Overview
Goals and Objectives
Our Team
Highlights
Publications
This research group was launched in May 2023, to study how digital technology has transformed the media landscape in the region, including new forms of distribution and sharing. The group examines both the opportunities and challenges associated with this technology, including the potential for digital technology to reproduce offline power relations. The group has three strands of research: digital cultural industries, digital divide and literacy, and digital media innovations. These strands will explore the impact of digital technology on diverse media sectors, define digital literacy in the region, and investigate the use of advanced media technologies to engage audiences and improve digital literacy.
Mission
The RG seeks to:
- Understand digital transformations in the Arab region,
- Develop research that tackles acute socio-technological issues relevant to the UAE and the whole Arab region, and
- Engage with stakeholders including academics, governments, and media industries.
Objectives
This RG has the following objectives:
- Producing high-quality research that addresses some of the critical questions brought about by the rapid advancement of digital technology, focusing on digital transformations in the Arab region.
- Contributing to the international debate of de-westernizing Media Studies by advancing knowledge of the Arab media landscape, technology, and cultural industries.
- Developing the members' scholarship and integrating expertise representing diverse fields (Computing, Media and Cultural Studies) to produce interdisciplinary research.
- Providing new insights to policymakers and media institutions in the UAE and the whole Arab region.
The group includes three main strands as follows:
- Digital cultural industries (including the gig economy). The focus is on the impact of digital technology on digital labor, digital practices in the diverse media sectors (such as journalism, advertising as well as influencer-economy), and digitally mediated content. Moreover, the RG will explore the impact of AI on the cultural sector.
- Digital divide and literacy. The focus is on defining digital literacy in the Arab region, highlighting the power of Big Tech in controlling the digital economy (such as digital advertising, user data, hosting, etc.), and debating measures to manage this divide in the region.
- Digital media innovations (such as VR and AR and AI). The focus is on the use of innovative technology in media production.