"The year 2024 marks the 20th anniversary of the publication of Comparing Media Systems (2004), by Daniel C. Hallin and Paolo Mancini, a book that established three major media models in the Western world. Subsequently, the same authors published Comparing Media Systems Beyond the Western World (201 ... 1), which extended the work to other countries such as Russia, Poland, and China. In both cases, the interest was in the comparative analysis using a series of variables that made it possible to classify the media structures of the countries into differential groups. For their analysis, the authors included different study categories that need to be reinterpreted considering technological evolution, changes in consumption habits, or the irruption of social networks. This thematic issue is a proposal for a review of media models in different countries and aims to be a starting point for future lines of research on this subject. A total of 10 articles are presented to address an academic debate on the scientific relevance of Hallin and Mancini's work, its contribution to comparative media studies, and its necessary re-reading in a historical-temporal framework different from the moment in which it was published." (Abstract) more

"Blogs have become a communicative alternative for Cuban civil society in recent years. Cuban communities, inside and outside the island, are characterized by substantial ideological differences and economic gaps that highlight the challenges for consensus building and collective action in the count ... ry’s politics. Information and communication technologies (ICTs), however, are gradually facilitating the creation of spaces outside the control of the state for the exchange of ideas about the present and future of the nation. Through content analysis and qualitative interpretation, we undertake a case study of the most renowned Cuban blog, ‘Generación Y’, to evaluate users’ participation, the content they generate for the site, and the nature of debates taking place within it. Our findings show that while this blog opens an unprecedented opportunity for Cubans to engage in relatively unrestricted political dialogue, its users tend to favour expressive participation and antagonistic exchanges over the rational deliberations associated with traditional conceptualizations of the notion of the public sphere." (Abstract) more