Reports

Communication and the Culture of Democracy
Arab-US Association for Communi-cation Educators (AUSACE)
Irbid, JORDAN: November 12-15, 2000

Jordan’s Yarmouk University hosted the fifth annual conference of AUSACE, which focused on the theme of "Communication and the Culture of Democracy." Yarmouk University President Fayez Khasawneh set the tone for the conference by recognizing that "the culture of democracy is supported by the King today" and that "all the barriers have fallen with the new media in our houses."

During the three-day conference, participants from the Middle East, the United States, and Europe presented perspectives on the theme evident in diverse media - magazines, online newspapers, radio and the Internet. Mazin S. Motabagani of Saudi Arabia showed how the Internet is facilitating Arabic and Islamic studies. Hanzada Fikry of Egypt detailed how FM radio songs influence the subculture of Cairo taxi drivers. Naila Hamdy of Egypt reported on the increased use of computer-assisted reporting.

Differing opinions emerged in a lively discussion over the extension of distance learning from West to East. In a presentation on mediated distance learning, Peggy Bieber-Roberts of the American University in Cairo noted mixed results, sometimes with "little interaction" or formal interaction that "did not work." While she concluded that distance learning "needs to be interactive," at least two professors discounted distance learning as culturally invasive. Mohammad Shreideh of Yarmouk University said he was "suspicious of what may come from the West" to "export the powerful culture to the poor." In agreement, Adel Ziadat, chair of Yarmouk’s communication program, proposed that "technology here needs adaptation to the region."

The Department of Journalism and Mass Communication at Yarmouk University plans to publish the conference papers in Arabic and English.

This year’s sixth annual conference will be held for the first time in the United States. Georgia State University, with the assistance of Atlanta’s Arab-American community, will host the conference Oct. 31-Nov. 3, 2001. The central theme will focus on "The Economy of the Media in the New Middle East." (See the calendar listing for more on this conference).

For additional information, contact Dr. Carolyn Crimmins, Georgia State University, Dept. of Communication, One Park Plaza, 10th Floor, Atlanta, Georgia 30303, USA; phone (1-404)651-2697 fax (1-404)651-1409; e-mail jouccc@panther.gsu.edu.

Bulletin of Regional Cooperation in the Middle East Spring 2001
Copyright 2004 Search for Common Ground