"This MeCoDEM working paper presents an overview of the main findings from a quantitative content analysis covering different types of democratisation conflicts (i.e., conflicts over citizenship, elections, transitional justice and distribution of power) in four countries: Egypt, Kenya, Serbia and S
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outh Africa. The sample involves 5162 newspaper articles and news stories in the four countries selected on the basis of two main criteria: the degree of independence of media outlets from government and political parties, and their relevance. The key findings from the content analysis are organised around several themes: causes of democratisation conflicts, portrayal of conflict parties, preferred solutions to conflicts, perceptions of democracy, role of the media, authoritarian past, and tone of reporting and polarisation. Although this paper focuses principally on description, we also speculate about the main factors that shape similarities and differences in media coverage of democratisation conflicts. The main finding from the content analysis is that cross-national variations that we found in media reporting of democratisation conflicts appear to depend on several factors." (Executive summary)
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"The structural conditions of journalism are shaped by legacies of the past (marked by non-democratic regimes and sometimes colonial rule) and persisting power structures. The state and powerful political actors are perceived to play an important role in the media sector, mirrored in different forms
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of political interference directed at newsrooms and individual journalists in the way of repressive legal frameworks, political ownership and advertising, economic censorship and blackmail, as well as threats directed at the physical and psychological safety of journalists. Journalists perceive the relationship between different communities in society to be reflected in the constitution of and atmosphere among newsroom staff. Even though journalists operate in a more liberal environment than under autocratic rule in Kenya, Serbia and South Africa, media privatisation has created new dependencies and pressures: Against the background of profit-making pressures in capitalist and highly commercialised media markets, journalists claim to work under precarious working conditions, marked by time constraints due to short-staffed newsroom and juniorisation, high professional insecurity and poor salaries arguably making journalists vulnerable to bribery and corruption. Challenges relating to journalistic professionalism also translate into insufficient training on conflict-sensitive reporting and safety measures for journalists reporting on conflicts, low professional organisation and self-regulation, as well as a lack of professional solidarity and prestige." (Executive summary)
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"In this volume of essays edited by Anya Schiffrin, media capture is shown to be a growing phenomenon linked both to the resurgence of authoritarian governments as well as to the structural weaknesses presently afflicting media markets. In this environment, political figures and economic elites are
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colluding to undermine the independence of privately-owned media, and efforts to stop this collusion by activists, regulators, and the international community have proven to be ineffective." (Publisher description)
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"Social media and digital technology offer immense potential for citizens, policymakers and practitioners to raise awareness of, monitor, and respond to violence. With Kenya’s elections approaching, technology can help to raise awareness of insecurity, support early warning, combat incitement of v
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iolence and promote accountability. However, digital technology also carries a number of risks. To maximise effectiveness and inclusivity, 1) greater support must be given to locally legitimate peace messaging and counter-speech; 2) government, media and civil society should collaborate to improve transparency and accountability in the regulation of online activity; and 3) social media monitoring of violence should be undertaken in conjunction with other reporting systems that seek to overcome inequalities in digital access and use." (Abstract)
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"The research in these pages covers the theory around multistakeholder participation in Internet governance through a review of relevant literature. It also analyses case studies from Kenya to Brazil, South Korea, and the Internet Governance Forum (IGF), which illustrate how multistakeholder approac
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hes to Internet governance are applied in practice in diverse places and on different issues. In two of these cases, the outcome had legal repercussions that advanced the role of the Internet in terms of respect for rights; in the other two, the impact was positive for wider norms and processes." (Foreword, page 6)
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According to the executive summary "Facebook’s Free Basics program aims to help bridge the digital divide through a mobile-based platform that allows users to connect to a handful of online services free of charge [...] This paper highlights the following findings: Language: Free Basics does not m
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eet the linguistic needs of target users [...] Content and usability: Free Basics features an imbalance of sites and services [...] Net neutrality: Free Basics violates net neutrality principles [...] Privacy: Facebook is accessing unique streams of user metadata from all user activities on Free Basics, not just the activities of users who are logged into Facebook." The Free Basics app was tested in six countries, with programs from five different operators: Colombia (Tigo), Ghana (Tigo), Kenya (Airtel), Mexico (Virgin Mobile), Pakistan (Telenor), and the Philippines (Globe).
