Seize the Media

Website


The london.indymedia website, archived by Activist Media Project is a good example of a local IMC which ran 2008-2012. The website was built by its users through the hyperactive software code (the link will enable you to explore some of the background work and ambition of the project, as well as some of the unrealised aspects of the website's functionality). It was an interface ahead of its time with tagging, an open-source video player, a calendar, even mobile versions of the site and capability for mobile uploading, SMS updates etc.

The introduction to the website is a good starting point to its ethos. The two main types of users/posters were individuals and groups. The two main types of posts were articles and events, which meant that the efforts of users were mainly centered around organising and promoting actions/events/protests and the reporting and commentary from and about those events. This dynamic relationship between the two neatly encapsulates the slogan 'BE THE MEDIA' by removing the barrier between media makers and social justice makers.

You can browse the website interface and content here: london.indymedia. Below is a whistlestop tour of the front pages of the site. By jogging through various captures of the website through Archive.org we wanted to illustrate some of the changes in the look as well as some of the promoted headlines. In the other sections of the exhibition you can look at examples of some of the content that was published through the UK Indymedia network.