Mass Media, Culture, Pubblic Communication. Political Communication, Creative City, Cultural Industry

Sex Discrimination and New Media in Italy: An analysis of the Abuse of the Female Body and Role in TV and Political Advertisements

by Nicla Rossini

accepted, Fifth ISGS Conference, Lund (Sweden).

The question of sex or gender discrimination in society is a wide topic that has been addressed within diverse... more The question of sex or gender discrimination in society is a wide topic that has been addressed within diverse frameworks and fields of enquiry ranging from psychological (see e.g., Davison & Burke’s study on sex discrimination in employment) and sociological studies to law (see e.g. Rhode, 2001) and economics (see Lahey, 2008; Grove, Massey & Jetter, 2010). However, careful study of verbal and nonverbal aspects of gender discrimination in new media, and in particular in television advertising, is singularly lacking. This is unfortunate, since television remains a powerful medium both as a conveyor of artefactual encapsulations of societal mores, and as medium of large audience manipulation. (see e.g. Harris & Barlett, 1994).This work presents an analysis of both verbal and non-verbal cues of segments taken from television advertisements broadcast seen in Italy in order to reveal strong gender discrimination both as a reflection of and an influence upon social attitudes. Some political advertisements and official communications are also taken into consideration, with particular emphasis on a well known video campaign in support of the ex Prime Minister Silvio Berlusconi. Prime Minister Mario Monti’s official press release published on the Government’s website on Janury 2nd 2012 is also taken into account.

Community and Nostalgia in Urban Revitalisation: a critique of urban village and creative class strategies as remedies for social ‘problems’

by Nicholas Gill

Deception cues in political speeches: verbal and non-verbal traits of prevarication

by Nicla Rossini

In Esposito A. et al. (2011) Analysis of Verbal and Nonverbal Communication and Enactment: The Processing Issue. Lecture Notes in Computer Science 6800, pp. 408-418. Springer-Verlag: Berlin and Heidelberg. Invited chapter.
Please find it on Springer:
http://www.springerlink.com/content/64l056688102q3q2/

N.B.: THIS IS A PRE-PUBLICATION DRAFT. IT MAY CONTAIN ERROS AND DIFFER SIGNIFICANTLY FROM THE PUBLISHED VERSION. FOR QUOTATION PLEASE ASK ME A COPY OF THE PUBLISHED VERSION OR FIND IT ON SPRINGER.

Deception is a determinant social phenomenon already observed
extensively in the literature of several different... more Deception is a determinant social phenomenon already observed
extensively in the literature of several different research fields. This study presents the analysis of both micro-expressions and voice features in sample TV clips, in order to outline a defined research agenda on the topic.

The Dirty Legacy of Europe’s New Cultural Metropolis: The Ruhr Area’s Old Industrial and New Cultural Energies

by Jonas Leonhard Tinius

What is at stake when one of Europe's most densely populated urban conglomerates changes the frame of reference for its identity from industry to postindustrial culture? How are we to understand campaigns that seek to redefine an entire area into Europe's new cultural metropolis and what are some of the limitations as well as potentials of this more than conceptual imagination for the study of industrial landscapes, theatre, and space?

Selling the Past: Levi's as an Agent of Consumptive Mass Culture

by Ben Plache

“TELEGORDO”: UN EJEMPLO DE CIUDADANÍAS COMUNICATIVAS A PARTIR DE LA MIRADA DE NIÑOS Y JÓVENES EN COLOMBIA

by Camilo Andres Tamayo Gomez

Para entender la relación entre los procesos comunicativos, los conceptos de ciudadanía y el campo de los derechos... more Para entender la relación entre los procesos comunicativos, los conceptos de ciudadanía y el campo de los derechos humanos, es necesario analizar tres campos separadamente: el
campo de la comunicación política, el campo de la comunicación social y el campo de la comunicación cultural. Los investigadores sociales han desarrollado en los últimos años
diferentes aproximaciones a estos campos de forma separada, lo que deja como resultado la falta de comprensión de estos tres campos de manera interconectada entre sí. Por tal razón,
este documento presentará el concepto teórico de ciudadanía comunicativa para crear una aproximación más comprensiva e interconectada a esta relación entre procesos comunicativos, ciudadanía y derechos, superando este vacío teórico, metodológico e interpretativo en las ciencias sociales contemporáneas.

A la luz de ésta teoría, se analizará un ejemplo concreto de producción televisiva infantil, realizada en Colombia, que pone en evidencia cómo las categorías propias de las ciudadanías comunicativas, descritas en la primera parte, cobran vida en un producto comunicacional concreto hecho por niños colombianos. Se trata de “Telegordo”, una serie
de TV construida colectivamente con niñas, niños y jóvenes en Belén de los Andaquíes, un municipio colombiano alejado de las lentes mediáticas y académicas, que a partir de la apuesta de entrar a los medios masivos, participa en la construcción del imaginario de una comunidad que quiere ser contada en contravía a los relatos que generalmente son hechos
para ellos.

