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In this article we map some of the key developments on the Czech print media market following the fall of communism in 1989. We focus on ownership changes and their impact on the conduct of professional journalism. In the 1990s foreign media companies (dominantly German and Swiss) entered the Czech media market and brought with them a profit-oriented model of journalism. Our research in the mid-2000s explored these changes and their impact on journalists’ professional conduct. At the time journalists stressed commercial pressures, however, in the mid-2010s with the departure of foreign print media owners (except for one) and the emergence of local ones, journalists voiced concerns about interference in content for political purposes. We also note that the journalists we interviewed did not reflect on the influence of government on the conduct of their profession, for example, through media regulation.
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The article focuses on the role of Russian-speaking journalists and the potential of Russian language media in advancing societal integration in Estonia. As a consequence of socialist colonization during the Soviet regime a quarter of Estonian population today is Russian-speaking. The two main language communities have different informational spaces separated by a language barrier. Integration can only be successful if there is unhampered communication between minority and majority groups, and equal opportunities for individuals and groups to participate in the public sphere. First, we discuss the concept of minority language media and the position of Russian-language media in the context of societal integration in Estonia. Using a quantitative survey we depict the current professional status of Estonian Russian-speaking journalists, and display their perceptions about their role in integration. We conclude that Russian-speaking journalists perceive themselves as mediators between Estonian and Russian communities, but are not positive about the possibilities of Russian-language media to fulfil their task as representatives of the minority.
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ct This paper presents the results of a semiotic analysis of visual elements characteristic for the medium of comic books applied to the first seventy-five issues of the Croatian edition of Alan Ford. After a description of the cultural and historical framework, it analyzes individual signs in comics and different elements specific for expression in comic books in Western culture with the aim of exploring which of these signs are present in Alan Ford, and to what extent. The results show that the analyzed comic book is deeply rooted in the visual and literary Western tradition, and that it contains virtually all the characteristic elements of representation in comic books. However, the paper also concludes that certain iconic elements of the vocabulary of comics – i.e. onomatopoeic neologisms – are to a certain extent specific and typical only for Alan Ford.
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Using the example of the German Democratic Republic (GDR) the present study asks how mass media shape collective memory. How do reports in German media on the GDR affect communicative memory? To answer these questions, the present study is grounded in the theory of collective memory and relies on more than 20 focus groups in very different social settings. Today’s mass media content on the GDR is almost always about dictatorship. This is why some East Germans do not find their picture of the past within the media and do not feel at home in reunited Germany, yet.
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The main Italian populist politicians, Silvio Berlusconi and Beppe Grillo, ensured their successes in parliamentary elections in 2013 combining a skilful use of electronic media with classical mass rallies, avoiding debates with competitors, and shunning journalists. The message of both Grillo and Berlusconi is characterized by populism, anti-party attitudes, demonization of opponents and an approach to the public and to politics focused on the leader. Although Grillo and Casaleggio emphasize their MoVement’s use of Internet as a direct democracy, claiming that the MoVements politics is created in equal measure by all the members, in a kind of a crowdsourcing, Grillo’s messages remain mostly unidirectional directives, more appropriate to a dictatorial than to a democratic discourse.
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In the process of involving citizens more deeply in the democratic process, Facebook is becoming an increasingly important tool for governments in policy making. Facebook has the potential to increase political participation, but many governments fail to use it in the right way, because they just share information online and do not engage with their followers/citizens. This paper shows how the Croatian government is using Facebook and the communication patterns resulting from their work. The quantitative analysis of 20,546 posts and 52,311 comments show that communication is one way, rather than interactive. Government users do not follow the 90-9-1- rule of thumb for social networks.
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This paper analyzes the role of film in promoting countries and nations, and explores ways to use Croatian film in presenting its own identity and image throughout the world. Croatia as a theme is relatively poorly represented in international film productions. Although it has been the filming location of a number of foreign films, the use of these sites for tourism purposes is negligible. Few domestic films have received notable international film awards and significant international attention. On the other hand, Croatia, as a geographically diverse country with a rich natural, cultural and historical heritage, and a rich cinematic tradition, represents an extraordinary potential to become an attractive location, as well as theme to attract major international film productions. The authors provide four strategies that can help Croatia position itself as an attractive European brand through film: Croatia as an attractive film location, placing Croatian topics in large foreign production, enhancing the quality and appeal of Croatian films, and film festivals as a promotional tool. The authors particularly analyze the possibility of promoting Croatia through the popular fantasy genre.
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In the last ten years, cultural and creative industries have become a popular direction for local development. Many cities use them as tools for economic development as well as for achieving greater visibility in a wider environment, especially paired with tourism. Although the development of cities based on cultural and creative industries is typical for the Anglo-Saxon world, the model has become generally accepted throughout the world. Even the new European Union financial instrument is based on the promotion of cultural diversity and intercultural dialogue, as well as on strengthening the competitiveness in cultural and creative sectors with the aim of promoting smart, sustainable and inclusive growth. Studies completed by the Institute for Development and International Relations for the City of Zagreb analyze the state of Zagreb’s cultural and creative industries, putting them in relation with cities’ development models. This article analyzes the potentials and opportunities for positioning Zagreb within the European context and offers reflections for further development.
