"Since World War II, several terms have been used to describe the deliberate, systematic, and creative use of communication assets - technologies, processes and imagination - to respond to dehumanizing conditions and to promote positive human development. They include project support communication, ... development support communication, communication and national development, communication and development, strategic communication, health communication, participatory communication, and, more recently, communication for development (C4D). Each of these terms is associated with shifts in focus, emphasis, and processes. At its core, each term also represents the outcome of dialogue among stakeholders about what is meant by "development." (Page 397) more

"The study attempts a periodisation of the evolution of TfD and the development communication process in Africa. The perspective adopted spans within the larger scope of its implications and imperatives, to explore how this noble initiative that was given impetus by both Freire and Boal has develope ... d in the continent over the years. This analysis is, therefore, undertaken from the following tripodal angles: I. The Pre-independence Era, II. The Post-independence Era, and III. The Electronic Culture Era. Conscious effort has been made to highlight the significant way in which patterns in social change within these epochs have particularly shaped the varying evolution trends." (Introduction) more

"This book presents the perspectives of some of the main players, both academics and professionals, in communication for sustainable development and social change so as to provide valuable lessons for future generations of change agents. It places emphasis on both the theoretical foundation and prac ... tical applications and ethical concerns in communication for development and social change. Most of the available historical accounts in development communications make a distinction between the modernization paradigm, the dependency paradigm and the multiplicity or participatory paradigm. These historical accounts have been dominated by framing developments within these paradigms, as the logical offspring of the Western drive to develop the world after colonization and the Second World War. The subsequent collapse of the Soviet Union in the late eighties, together with the rise of the U.S. as the only remaining 'superpower,' the emergence of the European Union and China, the gradual coming to the fore of regional powers, such as the BRICS countries, and the recent meltdown of the world financial system has rendered disastrous consequences for people everywhere. (Publisher description) more