In the Blog
Media Democracy Day
Thursday is Media Democracy Day, and events are being held all week in Toronto, Vancouver and Montreal, where our own Anna Leventhal will be giving a talk titled “Roots of Grass: An (Incomplete) History of Alternative Media in Quebec.”
As the folks at Campaign for Democratic Media have pointed out, Media Democracy Day has taken on a new sense of urgency this year as the major Internet Service Providers exert more control over Canadians’ online experience, and media ownership is concentrated in fewer and fewer hands. For more information, visit Media Democracy Day’s website. City by city event listings below.
TORONTO: Missing in the Media
What is missing in the media? Who is left out from mainstream news coverage in Canada today? A large coalition of independent media organizations, advocacy groups and media activists will ask these questions and more at Media Democracy Day Toronto, taking place Oct. 23.
What: A series of thematic and skills-building panels and workshops followed by rabble.ca’s relaunch party with guest speakers Maude Barlow and Linda McQuaig, and musical guests LAL, KoboTown and Maryam Tollar.
When: Thursday, October 23, 2008, 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. (workshops and panels); 8 p.m. to 1 a.m. (rabble.ca relaunch party).
Where: Free workshops and panels at International Student Centre (33 St. George Street), University of Toronto; Pay-what-you-can rabble.ca relaunch party (suggested $10 to $25 donation to rabble.ca) at the Steam Whistle Roundhouse (255 Bremner Blvd.)
Program details and a list of participating organizations available here.
MONTREAL
Friday, Oct. 24 to Sunday, Oct. 26
Events kick off at McGill University Friday evening with a lecture by CKUT and Media@McGill host Anna Leventhal, “Roots of Grass: An (Incomplete) History of Alternative Media in Quebec.” On Saturday and Sunday, from 11 a.m. to 6 p.m., CKUT volunteers and staff will give hands-on workshops about producing stellar community radio. Details can be found here or here.
VANCOUVER: Speaking For Ourselves
Speaking For Ourselves, from noon to 6 p.m., at the Vancouver Public Library. Confirmed speakers include: Rex Weyler, co-founder of Greenpeace; David Beers, Editor of The Tyee; Robert Hackett, SFU professor and author of “Remaking Media”; Deborah Campbell - Award Winning Independent Journalist; Charlie Smith, Editor of the Georgia Straight; Michael Tippett, Co-founder of Nowpublic.com; and many more!
Panels and workshops include: Big Media Clamp Down: Taking stock and fighting back; New Media and the Fight for Open Communication. Information and the full program are available here.
