A Media Discourse of Broadband Policy in a Developing Country Context

Part 6: Research in Progress and PracticeInternational audienceThe formation of bodies like the World Summit on the Information Society (WSIS) and the incorporation of Information and Communication Technologies (ICTs) in the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) have given birth to the importance of connectivity, thus putting the Internet on the national agenda of every nation in the world. Countries (especially developing nations) have started drafting their own broadband policies so as to be able to ‘quickly’ provide Internet access to ‘all’ their citizens and to be able to ‘immediately’ start ‘reaping’ the fruits provided by broadband. This paper, therefore, looks at this process in the Republic of South Africa - that is, the discourses around the formulation of the National Broadband Policy - in order to uncover possible distortions and misconceptions. Moreover, it also looks at the interactions that existed amongst the actors that were involved or were supposed to be involved in the policy formulation process. This is done by using Habermas’ Critical Discourse Analysis (CDA)

The Legal Framework for the Participation of the European Union in International Institutions

This article addresses to what extent the current EU Treaties regulate the position of the EU in other international institutions. This is a legal question, which explains the strong focus on competences and treaty provisions. The main findings are therefore related to what the EU can do, how it can do this (and has done it), and what the division of competences is in relation to its member states. It is argued that legal competences matter and that they may influence the performance of the EU in international institutions. In that respect, it is concluded that the treaties do allow for the EU to be engaged in international institutions and even to become a full member of other international organizations or participate in treaty regimes, albeit that the treaties do not at all present the relevant provisions in any coherent fashion