Re: [-empyre-] we do what we call ...

s|a|m <sam@myspinach.org> · Sun, 6 Jun 2004 11:16:52 +1000

hi boat person and everyone :-)

happy world environment day!

i don't think it's useful re-thinking new terms. 'culture jamming' 
and 'tactical media' create a certain image that's very useful. a 'culture 
jammer' is a much nicer term than 'temporary vandal' :-) but i think its 
important to ensure that the activity that comes under these terms are kept 
going - not disrupted by international travel and speech preparations... i 
guess those who are actually doing it don't really think about the end point.

speaking of end points, no doubt everyone now knows about CAE and the FBI. 
just a reminder about a small incident that happened in Sydney on the 17 March 
2003. but i don't think dave and will are in to bio-tech art - though its 
another interesting example of tactical media / culture jamming ...

http://www.sydneyoperahousenowarcleanupfund.org/

it'd be interesting for people on the list to consider the current terrorism 
laws in australia. if you create art works, or put out a call for action (like 
for the september 11 protests back in september 2000) - could they ever be 
classed as provoking terrorism or harming national security (by harming 
economic security maybe?). it does come down to intepretation i guess.

- sam :-)

Quoting Boat People <io@boat-people.org>:

> this is just a little aside to say that in the boat-people group there 
> are folk who totally love the idea that what we do could be called 
> 'tactical media', which sounds so fancy, and others (well, at least 
> one) who's attached to the term 'culture jamming'  to describe what 
> we do,  and that we have variously tried on the words 'cultural 
> interventionists' or 'art activists' and ponced about thus arrayed. 
> 
> But this member of the boatie group thinks that the disputed 
> territories of kinds of art &/or politics & the borders between them, 
> and the defenders thereof are beside the point entirely of what 
> interests me in doing what we do. 
> 
> 
> 
> > and hi from me.
> > 
> > I'm from the mob at http://www.escapefromwoomera.org
> > 
> > I'm glad Sam raised the spectre of tactical media, because it's a 
> term 
> > that has on occasion been applied to our project.
> > 
> > My perspective on the this subject is that of someone who's 
> been out of 
> > established art circles and academia, and spent all my adult life 
> > hanging out with old left activist hacks (which i guess i classify 
> as 
> > now). 
> > 
> > >From the outside, it seems to me that not so long ago art that 
> was 
> > unapologetically political was considered rather naive and 
> decidely 
> > uncool, and would attract no small amount of po-mo sneering. 
> But now, 
> > radical political art seems to be considered hip in the art world 
> > again. It's been rebranded with a new name, and not only that - it 
> even 
> > makes the bold claim to function as a form of political 
> > action: "tactical media activism". I think this turn is generally a 
> > positive sign, and very heartening. But one has to ask (again, 
> from the 
> > outside)- how long will this last? How much of this is based on 
> > curatorial trends and how much on genuine political 
> commitment? More of 
> > the latter, I hope.
> > 
> > When I started to hear the phrase about the place it reminded 
> me of a 
> > similar sounding term that has also been used with great 
> > enthusiasm: "Non-Violent Direct Action Tactician". This term 
> seemed to 
> > become extremely fasionable for a time in some of the 
> campaigns i was 
> > involved in a while ago (it probably always was, and probably still 
> is 
> > in some narrower circles). "NVDA Tactician" for short. I 
> remember that 
> > leading up to s11 (the blockade of the World Economic Forum in 
> > Melbourne) everyone seemed to be running around either trying 
> to find 
> > one, claiming to be one, or arguing over just exactly what *is* 
> one. 
> > Regardless, everybody seemed convinced that it was 
> inadvisable to be 
> > seen in public without one.
> > 
> > I'm probably in danger of exaggerating here, but Tactical Media 
> > Activism seems to me to be a phrase that's applied to almost all 
> > political "new media" projects these days. However, from what 
