[IMC-US] STORY IDEA - personal reprtback for indy folks about
theNationalCOnference on Me
Tribal Scribal
valeoftheoaks at hotmail.com
Mon May 16 19:55:47 CDT 2005
anyone care to turn these posts into a u.s. feature?
d.o.
>From: Andy Pyle <andypie at earthlink.net>
>Reply-To: "Working Group for IMC-US." <imc-us at lists.ucimc.org>
>To: "Working Group for IMC-US." <imc-us at lists.ucimc.org>
>Subject: Re: [IMC-US] personal reprtback for indy folks about
>theNationalCOnference on Media Reform.
>Date: Mon, 16 May 2005 18:12:31 -0400
>
>A lot of readers would rather read these personal accounts than
>"professional" "news" stories. So lets not keep them bottled up on the
>list, but get them out on the IMC network.
>On May 16, 2005, at 10:22 AM, inner_alchemy at Safe-mail.net wrote:
>
>>bht! thanks for the update... here's my version
>>
>>i want to first apologize that st. louis wasn't organized to do more.
>>that was all in the plans when josh and i first started talking, but as
>>usual, i over-extended myself. between tyring to get CAMP up and
>>running, getting the imc site functional before the conference, and
>>causing a lot of chaos with the police oversight board issue, i was
>>stretched, but i only freaked out once so i thought that was good :)
>>
>>the original plan would have been to have seperate caucuses at the CAMP
>>building with a focus on imc and freepress was willing to help bus people
>>over, but that wasn't an option thanks to the city of st. louis who won't
>>let us open.
>>
>>but back to the conference... bht laid out the weekend events. so i'll
>>just throw in my two cents..
>>
>>WHAT I LIKED:
>>- meeting lovely imc folks from all over the country.
>>- those people who helped out with CAMP, promote stlimc, and just in
>>general how imcistas help each other out
>>- the thursday night party (and i kinda liked the party at my house,
>>although i was exhausted)
>>- seeing imc in action saturay night with the impromptu computer lab.
>>- spreading word about imc to people to have never heard of it
>>
>>WHAT I DISLIKED:
>>- not being able to particpate more in the panels. we got a lot of
>>talking TO us
>>- being hungry
>>- area african american journalists not present at the conference
>>- not talking more about media justice (i've never really heard this
>>specific term before, but understand it's concept and want to look more
>>into it)
>>- was that i was tired the whole time and kinda cranky and too tired to
>>have a lot of fun
>>
>>WHAT I EXPECTED (AND GOT):
>>- lots of white, well off faces
>>- REFORM REFORM REFORM conversation that i didn't understand
>>- liberals
>>- support from people that i both knew and didn't know and how people
>>were helpful
>>
>>WHAT I DIDN'T EXPECT:
>>- so many different imc's represented
>>- people to read the confluence and go to freepress to confront them
>>about the issue. it was media action in process and really great :)
>>- so much enthusiasm from folks who WEREN'T imcistas
>>
>>OVERALL - the sessions were kind of irritating, however, they were
>>exactly as i would have expected. hearing lots of comments about how
>>freepress didn't include imc in the past, i expected reservations from
>>them this year, however, i'm sure it didn't help when i was the same
>>person trying to get them to sign the letter to the mayor that they
>>refused to do. i was a consistant pain in their ass and i was okay with
>>that. i felt inspired, as i usually do with imc gatherings, with the
>>energy and people and ideas and refuse to get upset with the reform
>>conversations because it was a reform conference. i would like to
>>continue the imc pressence at these events, but only to promote imc's in
>>general, bring together media reform and media justice, and of course
>>challenge their means of reform and their general conference happenings.
>> however, i don't want myself to concentrate on the negative, but use
>>it for a driving force in the next couple months to increase my contacts
>>and knowledge and kick ass in the future.
