Tuesday 17 May 2016

Abstract: May 2016

Abstract: May - August 2016
Vol.7, No.2
Impact Factors: SJIF (3.276), IIFS (0.993), ISRA (0.834)

Editorial

DOI: 10.15655/mw/2016/v7i2/98735
Mutualisation of News through an Engaging Media is a Safer Bet in the Age of Sustainability and Diminishing Advertising Revenue

SOUMYA JOSE
Issue Editor, Media Watch

“Gone are the days of “us and them” journalism”, suggests that there is no longer any different between the audience and the journalists with the increasing level of normal people becoming “citizen journalists”. The use of new and digital media has given the  audiences the power to produce their own media product and level up with the journalists, according to Editor-in-chief Alan Rusbridger, now our journalists and readers as equal partners.” 
                                                                                                    - Yusra Khalid ( Independent Blogger)

In 2010, the former editor of The Guardian, Alan Rusbridger, showed the world about the power of publicness through his Twitter posting revolting against the court injection on The Guardian to report on the dumping of toxic chemicals by the company, Trafigura. Trafigura became viral in Twitter; the result is more vigorous news stories and personal comments that could have possibly escaped from the newspaper pages. Calling this as ‘mutualisation of news’, Rusbridger underlined the collaboration of professionals and nonprofessionals in the dissemination of news. From a carefully filtered and controlled letters to editor, the role of readers or news consumers have traversed such distance that news are now produced by a collaborative effort. The Guardian’s ‘Comment is Free’ is a typical example of how the laymen or those having a journalistic flair or at least an opinion work together to build an interactive or collaborative news platform, a completely different experience social media platforms provide.
               Alan Rusbridger comments “The mutualisation of news is a very powerful idea that particularly works for the Guardian, as our relationship with our readers is very strong. We can use the community of our readers in ways we would not have been able to in the past.” Rusbridger says that in order to make the members feel involved and more interested, the Guardian should build trust by behaving like the old-style mutual building societies. The web has led to a news community where ideas and news are shared rather than delivered, as new and digital media has become more accessible through the use of the Internet world wide. He also suggests that, “By continuing to go down this route, we will be more diverse and genuinely more plural than other media organizations and create a huge external resource. We need to continue breaking down the perceptions of a remote
journalist who is a preacher, living distantly, and newspapers as being in bed with power and on the side of power, rather than the reader.”
                 As mutualisation gears its definition to wider spectrum, this issue of the Journal of Media Watch looks at the possibilities of using this concept in the developing world for journalism and news media. Journalism pays sustained attention to the coverage of ideas, policies, programs, activities and events dealing with the improvement of the life of people. As far as the developing world is concerned, media plays a pivotal role in keeping any eye not only on the governmental policies, but the larger human and societal developmental issues in the country. However the media in the developing world, both press and electronic, is entangled in the serious competition amidst the clutter where they consider political tussle and power struggle as the prominent matter to boost their readership or viewership. Though the 24 hour news channels ‘report’, these are often news pieces ‘to inform’ rather than ‘to change’. This is same with the revolution of e-papers as well; print shifted to online that eased readability for larger users, but added nothing to the wide opportunities that the online platform provides news media. The role of people in this process is limited to sharing the news links and posting comments only to the selective news allowed by the newspaper. The downturn for journalism in developing countries lies here, while exciting opportunities are wide open. If in 1969, George Varghese, a prominent journalist in The Hindustan Times could make revolutionary changes through his fortnightly column, ‘Our Village Chatera’ depicting the life in the village of Chatera that opened the windows towards the rural life of India. In this era where technology has put forward immense opportunity for journalists to embark on ‘reporting for changes’, we cannot see such advancements in journalism.
                  News mutualisation is challenging the modern business model of business marketing but is proposing a holistic approach to the media management on the goal of a sustainable stable entrepreneurship through receiver (consumer) engagement. This sustainability is ultimately essential as the advertisement revenue is deeply shrinking. Mutualisation is now a safer bet than more corporatization or privatization. Future will be glossy, if the product will be the part and parcel of human heart than the valets. This is a phenomenon of value addition—increasing public value, credibility and firmly erecting the roots of sustainability.
                   The biggest challenge is whether to involve the receiver in the process or product of news industry? The ultimatum is the possibility of transforming the private owned or state-owned news industry into a source-receiver mutually owned company of breakeven sustainability. Government’s budget deficit on public service broadcasting, diminishing revenue from seasoned print advertisements, lowering viewership TAM rating and switching to mobile and app oriented revenue generation is compelling for more and more news mutualisation. Sharing is more important than liking, commenting is more important than poking, emotions reaction rating is more vital than emoticons… More and more engagement strategies to mutualisation is experimented.
                    As Roy Greenslade, the professor of Journalism, City University London opines in his commentary “Although there is no certainty that they would be imperiled, a much safer bet for them - and for those who benefit by watching them - would be mutualisation (or, of course, the status quo). It would safeguard editorial independence”. But the idea is not inconceivable. Will there be a conflict of interest when the mutualisation be more diverse and plural? How can the balance between local and global news can be maintained and positioned? How can media integration possible with mutualisation? How shared media platforms can increase the engagements? Diversity plus innovation is new order in the news media world.
               This issue of the Journal of Media Watch presents some of the novel research in the process of information and news disseminations. The diverse content, the plurality of research methods, the hyperglobal contributions will make this issue a splendid treat for the scholars and academics.
            Prof. T T Sreekumar from MICA—The School of Ideas, Ahmadabad and Dr. Milagros Rivera-Sanchez University of Free State in Bloemfontein, South Africa explores a grassroots level mutualisation, how cybercafés in small and medium Asian towns highlight new aspects of modernity. Especially in the context of Asian modernity, the introduction of ICT-shaped social spaces in the form of cybercafés leads to multiple conflicting rhetoric of empowerment and progress on the one hand, and risk and moral degeneration on the other.
               Prof. Myna German and Dr. Padmini Banerjee Delaware State University, Dover, Delaware, USA research reflects an extensive and in-depth review of the literature on the role of hyper-reality in our contemporary lives and its impact on our migratory decisions. 
            Jermaine Hekili Cathcart, University of California study seeks to assess the impact of the change in ownership upon the way African Americans are represented in BET’s programming. The study begins by placing black popular cultures roots in the minstrel show and shows how that form of media continues to plague American popular culture, and indeed, BET, today.
             Prof. Bai Gui and Muhammad Arif of Hebei University, China traces the new channels of communication being used as intercultural communication tool to enhance the existing bond of friendship between China and Pakistan, the oldest strategic allies in the region. The study explores government initiatives, academic programs and projects aimed at promoting Chinese language and culture in Pakistan to boost cross-cultural communication.
           Jayakrishnan Sreekumar of Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham, Coimbatore briefly analyze the articles and editorials appeared in Indian and foreign newspapers (The Hindu, India; The Guardian, UK; and The New York Times, USA on Sachin Tendulkar’s retirement from cricket. The retirement articles of other Indian great cricketers in these three newspapers were also analysed and compared with the articles on Tendulkar.
         Kiran Bhatia from MICA—The School of Ideas, Ahmedabad investigates how new media networks have led to the personalization of the political sphere as it recognizes the significance of ‘the self’ over ‘the mass’ in democratizing the political discourse and give space to unaffiliated independent opinions to emerge. They let arguments and divergent views determine the construction of the ‘active collective conscience’.
         Dr. Varsha Jain and Dr. Saumya Pant of MICA–The School of Ideas, Ahmedabad aims to uncover the role of mobile phone that has emerged along with the evolution of Generation Y. The digitized consumers of this generation need to be understood in light of the importance of family, friends and peers.
         Sangita De and Priyam Basu Thakur at Rabindra Bharati University, Kolkata attempt to conduct an explanatory research by using analysis of Twitter Revolution (Iran), Umbrella Revolution (Hong Kong), Sunflower Protest (Taiwan), Shah Bag Movement (Bangladesh), Delhi Gang Rape Agitation (India) and Bersih Movement (Malaysia). The paper identify the role of social media in mobilizing social movement of Asian region.
         Arun Kumar and Dr. Mrinalini Pandey from Indian School of Mines, Dhanbad research revealed a positive impact of informativeness, entertainment, credibility and user-generatedcontent belief factors on attitudes and behavior of respondents. Structural equation modeling was employed to analyze the important factors and relationships among them.
            Arun Mathew's paper is focused on the bribery among journalists. Several reasons from poor salaries to the culture of a place have been discussed as causative factors. The article poses many ethical and moral questions on the practices in the fourth estate.

