A Cross-Working Group Initiative for a Research Project

Initiated by

Miri Gal-Ezer, Department of Communication, Kinneret College on the Sea of Galilee, Jordan Valley, Mobile Post, 15132. Israel. miri-gal@012.net.il (WG3)

Hillel Nossek, School of Media Studies, College of Management Academic Studies, Yitzhak Rabin Blvd. Rishon Lezion, 75190, Israel. hnossek@colman.ac.il (WG1)

Presented to the COST Meeting in Milan, Italy ,19-22 September 2012

"Where there are no men, be thou a man" - Rabbi Hillel

The first page of "Rules for Radicals", Saul Alinsky, 1972

Introduction

The context: Capitalism and Neo-Liberal Capitalism

The Contemporary Global Protests’ Wave

The main questions

Theoretical Framework

A. Radical Social Theories

B. Alternative, Radical and Citizen Media Theories

C. Public Radical Intellectuals - Life History and Academic Activities

Research Questions

Why comparative cross national research is needed to study the phenomenon

The goal of this cross-working group meeting is to discuss, elaborate and plan a collective research effort on the multifaceted phenomena of ongoing global protests, which are spreading through Europe too. These networked local-national, glocal and global offline and online active audiences, "produsing" (produce & use) their alternative, radical and citizen multimedia, in democratic states, seem to set challenges to audience research.

The Neo-liberal order

(Bourdieu, 1998; 1999; 2001; 2004; Bourdieu & Wacquant, 2001; Colander et al., 2009; Couldry, 2010; Harvey, 2005; Milkman et al. 2011).

From 15 May 2011 onwards Spain's main cities' public squares were occupied by protesters’ tents, creating "tent cities“.

In Tel-Aviv and throughout Israel, from 14th July 2011 onwards, huge peaceful popular Israeli protests against the neo-liberal order - its main slogan being "The People Demand Social Justice" - lasted through July to October 2011.

On September 17, 2011, the "Occupy Wall Street" movement began using Zuccotti Park as a campground and staging area for their protests. Thus the tents were also used in the New York “Occupy Wall Street” movement, extending further to other cities in the USA, Canada and even Russia, with protests against Putin too.

On 15 October 2011 the Guardian online wrote: "'Occupy' anti-capitalism protests spread around the world” [Title] [….]. Tens of thousands went on the march in New York, London, Frankfurt, Madrid, Rome, Sydney and Hong Kong as organisers aimed to "initiate global change" against capitalism and austerity measures […]". (Adam Gabbatt in New York, Mark Townsend and Lisa O'Carroll in London).

The main questions are: Whether these phenomena create a new model of interactive relations between the audience, the old and the new media. In a way that is empowering active social movements in a new mode of action and media use?

Is this phenomenon a global, transnational or local application of the same media is another relevant question to start with. In other words : What is local idiosyncratic and what is global?

Why did it happen in some countries and not in others thought exposed and having access to the same media technologies?

Saul Alinsky became one of the forefathers and theorists of the begining and contemporary critical social community work, particularly as a result of his radical successful practice as a "Community Organizer" in very deprived communities, and his two canonic books which were bestsellers not only for academics, but primarily for the general public at the time of publishing, and have a long-term appeal: "Reveille for Radicals" (1946) and "Rules for Radicals: A Political Primer for Practical Radicals " (1971).

Pierre Bourdieu, (2001). The invisible hand of the powerful (p.26-27). Firing Back: Against the Tyranny of the Market 2:

"One must bring (back) into action what is most European in the European tradition, namely, a critical social movement, a movement of social critique capable of effectively contesting the process of European construction, that is, with enough intellectual and political forces to produce real effects. The aim of such a critical offensive is not to void the European project, to neutralize it, but on the contrary to radicalize it and thereby to bring it closer to the citizens, particularly the youngest among them who are often described as depoliticized when they are merely disgusted with the politics that official politicians serve up, disgusted with politics by and for politicians. We must restore meaning to politics and to do this prepare projects for the future capable of giving meaning to an economic and social world that has undergone enormous transformations in recent years."(Bourdieu, 2001, p. 26-27, italics in the original text).

