The Future of Alternative Media?

Authors

  • Linda Jean Kenix University of Canterbury

DOI:

https://doi.org/10.15847/obsOBS512011472

Keywords:

alternative media

Abstract

Alternative media, which have historically been created in explicit opposition to the mainstream, are increasingly drawing from mainstream practices to gain visibility in a crowded media market. However, the nascent field of alternative (or community) media scholarship has not fully embraced the intrusion of mainstream practices nor has scholarship added meaningfully to the debates surrounding future growth possibilities of alternative media within this competitive framework. The paper will apply previous hypotheses and research from the field of alternative media scholarship to a small sample of alternative blogs in New Zealand. The methodological aspects of producing these blogs and their resulting content will be explored against present research in an effort to conceptualize future media formats for the alternative press.

Author Biography

Linda Jean Kenix, University of Canterbury

Dr Linda Jean Kenix's research has traditionally focused on the representation of politically marginalized groups in mainstream and alternative media. Her recent work has broadened to examine how marginalized groups are utilizing various media as a tool for social change. She has published broadly in over 20 international, peer-reviewed academic journals and has presented her research at over 30 international conferences – winning ‘best paper’ awards four times. In 2008, she was awarded a prestigious Erskine Fellowship and placement as a Visiting Research Fellow at Oxford University. She has since been awarded another Visiting Research Fellow position at the University of Cambridge for 2010. She received her Ph.D. from the University of Texas at Austin in 2001. Before coming to the University of Canterbury in New Zealand, she was an Assistant Professor at the University of Minnesota, Twin Cities. She has ten years of professional media experience in different aspects of visual communication.

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Published

2011-03-21

How to Cite

Kenix, L. J. (2011). The Future of Alternative Media?. Observatorio (OBS*), 5(1). https://doi.org/10.15847/obsOBS512011472

Issue

Section

Articles