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"Musana FM has done a good job in fighting against poverty in Nakaseke district [Uganda] because of its effective and resourceful programs such as income generation programs. Additionally most of advertisements are for local produce, health and medicine which encourages use of local medicines for tr
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eating people, agriculture program which intents to give information about farming especially when to plant and harvest crops, entertainment, social issues, that aim at bringing peace and many others." (Conclusions, page 42)
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"Part I: Context” describes the information and media landscape in South Sudan and the value of Humanitarian Radio as a tool for communicating with communities in a broad range of humanitarian scenarios. It also discusses how Humanitarian Radio promotes accountability and transparency for humanita
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rian agencies responding to crises. “Part II. Case Study” focuses on two Humanitarian Radio stations: Nile FM in the UN PoC in Malakal, and Jamjang FM in the Ajoung Thok refugee camp. The case studies also cover challenges and lessons learned in order to offer recommendations for future Humanitarian Radio projects." (Page 3)
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"National and Regional Internet Governance Forums (NRIs) are the stars of the 2017 Global Information Society Watch. The story of NRIs began two years after the first global IGF held in 2006. In 2008, stakeholders from Kenya, Uganda, Tanzania and Rwanda organised national forums and a subsequent Eas
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t African IGF, to prepare for and discuss common concerns in anticipation of the global forum held later that year in Hyderabad. Soon after, many other national and regional initiatives emerged, impacting the global forum from the bottom up, enhancing inclusiveness and the broad engagement of multiple stakeholders. Today there is widespread agreement that national and regional forums constitute an important part of the IGF process, that their rise has added significance to the global forum and, at the same time, strengthened national and regional initiatives in their quest for inclusive, participatory decision making on their home turf. This GISWatch edition is the first comprehensive look at national and regional IGF initiatives from a critical, civil society perspective. In all, 54 reports are presented, including seven reports addressing cross-cutting themes, 40 covering national IGFs, and seven examining regional initiatives." (Preface)
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"Journalists in many countries are experimenting with how to build trust and engage with audiences, and our report examines their efforts. In our study we profile organizations that are working to build bridges with their readers, viewers and listeners and deliver relevant news to local audiences. W
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e surveyed 17 organizations and conducted interviews with representatives of 15 organizations, one of which chose to remain anonymous. Among others we spoke to Chequeado in Argentina, GroundUp in South Africa, Raseef 22 in the Middle East, 263 Chat in Zimbabwe, Krautreporter and Correct!v in Germany, as well as Bristol Cable in the UK [...] Although the groups we surveyed are concerned by the broader phenomena of falling trust in media and media credibility, they are also, by necessity, focused on immediate fixes important to their organizations and readerships. Some believe that media credibility depends on engagement with readers. Some place more emphasis on journalism practices, including audience engagement, ethical standards and news gathering practices. The outlets we profiled use digital technology to communicate with audiences. Some also involve their readers in sourcing and sometimes verifying information. Some conduct focus groups and online surveys. Responding to comments online is part of their engagement efforts. Readers appreciate investigative reporting as well as stories that touch on their daily lives [...] There seems to be a tradeoff between audience size and the quality of content produced. Some groups with large followings (Hivisasa and 263Chat) promote headlines and short snippets rather than carrying out deep investigative reporting [...] Several groups said their audience is different from what their founders had originally expected. The reach of the outlets we surveyed is generally not as diverse as they had hoped. Their audiences tend to be educated and urban and, in some cases, include large diaspora communities. The outlets largely cater to niche audiences, but they have broader reach through their online presence and national influence when their stories are picked up by legacy media or other outlets." (https://gijn.org, accessed: June 8, 2018)
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"The Listening Groups Module contains the collective knowledge of the Internews South Sudan team gained over three years’ experience managing more than 700 Listening Groups across the country [...] “Part I. Context” describes the information and media landscape in South Sudan, and the value of
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Listening Groups as a tool for communicating with communities, accountability, and adaptive programming. “Part II. Case Study” discusses the implementation of Listening Groups to gather feedback on HIS programs in Juba and Malakal, as well as the Listening Groups organized in Abyei to support Internews’ news and information project in the area. The case studies also cover challenges and lessons learned in order to offer recommendations for future Listening Group activities." (Page 3)
