scholarly journals Power interplay and newspaper digitization: Lessons from the Pengpai experiment

2016 ◽  
Vol 1 (4) ◽  
pp. 497-510 ◽  
Author(s):  
Alain Peter ◽  
Mengshu Chen ◽  
Silvia Carrasco

This study looks at Pengpai ( The Paper), the first news app launched in China by a traditional media organization, in order to understand how media practices in the context of contemporary China have shifted. The case of Pengpai, which was released in July 2014, is not only about economical and technological modernization but also relates to the re-negotiation of the relationship between the state, professionals and the public. Drawing on interviews with journalists, content analysis, a newsroom observation and Pengpai’s coverage of certain events, this research sheds light on the covert power interplay at work in newspaper digitization in China. The ambivalent accomplishment of Pengpai reveals the relationship between the state and journalists as a negotiation process that includes dialogue and conflict.

2013 ◽  
Vol 6 (3) ◽  
pp. 325-340
Author(s):  
Ridwan Al-Sayyid

This paper tackles the relationship between Islam and the state in light of the ongoing revolutions. It focuses on two perspectives: the Islamists' claim that the Shari'a and not the umma (community) are the source of legitimacy in the evolving regimes; and that it is the duty of the state to protect religion and apply the Shari'a. The main disadvantage of these propositions is that they preclude the Umma both from political power and Shari'a, thus pitting it against these two assets which become manipulated to its disadvantage by those holding power. On the other hand, an open-minded and reformist Islamic perspective believes in people regaining the prerogative to rule themselves, guided by their intellect and the public good. The main call for the Arab uprisings is to quit political Islam, which seems to be the major threat to religion, and dangerously divisive for societies.


2020 ◽  
pp. 1-37
Author(s):  
MANISHA SETHI

Abstract A bitter debate broke out in the Digambar Jain community in the middle of the twentieth century following the passage of the Bombay Harijan Temple Entry Act in 1947, which continued until well after the promulgation of the Untouchability (Offences) Act 1955. These laws included Jains in the definition of ‘Hindu’, and thus threw open the doors of Jain temples to formerly Untouchable castes. In the eyes of its Jain opponents, this was a frontal and terrible assault on the integrity and sanctity of the Jain dharma. Those who called themselves reformists, on the other hand, insisted on the closeness between Jainism and Hinduism. Temple entry laws and the public debates over caste became occasions for the Jains not only to examine their distance—or closeness—to Hinduism, but also the relationship between their community and the state, which came to be imagined as predominantly Hindu. This article, by focusing on the Jains and this forgotten episode, hopes to illuminate the civilizational categories underlying state practices and the fraught relationship between nationalism and minorities.


2016 ◽  
Vol 9 (4) ◽  
pp. 460-475 ◽  
Author(s):  
Megan B. Shreffler ◽  
Meg G. Hancock ◽  
Samuel H. Schmidt

Unlike traditional media, which frames female athletes in sexualized manners and in socially accepted roles such as mothers and girlfriends, user-controlled social-media Web sites allow female athletes to control the image and brand they wish to portray to the public. Using Goffman’s theory of self-presentation, the current study aimed to investigate how female athletes were portraying themselves via their Twitter avatar pictures. A total of 207 verified Twitter avatars of female athletes from 6 sports were examined through a content analysis. The avatars from each player were coded using the following themes: athlete as social being, athlete as promotional figure, “selfie,” athletic competence, ambivalence, “girl next door,” and “sexy babe.” The results revealed that athletic competence was the most common theme, followed by selfie and athlete as social being. Thus, when women have the opportunity to control their image through social media they choose to focus on their athletic identities.


10.1068/c12m ◽  
2001 ◽  
Vol 19 (2) ◽  
pp. 289-310 ◽  
Author(s):  
Bill Edwards ◽  
Mark Goodwin ◽  
Simon Pemberton ◽  
Michael Woods

Partnerships have become established as a significant vehicle for the implementation of rural development policy in Britain. In promoting new working relationships between different state agencies and between the public, private, and voluntary sectors, partnerships have arguably contributed to a reconfiguration of the scalar hierarchy of the state. In this paper we draw on recent debates about the ‘politics of scale’ and on empirical examples from Mid Wales and Shropshire to explore the scalar implications of partnerships. We investigate how discursive constructs of partnership are translated into practice, how official discourses are mediated by local actors, the relationship between partnerships and existing scales of governance, and the particular ‘geometry of power’ being constructed through partnerships. We argue that the existing scalar hierarchy of the state has been influential in structuring the scales and territories of partnerships, and that, despite an apparent devolution of the public face of governance, the state remains crucial in governing the process of governance through partnerships.


