"Libraries, telecenters, and cybercafés play a critical role in extending the benefits of information and communication technologies (ICTs) to a diverse range of people worldwide. However, their ability to contribute to development agendas has come into question in recent times. The Global Impact S
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tudy was designed to address this debate by generating evidence about the scale, character, and impacts of public access ICTs in eight countries: Bangladesh, Botswana, Brazil, Chile, Ghana, Lithuania, the Philippines, and South Africa. This report summarizes the study’s key findings, situating public access in the context of national development, discussing some disputed issues, and providing recommendations for policymakers, public access practitioners and researchers. The results show that a central impact of public access is the promotion of digital inclusion through technology access, information access, and development of ICT skills. Both users and non-users report positive impacts in various social and economic areas of their lives." (Abstract)
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"In diesem Band wird sowohl das Gefangenenbüchereiwesen in Deutschland als auch international vorgestellt. Neben der Geschichte der Gefangenenbüchereien werden die Gesetzesgrundlagen und unterschiedliche Bibliotheksangebote für Menschen in Haft erstmalig in einem Band zusammengefasst." (Verlagsbe
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schreibung)
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"Premiering in 2006, Ugly Betty, the award-winning US hit show about unglamorous but kind-hearted Betty Suarez (America Ferrera),is the latest incarnation of a worldwide phenomenon that started life as a Colombian telenovela,Yo soy Betty, la fea, back in 1999. The tale of the ugly duckling has since
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taken an extraordinary global journey and become the most successful telenovela to date. This groundbreaking book asks what the Yo soy Betty, la fea / Ugly Betty phenomenon can tell us about the international circulation of locally produced TV fictions as the Latin American telenovela is sold to, and/or re-made-officially and unofficially-for different national contexts. The contributors explore what Betty has to say about the tensions between the commercial demands of multimedia conglomerates and the regulatory forces of national broadcasters as well as the international ambitions of national TV industries and their struggle in competitive markets. They also investigate what this international trade tells us about cultural storytelling and audience experience, as well as ideologies of feminine beauty and myths of female desire and aspiration. TV's Betty Goes Global features original interviews with buyers and schedulers, writers, story editors and directors, including the creator of Yo soy Betty, la fea, Fernando Gaitan." (Publisher description)
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"This book captures a snapshot of the contemporary role of online journalism in rapidly evolving post-Soviet, post-Colour Revolution political environments, exploring the wider journalistic and political context alongside the use and influence of online news sites. In particular, it aims to fill a g
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ap in the literature by undertaking qualitative work in the post-Colour Revolution nations which seeks to assess the views of active journalists on the role of online political journalism in those environments." (Publisher description)
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"The advent of digital television has accelerated the elaboration of regulation and related processes in the countries of the region. Some countries adopted changes in their broadcasting statutes (Ukraine in 2006; Armenia in 2008 and 2010; Kazakhstan in 2012) or their mass media statute (Russia in 2
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011). One country laid the foundations for the switchover in a presidential decree (Uzbekistan in 2012), while the rest have opted for governmental ordinances and executive orders. Some changes made in the process go beyond merely adjusting the legal framework to digital technology." (Conclusion)
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"Medienförderung für Osteuropa spielt in Deutschland seit dem Beginn der 1990er Jahre eine wichtige Rolle. Eine Vielzahl an Akteuren ist im Bereich der Aus- und Weiterbildung für osteuropäische Journalistinnen und Journalisten aktiv [...] Der Schwerpunkt der Programmbeteiligung liegt bei jungen
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Journalistinnen und Journalisten, die aus Belarus, Russland und der Ukraine kommen. Mehrheitlich finden die Veranstaltungen in Deutschland statt und werden überwiegend in deutscher Sprache durchgeführt. Die große Mehrheit der Befragten führt Evaluationen durch und bedient sich hauptsächlich der Teilnehmerbefragung im Verlauf bzw. direkt nach Beendigung der Förderprogramme. Valide Aussagen zur Medienförderung sind auf diese Weise allerdings nicht möglich. In bisherigen Untersuchungen zur Medienförderung kommen Akteure, die sich in den beschriebenen Ländern Osteuropas engagieren, nur marginal vor. Dabei gibt es eine Reihe von Fragen hinsichtlich der künftigen Konzepte von Medienförderung, die alle in der Medienförderung tätigen Akteure betreffen, unabhängig davon, ob sie sich auf ein Transformations- oder ein Entwicklungsland beziehen." (Fazit und Empfehlungen, Seite 22)
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"This report examines whether and how furthering Internet freedom can empower civil society vis-à-vis public officials, make the government more accountable to its citizens, and integrate citizens into the policymaking process. Using case studies of events in 2011 in Egypt, Syria, China, and Russia
