"Throughout the twenty-first century, genocide denial has evolved and adapted with new strategies to augment and complement established modes of denial. In addition to outright negation, denial of genocide encompasses a range of techniques, including disputes over numbers, contestation of legal defi
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nitions, blaming the victim, and various modes of intimidation, such as threats of legal action. Arguably the most effective strategy has been denial through the purposeful creation of misinformation. Denial of Genocides in the Twenty-First Century brings together leading scholars from across disciplines to add to the body of genocide scholarship that is challenged by denialist literature. By concentrating on factors such as the role of communications and news media, global and national social networks, the weaponization of information by authoritarian regimes and political parties, court cases in the United States and Europe, freedom of speech, and postmodernist thought, this volume discusses how genocide denial is becoming a fact of daily life in the twenty-first century." (Publisher description)
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"The study of forced internal displacement (FID) frequently focuses on the personal effects of structural violence. However, the targeted victimization of members of risky occupations is less studied, neglecting the importance of professional factors in mediating people's experiences of displacement
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. Based on 20 in-depth interviews, this study uses a social-ecological approach to explore the challenges and experiences of journalists living under forced internal displacement in Mexico City, analyzing the multiple hardships journalists face in their resettlement processes at macro-structural, meso-professional, and micro-individual levels. Findings show that the most relevant aspects of the journalists’ experiences are family, economic and psychological concerns at the individual level; the partial or total disenfranchisement of journalistic practice, professional demotion and deskilling at the meso-level; and the general distrust of government programs at the structural level. We conclude that displaced journalists, already victimized by occupational violence, become even more vulnerable and suffer from specific profession-related hardships on top of the challenges that usually afflict displaced populations. Journalists suffer from unique and isolated forms of displacement. We call for more studies that explore the professional traits and conditions of victimized members of risky occupations to account for their overall experiences of displacement and resettlement." (Abstract)
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"The El Salvador Digital Ecosystem Country Assessment (DECA) report presents the findings and recommendations of the El Salvador DECA. It outlines the key aspects of El Salvador’s digital ecosystem and provides 10 recommendations for creating a more inclusive, safe, and enabling environment. Guide
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d by USAID/El Salvador priorities, which include i) security increased for likely migrants; ii) jobs and income potential increased for likely migrants; and iii) government responsiveness, accountability, and transparency improved, the DECA process included desk research, consultations with USAID/El Salvador technical offices, and 101 key informant interviews with stakeholders from civil society, academia, and the private and public sectors. Key findings include: digital transformation is a priority for El Salvador; a weak regulatory environment and the lack of clear government strategies have held back digitization efforts; stakeholders frequently cite improving digital connectivity and citizens’ digital literacy skills as recommendations for greater digital adoption; cybersecurity policy and initiatives are underdeveloped and the awareness of effective defense measures is low across the digital ecosystem; most Salvadorans are still unbanked. Sixty-four percent of Salvadorans have no financial institution (traditional bank or mobile money) account. Only 11 percent of Salvadorans had a mobile money account as of 2021; GOES embraced bitcoin in September 2021, spotlighting El Salvador on the world stage; the COVID-19 pandemic spurred digital uptake among micro, small, and medium enterprises (MSMEs)." (https://www.usaid.gov/digital-development)
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"Las competencias y conocimientos en Alfabetización Mediática e Informacional (AMI) sirven para enfrentar fenómenos como la desinformación, la discriminación, el discurso de odio y el ciberacoso. La AMI se puede transmitir de diversos modos: se puede aprender con materiales lúdicos en la escue
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la como parte del currículo escolar oficial; puede ser parte de la oferta mediática a través de videos, podcasts, plataformas digitales; o, incluso, puede ser el objeto central de un videojuego en línea que motive a jóvenes a aprender AMI. DW Akademie y sus socios en Centroamérica han desarrollado metodologías para enseñanza de la AMI en todos estos campos, con resultados notables en nuevos conocimientos y actitudes de empoderamiento en audiencias jóvenes. Con el objetivo de atender las necesidades específicas de las y los jóvenes en Centroamérica, esta publicación toma en cuenta los factores demográficos que condicionan su vida diaria para formular propuestas AMI. Los datos principales que permiten extraer dichas conclusiones son los recopilados por tres estudios de nuestros socios en Centroamérica: COMUNICARES en Guatemala; la Universidad Centroamericana José Simeón Cañas y la Escuela de Comunicación Mónica Herrera en El Salvador." (https://akademie.dw.com)
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"México es por 14 años consecutivos uno de los países más peligrosos para ejercer el sacerdocio. Son 7 los sacerdotes asesinados durante este sexenio 2018-2022. En el último año se dieron cerca de 800 extorsiones, amagos y amenazas contra sacerdotes en la República mexicana, principalmente lo
