marcia forbes

The Caribbean Response to Brexit

Countdown to the Vote for a Caribbean Media Mega-Merger

Set-Up for a Showdown By Dr Marcia Forbes CJ Contributor The excited anticipation of the vote-count felt somewhat like national general elections in Jamaica. Would media entities RJR/Gleaner win out in their thrust to merge by securing the 75% shareholder …

Modern Media in the Caribbean

The following excerpts are from Marcia Forbes’ presentation at a recent forum hosted by the Press Association of Jamaica in celebration of Journalism Week. The topic was ‘Modern Media: Competition & Customer Choices’ By Marcia Forbes, PhD CJ Contributor Modern Media …

In Jamaica, a Look at Modern Media

Exploring the media landscape Dr. Marcia Forbes CJ Contributor National Journalism Week The Press Association of Jamaica recently hosted a week of activities in celebration of Journalism Week. They invited me to make a presentation on ‘Modern Media: Competition and …

The Wider Context to Jamaica’s Big Media Merger

Local and Global Trends By Marcia Forbes, PhD CJ Contributor As promised, here is another look at the proposed RJR/Gleaner merger. This announcement comes against the backdrop of a media landscape that is constantly evolving globally, regionally and locally. Media …

A Major Caribbean Media Merger

Two media giants come together By Marcia Forbes, PhD CJ Contributor #RJRGleaner Media Merger Here we were on the day before Jamaica’s August 6th celebration of it 53rd Independence Day, learning about the proposed merger of two of Jamaica’s oldest …

Could a Major Caribbean Merger Mean the End for Caribbean Broadcasters?

By Dr Marcia Forbes CJ Contributor Secrecy Unfolded The build-up was impressive. There was great secrecy, a stage draped in ‘silk’ with silhouetted dancers and when the curtain fell, flashing lights and tech music. “We’re ready to take over the …

What a Major Telecom Merger Means for the Caribbean

By Marcia Forbes, PhD CJ Contributor Mergers the new Mantra Implications of the merger between Cable & Wireless and Columbus Communications are fraught with many nuances that only the most astute and those with a keen understanding of where the …

The Business of Caribbean Blogging

By Marcia Forbes, PhD CJ Contributor Blog Promo by Journo FOR SEVERAL reasons the newspaper ad surprised me. Firstly, it was placed by a journalist, a journo as they are also called, advertising himself and his skills, in particular his blog. …

Forbes: Designing for Mobile Digital Content in the Caribbean

By Marcia Forbes, PhD CJ Contributor Marriage of Social & Mobile My desktop is only for traditional work, no Facebooking, Tweeting or Instagraming. Note, though, that I do use these social networks for what I call virtual work. I know, …

Marcia Forbes: Understanding Jamaica’s Logistics Hub, Part 2

By Marcia Forbes, PhD CJ Contributor Connecting Suppliers to Customers PROFESSOR Gordon Shirley, head honcho at the Port Authority of Jamaica, recently told us that the Jamaica Logistics Hub Initiative was designed to “leverage Jamaica’s strategic location to become an …

Understanding Jamaica’s Logistics Hub

By Marcia Forbes, PhD CJ Contributor Help Me to Believe I WANT to believe in the Jamaica Logistics Hub. I want to feel that this multi-pronged development initiative is going to help to realize the much-touted and highly optimistic Vision …

Are Women in Jamaica Under Siege?

By Marcia Forbes, PhD CJ Contributor MANY ARE quick to point out the sprinkling of women in top-level positions in Jamaica as representative of “woman power.” Then, too, the country has a female Prime Minister. These relatively few high profile …

From Jamaica to Wales

Above: Tintern Abbey By Marcia Forbes, PhD CJ Contributor Road Trip to Wales We packed biscuits, sandwiches, crisps (we call them chips in Jamaica but the Brits prefer crisps), fruits, a variety of drinks and filled the car tank with …

Forbes: The Business of Sport in Jamaica

By Marcia Forbes, PhD CJ Contributor A FEW DAYS AGO I attended a conference called “The Business of Sport.” Several representatives from various sporting bodies, including the Olympics Association, ESPN, NFL and West Indies Cricket, were in attendance alongside government …

Forbes: Online Media and National Identity in Jamaica

By Marcia Forbes, PhD CJ Contributor The Northern Caribbean University – A Seventh-day Adventist Institution Reaching Out Recently the Northern Caribbean University invited me to serve as Keynote Speaker for the annual conference hosted by its Department of Communication Studies. …

Forbes: Jamaicanisms “Germanized” by VW – How Cool is That?

Above: Volkswagen’s Super Bowl ad (Photo: VW) By Marcia Forbes, PhD CJ Contributor Keeping Abreast via Tweets I NOTICED excited tweets about Jimmy Cliff’s music being featured in a Volkswagen (VW) ad for Super Bowl 2013. Tweeps seemed genuinely …

Marcia Forbes: The Business of Social Media in the Caribbean

By Marcia Forbes, PhD CJ Contributor CLICK, SIGN ON & CASH IN Recently the public relations students at the Caribbean Institute of Media and Communication at the University of the West Indies invited me as their keynote speaker to …

Marcia Forbes: Jamaica’s Inner-City Boys Defy Robert Mugabe

By Marcia Forbes, PhD CJ Contributor After Zimbabwe’s President Robert Mugabe’s recent piercing comments about Jamaican males, it was heartening to analyze responses from 57 inner-city residents who attend non-traditional high schools on the island. They gave their opinions about …