2 - African Media, Information Providers¹ and Emigrants as Collaborative Nodes in Virtual Social Networks
African Sociological Review,
Vol. 4 No. 2 (2000): African Sociological Review
Abstract
This paper proposes that the Internet offers African media and informa tion providers the opportunity to elevate their current engagement to that of "content providers" to African emigrants in the diaspora. The paper finds evidence in the intercultural adjustment and social networks litera ture to support the feasibility of such an interaction. Further, a composite profile of African emigrants in the diaspora allows the discussion of ways in which they represent 'virtual' communities whose on- and off-line dis courses can be enriched by African content providers 'participation. The proposed engagement finds African content providers and emigrants interacting as active nodes in computer-mediated social networks. Among other possibilities, the paper views the evolvement as one that should enable African media organizations to widen their domestic margin of political freedom. The paper's propositions have both policy and research implications.
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- Aoki, K. (1998) 'Considering Multiple and Overlapping Sovereignties: Liberalism, Libertarianism, the National Sovereignty, "Global" Intellectual Property, and the Internet', Indiana Journal of Global Legal Studies 5 (2): 443-74.
- Bastian, M. L. (1999) 'Nationalism in a Virtual Space: Immigrant Nigerians on the Internet', West Africa Review I (1), URL (consulted July 2000): http://www.icaap.org/iuicode Berry, J. W. (1980) 'Acculturation as Varieties of Adaptation', in A. M. Padilla (ed.)
- Acculturation: Theory, Models and Some New Findings, pp. 9-25. Washington, DC: Westview. Braungart, R. G. and M. M. Braungart (1997) 'At Century's End: Globalization, Para doxes, and aN ew Political Agenda', Journal of Political and Military Sociology 25 (Winter): 343-51.
- Breslow, H. (1998) 'Civil Society, Political Economy, and the Internet', in S. Jones (ed.) Virtual Culture: Identity and Communication in Cybersociety, pp. 236-57. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.
- Brook, G.L. (1973) Varieties of English. London: Macmillan.
- Burnheim, S. (1999) 'The Right to Communicate: The Internet in Africa', Southern Af rican Media Law Briefing 4 (3): 6-11.
- Cupach, W. R., and B. H. Spitzberg (1983) 'Trait Versus State: A Comparison of Dispositional and Situational Measures of Interpersonal Communication Compe tence', Western Journal of Speech Communication 47: 364-379.
- Dell, S. (1990) The United Nations and International Business. Durham, NC: United Nations Institute for Training and Research, Duke University Press.
- De Sola Pool, I. and M. Kochen (1978) 'Contacts and influence', Social Networks 1: 5-51.
- Dizard, Jr., W. 2000) Old Media New Media: Mass Communications in the Informa tion Age, 3' edition. New York: Longman. Dittmar, N. (1976) Sociolinguistics. London: Edward Arnold.
- Edelman, M., R. L. Cooper and J. A. Fishman (1968) 'The Contextualization of School Children's Bilingualism', Irish Journal ofEducation 2: 106-111.
- Emerson, M.B., and E. M. Perse (1995) 'Media Events and Sports Orientations to the 1992 WinterOlympics',Journal of International Communication 2 (1): 80-99.
- Ervin-Tripp, S. M. (1968) 'An Analysis of the Interaction of Language, Topic and Lis tener', in J. Fishman (ed.) Readings in the Sociology ofLanguage. The Hague, the Netherlands: Mouton.
- Ferguson, D.A., and E.M Perse (2000) 'The World Wide Web as a Functional Alterna tive to Television', Journal of Broadcasting & Electronic Media 44 (2): 155-174.
- Fidler, D. P. (1998) 'The Internet and the Sovereign State: The Role and Impact of Cyberspace on National and Global Governance', Indiana Journal of Global Legal Studies 5 (2): 415-421.
- Garton, L., C. Haythornthwaite and B. Wellman (1999) 'Studying On-line Social Net works', in S. Jones (ed.)Doing Internet Research: Critical Issues and Methods/or Examining the Net, pp. 75-105. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.
- Giles, H., and P.F. Powesland (1975) Speech Styleand Social Evaluation. London: Ac ademic Press.
