"In the on-going democratic debate, the Cameroonian media have not played the role of objective mediators. A one-party logic, of which government, opposition and the public are guilty, has prevented Cameroonian multipartyism from addressing the major issue: that of how best to bring about real parti
...
cipatory democracy. So far, democracy has served mainly as a face powder, an empty concept or slogan devoid of concrete meaning used to justify reactionary propaganda by the ruling party and its acolytes on the one hand, and revolutionary propaganda by the opposition and some pressure groups on the other. This polarisation in the Cameroonian political arena corresponds to a similar polarisation in the Cameroonian media. One can identify two main political tendencies in the media: first, there are those who argue that all the government does is good and in the best interest of Cameroon, and that the radical opposition is void of patriots and motivated only by selfish, regional, or ethnic self-interests. These comprise the publicly owned, government-controlled electronic and print media on the one hand, and pro-government "privately" owned newspapers on the other. Second, there are those who claim that all the radical opposition does or stands for is in the best interest of Cameroon, and that the government and its allies are only motivated by a stubborn love of power and other selfish pursuits. These comprise the bulk of the privately owned papers. The media are polarised into two diametrically opposing camps, each claiming to know and represent the best interests of the Cameroonian people." (Publisher description)
more
"This article sets out to map the journalistic field as a space of struggle between distinct professional milieus. These milieus crystallize around journalists who share similar views on journalism’s function in society. By means of cluster analysis, four global professional milieus were extracted
...
from the survey responses of 1800 journalists in 18 countries: the populist disseminator, detached watchdog, critical change agent and the opportunist facilitator. The detached watchdog milieu clearly dominates the journalistic field in most western countries, while the milieu of the opportunist facilitator reigns supreme in several developing, transitional and authoritarian contexts. In accordance with the theoretical propositions, relatively little professional autonomy was found in contexts with rather strong corporate and commercial influences. However, a more universal approach would need to go beyond corporate and commercial factors in order to account for the realities of the journalistic field in non-western countries." (Abstract)
more
"This report investigates the relationships between media freedoms, financial sustainability of media in emerging markets, and international media support. It is based on a survey of more than 220 newspapers and media executives in more than sixty countries in Africa, Asia, Europe and the Americas,
...
and on five in-depth country studies: Egypt, Georgia, Guatemala, Mozambique and Vietnam. Research results indicate that media executives see the greatest opportunities in three principle areas: investing in new technology and multimedia operations; developing journalists’ skills; and enhancing the skills of staff in commercial departments to improve revenue and efficiency." (Publisher description)
more
"The Media Development Assessment 2010 is an evaluation of the rapidly changing media climate in Bhutan. The study, based on the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO) media development indicators (MDIs), is the first of its kind to be conducted in the country. Thi
...
s assessment of MDIs provides analysis of the media and communications environment in Bhutan against internationally accepted standards and principles. The indicators delineate critical areas of media development, ranging from freedom of expression and diversity of media to professional and infrastructural capacities of the media industry." (Executive summary, page xi)
more
"Uganda's broadcast media landscape has witnessed tremendous growth in recent years. While the public broadcaster remains the dominant national player - in terms of reach - in both radio and television, commercial broadcasters have introduced a substantial level of diversity in the industry. Public
...
broadcasting faces serious competition from the numerous private and independent broadcasters, especially in and around the capital Kampala and major urban centres. In fact, the private/commercial sector clearly dominates the industry in most respects, notably productivity and profitability. The public broadcaster, which enjoys wider geographical coverage, faces the challenge of trying to fulfill a broad mandate with little funding. This makes it difficult for UBC to compete with the more nimble operators in the commercial/private sector. Overall, there appears to be a healthy degree of pluralism and diversity in terms of ownership." (Publisher description)
more
"There is a lack of comparative statistics on media and communication, and this is a fundamental problem. National media statistics are very poor in many countries. But some comparative statistics already available within different international and regional organisations and institutions could be m
...
uch more elaborated. Still, compiling comparative media and communication statistics is not an easy task. Despite the challenges, Nordicom has made an attempt – though on a very limited scale – and the results are presented in the current publication. Nordicom has collected and compiled statistics from a large number of sources in order to provide a more comprehensive overview of international media and communication statistics, primarily concerning television and the Internet." (Foreword, page 7)
more