Dr. Soumya Jose, Faculty, School of Social Sciences & Languages, Vellore Institute of Technology University, Vellore-632 014, Tamil Nadu, India. 


Dr. Sony Jalarajan Raj                                                                Deepak Ranjan Jena
Editor-in-Chief                                                                           Managing Editor
Journal of Media Watch                                                             Journal of Media watch
Department of Communication                                                 S.C.S College Road, Near Amala Club
MacEwan University                                                                 Puri-752 001, Odisha, India
Edmonton, Canada                                                                    E-mail: mediawatchjournal@gmail.com
Email: sonyjraj@gmail.com                                                     Tel: +91- 943-953-7641
Tel: 001-587-778-2426

DOI: 10.15655/mw/2016/v7i2/98737
New media, Space and Marginality: Control and Regulation of Cybercafe Use in Small and Medium Towns in Asia

TT SREEKUMAR1 & MILAGROS RIVERA-SÁNCHEZ2
1MICA-The School of Ideas, Ahmedabad, India
2University of Free State in Bloemfontein, South Africa

This paper is about how cybercafés in small and medium Asian towns highlight new aspects of modernity. Especially in the context of Asian modernity, the introduction of ICT-shaped social spaces in the form of cybercafés leads to multiple conflicting rhetoric of empowerment and progress on the one hand, and risk and moral degeneration on the other. Through an ethnographic study carried out in twelve small or medium towns in six Asian countries, the research explores how new media technologies influence the contexts of reimagining Asia’s encounter with modernity. The paper is based on a study drawing from secondary materials and primary information gathered through extensive field work in six developing countries in Asia: Thailand, Vietnam, Indonesia and the Philippines in South East Asia, and India and Bangladesh in South Asia. In this paper we set out to argue that the continuities, ruptures and innovations that constitute the Asian modernity, as well as their social impacts, are mirrored in the discourses surrounding the various technologies that embody this modernity, negotiating a new phase in its mediation and legitimization in Asia. In particular, new media technologies and social media are involved in multiple discourses of risk, opportunity and adaptation. In the case of the cybercafés in Asia, we argue that the situated nature of technological access gives rise to new dimensions of adaptation at individual and collective levels. Discourses emanating from representatives of civil society, State and various other stakeholders converge on cybercafés, and their attention on this particular space emerges as an indication of its complexity as a zone of mediated access to the worlds—both desired and undesired—that computers make possible. The complexity of defining an essential set of Asian values and a regionally unique trajectory of modernity notwithstanding, cybercafé users in small towns across the six countries studied faced similar pressures and options that motivated the calibration of access to multiple worlds. Global technologies are shaped by local realities as civil society stakeholders struggle to redefine boundaries of morality, safety and privacy, balancing these against necessity and opportunity.

