Larry D. Lauer

What is a ‘NGO?”  Since the term is not used consistently, providing a definition is challenging. Nonetheless, they are generally organizations that operate apart from government and are motivated by a social or human problem-solving cause. They almost always operate  internationally and yet are not overtly political. They almost always are supported by voluntary contributions and are in some way legally constituted. However, not all of them are  recognized in the US as legal “non-profits,” which have a more precise definition and an official tax-exempt status.

There are NGO’s that work in disaster relief, public health services, conservation, education, institution building, construction, social services, and much more. The United Nations supports many of their efforts, and actually might have originated the term.

There does not seem to be an accurate count of the number of NGO’s but most would agree that they number in the thousands. Many work in the most difficult countries under the most demanding conditions. And each country can present an entirely different set of communication challenges.  Many developing countries today have some level of media infrastructure and a working press. But many others have neither of these.  Some are in the midst of revolution and ongoing violence, while others are rural, mountainous and virtually inaccessible.  Nevertheless, there are almost always some NGO’s operating in every corner of the world.

The basic questions today for students of international communication are:  How have the operations of these cause-based organizations around the world been changed by the new digital and social media revolution?  Where do traditional media still dominate, and how? And just what is the specific situation in my countries of interest.

In the clutter of today’s information environment the importance of NGO’s often goes unrecognized. Yet there is no doubt they are a major force in the world. Everywhere we turn they are fully engaged in international problem-solving and are often actually leading the way in uses of digital media technology. Therefore, every student of communication will do well to study what these organizations are doing and how they are using new technology in some of the most  challenging situations.          

More international communication/media at:         www.icahdq.org         www.comminit.com