From the Winter 2005 Edition of Community Media Review
Multilingual Journalism at Lehman College
By Jim Carney
In 1994, over 6000
members of four minority journalist associations met in Atlanta Georgia
at the "UNITY ‘94 Convention" to discuss the role of minority professionals in the United States. It was clear at the convention that print and broadcast news media
help perpetuate the notion that cultural, racial and linguistic diversity is a liability, not an asset. In the past the issues
focused on Black and White; today they encompass the racial, ethnic and cultural dynamics of Asian Americans, Hispanics, Native
Americans, African Americans, and those of diverse European ancestry. The purpose
of UNITY ‘94 was to present a blueprint which included: preparing minority high school and college students to be journalists
and supporting instructional programs that reflect and respond to multi-cultural communities. While over a decade has passed,
there are few innovative approaches to answer these challenges. A recent study by the American Society of Newspaper Editors
found that in 2003, minority representation in American newsrooms was only 12.5% while the general minority population is
over 31%. It was this need for diversity in American newsrooms which have birth to the Multilingual Journalism Program –
MLJ - at City University of New York’s Lehman
College in the Bronx.
The Bronx is well known for its ethnic diversity, particularly with representation from a wide variety of
Spanish-speaking immigrant populations. However the MLJ program was designed to go well beyond English and Spanish journalism. The curriculum for the degree - the only one of its kind in the nation - combines
a mixture of traditional journalism courses with advanced training in journalistic writing, in a variety of foreign languages,
and a holistic approach to different and new forms of media. The program also
goes beyond linguistics in that a strong focus on multicultural sensitivities is build into the program. For example, one course is dedicated to researching and studying issues ranging from “Cultural Defense”
in criminal cases of domestic abuse, to acceptable eye contact for television interviews in Asian cultures.
While The Bronx
and New York City are well known for having diverse populations,
the various ethnic communities still maintain a level of insulation, resisting assimilation and external scrutiny. Students are guided on ways to respect the cultures they research and are exposed to perspectives unlike
their own. By assigning students to research ethnic communities other than their
own, they are forced to visit neighborhoods, and to review and report on local newspapers and radio and cable programs presented
in languages such as Korean, Yiddish, French Creole and many more.
More importantly, prospective
ethnic journalists are trained to work within their own communities, to bring to light news, information and analysis of issues
and societal problems which are important to the general American public, with understanding and sensitivity. With the tools and skills of traditional journalism, and increased cultural sensitivity to their own culture
and the cultures of their neighbors, these new journalists become the bridge which spans the gap separating ethnic communities.
Equally important
to the curricular elements of the Multilingual Journalism Program are the hands-on opportunities for young journalists to
“cut their teeth” in the craft. One of the first products of the
MLJ Program was The Bronx Journal. This
monthly newspaper, published with a multilingual section with articles and features in twelve different languages, allows
students to write both in English and in the languages they study. Distributed
to community centers, schools, senior centers and other distribution points, the free publication not only serves the college
and students, but serves the Bronx community as a whole.
Other projects arising
from the MLJ Program include television programs, produced by students and distributed through BronxNet, the Community Access Center
co-located in the same building as the Mass Communication and Multilingual Journalism Program.
An early educational access program called 168 Horas was a weekly Spanish
language magazine program dealing with issues and personalities in the diverse Hispanic population in the Bronx. Another series, Multilingual News provided
a recap of the week’s news from around the world presented in French, Italian, Spanish and Japanese.
Currently the award
winning magazine program Inside Lehman is produced by Mass Communication, MLJ and
Theatre students under the tutelage of veteran NBC producer, Tom O’Hanlon. The highly produced program highlights the
programs and the people of the Lehman community, and is cablecast to the entire city through the public access channels of
BronxNet and the CUNY-TV educational access channel.
The newest and most
innovative effort mounted by the Lehman MLJ/Mass Com Program reflects the convergence of new and traditional media. Lehman NetRadio made its debut on election night, 2004, with
perspective, analysis and discussion of the presidential and local races by Lehman students.