DOI: 10.15655/mw/2016/v7i1/86497
Continental Divides in an Age of Technology: Unanticipated Consequences of Emigration and Implications for the Economic, Political and Socio-Cultural Arrangements in the Home Country

MYNA GERMAN & PADMINI BANERJEE
Delaware State University, USA

This paper reflects an extensive and in-depth review of the literature on the role of hyper-reality in our contemporary lives and its impact on our migratory decisions. Hyper-reality is defined as the somewhat surreal ability to peer into living rooms thousands of miles away using state-of-the-art communication technology such as Skype Examining development issues, one could highlight groups of individuals for whom living conditions have improved substantively back home and who choose not to migrate, based on what they see in the receiving country, in terms of reversal of cultural norms and erosion of traditional values. Or, migrants in the receiving country might choose to turn their attention homeward to take advantage of upbeat economies, viewing the increase in material prosperity firsthand through the new informational communication technologies. The paper includes aspects of material,, including a chapter by Buzzi & Megele on “hyper-reality” in our upcoming co-edited book, an anthology of global writings on migration, technology and transculturation (Lindenwood University Press, 2011). The paper concludes with perspectives on reversing the “brain drain” which has created pockets of wealth in educated new-immigrant communities in the developed world while creating shortages in the developing world. The paper builds on the three conceptual strands in the German & Banerjee co-edited book, starting with material on “digital diasporas” (technology), moving into material on “social networks” and “chains of migration” from certain locations (transculturation or social perspective) to future migration scenarios (as in reversing the “brain drain”). 

DOI: 10.15655/mw/2016/v7i2/98748
Black Entertainment Television: Impact of Corporate Ownership on Black Media

JERMAINE HEKILI CATHCART
University of California, USA

In 2001, CEO and owner of Black Entertainment Television (BET) Bob Johnson, sold majority ownership to Viacom with much controversy. Many people in the black community questioned the appropriateness of a network that claimed to represent black life being under the defacto control of a white dominated corporation. This study seeks to assess the impact of the change in ownership upon the way African Americans are represented in BET’s programming. The study begins by placing black popular cultures roots in the minstrel show and shows how that form of media continues to plague American popular culture, and indeed, BET, today. The study then undertakes an interpretive textual analysis to show that BET shows and programming, under the ownership of a white corporation is used as a mechanism of white imperialistic ideological domination. 

DOI: 10.15655/mw/2016/v7i2/98741
Redefining the Indian Public Sphere: A Study of the LGBT Rights Movement in India

KIRAN VINOD BHATIA
MICA-The School of Ideas, Ahmedabad, India

New media networks have led to a personalization of the political sphere as affordances provided by the virtual space give precedence to the significance of the ‘self ’ over the ‘masses’. Through this paper an attempt has been made to understand how the LGBT community uses new media technologies to transcend the boundaries of the traditional public sphere in order to create a realm of
self-identification in the virtual world. The study focuses on a group of Indian citizens who identify themselves as members of the LGBT community, who are digitally active and have participated in activities to mobilize public opinion in favor of the legalization of their sexual preferences. The study delineates how the LGBT community translates online discursive practices into offline civic engagement activities through the process of community formation, mobilization, setting up agenda for collective actions and creation of a realm for expression by the marginalized other.

DOI: 10.15655/mw/2016/v7i2/98724
Exploring Channels of Cultural Communication between Pakistan and China

BAI GUI & MUHAMMAD ARIF
Hebei University, China

This article traces the new channels of communication being used as inter cultural communication tool to enhance the existing bond of friendship between China and Pakistan, the oldest strategic allies in the region. The study explores government initiatives, academic programs and projects aimed at promoting Chinese language and culture in Pakistan to boost cross-cultural communication. The horizon of China’s cultural communication in Pakistan is being expanded by teaching Chinese language like utilizing new media tools such as video conferencing and radio broadcasts technology. The paper covers the various aspects of the roles different organization are playing to empower cultural communication channels such as Confucius Institute, China Radio International, Pakistan China Institute, National University of Modern Languages and Chinese Diplomatic Mission in Pakistan. This paper is highly significant as it helps to know the strategic measures that China is taking to strengthen the bilateral ties with Pakistan, especially people to people contacts, through inter cultural communication tools.

DOI: 10.15655/mw/2016/v7i2/99507
Media Representation and Celebrity Discourse: Editorial Approaches to Sachin Tendulkar's Retirement

JAYAKRISHNAN SREEKUMAR
Amrita Vishwa Vidyapeetham, India

The retirement of Sachin Tendulkar, unarguably one of the greatest cricketers the world has ever witnessed, was a major landmark in the recent history of sport and generated a widespread media discourse across the world. This paper analyses how differently Indian and foreign media engaged with this celebrity discourse through a comparative analysis of the online editorials of three leading international dailies namely, The Hindu (India), The Guardian (UK) and The New York Times (US) during a given period. During the study, the researcher identified contrasting online editorial approaches (Indian and non-Indian pattern) to the treatment of Tendulkar ’s retirement. The retirement articles of other Indian greats in these three newspapers were also analysed and compared with the articles on Tendulkar. A number of variables and sub-variables were identified and analysed to discuss the key differences in the two ‘patterns’ of media representation. The paper concluded that while the Indian pattern idolised Tendulkar and made comparisons to God; the ‘non-Indian pattern’ was objective and neutral.

