This book compares the social processes that explain Japanese development, beginning with the Meiji Restoration in 1868, with similar processes in post-independent Nigeria in its effort to achieve capitalist development. Before the Restoration and independence, both Japan and Nigeria lacked any prospects for further development. Japan, however, pursued fundamental social transformations of society leading to capitalist development, whereas Nigeria, following independence, has lacked any transforming ideals resulting in underdevelopment and social stagnation.

Whether people want to play games and download music, engage in social networking and professional collaboration, or view pornography and incite terror, the Internet provides myriad opportunities for people who share common interests to find each other. The contributors to this book argue that these self-selected online groups are best understood as tribes, with many of the same ramifications, both positive and negative, that tribalism has in the non-cyber world. In Electronic Tribes, the authors of sixteen competitively selected essays provide an up-to-the-minute look at the social uses and occasional abuses of online communication in the new media era. They explore many current Internet subcultures, including MySpace.com, craftster.org, massively multiplayer online role-playing games (MMORPGs) such as World of Warcraft, music downloading, white supremacist and other counterculture groups, and Nigerian e-mail scams. Their research raises compelling questions and some remarkable answers about the real-life social consequences of participating in electronic tribes. Collectively, the contributors to this book capture a profound shift in the way people connect, as communities formed by geographical proximity are giving way to communities—both online and offline—formed around ideas.

In a disruptive media landscape characterized by the relentless death of legacy newspapers, Nigeria's Digital Diaspora shows that a country's transnational elite can shake its media ecosystem through distant online citizen journalism.

Annotation. Offers annotated references to some 800 recent publications on this African country, in sections on economy, ethnic groups, mass media, religion, banking, and science and technology. Includes a chronology, and an introductory essay providing background on Nigeria's history and contemporary issues. This revised bibliography updates the first edition, which was published in 1989. Annotation copyrighted by Book News, Inc., Portland, OR.