Alternative media activism: Anybody hearing the audience?

  by Pantelis Vatikiotis Research interest in alternative media has grown considerably over the last two decades in reference to the appropriation of digital technologies for activist purposes, but are we hearing the audience? The use of social media during uprisings sparked across the world in the emblematic year 2011 (Arab Spring, Indignados, Occupy Movement)…

Paying for the Revolution in Monopoly Money

by Julian Gottlieb In my last post for RA, I made the case for movements to be more strategically adaptive; to evolve, pivot on issues, and tinker with new tactics. This may seem a bit obvious; duh! movements have to change with the times and try new tactics when old ones decay in efficacy over…

The Productivity of Protest

by Laura Portwood-Stacer I’m writing this post a few days after the world learned that Donald Trump had won enough electoral votes to become the 45th president of the United States. In the hours following the announcement, those who had feared this outcome (even if they didn’t really expect it) rapidly transitioned from denial to…

UKIP Research and Activism Resources

The European elections are taking place this week. The UK Independence Party (UKIP) has dominated UK media coverage of the elections and is reportedly on track for a landslide victory. However, anti-UKIP activists have also been occupying the media coverage, from Twitter requests to post back UKIP flyers to subverting billboards, creative activist actions have…

Coffee Activism

Eleftheria Lekakis is Lecturer in Global Communications in the School of Media, Film and Music at the University of Sussex. Eleftheria’s research focuses on aspects of global communication which stem from the intersection of politics, economy and culture. This week, Eleftheria Lekakis introduces her new book on Coffee Activism. There are contemporary crises in the…

The Revolutionary Resonance of Praxis: Zapatismo as Public Pedagogy

James Anderson is a Ph.D student in Mass Communications and Media Arts at the Southern Illinois University Carbondale. His interests include social movements, alternative media, Amy Goodman, critical theory, prefigurative politics, horizontalidad, political economy and praxis. This week, James explores the practices of the Zapatista Army of National Liberation. A little over 20 years ago,…

From optimism to delusion: Cyber-technologies, democracy and surveillance

Géraud de Ville is a PhD student at the Open University, Department of Engineering & Innovation. His research focuses on the use of information and communication technologies by indigenous communities in the Guiana Shield. In addition, he is a researcher on the EU-funded @Project_Cobra that uses participatory video and photo to disseminate community-owned solutions for…

In Between Priests and Units: A Manifesto for Education as Labour

Maïa Pal has a PhD in International Relations from the University of Sussex. Her research interests are on the politics and history of international law, extraterritorial property relations and jurisdictional struggles. She is engaged in debates on higher education, and lectures in Sociology at the University of Sussex. This week, Maïa Pal explores the lessons…

“I melt the glass with my forehead”

Joanna Callaghan is a filmmaker and Senior Lecturer in Film Production at the University of Sussex. This week, Joanna shares her documentary  “I melt the glass with my forehead”. The film made in collaboration with Martin McQuillan explores the state of higher education in the wake of the introduction of £9,000 tuition fees. In the autumn of…