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Savage wars in Bosnia, Rwanda, Liberia, Iraq and many other places continue to fill our television screens and newspapers with terrible images of conflict. Despite the optimism about world peace, brought about by the collapse of super-power hostilities in the early 1990s, we seem to be encountering more wars, or at least wars that are more socially traumatic. All too often, the media suggest that these conflicts are caused by the return of primordial loyalties and hatreds after the collapse of the Cold War, or that mass slaughter can be explained by reference to the inherently evil nature of individuals or groups. This book counters this kind of nonsense, and asks why such views have gained a currency. It examines the role of the media in inciting conflicts within nations, as well as the adverse impacts of news reporting on international perceptions - and on policy-making. But it also reveals how valuable informed journalism can be. Above all, it highlights the dangers of basing analysis on vague assertions about deep human motivation, or on mythologies of the past and the present promoted by the protagonists themselves.
This book explores the role and place of popular, traditional and digital media platforms in the mediatization, representation and performance of various conflicts and peacebuilding interventions in the African context. The role of the media in conflict is often depicted as either ‘good’ (as symbolized by peace journalism) or ‘bad’ (as exemplified by war journalism), but this book moves beyond this binary to highlight the ‘in-between’ role that the media often plays in times of conflict. The volume does not only focus on the relationship between mass media, conflict and peacebuilding processes but it broadens its scope by critically analysing the dynamic and emergent roles of popular and digital media platforms in a continent where the semi-literate and oral communities still rely heavily on popular communication platforms to get news and information. Whilst social media platforms have been hailed for their assumed democratic and digital dividends, this book does not only focus on these positive aspects but also shines a light on dark forms of participation which are fuelling racial, gender, ethnic, political and religious conflicts in highly polarized and stratified societies. Highlighting the many ways in which traditional, digital and popular media can be used to both escalate conflicts and promote peacebuilding, this volume will be a useful resource for students, researchers and civil society groups interested in peace and conflict studies, journalism and media studies in different contexts within Africa.
Theorising Media and Conflict brings together anthropologists as well as media and communication scholars to collectively address the elusive and complex relationship between media and conflict. Through epistemological and methodological reflections and the analyses of various case studies from around the globe, this volume provides evidence for the co-constitutiveness of media and conflict and contributes to their consolidation as a distinct area of scholarship. Practitioners, policymakers, students and scholars who wish to understand the lived realities and dynamics of contemporary conflicts will find this book invaluable.
The world faces explosive conflicts about the distribution and scarcity of resources, about ethnicity and religion, and about the risks of urban life. These conflicts can easily spiral out of control toward mass slaughter-an evil of huge proportions that is often escalated by the media. What should be done to prevent this lethal trend? We need to understand how the 'spiral of escalation' works. How do media create anxiety, provide space for agitation, and disconnect people? Three approaches to the prevention of mass mediated aggression are proposed in this book: an early warning system for incitement to mass destruction, the invitation to disarming conversations in urban space, and the teaching of 'compassionate communication' to children and others. Alertness to the recurrence of collective violence is urgently needed not only in unstable and poor societies, but also in established democracies. Ordinary people can be incited to the mass slaughter of other ordinary people anywhere. Understanding the media's role in this and acting to prevent it are key goals of this book.
This collection of essays explores current issues surrounding the media and conflict in the Twenty-first Century. Essays will look at the role of evolving media technologies, the globalization of television and communications, public diplomacy, gender and war coverage, terrorism, and other issues.
This Handbook links the growing body of media and conflict research with the field of security studies. The academic sub-field of media and conflict has developed and expanded greatly over the past two decades. Operating across a diverse range of academic disciplines, academics are studying the impact the media has on governments pursuing war, responses to humanitarian crises and violent political struggles, and the role of the media as a facilitator of, and a threat to, both peace building and conflict prevention. This handbook seeks to consolidate existing knowledge by linking the body of conflict and media studies with work in security studies. The handbook is arranged into five parts: Theory and Principles. Media, the State and War Media and Human Security Media and Policymaking within the Security State New Issues in Security and Conflict and Future Directions For scholars of security studies, this handbook will provide a key point of reference for state of the art scholarship concerning the media-security nexus; for scholars of communication and media studies, the handbook will provide a comprehensive mapping of the media-conflict field.
