What is alternative Media

Alternative media is any media that understands and service a particular social group. There are many social groups that the mass media marginalized them specially new Americans. A people who claims they are US citizens but do not have equal rights with other born US citizen. These new Americans majority of them are speaks and understands ethnic languages than English. There is no way they can get most basic civic information from the mass media. As result, alternative media is best choice.

Empowering

New Americans needs means to communicate and medium that they can exchange information for basic needs. There are many things they need to know their newly adopted country and their local community. They need to know where they can enroll their youngest to schools. How to find a jobs, hospitals if any of their family members is sick. They need legal assistance for the housing and other public services. Everyone of one of these needs requires outreach.

The outreach is an informational exchange among the community that encourages the community to empower itself all the needed information in order every member of the community help his or herself. This community outreach helps both community advocate and the community itself into two unfold ways. First it will empowers the community to adopt do it yourself attitude. Second it will help the community advocates have more time to spend finding other ways they can help their community. The other ways could be a website, radio or newsletter that address most needed information for the community.

Communication, information, outreach emperor's the new Americans to address their problems. They need media that represents them that talks their local language. The mass media won't address their problems because mass media do not understands their daily problems. What they need is that an alternative media whether it is ethnic, community, citizens or diversity media that understands their needs and service their needs.

Outreach

The best way to outreach the new comers is to publish a less cost media like newsletter. There less cost technology that can make easy to produce newsletter. One of these technology is simple compose the raw material with Microsoft Word then sent to the printshop to publish. Nevertheless, it won't that be easy but there will be lot of work need to be done. For instance, contents should be ready in written form. There must be some arts be done like logo and graphic arts and so on.

Information

There is no community in US a community that inneed an information than new comers like Somali community here Boston and near cities and towns in Massachusetts. There is lot of people do not have the basic information such as where they can apply food stamp and where they do bring there youngesters when they come in the country. This people media that were written their first language to communicate with them. This media must be simple, easly accessable and less cost.

Communication

Community building starts with communication. When the community or community activist communicates well with each other community building will become easy and smooth. However, this communication will not happen unless the inside communication within the person happens. The fact of the matter is that human brain has two sides that suppose to communicate well but somehow this does not happen. There are many reasons why they do not communicate well but the important thing is that it will learn to communicate if it give chance to communicate.

Element of the Trade

Every trade has its element and the basic element of worldviews are myth, ideal, realty and civic. Every worldview has these basic units whether it is old, early, middle or new. The differences of these worldviews are how they relate or connect to these elements and how they disintegrate or alienate among the elements. If any one of these elements is missed or ignore there will be an inclination. For instance, myth is important for production of idea to create values that became ideal to deal with the reality in order to be a civil person. In this way, the new worldveiw integrates all these elements to create civil communities or societies. To realize this community building, utilizing the media and information technology is very important first to educate second to empower then advocate for the community .