"Based on a 5-year study, involving over 150 in-depth interviews, this book examines the political, economic and social forces that sustain and influence humanitarian journalists. The authors argue that – by amplifying marginalised voices and providing critical, in-depth explanations of neglected ...crises – these journalists show us that another kind of humanitarian journalism is possible. However, the authors also reveal the heavy price these reporters pay for deviating from conventional journalistic norms. Their peripheral position at the ‘boundary zone’ between the journalistic and humanitarian fields means that a humanitarian journalist’s job is often precarious – with direct implications for their work, especially as ‘watchdogs’ for the aid sector. As a result, they urgently need more support if they are to continue to do this work and promote more effective and accountable humanitarian action." (Publisher)
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"Over 2022, we have identified shifts in how a range of terrorist and violent extremist (TVE) networks operate online, including both Islamist and far-right terrorist groups and individuals. These shifts include changes in the types of platforms they target, the methods of propaganda sharing, and in... online responses to offline events. In summary, TVE entities have expanded their online capabilities through the exploitation of new platforms and platform types to share propaganda, communicate, and fundraise. Most trends in TVE behaviour outlined in this report are caused at least in part by improved content moderation in recent years by tech platforms and demonstrate the continued resilience and adaptability of TVE networks online." (Introduction)
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"Digitalisierung, Transnationalisierung und Kommerzialisierung stellen die Medienpolitik vor große Herausforderungen. Wie kann sichergestellt werden, dass Medien und Plattformen ihre wichtige Funktion in einer demokratischen Gesellschaft erfüllen? In diese Thematik führt Manuel Puppis systematisc...h und umfassend ein. Er vermittelt die Grundlagen für eine kritische Auseinandersetzung mit Medienpolitik, Medienregulierung und Media Governance. Problemorientiert und international vergleichend diskutiert er die verschiedenen Themenbereiche der Medienpolitik in Europa – von Medienkonzentration über den öffentlichen Rundfunk, Medienförderung, Plattformen und Algorithmen bis hin zu Medienkompetenz und Datenschutz." (Verlag)
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"Applying an inclusive concept of ‘conflicted societies’ that goes beyond those affected by violent conflict to include traditionally ‘stable’ but increasingly polarised democracies, such as the UK and the USA, contributors engage with longstanding questions and new challenges surrounding co...ncepts of responsibility, trust, public service, and public interest in journalism. The unique span of studies offers international scope, including societies often overlooked in media and journalism studies, such as Northern Ireland, Turkey, Cyprus, Pakistan, The Democratic Republic of Congo, and the Central African Republic. Chapters also feature contemporary case studies, such as the COVID-19 pandemic, as a route into understanding the pertinent issue of fake news, and the ‘local turn’ in journalism." (Publisher)
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"The evolution of media towards mainly digital platforms has provoked a long crisis in their financing, often resulting in them being absorbed into large industrial groups seeking political influence. In the North as in the South, economic models for independent news and information need to be reinv...ented." (p.1)
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"The MDP has made the safety of Palestinian journalists one of its priority areas of intervention. Building on a series of training courses and open dialogues organized by UNESCO with support from SIDA in 2017 between journalists and members of the Palestinian security forces, UNESCO sustained its a...dvocacy efforts throughout 2018 and advanced planning for activities rolled out in 2019. The year 2019 was marked by two major achievements in advancing the safety of Palestinian journalists and enhancing the implementation of the UN Plan of Action on the Safety of Journalists and Issue of Impunity, namely the creation of a Safety Officers Network across several media organizations and the establishment of a national monitoring mechanism, launched in cooperation with the Palestinian Journalists’ Syndicate and under the patronage of the Prime Minister of Palestine. Both the network and the mechanism were reinforced throughout 2020 and 2021 through series of capacity-building activities and in-house coaching for their respective members." (p.1)
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"Religious fundamentalists have a common fear that modernity, digital mass media, and popular culture may corrupt young adults and undermine sacred values and moral codes. However, some young adults do not abandon their religion; conversely, they submit to fundamentalist religious authority and are ...willing to become martyrs. This paper seeks to provide a theoretical understanding of the relationship between religious fundamentalism and Gen Y and Gen Z’s search for meaning in the digital media ecology. The purpose of this article is to synthesize the theoretical perspectives of religious fundamentalism, imagined communities, sacred values, terror-management-theory and digital media theories to generate new insights on countering online radicalization. However rather than recommending more online counterpropaganda dampening violent extremism targeting communities, this article builds on the view that an integrated approach on digital citizenship, off-line interfaith communication, and religious face-to-face encounters with ‘the other’ to share sacred and secular values in the pedagogical environment will help understand the social reality of ‘the other’ and can offer effective insights to prevent home-grown extremism, social insularity and reduce in-group biases at an early age." (Abstract)
