"This collection engages with alternatives to mainstream radio systems, histories and concepts. It addresses the impacts and challenges that alternative, community and pirate radio represent." (Publisher description)
"This paper examines the extent to which an edutainment programme, MTV-Shuga, was reported to influence young people’s engagement with sexual and reproductive health (SRH) information in rural KwaZulu-Natal, South Africa. In 2019 we conducted eight community-based screenings of MTV-Shuga episodes
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followed by 25 individual indepth interviews and 13 focus group discussions with young people aged between 15 and 30. Interviews were audio recorded and transcribed verbatim. Data analysis was thematic and complemented by constant comparison and deviant case analysis techniques. In this rural and poor setting with a high burden of HIV, young people exhibited high levels of awareness of SRH and HIV but had constrained access to services, and limited ability to engage with parents or guardians on SRH matters. MTV Shuga provided an entertaining guide of ways to navigate the risks that they faced in a way that resonated with them. The findings highlight the importance of enabling young people in rural areas to watch MTV Shuga with peers in a safe space in which discussion of the content is facilitated. There is also value in encouraging parents to watch MTV Shuga as a means of enabling discussions between children and adults in their lives about SRH matters." (Abstract)
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"This fourth Fairwork report for South Africa continues to chart the evolution of the national platform economy. In South Africa, digital labour platforms hold the potential to reduce the extremely high levels of unemployment and inequality. However, the annual South African Fairwork ratings also p
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rovide evidence that platform workers, as in so many countries worldwide, continue to face unfair work conditions and lack the benefits and protections afforded to employees." (Executive Summary)
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"An international line-up of authors first discuss communication practices, strategies, and media uses by NGOs, providing insights into the specifics of NGO programs for social change goals and reveal particular sets of tactics NGOs commonly employ. The book then presents a set of case studies of NG
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O organizing from all over the world—ranging from Sudan via Brazil to China – to illustrate the particular contexts that make NGO advocacy necessary, while also highlighting successful initiatives to illuminate the important spaces NGOs occupy in civil society." (Publisher description)
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"The pandemic brought to crisis point prior trends facing independent news media, whether online or offline or hybrid. While media became more important than ever for citizens as a source of reliable information in an insecure and continuously changing world, newsrooms struggled to pay their bills.
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Already under financial pressure, many independent media have had to cut staff and even close shop. Transforming this moment of crisis into a window of opportunity, however, many in the media community, officialdom, academia, civil society and the private sector are taking action. They have come up with innovative ways to strengthen viability through initiatives that produce revenue and contribute to the central mission of independent journalism. Their efforts are a source of inspiration for media enterprises all around the world. To help multiply the achievements, this UNESCO publication profiles 11 case studies that can help ensure media viability without compromising editorial independence and journalistic integrity." (Back cover)
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"This book, produced on behalf of the IFLA Copyright and other Legal Matters (CLM) Advisory Committee, provides basic and advanced information about copyright, outlines limitations and exceptions, discusses communicating with users and highlights emerging copyright issues. The chapters note the sign
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ificance of the topic; describe salient points of the law and legal concepts; present selected comparisons of approaches around the world; highlight opportunities for reform and advocacy; and help libraries and librarians find their way through the copyright maze." (Publisher description)
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"This ground-breaking three-year global study on gender-based online violence against women journalists represents collaborative research covering 15 countries. It is the most geographically, linguistically, and ethnically diverse scoping of the crisis conducted up until late 2022. The research draw
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s on: the inputs of nearly 1,100 survey participants and interviewees; 2 big data case studies examining 2.5 million social media posts directed at Nobel Laureate Maria Ressa (The Philippines) and multi award-winning investigative journalist Carole Cadwalladr (UK); 15 detailed individual country case studies. The Chilling illuminates the evolving challenges faced by women journalists dealing with prolific and/or sustained online violence around the world. It calls out the victim-blaming and slut-shaming that perpetuates sexist and misogynistic responses to offline violence against women in the online environment, where patriarchal norms are being aggressively reinforced. It also clearly demonstrates that the incidence and impacts of gender-based online violence are worse at the intersection of misogyny and other forms of discrimination, such as racism, religious bigotry, antisemitism, homophobia and transphobia. Further, it identifies political actors who leverage misogyny and anti-news media narratives in their attacks as top perpetrators of online violence against women journalists, while the main vectors are social media platforms - most notably Facebook, Instagram, Twitter and YouTube." (Exexutive summary)
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"This study examines racism, antisemitism, and xenophobia on Facebook and Twitter. The authors were looking for patterns in the mass of posts, tweets, and images that circulate on social media. To do this, they focused on a series of case studies. These demonstrate that political discussion on socia
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l media is often dominated by angry and loud voices who too often seem to press the 'send button' before thinking of the consequences, or, in some cases, deliberately aim to sow discord and division." (Foreword)
