An examination of communication across cultures in news media and at informal/personal levels : with concentration on relations among two South East Asian countries and Australia and those two countries and Germany

In the age of globalisation dominated by mass communication, the flow of information contributes to a big extent to the worldviews of its "global citizens". From this point of view the mass media can be seen as one of the most salient sources of cross-cultural communication. This study investigates mass communication across cultures, focusing on South East Asia (Malaysia and Singapore), Australia and Germany. The centre of attention is the Western media coverage of South East Asia and vice versa. In this context a content analysis of newspapers of the three regions has been conducted. In addition, working practices and conditions of Western foreign correspondents in South East Asia have been examined. Apart from the investigation of inter-cultural media coverage, another focus of attention will be the examination of two levels of communication: The business level, concentrating on issues like e.g. the Asian business etiquette; and the private level, looking into the transition to a different culture from the perspective of Australian and German expatriates. Apart from investigating mass communication across cultures and to provide a written analysis of the findings, a series of radio documentaries in English and in German has been produced. They cover the following issues: Foreign correspondents in South East Asia, the expatriate-lifestyle of Australians and Germans in South East Asia, business etiquette in Asia, student exchange Germany-Asia, image and prejudices East-West and Tourism.

Citizen journalism and everyday life : a case study of Germany's myHeimat.de

The impact of citizen journalism on the established journalism industry, and its role in the future news media mix, remain key topics in current journalism studies research, not least in the context of the current crisis facing many news organisations around the globe. The centrality of this issue is also reflected in the substantial number of ‘citizen journalism’ monographs and collections published across the last few years (see for example Paterson & Domingo, 2008; Boler, 2008; Allan & Thorsen, 2009; Neuberger, Nuernbergk, & Rischke, 2009; Gordon, 2009; Russell & Echchaibi, 2009; Meikle & Redden, forthcoming). With relatively few notable exceptions, much of the research and wider public discussion surrounding the citizen journalism phenomenon has employed a relatively narrow definition of the term, with many researchers focussing on citizen journalism projects which provide mainly political news and commentary, and on their role in influencing the political process especially in countries like the U.S.

International students' experiences of university libraries and librarians

ABSTRACT International students constitute a significant proportion of the Australian university population, and thus of the university library-using population. Drawing on qualitative research findings, this paper discusses the library-related experiences and perceptions of international students at two Australian universities. While the students’ previous library use was limited, at their host university they experienced library using challenges, often associated with unfamiliarity. However, they generally viewed their Australian university library and library staff in a positive light. The findings support recommendations for developing library professionals’ awareness of, and enhancing international students’ library use.

Multitasking information behaviour in public libraries : a survey study

Multitasking information behaviour is the human ability to handle the demands of multiple information tasks concurrently. When we multitask, we work on two or more tasks and switch between those tasks. Multitasking is the way most of us deal with the complex environment we all live in, and recent studies show that people often engage in multitasking information behaviours. Multitasking information behaviours are little understood, however, and an important area for information behaviour research. Our study investigated the multitasking information behaviours of public library users at the Brentwood and Wilkinsburg Public Libraries in Pittsburgh through diary questionnaires. Findings include that some 63.5 percent of library users engaged in multitasking information behaviours, with a mean of 2.5 topic changes and 2.8 topics per library visit. A major finding of our study is that many people in libraries are seeking information on multiple topics and are engaged in multitasking behaviours. The implications of our findings and further research are also discussed. (Contains 7 tables and 2 figures.)

Ceremony and cybrary : Digital libraries and the dialectic of place and space

This article examines social, cultural and technological change in the systems and economies of educational information management. Since the Sumerians first collected, organized and supervised administrative and religious records some six millennia ago, libraries have been key physical depositories and cultural signifiers in the production and mediation of social capital and power through education. To date, the textual, archival and discursive practices perpetuating libraries have remained exempt from inquiry. My aim here is to remedy this hiatus by making the library itself the terrain and object of critical analysis and investigation. The paper argues that in the three dominant communications eras—namely, oral, print and digital cultures—society’s centres of knowledge and learning have resided in the ceremony, the library and the cybrary respectively. In a broad-brush historical grid, each of these key educational institutions—the ceremony in oral culture, the library in print culture and the cybrary in digital culture—are mapped against social, cultural and technological orders pertaining to their era. Following a description of these shifts in society’s collective cultural memory, the paper then examines the question of what the development of global information systems and economies mean for schools and libraries of today, and for teachers and learners as knowledge consumers and producers?

