{"title":"Reply to reviewers of 'Dragonii dezvoltării: Revine istoria pe supercontinentul euroasiatic?'","authors":"P. Dobrescu","doi":"10.21018/RJCPR.2021.2.329","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21018/RJCPR.2021.2.329","url":null,"abstract":"The common denominator of some of the questions and problems raised by the reviewers is represented by the new technological revolution, the role of AI in this revolution, and their impact on the world today. No one doubts the fact that we are living the greatest transformation of the information environment since Gutenberg’s printing press. Nevertheless, as John Naughton emphasized, “we’re as clueless about where it’s heading and what’s driving it as the citizens of Mainz were in 1495” (Naughton, 2019). Four centuries have passed since then; during this time, the printing press shaped society and thinking, introduced new forms of communication, occasioned a massive improvement in the general population’s level of education, made public schools and the mass dissemination of knowledge possible. It radically influenced everything. Now, we are at the dawn of a new era, one which will lead to least as many transformations as print did.","PeriodicalId":40874,"journal":{"name":"Romanian Journal of Communication and Public Relations","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.6,"publicationDate":"2021-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"72754898","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"What Globalization for the Many?","authors":"Mălina Ciocea","doi":"10.21018/RJCPR.2021.2.326","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21018/RJCPR.2021.2.326","url":null,"abstract":"Development “is a way of getting acquainted with ourselves” (Dobrescu, 2020, p. 9). Starting with The Century of the Emerging World (2013) and continuing with No Project Country (2019), Paul Dobrescu explores Romania’s recent history of development, in an attempt to understand what future is envisaged by current economic policies. As usual, the conclusions of the analysis are an elegy. Development was not a real priority during transition in Romania, but a rhetoric. “We had lived a time of development without freedom and we inaugurated a time of freedom without development” (p. 167). That is not to say that Paul Dobrescu’s newest book is a disheartening read. On the contrary, it invites meditation on the fate of countries and puts their development into a global perspective which, in rationalizing historical trends, provides a well-grounded explanation for contemporary developments, while giving hope for a more equitable future. If anything, Paul Dobrescu’s books are deeply humanistic (in a way globalization itself, his arch-theme spanning more than 20 years, is supposed to be) and serve as a reminder of the fate of the many.","PeriodicalId":40874,"journal":{"name":"Romanian Journal of Communication and Public Relations","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.6,"publicationDate":"2021-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"89178139","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Responses to the reviews","authors":"S. Vaidhyanathan","doi":"10.21018/rjcpr.2020.1.294","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21018/rjcpr.2020.1.294","url":null,"abstract":"Professors Jakubowski, Haliliuc, and Buturoiu encountered Antisocial Media at a moment when many of the issues the book explores are daily news. They were deft enough to focus on the deeper goals and themes of the book, avoiding getting distracted by the latest breaking news about Facebook and its effects on democracy. For that I am grateful.","PeriodicalId":40874,"journal":{"name":"Romanian Journal of Communication and Public Relations","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.6,"publicationDate":"2020-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"84708416","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
Tapiwa Chininga, E. Rungani, N. Chiliya, T. Chuchu
{"title":"Facebook Communication and Marketing Influence on Decision-Making and Choice of University Student Representatives: A Student’s Perspective","authors":"Tapiwa Chininga, E. Rungani, N. Chiliya, T. Chuchu","doi":"10.21018/rjcpr.2019.2.274","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21018/rjcpr.2019.2.274","url":null,"abstract":"Facebook has become the main platform for young adults to sustain their social presence as well as expand their social networks. The impact of social media on youth decision-making has attracted much attention in research and academia. The research setting was at University of Fort Hare, a university located in South Africa. Before and during a student representative council (SRC) election at the university, the six student parties contesting for the leadership office utilised Facebook in communicating and marketing their campaign messages to fellow students. This research therefore empirically investigated how Facebook influenced university students’ intention to vote and elect an SRC for the institution. The survey methodology was adopted in