Media Development

The document is a collection of articles and interviews exploring how communication technologies influence social justice and governance. Key discussions include the failure of social media platforms to foster rational public debate due to their design, the ethical tensions in INGO public communications that often perpetuate colonial stereotypes, and the struggle for a transparent, democratic communication model in Cuba. It also analyzes the 'democratization of information' through Google Books, the impact of new media on political participation in Jamaica, and the personal history of advocacy journalism regarding Palestinian rights.

• Social media platforms are often viewed as a panacea for societal challenges, but they are not neutral spaces; they are constructed with ideological purposes and are subject to the ideologies of content providers.
• The Sustainable Development Goals (SDGs) are criticized for an 'astonishing oversight' regarding the role of communication, with only three of the 17 goals making passing references to information and communications technology.
• International NGOs (INGOs) often use 'shock effect' imagery of vulnerable children in public communications to generate funds, which can perpetuate narratives of Northern supremacy and Southern inferiority.
• The design of Facebook, including its display of discussion threads and notification systems, can stifle rational discourse by prioritizing immediacy over comprehension and fracturing conversations into smaller, isolated groups.
• Google Books' claim of 'democratization of information' is undermined by its acquiescence to government censorship (such as in China) and the fact that its content sources are not neutral, often relying on elite higher education libraries.
• In Jamaica, the liberalization of media and telecommunications has increased citizen participation in the public sphere, though high costs of hardware and internet access create a digital divide, particularly for persons with disabilities.
• The communication system in Cuba is characterized by a 'verticalist' culture of control and secretism, which the author argues must be transformed into a model based on the 'right to communication' and institutional transparency.
• The Internet is asserted to be a public good, and there is a call for digital access providers to resist government censorship and surveillance efforts to protect the rights of users.

APA

World Association for Christian Communication (2017). Media Development. https://new.waccglobal.org/wp-content/uploads/wacc-global/resources/md-2017-3/3-2017.MediaDevelopment.final.pdf

Chicago

World Association for Christian Communication. Media Development. 2017. https://new.waccglobal.org/wp-content/uploads/wacc-global/resources/md-2017-3/3-2017.MediaDevelopment.final.pdf.

Wikipedia

{{cite report |author=World Association for Christian Communication |title=Media Development |date=March 2017 |url=https://new.waccglobal.org/wp-content/uploads/wacc-global/resources/md-2017-3/3-2017.MediaDevelopment.final.pdf |access-date=23 October 2026 |via=Climate Insights Directory}}

BibTeX

@techreport{worldassociationforchristiancommunication2017media, author = {{World Association for Christian Communication}}, title = {{Media Development}}, institution = {World Association for Christian Communication}, year = {2017}, month = mar, url = {https://new.waccglobal.org/wp-content/uploads/wacc-global/resources/md-2017-3/3-2017.MediaDevelopment.final.pdf}, urldate = {2026-10-23}, note = {Indexed by Climate Insights Directory} }