The LAMP (Learning About Multimedia Project)

The LAMP envisions that one day media literacy will be seen as the critical requirement to understanding the world and our place in it. Educated consumers demanding more accountable media will create a ground swell to which media companies will have to respond. As part of this movement, The LAMP works in communities to build healthy relationships with all forms of media. Founded in September 2007 by community organizer D.C. Vito and Katherine Fry, Ph.D., professor of media studies at Brooklyn College, The LAMP has taught over 500 youth, teens, parents and educators. Workshops and events on a variety of media topics are offered at no direct cost to participants through schools and community centers, with students ranging in age from 5 to 65.

Supplementing the mission of The LAMP are five core values. The first is process over product, which speaks to The LAMP’s emphasis that when creating original media, students focus primarily on the process by which media are made rather than the aesthetic quality of the finished product. The LAMP does not exist to create artists, but rather seeks to foster critical thinking. This means that, although projects finished by LAMP students may not be particularly entertaining or have high production values, the important thing is that the students learned hands-on how media messages are created and disseminated. The second core value of The LAMP is that media literacy is a basic need. In a media-saturated environment, the ability to “read” media is just as important as the need for basic reading, math and science skills. The LAMP also believes in freedom from censorship. Rather than encourage the ban of controversial media content, The LAMP wants students to come to their own conclusions about media. Critical curiosity is the fourth value: The LAMP wants its students to keep asking questions about media, and constantly evaluate the information in front of them. Finally, The LAMP values the accessibility of media literacy regardless of socioeconomics, believing that people at every level of income should have the opportunity to gain media literacy skills. Such training should not be restricted to schools with larger budgets, but instead must be made available to all.

The LAMP understands media literacy as a critical tool in an information society, but also within the context of civic engagement. When people appreciate why and how media messages are sent through advertisements, news, film, television, video games, podcasts and more, they are better equipped to evaluate and engage with it. This critical response can take the form of blogging, tuning out negative media, questioning news sources or creating mashups. It may mean making different choices about basic things like clothes and food once we understand the ways in which products are sold to us. Only a media literate public can disavow media messages that are negative or confusing, and demand a media culture which treats its consumers with respect. Media literacy is the key.

Since its first series of workshops in 2007, The LAMP has worked with dozens of public and private schools as well other community organizations. In July of 2009, The LAMP presented LAMPcamp, its first summer program for at-risk teens; in July 2010, LAMPcamp was expanded and offered concurrently at locations in both Brooklyn and The Bronx. To date, the organization has taught over 500 students of all ages in the New York City area. The LAMP prides itself on student diversity; many workshops are multi-lingual, and African-American and Hispanic students comprise over 60% of The LAMP’s student base. As the organization continues to grow in workshop offerings and partners, it hopes to expand its geographic footprint in future years and serve additional cities throughout the United States.