OURmedia friends in South Korea have launched their long-awaited newsletter,
[inter-ACT!].

Subscribe at
http://lists.riseup.net/www/info/inter-act

Enjoy,
G

> -------- Original Message --------
> Subject:     [inter-ACT!] #1 - March 15, 2005

>
> MEDIACT newsletter - [inter-ACT!] #1 - March 15, 2005
>
> Dear activists and researchers!
>
> Greetings from media activists and researchers at MEDIACT in South
> Korea. Welcome to our new monthly English-language newsletter,
> [inter-ACT!]. [inter-ACT!] is an *inter*-national version of [ACT!]
> released as a monthly on-line journal in Korean since July 2003, for the
> purpose of the *inter*-active with activists and researchers abroad,
> which will be released *inter*-vals with [ACT!].
> MEDIACT is the result of decades of international solidarity and
> experience-sharing, so we try to give back to the international activist
> community, e.g. through seminars with researchers and activists from
> abroad, and keeping in touch with many groups and individuals. This
> newsletter, we hope, will be an additional regular and stable channel of
> communication across national boundaries.
>
> In this inaugural issue, you find
> - basic MEDIACT history and activities
> - info and issues regarding the introduction of community radio in South
> Korea
> - a report from our theoretical seminar on media activism with Dorothy
> Kidd and Gabriele Hadl end of January
> - and, contents of [ACT!](Korean version) #18, 2005 Feb.
>
> Through this monthly newsletter, we will keep you updated about the
> media-communication movement in South Korea and hope to stimulate
> trans-national discussion about strategies. We look forward to the
> support and cooperation from the activists and researchers around the
> world. Please spread the word. Thanks to the article contributors,
> translators and editors of this first issue.
>
> best regard
>
> jo, dongwon
> MEDIACT, director of policy research department
>
>
> #1 contents
> ------------------------------------------------------------------------
> 1. MEDIACT: What is MEDIACT?
> 2. Community media: Community Radio Establishment at Hand! (Or at Stake?)
> 3. Seminar: briefings - MEDIACT's Theoretical Seminar January
> 4. [ACT!] #18, 2005 Feb.
> ------------------------------------------------------------------------
>
>
> 1. What is MEDIACT? (http://www.mediact.org)
>
> Joohoon Lee, MEDIACT executive director ([log in to unmask])
> Trans. by Haewon Jung ([log in to unmask])
>
> MEDIACT is an audiovisual media center funded by the Korea Film Council
> (KFC) and run by the Korean Independent Film & Video Association. This
> is a new form of public cultural infrastructure for the age of
> audio-visual media. Public libraries and museums played an important
> role in fostering popular literacy during the age of print media in the
> 19th and 20th centuries. In this era, audio-visual media centers are
> necessary as intermediating spaces and learning facilities for popular
> communication and expression.
>
> Our activities:
> - To strengthen and energize public access, we carry out media-related
> education, provide technical support for media production activities,
> and build networks. To stimulate production of critical and
> participatory independent films, we lend support to independent
> film-makers, provide them with opportunities for further education, and
> conduct policy research.
>
> - To realize universal media education for the 21st century, we offer a
> lecture series, grassroots education for social minorities ("Media
> Education on the Move") and develop educational materials.
>
> - To strengthen policy research on media-related laws and institutions
> impacting our society, we organize a "MEDIACT Forum." Participants
> discuss major issues and points of contention, organize domestic and
> international media-related seminars, and produce research papers.
>
> - To realize the right to communication and participation in media as a
> universal service, we operate a center at Gwanghwamun intersection
> (floor space: about 660m2). It includes office space, media editing and
> recording facilities open 24 hours/ day. Digital video cameras, lighting
> equipment, microphones and other filming and recording equipment can be
> rented here at low rates or at no charge.
>
> - As Korea's first media center, MEDIACT is committed to supporting the
> construction of media centers and network-building in other regions in
> Korea. Joining forces with NPOs, we try to bridge the gap between access