The project is designed to allow students to produce programming for cable television via BronxNet, and for “web
radio” with - or without – video, with the assistance of the Bronx Information Network Consortium which streams
the audio and video programming to the world-wide-web. Programs in development include a Spanish-language series on fashion,
a program profiling and showcasing subway and street performers, a Russian program dealing with American and international
politics and a Thai program in both Thai and English. The new facility generating the programming utilizes broadcast quality,
robotic Panasonic cameras, a digital audio board and a new VT3 computer based switching, graphic and editing system so that
high quality productions can be mounted with two or three crew members. The long-term plan is to have a lineup of programming
which is a mixture of video, audio and internet. The “webstation”
will be curated by faculty, and created and produced by students and alumni.
A natural outgrowth
of the program is a well trained, culturally sensitive group of students who approach the world with a broader view, and at
the same time a respect for the nuanced elements of their own ethnic community as well as that of their neighbor’s.
The success of the
program recently prompted Lehman College
and CUNY to expand the MLJ - Mass Communication program into the first new department created at the college since the 1970’s.
While winning awards, and the accolades of academics and industry leaders are gratifying, perhaps the most significant testament
to the success of the new Journalism, Communication and Theatre Department at Lehman is enrollment. In the last year alone the number of majors jumped from 149 to over 250.
On a practical level,
the multimedia approach to journalism, where old media paradigms such as traditional television and radio are challenged,
has much to offer all communicators, including community media producers. By thinking of media production and journalism as
not just TV, Radio or Print, but as a seamless mixture of formats and technologies, the new producer is liberated from many
of the traditional constrictions of old media. The advances in technology open
both the production and the distribution of ideas and information in ways unthinkable a decade ago. By embracing new technologies and not limiting programming concepts to old models, journalists and community
based producers alike can increase the amount and diversity of ideas.
While the formalized
structure of the Lehman approach to multilingual journalism has proved successful on an academic level, the lessons learned
and the approaches taken by the program lends itself to all community media practitioners.
Given that America is no longer just a nation with many minorities, but a nation primarily composed of a patchwork
of ethnic populations, cultural sensitivity to one’s own ethnic group, as well as that of their neighbor’s, is
critical at all levels of American society. With intolerance and cultural isolationism on the rise, the importance of a diversity
of voices is more critical than ever. Just as the answer to dealing with hate
speech is the creation of more counterbalancing speech, the answer to intolerant and divisive racist speech is more diverse
and culturally-sensitive speech.
While the elusive goals
of the participants of “UNITY ‘94” are still to be realized, progress is being made in increasing the presence
and influence of minority journalists in this country. Just as the development
of cable television opened channels of communications to under-represented communities through community access, new technologies
married with new attitudes that are sensitive to the changing landscape of America,
hold the promise of a more diverse and more tolerant society.
Professor Jim Carney is an Assistant Professor of Journalism, Communication and Theater
at Lehman College, City
University of New York
and served as Executive Director of Bronxnet Community Television for 9 years. He
can be reached at james.carney@lehman.cuny.edu.
You Should Live So Long! Bronxnet’s Senior Programming
From fall 2003 edition of Community Media Review
By Jim Carney
“You should live so long!” This is not only a folksy way of wishing someone longevity and luck, but since 1994,
it is the title of a Public access show which airs each week on Bronxnet, the community access organization serving over a
quarter million cable subscribers in New York City. The program is indicative
of an approach that Bronxnet undertook shortly after its launch over ten years ago.
It was an approach which sought out strategic partners where programming is created using the expertise of the wealth
of non-profit organizations in The Bronx, and the powerful reach and potential of Bronxnet’s four public access channels. Because of the traditional lack of media devoted to issues important to senior citizens,
the concept was a natural. Despite a growing population of older Bronxites, information about services and resources available
to seniors was difficult to come by.
Services but No Information
In 1993, Bronxnet was envisioned as a different
type of Public Access Center. From the very beginning, the Bronx Borough President
Fernando Ferrer and the original Board of Directors saw an unprecedented opportunity.
With the resources of a new access center on the campus of the Lehman Campus of City University of New York, and four
channels on the local cablevision system, the possibility of providing traditional Public Access services, combined with targeted
programming produced by Bronxnet and in conjunction with other non profit organizations, Bronxnet reached out to the residents
of the Bronx to find out what type of programming they wanted to see on their community channels. One of the first and most obvious areas in need of service were Seniors.
