This book does what few other works have done: it examines the role media have played in the larger political, economic and social transformations in the post communist space. An international group of scholars from various disciplines explore the complex relations between media, society, and the state in this region over the past twenty years, and present theoretical arguments that challenge dominant views. They scrutinize changes in the public sphere as well as the media itself, its role, format, agenda and quality in the context of changing values and shifting power relationships.

Autorentext

The Editors: Marta Dyczok is Associate Professor of History and Political Science at the University of Western Ontario, and CERES Fellow at the University of Toronto, Canada. Author of two books, including, The Grand Alliance and Ukrainian Refugees (2000), her research is on media, post communism, Ukraine and migration.
Oxana Gaman-Golutvina is Professor of Political Science at Moscow Institute of Foreign Relations (MGIMO-UNIVERSITY) and the Higher School of Economics, and Vice-president of the Russian Association of Political Science. Author of over 150 publications, including several books, her Political Elites in Russia was recognized the best political science book in Russia in 2007.

Inhalt

Contents: Marta Dyczok: Introduction - Marta Dyczok: Do the Media Matter? Focus on Ukraine - Oxana Gaman-Golutvina: Contradictions between Freedom and Development: Historical and Contemporary Dimensions (the Russian Case) - Stefan Jarolimek: In the Absence of Light, Darkness Prevails. Plurality, the Public Sphere and the Transformation of Press Journalism in Belarus - Inta BrikSe: Development of a Public Sphere: Journalistic Freedom and Media Accountability in Latvia - Boris Dubin: Russia, the West and «The Special Path». Popular Attitudes to Other Countries - Oleg Manaev: Belarus on the 'Huntington Line': The Role of Media (Devoted to the Memory of Samuel Huntington) - Masha Lipman: The Russian Media Scene: Industrial Rise and Industrial Decline - Robert Austin: Less is More: Towards a Sustainable and Reliable Media in Albania - Tamara Berekashivli: Trends in Georgia's Mass Media after the 'Rose Revolution' - Vicken Cheterian: Coloured Revolutions and the Media: Where is the Scoop? - Oxana Gaman-Golutvina: Conclusions. Media and Democracy in Transformation Design.