"Nowhere in modern history has media assistance been as concentrated and large in scale as in the case of Kosovo, where under the auspices of the OSCE, different state and non-governmental actors have invested millions in the crisis-ridden media system. This thesis discusses the strategies for media
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assistance actors in Kosovo and focuses on their outcome by questioning whether the international actors involved have been able to establish a more democratic media system, and questioning which strategies have been successful and which have not. The results are discussed by utilising the theoretical framework of the modernisation theory. The author has interviewed media assistance actors by using two methods: an online survey and face-to-face interviews. In addition, 26 Kosovar journalists, media owners and researchers were questioned in order to evaluate the approach used by the international actors. The findings primarily suggest that media assistance actors have focused too little on economic development in Kosovo and that since the beginning of the international intervention, Kosovar media has never been as fragile and threatened as now." (Abstract)
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"Diese Arbeit skizziert Ansätze für eine holistische Theorie der Medienentwicklungszusammenarbeit, kurz MEZ. Sie geht der Frage nach, wie sich die MEZ beschreiben lässt und in welchen Zusammenhängen sie gesehen werden muss. Forschung und Praxis haben dies bislang weitgehend versäumt, sodass unk
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lar ist, welche Rolle die Medien für die gesellschaftliche Entwicklung spielen. Weder in den Geber- noch in den Entwicklungsländern findet der notwendige wissenschaftliche Diskurs über Wirkungen und Herausforderungen der MEZ statt. Es liegen veraltete Modelle vor, die der Medienrealität im 21. Jahrhundert nicht mehr gerecht werden. Eine ganzheitliche Theorie benötigt Analyseebenen, die aus der jüngeren theoretischen und praktischen MEZ-Literatur abgeleitet werden. Sie werden entsprechend der „Worlds of Journalism Study“ modifiziert und miteinander in Beziehung gesetzt. Daraus ergeben sich zunächst internationale und gesellschaftliche Rahmenbedingungen, die auf die MEZ ebenso einwirken wie Paradigmen der Entwicklungszusammenarbeit, etwa die Demokratisierung und Good Governance." (Kurzzusammenfassung, Seite iii)
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"Since the beginning of the 1970s, the Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung has taken a holistic approach to its support of the media in its international and European cooperation efforts. What started as individual training projects for senior journalists and the support of communications studies in Latin Amer
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ica then became a range of activities within the regional media programme for Latin America at the beginning of the 1990s. The transnational approach was so successful from the start that the foundation started another media programme in Asia in 1996. The programmes in sub-Saharan Africa and in Southeast Europe followed in 2002 and 2007. Free and independent media are central to any democratic system. Promoting them is the Konrad-Adenauer-Stiftung’s mission and responsibility. We hope to contribute to ensuring that the media perform their role in the development and stabilisation of democracy worldwide, and live up to their political responsibility." (Foreword, page 3)
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"The international development community needs to spend less time training journalists and more time on efforts to build country level leadership for a strong and independent media as a key institution of development. This means longer-term programs, facilitating carefully planned and rigorous appro
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aches to multi-stakeholder engagement, and South-South knowledge exchange led by local champions. Building broad consensus on the important role of the media is a job that will require concerted action not only by local governments, activists and opinion leaders but also donors and the major international organizations engaged in development. As shown by the successful cases, donors and partner countries need to work together to consider the media environment in governance and public sector reforms, in reforms of the business environment, and efforts to improve the judiciary and rule of law. Our work has also demonstrated how much we don’t know about the media, particularly in the developing world. This lack of data and information about developing media markets is a significant barrier to building successful media enterprises, as well as an obstacle to donors and others who wish to support media development. New efforts should be made to expand data collection on the media in developing countries, and in particular, to help local media participants get access to data on audiences and advertising that are critical to building successful media enterprises." (Executive summary)
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"Linked by mobile telephony and supported by geographical information systems, civil society networks now have unprecedented opportunities to develop security-monitoring programs, provide information needed for effective health care, create banking services, and provide farmers with market informati
