Carleton’s School of Journalism and Communication will officially launch a new research centre Nov. 9 aimed at expanding the media in places that have undergone dramatic change affecting media development.
The formal launch of Carleton’s Centre for Media and Transitional Societies (CMTS) is organized by professor Allan Thompson, who also spearheaded the Rwanda Initiative. CMTS plans to expand on the initiative, a program started in 2006 that has sent more than 50 Carleton students to Rwanda on media internships.
According to former Rwanda Initiative intern Amy Dempsey, the project was an important factor for at least half of her classmates when it came to choosing Carleton.
Thompson said he agrees with this.
“There’s a real appetite at Carleton among students, not just to learn about things like Rwanda but to get involved.”
He said that CMTS would provide students with the chance to apply their classroom education abroad, an opportunity unique to Carleton.
The strong interest among students and the lack of internship opportunities in Rwanda is a driving force behind the centre.
CMTS hopes to be as successful as the initiative but in different ways. Whereas the Rwanda Initiative was mostly operational, CMTS hopes to include a focus on research, publications and organizing conferences, panel discussions and guest speakers.
CMTS will seek to expand media development in societies that currently lack stable media institutions — in Rwanda’s case, the 1994 genocide deteriorated the country’s media, prompting the creation of the initiative.
CMTS is still determining what other countries might be available for placements.
The funding for the centre will be sought out for the variety of projects they undertake. The radio research project started by CMTS is funded by the International Development Research Centre (IDRC), a government organization dedicated to helping developing countries use science and technology to overcome social, economic and other problems.
Part of the internship program is funded by the Reader’s Digest Foundation for internships, but the bulk of the cost still requires funding.
The centre plans to send out the first interns this summer, but the number of placements available will not be determined until 2010, when they hope the remaining funding will be sorted out.
The Rwanda Initiative opportunities have mostly been geared towards journalism and communications students. Whether CMTS will allow other majors to participate will depend on internship opportunities and funding.
“There is no reason why it should be limited to students of a specific faculty. It’s really a question of what people have to offer and what experience they bring to the table,” Thompson said.
The centre’s opening will be Nov. 9 at 4 p.m. at the Carleton University Art Gallery in St. Patrick’s Building.