DOI: 10.15655/mw/2016/v7i2/98726
Generation Y as a Digital Consumer: A Conceptual Framework for Mobile Marketing in India

VARSHA JAIN & SAUMYA PANT
MICA–The School of Ideas, Ahmedabad, India

Among the emerging economies, India is the most promising market for Generation Y, because majority of Indian’s population belongs to this segment (those born between 1980 and 2000). These individuals are tech-savvy and extensively use mobile phones. This study aims to uncover the role of mobile phone that has emerged along with the evolution of Generation Y. The digitized consumers of this generation need to be understood in light of the importance of family, friends and peers. This will help us determine the purchase of products and brands via mobile phones while understanding the characteristics of these individuals. A total of 10 focus group discussions (FGDs) with 72 respondents
were conducted in three Indian leading cities: Mumbai, Bangalore, and Ahmedabad. The study found that Generation Y widely use mobile phone, get influenced by the peers, family and friends and get involved with the brands via phone. Generation Y also focus on personalization, security and sharing; while they emerge as digital consumers.

DOI: 10.15655/mw/2016/v7i2/98745
Social Media and Social Movement: Contemporary Online Activism in Asia

PRIYAM BASU THAKUR& SANGITA DE
Rabindra Bharati University, Kolkata, India

In contemporary era social media and mass movement are playing a crucial role in global public sphere. Statistics shows that in the countries of Asian continent active social media penetration is flourishing with times. The paper will attempt to conduct an explanatory research by using analysis of Twitter Revolution (Iran), Umbrella Revolution (Hong Kong), Sunflower Protest (Taiwan), Shah Bag Movement (Bangladesh), Delhi Gang Rape Agitation (India) and Bersih Movement (Malaysia). In the context of theoretical framework, the paper will attempt to discuss public opinion of Walter Lippmann (1922), the structural transformations of the public sphere by Jurgen Habermas (1964), social identity model of deindividuation effects (SIDE) by Riecher, Spears & Postmes (1995), mediapolis of Roger Silverstone (2007) etc. The paper will primarily try to identify the role of social media in mobilizing social movement of Asian region. 

DOI: 10.15655/mw/2016/v7i2/98729
Indian Consumers' Beliefs, Attitudes and Behavioural Responses towards Advertising on Social Networking Sites

ARUN KUMAR & MRINALINI PANDEY
Indian School of Mines, Dhanbad, India

Advertising is an important facet of marketing of a product or a company. The marketers are using myriad ways to influence the consumers’ purchase behaviour. One of the latest trends is advertising on social networking sites. This study is an attempt to examine the beliefs, attitudes and responses towards advertisements on social networking sites. For this study, structured questionnaire was administered on a sample of 150 post-graduate students. Structural Equation Modeling was employed to analyze the factors and relationships among them. The research revealed a positive impact of informativeness, entertainment, credibility and user-generated-content belief factors on attitudes and behaviour of respondents. The findings also suggested that user-generated content had significant impact on attitude and behaviour responses towards advertising on social networking sites. It was also found that attitude towards advertising on social networking sites played a mediating role between social media advertising beliefs and behavioural responses of consumers.

DOI: 10.15655/mw/2016/v7i2/98713
Media Professionals Perception on Bribe and Corruption

ARUN P MATHEW & C PICHANDY
Bharathiar University, Coimbatore, India

Bribery among journalists could be seen widely in many places but is a comparatively less researched topic. It would be surprising for an average news consumer to know that the sometimes news story he reads in print or views on television might be the product of a bribe or some sort of incentive received by the journalist who covered that news. After all, we read and watch news on the sordid details of corruption in government and society in general through the media with such alarming alacrity, but would almost have never known about corruption in the media they subscribe. Moreover, when one talks about corruption in media, it is about how the media reports on corruption or on ‘paid news’ where the aspect of how the media establishments publish news after accepting monetary assistance.

Saturday 23 April 2016

CFP: Journal of Communication MEDIA WATCH

Call for Papers: Journal of Media Watch


Mutualisation of News and Engaging Media



In 2010, the former editor of Guardian, Alan Rusbridger, showed the world about the power of public ness through his twitter posting revolting against the court injection on Guardian to report on the dumping of toxic chemicals by the company ‘Trafigura’. Trafigura became viral in twitter; the result is more vigorous news stories and personal comments that could have possibly escaped from the newspaper pages. Calling this as ‘Mutualisation of News’, Rusbridger underlined the collaboration of professionals and non-professionals in the dissemination of news. From a carefully filtered and controlled letters to editor, the role of readers or news consumers have traversed such distance that news are no produced by a collaborative effort. The Guardian’s ‘Comment is Free’ is a typical example of how the laymen or those having a journalistic flair or at least an opinion work together to build an interactive or collaborative news platform, a completely different experience social media platforms provide.
As mutualisation gears its definition to wider spectrum, this issue of The Journal of Media Watch looks at the possibilities of using this concept in the developing world for journalism and news media. Journalism pays sustained attention to the coverage of ideas, policies, programs, activities and events dealing with the improvement of the life of people.
As far as the developing world is concerned, media plays a pivotal role in keeping any eye not only on the government policies, but the larger human and societal developmental issues in the country. However the media in the developing world, both press and electronic, in entangled in the serious competition amidst the clutter where they consider political tussle and power struggle as the prominent grey matter to boost their readership or viewership. Though the 24 hour news channels ‘report’, these are often news pieces ‘to inform’ rather than ‘to change’. This is same with the revolution of e-papers as well; print shifted to online that eased readability for larger users, but added nothing to the wide opportunities that the online platform provide news media. The role of people in this process is limited to sharing the news links and posting comments only to the selective news allowed by the newspaper. The downturn for journalism in developing countries lies here, while exciting opportunities are wide open. If in 1969, George Varghese, a prominent journalist in The Hindustan Times could make revolutionary changes through his fortnightly column, ‘Our Village Chatera’ depicting the life in the village of Chatera that opened the windows towards the rural life of India, in this era where technology has put forward immense opportunity for journalists to embark on ‘reporting for changes’, we cannot see such advancements in journalism.
News is now a collaborative effort, and with developmental reports, it is even more demanding. Many a times reporters need to get various insights into the wider spectrum of an issue which is possible only through considering audience’ or reader’s point of view. On this special issue Journal of Media Watch invites empirical and objective research papers on the following topics:

