Activists Host "Radio Summer" in San Diego August 29 (tags)
Members of San Diego's activist community gathered together at the Media Arts Center in North Park on August 29 to hear about how low-power FM (LPFM) radio can create new opportunities for progressive media and break the Right-wing stranglehold on the local airwaves. The attendees heard a presentation via Skype from Philadelphia-based Ian Smith of the Prometheus Radio Project, which was instrumental in lobbying Congress and the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) for the LPFM opportunity in the first place, and also heard from representatives of the World Beat Center, Media Rights Coalition and Activist San Diego.
Media Arts Center Hosts "Radio Summer" August 29 (tags)
The Prometheus Radio Project, a nationwide organization working to broaden the range of community voices available on America's audio airwaves, scored a major victory in July when the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) finally set up a licensing rule for thousands of new low-power FM (LPFM) radio stations, including some in urban areas previously ineligible for these grass-roots local stations. Now Prometheus is promoting a series of events called "Radio Summer" to organize people to obtain these licenses and get their stations on the air. The Media Arts Center of San Diego is hosting a "Radio Summer" event Monday, August 29, 6 to 8 p.m. at their office, 2921 El Cajon Boulevard (near 30th St.) in North Park, with a wide variety of other organizations in coalition. So if you're tired of the San Diego airwaves seeming to be the private preserve of the extreme Right, that's where you need to be next Monday!
Teen Producers' Project Makes Pro-Immigrant Videos (tags)
In addition to running the popular San Diego Latino Film Festival, the Media Arts Center in North Park also sponsors the Teen Producers? Project, which trains teenage filmmakers to make professional-quality videos. This year?s productions were a series of hard-hitting documentaries on the rights of immigrants that progressive Congressmember Bob Filner offered to take to Washington, D.C. and show to his colleagues.
City Heights Human Rights Fest Draws 500 (tags)
The first annual City Heights Human Rights Festival drew over 500 people to the streets of San Diego’s most ethnically diverse neighborhood Saturday, December 11 for a march down El Cajon Boulevard and a fair in the parking lot of Hoover High School at El Cajon and 44th Street. Besides speeches by local elected officials who represent the area, including City Councilmember Todd Gloria and his former employer, Congressmember Susan Davis, the event also included musical performers, readings and a showing of a short film by the Media Arts Center, I Want My Parents … Back, dealing with immigrant rights and how border enforcement is breaking up families. The event was organized not only to commemorate the 62nd anniversary of the signing of the Universal Declaration of Human Rights, passed by the United Nations in 1948, but to call attention to rights abuses all over the world and especially in Viet Nam. The impetus for organizing the event came from local representatives of the Viet Nam Reform Party, which exists clandestinely in Viet Nam and openly among Viet Namese immigrants in countries like ours that guarantee political freedoms. Among their demands is an end to one-party Communist rule in Viet Nam and an end to its ban on independent media.
Mera Szendro Bok’s New Media Rights Hosts Drumbeat-San Diego Feb. 5 (tags)
Drumbeat San Diego, part of a nationwide mobilization of independent media activists for skills-building, networking and activism, will be held Saturday, February 5, 1:30 to 6:30 p.m. at Queen Bee’s Arts and Cultural Center, 3925 Ohio Street in North Park. Zenger’s Newsmagazine recently interviewed Mera Szendro Bok, director of New Media Rights, whose organization is one of the key players building the local event. She talked about Drumbeat, about the media rights landscape in general, and how individuals can fight to keep the Internet free and open and prevent it from becoming yet another transmission belt communicating only the anti-progressive, anti-human “free market” message of all other corporate media.
3rd Annual Drug War Vigil Film Festival (tags)
Send us your films of 30 minutes or less on any topic related to cannabis, drugs and the drug war, and/or Harm Reduction. Only submit in plain old VHS tape or Hi-8 or digital-8. The films will be screened and judged by participants at the Drug War Vigil Film Festival Sept 24-25th as well as viewers of WWW.Pot-TV.Net The film chosen for first place will receive A Grand Prize of $2000 US.. 2nd place $1000.00 3rd place $500.00 New Special 500.00 Prize for best short, a short being 5 minutes or less. You must register your film for entry by to be eligible. Registration is FREE and only requires you email us at dwvfilmproject@hotmail.com with your intention A.S.A.P. and projected length of your work. We will need to receive the finished film by September 10th 2004 Watch the web page for further details relating to with confirmed dates and actually attending the event: cost, entertainment etc. It is our hope to inspire independent and amateur film makers to produce inspirational works. e-mail us at dwvfilmproject@hotmail.com Send your entry in to: D.W.V. c/o BCMP Bookshop 307 W Hastings Vancouver, B.C. V6B 1H6 CANADA