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Media Democracy Day Details Announced
Media Democracy Day Details Announced
Media Release
School of Communication, Simon Fraser University
8888 University Drive
Burnaby, British Columbia, V5A 1S6
Contact: Tyler Morgenstern
Cell: (778) 385-8448
Office: (778) 782-7353
mddcoordinator@gmail.com
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE
For the ninth year running, Media Democracy Day (MDD) will spark vibrant, critical,
interactive dialogue around the Canadian media system.
VANCOUVER, B.C.- June 18, 2010- The School of Communication at Simon Fraser
University, co-sponsor Vancouver Public Library (VPL), and coordinating partners
OpenMedia.ca are excited to announce the official date of Media Democracy Day (MDD)
Vancouver 2010. This year’s event will take place November 6 at the Vancouver Public Library,
Central Library.
Since 2001, Media Democracy Day has united and engaged Vancouver-based citizens, cultural
producers, the media, academics, activists, students, and community leaders in a dynamic
discussion of the state of our Canadian media system.
“To assume that we are passive receivers of media messages vastly underestimates audiences
and citizens” said this year’s coordinator Tyler Morgenstern. “Media Democracy Day seeks to
involve us all in the discussion of how media is shaping and influencing the way we see the
world,” he added.
MDD Vancouver 2010 will feature keynote speakers, interactive panels, and hands-on
workshops focused on critical analysis of media policy, citizen and alternative media production,
and the transformation of the media system to make it more diverse and representative of
audiences and communities.
For Morgenstern, these discussions are becoming more urgent: “In the past year, we’ve seen how
media from the margins can change the way we see major world events- think about the Iranian
election or the BP oil disaster. MDD celebrates how alternative and dissenting voices are
creating a richer, deeper view of such events for all of us.”
This year, MDD Vancouver follows on the heels of National Media Education Week, a Canada-
wide initiative to promote media literacy as a key component in the education of young people
by encouraging the practice of media education in Canadian homes, schools and communities.
“Media education is particularly important for young people”, said Dr. Stuart Poyntz, MDD
organizing committee member and assistant professor of Communication at Simon Fraser
University. “Media messages show up in every part of our daily lives. MDD looks at the issues
of power and politics behind all these images, so it’s a great way to show people the back rooms
of a world we take for granted.”
Morgenstern is also excited to revive the long-running partnership between the VPL and the
media democracy community. “MDD is about bringing citizens together in lively conversation
that celebrates learning and transformation, so to have the VPL on board as a co-sponsor is
perfect for this kind of event. We’re very grateful to their programming and management team.”
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