Building Collaboration and Engagement for Media Professionals and Academic Researchers

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The proposed project will create a knowledge exchange network between media professionals and academic researchers, to explore the potential of new forms of public service media, and will explore ways in which academic researchers can utilise new technologies to better disseminate and exchange their research and ideas.Context of the research:New internet-based forms of media are enabling a wider range of voices to participate in diverse and innovative kinds of communication, whilst more traditional media is compelled to adapt to accommodate and complement - or compete with - these new forms. Public service media remains important in that its ethos is to promote communication in the public interest which in turn encourages social cohesion, education, deliberative democracy, and creativity, as part of a functioning civil society. During the twentieth century, Britain's public service broadcasting enjoyed an excellent international reputation. But as broadcasting becomes a smaller part of the media landscape, it is necessary to support new forms of public service media, and media for the public good, in an interdisciplinary way. These developments might come from traditional major broadcasters, or from new grassroots initiatives. A knowledge exchange network is therefore proposed between producers, researchers, and digital media creatives, to help develop this potential. The network builds upon an existing network of media producers and academic researchers which formed under a three-year collaborative research initiative fostered by the Arts and Humanities Research Council (AHRC) and the BBC. What the project will do:1. A six-month feasibility study will be conducted which will provide a 'road map' for a continuing knowledge exchange network between media professionals and academic researchers in the UK. The network will be both online and offline - a social network website, integrated with other networking tools, and supported by face-to-face events. A case study will be included which will aim to illustrate how the new network could assist the development of a 'community of innovation' at Media City, Salford. 2. An existing 'seed' group of 160 producers and academics from the BBC and AHRC collaborative research initiative will be invited to join a new online network built within a premium 'Ning' site (www.ning.com). The basic framework has already been built by us working with BBC developers and designers. The present constituency comprises 60 BBC producers and 100 academics with a large number based in London, but also a good proportion based in the south (Brighton, Bournemouth), the west (Bristol and Cardiff), the north (Manchester and Newcastle) and in Scotland (Glasgow).3. The project will also begin to explore ways in which the network can enhance the capacity of the academic arts and humanities sector to communicate their research interests and findings more effectively with interested parties and potential collaborators, including industry, third sector organisations, government, and the public. Workshops and inspiration events, and a website of positive case studies, would support researchers to use Web 2.0 tools, and other means, to share their research work with wider audiences.The strategic benefit for the UK:Digital media is increasingly important to the UK economy, and in a post-industrial era the relative concentration of creative industries within Britain offers considerable economic dividends. Public service media outlets now include a wide range of companies. Ofcom, the communication and media regulator, is keen to ensure plurality of suppliers for public service media. This aim will be supported by the proposed knowledge exchange network, which will encourage SMEs, larger media outlets and academics from many different disciplines to innovate and collaborate around public service goals.