- Golding, P. and P. Harris (1997) Beyond Cultural Imperialism: Globalization, Com munication and the New International Order. London: Sage Publications.
- Goldsmith, J.L. (1998) 'The Internet and the Abiding Significance ofTerritorial Sover eignty', Indiana Journal of Global Legal Studies 5 (2): 475-92.
- Gumperz, J. (1982a) Discourse Strategies. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Gumperz, J. (1982b) Language and Social Identity. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
- Gumperz, J., and D. Hymes (eds.) (1972) Directions in Sociolinguistics. New York: Holt, Rinehart & Winston.
- Hammer, M. R. (1989) 'Intercultural Communication Competence', in M.K. Asante and W.B. Gudykunst (Eds.) Handbook of International and Intercultural Commu nication, pp. 247-60. Newbury Park, CA: Sage Publications.
- Hecht, M.L. (1978) 'The Conceptualization and Measurement oflnterpersonal Com munication Satisfaction', Human Communication Research 4: 253-264.
- Hedley, R. A. (1998). 'Technological Diffusion or Cultural Imperialism? Measuring the Information Revolution', International Journal of Comparative Sociology 39 (2): 200.
- Herman, S. (1961) 'Explorations in the Social Psychology of Language Choice', Hu man Relations 4: 149-64.
- Hill, K. A. and J.E. Hughes (1998) Cyberpolitics: Citizen Activism in the Age of the Internet. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc. Jensen, M. (1999) 'The state of African connectivity', paper presented at the Highway Africa 1999 conference, Rhodes University, Grahamstown, South Africa, 12-18 September.
- Kim, Y.Y. (1977) 'Interethnic and Intra-ethnic Communication: A Study of Korean Immigrants in Chicago', in N. Jain (ed.) International and Intercultural Communi cation Annual 4: 55-68.
- Kim, Y.Y. (1978a) 'A Communication Approach to Acculturation Process: Korean Immigrants in Chicago', International Journal of Intercultural Relations 2: 197-224.
- Kim, Y.Y. (1978b) 'Acculturation and Patterns oflnterpersonal Communication Rela tionships: A study of Japanese, Mexican, and Korean Communities in the Chicago Area', paper presented at the Speech Communication Association Conference, Minneapolis, MN.
- Kim, Y.Y. (1980) 'Indochinese Refugees in Illinois: Vol. 4', project report submitted to the Department of Health, Education and Welfare, Region V, Chicago.
- Kim, Y.Y. (1986) 'Understanding the Social Context oflntergroup Communication: A personal Network Approach', in W.B. Gudykunst (ed.) Intergroup Communica tion. Baltimore: Edward Arnold.
- Kim, Y.Y. (1989) 'Intercultural Adaptation', in M.K. Asante and W.B. Gudykunst (eds.) Handbook of International and Intercultural Communication, pp. 275-94. Newbury Park, CA: Sage Publications.
- Kimble, J., R.L. Cooper and J.A. Fishman (1969) 'Language Switching and the Inter pretation of Conversations', Lingua 23: 127-134.
- King, C., and N.J. Melvin (1999/2000) 'Diaspora Politics: Ethnic Linkages, Foreign Policy and Security in Eurasia', International Security 24 (3) (Winter): 108-38.
- Korte, C., and S. Milgram (1970) 'Acquaintance Networks Between Racial Groups: Application of the Small World Method', Journal of Personality and Social Psy chology 15: 101-108.
- McQuail, D. (2000) 'New Media - New Theory?', in D. McQuail (ed.) McQuail's Mass Communication Theory, 4ᵗʰ edition, pp. 117-40. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.
- Mgbo-Elue, C.N. (1987) 'Social Psychological and Linguistic Impediments to the Ac quisition of a Second Nigerian Language Among Yoruba and Ibo', Journal of Lan guage and Social Psychology 6: 309-319.
- Milgram, S. (1967) 'The Small World Problem', Psychology Today May: 61-67. Nye Jr., J.S. (2000) 'Look Again, Globalization Isn't Bad for the Poor', URL (consulted July 2000): http://www.ksg.harvard.edu/newsstory/nye_globalization_iht.shtml Ohmae, K. (1991) The Borderless World: Power and Strategy in the Interlinked Econ omy. Hammersmith, UK: Fontana.
