"Mixed Methods Perspectives on Communication and Social Media Research addresses the need for a discipline-cum-methodology-tailored book that navigates the current research spectrum of communication and social media ("CommSocMed"). It examines contemporary and relevant issues that intertwine the exp
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ansive spheres of CommSocMed. Authored by professionals with extensive academic and in-depth research and industry experience, the book highlights research-based themes that mirror qualitative and quantitative methodologies vis-à-vis socio-cultural, political, educational, and organisational issues and challenges. The first two sections present the mutually interwoven disciplines of CommSocMed where research works cover a comprehensive range of designs such as narrative analysis, case study, recombinant memetics, discourse analysis, visual semiotics, ethnography, content analysis, feminist theory, descriptive-survey, descriptive-correlational, model-building/testing, experimental, and mixed methods. The third section is a concluding segment which synthesises all the scholarly contributions in this volume." (Publisher description)
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"This edited book based on a collective effort of researchers and professionals dedicated to compile the stories of children's television around the world. With 12 national chapters, the book includes historical accounts of children's television from the following countries: Australia, Brazil, Canad
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a, China, Ecuador, Germany, India, Israel, Italy, Kenia, Netherlands and USA. It provides an exploration of each individual country, revealing striking similarities and differences, discussed in depth in the final chapter. Looking at the global field through local eyes--its main texts and active players (broadcasters, producers and creators, as well as regulators and policy makers), their ideologies, financial prospects and perceptions of childhood--offers a macro-level evaluation of an entire cultural field." (Publisher description)
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"Using a multimodal discourse analysis approach, this dynamic collection examines various discourses, modes and media in circulation during the early stages of the pandemic, and how these have impacted our daily lives in terms of the various meanings they express. Examples include how national and i
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nternational news organisations communicate important information about the virus and the crisis, the public’s reactions to such communications, the resultant (counter- )discourses as manifested in social media posts and memes, as well as the impact social distancing policies and mobility restrictions have had on people’s communication and interaction practices. The book offers a synoptic view of how the pandemic was communicated, represented and (re- )contextualised across different spheres, and ultimately hopes to help account for the significant changes we are continuing to witness in our everyday lives as the pandemic unfolds." (Publisher description)
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"Media freedom has deteriorated across the world over the past 15 years with populist leaders attacking journalism in both democratic and repressive states. Since the rise of online misinformation and disinformation, concern is growing that governments are using fake news language and related laws t
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o muzzle the press. Studies find labelling reporters and their stories as fake news can threaten journalistic norms and practices and have implications for trust relationships with sources and audiences. Less understood is the effects of fake news laws on journalism. This article addresses this gap and examines consequences for journalistic practices in Singapore and Indonesia when journalists and sources are targets of fake news laws. Through 20 in-depth expert interviews with journalists, editors, their sources and fake news experts in Indonesia and Singapore, the article identifies “chill effects” on reporting when faced with the threat of new legal sanctions. However, it also identifies adaptations to newsroom practices to manage this threat. We conclude with lessons learned from the Asia Pacific on how journalists in other jurisdictions might manage the potential chilling effects on news reporting when fake news laws are in place." (Abstract)
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"The year 2012 stands as a significant milestone in China's government-led external communication activities. It was in early 2012 that Beijing launched television broadcasting and production centres in Washington, DC, USA (CCTV America, now CGTN America) and Nairobi, Kenya (CGTN Africa). Later in t
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he year, it began publishing an African weekly edition of the English-language newspaper China Daily; European and Asian weekly editions had launched in 2010 (Zhang, 2013). Set in motion under the leadership of President Hu Jintao, China's global media expansion, part of a larger 'going out' policy for the economy in general, sought to improve the country's image overseas, and to give Beijing a larger say in global information flows (Thussu et al., 2018). Ten years on, Chinese media's global engagement has not only grown, but diversified. Today, Chinese media companies, both State-owned and privately owned, are engaged all over the world in content production and distribution, direct investment in foreign media ventures, infrastructure development, training and media development efforts, and 'managing' public opinion overseas (Madrid-Morales and Wasserman, 2018). The growth and diversification of communication strategies can be partly explained by the fact that the global political and economic context under which Hu Jintao set out to improve China's international image through external media expansion has changed." (Introduction)