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"The impact assessment comprised a survey, focus-group discussions and key informant interviews as its sources of data. The survey covered 194 members of the Peace Radio listener clubs, in which members discuss the Peace Radio contents and initiate peace initiatives on the basis of a standardised qu
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estionnaire of open and closed questions [...] The impact assessment came to the following conclusions: The Peace Radio approach, using broadcasts in combination with listener club meetings, has the potential to reach a broad audience effectively. It was generally found to be well appreciated and considered relevant by its target communities. The diversity of media formats used in the Peace Radio make the programme attractive and unique, as different media formats correlate with different listeners’ preferences. The very high attendance of listener club meetings indicates its high level of attractiveness. Listener clubs are appropriate forums where people from different (ethnic) groups – even from conflicting parties – come together and discuss issues in a constructive and peaceful manner. The clubs are an essential part of the Peace Radio Programme. The programme equips listener club members with basic peace-building skills, with members feeling able to apply them. Changes in attitude are very difficult to achieve. Increasing tolerance and respect towards other groups and communities usually takes years, if not decades, to achieve. As the findings of the impact assessment indicate, the Peace Radio approach was able to achieve measurable change in attitudes in a short time period of 2-5 years. Prejudices and stereotypes which had previously served as a breeding ground for conflicts were significantly reduced through the broadcasts but also through the interaction in the (joint) listener club sessions. This is a very impressive result." (Executive summary)
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"The main task of the study was to evaluate, from the perspective of Burundian (n=58) and Ugandan (n=183) journalists the feasibility of making operational the normative frames of peace reporting as expounded by peace journalism scholars against the more entrenched news frames that favour conflict o
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r violence [...] The findings discussed in this chapter show that, overall, Burundian and Ugandan journalists still emphasise the frames of conflict or violence as viable news values. The survey results confirm the claim by scholars who have observed that conventional journalism frames that favour conflict or violence are well-entrenched and routinely influence media content. The rootedness of the frames of conflict or violence is evident across gender and years of journalism experience. This rootedness is most likely due to the training which is still dependent on literature and models of what Galtung and Ruge identified as favouring the conflict or violence framing of news." (Conclusion, page 231-232)
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"This report outlines the methodology and processes of the Radio Content Analysis Tool, a prototype developed by Pulse Lab Kampala to analyse public radio content in Uganda and explore its value for informing development of UN projects and programmes on the ground. It distills the technology behind
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the creation of the Radio Content Analysis Tool and presents the lessons learned along the way. The report also details the results of several pilot studies that were conducted together with partners from the Government, UN agencies and academia to understand the validity and value of unfiltered public radio discussions for development [...] By sampling different indigenous languages, types of broadcasters, and locations within Uganda, the pilot studies assess the potential uses of radio talk across five topics: perceptions towards refugees in Uganda, the impact of small-scale disasters on livelihoods, perceptions around the delivery of healthcare services, understanding the spread of infectious diseases, and monitoring the effectiveness of awareness raising radio campaigns." (Executive summary)
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"In 2015, Farm Radio International applied to Making All Voices Count for a practitioner research and learning grant. Farm Radio International (FRI) is a Canadian-based not-for-profit organisation working in direct partnership with approximately 600 radio broadcasters in 38 African countries to figh
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t poverty and food insecurity. The research studied the impact of one of FRI’s projects, the Listening Post, initially developed as a pilot project funded by the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation to help agricultural development actors ensure their initiatives are responsive and accountable to farmers. The Listening Post is an interactive radio series aimed at an audience of farmers. It combines specialised interactive radio broadcasts with Uliza, a tool created by FRI for gathering and analysing feedback and questions from audience members. Uliza is built on an interactive voice response (IVR) system which enables listeners to vote on poll questions, leave messages and request the delivery of specific information. The research aimed to assess the effectiveness of the Listening Post, and to examine its