"This article aims to discuss what we call environmental opacity, a condition of mobile instant messaging services (MIMS) that operates on the basis of end-to-end encryption systems. Utilizing WhatsApp as a specific example, the article presents two fundamental dilemmas around which some issues conc
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erning transparency are mobilized when it comes to digital private communication. The first of them relates to how end-to-end encryption has simultaneously become an asset and a problem for democratic environments; on the one hand, protecting users’ privacy, and on the other, allowing for the circulation of misinformation and harmful content. The second dilemma deals with how this environment of opacity impacts the ethics and transparency of scholarly research focused on WhatsApp and other MIMSs. The paper also reviews an extensive body of studies that discuss the political uses of WhatsApp in different dimensions, and argues that emerging countries with large user bases, such as Brazil and India, have experienced a series of negative effects after the adoption of WhatsApp by politically oriented groups. Among the main proposals, the article suggests some measures to foster platform transparency and facilitate scientific research instead of hindering it." (Abstract)
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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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"Uma campanha anti-imprensa permanente força e acelera a perda de credibilidade da mídia profissional. Os ataques são orquestrados e contam com um ecossistema de desinformação bem estruturado e auto-sustentável. A campanha é financiada por políticos de pequena expressão e veículos de junk.
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news. Sistemas de recomendação favorecem veículos que reforçam o modelo de negócios da plataforma, independente da qualidade do conteúdo." (Diagnóstico geral, 56)
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"This book is the result of a conference that could not take place. It is a collection of 26 texts that address and discuss the latest developments in international hate speech research from a wide range of disciplinary perspectives. This includes case studies from Brazil, Lebanon, Poland, Nigeria,
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and India, theoretical introductions to the concepts of hate speech, dangerous speech, incivility, toxicity, extreme speech, and dark participation, as well as reflections on methodological challenges such as scraping, annotation, datafication, implicity, explainability, and machine learning. As such, it provides a much-needed forum for cross-national and cross-disciplinary conversations in what is currently a very vibrant field of research." (Back cover)
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"This document is a detailed report of best practices for the digital inclusion of speakers of endangered Indigenous languages. The proclamation of the period between 2022 and 2032 as the International Decade of Indigenous Languages (IDIL 2022-2032), as per Resolution A/RES/74/135 from United Nation
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s General Assembly, shines a spotlight on the issue and invites the world to pay more attention to the critical and fragile situation of many Indigenous languages. This document aims to provide a blueprint for the addition of Indigenous languages into software in order to aid digital inclusion efforts, and to provide a set of recommended steps to follow in order to successfully achieve it. As new generations of Indigenous people increase their literacy and use of technology, it is crucial that they are able to use their native language in digital formats to avoid the endangerment and loss of language. With the main goals of promoting the written form of a language in a natural vehicle such as technology, bringing awareness to the endangered Indigenous languages and working towards their survival, Motorola has open-sourced over 800,000 translated Indigenous words as of April 2023 through its official website, enabling other OEMs and companies to promote the languages through their interfaces and paving the way for broader use and revitalization efforts." (Introduction)
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"This article applies the concept of cult TV to Brazilian telenovelas. The term cult TV is used to refer to products that were perceived to be different from mainstream popular culture. However, theoretical contexts have started to embrace the notion of a mainstream cult. With the concept of a mains
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tream cult in mind, I will argue that some telenovelas are responsible for occasioning a ritual which forms a national community, and could thus be considered cult for three main reasons: they can acquire nostalgic appeal; they can present aesthetic innovation even within a classic format; and they sometimes engender a type of audience engagement that stands out from other productions. This third reason will be addressed closely from the perspective of the audience, arguing that their opinion on what is a cult should be considered in relation to the academic debate around the concept. Amongst the main results, I highlight the identification of telenovelas as popular productions that may be considered cult TV, and the growing importance of common sense understandings for our consideration of concepts in the field of Communications." (Abstract)
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"The spread of disinformation has been a topic of heightened concern, particularly during the COVID-19 pandemic, as the response to a public health crisis relies on the ability for public officials to inform citizens. Using a representative two-wave panel of internet users in Brazil, we examine the
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relationship between pathways to information, WhatsApp use, and the persistence of misinformed beliefs about the pandemic. We find a strong relationship between presidential support, right-wing news sources, and participating in WhatsApp groups with strangers, and becoming more misinformed over time. Conversely, most media diets (traditional news media, social media and WhatsApp for news) had no effect. However, Bolsonaro supporters, using WhatsApp and Facebook for news was strongly associated with increasing and persistent misinformation. Our findings provide further evidence that political leaders undermine a country’s ability to respond to a pandemic insofar as they breed mistrust in other institutions by instrumentalizing public health measures to win political fights." (Abstract)
