Journalism, Public Knowledge and Social Progress

• In Event: Global Interventions in Communication Policy, Rights, and Justice: Reflections on the International Panel on Social Progress

Abstract

HERMAN WASSERMAN will discuss journalism and public knowledge as a key way in which the media can contribute to social progress over the long-term. The term ‘public knowledge’ refers to the resources that citizens have for forming informed opinions about matters of public and general interest. Journalism has for centuries been a key institutional form for disseminating such knowledge. The importance of public knowledge for democracy and social progress, the special functions of journalism and journalistic practice, and threats to public knowledge will be discussed.New forms of journalism and citizen media as opportunities for public knowledge will be highlighted.

Author

• Herman Wasserman, U of Cape Town