This week we are looking at the very broad topic "alternative media" which can be located in all of the industries we have studied thus far: print journalism, radio, film/television, and music.
How to define "alternative"? As Downing says: “they break somebody’s rules (content, form, organization, production), although rarely all of them in every respect” and have “created new spaces for alternative voices that provide the focus both for specific community interests as well as for the contrary and the subversive”.
Have you come across what you consider to be alternative media either here in New Zealand or elsewhere?
What technologies have they deployed?
What communities have they represented and do you feel they have achieved their purpose of some kind of political transformation?
Also, in relation to the questions above and more, you may want to look online at the websites for documentaries Burma VJ and The End of the Line, both of which were designed by our visitor James Franklin.
Finally, a PhD student of ours, Jonathan Albright, just published an article on the use of Twitter in the Wall Street protests. I'm not sure if I understand it . . so any clarification from someone in class would be cool.
(http://theconversation.edu.au/did-twitter-censor-occupy-wall-street-3822)
See you Monday.
Thursday, October 13, 2011
Wednesday, October 5, 2011
Preparation for Week 11
This coming week Anna Jackson, who completed her BA and MA with us, and is now enrolled in her PhD (a double badge with Melbourne and Auckland) will present aspects of her thesis, which is looking on the world of online documentary in New Zealand. She will also talk about the broader issues around digitalization and the on-demand and mobile media culture.
A few questions to consider from our readings:
Debrett discusses what are considered the fundamental characteristics of public (service) broadcasting and how they have fared in the digital era. Take a look of some of her examples online (for example from SBS, BBC or Channel 4) -- do you know of other experimentation online that has retained public service content? Her overall argument is that the digital era poses threats and possibilities for the public service ethic? Which way do you think the cookie will crumble?
Goode (a senior lecturer with us) and Littlewood (who did his Masters degree) take a similar position, although since writing a number of major changes have occurred. They pay particular attention to the notion of the "local". If you were to update their position, what do you think has occurred to the "local" in the New Zealand media environment. How much local content do you watch?
Also, good news -- Sue Abel who attended our lecture last week has been awarded a large government grant to continue her study of Maori Television with Jo Smith.
Best
A few questions to consider from our readings:
Debrett discusses what are considered the fundamental characteristics of public (service) broadcasting and how they have fared in the digital era. Take a look of some of her examples online (for example from SBS, BBC or Channel 4) -- do you know of other experimentation online that has retained public service content? Her overall argument is that the digital era poses threats and possibilities for the public service ethic? Which way do you think the cookie will crumble?
Goode (a senior lecturer with us) and Littlewood (who did his Masters degree) take a similar position, although since writing a number of major changes have occurred. They pay particular attention to the notion of the "local". If you were to update their position, what do you think has occurred to the "local" in the New Zealand media environment. How much local content do you watch?
Also, good news -- Sue Abel who attended our lecture last week has been awarded a large government grant to continue her study of Maori Television with Jo Smith.
Best
Wednesday, September 28, 2011
Preparation for Week 10
Dear all,
As I mentioned Haunui Royal will be coming to our class although I'm unsure whether it will be at the beginning or the end of class.
I have thought of some questions generated by the Abel/Smith article which I thought was very interesting.
Have you watched Maori Television and what kind of programming have your watched?
What is the overall brief or kaupapa of Maori Television?
Can you make some links between the Treaty of Waitangi and Maori Television? First of all, in its inception and second, in its ongoing functioning?
What do Abel/Smith mean when they say that MTS could be a tool for "decolonizing the mind"?
For those of you new to Aotearoa/New Zealand do you feel an affinity for MTS or do you feel left out of an equation is offers up?
Why is MTS being claimed as the new (and only) true public broadcaster, and how could this be a mixed blessing for Maori?
See you Monday!
As I mentioned Haunui Royal will be coming to our class although I'm unsure whether it will be at the beginning or the end of class.
I have thought of some questions generated by the Abel/Smith article which I thought was very interesting.
Have you watched Maori Television and what kind of programming have your watched?
What is the overall brief or kaupapa of Maori Television?
Can you make some links between the Treaty of Waitangi and Maori Television? First of all, in its inception and second, in its ongoing functioning?
What do Abel/Smith mean when they say that MTS could be a tool for "decolonizing the mind"?
For those of you new to Aotearoa/New Zealand do you feel an affinity for MTS or do you feel left out of an equation is offers up?
Why is MTS being claimed as the new (and only) true public broadcaster, and how could this be a mixed blessing for Maori?
See you Monday!
