Asian New Media Community is hot
The Asian New Media community, recently gathered at the conference in Kuala Lumpur, organized by Malaysiakini
is a true community of peers, a gathering of equals facing very similar conditions and helping each other through mutual learning and support.
It was a true peer to peer learning event with a very warm atmosphere.
They are a very courageous lot as most are facing real repression and threats to their lives, property and integrity. The main theme of the conference was the sustainability of their 'business models' (though the term may not be
appropriate as most of them are nonprofits based on the dedication of their journalists and workers).
New Media are faced with a number of challenges: they are squeezed between the power of the mass media, often controlled or cozy with the powers that be, and the free resources built up by the blogging community, which undermines any for-pay strategy, though some can count on a substantial group of paid members.
Finally, there is the underlying problem of the digital divide, of operating a medium which is accessible only to the educated middle classes and a minority of activists.
Amongst the blog reports on the conference is that from James Gomez, the courageous Singaporean free speech activist, who concludes that blogs, wikis, and RSS feeds hold a certain promise for the NGO community, as a way to reach more people and reduce cost. He has his own blog, focusing on regional and Singaporean developments at JamesGomezNews
.
Here are some resources I invite you to discover, especially if you are interested in qualitative reporting on a region with a lack of free press outlets:
- the above Malaysiakini.com, and the very active Malaysian blogger
Jeff Ooi, the Nepali Times
Regarding Media Culture Actions in S.Korea, a Pdf document
Mizzima.com Mizzima, and Irrawaddi with Burma News,
Our Planet TV a Japanese project.
See the movie introducing their work.
The China blogger, but not Chinese, Fons Tuinstra
There is a broader framework on communication rights which she strongly recommends. This one was written by Sean O' Siochru, the coordinator of the Communication Rights in the Information Society Campaign.
The FMA is very strong on open source advocacy to support nonprofits. If you have any need s in that area, contact them.
In terms of peer to peer, I have been particularly impressed by the presentations of the Wikipedia pioneer Andrew Lih, who teaches on Hong Kong and is extremely knowledgeable about developments regarding peer governance.
More links and references on Michael Beuwens blog
More thinking on the P2P Foundation
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