Social movements and Ireland is an innovative new text which aims to provide a comprehensive introduction and critical analysis of collective action in Irish society. Participation in social protest in Ireland has become a widely utilized form of political expression and has played a profoundly important role in generating the wide-ranging cultural, political, social and economic changes which have shaped Irish society in the twentieth and twenty-first century. The book combines a broad overview of social movement activity in Ireland with an integrated introduction to the major theoretical forms of social movement analysis, and is ideally suited to the needs of students from a wide range of disciplines. By adopting an integrated approach, this landmark text provides new perspectives on international social movements theory, based on the Irish experience. At the same time, a distinct account of the development of Irish society and ongoing social change is provided through the focus on substantive questions - gender, civil rights, rural development, consumerism, environmentalism, language, sectarianism, sexuality, war, globalization, racism, ethnicity and immigration. -- .

In the face of expanding global media, Europe's linguistic minorities have begun to resist the homogenizing forces of television. Escaping the Global Village documents and analyzes various campaigns by indigenous minority language advocates throughout Europe for alternative language television services. Niamh Hourigan uses social movement theory as the framework for her comparison of indigenous minority language protest groups such as the Welsh, Basque, Scots Gaelic, Catalan, and Irish. She offers penetrating accounts of the campaigns' strategies, obstacles, and successes, and insight into the television services achieved. Escaping the Global Village not only reveals an emerging modern form of social protest but also situates it within broader patterns of social change, particularly globalization.

Since the founding of television stations in Welsh, Catalan and Basque in the early 1980s, minority languages have gradually gained a new prominence, particularly in Europe. As globalisation has developed, questions concerning such languages and the effect that the media might have on them have become more urgent. This book is the first general study of the many issues raised by this situation. Fourteen researchers from across Europe and the USA examine questions such as the media needs of minority languages, the role of the media in language maintenance, the impact of digital media, and problems raised by translation. Case studies range from the representativeness of drama on Welsh television to Sign Language in the media. Taken as a whole, this book establishes the field of minority language media studies and forms an important basis for future research.