Friday, September 23, 2011
Preparation for Monday 26th
We have now had two classes on NZ television culture, the first a history, the second, an effective outlining of contemporary issues and decline of public broadcasting.
New Zealand on Air has been an important ingredient in television and music culture in New Zealand. It emerged after the the economic reforms of the 1980s.
Explain its original purpose as outlined by Dunleavy?
How does it fit into the mediascape today? What are the range of things funded? How do they fit in in the spectrum from broad audience to minority interest?
Have you seen anything funding by NZOA?
How does it work in relation to private and "public" broadcasting?
Can you devise a way that NZOA could assist in the conumdrum facing NZ broadcast culture?
See you Monday. Glenn comes at noon so we will have two hours to go over the last few weeks.
New Zealand on Air has been an important ingredient in television and music culture in New Zealand. It emerged after the the economic reforms of the 1980s.
Explain its original purpose as outlined by Dunleavy?
How does it fit into the mediascape today? What are the range of things funded? How do they fit in in the spectrum from broad audience to minority interest?
Have you seen anything funding by NZOA?
How does it work in relation to private and "public" broadcasting?
Can you devise a way that NZOA could assist in the conumdrum facing NZ broadcast culture?
See you Monday. Glenn comes at noon so we will have two hours to go over the last few weeks.
Wednesday, September 7, 2011
Prep for Week 7
Dear all,
Just dusting off the brain cells and thinking again about classes. I hope your "break" is going well and you have lots of great assignments for me to read.
I'm gearing up for my cinema run of Brother Number One (on the 22nd Sept), and would appreciate any outreach you can do amongst your circles. Opening in Auckland at the Bridgeway and the Rialto which are great cinema for it. So will update you. I also have my inaugural lecture as a Professor next Thursday which you are all welcome to attend.
Professor Roger Horrocks will be our guest on Monday. He is a towering though under-appreciated figure in the New Zealand media scene. He began Film Studies at UoA while the discipline was still a marginal element of the English department and now of course we are a thriving department thanks to his guidance. He was also on the board of NZOA and was the one that proposed and supported the music video scheme that has given a lot of support to musicians and filmmakers alike. Plus he was a founder of the NZFC, and has worked as a screenwriter, producer, filmmaker etc. He is also a scholar and a commentator on public policy, often writing reviews and policies for various institutions, from the state of documentary to film archiving. Of late, his own research has focused on an experimental filmmaker and "kinetic sculptor" Len Lye who was born in Christchurch in 1901 and had an extraordinary ex-pat career in the US and UK.
In terms of some questions to mull over:
What do you understand as the "Reithian" legacy and does that still engage you as a TV watcher?
How can television make a distinction between a consumer and a citizen and are you aware of how you are addressed through television?
How often do you watch free to air television through a regular schedule and how often do you prerecord or download?
Is television watching a way you bond with your family and friends?
Godard says there is an irony: when you watch a film in a darkened cinema, you believe you are alone even though you are surrounded by many, whereas when you watch television, sometimes on your own, you feel you are part of a larger "family" or nation of watchers. Think over this statement.
Laurence Simmons articulates a dystopian and utopian thread present from the origins of television in New Zealand. Sometimes this can be called a "moral panic". What concerns and possibilities were expressed through these respective threads?
Just dusting off the brain cells and thinking again about classes. I hope your "break" is going well and you have lots of great assignments for me to read.
I'm gearing up for my cinema run of Brother Number One (on the 22nd Sept), and would appreciate any outreach you can do amongst your circles. Opening in Auckland at the Bridgeway and the Rialto which are great cinema for it. So will update you. I also have my inaugural lecture as a Professor next Thursday which you are all welcome to attend.
Professor Roger Horrocks will be our guest on Monday. He is a towering though under-appreciated figure in the New Zealand media scene. He began Film Studies at UoA while the discipline was still a marginal element of the English department and now of course we are a thriving department thanks to his guidance. He was also on the board of NZOA and was the one that proposed and supported the music video scheme that has given a lot of support to musicians and filmmakers alike. Plus he was a founder of the NZFC, and has worked as a screenwriter, producer, filmmaker etc. He is also a scholar and a commentator on public policy, often writing reviews and policies for various institutions, from the state of documentary to film archiving. Of late, his own research has focused on an experimental filmmaker and "kinetic sculptor" Len Lye who was born in Christchurch in 1901 and had an extraordinary ex-pat career in the US and UK.
In terms of some questions to mull over:
What do you understand as the "Reithian" legacy and does that still engage you as a TV watcher?
How can television make a distinction between a consumer and a citizen and are you aware of how you are addressed through television?