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Ciljevi ovoga rada su, prvo, otkriti u kojoj mjeri hrvatski političari strateški u javni diskurs unose informacije iz privatne sfere i, drugo, u koje svrhe koriste te informacije. Metodom analize sadržaja istražene su izjave dvaju glavnih predsjedničkih kandidata u izborima 2009./2010. godine, Milana Bandića i Ive Josipovića, koje su prenijele nacionalne dnevne novine. Polazi se od pretpostavke da su makrofaktori (elementi političkog i medijskog sustava) i mikrofaktori (osobine kandidata) u tim izborima bili pogodni za razvoj fenomena privatizacije javnog diskursa. Rezultati pokazuju da je javni diskurs bio znatno privatiziran, ponajprije zahvaljujući komunikacijskoj strategiji Milana Bandića koja se izrazito temeljila na njegovu privatnom životu. Nadalje rezultati pokazuju da kandidati nisu koristili privatne informacije samo za izgradnju svoga imidža nego i kao strategiju napada na protukandidata.
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Twitter s a social network and a microblogging service. Examples from Iran, Tunisia and Egypt have shown the possibilities of using Twitter as a platform for activism. This research looks at the manner in which Croatian activists use this tool and how such users and uses are distinct from average users. This paper establishes that activist users differ vastly from average Twitter users. Activist users have a significantly higher number of friends and followers. An increase in the number of friends leads to an increase in the number of followers (and vice versa). In addition, activist users publish a large number of posts regardless of their follower number, even though that number is significantly higher than that of friends. Activist users forward interesting information more often, while they disregard Twitter as a tool for conversation or coordination. Still, activist users and average users are similar in regard to the poster’s profile and posting quantity. Both categories of users follow the power-law distribution.
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The increase in youth violence is among the most serious problems facing modern society. Many experts adhere to the opinion that responsibility for this phenomenon is borne by families, schools, and the media. The so-called digital generation spends much of its free time on the Internet and accepts the values imposed by the media. The modern criterion of success is to reach glory by any means necessary. As such, it is understandable that young people, eager for publicity, look for creative ways to attract attention. One of the most expedient ways to achieve fame and prove their ‘originality’ is by posting videos of violent behavior on websites like YouTube. The Internet has brought limitless freedom in the exposure of inappropriate content and has thus contributed to an increase in violence among the young, primarily through the video games industry. Based on all the above, we argue that the Internet has spurred and intensified the development of cyberbullying.
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This paper analyzes the theoretical approaches and models of objectivity. The very notion of objectivity is displayed by two opposing theories: the empathic and the factual. As such, these theories are studied as a framework towards the deeper understanding of the problem of objectivity, which at its core, makes up the very essence of ethics. Journalistic ethics, in particular, are considered to be the most fundamental segment for objective reporting in all conditions, especially in crisis situations, or rather those considered the most complex conditions of journalistic engagement. This essay seeks to present the most important theories utilized in the exploration of journalistic objectivity in crisis situations. The aim is to present the problems incurred in the study of journalistic objectivity and ethics in a crisis where these elements are too often violated. In assessing the value of the various arguments presented, this paper shall utilize comparative and analytical methodologies.
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This article analyzes elements of the social and demographic profile of Croatian media audiences in order to identify what may determine their perceptions of the Croatian media and their overall trust in the media. The analytical data that forms the foundation of this examination derives from the research project, “Trust in Media”, ordered by the Faculty of Political Science at the University in Zagreb and conducted in co-operation with the Zagreb-based research agency Media Metar, on nationally representative probability samples. The main assumption is that the differences in demographic characteristics and cultural capital within media audiences affect personal attitudes toward media institutions and overall trust in the media. Emphasis is allotted to the differences in professional qualifications, as an indicator of cultural capital, as well as on the differences in other social and demographic characteristics and on the relationship of media consumption and trust in media. Relying on the results of previous studies, this article examines the extent of which perception and trust in the media may be explained by differences in social and demographic characteristics.
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In certain periods, at certain places and in certain media, the reputation and credibility of the journalistic profession has suffered for a number of reasons, including ignorance, mediocrity, dishonorable or morally questionable methods of journalists, or scandalous, fabricated or partial news stories. This is the opinion of Luka Brajnović, whose reflections in a comparative analysis with other authors comprise the ”contemplative axis” of this article. The fundamental task and goal of this article is to present and analyze Mr Brajnović’s reflections on the possibility of saving or restoring the reputation and credibility of the journalistic profession. Journalists and the media will not be able to restore credibility as long as extravagant ideas exist about journalism as a profession that deals with ”public whispering, accusations and dissatisfaction with everything that has been established, or as a neutral profession that is ethically hybrid and indifferent towards good and evil”. Such an understanding of the journalistic profession runs against a positive image and reputation of journalism, a field which is in itself worthy of respect of the entire public. In journalism, just as in other professions, unethical behavior on the part of a small number of journalists and media outlets casts a shadow on the journalistic profession as a whole, causing the reputation of the profession to become dependent upon a positive image and the reputation of those individuals working in it. As results of this article show – which for the first time analytically approaches the scientific arguments and reflections of Mr Brajnović in the Croatian public sphere – ethical and intellectual health, which can restore credibility to the journalistic profession, are the very elements rooted deep inside of it.