  • Mutualization of news
  • Engaging news media
  • Community journalism
  • Collective media ownership
  • Prosumers
  • Shared media platforms
  • News plurality
  • Paywall and Firewalls
  • Hyperlocal media
  • Diversity innovations

Dr. Sony Jalarajan Raj
Editor-in-Chief, The Journal of Media Watch
Department of Communication
7-166C, 10700-104 Avenue
MacEwan University, Edmonton, AB, Canada, T5J 4S2

Email: sonyjraj@gmail.com
Tel: 001-587-778-2426




Contributors are encouraged to query the editors (sonyjraj@gmail.com, mediajournal@ymail.com, mediawatchjournal@gmail.com) in a short e-mail describing their paper to determine suitability for publication. Journal of Media Watch will only accept true, original and pure fundamental and empirical research papers which were not published before in any publications.

Abstract: The abstracts should define objectives, theoretical framework and methodological approach, as well as possible contributions for the advancement of knowledge in the field. As a length measure, each submission should have an abstract of 150-200 words. Authors should provide five or six keywords for their abstract to facilitate online searching.

Length: As the journal is primarily print-based, we encourage articles or manuscripts, including references, tables, and charts, should range between 20-30 pages (7000-8000 words).

Deadlines:   June 15, 2016.

Style: References should also follow APA style (6th Edition).

Visit: http://www.mediawatchglobal.com/information-for-author/
Guidelines for submission are available at:
http://www.mediawatchglobal.com/instructions-for-authors/

Title: Maximum 12 words

Review Process: Authors are informed when manuscripts are received. Each manuscript is pre-viewed prior to distribution to appropriate reviewers. Manuscripts are anonymously reviewed. Once all reviews are returned, a decision is made and the author is notified. Manuscripts should consist of original material, and not currently under consideration by other journals. Author(s) have to submit the copyrights declaration permission to Media Watch before final consideration of the paper.

Cover Page: (for review purposes): Include title of manuscript, date of submission, author’s name, title, mailing address, business and home phone number, and email address. Please provide a brief biographical sketch and acknowledge if the article was presented as a paper or if it reports a funded research project.

Software Format: Submit papers in both Word (.doc) and Pdf.

Indexing & Citations: Journal of Media Watch is indexed and citied in 15 international database, citation and indexing agencies including SCOPUS, CrossRef, EBSCOS, Ulrich, Ebscos, J-Gate, Proquest, Google Scholar, ResearchBib, MIAR etc. Journal of Media Watch is subscribed in major university library data base in Asia, Europe and USA. Journal of Media Watch is considered for inclusion by the famous database such as ISI, Thomson Reuters, Dove Jones, and Nature.

Plagiarism Check: All the submitted papers will undergo mandatory online plagiarism check through plagiarism software’s such as Turnitin and Safe Assign. Contributors are encouraged to do plagiarism check before they submit for the publication. Any submitted paper with more than 7 % match will be rejected without any feedback from the editorial board.

Submission & Acceptance: Any paper published in any journals, book chapters, monograms or abstracts presented in any conference or published in any conference proceedings will not be published. We strongly discourage on the submission of any such.
We strongly recommend you share this call for papers among researchers who you think may be interested in submitting papers for the issue of the journal.

Information: For further information and inquiries about the proposed issue and journal, in case of need, please do not hesitate to contact the editor-in-chief of the journal, Dr. Sony Jalarajan Raj via e-mail: sonyjraj@gmail.com
If any organizations and institutions are interested to associate with Media Watch journal, please write to the Publisher: deepakranjanjena@yahoo.com, mediawatchjournal@gmail.com

Visit the journal website: http://www.mediawatchglobal.com/

E-mail your submission to: sonyjraj@gmail.com, mediajournal@ymail.com, mediawatchjournal@gmail.com

Saturday 5 March 2016

                