A two pronged approach was developed to create programming for and about Bronx Seniors: on one hand, we would create
specific shows with strategic partners which featured seniors, and senior advocates talking about what was important to them. One the other hand we would create an “umbrella programming strategy”
which would provide a platform for information and discussion of senior issues and events.
“You Should Live
So Long!”
The first program for developed by Bronxnet was in partnership with the local Hebrew Home For The Aging at Riverdale
was “You Should Live So Long”. The show featured weekly discussions
of issues, and segments dealing with real life issues facing older Bronx residents. Programs devoted to nutrition, finance, eldercare, assisted living and other similar subjects provided
first hand accounts from local seniors as well as advice from experts designed to make older Bronxites live longer and better
lives. According to Nelson Burros, Director of the Home’s ACCESS Project
and current host of the program, “We tried to get away from the common “disease of the week” approach and
deal with practical living issues. We feel we have a responsibility to provide educational information to the community.”
The show, which has received awards for excellence from the American Association of Retired People and the New York
Association of Homes and Services for The Aged, has a strong following of senior viewers but is also popular with families
of seniors and other caregivers.
Aging Well
Another approach to reaching Bronx Seniors evolved from a short segment contained in Bronxnet’s daily live call
in public affairs show, Bronxtalk AM. The two hour show featured interviews with
Bronx newsmakers and community leaders, as well as features containing targeted information for different
segments of the community. The Bronx-based non profit organization, Aging In
America was approached about providing a weekly Senior Tip dealing with matters important to older viewers and their families. Hosted by Dr. Bruce Hurwitz, the segments enlisted the participation of quests who
would discuss their areas of expertise ranging from home health care services to public policy matters. The popularity of the segment lead to a weekly live program which takes live phone calls from Seniors and
their families.
According to Dr. Hurwitz, “Having our
own program allows us to focus in depth on the details of complicated and important issues. By having guests like the NYC
Commissioner on Aging and the Borough President talking directly about senior issues,
we raise the profile of these issues in the mind of the public.”
Spanish Programming
Perhaps the most dramatic example of the impact public access programming can have in a community is with the Spanish-speaking
community. Generally, Spanish-speaking communities of the U.S.
have limited options when it comes to media. When you consider the plight of
Spanish speaking seniors, there is virtually nothing. The Bronxnet
live call-in program “Dialogo Con Glennis” regularly deals with issues important to older Latinos. Luis M. Vasquez, Executive Director of RAIN Services for Senior Citizens, who has made numerous appearances
on the show, “Our phones light up after appearing on Glenis’ show. The
show provides us an opportunity to reach a part of our community which desperately needs these services.” The program’s host, Glenis Henriquez is an educator who feels strongly about brining these stories
to older Bronx Latinos. “In areas such as elder abuse, Spanish-speaking seniors do not know that they have any options,”
she said. “In my community there is no one else talking about these issues and the options that are available to deal
with them.”
Seniors at the Helm
An important aspect of the formulation of how Bronxnet deals with issues important to older residents comes from a
commitment to having seniors participate in the creation of programming. An original
member of Bronxnet’s board of Directors is Dr. Roscoe C. Brown Jr.. Among other credits, the octogenarian is one of
the legendary World War II fighting Aces known as The Tuskegee Airmen. He also
has served as the president of Bronx Community College
and has hosted his own PBS series on historic African Americans.
Bronxnet also drew J.J. Gonzalez, a legendary street reporter and one of the first Latino television reporters in America,
out of retirement to head up Bronxnet’s News and Public Affairs programming. Under
Gonzalez’ leadership, young producers developed a sensitivity to matters important to seniors.
Special Productions
In addition to Bronxnet’s traditional on air programming for seniors, the access center has taken a leading role
in using television to support senior organizations in the Bronx.
Annually, Bronxnet produces a number of video productions for organizations ranging from the Hearts & Hammers program
which organizes teams of volunteers who decend upon selected senior homes and devote a day of hard work to repairing and cleaning
their homes, to a video “annual report” for RAIN senior services which has used the programming to increase awareness,
fund raising and volunteerism.
Jim Carney is an assistant
professor of Multilingual Journalism and Mass Communication at City University of New York’s Lehman College and until
last September served as Executive Director of Bronxnet for nine years.
