Can Media and Technology Help Make “Another World Possible”? Reflections from the Media@McGill Research Delegation to the 2015 World Social Forum in Tunisia

This research-in-brief summarizes activities of our research delegation to the 2015 World Social Forum (WSF) in Tunis, including our participation in two associated events: the World Forum on Free Media (WFFM) and preparatory meetings for an eventual global Internet Social Forum (ISF). The WFFM and ISF provided rich terrain for our delegation to document and study contemporary struggles around communication media and technology issues. We report on these encounters as a way to foreground the many similar opportunities available to Canadian media, communication, and technology scholars at annual WSFs, in particular, the WSF coming to Montreal in August 2016. Notably, the 2016 WSF will be the first forum held since its inception in 2001 outside the global south. Ce texte resume les activites de notre delegation de recherche lors du Forum social mondial (FSM) de Tunis. Ces activites incluaient notre participation a deux evenements associes : le Forum mondial des medias libres (FMML) et des rencontres preparatoires pour un eventuel Forum social d’Internet (FSI). Ces rencontres ont constitue de riches terrains pour documenter et etudier les luttes contemporaines concernant les medias et la communication. Ce compte-rendu vise a faire connaitre aux medias et aux chercheurs canadiens les multiples opportunites offertes lors des forums sociaux annuels, en particulier lors du prochain Forum social mondial qui se deroulera a Montreal en aout 2016. Ce forum sera le premier a se derouler a l’exterieur du Sud global depuis sa creation en 2001.