"This report [is] the first compilation of the global data on how women in developing countries access and use the Internet. I am convinced this report provides key insights for policy makers, the development community and industry. Based on interviews and surveys of 2,200 women in developing countr
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ies, as well as interviews with experts and a review of existing literature, this report found that, on average, 23 percent fewer women than men are online in developing countries. This represents 200 million fewer women than men who are online today. In some regions, the size of the gap exceeds 40 percent. In addition, in many regions, the Internet gender gap reflects and amplifies existing inequalities between the sexes. We know that many women who use the Internet derive profound benefits through it, including economic and educational opportunities, a community of support, and career prospects. As the report indicates, expanding Internet access for women would also provide a significant boost to national income." (Foreword)
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"Arab Cultural Studies: Mapping the Fieldis the first attempt to explore ways of conceptualizing and theorizing the nascent field of Arab Cultural Studies. It reflects and engages in an interdisciplinary discussion on the different facets of Arab cultural studies, including gender, economy, history,
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epistemology, language, method, politics, literary and cultural criticism, institutionalization, popular culture, creativity and much more. The book presents a meta-narrative about how scholars have thus far thought and re-thought the field. It brings together prominent and emerging experts, writing from both Arab and Western academia, to engage with key complex, epistemic and methodological questions and to articulate in the meantime the new kinds of language and hermeneutics necessary for the appropriation of an historically conscious and coherent field of scientific enquiry into contemporary Arab media, culture and society." (Publisher description)
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"The project investigated foreign TV news in 17 countries from five regions in the world: Belgium, Brazil, Canada, Chile, China, Egypt, Germany, Hong Kong, Israel, Italy, Japan, Poland, Portugal, Singapore, Switzerland, Taiwan and the United States of America. The data of the content analysis in all
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these countries in 2008 contain over 17,500 news items. The analysis concentrates on ‘news geography’, a term that is used to describe the extent to which the countries of the planet are represented in TV news. The results show a complex, multifaceted picture of foreign news reporting in the world. This multifaceted picture demands multi-causal interpretation. Several factors are discussed, i.e. the types of countries, their political order and integration into the international system, trade, different degrees in political power, but also historical connections, cultural ties, etc. Principally, the foreign news outlet depends on the selection criteria of journalists. On the whole the findings seem to question the world’s globalization, which is often taken for granted." (Abstract)
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"The Handbook of Global Health Communication offers a comprehensive and up-to-date analysis of the role of communication processes in global public health, development and social change. It brings together 32 contributions from well-respected scholars and practitioners in the field, addressing a wid
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e range of communication approaches in current global health programs; offers an integrated view that links communication to the strengthening of health services, the involvement of affected communities in shaping health policies and improving care, and the empowerment of citizens in making decisions about health; ddopts a broad understanding of communication that goes beyond conventional divisions between informational and participatory approaches." (Publisher description)
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"Ruling elites often try to co-opt civil society groups, and in times of political or military crises they can attempt to control the national information infrastructure. But a defining feature of civil society is independence from the authority of the state, even in countries such as Saudi Arabia a
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nd Egypt. And in important ways, digital communication networks are also independent of any particular state authority. What has been the impact of digital media on political communication in Muslim media systems? How have tools such as mobile phones and the internet affected the process of forming political identity, particularly for the young? When do such tools change the opportunity for civic action, and when do they simply empower ruling elites to be more effective censors? In this chapter, we analyze the best available micro-level data on technology use and changing patterns of political identity and macro-level data on networks of civil society actors." (Introduction)
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"This study analyses the coverage of the 2011 Egyptian protests provided by Al Ahram (Egypt), Arab News (Saudi Arabia), China Daily (China), Guardian International (UK), International Herald Tribune (USA) and Jerusalem Post (Israel), with regard to the type and intensity of the coverage, potential s
