Beyond Afro-pessimism and -optimism? A critical discourse analysis of the representation of Africa by alternative news media

Regarding the representation of Africa in western media, academic criticism often refers to the presence of Afro-pessimistic discourses, and more recently to a seemingly emerging Afro-optimistic discourse. However, Scott (2015, 1) points out that a systematic study of Africa’s representation is still missing as most research only includes mainstream media, news genres and formats and thus forms ‘an insufficient basis for reaching any firm, generalisable conclusions’. To address this, we explore the representation of Africa in MO* Magazine, a Belgian alternative news magazine that focuses on the Global South, including an extensive coverage of Africa. Applying Critical Discourse Analysis, we examined all articles covering Africa in 2015 and 2016 in addition to in-depth interviews with editorial staff. The study investigates how MO* constructs its alternative identity in the context of African news coverage. We argue that a mere empirical focus on features and narratives generally attributed to mainstream media, such as the presence of Afro-pessimistic and -optimistic discourses, is not sufficient to reach conclusions about the alternative identity of a magazine. The alternative value of MO* is reflected in the overall focus on the Global South and its key issues, the geographic diversity, editorial approach, and context-richness of the articles

Taiwan's Democracy: Towards a liberal democracy or authoritarianism?

This paper examines how Taiwan moved from being viewed as a model Asian democracy to one allegedly suffering from democratic reversal. The reasons for the declining domestic and international reputa- tion of Taiwan’s democracy are discussed. Lastly, some key political challenges facing Taiwan’s democracy are outlined

The Internet as Idea:For a Transcendental Philosophy of Technology

This article attempts to render the Internet an object of philosophical consideration. It does so by referring to Kant’s transcendental approach. The argument is that Kant’s “transcendental idealism” is one example of an approach focused on conditions that much contemporary philosophy of technology misunderstands or ignores. Diverse contemporary thinkers are engaged, including Verbeek, Brey, Stiegler, Clark and Chalmers, Feenberg, and Fuchs. The article considers how these thinkers stand in relation to tendencies towards determinism, subjectivism and excessive forms of optimism and pessimism in relation to the Internet. In terms of Kant’s transcendental idealism, I argue that contemporary philosophy of technology does not go far enough in considering the Internet as a “regulative idea.” In terms of broader transcendental approaches, I argue that openness to the transcendental calls into question presuppositions regarding what constitutes an “empirical” object of enquiry, opening philosophy of technology to important new areas of research

The American dream or nightmare? Understanding the change in perceptions of the American dream

The American Dream remains at the heart of many Americans’ national identity, and is a major theme throughout entertainment and news media, most significantly throughout political elections. It is an ideal uniquely able to ignite emotion in Americans and is something that connects people around the country, while also used as a tactic by politicians because of its impact. Since its origin, though, there has been a decline in belief in the American Dream, specifically among millennials, with growing pessimism in the amount of opportunity there really is in the United States for all. This pessimism is thoroughly explored through the studies of various authors beginning in the 1950s, and also through data conducted this past year asking respondents across the country a variety of questions regarding their sentiments on economic opportunity and American Dream. Through the usage of variables such as age, party identification, opinion on the news, and more, the change in perceptions of the American Dream is examined and uncovered

Unredeemed Marxism:political commitment in Bourdieu and MacIntyre

In different ways, Alasdair MacIntyre and Pierre Bourdieu owe an intellectual and political debt to Marxism. They belong to the same generation of critical scholars formed by an engagement with Marxism in the course of Cold War working class militancy, anti-imperialism and anti-Stalinism. These recent collections of their most politically committed writings represent important contributions to reflexive praxis today. MacIntyre's 'revolutionary Aristotelianism' is shown to be rooted in his Marxist analyses and practices of the 1950s and 1960s, while Bourdieu's critique of neoliberalism was informed by a decades-long engagement with Marxism in opposition to the pseudo-science of Stalinist apologetics. Political engagement is imposed on the intellectual, conceived after Pascal as a 'thinking reed', by capitalism's vast accumulation and destruction of social potentiality. Between them an effort is made to round out and deepen the classical Marxist inheritance

Mediated political participation and competing discourses of online civic engagement

This article focuses on the interconnections between mediated political participation and online citizen engagement. The objective is threefold. First, it examines whether the notion of digital democracy captures the dynamic and “renewed” sense of civic responsibility brought to bear by disruptive information and communication technologies (ICTs). Second, it asks the question of whether the creation, negotiation, dissemination, and consumption of online political content really rivals those circulated by the traditional or legacy media. Finally, the article discusses the potential pitfalls of confining technological use patterns to pessimist-optimist dichotomy, arguing that such characterization ignores innovative or adapted use patterns that emerge based on varying social, political, and economic realities. Overall, the discussions presented in this article are meant to generate conceptual discussions around the links between mediated political participation and online civic engagement, and how they inform democratization processes and redistribution of political influence.Keywords: Mediated politics, mediated political participation, digital democracy, mediated public sphere, ICTs, digital divide, online civic engagement, civic responsibilit

Romanian Youths’ Civic Identities: 20 Years After the Revolution

The study explores the civic identities of Romanian youth. Children born after 1989 have no memory of the communism; yet, they are the children and students of those who were educated under communism. Data sources were small group interviews with 21 youth and results indicate that participants believe civic engagement is possible and desired; but few are engaged because they believe that freedom is misunderstood and corruption permeates everything; and, ultimately, nothing changes. Civic education is one factor in developing civic identity; and, knowing youths’ constructions of their identity is one source of information to consider as civic education curriculum evolves