The geography of creative people in Germany

It has been argued that creativity is an important source of regional growth. This paper investigates the geography of people in creative occupation in Germany. The population share of the Creative Class as well as of bohemians and artists is relatively high in larger cities, but smaller places and rural regions may also have a considerable proportion of people with a creative job. While ethnical and cultural diversity and a high level of public supply in health care and education can explain the distribution of creative people, employment opportunities seem to play only a minor role. A high share of creative occupations seems to be conducive to regional growth; however, the exact nature of this relationship is still unclear.

Die Geographie der Kreativen Klasse in Deutschland [The geography of the Creative Class in Germany]

We analyze the regional distribution of different categories of creative individuals in Germany. Generally, the share of creative people is higher in cities as compared to the rural area The freelancing artists are a kind of exception in this respect; they constitute a relatively high share of the population in some rural area A high share of creative people in a region can be explained by a high level of public provisions and a high share of foreign born population, which can be regarded as an indicator of the “openness” in the local milieu. Good employment opportunities have only a relatively weak impact. Regions with a high share of creatives tend to have an above average level of new business formation, a high level of innovation and a relatively high share of employees in high-tech industries.

Urban Informatics Research and Insights for Libraries, Cultural Industries and Innovation Systems

Over less than a decade, we have witnessed a seismic shift in the way knowledge is produced and exchanged. This is opening up new opportunities for civic and community engagement, entrepreneurial behaviour, sustainability initiatives and creative practices. It also has the potential to create fresh challenges in areas of privacy, cyber-security and misuse of data and personal information. The field of urban informatics focuses on the use and impacts of digital media technology in urban environments. Urban informatics is a dynamic and cross-disciplinary area of inquiry that encapsulates social media, ubiquitous computing, mobile applications and location-based services. Its insights suggest the emergence of a new economic force with the potential for driving innovation, wealth and prosperity through technological advances, digital media and online networks that affect patterns of both social and economic development. Urban informatics explores the intersections between people, place and technology, and their implications for creativity, innovation and engagement. This paper examines how the key learnings from this field can be used to position creative and cultural institutions such as galleries, libraries, archives and museums (GLAM) to take advantage of the opportunities presented by these changing social and technological developments. This paper introduces the underlying principles, concepts and research areas of urban informatics, against the backdrop of modern knowledge economies. Both theoretical ideas and empirical examples are covered in this paper. The first part discusses three challenges: a. People, and the challenge of creativity: The paper explores the opportunities and challenges of urban informatics that can lead to the design and development of new tools, methods and applications fostering participation, the democratisation of knowledge, and new creative practices. b. Technology, and the challenge of innovation: The paper examines how urban informatics can be applied to support user-led innovation with a view to promoting entrepreneurial ideas and creative industries. c. Place, and the challenge of engagement: The paper discusses the potential to establish place-based applications of urban informatics, using the example of library spaces designed to deliver community and civic engagement strategies. The discussion of these challenges is illustrated by a review of projects as examples drawn from diverse fields such as urban computing, locative media, community activism, and sustainability initiatives. The second part of the paper introduces an empirically grounded case study that responds to these three challenges: The Edge, the Queensland Government’s Digital Culture Centre which is an initiative of the State Library of Queensland to explore the nexus of technology and culture in an urban environment. The paper not only explores the new role of libraries in the knowledge economy, but also how the application of urban informatics in prototype engagement spaces such as The Edge can provide transferable insights that can inform the design and development of responsive and inclusive new library spaces elsewhere. To set the scene and background, the paper begins by drawing the bigger picture and outlining some key characteristics of the knowledge economy and the role that the creative and cultural industries play in it, grasping new opportunities that can contribute to the prosperity of Australia.

