The Union for Democratic Communications, Project Censored, and the Park Center for Independent Media, in a spirit of collaboration and coalition-building, seek to bring together activists, artists, researchers, and legislators to foster critical approaches that support reimagining an infrastructure rich in equitable and democratic possibilities, where a healthy media ecosystem can thrive. We invite communication researchers, journalists, cultural producers, policy analysts, academics, and activists. Our theme: Media, Press Freedom, and Cultural Production in an Authoritarian Age.
Founded in 1976, Project Censored celebrates its 50th Anniversary in an era of misinformation, where press freedom and media independence are under unprecedented attack. At this critical juncture, Project Censored’s advocacy for freedom of the press, media literacy, and critical thinking, and the Union for Democratic Communications’ critical analysis of communications industries and the fight to democratize them are more crucial than ever. Together, we are proud to co-host the conference “Media, Press Freedom and the Fight for Democracy in an Authoritarian Age,” October 22-24th.
We have worked to overcome concentrated political-economic power in order to contribute to a world based on economic justice, equality, and peace. Project Censored, founded in 1976, has made its mission to expose and counteract modern-day censorship. Launched in 2008, the Park Center for Independent Media at Ithaca College is a national center for the study of independent media focusing on news outlets that create and distribute content outside of corporate systems. Together, UDC, Project Censored and the Park Center for Independent Media hope to contribute to a more democratic society and world by sharing our scholarly and activist projects.
UDC and Project Censored conferences have long spotlighted the march toward totalitarianism--we now find ourselves in it. The historical present is marked by an expansion of violent imperialism and genocide, accelerating climate and ecological crises, the silencing and criminalization of dissent, censorship and government control over the press, the globalized spread of mis- and disinformation, and a pandemic spread of oligarchic capitalism.
All this is being sustained by an oligopolistic media system whose ready acquiescence to the Trump regime’s preferences reflects that our communications channels have been co-opted to support an increasingly repressive state. Government interference in free speech and media autonomy is no longer covert, as the U.S. president regularly threatens media outlets, creatives, and journalists critical of his administration. An increasingly consolidated industry has enormous interest in serving the political aims of authoritarian governments in the US and abroad, as mergers have wrought historic levels of consolidation of media power and wealth at a global scale.
Our shrinking media ecosystem has led to a drastic shift in which voices are considered prominent and whose voices count and matter. It has become increasingly difficult to garner visibility through algorithmic bias and inequity. Privilege has unfairly been afforded to content that promotes increased levels of hate, violence, and division. Content from independent news outlets reporting critically on issues of war and peace, civil liberties, economic inequality, racial and gender oppression, and environmental degradation is being greylisted or blocked entirely. Meta, TikTok, Google, and Amazon, among others, continue to be vehicles that enable the few to hold the majority in this bid for control. Platforms that were championed as arenas for social gathering and understanding have now been co-opted as agents under an authoritarian regime.
Media platforms are increasingly central to shaping contemporary political discourse and are not neutral actors but remain embedded within capitalist, elite-dominated political-economic systems. As such, these infrastructures enable reactionary political projects and the circulation of extremist content, leading to further societal division. These tech monopolies have contributed significantly to sowing the seeds of discord, distrust, and discontent.
Through these attacks, we continue to see the decimation of public trust and the erosion of democracy through the erasure of local stories and voices and the muzzling of the press. This has produced what Naomi Klein describes as a “mirror world”: a parallel version of our reality, where distrust of institutions and authority is mobilized in the service of authoritarian interests. As mainstream and publicly funded media outlets and the legacy press are decimated, independent media is more important than ever. However, the mirror world presents challenges to the definition and political implications of “independent media.” The spaces for distribution, such as YouTube, Instagram, and TikTok are owned by reactionaries, and algorithmic logics work in the interest of the Silicon Valley techno-fascists to incubate far-right subcultures and figures.
Now, we must ask: how do we protect what is left of democratic communication[s]? How do we sustain our social movements in the fight of/for our lives?
More information on our co-sponsors Project Censored and the Park Center for Independent Media by clicking on their links.