> haves and have-nots and overcome the obstacles alienating people from
> media.
>
>
>
> 2. Community Radio Establishment at Hand! (Or at Stake?)
>
> jo, dongwon, director of policy research department
> Trans. by JI HYUN KIM, ACT! editorial board
>
> On Nov 16, 2004 Korea Broadcasting Commission (KBC) announced the
> selection of 8 operation units (out of 17 applicants) for a nationwide
> pilot program of what it calls "low-power radio" broadcasting. So far,
> the licensing procedure for low power FM radio was the same as for a
> full-scale radio broadcasting station.
> The selectees will be provided with frequency and equipment for their
> pilot broadcasting throughout this year. Their activities will be the
> base of consideration for permanently establishing low-power radio
> broadcasting in the 2005 legislation amendment. This program can be the
> springboard for establishing community broadcasting (or at least a more
> participatory broadcasting structure) in Korea.
>
> Successful applicants included
> - Sungeo Community Radio Station for 5,000 migrant workers in an
> industrial complex in Daegu City
> - Community Radio Station for the residents of Kwanak-Gu in Seoul basing
> on local community activism
> - Farmer's Radio Station in Naju
> - Citizen's Radio Station in Mapo county in Seoul
> - a broadcasting unit of middle class residents of a conservative region
> - a consortium unit of a local university and a local government.
>
> Due to regional competition and political considerations, Ulsan Hyundai
> Automobile Plant Worker's Broadcasting was not chosen.
>
> It is an important step toward establishing and expanding local
> community radio broadcasting in Korea. However, many problems remain to
> be solved, such as
> - conceptualizing of this broadcasting as well as setting up of
> qualification standards
> - the problems of public support mainly from KBC
> - frequency allocation and expansion of broadcasting coverage (currently
> limited to 1 watt!)
> - and digitalization etc.
>
> Researches and strategies to solve these problems, and continuous
> organizing efforts and struggles will be necessary along with
> experimenting with various models of community radio broadcasting to
> expand the third tier of the broadcasting, which will lead to making of
> autonomous laws for building a more progressive community broadcasting
> by radio and TV.
>
> Recently a major issue is the lack of cooperation of the Ministry of
> Information and Communication (MIC). MIC has the authority to permit
> broadcasting as well as to allocate frequencies. KBC, who conducts the
> project, recommended that the 8 applicants be recognized as terrestrial
> broadcasters, including public funding (as required by the Broadcast
> Law). MIC, however, refused, instead offering to register them as a form
> of ³pilot station for practical use², which does not include public
> funding. It appears to be an internal row between different branches of
> government that is causing this situation. We are currently working to
> resolve this issue.
>
> We appreciate your ideas or materials that we can refer to for building
> sustainable capacities, fundraising, lobby tactics, policy frameworks
> etc. for establishing community broadcasting. Please contact jo, dongwon
> ([log in to unmask]) .
>
>
>
> 3. Seminar: briefings MEDIACT's Theoretical Seminar, January 23-24, 2005
>
> Gabi Hadl ([log in to unmask])
>
> Session 1: Discussion of jo, dongwon's Paper, "Social Media ?
> Communication System and Communication Rights Movement"
> Session 2: Presentation by Choe, Seijin ³Capitalist ICT Trends and Labor
> Movements in South Korea², Q&A session
> Session 3: ³Towards a Theory and Practice of Transnational Media
> Activism²/³Enclosure vs Commons- beyond Public Sphere² Dorothy Kidd
>
> Outcome: Gwanghamun group founded to develop theoretical tools for media
> activism.
>
> Participants included members of various MEDIACT departments, the
> seminar team, members of labor organizations such as nodongnet and KCTU,
> and Dorothy Kidd and Gabi Hadl. It was held in English and Korean
> (interpretation by Dongwon). The seminar was scheduled between sessions
> of the "MEDIACT forum" public lectures by Gabi and Dorothy.
>
> Session 1:
> Dongwon's paper served as a starting point of a lively discussion. He
> uses a 3 sphere model (government, market, civil society) to develop a
> complex model of the media system/s in society. He includes the flows of
> contents and technology, power and influence, etc. between the three
