abstracts

Recensões | 241
abstracts
Recensões | 243
Portugal móvel
gustavo cardoso, maria do carmo gomes, rita espanha, vera araújo
In today’s world, the mobile phone has become an integral part of our daily life,
operating as a telephone, diary, contacts list, filing system, walkman, radio, alarm
clock, games console, calculator and watch, and, as a result, its impact on modern
society is undeniable. Mobile phones are no longer merely a device for communication, but have become tools for social interaction. In a small number of years,
they have gone from being simple work instruments to equipment of the masses,
used not only to communicate, but also to structure social relationships and daily
life. This article analyses the social changes brought about by the possibility of
communicating at any time and anywhere in the Portuguese context, raising issues for a more widespread analysis, which seeks to understand the social transformations resulting from mobility.
Keywords: Mobile phones, Mobility, Network society
As mulheres e os telemóveis: uma relação por explorar
carla ganito
The main objective of this paper is to analyse the cellphone uses and gratifications
conditioned by gender. The paper is based on the main theoretical contributions
made on this subject and it stands on a functional perspective and on McLuhan’s
key concepts. Gender has been an underestimated variable by researchers and
the industry on its product and services offer. Nevertheless, gender can help identify the future of this media. The paper also aims to make evident that women
has been forgotten as communication targets and user of mobile communication,
namely cellphones. It also aims at identifying the differences in appropriation
between men and women.
Keywords: Cellphone, Gender, McLuhan, Mobile
244 | Recensões
Where are you? A Heideggerian analysis of the mobile phone
fernando ilharco
This paper is an attempt at clarifying the essential contours of the phenomenon
that grounds the developments in contemporary mobile communication: the mobile phone. In so doing our investigation intends to answer the question of what
a mobile phone is as such. The paper presents a description of the mobile phone
and its contextualisation within some of the works of Martin Heidegger (1889-1976), seeking to uncover the essential mode in which a mobile phone is what it is.
Grounding our analysis on the ontology of Heidegger’s Being and Time (Heidegger
1962), we claim that the mobile phone will only show itself as what it is in its
being in-the-world where mobile phones are what they are. This analysis is complemented by an exploration of the relevance of another of Heidegger’s notions,
that of Ge-stell (Heidegger 1977) as the essence of modern technology, for the understanding of human involvement with mobile phones. Against this ontological
background, our analysis points out being-with, bringing together and timing as
the essential contours of the mobile phone, all of these suggesting the deeper notions of actual situation and of disembodiment.
Keywords: Communication, Heidegger, Information technology, Mobile phone, Ontology,
Phenomenology
O impacto do telemóvel na sociedade contemporânea:
panorama de investigação em Ciências Sociais
patrícia dias
As a consequence of the widespread and frequent mobile phone use in contemporary society and of the social changes associated to this technology, the mobile
phone’s appropriation has become a relevant object of scientific investigation. This
paper offers an updated literature review about this subject. In spite of being a recent field in the social sciences, the investigation is broad, international and constantly developing. It focuses eight themes: (i) practices of use and explanations for
variations; (ii) social connectivity; (iii) coordination; (iv) softening of boundaries
and negotiation of social rules; (v) symbolic dimension; (vi) senses stimulation
and personalization; (vii) emotion; and (viii) dependence.
Keywords: Cell phone, Connectivity, Coordination, Mobile phone, Technology, Use
Fractura digital e literacia: reequacionar as questões do acesso
josé afonso furtado
The understanding and practices of the production and transmission of information and knowledge, historically bound to the printed world, have been chang-
Recensões | 245
ing as information is even more created and transmitted in electronic channels,
making the relationship between the technological processes and the social and
cultural practices and institutions more complex. The very same Information and
Communication Technologies (ICT) that foster development can raise new inequalities, from the different barriers that can be found in the interaction with
technologies, hence in accessing information content and services. Commonly
referred to as ‘digital divide’, such inequalities are often viewed in a narrow perspective, more concerned with infrastructures, equipments or bandwidth, rather
than people’s motivations, skills and patterns of usage access. These are nowadays
crucial issues that challenge the traditional concept of literacy.
