Satellite TV and the internet have transformed the media landscape in the Arab and Muslim world. Although their development is a recent phenomenon, new media have not only opened up new opportunities for journalism but also empowered audiences and civil society organizations with unprecedented platforms for ‘free’ expression and social activism. The WikiLeaks phenomenon is said to have empowered the public with a wealth of secret information previously hardly if not impossible to obtain about governments in the Arab world.
In light of the dramatic development of events, which have led to a social revolution in Tunisia, it has become evident that new media have been playing a key role in keeping the momentum going, and bringing the voices of the disengaged Tunisian youth to the attention of world media, and hence to international public opinion. Mobile phones, Blogs, YouTube, Facebook pages and Twitter feeds have been instrumental in mediating the live coverage of protests, public speeches, as well as police brutality in dispersing demonstrations. The internet in this case has assumed the role of a very effective uncensored news agency from which world media have been able to freely source newsfeeds, raw from the scene. Such developments have proven very significant in changing the rules of the game, of journalism production, and dissemination of information in a
country where the government historically keeps tight control on the media and where almost no platform has been available for opinions critical of the political elite.
The edited book project aims to address the above themes. We seek contributors who wish to specifically address the revolution in Tunisia and the role new media have been key tools in fuelling the regime change. Contributions may consider the following themes:
- Blogging and bloggers as citizen journalists; what difference have they been making?
- Satellite TV and the internet as cites of resistance/alternative media or sets of ‘censored national enclosures’
- Arab TV and the mobilization of public opinion in Tunisia
- E-campaigning and political/social groups
- WikiLeaks, political corruption and the right to know
- How are activists/the youth interacting with platforms like ‘YouTube’, ‘Facebook’ to fuel the protests that have led to the collapse of Ben Ali’s regime?
- Media censorship in Tunisia
- Women bloggers/activists and the mediation of women issues
- Youth subcultures and new media
- Support/responses of the Arab street to the Tunisia revolution
Submissions:
Please send an abstract of about 350 words for your proposed paper by 4th February 2011. The abstract should provide and outline of the main themes/questions, research method and sample of the study. Please make sure that your abstract includes the following: Title, name of the author, affiliation, complete contact details and a short author’s bio. Final papers should be about 8500 words. All submissions will be refereed.
Deadline for submission of full papers: 25th March 2011
Please send your abstract to:
Dr Noureddine Miladi (Editor)
School of Social Sciences, University of Northampton,
Park Campus, Northampton NN2 7AL, UK
E-mail: noureddine.miladi@northampton.ac.uk
Tel: +44(0)1604 892104
More information here.
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