Du Kitsch au Camp: théories de la culture de masse aux Etats-Unis, 1944-1964

by Nicolas Labarre

The theories of mass culture were for twenty years a crucial issue for North-American intellectuals. They tried to... more The theories of mass culture were for twenty years a crucial issue for North-American intellectuals. They tried to elaborate a model which would account for the aesthetic but also social threat posed by the cultural content of the mass media. Influenced by the theories of the Frankfurt School, these intellectuals and especially the group known as the New York intellectuals developed an original position in the course of a twenty year exchange in numerous intellectual publications. This research recounts the history of this idea in the United States, from its first compact expression in a resounding article by journalist Dwight Macdonald in 1944 ("A Theory of Popular Culture") to its disappearance two decades later, exemplified by the simultaneous publication of Marshall McLuhan's Understanding Media and Susan Sontag's "Notes on Camp". It also seeks to test the validity of these theories by applying them to a cultural object usually described as belonging to mass culture: comic books. This research has two ambitions: to account for the complexity of the debate by questioning its key texts, but also to identify the endogenous and exogenous factors which led to the abrupt loss of interest in the idea. Two books, functioning as gateways between the intellectuals and the general audience receive a particular attention: the influential collection Mass Culture, the Popular Arts in America, published in 1957, and its counterpart, Culture for the Millions?, which appeared four years later.

"Communicative Citizenship, Preliminary Approaches" (English Version) 2012

by Camilo Andres Tamayo Gomez

In order to understand the relationship between
communication, citizenship and rights it is necessary
to... more In order to understand the relationship between
communication, citizenship and rights it is necessary
to analyse three fields separately: the political communication
field, the social communication field and
the cultural communication field.

This research has developed a concept of communicative citizenship, a model and methodological tools to create a comprehensive and integrative approach to the relationship
between communication, citizenship and rights, and
overcome this gap.

The project includes the analysis of socio communicative regimes in an armed conflictcontext (Colombia), a multicultural context focusing on migrants’ political action (United Kingdom), and a society where Governmental control affects communicative
and political rights (Italy).

To describe,analyse and understand how these conditions affect the human rights field and how it is possible to claim for
justice, equality and freedom from a communicative
perspective, are the final aims of this research.

Happy Death of Critical Thinking!

by Tornike Metreveli

CONSUMPTION AND THE MASS MEDIA

by Richard Wilk

Oxford Commission on Sustainable Consumption Workshop  “The Media, A resource for sustainable consumption” Oxford, 8-9 January, 2001

The continuing growth of consumer culture among affluent groups poses long-term environmental challenges, and the... more The continuing growth of consumer culture among affluent groups poses long-term environmental challenges, and the magnitude of the problem can lead us to seek immediate and practical solutions, actions that can be taken immediately.2 Yet recent research offers multiple and often conflicting explanations for the continuing expansion of consumer culture, and provides few robust policy tools that have a strong empirical basis. Some may take this dissonance as an indication that more research is needed. But there has already been a great deal of research on media and consumer culture, built on the work of eminent theorists like Raymond Williams and Marshall McLuhan. Where are the robust generalizations, the strong consensus on which to base a plan of action?

O problema da participação política no modelo deliberativo de democracia / The question of the political participation within the deliberativa model of democracy

by Francisco Paulo Jamil Marques

Reference: MARQUES, F. P. J. A. O problema da participação política no modelo deliberativo de democracia. In: Revista de Sociologia e Política (UFPR. Impresso), v.20, n. 41, pp. 21-35. 2012

Title in English: The question of the political participation within the deliberativa model of democracy. Text in... more Title in English: The question of the political participation within the deliberativa model of democracy. Text in Portuguese. Abstract in English: This paper discusses the premises of the deliberative model of democracy as they address the issue of political participation. We attempt to clarify what political participation means for those who use this model, while at the same time looking at some of the major critiques that have been directed toward it. Through a review of an important part of the literature, and without losing sight of earlier systematizations of democratic theory, three fundamental conditions for engendering participation according to this discursive model are pointed to: political institutions should create and offer citizens opportunities to participate in public input; improvement in people's socio-economic condition must be made; attention should be given to particular principles that have consistent regulatory influence on the interactions and arguments in question. This is followed by attention to the criticisms raised and flaws detected by deliberationism's detractors. At the end of the text, a summary of the strengths and weaknesses of the model is presented, along with a discussion of the problem of participation in contemporary democracies.

Keywords: Participation; Deliberation; Democracy; Representation.