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"Journalists and independent press are tried and prosecuted with harsh charges that reach up to 20 years of imprisonment under the Penal Code, rather than the Press Code of 2016, which abolished imprisonment for criticising the monarch. The government closely monitors and controls media content thro...ugh subsidies (fisking), advertising allocation, and rigorous regulation and licensing procedures. Opposition journalists have been jailed on dubious allegations, and been subjected to systematic slander and smear campaigns on social media platforms by pro-monarch media outlets that are largely dominated by the regime or echo the Moroccan authorities’ official line. These campaigns have largely centred on tarnishing the reputation and image of activists, reducing solidarity with their cause, and undermining their credibility in Moroccan society, resulting in self-censorship. In this stifling and threatening atmosphere, several journalists have opted for self-exile. Authorities regularly promise new reforms and democratic developments, yet they respond to protests with crackdowns, including by restricting access to information and critical tools, imposing internet shutdowns and throttling bandwidth during popular demonstrations which was the case for Hirak Al Rif movement." (Executive summary)
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"According to Reporters Without Borders (RSF), half of the media in the country is owned by the government or affiliated with the intelligence services. The rest are owned by pro-government businessmen. The few independent press websites that are still open have been blocked. Their owners and editor...s were arrested and then released shortly after, as happened to Mada Masr and Al-Manassa. More than 500 websites have been blocked in Egypt, and more than 100 journalists have been arrested since 2014. The adoption of new regulations like the anti-terrorism law and cyber crime law and the creation of the Supreme Council for Media Regulation suppressed the freedom of expression and shut down the way to a free press. These new laws and regulations have affected the work of journalists who are at risk of charges such as belonging to a terrorist group or spreading false news. To the international community, Egypt denies imprisoning journalists for their work, which is true to some extent because Egyptian security is trying and imprisoning journalists on charges such as belonging to terrorist groups, without directly linking it to their journalistic work. The Airtable analysis undertaken in this project attempts to reflect the situation around monitoring technology through online content over the past few years. We can see a repeated goal of restricting the freedom of online spaces and banning any narrative parallel to the official one. This can be seen in the Attorney General's orders to establish a unit to monitor and monitor social media platforms and activities, contrary to constitutional articles that protect people's privacy and their right to freedom of expression." (https://advox.globalvoices.org)
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"Tanzania has exercised authority on digital avenues in three main vital ways:• Surveillance: Data governance in Tanzania has been one area that has had fewer restrictions as there are still laws that adequately speak to things such as data protection and privacy. However, laws such as the Cyb...ercrime Act provide government agencies with leeway to access certain things when it suits them.• Internet censorship: Tanzania’s first internet shutdown happened in 2020 and did not come as a surprise, as the country had already shown red flags in terms of internet censorship. The control and regulation of who and what content is allowed online have prompted many to believe that Tanzania is on the verge of building a replica of China’s Great Firewall that will keep the space regulated and stirred by the government’s agenda.• Legislating restrictions: This is used to constrain freedom of expression and curb speech. Press freedom has been stifled through laws, citizen journalism has been taxed, and free speech has been tagged as sedition or misinformation. It is clearing the path for the government to have the upper hand in controlling narratives and polarising opinions." (Executive summary)
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"This white paper seeks to provide an overview of the core thematic issues around digital rights and digital safety across the world. The content builds off a global mapping exercise of organisations and knowledge, predominantly focused on Africa and the Middle East, Latin America, Asia-Pacific, Eas...tern Europe and Central Asia. This document is intended to serve as a primer for practitioners and newcomers into the field of digital rights to gain a broad understanding of key issues within this ecosystem." (Introduction, p.5)
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"Existing literature recognizes growing threats to press freedom around the world and documents changes in the tools used to stifle the independent press. However, few studies investigate how independent media respond to state pressure in an autocracy, documenting the impact of tactics that stop sh...ort of shuttering alternatives to state media. Do independent outlets re-orient coverage to favor regime interests? Or does repression encourage more negative coverage of the regime instead? To shed light on these questions, we investigate how the abrupt removal of independent outlet TV Rain from Russian television providers influenced its coverage. We find that shortly after providers dropped TV Rain, the tone of its political coverage became more positive and its similarity with state-controlled Channel 1 increased. However, these effects were shortlived. Additional evidence suggests that subscription revenue contributed to the station’s resilience. These findings add to our understanding of media manipulation and authoritarian endurance." (Abstract)
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"The observations made in this report make emphatically clear the failings of the current legal framework in defending human rights in the context of access to the internet. As seen in the report, the disruption of access to the internet is triggered at the most menial of instances, including for re...asons where alternatives to internet shutdowns are available. The glaring absence of necessity, rationality, proportionality, and due process in the exercise of shutdown powers has attracted significant disrepute to the state of democracy in India." (Way forward, p.43)
