Dr. NICHOLAS WATSON

Pan Africanism

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adopted from: http://exhibitions.nypl.org/africanaage/essay-pan-africanism.html

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Pan-Africanism represents the complexities of black political and intellectual thought over two hundred years. What constitutes Pan-Africanism, what one might include in a Pan-African movement often changes according to whether the focus is on politics, ideology, organizations, or culture. Pan-Africanism actually reflects a range of political views. At a basic level, it is a belief that African peoples, both on the African continent and in the Diaspora, share not merely a common history, but a common destiny. This sense of interconnected pasts and futures has taken many forms, especially in the creation of political institutions. Continue reading this section from the link above.

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Productivity Measurement

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Adopted from: https://www.oecd.org/sdd/productivity-stats/2352458.pdf

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Productivity is commonly defined as a ratio of a volume measure of output to a volume measure of input use. While there is no disagreement on this general notion, a look at the productivity literature and its various applications reveals very quickly that there is neither a unique purpose for, nor a single measure of, productivity. The objectives of productivity measurement include: Continue reading Chapter Two from the link above.

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The Role and Influence of Mass Media

Adopted from: https://www.cliffsnotes.com/study-guides/sociology/contemporary-mass-media/the-role-and-influence-of-mass-media

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Mass media is communication—whether written, broadcast, or spoken—that reaches a large audience. This includes television, radio, advertising, movies, the Internet, newspapers, magazines, and so forth.  Mass media is a significant force in modern culture, particularly in America. Sociologists refer to this as a mediated culture where media reflects and creates the culture. Communities and individuals are bombarded constantly with messages from a multitude of sources including TV, billboards, and magazines, to name a few. These messages promote not only products, but moods, attitudes, and a sense of what is and is not important. Mass media makes possible the concept of celebrity: without the ability of movies, magazines, and news media to reach across thousands of miles, people could not become famous. In fact, only political and business leaders, as well as the few notorious outlaws, were famous in the past. Only in recent times have actors, singers, and other social elites become celebrities or “stars.” Continue reading this section from the link above.

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On any given day in every Caribbean country, with the exception of Cuba, the majority of citizens get their news and information about what is happening in the world from one of six primary sources: CNN, ABC, CBS, Fox News, NBC, or BBC. However, this plurality does not represent an equal diversity of views. Operating as businesses that provide eyes and ears to global advertisers, these six news organizations offer essentially two perspectives to viewers: a British and an American, and "embedded" perspectives in the case of war reporting from Iraq. And what regularly constitutes newsworthy information and makes the headlines depends, for example, on whether or not a famous entertainer is on trial for child molestation or the life support system is withdrawn from a fifteen yearlong comatose individual. Adopted from: https://www.encyclopedia.com/history/encyclopedias-almanacs-transcripts-and-maps/media-and-identity-caribbean

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The media are a significant driver of growth in many economies. The business of producing content generates substantial income flows and jobs that contribute directly to the economy. Increased access to knowledge spurs higher levels of literacy, which strengthens

human capital for higher productivity. The media are also important contributors to social and cultural life and key components of democratic structures. These contributions to development are often deliberately embodied in the media system. For example, Article 2 of South Africa’s 1999 Broadcasting Act lists 18 goals for the Act, the first 2 of which involve: Strengthening democracy, social development, gender equality, nation building, education provision, and the spiritual and moral fiber of society. Safeguarding, enriching, and strengthening the country’s cultural, political, social, and economic fabric. READ THIS ARTICLE HERE: http://siteresources.worldbank.org/INFORMATIONANDCOMMUNICATIONANDTECHNOLOGIES/Resources/The_Media_and_Development.pdf

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Social Injustice

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Social justice issues can be delineated into two categories, although they are often co-dependent: Inter-Social Treatment and Unequal Government Regulation. Inter-Social Treatment involves treatment of a group(s) of other people based on personally-held biases and prejudices. These prejudices most often manifest in sociological categories such as: (adopted from: https://www.pachamama.org/social-justice/social-justice-issues)

• Race

• Gender

• Age

• Sexual Orientation

• Religion

• Nationality

• Education

• Mental or Physical Ability

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Unequal Government Regulation involves laws and regulations that purposefully or otherwise create conditions that obstruct, limit, or deny a group(s) access to the same opportunities and resources, relative to the rest of society. These laws can intentionally (explicitly) or unintentionally (implicitly) create the conditions for social injustice. Areas in which government policy often gives rise to social inequality and injustice include:

• Voting Laws (i.e. redistricting and voter ID)

• Policing Laws (i.e. traffic, search and seizure, and drug scheduling)

• Environmental Laws (i.e. clean water and air, industrial waste disposal)

• Health Care Laws (i.e. insurance mandates and coverage eligibility) (

• Education Laws (i.e. public school segregation and integration)

• Labor Laws (i.e. worker’s rights, occupational health and safety)

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BRITISH CAPITALISM AND BRITISH SLAVERY

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Browse the following article: http://his693.clevelandhistory.org/files/2015/01/Drescher-WilliamThesis.pdf

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