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, researchers focus on the impact of Internet freedom on freedom of assembly, freedom of expression, and the right to cast a meaningful vote, all of which are the key pillars of political space. Researchers analyze the mechanisms by which Internet freedom can enhance the opportunities to enjoy these freedoms, how different political contexts can alter the opportunities for online mobilization, and how, subsequently, online activism can grow out into offline mobilization leading to visible policy changes. To provide historical context, researchers also draw parallels between the effects of Radio Free Europe/Radio Liberty programs in the Soviet Union during the Cold War and the ongoing efforts to expand Internet freedom for all. The report concludes by discussing implications for the design of Internet freedom programs and other measures to protect “freedom to connect." (Back cover)
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"Estonians have demonstrated a keen appetite for digital media uptake. More than three-quarters of the population accesses the internet regularly, and more than half of those are active on social networking platforms. Recent surveys suggest that nearly a quarter of internet users now connect via sma
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rtphones. As for traditional media, newspaper circulations have experienced a steady rather than dramatic decline over recent years, while television and radio audiences remain relatively stable. The press and news organizations remain in general relatively free of political influence, and although there is significant cross-media ownership and little opportunity for new entrants, digitization does not appear to have exacerbated this situation, and there remains a degree of competition and pluralism within all sectors. This report calls for the development of media policy that will incentivize television service providers to introduce the additional digital television services that were promoted during switch-over. They also call for long-term predictable funding mechanisms to ensure that public service media, Estonian Public Broadcasting (Eesti Rahvusringhääling, ERR) above all, provide quality output." (Open Society Foundations website)
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"In the last few years, Russia has become an important player in the international internet governance debate, pushing for a governance model that is state-centric, hierarchical and based on the inviolability of state sovereignty. Russia has not only articulated an alternative model at forums like t
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he World Conference on International Telecommunications (WCIT), it has formed alliances with states such as China and Saudi Arabia, who share its vision. Russia’s views on internet governance stem from security concerns about the potential of independent information to harm its state and society, as well as from a normative aversion to what it views as US domination of internet governance. Russia favours the UN and particularly ITU as the organisation best suited for ultimately settling questions of governance." (Summary, page 6)
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"The current UIS Questionnaire on Media Statistics provides information for three UNESCO frameworks, namely the Media and Information Literacy Framework, the Media Development Indicators Framework and the Framework for Cultural Statistics. The questionnaire collects data for reporting global progres
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s on Action Lines C2, C3, C8 and C9 of the World Summit on Information Society (WSIS) in UNESCO’s fields of competencies. In particular, Action Line C9 recommends appropriate policies to foster and sustain media and information development. This document provides country profiles for each of the countries that participated in the two pilot surveys conducted in 2011 and 2012." (Background, page 3)
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"Freedom House has conducted a comprehensive study of internet freedom in 60 countries around the world. This report is the fourth in a series and focuses on developments that occurred between May 2012 and April 2013. The previous edition, covering 47 countries, was published in September 2012. 'Fre
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edom on the Net 2013' assesses a greater variety of political systems than its predecessors, while tracing improvements and declines in the countries examined in the previous editions. Over 70 researchers, nearly all based in the countries they analyzed, contributed to the project examining laws and practices relevant to the internet, testing the accessibility of select websites, and interviewing a wide range of sources. Of the 60 countries assessed, 34 have experienced a negative trajectory since May 2012." (Page 2)
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"Though Facebook’s near-ubiquitous lead might indicate that the global social network landscape is simplifying, it quickly becomes clear this is not the case. This report aims to help marketers assess the social network landscape in 27 countries by briefly examining four key factors: top social ne
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tworks, usage, social media advertising and mobile social trends." (Executive summary)
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"Initially launched in 2004 by Eurasia-Media, the Russian Independent Print Media Program (RIPMP) provides intensive training and assistance to promising independent local Russian newspapers, under the premise that by nurturing select publications into ‘beacons of excellence’, best practices eff
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ectively reverberate through the wider regional Russian newspaper industry. The organization's work over the past 8 years has helped develop and launch quality independent media outposts in small-to-midsize cities across Russia. These publications – in relatively little known places such as Berdsk, Krasnoturinsk, Kachkanar, Zheleznogorsk, Zhukovskii and Pervouralsk to name a few – now regularly receive independently juried awards for their journalism, are admired by like-minded regional newspapers seeking to improve their coverage, and actively work with Eurasia-Media and the AIRP in promoting both organizations’ goals towards fostering quality independent sources of local news in Russia's regions." (Executive summary)
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