The Digital Toolkit – Learning to share, sharing to learn
It seems that you can't open a paper or a magazine these days, or turn on the radio or the TV, without Digital Al, the cute cartoon robot, reminding you about digital switchover. If you only watch, read and listen, you have another excuse to buy more stuff – flat-panel high definition screens, set-top boxes, digital recorders and all the associated paraphernalia. But if you’re working in the media, ‘going digital’ can mean that your world is turning upside down.
Instead of the rigorous demarcation lines that used to exist in the media, the spread of digital technologies into every aspect of communications and entertainment means that writers are expected to take photographs and shoot video, while film-makers and photographers are expected to write blogs or news stories, and everyone is expected to run their own website and use social networks like Facebook and Twitter.
The digitisation of practically everything seems to be re-fashioning the media as a bland multi-platform porridge - write a story, make a film of the story, blog about the film, add pictures to your blog, create a podcast about the blog, publish excerpts from the blog, make a film of the excerpts, turn the film into a game, and tweet about everything you do.
The pressure for those who work in journalism, broadcasting and the theatre to submit to this new vision of media production is real and growing.
So, when the Federation of Entertainment Unions (FEU) in the North West decided to follow-up its successful 2008/09 training courses for media freelances, coming up with a new programme was a bit of a no-brainer.
The 5 FEU affiliates involved - BECTU, the union for workers in the audiovisual industries, the NUJ, for journalists, the MU for musicians, Equity for performers and the Writers Guild of Great Britain - had plenty of experience of how many media workers were disadvantaged by the unavailability of training in new technologies. A survey confirmed members' wishes to learn how to make use of the digital revolution.
The need was heaviest among freelances; without supportive employers or employment rights, keeping up to speed with new technologies is often a real struggle. In industries increasingly reliant on freelance labour, this situation is deplorable. Media unions have had to take on the responsibility of responding to this state of affairs.
The NW TUC's Learning and Skills for All Fund (LSfAF) agreed and, in April 2009, the FEU in the North West launched its series of 'Digital Toolkit'training days (DTK) with help from the fund. The series features eight courses, run over a year, giving media freelances a basic introduction to the latest tools of their trade - building a website using an off-the-shelf software package called 'Mr Site', using the internet for essential research, writing for websites, promotion and marketing with Twitter, Facebook and other social networking sites, and uploading sound and video podcasts to showcase work.
To date, demand for the courses has been high. The organisers believe that the programme has been a timely response to the turmoil of the media job market. Established freelances, looking to ease their introduction to often intimidating technologies, have welcomed the courses and praised their level and content. "It equipped me with the basics," said one, "so that I can continue on my own." But the courses have also helped new, and sometimes enforced, freelances to survive. "After redundancy," commented BECTU member, Annette Rimmer, "these courses have saved my life! Thanks a million."
The organisers' experience of running an earlier LSfAF programme has allowed them to develop a winning recipe, combining timely topics with expert tuition in a friendly package. "The pace of the course was excellent," said NUJ member, Louise Cahill. "The tutor [was] approachable and helpful." And because the DTK typically involves learners with very different media backgrounds and skills, the courses provide abundant opportunities for useful and enjoyable networking.
'Sharing' is the key - tutors share their technical knowledge, learners share their real-life experiences. This is too good a recipe to abandon - digital media still has some way to go and the need for training among media workers will only grow. Unions working together have unrivalled access to the knowledge and expertise required to make that training really effective.