> spheres. We debated to the implications and strategic usefulness of
> "publicness" and "civil society" , "'Public sphere² and its relation to
> the ³lifeworld", "public sphere" and "counter-public spheres", problems
> with rights-based approaches (including the CRIS framework), ³Claims,²
> ³rights,² ³social contract.² We began to assess how these terms and
> concepts can help us (and/or limit us) in concrete struggles.
>
> In conclusion, we realized there is a need:
> - To re-write the history of communications from a social movement
> perspective and
> - To have a sustained (and well documented) discussion on theory and
> strategy of media movements. From this we decided to form the Gwanghamun
> Group (watch for more on this in future editions of [inter-ACT!]).
>
> Session 2
> Choi, Seijin (ICT director at KCTU - Korean Coalition of Trade Unions)
> presented an overview of the last 20 years of movements against
> capitalist ³ICT restructuring² and the use of ICTs for movement).
> Starting in the late 70s, state development policy shifted from heavy
> industries to ICT industries. At the same time, ICTs gave the military
> government new tools for control. The term ³information restructuring²
> was introduced by the government to allay worries about the latter.
> Many attempts to introduce surveillance systems by government and
> companies were met with fierce resistance, especially as the social
> movements began to gain in strength, since the mid-80s. Important
> movements were against:
> - electronic resident cards (a struggle won in 1996 after several
> attempts by different administrations to introduce it)
> - NEIS (national education information system)
> - worker surveillance (a growing issue: a 2003 survey found 81.1% of
> companies used at least one surveillance technique, stress from
> surveillance now widely recognized as an occupational hazard)
>
> Examples of ICT use for resistance include:
> - early 90s ³Chamsaesang(True World)² electronic bulletin board system
> - the formation of the communications coalition ³Communication
> Solidarity² and its role in spreading vital information about the
> Sam-pung Department Store collapse (1995)
> - launch of jinbonet and nodong net (at 1998 labor media festival)
> - current KCTU (Korean Confederation of Trade Unions) website now
> getting one million hits/day
>
> For URLs with detailed documentation and info on how to participate in
> the Gwanghamun Group
> stay tuned into [inter-ACT!].
>
>
>
> 4. [ACT!] #18, 2005 Feb.
>
> * features: media center
> - The End of the first Korean local media center, Kangseo Media Center:
> Lessons to be learned from its shutdown after a long period of
> miscarriages and struggles
> - Efforts being made to establish a Media Center in Incheon and the
> Problems revealed in recent closing of public subscription held by
> Ministry of Culture and Tourism
>
> * issue: For Whom does the Copyright Exist?
> - Issues of Copyright and Independent Films
> - The content of recent revision of copyright law and how we should react
> - Copyright problems in Independent Documentary Filmmaking
>
> * issue: Ambivalence of the Movement for Cultural Diversity
> - International and Domestic Issues (Current issues of Convention on
> Cultural Diversity and Korean situation)
>
> * community radio
> - Stories of Community Radio Pilot Proiect from 3 areas in Seoul(Mapo,
> Kwanak and Boondang); How they are preparing for their launching of the
> broadcast
> - A Case of Public Supporting for Community Radio: Ofcom's Fund Raising
> and Managing system in England
>
> * labor media activism: media project for "Down with Contingent Working
> Condition"
>
> - international: Tsunami and Media
>
> - talk: discussion on a feminist media activism with Dorothy Kidd
>
> - column: Oh! MP3~
>
>
> -------------------------------------
> contact
> MEDIACT's policy research department
> jo, dongwon, researcher@ mediact.org
> Jinhaeng Lee, [log in to unmask]
> -------------------------------------
>
> [inter-ACT!] is the monthly English language newsletter of MEDIACT, a
> media center based in Seoul, South KOREA. It aims to connect the media
> and communication movement in South Korea with those in other places.
> http://www.mediact.org
>
> ====================================================================
> * To subscribe or unsubscribe from this list or to view the archive, visit:
> http://lists.riseup.net/www/info/inter-act
>
>
>

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