>>
>>sincerely and thoughtfully - betsy :)
>>
>>><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><><> <
>>
>>BE THE MEDIA
>>www.stlimc.org
>>
>>-------- Original Message --------
>>From: bht <bht at indymedia.org>
>>Apparently from: imc-us-bounces at lists.ucimc.org
>>To: "Working Group for IMC-US." <imc-us at lists.ucimc.org>
>>Subject: [IMC-US] personal reprtback for indy folks about the
>>NationalCOnference on Media Reform.
>>Date: Sun, 15 May 2005 15:30:00 -0700
>>
>>>So, I arrived in St. Louis about four days prior to the beginning of the
>>>conference. I caught up with frinds that I hadnt seen for months and
>>>started to get more involved/interested with what was happening in the
>>>Lou. I think this started right when I pulled up to CAMP (Community
>>>Arts and Media Project, stlcamp.org) and a bunch of little kids from the
>>>neighbourhood ran up to me, hugged me, and called me daddy. (Then they
>>>dug a big hole in the backyard.)
>>>
>>>By Thursday, I had a decent grasp of what was going on in the Lou and
>>>had met folks from here. Josh Breitbart came into town and we started
>>>working on Wednesday. We stuffed bags for the Allied Media Conference.
>>>
>>>By Thursday night many of the Indymedia folks had arrived, and many of
>>>the reformers arrived and we converged at City Museum (citymuseum.org)
>>>in the Lou for the conference pre-party. And I think we partied. I
>>>made some real good connections there and had a very fun time, leaving
>>>with only a few scrapes and a lot of sweat. We danced two out of three
>>>floors, and we danced hard.
>>>
>>>The next day the reforming began and it mostly included sitting at a
>>>table, poking my head into a few places having conversations with many
>>>different people about indymedia and about St Louis, and basically just
>>>working the idea into peoples heads that by coming to this conference
>>>you are affecting the local community and you have to have respect for
>>>where you are and awareness for the issues at hand. THings went over
>>>well, many folks thought I was from the Lou, although my name badge
>>>clearly repped pdx imc.
>>>
>>>That was the first day of the conference and it was mostly low energy
>>>networking catching up with folks feeling things out. It was a good day
>>>and we went back to CAMP that night and made friends.
>>>
>>>The next day, day two of the conference, was the big day in my book. We
>>>had seen that media reform was ignoring or missing the independant media
>>>network and the idea that people can be the media nd do away with the
>>>industry that they are trying to reform. The disgust was thick. Indy
>>>activists were moving about the conference and promoting the indymedia
>>>movement. I was working the table most of the day where we had a much
>>>better setup with three laptops and a few people engaging people walking
>>>by and pointing them to their nearest local imc.
>>>
>>>One person asked how much it cost to post to the site. I got to explain
>>>to this person that indymedia is not about the money it is not about
>>>haveing a hold on the media, it is about media justice and putting the
>>>tools of media production back in the hands of the people. I think it
>>>was tough to grasp because the conference was very academic.
>>>
>>>I got to talk to quite a few people and then the 4 o clock caucus'
>>>came. Inclusing the one that was going to have two indy folks as
>>>moderators and called independant media producers and the one for folks
>>>from the northwest. I went to indymedia one first and there was another
>>>white guy standing in front of everyone telling them how it was and that
>>>media is a big issue and that reform is working. And i got disgusted,
>>>partly because it wasnt a caucus but mostly because the two indymedia
>>>folks that were also supposed to moderate were women...and this was just
>>>another guy.
>>>
>>>So I went to the northwest one and it was much smaller I got to inject
>>>some of the more radical aims of media justice to people like the
>>>director of cable access in oregon, and someone similar from
>>>washington. I talked to media proiducers working for reform through
>>>legislation and when i asked them if they had a contingency plan like
>>>what would they do to attain media justice if legislation fell through,
>>>they had nothing.
>>>
>>>I stuck that out to the end, because I felt it was important to let
>>>northwest folks know that someone from cascadia was there. Then I went
>>>back to the INdependant Media Producers one, where apparently all hell
>>>broke loose once the indy folks realized that they were being taken for
>>>a ride.
