This research brings together digital inequality scholars from across the Americas and Caribbean to examine efforts to tackle digital inequality in Uruguay, Chile, Peru, Brazil, Mexico, Cuba, Jamaica, the United States, and Canada. As the case studies show, governmental policy has an important role to play in reducing digital disparities, particularly for potential users in rural or remote areas, as well as populations with great economic disparities. We find that public policy can effectively reduce access gaps when it combines the trifecta of network, device, and skill provision, especially through educational institutions. We also note, that urban populations have benefitted from digital inclusion strategies to a greater degree. This underscores that, no matter the national context, rural-urban digital inequality (and often associated economic inequality) is resistant to change. Even when access is provided, potential users may not find it affordable, lack skills, and/or see no benefit in adoption. We see the greatest potential for future digital inclusion in two related approaches: 1) initiatives that connect with hard-to-reach, remote, and rural communities outside urban cores and 2) initiatives that learn from communities about how best to provide digital resources while respecting their diversely situated contexts, while meeting social, economic and political needs.
Resumen. El presente artículo discute las perspectivas de la comunicación política a través de medios digitales, considerando la capacidad que tienen estos medios de generar dos tipos de acción: conectiva y colectiva, tanto para los movimientos sociales como para los partidos en procesos electorales. La discusión considera la evidencia disponible sobre los éxitos y fracasos asociados a los medios digitales. Se usan tanto los conceptos de la ciencia política como de la comunicación y los estudios de Internet, y plantea la necesidad de analizar desde un marco específico asociado al potencial de los medios para ser aprovechados en contextos determinados.Abstract. This paper discusses the potential for political communication through digital media, taking into account this type of media's ability to produce two types of action: connective action and collective action, both for social movements as well as for political parties during electoral processes. The paper takes into account available evidence about successful and failed experiences in which digital media was used. The analysis uses concepts pertaining both to political science and communication studies as well as Internet studies. However, it raises the need to approach these scenarios through a specific framework that takes into account the media's potential in such particular contexts.
RESUMOA popularidade dos memes de internet como itens de comunicação apresenta uma série de questões de investigação, incluindo as caraterísticas de todas as suas ligações com o conceito original de meme, tomado da biologia. Além disso, um aspecto que demanda pesquisa é a forma como a exploração desses itens serve a um propósito mais amplo de comunicação, como mecanismos para indivíduos ou grupos, ou como eles impactam a sociedade como um todo. Este artigo apresenta uma revisão de perspectivas sobre memes, e propõe analisá-los como recursos retóricos, propondo uma interpretação geral desses itens como menomas, e concentrando a atenção em uma iteração particular, a macro imagem meme que, sugere-se, deva ser chamada de LOL. Palavras-chave: Memes, narrativas digitais, estudos de internet, comunidades de prática ABSTRACTThe popularity of internet memes as communication items presents a series of research issues, including the characteristics of any connection with the original meme concept from biology. Also, an aspect that demands exploration is how these items serve a broader communicative purpose, as mechanisms for individuals or groups, and how they impact society as a whole. This paper presents a revision of perspectives on memes, and proposes to analyze them as rhetorical devices, devising a general interpretation of these items as menomes, and concentrating attention in a particular iteration, the image macro meme, which we propose to call LOL.
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