                  Abstract January-April 2016


Editorial

DOI: 10.15655/mw/2016/v7i1/87410
Race for Virtual Reality Monopolization and the Predatory Arise of News Media Monoliths
Dr. Sony Jalarajan Raj
Editor-in-Chief, The Journal of Media Watch
The New York Times has announced its gate-crashing into the world of virtual reality news presentation with heavy marketing strategies, even though there have been many innovative and creative attempts of virtual reality news explorations that have already made land marks. NYT’s systematically designed market shaking virtual reality attempt has been made real by covering millions through Google collaborations. The refugee crisis and their struggles in the no man’s land have been filmed and titled as ‘The Displaced’ for the first virtual reality view of The New York Times through the Google cardboard viewer. Over and above, a news worthy experimentation, it can be cited as an intelligent and throat cut market strategy of the NYT to sell the news as a global product.
The convergence of technology and platforms such as smart phones, apps, lenses and satellites have enabled both the Google and NYT to tell the stories of refugee kids from South Sudan, Ukraine and Syria. The sad stories of the soul searching refugee kids have become a free and sponsored staple diet for millions of NYT subscribed readers across North America. Those readers have experienced close-ups, panoramic views and pans by subscribing a printed newspaper. While celebrating the tears right in front of their eyes, the NYTexpect that their news consumers may get a unique sense of empathy with the subjects and news events. Diversified geographies may frequently appear in front of the consumers’ eyes by subscribing a print enhanced with apps, smart gadgets and lens.
Is this a new form of news dissemination/story telling or promoting a technological product for a brand recognition? As cat video tech ventures such as Snapchat, Vine, and Periscope have started redefining the time and space concept of news formats, mainstream media moguls have sensed the heat and pressure to innovate and compete. Being in the limelight is important to make one’s presence visible. More Virtual Reality experiments are coming from tech ventures of Oculus Rift, T Brand Studio, Framestore, General Electric and MINI. Hence, yet another virtual reality explosion in the news world is definite.
While the symbiotic relations between the news media and technology reach a crucial juncture, the consumers are becoming more selective and narrow casted. The new challenge is to increase the consumers’ participation in this diversified and technology enhanced news presentation. Hence forgetting the rivalry and the throat cut competitions, new corporate alliances are taking into shape. The giant media corporations of the world are initiating aggressive merging and acquisition strategies to tighten their ownership control and retain their customer base. Takeovers and buy outs in the media industries are becoming the everyday catch phrases in the global stock markets. Along with business strategies and associations, these acquisitions and mergers bring forward technological innovations to tighten the ownership control, increase profit and widen the user experiences for brand loyalties.
Facebook with its new internet.org and its acquisition of LiveRail, a San Francisco/California-based online video advertising company, gate crashed into the blue chip 10 most valued stock club among the Standard & Poor’s 500 index listing, whereas Google launched its news data center which is labelled as the power plant for the Internet in Alabama to tap the scribes and monitor the news media under their radar. Along with establishing a ‘news lab’ that collaborates with  journalist and entrepreneurs in providing quality news and information to the world, Google is also on its way to an innovative project—Project Loon—a balloon powered internet (wireless) facility to connect rural and remote areas of the world. NBC is undergoing radical shift and remodeling whereas The New York Time’s collaboration with Microsoft and Apple for their mobile presence is proving successful with its popularity reaching even the Russian readers. Data and value utilization form the main target for all of these corporations.
News and its gatekeepers are getting more influenced by the new start-ups and social media ventures that dominate the social web. Everything is becoming instant and homogeneous. Shifting audience demographics and new entrepreneurships in the information and communication world are eagerly looking at sustaining the marketing and advertising revenues. The Journal of Media Watchpresents this issue with more diversified content and uncompromising quality. Enjoy reading the research from scholars across the world beyond time and space differences.

© Media Watch 7 (1) 5-18, 2016
ISSN 0976-0911 e-ISSN 2249-8818
DOI: 10.15655/mw/2016/v7i1/86498
Social Mobilization in the Net Space: Re-Constructed Communication, Identity and Power
Cecilia Fe L Sta Maria-Abalos
College of Arts and Communication, University of the Philippines Baguio, Philippines
The internet as a communication platform for netizens has become the hybrid space for social mobilization to forward political agenda.  A take-off from Manuel Castells’ hypotheses on power and counter-power in the network society, this paper is a reading of “Boycott SM Baguio” Facebook Group Page as a space and site for social mobilization. Using textual analysis as a method, reading of the selected posts revealed that the spatial conditions present in the net space effected the reconstruction of identity, group and public and re-shaped the communication process. Elaborating on these two main points elicited a different kind of social mobilization located in the online space that emerged discourses on power, counter-power, political legitimacyand exacerbated questions on sustainability.

© Media Watch 7 (1) 19-29, 2016
ISSN 0976-0911 e-ISSN 2249-8818
DOI: 10.15655/mw/2016/v7i1/86497
Social Media Mania and the Professional Gratification: An Investigation on the Social Media Exposure and Use of Social Media for News Makeup among the Polish Journalists
Robert Nêcek & Krzysztof Gurba
Institute of Journalism and Social Communication
Pontifical University of John Paul II, Poland
Traditional and social media interplay in setting media agenda. Intermedial agenda is still in the nascent state and is one of the most dynamic and uncontrolled phenomenon on the border between professional, staff-produced media and the mostly grassroots, user-generated content of social media. One of the crucial roles in the process of media agenda setting and intermedia agenda setting is played by key TV news producers and popular anchors. Our goal in this paper was to study the range of use of social media by top Polish television journalists in their everyday work. Furthermore, we wanted to get a bigger picture of how social media’s use of key TV anchors and editors influence their gate keeping and frame the content they produce. Our research was placed within the paradigm of agenda-setting theory and was conducted in the first half of 2015 with the use of a questionnaire dedicated to the selected group of top Polish mainstream TV journalists.

© Media Watch 7 (1) 30-43, 2016
ISSN 0976-0911 e-ISSN 2249-8818
DOI: 10.15655/mw/2016/v7i1/86500
What is Political about Political Economy: A Rejoinder to the Fuchs-Winseck Debate
Scott Timcke1 & Derek Kootte2
1School of Communication, Simon Fraser University, Canada
2Department of Political Science, University of British Columbia, Vancouver
This paper uses the Winseck-Fuchs debate as a case study in assessing how value preferences shape definitions, predicate logic, and axiomatic reasoning, and in turn influence the analysis of institutions. The study identify and contrast the explanatory power behind different modes of institutional analysis often applied in the study of communication in advanced capitalist societies. Thereafter the study attend to how these modes account for capacity, frame collective actions problems, take account of trade-offs and coalition building, as well as describe behaviour of and within institutions. In the second half of the paper, the study use critical political economic methodologies to examine the ideological coloring of these modes. The study highlight features often overlooked in reductive treatments of states and corporate conglomeration and seek to supplement them with a more sensitive political economic analysis. In this respect, the researchers think there is much scope for communication researchers to contribute to the general analysis of the advantages and problems of political assessment of governance as it relates to the media more broadly.