>>>
>>>SOmeone else can explain what i mean because I wasnt there.
>>>
>>>So the indymedia folks planned an indymedia caucus to start in a half
>>>hour, and there we would discuss how to make amends for this washing
>>>over by free press. 40-50 people gathered in that room, from all across
>>>the country, philly, la, portland, seattle, arizona, michigan, san
>>>diego, nyc, tallahassee, idaho, chicago, bay area, houston, austin,
>>>tennessee, urbana, carbondale, and others. One person from Canada in
>>>the room. Alot of passion. Alot of resentment.
>>>
>>>WE had a bitch session for awhile and then talked about what we could
>>>do. WE decided that we could take action and create a media center in
>>>the most travelled place of the conference, right in front of the doors
>>>to the keynote speech that was happening in a half an hour. Just a bit
>>>away from where pacifica was streaming. And right where Left Bank Books
>>>was selling.
>>>
>>>One person volunteered a free printing connection. Two people made the
>>>flier. A few people donated laptops. Others started gathered power
>>>strips and making signs. We were reclaiming the media. In about a halg
>>>hour we had a bank of about ten laptops all opened to stlimc.org where
>>>articles about the conference had been posted and people were encourage
>>>to post their feelings and their ideas about the conference, how it was
>>>going, good, bad or otherwise. We put the tools in peoples hands and
>>>let them know that some people werent necessarily happy with what was
>>>happening.
>>>
>>>Then the people slowed as the conference room filled. The flyer
>>>returned after about 45 minutes, Left Bank Books asked us to leave their
>>>space, so we moved across the hall. We re set up the laptops and
>>>started flyering people and continued to encourage people to make
>>>media. Quite a few did. The conference staff were trying to stop us
>>>and move our things, they didnt know what to do. THis conference was
>>>about reform and we were just taking action. Something reformists may
>>>or may not do, I have never been one.
>>>
>>>Then, a funny things happened. The internet network went away. The
>>>wireless didnt work, the stream of the keynote died, people making media
>>>were franctically trying to get it back up. Dru from IMC Maritimes
>>>whipped up a word document and opened it on each computer. people were
>>>still writing comments and they would be posted later. The media
>>>production on the indymedia side didnt stop. Becuase we are agile and
>>>think on our feet, because we move with the happenings and work with our
>>>environment.
>>>
>>>Pacifica asked to interview someone from the imc becuase they had heard
>>>about the discontent and the action and the breakout caucus. People
>>>were talking about media. People were making media, nd apparently David
>>>Martinez was rocking out to Patti Smith behind the doors we were in
>>>front of. Eventually though we had to leave. We had also planned a
>>>networking party at CAMP for that night and indy folks were tired.
>>>
>>>We packed up, statement made, and went to CAMP. At CAMP various
>>>independant media folks from around the world, but mostly int he US were
>>>shortly milling about. Maybe 60 or more folks showed up to relax and
>>>talk network and have fun. Some very serious conversations happened,
>>>but mostly people were letting their hair down and Josh Breitbart
>>>couldnt stop talking about how great indymedia is.
>>>
>>>Anyway, I think that is it in a nutshell. Sadly, I didnt make it to
>>>anything the next day. Other folks, please fill in more or different,
>>>make your own, whatever. This is just from my eyes. And, oh yeah,
>>>there is documentation in video audio and photo of the indy action and
>>>hopefully more reports of it from people that were there.
>>>
>>>--
>>>"Having a feeling is not illegitemate, unprofessional etc. Being
>>>emotionally unbiased is living a life with no passion." --Laila
>>>Imc-Sweden
>>>
>>>_______________________________________________
>>>IMC-US mailing list
>>>IMC-US at lists.ucimc.org
>>>http://lists.chambana.net/cgi-bin/listinfo/imc-us
>>
>>
>>
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>
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