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"This article analyses the Brazilian PL 2630, so-called “fake news bill,” according to platform regulation approaches focused on speech, data, and market power. This law project was introduced in 2020 with the objective to fight disinformation campaigns in digital platforms such as social media
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and messaging services. After a multistakeholder debate, the latest version of the bill before the 2022 general elections was presented in the Chamber of Deputies. This article argues that the bill takes different stances with regard to those three basic elements. The bill strongly draws on the dimension of speech, establishing requirements for transparency in content moderation following the highest international standards. On data and market power, however, the bill makes no significant progress, with little contribution, for example, to tackling the surveillance-based business model. This way, it does not touch on structural conditions that shape disinformation campaigns, such as the profit motive of digital platforms. It follows a general pattern of platform regulation, leaving structural features untouched and, this way, eventually undermining stronger efforts against online disinformation." (Abstract)
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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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"A Associação Brasileira de Pesquisadores e Comunicadores em Comunicação Popular, Comunitária e Cidadã (ABPCom) tem ampliado os espaços de estudos e de pesquisas sobre cidadania comunicativa. Sua trajetória de mais de 15 anos e as contribuições dos seus associados demonstram que as comunic
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ações alternativa, popular e comunitária estão presentes no escopo central das reflexões críticas apresentadas nas atividades propostas. As abordagens teóricas e empíricas evidenciam as relações que conectam e direcionam para a comunicação cidadã, seus atravessamentos e transversalidades reconhecendo as vivências individuais e coletivas como parte do processo comunicativo." (Resumo)
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"El afrofuturismo se propone como clave de lectura para señalar Contos dos Orixás, de Hugo Canuto como expresión decolonial. La publicación asimila un elemento cultural – el estilo del dibujante de cómics Jack Kirby – para dibujar la mitología de los orixás en una perspectiva brasileña d
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e la cultura Yorùbá. La metodología aplica el “cruzo” de Simas y Rufino para articular Afrofuturismo, Diseño y Estudios Culturales en un análisis que aborda el conocimiento desde lo que Grosfoguel entiende como el lado subalternizado de la diferencia colonial. Se concluye que la iconografía Yorùbá fue actualizada en el cruzo con el diseño futurista de Kirby a partir de elementos afrobrasileños." (Resumo)
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"Dezessete emissoras de rádio comunitárias localizadas em 15 cidades pequenas no entorno de Imperatriz, a segunda cidade mais populosa do estado do Maranhão, são o objeto desta análise. As rádios comunitárias predominam na região Nordeste e, em muitos casos, são a única referência de míd
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ia para a comunidade, o que dá a dimensão dos efeitos da sua proximidade e influência. A maioria das emissoras analisadas está localizada em regiões com densidade demográfica inferior a 50 habitantes por quilômetro quadrado, apresenta Índice de Desenvolvimento Humano Municipal (IDHM) Baixo ou Médio e tem menos de 30 anos. Nesse cenário, os laços políticos, as ligações religiosas, o baixo orçamento e a falta de uma produção verdadeiramente local são os elementos estruturais que fundamentam este artigo." (Resumo)
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"Este artigo tem por objetivo identificar de que maneira a tecnologia pode afetar a produção radiojornalística local. Para isso, realizou-se a análise sistemática do programa RBV Notícias da cidade de Videira (SC) durante dez dias do ano de 2021. Como resultados, observou-se que o programa RBV
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Notícias está progredindo em termos de desenvolvimento tecnológico, o que colaborou com a qualidade de transmissão dos conteúdos e aumentou a área de abrangência de acesso, porém, não houve a priorização dos conteúdos jornalísticos locais." (Resumo)
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"Este artigo avaliou o rádio de proximidade em Mato Grosso do Sul, no interior do Brasil, a partir de sua presença e performance na produção e circulação de conteúdo no ambiente multiplataforma. Além de pesquisa cartográfica, realizada em 91 emissoras FMs comerciais, a investigação envolv
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eu análise qualitativa em quatro estações situadas nas principais regiões geográficas do estado. Os dados indicam que, embora integradas ao contexto digital, as estações apresentam performance analógica na produção circulação de conteúdo." (Resumo)
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"Em um cenário de convergência midiática, o rádio se expande (Kischinhevsky, 2016) ao transbordar o conteúdo das ondas hertezianas para a internet e os meios digitais, passando a formar um novo ecossistema. Neste contexto, o do rádio hipermidiático (Lopez, 2009), a audiência, agora ouvinte-i
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nternauta, provoca o veículo a criar novos gêneros. Ele segue como importante fonte de informação e entretenimento, mas passa a adotar estratégias que incorporam formatos antes só vistos na televisão. Neste artigo, analisamos o fenômeno social do rádio que é ouvido, sentido e visto em Pernambuco, no Nordeste do Brasil." (Resumo)
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