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hifts in tunes and interaction with some types of social media. The results show the large role played by national policies and diplomatic relations as well as prevailing news themes in determining the type and intensity of coverage provided. Geographic proximity was also found to be an important factor in influencing coverage. Moreover, a shift in tune, although not significant, was found in the coverage of Al Ahram and Arab News. Finally, the study found that journalists demonstrated a clear preference for citing conventional rather than social media sources in their stories." (Abstract)
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"The Arab Media Outlook is the most comprehensive publication on the Arab Media Industry and represents one of the key knowledge development initiatives of the Dubai Press Club. The report serves as a reference point of the media industry in the region highlighting media trends across 17 markets and
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providing both breadth and depth of coverage for the benefit of various industry stakeholders." (www.med-media.eu, October 26, 2015)
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"To deepen our understanding of the relationship between social media and political change during the Egyptian uprising of early 2011, events in Tahrir Square must be situated in a larger context of media use and recent history of online activism. For several years, the most successful social moveme
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nts in Egypt, including Kefaya, the April 6th Youth, and We are all Khaled Said, were those using social media to expand networks of disaffected Egyptians, broker relations between activists, and globalize the resources and reach of opposition leaders. Social media afforded these opposition leaders the means to shape repertoires of contention, frame the issues, propagate unifying symbols, and transform online activism into offline protests." (Abstract)
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"Audience segmentation is generally associated with strategic communication (such as advertising and public relations), where content is manipulated to suit reader preferences. News has generally been considered truth-telling unvarnished by such concerns. This article compares how news of the same h
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umanitarian crisis [in Darfur, Sudan] was designed by 10 news organizations in seven countries for different market segments. Comparisons showed statistically significant differences in representation, influenced in part by what the audience-market was. Like advertising, news seemed to share an attribute with the strategic design of advertising and public relations. Increasingly carried online, news will be vulnerable to click-based customization of content like advertising is, taking us beyond currently observed geopolitical influences on segmentation to advertiser and market-based differences." (Abstract)
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"Die Umbrüche in Ägypten 2011 haben gezeigt, dass Medien eine wesentliche Rolle für die Mobilisierung politischer Partizipation spielen. Die Muslimbruderschaft, einer der wichtigsten gesellschaftlichen Akteure Ägyptens, hat seit 2002 gezielt auf Internetmedien gesetzt, um das Regime Mubaraks her
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auszufordern. Unter Rückgriff auf Ansätze aus der Forschung zu sozialen Bewegungen und politischer Transformation ordnet die Autorin zunächst die Medienstrategien der Islamisten in die Strukturen des politischen Systems und des Mediensystems Ägyptens ein. Mittels einer Inhaltsanalyse der Website der Muslimbrüder, ikhwanonline.com, Interviews mit deren Produzenten sowie einer Nutzerbefragung wird überprüft, welches Potenzial islamistische Medien haben, zu einer Demokratisierung Ägyptens beizutragen." (Klappentext)
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"The Egyptian revolution was characterized by the instrumental use of social media, especially Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and text messaging by protesters, to bring about political change and democratic transformation. This article focuses on how these new types of media acted as effective tools fo
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r promoting civic engagement, through supporting the capabilities of the democratic activists by allowing forums for free speech and political networking opportunities; providing a virtual space for assembly; and supporting the capability of the protestors to plan, organize, and execute peaceful protests. Additionally, it explores how these new media avenues enabled an effective form of citizen journalism, through providing forums for ordinary citizens to document the protests; to spread the word about ongoing activities; to provide evidence of governmental brutality; and to disseminate their own words and images to each other, and, most importantly, to the outside world through both regional and transnational media." (Introduction)
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This publication outlines four communication approaches used by United Nations organizations: (i) behaviour change communication; (ii) communication for social change; (iii) communication for advocacy; and (iv) strengthening an enabling media and communications environment. The second part provides
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an in-depth exploration of Communication for Development efforts within seven United Nations agencies, programmes and funds: FAO, ILO, UNAIDS, UNDP, UNESCO, UNICEF and WHO, followed by case studies that demonstrate C4D in practice either as part of a larger project or as a ‘stand alone’ project contributing to the strategic objectives of the organization.
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