Pavin Chachavalpongpun

Social Media and Youths in Japan & Southeast Asia: An Instrument for Political Change?

Much of Southeast Asia’s political domain has long been dominated by authoritarian/semi-authoritarian regimes. Part of their success in maintaining power was the ability to control the mainstream media, shaping the way in which information is shared, circulated, and manipulated. For a long time, both print and broadcast media were exploited to serve a variety of political purposes of these states. Because of the need to justify their existence, the media became an important component in guaranteeing their political staying power. Alongside other powerful tools, such as education and state propaganda, the media has been used to strengthen political regimes, and this sometimes dampens or stokes political conflicts [...]

Message from the Editor

KRSEA has achieved its new milestone both in terms of greater global reach and its continued promotion of indigenous languages of Southeast Asia. It is now time to celebrate our achievement with the launch of this book. At the Crossroads unravels a critical juncture in Southeast Asia, from 2017 to 2021, a juncture replete with changes, contestations and challenges facing the region, from different viewpoints: political, economic, social, and cultural. This time, we bring together all the English articles published from January 2017 to December 2020 into one volume.
DOWNLOAD AT THE CROSSROADS (pdf – 57 MB)

Trendsetters

The Absence of any Move Forward in Thailand

by William J. Jones, & Douglas L. Rhein in Issue 36

In May of this year, the Move Forward Party achieved a remarkable victory in the Thai elections; increasing the party’s parliamentary seat count from 81 in the 2019 election to 151 in 2023. However, their seat count fell short of the 276 needed to independently form a government. Following unsuccessful attempts at forging a coalition, the [...]

Book Reviews

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