Blackwell Reference Online

Extract

A cursory examination of halo terms used on the world stage in the last 50 years will surely unearth the term “development.” Development is commonly understood to mean a process by which societal conditions are improved. However, there is much disagreement on what constitutes improvement. Consequently, the term development has been continually contested. Development communication, a special focus of this entry, often refers to a linear process of information exchange, resulting in knowledge acquisition or persuasion toward some objective related to development. This term too has been actively contested, especially with the changing interpretations of development . Today, many emphasize communication as a process of shared meaning that takes place in a cultural, political-economic, and geographical context, and is inseparable from that context (→  Development Communication ). Development in its modern form dates back to World War II. The early decades since World War II witnessed the dissolution of the colonial empires and the concomitant political emancipation of most of the countries in the third world, and the birth of the United Nations. This marked the formal beginning of development work and assistance primarily targeted at the developing countries in Asia, Africa, the Caribbean, and Latin America, or more often known collectively as the third world (→  Development Communication: ... log in or subscribe to read full text