FIC; Bernd Schneider, Andreas Paul
The media network is a division of the Foundation for International Communication; still, also organisations which are not member of FIC can become part of the media network, the Global Alternative Media Association - GAMA.
In the long run, if the Association proves to be an appropriate form of co-operation it might be possible for GAMA to become an organisation with a separate organisational framework.
Co-operation is advised in form of exchange of articles, photos, and even personnel, as well as exchanging experiences in production and distribution of media. In order to satisfy the expressed need for exchange of articles, an article pool has been established which will be distributed electronically (called fic-media-list@mail.comlink.apc.org and to be ordered from majordomo@sonne.comlink.apc.org), as well as by mail to those not yet having access to electronic communications but desiring to become part of GAMA.
Media interested in joining the alliance are invited to test the structure for a
period of six months, in which they shall contribute articles to the pool as
well as be granted the right to reprint any article from the pool while giving
credit to the source (both the original one and GAMA).
Should these six months prove that GAMA serves the respective media well and supports its own
development and outreach, the media should register as a member of the
association and mention this partnership on one of its pages or in another form
corresponding with the form of the media. Any partner media will additionally
guarantee to reproduce material from the pool in a mutually agreed fixum of its
overall output.
The aim of GAMA is to reach a size in which any article contributed to the pool has theoretically the chance to reach an audience counted by the hundreds of thousands. With the audiences reached by GAMA's founding members, the first 100,000 people of the combined audience are already almost achieved.
GAMA offers its member media also access to photo archives, channels to
circulate advertisement, internship or job offers, contact addresses and to
forward specific requests for information. An internal newsletter will help to
exchange experiences and give advise on media making, from layout techniques to
distribution and mailing routines. The first of these newsletters will be
produced in autumn.
FIC members will make efforts to find funding for the
association.
To give an idea on what the Association's spirit should be, a statement of intent had been worked out which shall lead to an open discussion among the involved organisations:
The Foundation for International Communication exists to promote international communication and co-operation in the interests of its membership. Communication and Information is considered a central ingredient in the mediation and solving of conflict, and free and equal access to information for all people in the deciding of self determination is an important human right in an increasingly complex media world.
Those who are involved at local, national, regional and international levels of activity on themes such as Youth, Women, Environment, Development, Peace, Democracy, Labour, Unemployment, Human Rights, Population, Feminism, Patriarchy, Anti-Fascim, Anti-Racism, Indigenous Struggles and other diverse issues are inadequately linked in terms of communication.
The Network can facilitate communication between groups working in the same area and also between groups with different projects who recognise that their diverse struggles are connected.
The Foundation shall act against the perceived isolation of these groups by working towards a world-wide alternative media network. The network recognises that many organisations are not equally resourced or able to have equal access or participation in media networks, and so will work to redress these imbalances through its projects.
The network shall develop ways of working, organisational forms and mechanisms that will facilitate global participation (with global defined to include participation in terms of gender, north-south, class, indigenous, disenfranchised groups etc...).
The general context is that the media is dominated by large monopolies that are unable, uninterested or unwilling to give space to alternative views and struggles. The network would work to break the monopolies of the media led by the Western Media giants.
Although we live in an era of mass media, the information available through this media is second-hand information, filtered through professional reporters employed by the corporate agencies, and information is distributed throughout a world-wide network of offices and available in nearly every country of this world.
This does not mean that information is available everywhere, but that only specific information is available - that distributed by the large press agencies. This information monopoly must be broken so that the concerned peoples in their countries can report an their own situation from their own perspectives and not as mediated by the reporters and agencies.