collecting data and non-probability sampling, a form of convenience sampling was utilised in selection of suitable participants for the study. A total of 381 students participated in the study responding to questions examining potential drivers of selection of a particular student representative party (SRP). A conceptual model was developed with Facebook constructs that included “medium credibility of Facebook”, “peer communication on Facebook” and “user trust of Facebook” among other factors that influence students’ choice of an (SRP). The main findings established that identification with peers was observed as having the most significant impact on youths’ intention to vote for student representatives. Message credibility was found to have weak impact on student’s intention to vote for a particular (SRC) candidate. Implications emerged from the findings and further research suggestions were provided.","PeriodicalId":40874,"journal":{"name":"Romanian Journal of Communication and Public Relations","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.6,"publicationDate":"2019-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"81470892","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Libyan PR Participants’ Perceptions of and Motivations for Studying PR in Libya","authors":"M. Elareshi, Ayman Bajnaid","doi":"10.21018/rjcpr.2019.2.275","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21018/rjcpr.2019.2.275","url":null,"abstract":"Public relations in Libya is very much a new phenomenon, even compared with other Arab countries, although there are PR practices growing in tandem with some large local businesses and organisations. Based on the assumption that PR continues to play a vital role in communities and businesses, it is important to reconsider and evaluate its practices regularly, especially in terms of teaching and skills (including its curriculum). This study explores the quality of the educational PR curriculum, training and taught courses in Libyan universities by focusing on the perceptions of Libyan PR’s academic professionals and senior PR students, covering roughly more than a quarter-century of teaching at undergraduate and postgraduate levels. It examines how university PR students are taught, what strategies and modules are applied and how professionals and students evaluate the PR curriculum and their practical advantages. Based on a survey (N=367) and interview (N=15) approach, the overall findings revealed that the PR curriculum needed to be updated and that PR should be recognised as a practical, not a theoretical, subject and should have its own union helping to provide more training programmes in an updated setting.","PeriodicalId":40874,"journal":{"name":"Romanian Journal of Communication and Public Relations","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.6,"publicationDate":"2019-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"90840666","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Review of #FAKENEWS. Noua cursã a înarmãrii [#FAKENEWS. The new arms race] by Alina Bârgăoanu","authors":"Elena NEGREA-BUSUIOC","doi":"10.21018/rjcpr.2019.2.277","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21018/rjcpr.2019.2.277","url":null,"abstract":"“Fake news is neither fake, nor news” – Alina Bârgăoanu bluntly states in her latest book focusing on the overhyped phenomena of fake news and disinformation. An awful lot of public discussion and publications, both academic and popular literature, have been generated, during the last five years or so, by the fake news mania worldwide. However, significantly fewer efforts have been made to dissect and clarify the nature and, more importantly, the political, social and even psychological implications of fake news and disinformation exponentially increased spread.","PeriodicalId":40874,"journal":{"name":"Romanian Journal of Communication and Public Relations","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.6,"publicationDate":"2019-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"81664693","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Shades of Fake News: Manifestation, Effects and Ways to Combat False Information","authors":"Alexandru-Cristian Dumitrache","doi":"10.21018/rjcpr.2019.2.276","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21018/rjcpr.2019.2.276","url":null,"abstract":"In a continually changing global political environment, fake news has become a widely debated topic by both researchers and ordinary people. Despite the relevance and the diversity of approaches, few studies have focused on the typology of fake news in specialised scientific literature, while proper assessment methods and detection techniques are not well-established yet. This paper addresses the complex concept of fake news, presenting its significance and highlighting its different types, from propaganda to news satire; the moderators of the fake news effects and the ways to counter disinformation. This exploratory study reveals that solutions to combat the phenomenon exist, but they focus more on effects rather than on causes, leaving space open