Sean Jacobs, The New School
Sean Jacobs is an academic and researcher. He is an assistant professor of international affairs and chair of the media and culture concentration in the Graduate Program in International Affairs at the New School in Manhattan. Jacobs is the editor of Shifting Selves: Post-Apartheid Essays on Mass Media, Culture and Identity(20) and is currently finishing a manuscript on intersection of liberal democracy, globalization, race politics and mass media in postapartheid South Africa. He was born in Cape Town, South Africa.
Omoyele Sowore, Sahara Reporters
Omoyele Sowore is Nigerian democracy and environmental activist from Nigeria. He currently publishes Saharareporters.com, a popular online magazine that exposes corruption in Africa. Through an innovative participatory journalism model, SaharaReporters pursues transparency, accountability and democratic ethos in Africa’s public and private spheres. The forum’s major aim is to empower all citizens of various African nations to actively demand and defend their democratic rights. Our journalistic mission is to beam a critical searchlight on the people and practices that undermine and subvert the democratic process.
Valentine Eben (aka "Sphinx") IMC-Ambazonia & The Way Forward Network
Valentine Eben (aka Sphinx) is a member of IMC-Ambazonia and serves on the communications committee of "The Way Forward Network," a broad-based anti-colonial movement in the Southern Cameroons. Since 1994, he has worked as an organizer and consensus process trainer in social movements in the Africa, Europe and the US. He is also the writer-director of the 2007 documentary "Standing With the Students" which portrays the anti-colonial movement in Ambazonia universities. He is currently working on a screenplay about the genocide in Rwanda and the assasination of the Anti-aparthied Activists Dulcie September.
Sphinx's work has intersected with the World Social Forum and Indymedia movements, and built bridges between the two. He served as a European No-border Network Organizer and spokesperson at the European Social Forums in Paris (2003) and London (2004), and in 2000, he facilitated the creation of the Indymedia Africa Working group. IMC-Africa has since organized three continent-wide conferences, two of which were held in conjunction with World Social Forums. He is currently leading the coordination of the fourth, to be held in Dakar, Senegal in January-February 2011.
Sphinx is the Editor of the the 2004 organizing manual "The IMC a New Model," and has worked with numerous media activist initiatives, including as coordinator for the Sin Fronteras Media Collective-St. Paul, Minnesota USA (2005-2007), web administrator for the German based International Human Rights Association (2002-2003), and alternative software trainer with the Berlin-based SO36.NET (2001-2004).
Jamie McClelland, May First/People Link
Jamie is the co-director of May First/People Link, a membership organization of progressive groups nationwide who use the Internet. In his capacity of co-director, Jamie does political organizing, systems administration, and support for the members of May First/People Link.
May First/People Link is the result of a merger in 2005 between May First Technology Collective (originally known as Media Jumpstart) and People-Link. Prior to the merger, Jamie was co-founder and co-director of May First Technology Collective, a worker-run nonprofit organization that provided technical support to NYC's social justice movement groups.
Prior to working at May First, Jamie worked at Libraries for the Future network administrator, national Youth ACCESS coordinator, and Information and Technology Policy Specialist. Jamie was formerly on the Board of Directors of Paper Tiger TV where he was an active producer and activist between 1994 and 2004. Previously, Jamie worked as a video instructor for Sidewalks of New York, teaching basic production skills to homeless youth. He also worked as a community organizer for the Association of Community Organizations for Reform Now (ACORN) and was an active member of ACT UP New Orleans.
Mohamed Keita, Committee to Protect Journalists
Mohamed Keita is a freelance writer and the Africa Advocacy Coordinator with the New York-based Committee to Protect Journalists (CPJ), an organization which documents and speaks out against press censorship around the world since 1981. He regularly gives interviews in French and English to international news media on press freedom issues in Africa and has participated in several panels. Follow him on twitter @africamedia_cpj.