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Cyberspace may serve a good purpose, but may also be a serious threat. Navigating cyberspace makes acquiring knowledge and skills superficial. The intensity of the brain’s activity and the readiness to memorize are reduced as memory is relieved on account of using digital media. One of the major threats in the network is cyber-bullying. The Internet quite commonly features aggression, or behavior intended to cause pain and suffering, which takes both verbal and hidden forms. Moreover, the Internet is a tool of sects, which recruit new members through the network. Cyberspace addiction may lead to many psychological consequences as well. At present, protecting our data, which we use to move around in cyberspace turns out to pose a huge threat. Each user of these services is entitled to the “right to oblivion,” which is not respected. The paper addresses a wide range of issues related to the dangers of being in cyberspace.
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We live in a time of growing discrepancies between the proclaimed political ideas/affiliations and reality. The systems of media seduction and manipulation allow for ‘manufacturing consent’ in contemporary citizens, the consumers of mass media products. This leads to new forms of establishing hierarchies, which repeat some of the old behaviour patterns. Truth is unwelcome. Communities of people interconnected through their interests develop various forms of substitutes for truth and the ways of bypassing truth and making it irrelevant. In this paper, the fact that illusions overpower ideas (as noted by Feuerbach) is illustrated by Fyodor Dostoyevsky’s The Grand Inquisitor from The Brothers Karamazov. “Why shouldst Thou now return, to impede us in our work,” the Grand Inquisitor inquires of God Himself, who has ‘descended from heaven’ in order to see His children. The encounter is marked by the Grand Inquisitor’s threat that God Himself will be tried and burned at the stake as a heretic. Dostoyevsky sets up a marvellous literary backdrop for the examination of the fundamental issues of faith, attitudes towards miracles, the Inquisition, but also the Reformation, which is turning 500 this very year. This text examines the relationship between faith and freedom, hierarchies and followers, the media system of mediation and the results of the mediation, the relationship between an idea and its lived reality. The paper draws a parallel between the time The Brothers Karamazov was written (mid 19th century) and the current turmoil, and seeks to find/suggest the answers to the eternal questions that Dostoyevsky rose/read from the history of the human quest for freedom. It is a philosophical and literary analysis, an exploration of philosophical ideas in a literary work. Dostoyevsky lends himself well to this kind of analysis, since some of his observations are marked with intellectual objections to such an extent that an entire closed philosophical system could be constructed with minimal effort. The additional motive for the exploration of the idea of the Grand Inquisitor is the increasing authoritarianism of the political leaders of countries both big and small, superpowers and banana states alike. Dostoyevsky has plenty to say to them, and this paper attempts to bring to life the great writer’s political and libertarian ideas, and transfer them to a time that has plenty to learn from him.
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In this article, the author analyzed the key issues from the field of the international security in French and American relations, limiting the area of analysis to the press commentaries and publicism in three French periodicals: Le Figaro”, „Le Monde” and „Liberation”. The time frameworks were also limited and the period of 2007-2010 was only taken into consideration. These periodicals represent three political fractions: the left -wing – :Liberation”;, Centralwing: “Le Monde”; and Central-Right wing: “Le Figaro”. Since they all have different orientations, it was necessary to us the comparative analysis while discussing the particular matters. The attention was mainly paid to the three important issues for reorientation of the French-American relations during the time of N. Sarkozy and B. Obama’s governments. These were: the moment of France’s return to NATO, reaching the positive cooperation in Afghanistan as well as ceasing the conflict ict as to the Iraq’s issue.
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The paper focuses on Quentin Meillassoux’s After Finitude. If presented there arguments (based on concepts of arche-fossil and ancestrality, contingency, factuality and unreason) are valid and refute the fundamental thesis of correlationism – impossibility to access the reality outside correlation between thinking and being – then we should be able to exceed it form the scientific ground it was formulated upon and to apply it to theory of culture. The paper considers that possibility and follows the consequences of such broadening. What is culture in speculative realism’s ontological paradigm? How to grasp cultural reality that is no longer a correlate of human subjectivity? Culture, its processes, objects, networks would not be human any more, ontologically. Rather, one might say, it emerged that culture is non-human. However, these questions and indications have now existed for long time in philosophy of culture, theory of culture, anthropology, cybernetics, media studies, ecology and many other disciplines. Issue that arises in regard of prior is the problem of theory of culture within speculative materialist perspective. If one acknowledges the arche-fossil argument, one cannot continue to approach culture in structuralist or phenomenological current. Meillassoux claims that mathematical ideation describes the objective structure of reality as it is in-itself. If mathematisation is the condition for theory, how can we theorise culture? The aim of the paper is to problematise the concept of culture and theory of culture in perspective of Meillassoux’s speculation.
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