*Radio and new participatory journalisms around the World: *
*Understanding Convergence in News Cultures*
Special issue of
*Telematics and Informatics*
http://ees.elsevier.com/tele/
* *
Edited by Dr. *Last Moyo*
Senior lecturer, Media Studies, University of Witwatersrand, P Bag 3, 2050,
Johannesburg, South Africa. E-mail: (last.moyo /at/ wits.ac.za)
*INTRODUCTION*
The Internet and mobile phones are changing the face of radio. Their
appropriation by private, public and community radio is transforming radio
as a medium thus making it at least in principle more accessible through
multiple platforms such as webcasting, mobile streaming, and podcasts. In
most cases, these technologies have had a profound impact on radio=92s
institutional cultures and practices especially with regards to the way it
produces and disseminates news and current affairs programming. They have a
direct impact on journalistic practices in terms of the gathering,
manufacturing, and subsequent dissemination of news to audiences. The use of
digital media is also influencing the audiences which are seen as becoming
much more actively involved in the production and consumption of news as
radio changes from a mass medium to a more interactive, individualised, and
participatory medium. Hence, this Special Issue aims to conduct a critical
study of new media uses by the public, private and community radio stations
and their audiences and the potential impact such uses have in
democratizing citizen participation in radio news. Specific areas of
investigation will include, among others, how radio stations and audiences
use mobile phones in terms of voice calls, SMS (texting), MMS, mobile radio=
,
podcasts, audio streaming, blogs, electronic mail, and discussion forums to
construct and mediate reality in the medium of news. By new participatory
journalisms, we seek to refer to what has been controversially dubbed as
citizen journalism. This is a kind of journalism that is not only embedded
on people=92s everyday experiences, but is also driven people themselves.
While these new forms of participatory journalisms have been appropriated b=
y
radio, they also find independent expression through digital media channels=
.
While giving special attention to the confluences that exist between citize=
n
journalism and radio journalism, this Special Issue also takes a keen
interest in the general use of mobile phones and the Internet by radio and
their audience
*OVERALL OBJECTIVES*
Contributors to this Special Issue are encouraged to provide theoretically
sound and methodologically rigorous case study-based analysis of the uses o=
f
the Internet and mobile phones by radio journalists and their audiences in
the production and dissemination of news. Therefore, contributions that
reflect historically-grounded theorization of the Internet and mobile phone
uses by radio journalists would be most welcome.
*RECOMMENDED THEMES*
Contributions must focus on, among other related issues, the following
themes:**
=B7 Confluences of radio journalism and citizen journalism
=B7 Internet, mobile phones and the changing news room cultures on ra=
dio
=B7 Community radio and citizen participation in the digital age
=B7 Radio news and public service broadcasting in the digital age
=B7 Digital media political economy, radio audiences and the digital
divide.
=B7 ICTs, gender and newsroom policies
=B7 Radio, convergence and fragmentation of audiences
*Send abstracts to:*
*Dr. Last Moyo*
*Senior Lecturer*
*Department of Media Studies*
*University of Witwatersrand*
*Tel: + 27 11 717 4241*
*Email: **(last.moyo /at/ wits.ac.za)* <(last.moyo /at/ wits.ac.za)>
*Submit full articles online at*
*http://ees.elsevier.com/tele*
--=20
***************************************
Jan Servaes
Editor-in-Chief, Telematics and Informatics
c/o Department of Communication
415 Machmer Hall
University of Massachusetts
Amherst, MA 01003, USA
Tel: +1 (413) 545-4314 <+14135454314>
Fax: +1 (413) 545-6399 <+14135456399>
(telematicsandinformatics /at/ gmail.com)
www.elsevier.com/locate/tele
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