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"This book Visual Cultures of Africa tells stories of the past, present, and future and how intricately linked cultures and identities are. The book explores the complex histories and discusses how people have used images, objects, and artefacts to describe what is going on in society and give expre
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ssions of their fears, hopes, and resolutions for centuries." (Preface)
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"This study argues for the diversification of South Africa's digital economy, as it builds a case for the support of platform co-operatives, which are worker-owned and managed social enterprises that contribute to the diversification, decentralisation and democratisation of the digital economy by fo
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stering structural change for fair social outcomes as a natural consequence of economic development. Platform cooperatives represent an important counterbalance to the rent-seeking venture capital funded tech monopolies that currently dominate the platform economy. This study views their emergence - as well as other social enterprise models - as a gauge for the diversification of South Africa's digital economy." (Introduction)
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"This study analyses the impacts of COVID-19 and its associated public policy responses on digital and intersectional inequality in South Africa from a demand-side perspective. The overarching research question it seeks to address is: To what extent were people in South Africa able to mitigate the n
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egative (health and economic) effects of the pandemic and lockdowns through digital substitution? It draws on the results of a national phone questionnaire of 1 400 randomly selected respondents and the findings from six focus groups of men and women from urban and rural areas to examine the levels of digital substitution in relation to work, schooling and economic activity (such as banking, e-commerce and online business). It also investigates how digital substitution enabled access to social protection and COVID-19 relief. Finally, it discusses how public and infrastructure policies could be optimised for post-pandemic recovery and future policies." (Executive summary)
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"Worldwide, it is anticipated that care needs of older populations will outstrip available resources. Sub-Saharan Africa lacks relevant long-term care systems for older persons, and technology could play a crucial role in supporting families, communities and government in vital care management. This
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volume addresses, in three parts, the under-explored topic of age-inclusive ICT development and use in resource-poor countries. Part 1, Context and Project Background, sets out ICT service delivery to older persons globally and within South Africa, drawing on guiding legislative frameworks. It discusses the we-deliver project as an example of developing and applying age-inclusive technology in developing countries. Part 2, Principles, Process and Applications, proposes situationally and relationally informed ethical conduct in applying community-based research; the development of a questionnaire and application to present first-time baseline findings of older South Africans’ cell phone use, highlighting its intergenerational facilitation. The development of the Yabelana (alluding to ‘sharing’) ecosystem (consisting of a website, an app, and an unstructured supplementary service data (USSD) code) turned out to be a first of its kind: a digital self-sustaining technology artefact that serves as an eDirectory to provide information about local services or events for (but not exclusively) older individuals. Part 3, Critical Reflections and the Way Forward, considers the inclusion of marginalized older individuals and the future of ICT and cell phone technology to inform research, practice, and policy." (Back cover)
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"This paper measures how often audiences in Kenya, Nigeria and South Africa consume Chinese media, and investigates whether a positive relationship exists between the consumption of English language Chinese media and attitudes towards China. Method: We analyze three waves of survey data collected in
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2017/2018, 2020 and 2021 (N = 5876) in Kenya, Nigeria, and South Africa. Findings: We show that, while Chinese State-owned news media have a growing but limited following, the minority of media users who report getting news from Chinese media have better attitudes towards China than those who don’t. Implications: Our findings suggest that Beijing’s external communication activities might have the potential to fulfil Beijing’s goal of improving the country’s image overseas, provided that media reached a wider audience." (Abstract)
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"Digital technologies enable small-scale farmers to reduce some constraints to participate in Agriculture Value Chains (AVCs). Small-scale farmers face significant challenges and barriers to adopting digital technology. This study contributes to the literature on digital development in three ways: p
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resent the economic, political, and social factors affecting digital adoption in the AVCs; highlight the implications for governance and institutional challenges; adds knowledge to the analytical value of the Choice Frameworkto study digital technology adoption. This paper after identifying more than 100 papers and articles, uses a Systematic Literature Review (SLR) aligned with Cooper’s (Research synthesis and meta-analysis: A step-by-step approach, 5th ed. 2010) approach to examine 52 articles published from 2014 to 2019, ultimately selecting the most relevant 36 studies. The study uses the Choice Framework that operationalizes the Capabilities Approach (CA) as a theoretical window for this research. Papers were classified into four different categories: economic; political; social factors; institutional/governance. The findings show: - the role of the state in governance and institutional support is critical to facilitate the collaboration and participation of different actors;-the importance to develop acomprehensive localized developmental implementation framework that can support the adoption of digital solutions to support small-scale farmers. Limitations for this study are highlighted and areas for further research are suggested." (Abstract)