Keywords: Access to information, Digital divide, Digital technologies, Literacy
O modelo americano de jornalismo — excepção ou exemplo?
michael schudson
The paper traces the evolution of American journalism, articulating it with the
evolution of US society and cultural values. The author focusses on the historical
development of American journalism from proximity to political power down to
an increasing detachment due to the change of political culture in the twentieth
century. The argument is that the current engaged and opposing model of American journalism cannot be simply implemented within a different cultural system.
It stems from a unique history, it was shaped by a particular relationship with
political institutions and their political culture, but can, nevertheless, serve as
an ideal and inspiration for political journalism in other socio-cultural environments.
Keywords: American journalism, Exceptionalism, Media history
Sobre a Economia da Cultura
emílio rui vilar
The expression “economics of culture” unfolds a functional notion of culture connected to some economic activities related with creativity and its products. The
cultural industries can be defined as the activities which allow the production,
distribution and market placement of cultural goods and services. In recent years,
we witnessed the democratization and industrialization of culture, not without
questioning however if this means an enhancement of our quality of life or, on
the contrary, the downsizing of the quality level of cultural manifestations. The
issues of the role of culture and culture policies raise the question of the cultural
goods market sustainability. According to the classic theory of Baumol and Bowen, the increase of productivity remains limited, or almost impossible, in live
246 | Recensões
performances (v.g. opera, theater). This issues the role of the State that, apart
from its responsibility in the culture heritage protection, appears as essential to
the sustainability of certain type of non-competitive performances or industries
(v.g. cinema). The State shall assure the necessary infrastructures to the creativity
processes, but is questionable if it shall directly subsidize creation, except in the
performing arts.
Keywords: Creativity, Cultural industries, Culture, Economics of culture
Descobrir o tesouro
roberto carneiro
For the past 150 years Portugal suffered from a structural deficit of education and
qualifications. This imbalance vis-à-vis the rest of Europe is the consequence of
a systematic underinvestment in human capital until 30 years ago. The article
shows the strategic relevance of a sustainable investment in overcoming this educational gap and in the reversal of this “long cycle” of disqualification. Moreover, it
refers to countries and systems where such an “educational revolution” was made
possible. Hence, the case is made in favour of a new educational paradigm: education as a service – proximity – as opposed to the concept of a training factory
– industry mode of operation. ‘New Opportunities’ – the government initiative
under scrutiny – is also an excellent opportunity to reorganise an inclusive supply
that works closer to the real needs of the demand for human advancement. The
article closes offering a renewed mission for education, one that elicits the discovery of the immense treasure that dwells in the inner Portugal and in the Portuguese soul. Ultimately, education aims at making people happier and assisting
them in discovering the treasure that inhabits deep in the meaning of life.
Keywords: Education, Human capital, Inclusion, Meaning of life, New opportunies, Portuguese education, Qualification, Training
As sondagens pré-eleitorais nas autárquicas de 2005
pedro magalhães, diogo moreira
This article has two main goals. The first is to provide an overview of the preelectoral polls conducted before the 2005 local elections in Portugal, analyzing
their technical and methodological characteristics and the way their results were
published in the media. The second goal is to describe and explain the level of
accuracy of those polls, comparing the estimates they provided with what ended
up being the electoral results. Several hypotheses are tested about the factors that
explain variations in accuracy.
Keywords: Local elections, Mass media, Poll accuracy, Portugal, Pre-electoral polls
Recensões | 247
A Emissora Nacional: das emissões experimentais
à oficialização (1933-1936)
nelson ribeiro
In Portugal, the birth of public radio took place during the 30s, after a period in
which all the initiatives concerning the development of radio had been led private
groups. The first years of Emissora Nacional were coincident with the period in
which the New State was consolidating its structure. For this reason, at the beginning there was an intense struggle for the control of the radio station. During the
experimental period it was possible to identify inside Emissora Nacional several
tendencies that, inside the political regime, tried to define which should be the role
of radio broadcasting as a mean of promotion of the New State’s political ideology.
These political tendencies are identified in the present article which furnishes also
data concerning the several types of programming that were offered by the public
radio station.
Keywords: António Ferro, Emissora Nacional, Fernando Homem Christo, Henrique Galvão, New State, Radio broadcasting, Radio programming