2020 ◽  
Vol 20 (4) ◽  
pp. 747-762
Author(s):  
Abdusamat Akhatovich Khaydarov

Significant geopolitical changes taking place in the modern world in recent decades urge us to take a fresh look at the role of Islam and the clergy in the political processes of a number of countries of the Muslim world. This perspective is especially relevant vis--vis Afghanistan where a fierce war is being waged under the slogans of Islam for more than four decades. The purpose of this research is an in-depth study of the relationship between the state and the Muslim clergy, Islamic institutions in the development of political processes in Afghanistan since the mid-70s of the last century. The article reflects shaping of the Islamic opposition and its efforts to stand up to innovations and reforms during attempts of the Soviet stile modernization in 1978-1992, and then the efforts to democratize Afghan society, undertaken in Afghanistan since the end of 2001 with the assistance of the international community. The work is based on the study of factual historical material, a chronicle of the events of the last decade and personal observations of the author during his work in Afghanistan during the mentioned period. Analytical materials published on the pages of English and Russian mass media were used. The methodological basis of this study is the comparative historical method; the article is based on the principles of historicism, reliability and scientific objectivity. The author concludes that the conflict is based on mistakes and underestimation by the state the role and influence of the Muslim clergy and Islamic institutions of the country. It has been noted that the recently reached US - Taliban agreements, as well as the assistance of such influential players as Russia, sparkle hope for the launch of a direct inter-Afghan negotiation process, which most likely will not be as simple but thorny.


Author(s):  
Jonathan Preminger

Chapter 15 summarizes the chapters which addressed the third sphere, the relationship of labor to the political community. It reiterates that since Israel was established, the labor market’s borders have become ever more porous, while the borders of the national (Jewish) political community have remained firm: the Jewish nationalism which guides government policy is as strong as ever. NGOs, drawing on a discourse of human rights, are able to assist some non-citizens but this discourse also resonates with the idea of individual responsibility: the State is no longer willing to support “non-productive” populations, who are now being shoehorned into a labor market which offers few opportunities for meaningful employment, and is saturated by cheaper labor intentionally imported by the State in response to powerful employer lobbies. These trends suggest a partial reorientation of organized labor’s “battlefront”, from a face-off with capital to an appeal to the public and state.


Author(s):  
Daniel J. Hemel

This chapter suggests a human rights–based justification for national basic income schemes, contrasting it with justifications based on welfarist principles or notions of entitlement to a share of the global commons. Starting from the premise that a state is a collective enterprise that generates a surplus, it contends that any human being who is an “obedient” member of that state has a right to some share of the surplus. That right—which arises from the relationship between the individual and the state, and is independent of need—could justify the entitlement to a basic income. Such income should be provided in cash, not in kind, because the latter risks depriving the individual of the enjoyment of his share of the surplus—in effect, forcing him to forfeit or transfer it to others if he does not use the public goods or services provided by the state.


2020 ◽  
Vol 3 (XX) ◽  
pp. 223-233
Author(s):  
Przemysław Niemczuk

The article aims to explore the concept of territorial autonomy. The research assumption is that public interest is one of the fundamental determinants of territorial autonomy. Territorial autonomy has not been defined by law. It is a general and relative term, and thus difficult to define (if such an enterprise is possible at all). However, one thing is certain - the idea behind this term determines the law regulating the organizational and territorial form of the state, i.e. the distribution of power between the centre and the territory. Further attempts to specify territorial autonomy are met with serious difficulties. Therefore, it is crucial to look at it through the prism of public interest. The term public interest has a relative meaning, because it depends on the constantly changing social conditions. This variability is, among others, a result of the territorial context. The national interest and the territorial interest will be defined in different ways. It seems, therefore, that in order to explicate the notion territorial autonomy, one should refer to the concept of public interest and then take into account the relationship between the interest of a territory and the interest of the whole state. This will make it possible to outline territorial autonomy through the prism of its determinant – the public interest.


2006 ◽  
Vol 49 (1) ◽  
pp. 1-21
Author(s):  
HILLAY ZMORA

Focusing on the Franconian margraviates of Brandenburg around 1500, this study argues that the process of state formation engendered an elite of nobles who derived their power and status from the possession of high office. It shows, however, that as the state expanded, and the princely debt mounted, the relationship between ruler and noble elite was transformed: the leading nobles came to control more and more of the state in terms of offices and share of the public debt. To secure themselves in this elevated but unstable position they developed a dense network of marriage alliances among themselves. By the early sixteenth century this consortium of eminent nobles acquired a powerful hold on the princely state to the detriment of the princes and the exclusion of fellow nobles. The article suggests that it is against this background that the notorious deposition in 1515 of Margrave Friedrich by his sons should be seen: his overthrow was, among other things, an outcome of a change in the balance of power between prince and nobles that had been taking place since 1450. Finally, this change played a part in the creation of the Imperial Knighthood by which the nobles constitutionally placed themselves outside the princely states.


2017 ◽  
Vol 6 (2) ◽  
Author(s):  
Kurnia Khairany

This study aimed to determining the positioning of the State Museum of West Nusa Tenggara based on visitor’s perception. The research method used was qualitative approach with data collecting through interview, observation and documentation. Informants is selected by accidental sampling technique. Data  from  interviews  with 20  informants  were  analyzed  using content analysis method. The  results  showed  that  the  State  Museum  of  West  Nusa  Tenggara  hada positioning as edutainment with dimensions of value, uniqueness, credibility, sustainability and conformity. The museum should consider the desire and needs of visitors with the main purpose of the museum, which is to present the mission of education as well as entertainment to the public. Thus, the Museum of West Nusa Tenggara is expected to be a place to gain knowledge and experience as well as recreation that reaches all levels of society. The most important contribution of this study is the positioning model of the State Museum of West Nusa Tenggara based on the perception of visitors i.e. edutainment concept to become a pioneer for further empirical research. It is expected that in the future the managerial of West Nusa Tenggara State Museum can increase visit to the museum. Keywords: Museum, positioning, visitor perceptions, edutainment


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