Mon, Dec 06, 1999 page2

• Network guru visits quake area

  INTERNET CULTURE In an interview with the Taipei Times, Internet evangelist Geert Lovink -- who is in Taiwan to advise on reconstruction -- defines the importance of `tactical and hybrid media' as a means for people to respond to events taking place around them

  • By Yu Sen-lun / STAFF REPORTER
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  He is the founder of Internet magazines including Nettime and Net Kritik. He was also the organizer of Help B92 -- an Internet campaign that supported the independent radio station B92, in Yugoslavia.

  The Amsterdam-based media critic and Internet activist Geert Lovink is no stranger to controversy.

  His B92 station is still banned by the Yugoslav government, so Lovink and his colleagues use the Internet to transmit messages to BBC satellites, which then broadcast programming back into the country.

  

  PHOTO: CHEN CHENG-CHANG, TAIPEI TIMES

  His other Internet campaign, which is called Mcspotlighting, boycotted McDonalds over its lawsuit against three British men and has had over 70 million hits.

  He is currently visiting Taiwan and has just wrapped up a visit to areas affected by the 921 earthquake where he met with activist groups and participated in an Internet networking project.

  The following is an excerpt of an interview with him.

  TT: What kind of work were you doing during your visit to disaster areas?

  Geert Lovink: It was mainly talking with local activists about building up networks, because there was no flow of information, despite having various groups stationed there. Now, the Internet has the technical tools to organize networks, so we don't have to form a "real" organization. The process of building such networks is very basic but very essential, because the [mainstream] media is not covering much about what's happening in those regions.

  They also need to make long-term plans. Reconstruction work has entered the stage of urban planning, and environmental planning to rehabilitate the local economy. Covering such issues cannot entirely depend on the national media. And a decentralized media network is needed to allow a quick response in the quake regions.

  TT: What are the general characteristics of a campaign using the Internet?

  Lovink: First, it has an archival function, which is to turn research data into information and make it interactive. Second, it can bring together its audience, to organize people faster and over a wider geological reach. Third, it can provide digitized images. The experience of Mcspotlighting is an example. We organized from different parts of the world. Also, in the case of supporting B92, the independent radio station in Yugoslavia, we learnt the Internet can more easily be of help in radio broadcasting.

  TT: You have been setting up radio networks and Internet magazines in Eastern Europe countries, and you also suggested building more Internet networks in disaster areas. But what if people don't use the Internet?

  Lovink: Access to the Internet or computers is not the issue. We are using the terms "tactical media" and "hybrid media." Tactical means choosing the best medium for the local situation. There is no universal concept for what medium to use. In some cases we use radio, while in other cases we use print media or the Internet. It's always a tactical mixture.

  In Puli (埔里), I focused on the infrastructure of media communications, rather than the infrastructure of housing, water supply and electricity.

  Because so much has been destroyed in Puli, it's a ground zero situation, which means people can think about more radical solutions, such as a fiber optical network, cable TV, community centers. I think people can use this situation to make a big leap, simply because all kinds of investment for urban planning will become available anyway. I stress the fact that telecommunications infrastructure is becoming so tightly related to urban planning. It is something people have to fight for and to shape themselves.

  TT: You also visited post-quake Kobe, Japan. Did that provide any good examples of such local media networking?

  Lovink: In the long-term rebuilding process in Kobe, (local) radio played a role, and is now still playing an important role there, because it's cheap and relatively open and democratic. But here, local radio is still lacking. I hope local governments will understand the need and that there will not be too much restriction for setting up radio networks.

  TT: Critics have said Taiwan's social movements are in decline because the social structure has stabilized. How do you see the impact of such networking as a way of social movement?

  Lovink: In the case of the earthquake, people will organize themselves very quickly. I would call it "a movement" rather than just, movement. But it's a people's network, and it can become a tactical network to generate action, especially because the quake regions are quite dispersed and the networks for different and remote areas are essential. The Internet-driven campaign has a big future.

  TT: You are still running several radio stations and Internet magazines, as well as web-casting TV. Are you now shifting your focus to Asian countries?

  Lovink: The Internet culture was developed in the US and in Europe, and a very distinct Internet culture has taken shape. But in Asia, the Internet is still used so much for individual expression. A lot of Internet activities are dominated by businesses and are very much following the American agenda. But in using the Internet for civil society, there are a lot of possibilities.

  Also, many people in the world have their ears open for Asian voices, not just CNN and its agenda.

  TT: What did you think of the protests in Seattle? Was that also an Internet-influenced campaign?

  Lovink: Yes, it was very much an Internet-driven protest. Under the surface of the protest is the tension of globalization. There are people concerned about employee's rights, genetically altered food, the farmers' movement. People have said the protesters were afraid of the future, but they were really just against this very American-dominated type of free trade.

  In fact, those people have plenty of plans for the future. They all use the Internet in one way or another. So it's very narrow to say that protesters were against the future.

  TT: Critics also said the protests reflected that younger generations are trying to find new targets for protest because previous big issues, such as politics and nationalism, are gone. What do you think of such a view?

  Lovink: I remember quite well a 1987 protest that was in Berlin, against the IMF and WTO during their meetings there. And it took so long for people to understand what was at stake in the abstract agreements that were made there. It seemed far away. What we can see over the past ten years is that people understand much better how these large bodies, such as GATT, the World Bank and WTO, directly influence people's lives. These issues have suddenly become visible to many people.

  For example, with the Asian monetary crisis, people here experienced that and so the idea of a monetary system and your own life is directly connected. It is true that people are targeting new agendas, they have sensed something which is quite correct.
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