Informed learning : a catalyst for change in theological libraries

This paper discusses the potential interest of informed learning as a catalyst for change in theological libraries. Informed learning is a label for the relational approach to information literacy and information literacy education. It was created to highlight the importance of simultaneous attention to both information and learning when we consider peoples’ experiences in their information rich lives. The paper explores the idea of informed learning, suggesting that serious attention to informed learning experiences may challenge our thinking about our role as information professionals and the ways in which we serve our clients. The paper then moves to explore our current understandings of informed learning in faith communities and suggests some ways in which theological librarians can work to build informed communities.

Conversation, community and kids: blogging for youth at Gold Coast City Council libraries

In late 2007, Gold Coast City Council libraries embarked on an online library project, designed to ramp up libraries’ online services to customers. As part of this project, the Young People’s team identified a need to connect with youth aged 12 to 16 in the online environment, in order to create a direct channel of communication with this market segment and encourage them to engage with the library. Blogging was identified as an appropriate means of communicating with both current and potential library customers from this age group. The Young People’s team consequently prepared a concept plan for a youth blog for launch in Children’s Book Week 2008 and are working towards development of management and administrative models and documentation and implementation of the blog itself. While many libraries have been quick to take up Web 2.0-style services, there has been little formal publication about the successes (or failures) of this type of project. Likewise, few libraries have published about the planning, management, and administration of such services. The youth blog currently in development at Gold Coast City Council libraries will be supported by a robust planning phase and will be rigorously evaluated as part of the project. This paper will report on the project (its aims, objectives and outputs), the planning process, and the evaluation activities and outcomes.

Voices of experience : opportunities to influence creatively the designing of school libraries

Using a critical ethnographic approach this study investigates the potential for multiple voices of experience, of educators, designers/architects, education facility planners and students/learners, to influence creatively the designing of school libraries. School libraries are considered as social and cultural entities within the contexts of school life and of wider society. It is proposed that school library designing is a social interaction of concern to those influenced by its practices and outcomes. School library designing is therefore of significance to educators and students as well as to those with professionally accredited involvement in school library designing, such as designers/architects and education facility planners. The study contends that current approaches to educational space designing, including school libraries, amplify the voices of accredited designers and diminish or silence the voices of the user participants. The study is conceptualised as creative processes of discovery, through which attention is paid to the voices of experience of user and designer participants, and is concerned with their understandings and experiences of school libraries and their understandings and experiences of designing. Grounded theory coding (Charmaz) is used for initial categorising of interview data. Critical discourse analysis (CDA, Fairclough) is used as analytical tool for reflection on the literature and for analysis of the small stories gathered through semi-structured interviews, field observations and documents. The critical interpretive stance taken through CDA, enables discussions of aspects of power associated with the understandings and experiences of participants, and for recognition of creative possibilities and creative influence within and beyond current conditions. Through an emphasis on prospects for educators and students as makers of the spaces and places of learning, in particular in school libraries, the study has the potential to inform education facility designing practices and design participant relationships, and to contribute more broadly to knowledge in the fields of education, design, architecture, and education facility planning.

Queensland Government Agency Libraries Review: Options Paper

The Queensland Government Agency Libraries Review was undertaken during the period January-June 2010. The research project was sponsored jointly by the Director-General, Department of the Premier and Cabinet, and the Director-General, Department of Public Works. The objective of the project was to examine future options for the Queensland Government library and research services that provide clients with efficient and cost-effective access to the information they need to conduct government business, to develop a picture of the services provided, the information resources managed, the client base and staffing. The review also considered the environmental factors impacting on contemporary government libraries to determine possible strategies that would ensure a strong and sustainable future for the services. The review process culminated in identifying potential options for future service delivery. The preferred option involves a proposal for the centralizing responsibility for the coordination of a network of Queensland Government Libraries and Research Centres (QGLR). The establishment of a network of research centres, with a central point for coordination of common strategies, systems and processes will enable library and research services to flow around individual agencies, and provide clearer avenues for multi-disciplinary work that characterises contemporary government policy and government services. The key elements of the proposal include the development of a single library and research portal for all government officers, which can be tailored to meet their particular research needs; increasing the visibility and accessibility of information and knowledge resources to those officers regardless of their agency affiliation; introducing better, more cost effective purchasing and licensing arrangements; and the potential to have a voice of influence in the strategic agenda for the government’s use of information and research.