Indymedia in Belgium: the delicate balance between media activism and political activism

Abstract

Belgium was one of the first European countries to establish a local ‘national’ branch of the global Indymedia network. The diversity of those involved in this ‘national movement’ ultimately turned out to be both the strength of the original website and the cause of its decline. Indeed, due to political and organizational disagreement, many activists decided to create their own ‘local’ Independent Media Centre (IMC). This article distinguishes two perspectives on the role of Indymedia: the political activists saw Indymedia as a means to an end, as an instrument to discuss strategies and tactics, and to coordinate social movements and grassroots movements. The media activists, on the contrary, saw Indymedia as an end in itself, as a platform for civil society organizations to make their voices heard and facilitate democratic debate – in this vein, the experience of Indymedia.be was transformed into the alternative news site DeWereldMorgen.be.

The Interpretive Interface: Where Journalistic and Pluralistic Discourses (Don’t) Meet

“…They strive for a "supporting and assertive media policy" and a "pluriform media landscape in which all players are treated equally" (Media21, n.d.). The field of Flemish alternative media recently started to gain more scholarly attention (Van Leeckwyck et al, 2020;Buyens & Van Aelst, 2021;Hendrickx, 2021). However, a systematic comparative investigation of their journalistic styles and forms is lacking.…”