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s motivos de estos delitos están vinculados a fraudes y apropiación ilícita de recursos de las víctimas necesarios para el ejercicio de su ministerio. En el 2022 destacaron las declaraciones de los mismos obispos que fueron impedidos en su derecho de circulación por retenes del crimen organizado. Mayores detalles fueron proporcionados por el cardenal José Francisco Robles Ortega, arzobispo de Guadalajara y Sigifredo Noriega Barceló, obispo de Zacatecas y Rafael Sandoval Sandoval, obispo de Autlán, quienes manifestaron haber sido detenidos y que el los cárteles que operan en el norte del Estado de Jalisco y Zacatecas exigen derecho de piso a los párrocos; las cuotas podrían ascender a la mitad de las colectas que se recaudan, producto de fiestas patronales que son una fuente principal de recursos para muchas parroquias y comunidades católicas del país. En el sexenio 2018-2022 se registran alrededor de cerca 24 agresiones semanales a templos y comunidades católicas." (Introducción)
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"Populists and the Pandemic examines the responses of populist political actors and parties in 22 countries around the globe to the Covid-19 pandemic, in terms of their attitudes, rhetoric, mobilization repertoires, and policy proposals. The responses of some populist leaders have received much publ
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ic attention, as they denied the severity of the public health crisis, denigrated experts and data, looked for scapegoats, encouraged protests, questioned the legitimacy of liberal institutions, spread false information, and fueled conspiracies. But how widespread are those particular reactions? How much variation is there? What explains the variation that does exist? This volume considers these questions through critical analysis of countries in the Americas, Europe, Asia, and Africa, by leading experts with deep knowledge of their respective cases. Some chapters focus on populist parties, others on charismatic populist leaders. Some countries examined are democracies, others autocracies. Some populists are left-wing, others right-wing. Some populists are in government, others in opposition. This variation allows for a panoramic consideration of factors that systematically influence or mediate populist responses to the pandemic. The book thus makes a unique contribution to our understanding of the intersection between two of the most pressing social and political challenges of our time. The book will be of interest to all those researching populism, extremism, and political parties, and those more broadly interested in political science, public policy, sociology, communications, and economics." (Publisher description)
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"En esta obra se aborda la situación de violencia y desigualdad que enfrentan los periodistas en América Latina, centrándose en el caso de México por ser este el país en donde se ha asesinado a un mayor número de comunicadores en los últimos 22 años. El enfoque se dirige hacia los periodista
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s de frontera, aquellos que trabajan en los márgenes físicos, políticos, económicos, culturales y tecnológicos de un territorio, y cuya condición no puede entenderse únicamente como un reflejo de lo que ocurre a nivel nacional o internacional, ya que presentan características propias y particularidades que los modelos existentes no logran explicar. Además, se explora el contexto histórico y político en el que los periodistas han ejercido su labor, incluyendo las transiciones democráticas y los regímenes autoritarios, y se destaca el impacto de la guerra contra el narcotráfico en la violencia ejercida hacia ellos en México. La autora enfatiza en la necesidad de adoptar nuevos marcos de análisis para comprender la situación de los periodistas de frontera, tomando en cuenta los márgenes del estado, la esfera pública a nivel microlocal y la capacidad que tienen para enfrentar las crisis." (Descripción de la casa editorial)
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"This report analyses two major incidents: the disclosure that Pegasus spyware has been used against journalists from independent media outlets and representa tives of civil society, and Bukele’s legal advisor’s threats against two women journalists for not revealing anonymous sources included i
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n a news story. The second event represents a trend of online harassment and threats against women journalists promoted by President Bukele and public officials and replicated by Bukele’s supporters, troll centres, and pro-government influencers on social media. Through the analysis of these two main events, this report attempts to respond to the key research question: What are the main motives for, methods of, and responses to digital authoritarianism in El Salvador? Thus, this research identifies the major characteristics, strategies, and narratives interplaying in the configuration of digital authoritarianism in El Salvador. In conclusion, there is substantive evidence that Bukele and Bukelism are constructing a political project based on populism and authoritarian practices, and within this process, one key objective is to discredit the role of independent journalism, and, using spyware technologies such as Pegasus, to legally establish a monitoring system of critical voices and political opponents." (Executive summary)
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"This book focuses on the politics, ethics and stereotypical pitfalls of representational practices surrounding Gender-Based Violence (GBV) from a global perspective. The originality of the volume is linked to its cross-disciplinary perspective as the topic of representing GBV is analyzed across the
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domains of philosophy/epistemology, fiction and the arts (including literature, film, television series and music) and non-fictional representations in the media (including broadcast media, online/print journalism, transmedia activism). The volume identifies contemporary representational practices and the theoretical and critical responses, examining various aspects of popular culture from around the world. In doing so, the editors put feminism in conversation with global trends to identify its cultural frontline." (Publisher description)
