A note on the direction of the Tactical Media Group

I've read the last couple of posts with some concern, and thought I would comment on the issue of where the TMG "class" is going.

First of all, as has been pointed out with some regularity, TMG is not a class in the classic sense. It is a "project based learning group" run by Prof. Fred Johnson with some help from me. In the parlance of the College of Public and Community Service, this means that the Community Media and Technology department uses TMG to bring together everyone that needs at least one of three or four competancies on offer in such a way that everyone gets those competancies by the end of 1-4 semesters in the group.

We do this in 3 ways: 1) people do individual projects, 2) people do collective projects, and 3) people attend weekly TMG meetings where there is a mixture of discussion, lecture and presentation on issues relevant to media and telecommunication studies in the early 21st century.

Assignments are generated for TMG in 3 ways as well: 1) individual projects are usually longer-term assignments, 2) collective projects are medium-to-long term assignments, 3) weekly TMG meetings generate some short-term assignments, too, although not every week for every person.

In TMG, we expect you to get a good feel for the state-of-the-art in media and telecommunications technology and policy by the end of your stay with us. We expect you to complete your individual and collective projects. If you are a Community Media and Technology major you will also probably complete your Capstone while with us. We also expect you to pick up some skills that you may not have had a chance to develop in the past--like the ability to run small group meetings, talk in front of a group, read/watch/listen to a wider array of media on a more regular basis, and use collaborative media technology to express your ideas on the web.

We hope that you will emerge from your experience as an engaged and informed media user. . .and producer--although there is only limited stress on production since other classes are periodically available in video and multimedia production. Media is a huge field, and it is understandable that students might feel overwhelmed or confused about where TMG is "going" from time-to-time.

But as one of the previous posters has discovered, TMG goes where each student takes it to some extent. There is an assumption that students in TMG have some interest in the media; so we try to make it possible to pursue that interest within a fairly loose framework.

I would also direct your attention to the statement of purpose on the right-hand side of this blog that was written in TMG in 2005. It says: "The Tactical Media Group was formed in Fall 2005 to promote awareness and understanding of media and technology policy. We will engage area communities through educational initiatives in that arena with an eye towards fostering social activism and using media and technology to help bridge the digital divide."

So there is also the aspiration that people in TMG will create projects and develop skills that will help improve area communities through the use of current media technology--and that you all might get actively involved in the big media policy fights that are in the process of changing the media and telecom landscape in the U.S. and beyond for the next 2 decades.

Still, if people are confused about where they fit in with TMG that's totally fine. Just set up an appointment to talk to Fred, and work out any problems with him. You can also ask me and other classmates question on our listserv--or even here on the blog as people have been doing.

Otherwise, be sure to come to group and project meetings, and try to do your assignments on time. Spend time thinking about what you'd like to do with the technology we expose you to, and how it might be useful in your community.

Everything should become clear over time. And if it doesn't keep engaging the group until it does.

That's it for now. . .

--Jason