- Oliver, R.L. (1980) 'A Cognitive Model of the Antecedents and Consequences of Sat isfaction Decisions', Journal of Marketing Research 17: 460-469.
- Olorunnisola, A. A. (1997) 'Radio and African Rural Communities: Structural Strat egies for Social Mobilization', Radio Studies Journal 4: 242-257.
- Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) (1996) Informa tion Technology Outlook, 1995. Paris: OECD.
- Palmgreen, P., L.A. Wenner and J.D. Rayburn (1981) 'Gratifications Discrepancies and News Program Choice', Communication Research 8: 451-478.
- Papacharissi, Z. and A.M. Rubin (2000) 'Predictors oflnternet Use', Journal of Broad casting and Electronic Media 44 (2): 175-196.
- Perritt, Jr., H.H. (1998) 'The Internet as a Threat to Sovereignty? Thoughts on the Internet's Role in Strengthening National and Global Governance', Indiana Jour nal of Global Legal Studies 5 (2): 423-442.
- Rayburn, J.D., P. Palmgreen and T. Acker (1984) 'Media Gratifications and Choosing a Morning News Program', Journalism Quarterly 61: 149-156.
- Robinson, V. and M. Carey (2000) 'Peopling Skilled International Migration: Indian Doctors in the UK', International Migration 38 (1): 89-108.
- Rogers, E. M. (1962) The diffusion of Innovations. Glencoe, IL: Free Press. Rogers, E. M. (1983) Diffusion of Innovations (3ʳᵈ ed). New York: Free Press. Rogers, E.M. (1995) Diffusion of Innovations (lh ed). New York: Free Press.
- Rubin, A.M. (1984) 'Ritualized and Instrumental Television Viewing', Journal of Communication, 34 (4): 67-77.
- Rubin, A.M. (1993) 'Audience Activity and Media Use', Communication Mono graphs 60: 98-103.
- Ryan, E. B. and M.A. Carranza (1977) 'Ingroup and Outgroup Reactions to Mexi can-American Language Varieties', in H. Giles (ed.) Language, Ethnicity, and In tergroup Relations. London: Academic Press.
- Schlender, B. (1996) 'A Conversation with the Lords of Wintel', Fortune 134 (1): 42-58.
- Spero, J. E. (1996) 'The Challenges of Globalization', US Department of State Dis patch 7 (40): 481-483.
References
Aoki, K. (1998) 'Considering Multiple and Overlapping Sovereignties: Liberalism, Libertarianism, the National Sovereignty, "Global" Intellectual Property, and the Internet', Indiana Journal of Global Legal Studies 5 (2): 443-74.
Bastian, M. L. (1999) 'Nationalism in a Virtual Space: Immigrant Nigerians on the Internet', West Africa Review I (1), URL (consulted July 2000): http://www.icaap.org/iuicode Berry, J. W. (1980) 'Acculturation as Varieties of Adaptation', in A. M. Padilla (ed.)
Acculturation: Theory, Models and Some New Findings, pp. 9-25. Washington, DC: Westview. Braungart, R. G. and M. M. Braungart (1997) 'At Century's End: Globalization, Para doxes, and aN ew Political Agenda', Journal of Political and Military Sociology 25 (Winter): 343-51.
Breslow, H. (1998) 'Civil Society, Political Economy, and the Internet', in S. Jones (ed.) Virtual Culture: Identity and Communication in Cybersociety, pp. 236-57. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.
Brook, G.L. (1973) Varieties of English. London: Macmillan.
Burnheim, S. (1999) 'The Right to Communicate: The Internet in Africa', Southern Af rican Media Law Briefing 4 (3): 6-11.
Cupach, W. R., and B. H. Spitzberg (1983) 'Trait Versus State: A Comparison of Dispositional and Situational Measures of Interpersonal Communication Compe tence', Western Journal of Speech Communication 47: 364-379.
Dell, S. (1990) The United Nations and International Business. Durham, NC: United Nations Institute for Training and Research, Duke University Press.