How often do you watch free to air television through a regular schedule and how often do you prerecord or download?
Is television watching a way you bond with your family and friends?
Godard says there is an irony: when you watch a film in a darkened cinema, you believe you are alone even though you are surrounded by many, whereas when you watch television, sometimes on your own, you feel you are part of a larger "family" or nation of watchers. Think over this statement.
Laurence Simmons articulates a dystopian and utopian thread present from the origins of television in New Zealand. Sometimes this can be called a "moral panic". What concerns and possibilities were expressed through these respective threads?
Thursday, August 18, 2011
Preparation for Week 6
Shanahan and Mollgard (who will be our visitor on Monday) covered some of the same territory, looking at the total transformation of radio from a largely State-run system to one that say a proliferation of stations which then led to a "duopoly", a double monopoly where the two competitors, one Irish owned and one now Australian owned, pretend to compete while collaborating behind the scenes to prevent certain regulations, for example around NZ music, being imposed upon them. I have to say, I only listen to National Radio, 101.4 FM (Morning Report 7-9) and Checkpoint (5-7) both of which provide pretty good news services, to Kim Hill on Saturday mornings and to Brian Crump in the evenings, who I think is a genius at radio montage (although that is usually only if I am driving). I also like bfm, our own lovely University's radio station (95 FM) -- they have truly funny commercials, the only ones I can actually listen to. I also listen to the BBC world service at 810 AM. I'm someone who cannot listen to much talk radio which seems to me addled by racism, sexism, anti-migrant attitudes, anti-PC tirades. But given I don't listen maybe I am wrong? Recently, I was interviewed by Kiwi FM, which Mollgaard argues is a front by Mediaworks to stymie indigenous efforts by musicans, broadcaster and academics to support real youth orientated radio that assists local music and culture. It took me some time to find the office which was buried in Ponsonby. I was also interviewed by our former visitor Russell Brown, who I think is excellent, but this I think was for Radio Live -- and Brown certainly does not fit into the "talk show" format I mention above. So maybe this is the "accommodating" tendency the duoply allows -- they can point to "progressive" elements with their broader conservative stations to silence the critics. What do you think?
I'm interested too in the role of NZOA in radio which we can talk about in weeks to come, and also in the iwi stations which I don't listen too but I think do address the concerns of their listeners.
I'm interested too in the role of NZOA in radio which we can talk about in weeks to come, and also in the iwi stations which I don't listen too but I think do address the concerns of their listeners.
Wednesday, August 10, 2011
Preparation for Week 5
Hi all,
have done my reading and am focusing here on the Hesmondhalgh article (I've finally worked out how to spell his name). It seems to me he has a clear perspective that provides a deeper analysis of the "debates" around music and file sharing.
He suggests that the debates around file-sharing put forward by "the prophets of techno-capitalism" or by Left-leaning musicians miss the point -- what are their respective points or beliefs? He believes the debates in fact emerge from a clash of two powerful entities. "Unpack" his points and reflect on whether you agree with his conclusion.
Although I think he is pretty hip, the article is now older and refers to the realities on the ground (and in cyperspace) in the mid to late 2000s. Take up some of his descriptive points and "update" them. For example, he compares how Europe/North American purchased online music and Asia through mobile phones. Is that still the case do you think?
And how far, from your anecdotal position, do you think that digital sales have eroded CD and DVDs sales?
What models of controls of file sharing imposed by the music industries have you come across and are any effective to your knowledge?
Finally, if anyone understands the implications of the new copyright laws in New Zealand, it would be great to hear them spelled out.
have done my reading and am focusing here on the Hesmondhalgh article (I've finally worked out how to spell his name). It seems to me he has a clear perspective that provides a deeper analysis of the "debates" around music and file sharing.
He suggests that the debates around file-sharing put forward by "the prophets of techno-capitalism" or by Left-leaning musicians miss the point -- what are their respective points or beliefs? He believes the debates in fact emerge from a clash of two powerful entities. "Unpack" his points and reflect on whether you agree with his conclusion.
Although I think he is pretty hip, the article is now older and refers to the realities on the ground (and in cyperspace) in the mid to late 2000s. Take up some of his descriptive points and "update" them. For example, he compares how Europe/North American purchased online music and Asia through mobile phones. Is that still the case do you think?
And how far, from your anecdotal position, do you think that digital sales have eroded CD and DVDs sales?
What models of controls of file sharing imposed by the music industries have you come across and are any effective to your knowledge?
Finally, if anyone understands the implications of the new copyright laws in New Zealand, it would be great to hear them spelled out.
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