Migration, Family Relations and Communication at a Distance
Migration, Family Relations and Communication at a Distance

Refugees in Greece

Summary/Abstract: Since the outbreak of the civil war in Syria in March 2011, and particularly today with the continuous conflicts in the country, millions of Syrian refugees have fled across the border to Turkey and Greece heading to Europe. Some have also sought refuge in neighboring countries while few have been internally displaced within Syria. As a result, a great number of middle class and well-educated Syrian refugees heading to Europe use media technologies such as web portals, mobile phones, instant messaging, social network sites and webcams to get information and travel advice, including GPS coordinates for smuggler boats and recommended routes. They also use media technologies as essential tools that provide communication with their families, friends and relatives in their homeland or in other counties in Europe in order to share experiences, comments and photographs. Therefore, the rise of global migration has created an unprecedented demand for communication at a distance; moreover, smartphones, as part of a wider environment of converging technologies, have transformed the way transnational families maintain relationships at a distance. The aim of this paper is twofold. First, it focuses on the way media technologies have become integral to the way family relations are performed and experienced at a distance. Subsequently, it intends to observe the selfpresentation that refugees offer of themselves to their relatives and digital friends through the daily use of social network sites.

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