De Sola Pool, I. and M. Kochen (1978) 'Contacts and influence', Social Networks 1: 5-51.
Dizard, Jr., W. 2000) Old Media New Media: Mass Communications in the Informa tion Age, 3' edition. New York: Longman. Dittmar, N. (1976) Sociolinguistics. London: Edward Arnold.
Edelman, M., R. L. Cooper and J. A. Fishman (1968) 'The Contextualization of School Children's Bilingualism', Irish Journal ofEducation 2: 106-111.
Emerson, M.B., and E. M. Perse (1995) 'Media Events and Sports Orientations to the 1992 WinterOlympics',Journal of International Communication 2 (1): 80-99.
Ervin-Tripp, S. M. (1968) 'An Analysis of the Interaction of Language, Topic and Lis tener', in J. Fishman (ed.) Readings in the Sociology ofLanguage. The Hague, the Netherlands: Mouton.
Ferguson, D.A., and E.M Perse (2000) 'The World Wide Web as a Functional Alterna tive to Television', Journal of Broadcasting & Electronic Media 44 (2): 155-174.
Fidler, D. P. (1998) 'The Internet and the Sovereign State: The Role and Impact of Cyberspace on National and Global Governance', Indiana Journal of Global Legal Studies 5 (2): 415-421.
Garton, L., C. Haythornthwaite and B. Wellman (1999) 'Studying On-line Social Net works', in S. Jones (ed.)Doing Internet Research: Critical Issues and Methods/or Examining the Net, pp. 75-105. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.
Giles, H., and P.F. Powesland (1975) Speech Styleand Social Evaluation. London: Ac ademic Press.
Golding, P. and P. Harris (1997) Beyond Cultural Imperialism: Globalization, Com munication and the New International Order. London: Sage Publications.
Goldsmith, J.L. (1998) 'The Internet and the Abiding Significance ofTerritorial Sover eignty', Indiana Journal of Global Legal Studies 5 (2): 475-92.
Gumperz, J. (1982a) Discourse Strategies. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press. Gumperz, J. (1982b) Language and Social Identity. Cambridge: Cambridge University Press.
Gumperz, J., and D. Hymes (eds.) (1972) Directions in Sociolinguistics. New York: Holt, Rinehart & Winston.
Hammer, M. R. (1989) 'Intercultural Communication Competence', in M.K. Asante and W.B. Gudykunst (Eds.) Handbook of International and Intercultural Commu nication, pp. 247-60. Newbury Park, CA: Sage Publications.
Hecht, M.L. (1978) 'The Conceptualization and Measurement oflnterpersonal Com munication Satisfaction', Human Communication Research 4: 253-264.
Hedley, R. A. (1998). 'Technological Diffusion or Cultural Imperialism? Measuring the Information Revolution', International Journal of Comparative Sociology 39 (2): 200.
Herman, S. (1961) 'Explorations in the Social Psychology of Language Choice', Hu man Relations 4: 149-64.
Hill, K. A. and J.E. Hughes (1998) Cyberpolitics: Citizen Activism in the Age of the Internet. Lanham, MD: Rowman & Littlefield Publishers, Inc. Jensen, M. (1999) 'The state of African connectivity', paper presented at the Highway Africa 1999 conference, Rhodes University, Grahamstown, South Africa, 12-18 September.
Kim, Y.Y. (1977) 'Interethnic and Intra-ethnic Communication: A Study of Korean Immigrants in Chicago', in N. Jain (ed.) International and Intercultural Communi cation Annual 4: 55-68.
Kim, Y.Y. (1978a) 'A Communication Approach to Acculturation Process: Korean Immigrants in Chicago', International Journal of Intercultural Relations 2: 197-224.
Kim, Y.Y. (1978b) 'Acculturation and Patterns oflnterpersonal Communication Rela tionships: A study of Japanese, Mexican, and Korean Communities in the Chicago Area', paper presented at the Speech Communication Association Conference, Minneapolis, MN.
Kim, Y.Y. (1980) 'Indochinese Refugees in Illinois: Vol. 4', project report submitted to the Department of Health, Education and Welfare, Region V, Chicago.