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on. Remarkably innovative uses of mobile communications, often paired with radio broadcasting, have created entirely new types of institutions that promote transparency, accountability, and security. These evolving institutions are often organic to Africa and pegged to the immediate needs of the communities they serve. Technology innovation centers, created and staffed by African engineers and technicians, are leading the way in developing solutions to longstanding problems. Mobile phones are now irrevocable features of African life, and high-speed Internet connectivity soon will be too. While the new information technologies can, at times, be used for less positive purposes, including crime and politically motivated violence, on the whole they are enhancing human security and sustainable economic development across the continent. As with all technology, on their own they are politically neutral. The key to realizing the positive potential in new technologies in Africa is found in focusing on the human motivations behind them. Policy initiatives, therefore, should focus on encouraging the development of applications that aim to improve human security, accountability, and transparency." (Executive summary)
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"Im Rahmen seiner Darstellung der Aktivitäten der Friedrich-Ebert-Stiftung in China beschreibt der Autor in einem Unterkapitel (Seite 180-193) die Medienzusammenarbeit der FES in China zwischen 1980 und 1990." (commbox)
"This guide aims to bring together the most relevant literature on media development cooperation, be it of practical or academic nature and regardless of its ideological background. Included were publications which: focus on media development, i.e. the development of an professional, independent and
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sustainable media sector (and not on development communication, i.e. the use of media as communication channel for development issues); address explicitly the role of foreign assistance in media development; handle a clearly defined issue coherently; are based on various programmes or projects and not just on one isolated project experience; have been publicly available and have been published since 1990. From more than 600 reports, strategy papers and other writings on media development cooperation at the Catholic Media Council (www.cameco.org/library), the Communication Initiative (www.comminit.com/en/mediadev.html) and the Center for International Media Assistance (http://cima.ned.org) I identified 300 publications which met these criteria and which are included in this literature guide. To enhance the practical use of this publication, in addition I selected 30 “Top Titles” which may be considered key publications in terms of their comprehensiveness, practical usefulness or academic relevance." (Page 1)
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"This book highlights the importance of the news media as watchdogs, agenda setters and gatekeepers for the quality of democratic deliberation in the public sphere. At the same time, it theorizes that the capacity of journalists and media systems to fulfill these roles depends on the broader context
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determined by the profession, the market and the state. Media systems' performance often falls far short of the ideals, as succesive case studies from different world regions demonstrate. Finally, the book asks what policy interventions work effectively to close the gap between the democratic promise and perfomance of the news media as an institution. The final chapter, "Policy recommendations", concludes (page 406): "Interventions include reforms directed at strengthening the journalistic profession, notably institutional capacity building, through bodies such as press councils, press freedom advocacy NGOs, and organizations concerned with journalistic training and accreditation. Other important reforms seek to overcome market failures, including developing a regulatory framework for media systems to ensure pluralism of ownership and diversity of contents. Finally, policies also address the role of the state, including deregulation to shift state-run broadcasting to public service broadcasting, overseen by independent broadcasting regulatory bodies, and the protection of constitutional principles of freedom of the press, speech, and expression." (commbox)
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"Despite the growing importance of media assistance, recent developments in this field have gone largely unnoticed by journalism and mass communication studies. Therefore, this paper will analyze the status quo of international media assistance and provide a literature review. Authors engage in theo
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rybuilding by suggesting an economic theory of journalism to explain impact problems of media assistance projects, and they will present data from an empirical study currently being conducted. The study uses quantitative and qualitative methods to survey 600 media professionals from developing and transition countries, to provide first time data on the impact of media assistance programs on the attitudes and characteristics of journalists, the organizational influences of media assistance, and the function of journalism in societies of developing countries." (Abstract)
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"This report explores the origins of media development research, outlines existing empirical measurements of the impact of media development projects, and examines relevant theories about the relationship between media modernization and societal progress." (Page 1)