The Emergence of Television as a Conservative Media Revolution: Historicising a Process of Remediation in the Post-War Western Europen Mass Media Ensemble

by Andreas Fickers

Article published in Journal of Modern European History Vol. 10: 1 (2012), pp. 49-75.

This article claims that the emergence of television in the 1950s must be interpreted as a conservative media... more This article claims that the emergence of television in the 1950s must be interpreted as a conservative media revolution. It aims at revisiting some of the popular narratives about the emergence of television as a revolutionary moment in media history and questions the newness of television in the European mass media ensemble. Focusing on a set of privileged sites of negotiation where the tensions between the conservative and modernising agencies of the medium became most visible or explicit, the article emphasizes the ambiguous and contested nature of television as a new medium. Finally, the author pleas for an integral approach to media history that studies the intermedial relationships and interdependencies between television and other mass media.

WHAT MAKES CORPORATE BLOGS SUCCESSFUL?–A CROSS-CULTURAL EMPRICAL STUDY OF CORPORATE BLOG CHARACTERISTICS

by Nils König

7 words and a logo: Does a brand shape a destination?

by Alvaro HIDALGO

Branding Tourism destinations Branding Tourism destinations

Who’s Listening? The Rhetorical Presidency and Media Coverage of the Signing Statement”

by Deanna J. Watts

This paper was prepared for presentation at the Midwest Political Science Association Meetings, Chicago, IL, March 31st - April 3rd, 2011.  All errors and/or omissions are our own. 

This analysis moves beyond the idea of signing statements as unilateral devices and toward understanding their... more This analysis moves beyond the idea of signing statements as unilateral devices and toward understanding their advantages as rhetorical strategies.  The press acts as the central mediator in deciding which political events are covered, so the utility of any rhetorical strategy in shaping public perception has to be considered in terms of whether the president’s message is reaching the intended audience (Edwards 2003).  We examine national news stories regarding the passage of all public laws by the three major networks, CNN, and FOX to compare and explain the role of the signing statement in generating TV coverage from 1981-2008.  The results illustrate how the signing statement represents a powerful strategy to compete for and attract news attention in an already crowded news agenda.  The analysis demonstrates that the issuance of signing statements significantly increases television coverage and thus provides a valuable bridge between the literature on the unilateral and rhetorical presidencies.     

Ambivalence and Cultural Industrialization in Canada

by Danielle Deveau

published in Stream: Culture/Politics/Technology

If Canadian culture can be said to have a master narrative, it is surely one of ambivalence. It is a concept that is... more If Canadian culture can be said to have a master narrative, it is surely one of ambivalence. It is a concept that is laced implicitly throughout Canadian popular culture, as well as Canadian cultural studies. Although Canadianists frequently grapple with the issue of cultural industrialization, especially in relation to cultural nationalist fears about Americanization, it is my contention that these analyses do not adequately consider Canadian popular culture as a process of ambivalent industrialization which allows certain non-industrial practices to be preserved. This process is particularly evident in the subject of my doctoral dissertation the Just for Laughs Comedy Festival (JFL) where carnival and industry collide in very public ways.

HANNAH MONTANA COMO MODELO ASPIRACIONAL DE VALORES Y CONSUMO PARA NIÑAS MEXICANAS: UN ANÁLIS CUALITATIVO EN EL NORESTE DE MÉXICO

by Alma Elena Gutierrez Leyton

Co-authored with Dr. Moisés Torres, published in Revista Razón y Palabra, diciembre 2011

Los resultados que se presentan son producto de una investigación cuyo objetivo fue identificar cómo se genera el... more Los resultados que se presentan son producto de una investigación cuyo objetivo fue identificar cómo se genera el proceso de recepción televisiva del programa Hannah Montana y la asimilación de las costumbres, actitudes y estilo de vida del personaje principal por niñas de entre 6 y 12 años de edad de clase socioeconómica media-alta y alta. La metodología fue de corte cualitativo a través de la técnica de focus groups a partir de una muestra propositiva integrada por 17 niñas con un alto consumo de la serie televisiva, seleccionadas a través de la técnica de la bola de nieve, que se dividió en dos grupos, uno de 6 a 9 años y otro de 9 a 12 años. El problema de investigación surge de la preocupación por conocer cómo las niñas mexicanas de la Zona Metropolitana de Monterey, cercana a la frontera con Estados Unidos, perciben y se apropian del modelo que transmite el personaje de Hannah Montana, de una manera aspiracional de conductas y valores. Los resultados obtenidos se contrastan con una taxonomía de valores asociados al consumo de programas televisivos propuesto por García (2004). Los resultados obtenidos en este trabajo evidencian que cada grupo de niñas establece encuadres selectivos diferenciados; las niñas de 6 a 9 años se orientan hacia una identificación con el personaje de Hannah, manteniendo la creencia, desde un pensamiento mágico, sobre las cualidades de poder, ejercicio de libertad adulta, fama, éxito y la posesión de seguidores o fanáticos, además de los ingresos o ganancias económicas que percibe por sus actuaciones como cantante. Por otro lado, el encuadre que hacen las niñas de 9 a 12 años se caracteriza por la identificación de Miley como la persona ligada a una vida lógica, normal, ordinaria, factible; mientras que la idealización hacia Hannah se mantiene desde una perspectiva de lo ilógico, ridícula, vida extraordinaria o “diva”. Añadido a esto, a Miley le integran cualidades de apoyo solidario, fidelidad y confianza. Ambos encuadres parecen sostener un mismo patrón que tendría relación con la identificación o consumo negociado hacia los personajes de acuerdo a la proximidad o distancia de su edad con la edad del personaje.
Palabras clave: Recepción televisiva, Modelos aspiracionales de niñas y adolescentes, Asimilación de valores, Estilos de consumo.

