[bestbits] Call for Participation: 5th World Forum on Free Media (WFFM) in Montreal, August 2016

[Becky Lentz]

Please distribute widely, and excuse any unavoidable cross-postingsŠ

http://www.fmml.net/spip.php?article161
Call for participation - 5th WFFM
Translation: [en  <http://www.fmml.net/spip.php?article160> français
<http://www.fmml.net/spip.php?article160> ]
<http://www.fmml.net/spip.php?article160>   [en Español]
<http://www.fmml.net/spip.php?article162>

Deadline: 1 June 2016

The next edition of the World Forum of Free Media (WFFM) will take place in
Montreal from August 7 to 14 within the framework of the World Social Forum
(WSF). The first two days will be dedicated to the WFFM while the other
activities will be included in the regular program of the WSF.

The World Forum of Free Media was born as part of the World Social Forums
thanks to the coming together of activists seeking to guarantee freedom of
expression and the struggle for other forms of communication. The militants
promoting the WFFM were involved in the countless experiences and struggles
led by independent media. Aware of the importance of the role of the free
media in the face of the rise of conservatism and of reactionary and
xenophobic media, as well as the place of Internet and the social networks
in our methods of informing and communicating, the WFFM seeks to be a space
for shared experiences, converging various struggles and alternative
proposals.

In each edition, the WFFM brings together journalists, associations,
developers, hackers and both academic and independent researchers. The
abundance of initiatives allows for enlightening exchanges on the freedom of
expression, the monopolization of knowledge, the challenges posed by
Internet, community radios, the re-appropriation of information, the
production of free technologies (including free software), and other themes.
The previous editions of the WFFM were also very rich in exchanges and
points of view that help to continue the fight for the right to
communication and information around the world. In 2015, the participants
adopted the World Charter of Free Media. The next edition will also provide
an opportunity to assess the progress made by this instrument of pressure
and struggle.

The various actors involved in organizing the WFFM are happy to invite all
of you to the 5th edition to be held in Canada in 2016.

How to propose an activity

The WFFM has been established and supported by the initiative of the actors
involved in it: journalists, associations, bloggers, producers of
information, NGOs, representatives of social movements, developers of free
technologies, etc.

You and your organization are invited to propose activities (or to join
those proposed by others). Nothing could be simpler: visit the FMML site
http://www.fmml.net <http://www.fmml.net/> . Choose the option ³Propose an
activity <http://www.fmml.net/spip.php?article158> ² and fill out the form.

Four subjects are already under preparation with the participation of guests
from some ten countries:

·      Free media 2.0: Community media in the digital and multiplatform
environment

·      Whose security? The impact of social and state violence on the
freedom of expression

·      Autonomy and economy: The sustainability of free media and technology

·       Community communications: Decolonising the media and technology

The activities proposed can be classified under one of the following
specific areas:

- The role of the free media in popular struggles as a tool for the
expression of social and citizen movements.
- Violence against journalists and activists: until when?
- Regulatory frameworks for the promotion of diversity, plurality and
freedom of expression.
- Decolonisation of the media, inclusion and the diversification of voices,
points of view and cultural expressions
- Public policies and the sustainability of the free media
- Access to Internet: a fundamental right in the 21st century
- Free networks, free software and the struggle against mass surveillance on
Internet
- Facebook, Google and the new gatekeepers: how to deal with monopolies in
convergence?
- Social networks: freedom of speech or discourse of hatred?
- Others...

Deadline for the submission of proposals: 1 June 2016

The proposals will be studied and grouped (according to the principle of
agglutination). Please note, all proposals will be accepted provided they
respect the principles and values outlined in the WSF Charter
<https://fsm2016.org/en/sinformer/a-propos-du-forum-social-mondial/>  and
the World Charter of Free Media
<https://fsm2016.org/en/sinformer/a-propos-du-forum-social-mondial/> .

In preparation for the WFFM, we acknowledge these events are proposed to
take place on the traditional territory of the Kanien¹kehá:ka (Mohawks). The
island of ³Montreal² is known as Tiotia:ke in the language of the
Kanien¹kehá:ka. Historically, this location was a meeting place for other
Indigenous nations, including the Anishnabe (Algonquin) peoples. We invite
participants to learn more about resistance to colonization and the role of
communication technologies in these struggles‹one theme being prepared for
the Montreal WFFM events.

If you should have any questions or concerns, please contact the WFFM
organizing committee at: info at WFFM.net

 


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