Personal Privacy and Technology
At Odds in the 21st Century
By Jim Carney
Unpublished
McLuhan
called The Global Village. It was to be the condensed, homogenized interconnection of disparate
societies, races and peoples all over the physical globe. For good or evil the
telecommunications revolution predicted in the early 1950’s and continuing today, was to bring the people of the planet
closer. While social scientists and prophets such as Marshall McCluan and Alvin
Toffler offered theoretical models to lay the groundwork, they could not have predicted which tools actually would make
the revolution a reality. Much of what they predicted in their writings has come to fruition. Much of it has not. If there is one prophesy that has come true, it is that technology has revolutionized the way we work,
play and live in the 21st century. With this wave of technology has
come a torrent of information. Data relating to every detail of our lives is
collected, stored sold and distributed, often without our knowledge or consent. Has
this collecting and sharing of intimate details about the individual contributed to shrinking the globe into a Global Village
or reduced it into a Universal Market?
While the transporter
beams of Gene Roddenberry’s Star Trek still exists only in the realm of fantasy, the realities of the internet and digital
satellite communications - unforeseen even in science fiction a few years ago - are impacting our lives. For example, the 2-way video wrist watches of the Dick Tracy comics of the 1930’s once were fodder
for fantasy. Today, the Citizen and Fossil watch companies are marketing personal wireless computers in the form of a wristwatch,
which come close to Chester Gould’s crime-fighting gadgets of the funny pages. From satellite locating systems in passenger cars (known as ONSTAR), to instant access to the wealth of world
stock markets, with a hand-held computer and a wireless connection, the information we have available to us would be astounding
to the social scientists of the 50’s and 60’s. Transponders contained in automated toll taking devices such as
EZ-Pass track the movement of our cars and have been used to collar deadbeat dads
and capture child abductors. Global Satellite Positioning or GPS devices are
now routinely available in cell phones so we will always know our longitudinal and latitudinal location, even though we may
actually, be hopelessly lost.
More
disconcerting may be the amount of personal information available to anyone with the will to seek it out. Concerns about personal privacy are increasing as information is collected, tracked and stored away in
commercial and government databases.
Radio Frequency Identification
A
recent development with implications on individual privacy, is the implementation of technology called RFID. The micro-transmitting
technology is being introduced by commercial retailers such as Wal-mart. The
“box store” chain recently advanced plans to roll out the implanting of Radio Frequency ID chips on merchandise
from their top 100 suppliers. The tiny transmitter (in some forms, no larger
than a grain of rice) transmits a radio signature a short distance giving each sweater or Barbie doll its own unique identifying
code number. The plan is to have the chips eventually replace the familiar bar
codes on price tags, so in theory shoppers could walk out of the store without having to go through a checkout line. The chips would transmit to receivers located at the exit of the store and the cost
would automatically be deducted from their credit card which contains a smart chip with similar embedded proximity technology.
Privacy
advocates have expressed concern regarding the possible misuse of this technology. Clothing
retailer Benetton had announced plans to embed these RFID chips in apparel which would in theory, remain within the article
of clothing until it is destroyed. Critics draw a parallel between real life and fiction, in the 2002 film Minority
Report in which characters walk down a public corridor where the walls
sense the identity of the individual and modify customized advertising projected on the wall, based upon the ID information
contained on embedded chips. Critics envision a scenario where a “smart” sensor at the door a store, welcomes
you back by name, and informs you that the milk you purchased two weeks ago has past its freshness date. More cynical critics point to the cooperative research that Wal-Mart and Proctor & Gamble have conducted
with the US Department of Homeland Security where RFID technology would be used to track consumer patterns and assist in tracking
down terror suspects. The US Department of Defense has required that suppliers for military
units use the technology to facilitate supply lines and track everything from artillery shells to combat rations.