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"As Africa’s digital dynamism grows, its participation in global digital policy must increase. In this transition, African countries have to navigate the geopolitical realities of our times. This study provides a snapshot of Africa’s digital diplomacy by examining the holistic representations of
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national and continental interests in the digital realm. In addition to the role of official diplomacy, this study also looks at the roles of tech developers, businesses, local communities, and others with the necessary skills and expertise for participation in international digital policy. It is critical that many African countries mobilise all human and institutional resources to enable their active engagement in digital foreign policy and diplomacy. While most African countries are in the early phase of their digital diplomacy journey, there are many practices and initiatives that could help a faster take off of digital diplomacy in Africa. These practices and initiatives are identified in this study with many concrete examples, 55 charts and infographics, over 500 references, and case studies of 8 African countries." (About this study)
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"The volume helps us deconstruct COVID-19 discourses on crisis communication and media developments focusing on three areas: Media viability, Framing and Health crisis communication. The chapters unpack issues on marginalisation, gender, media sustainability, credibility, priming, trust, sources, be
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havioural change, mental health, (mis)information, vaccine hesitancy and myths and more. Ultimately, this volume roots for sustainable and quality journalism, human (information and communication) rights, commitment to truth and efficacious (health) crisis communication." (Publisher description)
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"This volume investigates the uptake of 'open learning' in South African Technical Vocational Education and Training (TVET) colleges and higher education institutions. Comprised of 16 studies focused on activities at a range of colleges and universities across the country, these chapters aim to prom
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ote a better understanding of open learning practices across the Post- School Education and Training (PSET) sector, including issues such as: recognition of prior learning, access for students with disabilities, work integrated learning, professional development, novel student funding mechanisms, leadership for open educational practices, institutional culture, student support, blended and online learning, flexible learning, online assessment, open educational resource development models and funding, and micro- credentials. This collection of peer-reviewed chapters contributes to understanding the ways in which South African PSET institutions and educators are interpreting 'open learning' as a means of advancing social justice. It includes a historical and contemporary understanding of the economic, cultural and political obstacles facing PSET, drawing on Nancy Fraser's theory of social justice as 'participatory parity' to better understand the ways in which 'open learning' may address systemic social injustices in order to allow South African students and educators to thrive. This volume emerges from research conducted by the Cases on Open Learning (COOL) project, an initiative by the Department of Higher Education and Training in partnership with the Centre for Innovation in Learning and Teaching (CILT) at the University of Cape Town (UCT) in South Africa." (Publisher description)
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"This book discusses the role of television drama series on a global scale, analyzing these dramas across the Americas, Europe, Asia, Australia, and Africa. Contributors consider the role of television dramas as economically valuable cultural products and with their depictions of gender roles, sexua
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lities, race, cultural values, political systems, and religious beliefs as they analyze how these programs allow us to indulge our innate desire to share human narratives in a way that binds us together and encourages audiences to persevere as a community on a global scale. Contributors also go on to explore the role of television dramas as a medium that indulges fantasies and escapism and reckons with reality as it allows audiences to experience emotions of happiness, sorrow, fear, and outrage in both realistic and fantastical scenarios." (Publisher description)
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"Trust in the news has fallen in almost half the countries in our survey, and risen in just seven, partly reversing the gains made at the height of the Coronavirus pandemic. On average, around four in ten of our total sample (42%) say they trust most news most of the time. Finland remains the countr
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y with the highest levels of overall trust (69%), while news trust in the USA has fallen by a further three percentage points and remains the lowest (26%) in our survey.
• Consumption of traditional media, such as TV and print, declined further in the last year in almost all markets (pre-Ukraine invasion), with online and social consumption not making up the gap. While the majority remain very engaged, others are turning away from the news media and in some cases disconnecting from news altogether. Interest in news has fallen sharply across markets, from 63% in 2017 to 51% in 2022.
• Meanwhile, the proportion of news consumers who say they avoid news, often or sometimes, has increased sharply across countries. This type of selective avoidance has doubled in both Brazil (54%) and the UK (46%) over the last five years, with many respondents saying news has a negative effect on their mood. A significant proportion of younger and less educated people say they avoid news because it can be hard to follow or understand – suggesting that the news media could do much more to simplify language and better explain or contextualise complex stories.
• In the five countries we surveyed after the war in Ukraine had begun, we find that television news is relied on most heavily – with countries closest to the fighting, such as Germany and Poland, seeing the biggest increases in consumption. Selective news avoidance has, if anything, increased further – likely due to the difficult and depressing nature of the coverage.
• Global concerns about false and misleading information remain stable this year, ranging from 72% in Kenya and Nigeria to just 32% in Germany and 31% in Austria. People say they have seen more false information about Coronavirus than about politics in most countries, but the situation is reversed in Turkey, Kenya, and the Philippines, amongst others." (Summary, page 10)
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