© Media Watch 7 (1) 44-54, 2016
ISSN 0976-0911 e-ISSN 2249-8818
DOI: 10.15655/mw/2016/v7i1/86490
An analysis of VICE Media’s Expedient  Commodification of Modern Hipster Culture as a Motif of Contemporary Capitalism
Nicholas Ryan Ward
Carleton University, Ottawa, Canada
VICE Media has risen from a local Canadian counterculture magazine to an international corporate giant. Bloomberg Business has valued the company at over $1 billion, while other reputable outlets have placed VICE’s worth at many times that. Remarkably, through its ascension to mainstream relevancy and despite getting into bed with some of the world’s richest and most denounced corporations, VICE has managed to maintain its reputation as a counterculture brand. This qualitative analysis on the evolution of VICE Media presents past interviews and market decisions by VICE owners to exhibit how the company has expediently captured and preserved the attention of millennials through its strategic commodification of 21st century hipsterism. This analysis also relies on the work of prevalent academics and journalists to provide an understanding of VICE, hipsterism and their inherent connection to consumerism. This is an accessible study that demonstrates how VICE identified and harnessed the socio-cultural/socioeconomic phenomenon of hipsterism to amplify its potential as a commercial media institution.

© Media Watch 7 (1) 55-74, 2016
ISSN 0976-0911 e-ISSN 2249-8818
DOI: 10.15655/mw/2016/v7i1/86501
What is Social Media and Why is it Important to Documentary Filmmakers?
Friedrich H. Kohle
Edinburgh University, United Kingdom
Social Media is a binary platform on which all previous forms of media converge. Producers are disappointed that social media does not generate the revenues expected. Documentary filmmakers are challenged to understand, adapt and apply this new technology. This paper examines social media, its origins, applications and limitations by reviewing the predictions made by media theorists. The author conducted case studies and interviewed practicing documentary filmmakers such as the producer of ‘The Act of Killing’. Focus groups among digital natives and immigrants explored their perception of social media. Research includes the production of three documentaries to apply knowledge gained. Less than 5 per cent of digital natives and immigrants investigated perceive social media as a promotional tool. Self-expression, creativity, sharing information globally takes priority.

© Media Watch 7 (1) 75-83, 2016
ISSN 0976-0911 e-ISSN 2249-8818
DOI: 10.15655/mw/2016/v7i1/86493
Digital Detoxification: A Content Analysis of User Generated Videos Uploaded on YouTube by Facebook Quitters
Gurpreet Kour
Mudra Institute of Communications Ahmedabad, India
Social media has not only transformed an individual’s interaction pattern but has also integrated into wide range of interests and practices of online users. This social network facilitates self construction, identity performance and social integration on one hand while mediating fake relationships, unethical practices and invading privacy on the other. This study aims to understand why some Facebook users are quitting this online platform. Content analyses of YouTube videos of those who claim to be Facebook quitters have been analyzed to conceptualize emerging themes. This will be a study inclusive to interpretative paradigm to understand the reasons leading to this digital detoxification and enthusiastic non-Facebook experience. The present study extends this line of research to assess the range of identity claims that users tend to make for constructing online self-identity on Facebook and to investigate how it has affected the decision to quit. Implications and future research directions of digital detoxification by quitting Facebook are discussed.

© Media Watch 7 (1) 84-91, 2016
ISSN 0976-0911 e-ISSN 2249-8818
DOI: 10.15655/mw/2016/v7i1/86496
Role of the Media in Africa’s Democratization Quest: A Case Study of Ghana
Dennis Moot
Ohio University, Athens, USA
In most African states, political openness and tolerance is measured by the non-existence of government censorship, and also the ability of the media to operate without fear. In agreement with the debate posited by Wasserman (2013) including other scholars suggests that the media is capable of building democratic structures as it provides a platform for continuous discussion, communication and dialogue amongst various stakeholders within the state. The objectives of this paper is to assess the disadvantages of sensationalism in the media on the democratic development of Ghana.

© Media Watch 7 (1) 92-104, 2016
ISSN 0976-0911 e-ISSN 2249-8818
DOI: 10.15655/mw/2016/v7i1/86494
Fictional Portrayals of Young People in Chinese and American Juvenile Delinquency Films: A Comparative Study
WANG CHANGSONG
Universiti Sains Malaysia, Malaysia
This study discusses the differences between Chinese youth film and American teen film through a perspective on cultural foundation. The author argue that Confucianism is an alternative that greatly affects the depiction of young characters and the causal relationship of morality and fate of the characters in Chinese films. In Confucian philosophy, ‘kingdoms’ (guo) and ‘family’ (jia) are equally considered inviolable. ‘Family’ occupies a central position in Confucian culture. Filial piety is a virtue of respect for one’s parents and ancestors. This study attempts to provide a picture of juvenile delinquency depicted in both contemporary Chinese and American youth films. This study argues that ‘juvenile delinquency’ indicates any failure in, or omission of, ‘family’ and ‘kingdoms’. The objective of such a comparison is not to advocate for either Chinese or American youth cinema in portraying juvenile delinquency, but to promote a better understanding of the strengths and impacts of youth cinema and youth culture. It is argued that the depictions of juvenile delinquency expose the social discontent of youths in Chinese youth films.