for further research.","PeriodicalId":40874,"journal":{"name":"Romanian Journal of Communication and Public Relations","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.6,"publicationDate":"2019-07-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"84950998","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Review of \"Financial Citizenship. Experts, Publics & the Politics of Central Banking\", by Annelise Riles","authors":"Raluca Iacob","doi":"10.21018/RJCPR.2019.1.271","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21018/RJCPR.2019.1.271","url":null,"abstract":"In 2018, the anthropological literature on economics was enriched by the publication of a book that argues for building communication bridges between financial experts and the public. It identifies the main blind spots on both sides, discusses the need to substantiate a new narrative legitimacy for central banks, and gives experts in these prominent institutions a rigorous call to action for a more effective communication. Annelis Riles’s Financial Citizenship is the outcome of more than 20 years of research on central banking culture and the social ties between financial regulators and the other financial market participants. The book complements analysis with thorough fieldwork, and one of its strengths is access to sources in the relevant institutions.","PeriodicalId":40874,"journal":{"name":"Romanian Journal of Communication and Public Relations","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.6,"publicationDate":"2019-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"76995913","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"A Swirl of Semiosis of Communication in Media and Political Discourse","authors":"Griselda Zárate, O. Estrada","doi":"10.21018/RJCPR.2019.1.270","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21018/RJCPR.2019.1.270","url":null,"abstract":"The 2016 US elections offer the opportunity for interpretation within a continuum of semiotic processes. This is particularly acute in regards to previous events, such as the visit in August 31, 2016 of US president candidate Donald Trump to Mexico. This paper aims to approach this political event as a cultural text containing several subtexts with diverse layers of meaning production: the mentioned visit as a candidate; Mexican president Peña Nieto’s dismissal of secretary Videgaray; Candidate Trump’s rally in Phoenix, Arizona, USA. Drawing from Lotman’s ideas, special attention is given in this semiotic process to the inflection point where the paths of history cross and become unpredictable (1999; 2013; 2000). Also, it incorporates this theorist views about the concept of text and semiosphere (1996), in particular as container of collective cultural memory, and meaning production, as well as a point of view from a gender perspective. The analysis includes rhetorical devices, such as ad populum and ad hominem arguments, metaphors, as well as pragmatic strategies, such as intensifiers and attenuators to appeal to audience emotions, which make evident a populist right wing ideology embedded in political discourse.","PeriodicalId":40874,"journal":{"name":"Romanian Journal of Communication and Public Relations","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.6,"publicationDate":"2019-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"77240428","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}
{"title":"Review of \"The Platform Society. Public Values in a Connective World\", by José van Dijck, Thomas Poell, and Martijn de Waal","authors":"D. Balaban","doi":"10.21018/RJCPR.2019.1.272","DOIUrl":"https://doi.org/10.21018/RJCPR.2019.1.272","url":null,"abstract":"In a society based on sharing economy and personalized services, the book The Platform Society. Public Values in a Connective World is focused on a relevant contemporary issue, that of the platform-driven change of society. The book offers a comprehensive view of a connected world (p.2) where several areas of society are subject to change. By using techniques that enable connectedness and supported by a participatory culture, platforms contribute to the development of a society that is less dependent on legacy institutions. The central issue addressed in this book is how public values and sectorial activities are shaped by platforms nowadays. According to the authors, the accountability for a balanced platform society is held by three major categories of actors: corporations, governments, and the civil society.","PeriodicalId":40874,"journal":{"name":"Romanian Journal of Communication and Public Relations","volume":null,"pages":null},"PeriodicalIF":0.6,"publicationDate":"2019-04-01","publicationTypes":"Journal Article","fieldsOfStudy":null,"isOpenAccess":false,"openAccessPdf":"","citationCount":null,"resultStr":null,"platform":"Semanticscholar","paperid":"72610659","PeriodicalName":null,"FirstCategoryId":null,"ListUrlMain":null,"RegionNum":0,"RegionCategory":"","ArticlePicture":[],"TitleCN":null,"AbstractTextCN":null,"PMCID":"","EPubDate":null,"PubModel":null,"JCR":null,"JCRName":null,"Score":null,"Total":0}