> i've read 
> > (which is by no means a comprehensive survey of what's been 
> written) 
> > the original meaning behind the term is actually quite specific.
> > 
> > We were invited to present at the Next Five Minutes festival of 
> > tactical media in Amsterdam last year - which was a very 
> rewarding and 
> > heartening experience for us. But based on what I understand to 
> be the 
> > original definition of TMA, I would imagine Escape From 
> Woomera would 
> > be classified by TMA theorists as a piece of what they call old-
> > fashioned "strategic media", based on the context and intent of 
> its 
> > development. We as game developers are concerned with the 
> development 
> > of a form of independent media, rather than creating a rapid 
> response 
> > style reaction. We choose the game medium strategically (ie as 
> game 
> > developers, game development for most of the team is our 
> means of 
> > expression in the long term) rather than tactically (ie choosing 
> the 
> > medium for conjunctural reasons). 
> > 
> > Well anyway, there's a very pragmatic evaluation of how I think 
> EFW 
> > sits in relation to tactical media activism.
> > 
> > But from a more personal perspective, there are some 
> underlying 
> > political premises motivating some threads of the media activist 
> > movement (if it's not oppressive of me to lump everyone in 
> together 
> > like that ;) ) - in particular the Critical Art Ensemble - that are at 
> > odds with my particular take on the world.
> > 
> > k
> > 
> > > hi also,
> > > 
> > > i too am honoured to be invited :-) though i am not sure what 
> > contribution i 
> > > can make here.
> > > 
> > > maybe the following:
> > > 
> > > * tactical media is the cry/hype that occurs between the clicking 
> and 
> > > releasing of a mouse click
> > > 
> > > * tactical media gets you invited to conferences around world
> > > 
> > > * tactical media gets you guest lecturer spots 
> > > 
> > > * tactical media helps your career path
> > > 
> > > * tactical media helps sell books
> > > 
> > > * clap for tactical media. cluck for activism. clop for boredom.
> > > 
> > > see ya, sam :-)
> > > 
> > > ps. i started up and continue to run the myspinach server 
> (which is 
> > very very 
> > > different to the spinach7 magazine) ... click for background: 
> > > http://www.myspinach.org/sam/spinhistory.html
> > > 
> > > 
> > > 
> > > On Thursday 03 June 2004 17:20, Boat People wrote:
> > > > greetings to the Empyre list.
> > > > Boat-people.org are honoured to be invited.
> > > >
> > > > I thought I'd start by saying that our bio statement originally 
> said
> > > > that our work has encompassed sending online instructions 
> for
> > > > 'subversive, er, origami'.
> > > >
> > > > That 'er' is critical to our understanding of ourselves: we wish 
> we
> > > > could claim with zero irony to be deadset subversive, but we 
> can't.
> > > >
> > > > The boat-people crew rack our collective brains for ways to 
> talk
> > > > back to the miasma of mendacity characterising public life 
> here in
> > > > australia; how to be antidotes to amnesia, how to illuminate 
> the
> > > > lies & what they obscure, how to mobilise wit, passion & 
> creativity
> > > > to undermine the empires' rule over us... and everything we 
> come
> > > > up with is gestural, symbolic, frail at best.  It blows away.
> > > >
> > > > We wish it were possible to 'click for activism'.
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > >
> > > > _______________________________________________
> > > > empyre forum
> > > > empyre@lists.cofa.unsw.edu.au
> > > > http://www.subtle.net/empyre
> > > 
> > > -- 
> > > 
> > > 
> > > _______________________________________________
> > > empyre forum
> > > empyre@lists.cofa.unsw.edu.au
> > > http://www.subtle.net/empyre
> > > 
> > > 
> > 
> > --
> > "I am in command - obey me and be free! You are free to go!"
> > - The Prisoner 
> > 
> > _______________________________________________
> > empyre forum
> > empyre@lists.cofa.unsw.edu.au
> > http://www.subtle.net/empyre
> > 
> > 
> 
> -- 
> http://www.boat-people.org/
> _______________________________________________
> empyre forum
> empyre@lists.cofa.unsw.edu.au
> http://www.subtle.net/empyre
> 