"This paper intends to look at the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) as a communication tool instead of an object of communication. The MDGs possess the potential to make development more understandable to people at the centre of development policies: the poor, vulnerable and socially excluded. Th
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e potential to make development interventions more effective and, ultimately, to achieve the MDGs, lies in improving the capability of these people to use information about development to claim their rights and to hold authorities accountable for their commitments. Based on the available literature and international conventions, the paper will elaborate a framework for the application of communication for development in promoting the MDGs at the country level. The framework will be used to examine the Albanian experience in using the MDGs to mobilize participation around national and local development strategies. It will also highlight the contribution that communication can make in Serbia to the social inclusion of marginalized groups such as Roma, refugees, internally displaced persons and people with disabilities. The proposed framework can be used to identify gaps, opportunities and entry points in each country. It can help make the best use of the MDGs at the national level through including excluded groups in the policy debate, which will enhance transparency, accountability and responsiveness to their needs." (Abstract)
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"The second edition of the World Information Society Report, published by ITU and UNCTAD, looks beyond the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS, Geneva 2003 - Tunis 2005) to the creation of an inclusive, people-centred and development-oriented Information Society, open to all. The report tr
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acks progress in digital opportunity for 181 economies over the past few years since the start of the WSIS process and is accompanied by a series of tables providing the latest statistics on the development of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) worldwide. The report has been created by the “Digital Opportunity Platform”, an open multi-stakeholder platform with contributions from governments, private sector, academics and civil society, as well as inter-governmental organisations." (Back cover)
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"Unterhaltung stellt in unserer Kultur die Schlüsselkategorie für den Wirklichkeitszugang der meisten Menschen dar. Dennoch wurde der Unterhaltungsbegriff lange Zeit als ernstzunehmende Kategorie in der theologischen Diskussion ausgeblendet. Erst die aktuelle Debatte um religiöse Signaturen der M
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ediengesellschaft verschafft ihr das gebührende Gehör. Kirchliche Radiosendungen erreichen täglich Millionen. Bis heute ist jedoch wenig erforscht, ob und wie sie von ihren jugendlichen Adressaten wahrgenommen werden. Die Studie will zur Klärung beitragen und Wege zu einer theologischen Qualifizierung des Unterhaltungsbegriffs eröffnen." (Verlagsbeschreibung)
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"Media involve religious dimensions and have become the religious "iconofiers" of our world. People increasingly use media for shaping their - religious - identity and their search with respect to questions of ultimate meaning. The author first provides a succinct overview of the context and implica
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tions of media culture and the recent changes in communication theory. Then, by analyzing the contents of a broad range of Church documents from the Catholic as well as the Protestant Churches and Ecumenical Organizations, she reflects on Christian policy views and identifies the main problems and opportunities in relating to media culture. Finally she stresses the urgency of genuine "art of dialogue" between Christian religion and media culture, based on a thorough analysis of the trends of the global media context as well as recent insights from audience research. She also argues a theological paradigm shift and the importance of ethical involvement by religions in the public sphere. This is a thoroughly researched, major contribution to religious commmunication theory." (CAMECO Update 4-2008)
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"This project advances the existing theoretical work on the CNN effect, a claim that innovations in the speed and quality of technology create conditions in which the media acts as an independent factor with significant influence. It provides a novel interpretation of the factors that drove Western
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policy towards military intervention in this area." (Publisher description)
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"From 1995 to 2005, the international community provided significant support to media in the Western Balkans. Based on a meta-analysis of 37 project reports and interviews with a broad range of media experts, this study finds that direct support to independent media was a key factor in helping the c
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itizens of several Balkan countries to rid themselves of authoritarian regimes. At the same time, the publication states that often journalism training - the greatest share of media support - has had few lasting effects. Support for legislative and regulatory reform has been efficient and effective, but the new media legislation has not been sufficiently well implemented. The overall conclusion (page 36): 'Media assistance in the Balkans proved itself an effective way to promote democracy by removing barriers to the enjoyment of fundamental rights to information and expression as protected by international law, and without intervening in political choices themselves. When media support was perceived as being primarily driven by political objectives, it was in danger of being like the problem it sought to alleviate and obscuring the concept of independent media." (CAMECO Update 1-2008)
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"The experience of citizen involvement in public policy advocacy around the world has shown that the status quo tends to prevail unless political will to implement change is strengthened by active citizen participation. A “Global Information Society Watch” is needed to make governments and inter
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national organisations accountable. This publication, the first in a series of reports covering the state of the information society on an annual basis, focuses on the theme of participation. The report has three interrelated goals: surveying the state of the field of ICT policy at the local and global levels; encouraging critical debate; and strengthening networking and advocacy for a just, inclusive information society. It discusses the WSIS process and a range of international institutions, regulatory agencies and monitoring instruments from the perspective of civil society and stakeholders in the global South. Alongside this discussion, we present a series of country reports which examine issues of access and participation within a variety of national contexts." (Introduction)
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