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"In light of the controversial relationship and blurred lines between information and entertainment media, the current study’s goal aimed at qualitatively exploring media entertainment’s role in emerging adults’ political identity formation and engagement. By analyzing 55 semistructured interv
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iews from Germany, Croatia, Turkey, South Korea, and the Philippines, we examined how emerging adults in 5 countries—differing in tightness-looseness, political culture, and media freedom—explore alternative political identities (identity exploration) and commit to a set of political values (identity commitment). Across countries, notable similarities supported the notion of traditional and new forms of entertainment as universal drivers of political identity formation and engagement (e.g., informational source, broadening one’s horizon). However, idiosyncrasies of countries reflected unique cultural values, beliefs, and norms, and the benefits of media entertainment pathways to political identity development appeared to depend on political freedom and democracy." (Abstract)
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"Experts have ranked Taiwan as the number one country regarding the exposure to disinformation. This assessment is not surprising as many exposed disinformation cases can be linked to Chinese statealigned actors but also domestic political actors. Academic researchers, journalists, and the civic tec
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h community have played an essential role in the fight against disinformation in Taiwan and the emergence of misinformation studies as a new research field. While disinformation in Taiwan is a major recurring issue, the “Western” debate within academia and journalism has taken a critical turn regarding the assumed effects of disinformation. Our study focuses on this potential disconnect between the international and the Taiwanese debate about disinformation. With automatic and manual content analysis, we evaluate what role academics and journalism play in the public discourse and what part of this debate reaches the largest audience. We show how Taiwan’s public misinformation discourse has evolved vis-a-vis the international discourse, what role misinformation studies play in this discourse, what part of the discourse reaches the widest audience, and what parts of the discourse could be problematic." (Abstract)
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"Beijing's state-backed media, which once seemed incapable having a significant effect globally, has been overhauled and expanded. At a time when many democracies' media outlets are consolidating due to financial pressures, China's biggest state media outlets, like the newswire Xinhua, are modernizi
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ng, professionalizing, and expanding in attempt to reach an international audience. Overseas, Beijing also attempts to impact local media, civil society, and politics by having Chinese firms or individuals with close links buy up local media outlets, by signing content-sharing deals with local media, by expanding China's social media giants, and by controlling the wireless and wired technology through which information now flows, among other efforts. In Beijing's Global Media Offensive - a major analysis of how China is attempting to build a media and information superpower around the world, and how this media power integrates with other forms of Chinese influence - Joshua Kurlantzick focuses on how all of this is playing out in both China's immediate neighborhood - Southeast Asia, Taiwan, Australia, and New Zealand - and also in the United States and many other parts of the world. He traces the ways in which China is trying to build an information and influence superpower, but also critically examines the new conventional wisdom that Beijing has enjoyed great success with these efforts. While China has worked hard to build a global media and information superpower, it often has failed to reap gains from its efforts, and has undermined itself with overly assertive, alienating diplomacy. Still, Kurlantzick contends, China's media, information and political influence campaigns will continue to expand and adapt, helping Beijing exports its political model and protect the ruling Party, and potentially damaging press freedoms, human rights, and democracy abroad." (Publisher description)
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"Through policy analysis and close reading of two films, this article reveals films’ increasing role in China’s geopolitical plan, the Belt and Road Initiative (BRI). The co-production film Xuanzang shows that the Silk Road past is used to illustrate BRI’s pledge for a beneficial future. Even
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though Xuanzang’s story alludes to history, itwas selected for its significance in popular culture, thereby reflecting ‘hyperreality’. In any event, the Silk Road is insufficient for connecting a region characterized by complex histories and societies. As shown in The Composer, the Silk Road is a convenient metaphor used to portray any friendly history." (Abstract)
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"As can be gleaned from this report, anti-disinformation initiatives are diverse and creative, but whether they’re for prevention, monitoring and identification, or contextualization and correction, the current initiatives can be scaled up and new ones added. Firstly, the initiatives have still to
