[Air-L] Creative Media Activism - A Free, Open Class

[Gary Hall]

Creative Media Activism - A Free, Open Class #creativact

Between January and March 2012 we (i.e. the Media Department at Coventry 
School of Art and Design: 
http://wwwm.coventry.ac.uk/csad/mediaandcommunication/Pages/Media_home.aspx) 
launched a Free and Open Undergraduate class focused on Creative 
Activism. We also made the class freely available online on an open 
basis to enable anyone worldwide to participate in the class, join in 
the discussions or even rip and remix our content.

The class explored the potential of creative media activism by 
encouraging the participants to experiment with creating ‘live’ 
interventions as well as become involved in a number of crucial 
cultural, political and social debates. Over the ten week course we 
looked at how media activists, creatives and campaigners have used their 
media knowledge, connections and skills to ask difficult questions, 
provoke debate and raise awareness of important issues and problems in 
their local, national and international communities.

We have now put most of the materials from the class on our website: 
http://www.creativeactivism.net
You can also download the content and participate in the ongoing class 
discussion through iTunes U and the Peer 2 Peer University (P2PU). 
Please feel free to share.

If you would like to find out more about the class, and our plans for 
developing the project, please contact Pete Woodbridge 
<p.woodbridge at coventry.ac.uk>.

To date, the class has been supported by a range of collaborators and 
guest speakers, whom we would like to thank. They include:

Emily James: Director of ‘Just Do It’- A Feature Documentary about 
Climate Change Activism

John Jackson, Activist and Co-author of ‘Small Acts of Resistance: How 
Courage, Tenacity and Ingenuity Can Change the World

Joey Skaggs, A Prolific New York Based Artist, Culture Jammer and 
Prankster who uses the Media as his Canvas

James Cook, A Stand-up Comedian who explores what we can learn from 
Comedy and Satire as a means of Political and Cultural Activism

Sam Gregory, Programme Director and Human Rights Advocate at WITNESS, 
whose work addresses the importance of video and change

Tessa Houghton, Assistant Professor in Media and Communications, 
University of Nottingham Malaysia who analyses Hacktivism and the Public 
Domain

Matt Mason, Author of bestseller ‘The Pirate’s Dilemma’ and Executive 
Director of Marketing at Bittorent

Chris Jury, Activist, Broadcaster and Lecturer at Bath Spa University 
who presents a radio show called ‘Agitpop’- exploring the role of music 
and protest

Charles Tsai, Campaigner at the Creative Visions Foundation and Social 
Creatives- Organisations that encourage creative thinking to affect 
positive change

Ken Fero, Award Winning Radical Documentary Filmmaker – Whose work 
explores Power, Inequality and Injustice.

-- 
Gary Hall
Research Professor of Media and Performing Arts
School of Art and Design, Coventry University
Co-editor of Culture Machine
http://www.culturemachine.net
Co-founder of the Open Humanities Press
http://www.openhumanitiespress.org
Website http://www.garyhall.info

Latest:
'There Are No Digital Humanities', in Debates in the Digital Humanities, edited by Matthew K. Gold