Peace Journalism, War and Conflict Resolution draws together the work of over twenty leading international writers, journalists, theorists and campaigners in the field of peace journalism. Mainstream media tend to promote the interests of the military and governments in their coverage of warfare. This major new text aims to provide a definitive, up-to-date, critical, engaging and accessible overview exploring the role of the media in conflict resolution. Sections focus in detail on theory, international practice, and critiques of mainstream media performance from a peace perspective; countries discussed include the U.S., U.K., Germany, Cyprus, Sweden, Canada, India, Pakistan, Papua New Guinea and the Philippines. Chapters examine a wide variety of issues including mainstream newspapers, indigenous media, blogs and radical alternative websites. The book includes a foreword by award-winning investigative journalist John Pilger and a critical afterword by cultural commentator Jeffery Klaehn.
Conflict in all its guises is usually at the centre of news and whenever wars, natural disasters or divisions erupt, the media are there to report, record and commemorate. This collection of essays explores the complicated relationship between the messengers bringing news of catastrophic upheaval and the recipients of that message. It concentrates on the journalists, photographers and film-makers, reflecting not only the motivations behind their work, but also the psychological consequences of witnessing extreme suffering. The audience interpret the news according to their circumstance, be it with anger sympathy or with compassion-fatigued indifference. The book explores that reaction, which is always more nuanced than anticipated. Finally, the modern communication circle is completed by exploring the potential of the media to diminish conflict. This is demonstrated by the media bringing together communities that are either geographically or historically divided.
Ironically, as telecommunications technology—the embodiment of modernity—advances, bringing people in different nations into more direct contact during conflict situations, traditional cultural factors become increasingly important as differing ways of thinking and acting collide. The mass media can be seen as a factor in the creation of international conflict; they also, claim many scholars, are the key to control and resolution of those problems. Whichever side of the coin one chooses to look at—mass communication as cause or cure of conflict—there is no doubt that the news media are no longer peripheral players on the global scene; they are important participants whose organizational patterns of behavior, values, and motivations must be taken into account in understanding national and international conflict. In this volume, a distinguished group of authors explores the variety of ways the news media—newspapers, radio, and television—are involved in conflict situations. Conflicts between the United States and Iran, India and Pakistan, and the United States and China are examined, and national-level studies in Sri Lanka, Iran, Hong Kong, and the United States provide varied contexts in which the authors look at the complex interrelationships among government, news media, and the public in conflict situations.
`No book is more timely than this collection, which analyses brilliantly the Western media′s relentless absorption into the designs of dominant, rapacious power′ - John Pilger `A most timely book, with many valuable insights′ - Martin Bell O.B.E `It has long been known that the outcome of war is deeply influenced by the battle to win ′hearts and minds′. This book provides a stimulating set of perspectives which combine the analyses of prominent academics with the experiences of leading journalists′ - Professor Tom Woodhouse, University of Bradford `This volume represents an all-star cast of authors who have a tremendous amount of knowledge about media and world conflict. One of its strengths is that it doesn′t focus entirely narrowly on media, but puts the discussion of media issues in the context of changes in the world order in military doctrine′ - Professor Daniel C. Hallin, University of California `This book comes just in time. A coherent and wide-ranging collection of data, analyses and insights that help our understanding of the complex interaction between communication and conflict. A major intellectual contribution to critical thinking about the early 21st century′ - Cees J Hamelink, Professor International Communication, University of Amsterdam With what new tools do governments manage the news in order to prepare us for conflict? Are the media responsible for turning conflict into infotainment? Is reporting gender specific? How do journalists view their role in covering distant wars? This book critically examines the changing contours of media coverage of war and considers the complexity of the relationship between mass media and governments in wartime. Assessing how far the political, cultural and professional contexts of media coverage have been affected by 9/11 and its aftermath, the volume also explores media representations of the `War on Terrorism′ from regional and international perspectives, including new actors such as the Qatar-based Al-Jazeera - the pan-Arabic television network. One key theme of the book is how new information and communication technologies are influencing the production, distribution and reception of media messages. In an age of instant global communication and round-the-clock news, powerful governments have refined their public relations machinery, particularly in the way warfare is covered on television, to market their version of events effectively to their domestic as well as international viewing public. Transnational in its intellectual scope and in perspectives, War and the Media includes essays from internationally known academics along with contributions from media professionals working for leading broadcasters such as BBC World and CNN.