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reach a large segment of Philippine society, especially those living far from the capital, as well as certain sectors like senior citizens, persons with disabilities, and offline communities that depend greatly on others for information, including word of mouth. Secondly, another area that could be enhanced is research, which still takes long gestation periods when the need for findings and recommendations is immediate. Where possible, studies need to be fast-tracked. Instead of waiting for an event to end, e.g., elections, academic researchers should collaborate with anti-disinformation initiatives from the get-go. Institutions and individuals fighting against disinformation should also be encouraged to produce rigorous research, as well as provide deep dives or snapshots of disinformation landscape as it evolves. Furthermore, although AI tools have been employed by fact-checking initiatives such as Tsek.ph and FactsFirstPH, the study also shows that there is room for development in employing AI Journalism in the fight against disinformation. The ThaiDI Machine is the only purely AI tool on the list and is still in the development stage." (Conclusion)
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"This edited collection aims to document the effects of Covid-19 on film festivals and to theorize film festivals in the age of social distancing. To some extent, this crisis begs us to consider what happens when festivals can't happen; while films have found new (temporary) channels of distribution
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(most often in the forms of digital releases), the festival format appears particularly vulnerable in pandemic times. Imperfect measures, such as the move to a digital format, cannot recapture the communal experience at the very core of festivals. Given the global nature of the pandemic and the diversity of the festival phenomenon, this book features a wide range of case studies and analytical frameworks. With contributors including established scholars and frontline festival workers, the book is conceived as both a theoretical endeavour and a practical exploration of festival organizing in pandemic times." (Publisher description)
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"This open access book explores how children draw God. It looks at children's drawings collected in a large variety of cultural and religious traditions. Coverage demonstrates the richness of drawing as a method for studying representations of the divine. In the process, it also contributes to our u
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nderstanding of this concept, its origins, and its development. This intercultural work brings together scholars from different disciplines and countries, including Switzerland, Japan, Russia, Iran, Brazil, and the Netherlands. It does more than share the results of their research and analysis. The volume also critically examines the contributions and limitations of this methodology. In addition, it also reflects on the new empirical and theoretical perspectives within the broader framework of the study of this concept. The concept of god is one of the most difficult to grasp. This volume offers new insights by focusing on the many different ways children depict god throughout the world. Readers will discover the importance of spatial imagery and color choices in drawings of god. They will also learn about how the divine's emotional expression correlates to age, gender, and religiosity as well as strategies used by children who are prohibited from representing their god." (Publisher description)
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"At a time when uneven power dynamics are high on development actors' agenda, this book will be an important contribution to researchers and practitioners working on innovation in development and civil society. While there is much discussion of localization, decolonization and 'shifting power' in ci
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vil society collaborations in development, the debate thus far centers on the aid system. This book directs attention to CSOs as drivers of development in various contexts that we refer to as the Global South. This book take a transformative stance, reimagining roles, relations and processes. It does so from five complementary angles: (1) Southern CSOs reclaiming the lead, 2) displacement of the North-South dyad, (3) Southern-centred questions, (4) new roles for Northern actors, and (5) new starting points for collaboration. The book relativizes international collaboration, asking INGOs, Northern CSOs, and their donors to follow Southern CSOs' leads, recognizing their contextually geared perspectives, agendas, resources, capacities, and ways of working. Based in 19 empirically grounded chapters, the book also offers an agenda for further research, design, and experimentation. Emphasizing the need to 'Start from the South' this book thus re-imagines and re-centers Civil Society collaborations in development, offering Southern-centred ways of understanding and developing relations, roles, and processes, in theory and practice." (Publisher description)
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"Based on 16-month ethnographic fieldwork in Shanghai, Ageing with Smartphones in Urban China tackles the intersection between the ‘two revolutions’ experienced by the older generation in Shanghai: the contemporary smartphone-based digital revolution and the earlier communist revolutions. We fin
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d that we can only explain the smartphone revolution if we first appreciate the long-term consequences of these people’s experiences during the communist revolutions. The context of this book is a wide range of dramatic social transformations in China, from the Cultural Revolution to the individualism and Confucianism in Digital China. Supported by detailed ethnographic material, the observations and analyses provide a panoramic view of the social landscape of contemporary China, including topics such as the digital and everyday life, ageing and healthcare, intergenerational relations and family development, community building and grassroots organizations, collective memories and political attitudes among ordinary Chinese people." (Publisher description).