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"Global land and resource grabbing has become an increasingly prominent topic in academic circles, among development practitioners, human rights advocates, and in policy arenas. The Routledge Handbook of Global Land and Resource Grabbing sustains this intellectual momentum by advancing methodologica
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l, theoretical and empirical insights. It presents and discusses resource grabbing research in a holistic manner by addressing how the rush for land and other natural resources, including water, forests and minerals, is intertwined with agriculture, mining, tourism, energy, biodiversity conservation, climate change, carbon markets, and conflict. The handbook is truly global and interdisciplinary, with case studies from the Global South and Global North, and chapter contributions from practitioners, activists and academics, with emerging and Indigenous authors featuring strongly across the chapters." (Publisher description)
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"Combining an innovative mix of traditional chapters, autoethnography, case studies, and dialogue within an intercultural framework, the handbook focuses on the future of media education and provides a deeper understanding of the challenges and affordances of media education as we move forward. Topi
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cs range from fighting disinformation, how vulnerable communities coped with disadvantages using media, transforming educational TV or YouTube to reach larger audiences, supporting students’ wellbeing through various online strategies, examining early childhood, parents, and media mentoring using digital tools, reflecting on educators’ intersectionality on video platforms, youth-produced media to fight injustice, teaching remotely and providing low-tech solutions to address the digital divide, search for solutions collaboratively using social media, and many more." (Publisher description)
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"An urgent finding of this first Fairwork Mexico report was impact platform work has on the physical and mental health of workers. Indeed, in megacities like Mexico City, and in urban environments marked by traffic congestion, pollution and fast-paced city life, workers’ bodies are being reduced t
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o an extension of the algorithm. Almost half of the workers we interviewed for this report reported that working for digital labour platforms affects them physically or mentally." (Editorial)
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"On average in the 16 countries surveyed, 56% of internet users frequently use social media to stay informed about current events, far ahead of television (44%). However, it is worth noting that differences exist among population groups: television is the primary source in the most developed countri
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es (55% compared to 37% for social media), while it lags significantly in countries with high (42% vs 63%) or medium/low levels of Human Development Index (HDI) (37% vs 68%) [...] The significance of social media as a source of information, especially during election campaigns, is even more crucial given that citizens believe disinformation is highly prevalent there. Across all 16 countries, 68% of internet users told us that social media is the place where disinformation is most widespread, far ahead of groups on online messaging apps (38%) and media websites/apps (20%). This sentiment is overwhelmingly prevalent in all countries, age groups, social backgrounds, and political preferences. This is even more important and citizens feel that the issue of disinformation is a real threat: 85% express concern about the impact and influence of disinformation on their fellow citizens." (Analysis of key results)
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"The Guatemala DECA report presents the findings and recommendations of the Guatemala DECA. It outlines the key aspects of Guatemala’s digital ecosystem and provides nine recommendations for creating a more inclusive, safe, and enabling environment. Guided by USAID/Guatemala priorities: i) partner
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with the Government of Guatemala and other stakeholders to increase economic prosperity, inclusion, and stability in areas with high irregular migration; ii) partner with the Government of Guatemala and other stakeholders to strengthen effective and accountable governance to improve quality of life and reduce irregular migration; and iii) partner with the Government of Guatemala and other stakeholders to improve justice and security to reduce irregular migration, the DECA process included desk research, consultations with USAID/Guatemala technical offices, 76 key informant interviews with stakeholders from civil society, academia, and the private and public sectors, and five focus group discussions with USAID project participants. Key findings include: Guatemala does not have a central strategy or policy for the digitalization of government services or systems; while Guatemala is home to relatively high network coverage, gaps in internet use remain and innovative solutions face regulatory barriers; the digital divide persists across gender, geography, income, education and literacy, and ethnicity, and was exacerbated by the COVID-19 pandemic; digital rights are insufficiently protected and disinformation and harassment are present in the online space; over the last decade, the Government of Guatemala adopted long-term policies to support the development of the digital economy; progress is unclear but data show there has been some impact on financial inclusion; although in its early days, there is unprecedented growth in Guatemala’s startup ecosystem, specifically FinTech." (https://www.usaid.gov/digital-development)
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