© Media Watch 7 (1) 105-115, 2016
ISSN 0976-0911 e-ISSN 2249-8818
DOI: 10.15655/mw/2016/v7i1/86492
Corporate Social Responsibility: Relevance of MTN’s Who Wants to Be a Millionaire’ Programme in Nigeria
OKPOKO CHINWE & ABODUNRIN KEMI
University of Nigeria, Nsukka, Nigeria
As continued production and rendering of service is enabled, in this instance, through varying product range as it pertain mobile tele-communication, MTN in Nigeria is attempting to further its CSR bid through the “Who Wants to Be a Millionaire” programme. The need to evaluate its efficacy is premised on continued programming, participation and exactitude of appeal to the public and organization alike in line with stated philosophy/mission of the latter. In so doing, the survey design was employed using structured questionnaire and findings reveal conformity with all assertions while the researchers recommend allowance for especially challenged citizens (prospects) as well as dialectical variation to incorporate all and sundry.

© Media Watch 7 (1) 116-128, 2016
ISSN 0976-0911 e-ISSN 2249-8818
DOI: 10.15655/mw/2016/v7i1/86499
Thriving in the Digital Reality of the Cyber World: Towards a New Teaching and Learning Design
Soumya Jose
Vellore Institute of Technology University, India
The digital literacy and awareness are now not just bound with education. The digital expansion is now a part of social, political, cultural, economic, community, and intellectual life. The education systems at business schools need to help future managers to understand and benefit from their engagement with digital technology and digital cultures. Yet, only a little research has been carried out on the conceptual implications in implementing this shift in curriculum in Indian B Schools. The young minds today are living in a digital reality. The role of various ICT programs in elementary education has helped them to exercise, explore and perform in the digital world. This chapter tries to bring out the importance of various digital world entities in understanding the digital communication better. The implementation of these concepts in our curriculum needs a transformation from formal pedagogic techniques to “cybernetically” distributed informal pedagogies of digital learning. This paper proposes the teaching and learning designs by which the student can understand the digital ecology of communication sphere.
For more information about the journal and conference papers, please write to the Editor, Media Watch at:mediawatchjournal@gmail.com (Tel: 94395-37641)

Thursday 25 February 2016

CALL FOR PAPERS


CFP: Journal of Media Watch
Deadline: February 29, 2016
Issue Theme: Mutualisation of News and Engaging Media
www.mediawatchglobal.com

In 2010, the former editor of Guardian, Alan Rusbridger, showed the world about the power of publicness through his twitter posting revolting against the court injection on Guardian to report on the dumping of toxic chemicals by the company ‘Trafigura’. Trafigura became viral in twitter; the result is more vigorous news stories and personal comments that could have possibly escaped from the newspaper pages. Calling this as ‘Mutualisation of News’, Rusbridger underlined the collaboration of professionals and non-professionals in the dissemination of news. From a carefully filtered and controlled letters to editor, the role of readers or news consumers have traversed such distance that news are no produced by a collaborative effort. The Guardian’s ‘Comment is Free’ is a typical example of how the laymen or those having a journalistic flair or at least an opinion work together to build an interactive or collaborative news platform, a completely different experience social media platforms provide.
As mutualisation gears its definition to wider spectrum, this issue of The Journal of Media Watch looks at the possibilities of using this concept in the developing world for journalism and news media. Journalism pays sustained attention to the coverage of ideas, policies, programs, activities and events dealing with the improvement of the life of people.
As far as thedeveloping world is concerned, media plays a pivotal role in keeping any eye not only on the government policies, but the larger human and societal developmental issues in the country. However the media in the developing world, both press and electronic, in entangled in the serious competition amidst the clutter where they consider political tussle and power struggle as the prominent grey matter to boost their readership or viewership. Though the 24 hour news channels ‘report’, these are often news pieces ‘to inform’ rather than ‘to change’. This is same with the revolution of e-papers as well; print shifted to online that eased readability for larger users, but added nothing to the wide opportunities that the online platform provide news media. The role of people in this process is limited to sharing the news links and posting comments only to the selective news allowed by the newspaper. The downturn for journalism in developing countries lies here, while exciting opportunities are wide open. If in 1969, George Varghese, a prominent journalist in The Hindustan Times could make revolutionary changes through his fortnightly column, ‘Our Village Chatera’ depicting the life in the village of Chatera that opened the windows towards the rural life of India, in this era where technology has put forward immense opportunity for journalists to embark on ‘reporting for changes’, we cannot see such advancements in journalism.
News is now a collaborative effort, and with developmental reports, it is even more demanding. Many a times reporters need to get various insights into the wider spectrum of an issue which is possible only through considering audience’ or reader’s point of view. On this special issue Journal of Media Watch invites empirical and objective research papers on the following topics:
§  Mutualization of news                    
§  Engaging news media
§  Community journalism                                           
§  Collective media ownership
§  Prosumers                                                              
§  Shared media platforms
§  News plurality                                                        
§  Paywall and Firewalls                     
§  Hyperlocal media                                       
§  Diversity innovations          

Dr. Sony Jalarajan Raj
Editor-in-Chief, The Journal of Media Watch
Department of Communication
7-166C, 10700-104 Avenue
MacEwan University, Edmonton, AB, Canada, T5J 4S2
Email: sonyjraj@gmail.com
Tel: 001-587-778-2426

E-mail your submission to
sonyjraj@gmail.com
mediajournal@ymail.com
mediawatchjournal@gmail.com