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"This manual offers ideas on how to discuss a violent past in an active manner. The manual mostly focuses on methodology: how to make learning about the past interesting for learners. There is less focus on the specific content of the past. To spark learner’s interest in the (violent) past, it is
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helpful to choose a learner-centered approach. This manual uses the following elements of learner-centered learning: to give learners a voice in what they want to learn about the past based on their own interests, to first let them find out by themselves before information is provided, to foster curiosity, to encourage joint learning and to link local findings with the wider history.
Encouraging discussion: As the title shows, a main aim of this manual is to provide learners – and facilitators – with activities to not only learn about the past, but also to discuss it. The activities let learners practice key elements of discussion, such as active listening (with the attempt to understand the other well), responding to each other’s statements or arguments, not judging others’ opinions, aiming to understand motives and intentions, etc. In this process, it is the facilitator’s task to guide the discussion, to keep it on topic and not let it get personal, ensure that different perspectives are included and that all learners can express themselves." (Introduction, page 1)
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"Surveillance infrastructure in China monitors and enables authorities to react to potential risky, miscreant or criminal behaviour. What type of behaviours are perceived to be so, is determined in large part by ideology. Therefore, surveillance infrastructure relies on the machinery of ideology to
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define the boundaries of its use. In this paper, we outline six key ideological concepts relating to governance in Xi Jinping’s China that have helped to expand the boundaries of surveillance. We identify terms embedded in promotional material of Hikvision and other surveillance technology firms as a springboard for conceptual discussion. The aim is to survey the ideological lexicon of concepts that position surveillance within the Party-state’s broad capacity-building ambitions for governance in Xi’s China. This positioning amplifies the political responsibility of state, social and market actors to work together to broaden surveillance activities for ‘society-building’ purposes, and ultimately for the realisation of Xi Jinping’s goal of National Rejuvenation." (Abstract)
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"This article focuses on the launch by the Chinese company Huawei of ICT academies in sub-Saharan Africa (SSA), and Kenya especially. Existing literature shows contrasting findings concerning the impact of such formation and recruitment centres. Through high-level thematic and sentiment analyses, th
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is article examines various Huawei accounts on social networking sites (SNSs) – that is, Facebook and Twitter – in order to better assess: (1) the kind of online corporate communication unfolded by the company with particular regard to these centres; and (2) how the advertising of such centres is perceived by users. The results suggest that Huawei’s online corporate requires better fine-tuning with local SNSs’ users." (Abstract)
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"The survey found that 13% of respondents’ organizations are very familiar with Gen AI, while an additional 46% possess a basic awareness. Among those who stated they had basic to good familiarity with Gen AI, 38% reported using it either daily or very frequently. The most common use of Gen AI was
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for research and idea generation, followed by content creation & copy editing, and translation. In terms of the platform, ChatGPT was by far the most widely used, followed by Bing AI, Midjourney, and Dall-E. The majority of respondents (94%) stated that they found Gen AI to be either very useful or somewhat useful. Furthermore 67% of respondents view the future of Gen AI as either very promising (22%) or promising (45%)." (Key findings, page 1)
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