"This report looks at how countries in Western Europe, in particular Sweden, Germany and the UK have developed press councils or complaints commissions and analyses recent initiatives in five countries of South East Europe aimed at improving journalistic standards and establishing some form of media
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self-regulation. Developments in Albania, Bulgaria, Bosnia and Herzegovina, Romania and Slovenia are explored through the testimonies of key stakeholders in the process: media owners, editors, journalists and non-governmental organisations. As the key findings and recommendations of the research reveal, there is no single fit-all model of media self-regulation that can be easily transferred from one country to another, but there are fundamental principles, which should be observed and useful lessons that can be learned." (Executive summary, page 6)
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"This thesis presents the major contributions of the Serbian independent electronic media to the struggle for the democratization of Serbia throughout the 1990s. The thesis also examines some aspects of the transformation of the media in Eastern Europe in the 1990s and outlines several different the
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oretical approaches to answering the question: Can media influence social change? The thesis further describes the development of Serbian independent electronic media from small outlets, such as Radio B 92 and NTV Studio B, to a strong association of independent local radio and TV stations. Due to institutionalization and international support, the independent radio and TV stations not only survived, but became important parts of the civil resistance movement against Slobodan MiloSeviC's regime. Finally, in the second half of the 1990s, a wide coalition of Serbian independent media, NGOs and oppositional political parties succeeded in creating the conditions for the regime's overthrow." (Abstract)
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"This publication has been produced in order to improve the chances of success of Poverty Reduction Strategies (PRSs) in two ways: 1. To show policymakers how strategic communication can help them to achieve some of their objectives in formulating and executing effective Poverty Reduction Strategies
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; 2. To give the technocrats and officials actively engaged in the execution of Poverty Reduction Strategy Papers (PRSPs) guidance on best practice as well as lessons from a community of practice spread around the world." (Executive Summary)
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"This paper derives from a seminar on Media Development and OSCE field missions, which was organised by Press Now and the Netherlands Helsinki Committee, and hosted by the Netherlands Foreign Ministry in The Hague on 16 June 2005. These remarks convey the summary thoughts and practical recommendatio
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ns that emerged at the seminar, together with our own conclusions as moderators of the event. They amplify the analysis and recommendations offered in Press Now’s 2004 report on media development by selected OSCE missions. Introduction: OSCE missions have done excellent work in media development. At the same time, limited resources have not always been well used. Lessons can be learned from the experiences of a decade and turned into practical proposals. Missions are affected by many variables largely or even fully beyond their control, including but not limited to their mandates, the situation in their host countries (political, military/security, economic, cultural), the level of international interest in their activity, and their staffing. Nevertheless, we believe it has been demonstrated again and again that media development – apart from its importance in its own right – is also a litmus test of a host government’s commitment to other democratisation and liberalisation efforts, and an enabler of such reforms." (Conclusions, page 6)
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"The article treats the two sides of book policy – prohibitive and creative, on the example of the Republic of Estonia. If the earlier period of book history was dominated by persecution of authors and prohibition of books, then the contemporary democratic societies manifest freedom of expression,
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stimulating the dissemination of the most diverse ideas." (Abstract, page 10)
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