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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" lang="EN-GB">Dear colleagues,
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" lang="EN-GB">A new issue of our publication series “Research Reviews for Media Development Practitioners” is available! The reviews provide concise analyses of current research, both
academic and non-academic, and discuss its practical relevance for international media assistance.
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<b><u><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" lang="EN-GB">Out now: Comprehending Media Systems for Media Development</span></u></b><span style="mso-ansi-language:EN-GB" lang="EN-GB"><o:p><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" lang="EN-GB">The fourth issue is authored by Johanna Mack, MEDAS 21 PhD student at the University Duisburg-Essen, and seeks to make media systems research more comprehensible for media
development. Here are three key findings: </span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" lang="EN-GB">
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" lang="EN-GB">* While much comparative research uses the nation state as a unit of comparison, there are strong grounds for
</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" lang="EN-GB"><b>criticising and questioning the existence of homogenous national media systems</b></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" lang="EN-GB">,
including transnational dynamics that connect or merge media systems – international media development cooperation being one of them. This is in line with approaches that criticise
</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" lang="EN-GB"><b>Eurocentric tendencies in traditional media systems research</b></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" lang="EN-GB"> and
try to open up the geographical, theoretical, and methodological scope of the field.</span><span style="mso-ansi-language:EN-GB" lang="EN-GB"><o:p><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" lang="EN-GB">* There is a wealth of opportunity to intensify research on African media systems, although recent studies have explored the specific conditions of media in different regions
and countries across the continent, pointing to the relevance of African perspectives on political, social, economic, cultural, and developmental entanglements. The
</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" lang="EN-GB"><b>particularities of media systems research on the African continent</b></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" lang="EN-GB">
illustrate how the parallel existence of local, global, postcolonial, and transnational dynamics needs to be considered, offering a chance for new theory building.</span><span style="mso-ansi-language:EN-GB" lang="EN-GB"><o:p><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" lang="EN-GB">* While literature focusing specifically on media development assistance as a variable in media systems research is still scarce, initial studies propose that
</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" lang="EN-GB"><b>international media development cooperation is an important factor influencing the development of media systems</b></span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" lang="EN-GB">
and their transnationalization. </span><span style="mso-ansi-language:EN-GB" lang="EN-GB"><br>
</span><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" lang="EN-GB">More specialised research about development actors’ roles in and interactions with media systems could improve models of media systems and offer hints as to why they
develop and function in certain ways, and what impact development work has on these developments and functionings.
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" lang="EN-GB">The entire research review including conclusions for practitioners is available online and free of charge at:
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<span style="mso-ansi-language:EN-GB" lang="EN-GB"><a href="https://fome.info/research-reviews"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;">https://fome.info/research-reviews</span></a><o:p><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
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<a href="https://www.medas21.net/resources/#research-reviews" target="_blank"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" lang="EN-GB">https://www.medas21.net/resources/#research-reviews</span></a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" lang="EN-GB">
</span><span style="mso-ansi-language:EN-GB" lang="EN-GB"><o:p><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
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<u><span style="mso-ansi-language:EN-GB" lang="EN-GB"><o:p><br>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: black; font-size: 12pt;" lang="EN-GB">The publication series has been initiated by the German “Forum for Media and Development”
</span><a href="https://fome.info/"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: rgb(17, 85, 204); font-size: 12pt;" lang="EN-GB">fome</span></a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: black; font-size: 12pt;" lang="EN-GB">
and the graduate program </span><a href="https://www.medas21.net/"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: rgb(17, 85, 204); font-size: 12pt;" lang="EN-GB">MEDAS 21</span></a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: black; font-size: 12pt;" lang="EN-GB">
with the aim to inform practitioners and researchers about key debates, evidence and emerging issues in international media development. It has received funding from
</span><a href="https://www.volkswagenstiftung.de/en"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: rgb(17, 85, 204); font-size: 12pt;" lang="EN-GB">VolkswagenStiftung</span></a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: black; font-size: 12pt;" lang="EN-GB">. </span><span style="font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-ansi-language:EN-GB" lang="EN-GB"><o:p><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; color: black; font-size: 12pt;" lang="EN-GB"> </span><span style="mso-ansi-language:EN-GB" lang="EN-GB"><o:p><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
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<u><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" lang="EN-GB">Upcoming issue</span><span style="mso-ansi-language:EN-GB" lang="EN-GB"><o:p><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span></o:p></span></u></p>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" lang="EN-GB">Up next is:
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<a><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" lang="EN-GB">* Constructing Peace through Media? A Literature Review on Public Communications in United Nations Peace Operations (by Roja Zaitoonie)
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<span style="mso-bookmark:_Hlk72065624"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" lang="EN-GB">This review is currently being edited and will be released in the upcoming months. Stay tuned!
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<u><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" lang="EN-GB">And then?
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" lang="EN-GB">Further research institutions and individuals are invited to join the initiative to expand the series’ scope and reach! If you are interested in contributing as an author
or reviewer, please contact </span><a href="mailto:ines.drefs@tu-dortmund.de"><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" lang="EN-GB">ines.drefs@tu-dortmund.de</span></a><span style="mso-ansi-language:EN-GB" lang="EN-GB"><o:p><span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;"> </span></o:p></span></p>
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<span style="font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif; font-size: 12pt;" lang="EN-GB">We hope you’ll enjoy the read!
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<span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;" lang="EN-GB">Best wishes from the editorial team</span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-fareast-font-family:Calibri;mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;mso-ansi-language:EN-GB;mso-fareast-language:EN-US;mso-bidi-language:AR-SA" lang="EN-GB"><br>
</span><span style="font-size: 12pt; font-family: Arial, Helvetica, sans-serif;" lang="EN-GB">Christoph Dietz, Ines Drefs, Sofie Jannusch, Guido Keel
</span><span style="font-size:12.0pt;font-family:"Calibri",sans-serif;mso-ascii-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-fareast-font-family:Calibri;mso-fareast-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-hansi-theme-font:minor-latin;mso-bidi-font-family:"Times New Roman";mso-bidi-theme-font:minor-bidi;mso-ansi-language:EN-GB;mso-fareast-language:EN-US;mso-bidi-language:AR-SA" lang="EN-GB"><br style="mso-special-character:line-break">
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