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1 – 10 of 204Andrew Bowman, Julie Froud, Sukhdev Johal, Michael Moran and Karel Williams
This exploratory paper discusses the undemocratic agenda setting of elites in Britain and how it has changed politics within a form of capitalism where much is left undisclosed in…
Abstract
This exploratory paper discusses the undemocratic agenda setting of elites in Britain and how it has changed politics within a form of capitalism where much is left undisclosed in terms of mechanism and methods. It argues for a more radical exploratory strategy using C. Wright Mills’ understanding that what is left undisclosed is crucially important to elite existence and power, while recognising the limits on democratic accountability when debate, decision and action in complex capitalist societies can be frustrated or hijacked by small groups. Have British business elites, through their relation with political elites, used their power to constrain democratic citizenship? Our hypothesis is that the power of business elites is most likely conjuncturally specific and geographically bounded with distinct national differences. In the United Kingdom, the outcomes are often contingent and unstable as business elites try to manage democracy; moreover, the composition and organisation of business elites have changed through successive conjunctures.
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Middle October finds most libraries well settled into their winter work, and this winter will probably be the most unusual in the history of the public library movement, while it…
Abstract
Middle October finds most libraries well settled into their winter work, and this winter will probably be the most unusual in the history of the public library movement, while it will not be without its problems for every other description of library. Present indications lead us to believe that there will be no falling‐off of the demands of the civilian population; our libraries are crowded in the earlier part of the evenings, and unless some catastrophe intervenes of which we have at present no anticipation, this demand is not likely to fall much lower. Apart from their book work, some libraries may find it necessary to shear away their extension work in the shape of lectures and similar activities, mainly, of course, because of shortage of labour, but also because of the darkness of the streets at night. This latter difficulty is being met by some by moving the time of the lectures forward, and we think the plan has much to commend it. We hope, wherever they can, that librarians will maintain as many as possible of these activities “that show,” since they will keep the libraries before the public at a time when they are likely to be thought comparatively unimportant. There should be no acquiescence in the notion that libraries are luxuries, and that they have not a part of quiet but immense importance to play in the immediate future.
A £400,000 extension has just been completed at the Vinyl Products plant at Carshalton, Surrey. The main equipment and control systems are to the design of their own engineers…
Abstract
A £400,000 extension has just been completed at the Vinyl Products plant at Carshalton, Surrey. The main equipment and control systems are to the design of their own engineers, and will be able to handle a wide variety of emulsion types. This extension virtually exhausts the capacity of the Surrey site, and the company are negotiating for a second site at Warrington.
Dorina Maria Buda and Alison Jane McIntosh
The purpose of this paper is to propose voyeurism as one possible lens to analyse the experiential nature of dark tourism in places of socio‐political danger, thus expanding…
Abstract
Purpose
The purpose of this paper is to propose voyeurism as one possible lens to analyse the experiential nature of dark tourism in places of socio‐political danger, thus expanding psychoanalytic understandings of those who travel to a “dark” place.
Design/methodology/approach
Freud's and Lacan's theories on voyeurism are used to examine the desire to travel to and gaze upon something that is (socially constructed as) forbidden, such as a place that is portrayed as being hostile to international tourists. A qualitative and critical analysis approach is employed to examine one tourist's experience of travelling to Iran and being imprisoned as a result of taking a photograph of what he thought was a sunrise but also pictured pylons near an electrical plant.
Findings
The authors' analysis of the experiences of this tourist in Iran reveals that tourism, in its widest sense, can be experienced as “dark” through the consumption and performance of danger. This finding moves beyond the examination of dark tourism merely as “tourist products”, or that frame a particular moment in time, or are merely founded on one's connection to or perception of the site.
Research limitations/implications
Whilst the authors recognise the limitations of the case study approach taken here, and as such, generalisations cannot be inferred from the findings, it is argued that there is merit in exploring critically the motivational and experiential nature of travel to places that may be considered forbidden, dangerous or hostile in an attempt to further understand the concept of dark tourism from a tourist's lived perspective.
Originality/value
As the authors bring voyeurism into the debate on dark tourism, the study analyses the voyeuristic experiences of a dark tourist. In short, the authors argue that the lived and “deviant” experiential nature of tourism itself can be included in the discussion of “dark tourism”.
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The author explores questions of authenticity in the media industry by showing how right-wing media figures look to present their views as authentic by defining themselves as…
Abstract
The author explores questions of authenticity in the media industry by showing how right-wing media figures look to present their views as authentic by defining themselves as citizen journalists and positioning themselves in opposition to mainstream media. Looking at two case studies from the United States, Andrew Breitbart and Mike Cernovich, the author shows how the language of citizen journalism (amateurism, independence, immediacy) is co-opted by such figures to appeal to increasingly distrustful and antagonistic conservative media audiences.
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Asad Khan, Muhammad Ibrahim Khan, Zia ur Rehman and Shehzad Khan
This study aims to extend Bowman's risk–return paradox to Asian emerging markets and explain its causes under the prospect theory.
Abstract
Purpose
This study aims to extend Bowman's risk–return paradox to Asian emerging markets and explain its causes under the prospect theory.
Design/methodology/approach
The study is conducted on a cross-sectional sample of 4,609 firms across nine Asian emerging countries. The two stage least squares (2SLS) estimation technique is used to evaluate the three objectives of the study, i.e. Bowman's risk–return paradox, significance of firm-specific risk and prospect theory explanation of Bowman's paradox.
Findings
The authors challenge the two basic financial economics arguments that higher risk is rewarded with higher return, and firm-specific risk is diversifiable. The empirical findings confirm the negative impact of firm-specific and systematic risk on firm return, thus, corroborates the Bowman's explanation of risk–return trade-off. However, the authors did not find empirical evidence to support prospect theory's explanations of Bowman’s paradox in Asian emerging markets.
Originality/value
A holistic approach is adopted to analyze the various aspects of Bowman's paradox and its causes for the same time period, variables and sample. The authors also rectified several methodological limitations observed in previous studies, i.e. the use of same proxies for firm return and risk, endogeneity and survivorship issues. Furthermore, the findings of this study will enable managers to formulate critical viewpoint on firm-specific risk and systematic risk and take informed strategic decisions regarding optimum utilization of their firm's key resources in Asian emerging markets.
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