The
anonymity provided through the use of cash in financial transactions may also threatened by the use of RFID technology. Rumors have been circulating for years regarding the European Union and a plan to embed RFID’s in larger denomination Euro bank notes by the end of 2005. The
technology would be used to track money in order to prevent money laundering and other criminal activities. Tests on how the money is tracked is beginning this year with embedded casino chips. Participating casinos
will be able to scrutinize the gambling patters of patrons and prevent theft and counterfeiting, and also allow the m,orte
effective use of complemetary meals, show tickets and hotel rooms for high rollers. However, the technology necessary to place
a sufficiently small and durable RFIDs within paper notes is not yet viable, although the EU has been speaking with the Hitatchi
Corporation which has developed an RFID chip less that a half millimeter wide and one tenth of a millimeter thick.
This
technology has strong proponents who justifiably sing the praises of RFID technology - particularly in medical applications.
In the Singapore
Alexandra Hospital, staff and
patients were given ID cards with embedded chips which monitored the movements and contacts made by caregivers, with patients
diagnosed with Secure Acute Respiratory Syndrome, or SARS. If a new case was
diagnosed, all those who had come into contact with the patient could be immediately identified, tested and treated. In another test application
of the technology in Atlanta and Seattle,
RFID tags are being strategically placed on infirmed seniors and on items in their homes.
By monitoring interactions the seniors have with medicine packages, food containers and by tracking general activity,
researchers are able to detect when a senior forgets to take their medication, or skips a meal. Critics meanwhile, equate this to a form of “digital nannies”. While these pilot programs are completely voluntary, privacy advocates
foresee problems illustrated by a recent internet hoax, which is entirely believable to the gullible and to cynics .
An
internet article which contained the United Press International byline of fictitious writer Jesse Warrens, blandly detailed
the plans that the US Department of Health & Human Services was implementing to implant sub-dermal RFID chips into the
homeless populations of five American cities. The article goes on to explain
that the initiative is designed to track and assist the homeless. Authorities would be able to more efficiently serve mentally
ill intransient with social services, while cutting down on crime and antisocial behavior.
The unverified article - apparently an April Fools hoax - appeared as legitimate news on numerous political and conspiratorial
web sites.
While
forcible implantation of humans is still socially unacceptable, voluntary implementation of human tagging, with sub-dermal
chips for commercial security applications, is a growing business. Implanted RFID’s provide keyless and card-less access
to secure facilities, to only those implanted with authorized RFID’s. The chips are used not only to provide controlled access, but also
to track employees within facilities and to regulate lights and air conditioning. Both
literally and figuratively, this new technology is changing our environment.
Googling in Public
As
of this writing, the founders of the internet search engine Google are taking their company public. The privately held company revolutionized the new business of “information
mining” within the billions of documents on the Web. However controversy is stirring on what Google plans to do with
information gleaned from its users.
The
technology Google uses scans the internet for a word or term a user types into the simple box on the opening Google web page.
Google comes up with matches but also ties the search to a line-up of sponsors who vie to pop up as a “sponsored site”
along with the generic web search. For example, if you type in the word “Las Vegas”, a sponsored site for airlines and hotels which serve
the city may appear as sponsored sites along with other matching web pages. However
if you type in the word “china”, the system doe not know if you mean the Asian nation or dinner plates. Additional words typed in may limit the sponsors to the original intent of the user. Sponsors bid to pay the highest amount to Google, for every time a user clicks on the sponsored site. The new tightly targeted mode of advertising is popular with advertisers because it
closely targets ad dollars with people interested in purchasing their wares. By clicking on the sponsored link, a user expresses
a serious interest in their product and the advertisers dollars are not wasted.
The
new service launched on April 20, 2004, called Gmail uses similar technology to
provide a free email service which allows virtually unlimited memory storage for a user’s email. Google plans on profiting from the free service by scanning the content of user emails for words and terms,
and then matches them with sponsors whose ads appear in a similar fashion to sponsored sites which pop up on the Google search
engine site.
While
similar technology is currently used to scan and delete emails for harmful viruses and unwanted spam messages, the use of
this technology for commercial purposes has drawn the ire of privacy proponents.
One
of the positive elements of Gmail being presented by Google is the amount of storage space available for user messages. The company says that the information in Gmail messages will be stored in perpetuity
- even after a user deleted a message or canceled their account. While confidentiality
is being guaranteed by the management of Google, the existence of the information makes it available in the future for any
entity which gains control of the service. Also, the information is there for subpoenas, court orders and hackers. Assurances that the information will never be read by humans, only by machines, has not allayed concerns.
