Gottesdienstübertragungen. Den größten Anteil an kirchlichen Sendungen bilden mit etwa 60 Prozent die „Kurzverkündigungen“, die auf allen Wellen anzutreffen sind. Die Formate heißen „Worte für den Tag“, „Worte auf den Weg“, „Morgengruß“, „Anstoß“ oder „Zwischenruf“ und bewegen sich in einer Länge von 1:30 Min. (z.B. MDR, „Augenblick mal“) bis 4:30 Min. (Deutschlandfunk, „Morgenandacht“). Ein Großteil dieser Beiträge läuft in den Morgenstunden zwischen 5:45 und 10 Uhr, also zur Radio-Primetime. Seit einigen Jahren haben sich auch abendliche und nächtliche Beiträge hinzugesellt, die als „Abendsegen“ (rbb) oder „Gedanken zur Nacht“ (MDR) von besinnlichem Charakter sind. Eine ähnliche Absicht verfolgen die etwa anderthalbminütigen „Nachtgedanken“ (rbb). Dabei handelt es sich um von kirchlichen Redaktionen ausgesuchte Literaturzitate, die zum Nachdenken anregen." (Seite 383-384)
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"In spite of the multi-million international investment to establish democratic media in post-war Kosovo, media in the young republic continue to underperform. On the 2011/12 Press Freedom Index, Kosovo ranked on the 86th position worldwide. The article sheds a light on the reasons for this dilemma
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by assessing strategies, successes and failures of media development actors. For this purpose, two groups of stakeholders were identified and interviewed both quantitatively and qualitatively: international media assistance actors as well as local journalists, media owners and experts. The leading question of the study at hand is: How far did the international development strategy succeed in transforming Kosovar media towards greater plurality, commercialization, professionalization and de-politicization? The findings suggest that media assistance actors focused too little on economic sustainability (i.e. commercialization) or, if this was done, fragile economic and political conditions proved detrimental. Also, development actors have focused too long on ad-hoc training sessions as well as on supporting different competing media outlets, thus creating a congested market. In comparison, wherever media framework institutions were supported, the success was more clearly visible." (Abstract)
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