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"This position paper puts forward suggestions for further practical and theoretical engagement with media development cooperation. It draws from the experience of the four-year graduate school MEDAS 21 engaging with diverse perspectives in this broad field." (Executive summary)
"Combating illegal parking and drinking in public is the raison d’être of Russia’s best-known law-and-order youth initiatives, StopKham and Lev Protiv. These initiatives enforce and promote neotraditional morals amongst young people by challenging alleged offenders on camera and uploading the e...ntertaining, humorous and often violent video clips to YouTube. I argue that their practices encapsulate flexible authoritarianism, in which the regime incentivises citizens to take initiative while expanding repressive measures against dissenters. Not only do these enterprises reflect the regime’s goals back at itself, they also popularise a new ideal of heroic masculinity that fuses patriotism with entrepreneurialism." (Abstract)
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"The COVID-19 pandemic, global economic downturn, anti-press violence and worsening situation of labour precarity for journalists around the world have led to increased stress, trauma and burnout in the profession, which raises questions at the heart of media sustainability and approaches to media d...evelopment in a global context. Our study builds on the conceptual framework of professional and collective resilience research to analyse the content of media development work on publicly facing websites of a census of implementing organizations represented on the Center for International Media Assistance website (N = 18). Our findings suggest that donors and other sponsors of media development work should consider making resilience a core component of global programmes in support of media democracy and journalism. Though programmatic agendas in global media development are crowded with multiple goals in response to complex problems, we believe that resilience should be prioritized. This work cannot be done without a nuanced analysis of local causes of emotional distress as well as local understandings of emotional labour and repair. Working with journalists’ support organizations and employers in conducting diagnoses, identifying suitable actions and promoting sustainable practices is imperative. Recommendations and actions need to be sensitive to local conditions, demands and opportunities. While immediate remediation actions are important, it is also important to keep attention on long-term structural matters that cause emotional distress." (Abstract)
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"What comes next for media development? Though the contributors to this volume [i.e., the special issue focusing on international media development] provide answers from diverse perspectives, they each touch upon questions of agency and localization. The contributors investigate major issues with a ...bearing on media development literature in a bid to explore some conceptual frameworks and lay down a path for an action-oriented practice." (p.137)
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"In 2021, the GxR metric registered two of the most dramatic declines ever seen: both Afghanistan and Myanmar dropped more than 30 points, plummeting two categories, as democratic governments were driven out and people were brutally attacked as they resisted the takeover of their governments. Countr...ies working towards democracy and slowly shaking themselves free of embattled pasts found progress undermined, and years of work opening up the space for expression disappeared. Non-democratic changes in power rarely bode well for freedom of expression: the violence with which regimes immediately target journalists, activists, and populations shows that repressive regimes – militia and military alike – are keenly aware of the power of information and expression. Polarisation and disinformation continue to characterise many media environments, often serving those in power and sometimes driven by leaders and ruling parties like Brazil’s President Jair Bolsonaro. These types of content, by design of algorithms, thrive on social media platforms. With five coups in 2021 (plus another in Burkina Faso in January 2022), leaders act against democracy in increasingly brazen ways, both in power grabs and within democratic government, eroding systems and institutions from the inside." (p.11)
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"This article tries to show that media development work could be based less on the idea of cooperation, but rather be perceived as a dominance of foreign funding countries and their politics. Taking this view, the donor organisations’ perceived dominance in controlling the entire process and meeti...ng their requirements seem to be more important than establishing relationships built on trust with the actors on site, and openness to adjust projects and funds to local needs on a more ad hoc basis. Based on a literature review and two case studies in India and Ghana, Elbers, Knippenberg and Schulpen (2014) explain why the approach to control often wins over the approach of trust; and what this means for development cooperation. According to them, the approach to control is based on the phenomenon of “development managerialism” where “[e]ffectiveness, efficiency and transparency became key principles” (p.1). Here, trust is replaced by indicators that can be controlled and measured to guarantee effectiveness and efficiency and justify funding decisions. At this point, it needs to be mentioned that donors and other funding organizations themselves have to be accountable to their central auditing authorities in their re-spective home countries. Thus, the focus on controlling the process at the expense of neglecting empowerment and autonomy of the recipients maybe beyond their control or intention." (p.8)
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