Media in Action: A Field Scan of Media & Youth Organizing in the U.S.

Global Action Project's mission is to work with young people most affected by injustice to build the knowledge, tools, and relationships needed to create media for community power, cultural expression, and political change. Founded in 1991, Global Action Project has provided media-arts and leadership education for thousands of youth living in underserved communities across New York City and the country.

From 2012-2015, Global Action Project, Data Center and Research Action Design conducted a national research project—Media in Action: A Field Scan of Media & Youth Organizing in the U.S. The project sought to understand how youth organizers are using media to advance social justice and movement-building work throughout the United States. Our research documents how and why youth organizers are using media for organizing, framing community stories, and conducting media analysis. The Field Scan illustrates that media must be a well integrated means by which youth—in structured, purpose-driven contexts—can change discourse through artistry, political knowledge, personal/community-based experiences, and engagement in movements for justice.

We hope this data will support youth, organizers, funders and allies to understand, as well as generate new ways to respond to/increase the scale and impact of youth-led work on the ground. We recognize that those who are most impacted by the issues we discuss here are the experts on the subject, and they are transforming the world around us.

The Field Scan is available for FREE download either as high resolution web format here or suitable for printing here. In exchange, we ask you to please sign up for GAP's email list on their homepage!