Strategies for Media Activism

"Presentation at the forum event of 'Code Red'
The Performance Space, Sydney, November 23, 1997
'Erkenne die Lage' (Gottfried Benn)

It is my personal commitment to combine cyber pragmatism and media activism with pleasurable forms of European nihilism. Not the apocalyptic, conservative culture of complaint which post modernism has left behind, but short heroic epics on the everyday life of the media, reporting from within the belly of the Beast, fully aware of its own futile existence, compared to the millennial powers to be. We aren't salespeople, trying to sell the award winning model amongst the digital cities, some exotic Amsterdam blend of old and new media or yet another disastrous set of ideas, made in Europe. Instead, we are trying to exchange models, arguments and experiences on how to organise our cultural and political activities, finance media projects and create informal networks of trust that will make life in this Babylon bearable." -- from Strategies for Media Activism, Geert Lovink, frAme, Issue 1

"Geert Lovink (1959, Amsterdam), studied political science at the University of Amsterdam. Member of Adilkno, the Foundation for the Advancement of Illegal Knowledge, a free association of media-related intellectuals (Agentur Bilwet auf Deutsch). He is a radio program producer and a co-founder of The Digital City, the Amsterdam-based Freenet and 'Press Now', the Dutch support campaign for independent media in Former Yugoslavia. Former editor of the media/art magazine 'Mediamatic' (1989-1994). Since 1991 he has lectured media theory in Eastern Europe and participated there in conferences on independant media, the arts and new technologies. Co-founder of the Amsterdam-based internet content providers 'desk.nl' (culture/arts) and 'contrast.org' (politics) and a 'cultural ambassador' for 'de Waag', the Society for Old and New Media. Regular contributor of Andere Sinema (Antwerpen) and member of the editorial board of ARKzin (Zagreb). He co-organized the 'Wetware Convention' (Amsterdam, 1991), 'The Next Five Minutes', a international conference on public access and camcorder activism (Amsterdam, 1993), 'Ex Oriente Lux' (Bucharest 1993), the first Romanian media/art event, 'Metaforum I/II/III' (Budapest, 1994-6), 'Interface 3' (Hamburg, 1995) on the culture of computer networks, 'Next Five Minutes II' on 'tactical media' (Amsterdam, 1996). and moderated the (net) symposium of Ars Electronica 96 on 'memesis'. . . . " -- from frAme, Issue 1, 1999