Social media analysis, Twitter and the London Olympics (a research note)

During the course of this paper we examine publically available social media data that relates to the London 2012 Olympic Games that has been harvested and analysed using the Cardiff Online Social Media ObServatory (COSMOS). Social media has matured sufficiently in terms of user uptake and incorporation into traditional media platforms and outlets that the recent London Olympics has been described as the first social media games. For example, the BBC used the Twitter stream to incorporate and mobilise audience participation into its Olympic coverage. With this in mind, this paper will explore the analysis of social media data in relation to sporting events and social media use. In doing so we identify the ways in which COSMOS can be used to identify hashtag popularity over a specific time period to identify real world events, in this case ‘Super Saturday’. The paper reports on indicative evidence that links real-world sporting events to spikes in real time populations’ reaction through self-reported social media updates. In turn, the paper provides an analysis of frequency and sentiment of tweets containing the most popular UK hashtag connected to the London 2012 Olympics over a specified time period. This has consequences for conceptualising the relationship between social actors, events and social media and methodological strategies for understanding the dynamic (locomotive) reactions of populations

Mr. Stewart and Mr. Colbert Go to Washington: Television Satirists Outside the Box

The political satirists Jon Stewart and Stephen Colbert are largely celebrated for their nightly television programs, which use humor to offer useful political information, provide important forums for deliberation and debate, and serve as sites for alternative interpretations of political reality. Yet, when the two satirists more directly intervene in the field of politics—which they increasingly do—they are often met by a chorus of criticism that suggests they have improperly crossed normative boundaries. This article explores Stewart and Colbert’s “out of the box” political performances, which include, among others, the 2010 Rally to Restore Sanity, Colbert’s testimony before Congress in the same year, and his on-going efforts to run an actual Super PAC that raises and spends money to influence (and critique) the political process. Examining these and other examples of non-traditional, and clearly border-crossing political satire, we consider the ways in which such multi-modal performances--in and off the television screen--work together to provide information, critique, and commentary, as well as a significant form of moral voice and ethical imperative. In turn, we examine the responses from the political and journalistic establishment, which more often than not, constitutes a form of boundary maintenance that seeks to delegitimize such alternative modes of political engagement. Finally, we discuss the significance of the developing relationship between television entertainment and political performance for our understanding of contemporary political practice

Rethinking fuelwood: people, policy and the anatomy of a charcoal supply chain in a decentralizing Peru

In Peru, as in many developing countries, charcoal is an important source of fuel. We examine the commercial charcoal commodity chain from its production in Ucayali, in the Peruvian Amazon, to its sale in the national market. Using a mixed-methods approach, we look at the actors involved in the commodity chain and their relationships, including the distribution of benefits along the chain. We outline the obstacles and opportunities for a more equitable charcoal supply chain within a multi-level governance context. The results show that charcoal provides an important livelihood for most of the actors along the supply chain, including rural poor and women. We find that the decentralisation process in Peru has implications for the formalisation of charcoal supply chains, a traditionally informal, particularly related to multi-level institutional obstacles to equitable commerce. This results in inequity in the supply chain, which persecutes the poorest participants and supports the most powerful actors

The Digitalisation of African Agriculture Report 2018-2019

An inclusive, digitally-enabled agricultural transformation could help achieve meaningful livelihood improvements for Africa’s smallholder farmers and pastoralists. It could drive greater engagement in agriculture from women and youth and create employment opportunities along the value chain. At CTA we staked a claim on this power of digitalisation to more systematically transform agriculture early on. Digitalisation, focusing on not individual ICTs but the application of these technologies to entire value chains, is a theme that cuts across all of our work. In youth entrepreneurship, we are fostering a new breed of young ICT ‘agripreneurs’. In climate-smart agriculture multiple projects provide information that can help towards building resilience for smallholder farmers. And in women empowerment we are supporting digital platforms to drive greater inclusion for women entrepreneurs in agricultural value chains

The Effects of Modern Food Retail Development on Consumers, Producers, Wholesalers and Traditional Retailers: The Case of West Java

In developing countries, retail development was never considered as a strategy to boost the economy until the Asian financial crisis happened in 1998, which made the countries could not rely on their exports anymore. Indonesia experienced a difficult economic period and it became worse due to the political crisis, which happened in the same time with the financial crisis. One of the economic recovery programs was retail liberalisation, which consequently opened the domestic market for foreign retailers. Meanwhile, rapid urbanisation and huge investments in real estate have made retail sector, particularly modern food retail in Indonesia to grow bigger, it challenged local retailers to develop. The development of super- and hypermarkets in Indonesia in the last decade indicated that retail sector development was used as a strategy to encourage the economy. However, the development brings controversies regarding its impact on traditional retailers, environment and local economy. This study has an objective to investigate whether the development of super- and hypermarkets as part of a strategy to boost the local economy benefits actors in the value chain, i.e. agricultural producers, local food processors and wholesalers. West Java was chosen as the case in this study considering that this province, is the centre of horticulture production, which experienced rapid development of modern food retail in the last decade. .....

Baadassss Gangstas: The Parallel Influences, Characteristics and Criticisms of the Blaxploitation Cinema and Gangsta Rap Movements

Serving as two of the most visible African American cultural movements, blaxploitation cinema and gangsta rap played essential roles in giving African American artists an outlet to establish a new black identity for mainstream audiences. After exploring the similarities between the cultural and economic conditions that spawned both movements, this essay examines the parallel techniques by which the preeminent entries in both genres established themselves as culturally relevant for African American audiences. These techniques included a reliance on place and space to establish authenticity, as well as employing African American myths and folklore such as the Signifying Monkey and the badman. By establishing themselves as mainstream representations of black identity, the harshest critics and staunchest defenders of both movements came from within the African American community, a clear indication of the important role each would play in establishing a new era of black representation in popular culture

Andrew Carnegie, World Making and the Logic of Contemporary Entrepreneurial Philanthropy

This paper focuses on the relationship between the business and philanthropic endeavours of world-making entrepreneurs; asking why, how and to what ends these individuals seek to extend their reach in society beyond business. We present an original model of entrepreneurial philanthropy which demonstrates how investment in philanthropic projects can yield positive returns in cultural, social and symbolic capital, which in turn may lead to growth in economic capital. The interpretive power of the model is demonstrated through analysis of the career of Andrew Carnegie, whose story, far from reducing to one of earning a fortune then giving it away, is revealed as more complex and more unified. His philanthropy raised his stock within the field of power, extending his influence and helping convert surplus funds into social networks, high social standing and intellectual currency, enabling him to engage in world making on a grand scale