If the 1990s was the decade of market liberalization in media and telecommunication industries worldwide, how will the next decade be defined? What and who will set the agenda for communication and information policy? Current policy discourse is focused on relatively narrow regulatory or legal issues, such as broadband regulation, the proper scope of intellectual property rights, interconnection and competition in telecommunications, and media concentration. While recognizing the importance of issue-specific policy research, this special issue would attempt to shift some attention to the underlying social and political determinants of public policy. The objective is to encourage the development of revised conceptions of the public interest appropriate to a transformed economic and political environment. Papers that bring together insights from multiple areas, such as political science, sociology, economics, critical geography, information studies, urban studies, policy studies, communications and cultural studies, are especially welcome. Ideally, papers would shed light on current developments and place them in perspective that has relevance for future public policy directions.

This workshop will bring together campaigners, practitioners and researchers to examine the use of technology by the organisations of civil society, such as trade unions, NGOs, campaign groups and charities. The workshop will explore how existing knowledge of Human Computer Interaction (HCI), in its broadest senses, can be applied by such groups, and what questions such groups pose for our emerging understanding of HCI.

We invite submissions from practitioners, designers, campaign organisers, activists and researchers who are: * involved in designing for, or supporting NGOs, trade-unions, community, campaigning or voluntary groups; * concerned with the relationship between 'the network society', democracy and the capabilities of socially excluded groups and people in developing countries; * interested in understanding the impact of electronically mediated communication on the development of civil society.

SPECIAL TOPIC: Media Literacy
Focus:  Despite the increasing body of theoretical and anecdotal work seeking to define and examine the position of media in society, many in the academy continue to balk at studying the role of media in the lives of students. The study of media has been neglected in part because, unlike traditional texts, media have been perceived as undermining cultural standards.  The connections, the argument follows, between media and popular culture, between media literacy and critical pedagogy, or between popular culture and post-modern theory are less than rigorous.  This issue of AEQ will answer this objection.  Indeed, the predominance of media in our lives and our students' lives demands that we reconsider what it means to be literate in today's world.  To ignore the media is to ignore a powerful set of opportunities for the classroom.

INFO, now published by Emerald, http://www.emeraldinsight.com, is a bimonthly international journal concerned with the economic, social, political and regulatory aspects of the emerging tele-information economy. INFO is an important vehicle for the discussion of information age issues and the publication of research, business analysis and policy thinking relevant to policy makers, business strategists and academic researchers.

The editor invites authors to submit full-length articles as well as shorter 'comment' pieces. Notes for authors may be found on the journal's home page. Contributions should be sent to:

Colin Blackman Editor,
INFO 13 High Street,
Cottenham, Cambridge CB4 8SA,
UK Tel: +44 1954 205278; fax: +44 1954 209916