DURATION: 2.5 hours
KEY TOPICS
- Alternative media: why they have emerged
- Public credibility of mainstream media
- Advent of information and communication technology
- Changing media habits and consumer preferences
- Defining alternative media (in contrast to mainstream media)
- Ownership and control of alternative media (i.e. democratizing ownership and control)
- Audiences of alternative media: different sectors (women, young people, children, labourers/workers, etc.), marginalized groups (cultural communities, migrants, etc.), etc.
- Content of alternative media (e.g. community or sector development issues and concerns)
- Journalistic processes in alternative media (e.g. community perspectives, participatory and interactive approaches)
- The role of alternative media in society (e.g. transparency, diversity and freedom of expression)
- Planning, managing and sustaining an alternative medium in different settings
- Alternative media in a school setting
- Alternative media in a community
- Revenue models of alternative media.
LEARNING OBJECTIVES
After completing this unit, teachers will be able to:
- Define alternative media – their rationale, features and applications
- Analyze examples of alternative media using various formats – print, broadcast and electronic
- Describe the editorial processes (including planning, production and distribution) involved that distinguish alternative media from mainstream media
- Assess the impact of alternative media on specific communities (including virtual communities), particularly in covering issues and concerns of marginalized audiences and giving them a voice
- Plan the creation of alternative media for a community or school context