Alternative Media According to Atton & Hamilton, (2008) alternative media have been characterised by their potential for participation (p.135). In contrast to centralised organisation and institutions owned by businesses controlled by the elite and professional journalists, alternative media offer possibilities for individuals and groups to run their own media and create their own content from the 'periphery' (Atton & Hamilton, 2008). In other words, the aim of alternative media is to bring to the democratic debate voices that the main stream hegemonic media will not access, thus enriching and improving the information flow and empowering individuals and groups that are mute in the existing system.

Radical Media According to Rodriguez (2008): "'Radical media', the term is used by communication scholars to refer to information and communication technologies used by radical media activists to bring about social change. In this sense, the word “radical” means the expression of ideas, opinions and options to reorganise society, that are not sanctioned by the established social order". Rodriguez (2008) maintains that the goal of radical media is twofold. First, radical media express someone's intent to critique, resist, and transform the establishment. Second, radical media are used by activists to build solidarity and support for their agendas. In this sense, radical media promote a series of vertical and lateral communication and information actions and messages.

Citizen Media

According to Rodriguez citizen media are independent media that enable 'ordinary' citizens to become politically empowered. Citizen media is about representation of communities that are empowered by the process of production, identity enhancement and representation of themselves by themselves (Rodriguez, 2001).

Santana and Carpentier (2009) criticize the alternative media concept as incomplete and suggest that another model should be added to complete the theory - an amalgamation of mainstream and alternative-radical media. This process creates new relationships between civil society, government and the business establishment, which echoes the new active audience use of the media – the rhizomatic approach or model that they base on Deleuze and Guattari’s metaphor of the rhizome used to refer to alternative media as rhizomatic media (Santana and Carpentier, 2009).

The rhizomatic is closely related to the alternative, as it is non-linear, anarchic and nomadic. "Unlike trees or their roots, the rhizome connects any point to any other point" ( Deleuze and Guattari (1987: 19, as quoted by Santana and Carpentier, 2009:3)

* Manuel Castells – (Towards improved framework cont.) The new digital horizontal communication of the network society

*Castells, as well as Alinsky and Bourdieu, emphasises the Janus character of the new digital horizontal communication of the network society. He highlights conflict between the power elites and the citizens.

*The protests' counter-powers are a new form of social change and alternative politics, which have emerged by means of the new digital horizontal communication of the network society, enabling new insurgent politics.

*Consequently, the public space is defined in the space of communication. Since the holders of power identify this transformation, they reassert their domination into the communication realm by new forms of monitoring of the mass media.

*The dominant elites use various means of controlling, policing and framing the newest form of communication space, in their power struggle to dictate the national and global public spaces, and dominate the citizens’ minds (Castells, 2007; 2012).

Manuel Castells

Saul Alinsky

Pierre Bourdieu

- Development and transformation of a group into a community, public, audience, citizenry (Carpentier & Dahlgren, 2011; McQuail, 2010) - can the inner dynamics be identified?

- Local, glocal, national and global modes of advancement, functioning, characteristics, and interrelations between national activists, intellectuals, groups, organisations, movements communities and the public.

- Interrelations and mutual negotiations face to face and the media between protesters and state authorities; disputes and paradoxical actions within the authorities (Castells, 2007; 2012).

- Protesters as "produsers" (Bruns in Siibak, 2009): The modes of production of alternative media content on the web, Facebook, Twitter, cellular phones, etc.

- Protesters as "produsers": modes of visibility at public spaces, media images and media live video streams

- Coverage modes of the protests in the mainstream media, the national and international media; possible modes of adaptation of the protestors' alternative new media; the coverage influences and effects about modes of protests.

In our view, while the first main question can be answered country by country, there is no way to answer the following questions without a cross national coordinated research project:

Is this phenomenon a global, transnational or local application of the same media? In other words : What is local idiosyncratic and what is global?

Why did it happen in some countries and not in others though exposed and having access to the same media technologies?