Οι κλάδοι πολιτισμού και δημιουργικότητας στην Ελλάδα: χωρικές ανισότητες και πολιτικές

by Vasilis Avdikos

Άρθρο για το Συνέδριο «Το μέλλον του Αναπτυξιακού και Χωροταξικού Σχεδιασμού στην Ελλάδα», 25/2/2012, Δελφοί, Σύνδεσμος Ελλήνων Περιφεριολόγων

Το άρθρο επιχειρεί μια εισαγωγή στην οικονομία και γεωγραφία των κλάδων πολιτισμού και δημιουργικότητας (εφεξής ΚΠΔ)... more Το άρθρο επιχειρεί μια εισαγωγή στην οικονομία και γεωγραφία των κλάδων πολιτισμού και δημιουργικότητας (εφεξής ΚΠΔ) στην Ελλάδα. Σε ευρωπαϊκό επίπεδο καταγράφεται μια άνθιση της έρευνας και των πολιτικών για την καταγραφή και την ανάπτυξη των ΚΠΔ. Στην Ελλάδα, αν και υπάρχει μια ολοένα και αυξανόμενη τάση για την ανάπτυξη της πολιτιστικής κληρονομιάς, γνωρίζουμε πολύ λίγα για την δυναμική του σύγχρονου πολιτισμού και των ΚΠΔ τόσο σε εθνικό όσο και σε περιφερειακό επίπεδο. Το άρθρο αποτελεί μια πρώτη επισκόπηση της οικονομίας των ΚΠΔ σε εθνικό και περιφερειακό επίπεδο. Στο πρώτο μέρος παρουσιάζονται στατιστικά στοιχεία για την οικονομία και απασχόληση των ΚΠΔ στην Ελλάδα, το οποίο δείχνει μια έντονη συγκέντρωση των ΚΠΔ στην μητροπολιτική περιοχή της Αττικής. Στο δεύτερο μέρος αναλύονται μερικοί λόγοι της άνισης ανάπτυξης των ΚΠΔ στις ελληνικές περιφέρειες, ενώ στο τελευταίο μέρος παρουσιάζονται μερικές προτάσεις πολιτικής για την ενίσχυση της περιφέρειας στην παραγωγή πολιτιστικών αγαθών. Σύμφωνα με αυτό, προτείνεται μια στρατηγική πολιτιστικής ανάπτυξης για τις μικρές και μεσαίου μεγέθους πόλεις της Ελληνικής περιφέρειας.

The Culture Industry in Brazil

by Rodrigo Duarte

In: Fábio Durão (editor), Culture Industry Today. Cambridge Scholars Publishing, 2010

Participação, Instituições Políticas e Internet: Um exame dos canais participativos nos portais da Câmara e da Presidência do Brasil / Participation, Political institutions and the Internet: An examination of the participatory tools on the Brazilian Presidency and House of Representatives' websites

by Francisco Paulo Jamil Marques

Title in English: Participation, Political institutions and the Internet: An examination of the participatory tools on... more Title in English: Participation, Political institutions and the Internet: An examination of the participatory tools on the Brazilian Presidency and House of Representatives' websites. Text in Portuguese. Abstract in English available: This article investigates how two Brazilian political institutions - The Presidency and The House of Representatives - use the Internet to offer citizens opportunities of political participation. After reviewing part of the relevant literature concerning Internet and Democracy, the paper identifies and describes all the participatory mechanisms available at these websites, proposing further reflections on the political effects which may arise once these channels are employed. Comparing the House of Representatives and the Presidency websites, it is possible to affirm that the former one presents a greater variety of channels able to address participatory politics. The interactive patterns established between citizens and representatives are thus quite different in this case. The article also discusses questions such as representatives’ unwillingness to offer participatory tools, once these mechanisms are costly to implement and may imply a lost of political power. In the end, one reinforces the necessity of thinking on the digital media taking into account the cultural and political contexts of every democratic society.