potential as a tool for the adaptive management of agricultural programmes. This practice paper describes the research, and reflects more broadly on the challenges and opportunities provided by feedback models such as the Listening Post for improving inclusive and participatory agricultural development, and for advancing adaptive programme implementation based on feedback. It also discusses the potential of building on a tech-enabled feedback model to enable collective civic action for extension services that are responsive to the priorities of smallholder farmers. If the information generated by multi-stakeholder platforms like the Listening Post is to lead to adaptation and change in service provision, it is necessary to develop common understandings of the roles and responsibilities of different stakeholders from the outset of programme design and implementation." (Summary)
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"The report is based on interviews with 350 journalists from all parts of the Ethiopian media. The study detects some important changes which have occurred in the Ethiopian journalist fraternity recently. In just a few years, the local journalist population has become one of the most educated in the
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world, with 97% having at least a bachelor’s degree. The female proportion is also on the increase, and soon every third journalist in the country is expected to be a woman. At the same time, Ethiopian journalists are among the youngest and least experienced in all countries, with an average age of 30 years. Illustratively, around 90% of today’s Ethiopian journalists were not in the profession during the 2005 elections. The study detects significant differences between journalists in the state media and journalists in the private media, but also some similarities. Journalists in the private media experience high degree of professional autonomy with 71% perceiving ‘a great deal of freedom’ in selecting news stories, compared with 41% in the state media. Both groups have high trust in the government – indeed one of the highest trust levels of the 66 countries investigated in the Worlds of Journalism Study – but nonetheless low trust in political parties and politicians in general. When asked about their political view, most journalists in the study identified themselves halfway between the government and the opposition. There is a slightly higher proportion of reporters supporting the government in the state media than in the private media. In terms of professional role, Ethiopian journalists have some features which set them apart from their counterparts in the north. Ethiopian journalists reveal strong commitment to national development and support for government policy. They also regard advocacy for social change as an important part of their work. Thus, the typical Ethopian journalist can be described as both a loyalist and a change agent." (Executive summary)
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"At HDIF, we want to share learning from our own experience to assist players in ICT4D to ensure we are not creating more stacks of unused hardware and limited viability which combine to create a larger wasteland of well-intended development projects. A broad set of donors and partners have combined
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to develop the Principles for Digital Development, which form a simple set of values that have helped HDIF understand our impact and establish whether we are setting partners on the best path for success. This White Paper is HDIF’s first formal publication sharing our initial insights and learning around the application of the Principles for Digital Development in Tanzania. We hope our learning will provide practice insights for the ICT4D community in Tanzania and abroad. By applying the principles to our work, we and our partners can assess their validity through 'learning by doing' and anticipate the challenges in scaling our innovations." (Foreword, page 2)
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"In this chapter we have discussed a number of concrete strategies and practical examples on how to implement digital media literacy projects even in a difficult political and socio-cultural context like South Sudan. These are based in developing a holistic approach that considers citizen interactio
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n with media via the accessible vehicle of social media platforms, as an integral part of both a peacebuilding as well as literacy development strategy. From raising awareness of the direct effects of media-induced hate speech on the conflict, even for citizens who are not media literate, to the training of technical ICT, text messaging and social media skills, familiarizes people with a technology and social process such that they feel empowered to take action to move beyond conflict. Social media interaction can also be transformed from a very individual practice, into a truly social and collaborative exercise, for example through "peace jamming" or integrating social media into the many peacebuilding conferences and youth actions that regularly take place across the country. Where often the manipulation of social media with the intention to exacerbate conflict and instability comes from outside the country, learning counter-messaging skills, employing and understanding social media ethics, and identifying the vocabulary of dangerous speech can act toward occupying an undefined social media space with a language of peacebuilding, rather than leaving that space open to agents of conflict." (Conclusion)
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