Kim, Y.Y. (1986) 'Understanding the Social Context oflntergroup Communication: A personal Network Approach', in W.B. Gudykunst (ed.) Intergroup Communica tion. Baltimore: Edward Arnold.
Kim, Y.Y. (1989) 'Intercultural Adaptation', in M.K. Asante and W.B. Gudykunst (eds.) Handbook of International and Intercultural Communication, pp. 275-94. Newbury Park, CA: Sage Publications.
Kimble, J., R.L. Cooper and J.A. Fishman (1969) 'Language Switching and the Inter pretation of Conversations', Lingua 23: 127-134.
King, C., and N.J. Melvin (1999/2000) 'Diaspora Politics: Ethnic Linkages, Foreign Policy and Security in Eurasia', International Security 24 (3) (Winter): 108-38.
Korte, C., and S. Milgram (1970) 'Acquaintance Networks Between Racial Groups: Application of the Small World Method', Journal of Personality and Social Psy chology 15: 101-108.
McQuail, D. (2000) 'New Media - New Theory?', in D. McQuail (ed.) McQuail's Mass Communication Theory, 4ᵗʰ edition, pp. 117-40. Thousand Oaks, CA: Sage Publications.
Mgbo-Elue, C.N. (1987) 'Social Psychological and Linguistic Impediments to the Ac quisition of a Second Nigerian Language Among Yoruba and Ibo', Journal of Lan guage and Social Psychology 6: 309-319.
Milgram, S. (1967) 'The Small World Problem', Psychology Today May: 61-67. Nye Jr., J.S. (2000) 'Look Again, Globalization Isn't Bad for the Poor', URL (consulted July 2000): http://www.ksg.harvard.edu/newsstory/nye_globalization_iht.shtml Ohmae, K. (1991) The Borderless World: Power and Strategy in the Interlinked Econ omy. Hammersmith, UK: Fontana.
Oliver, R.L. (1980) 'A Cognitive Model of the Antecedents and Consequences of Sat isfaction Decisions', Journal of Marketing Research 17: 460-469.
Olorunnisola, A. A. (1997) 'Radio and African Rural Communities: Structural Strat egies for Social Mobilization', Radio Studies Journal 4: 242-257.
Organization for Economic Cooperation and Development (OECD) (1996) Informa tion Technology Outlook, 1995. Paris: OECD.
Palmgreen, P., L.A. Wenner and J.D. Rayburn (1981) 'Gratifications Discrepancies and News Program Choice', Communication Research 8: 451-478.
Papacharissi, Z. and A.M. Rubin (2000) 'Predictors oflnternet Use', Journal of Broad casting and Electronic Media 44 (2): 175-196.
Perritt, Jr., H.H. (1998) 'The Internet as a Threat to Sovereignty? Thoughts on the Internet's Role in Strengthening National and Global Governance', Indiana Jour nal of Global Legal Studies 5 (2): 423-442.
Rayburn, J.D., P. Palmgreen and T. Acker (1984) 'Media Gratifications and Choosing a Morning News Program', Journalism Quarterly 61: 149-156.
Robinson, V. and M. Carey (2000) 'Peopling Skilled International Migration: Indian Doctors in the UK', International Migration 38 (1): 89-108.
Rogers, E. M. (1962) The diffusion of Innovations. Glencoe, IL: Free Press. Rogers, E. M. (1983) Diffusion of Innovations (3ʳᵈ ed). New York: Free Press. Rogers, E.M. (1995) Diffusion of Innovations (lh ed). New York: Free Press.
Rubin, A.M. (1984) 'Ritualized and Instrumental Television Viewing', Journal of Communication, 34 (4): 67-77.
Rubin, A.M. (1993) 'Audience Activity and Media Use', Communication Mono graphs 60: 98-103.
Ryan, E. B. and M.A. Carranza (1977) 'Ingroup and Outgroup Reactions to Mexi can-American Language Varieties', in H. Giles (ed.) Language, Ethnicity, and In tergroup Relations. London: Academic Press.
Schlender, B. (1996) 'A Conversation with the Lords of Wintel', Fortune 134 (1): 42-58.
Spero, J. E. (1996) 'The Challenges of Globalization', US Department of State Dis patch 7 (40): 481-483.