MediaFest (formerly PodFest) is an annual event where Media and Social Change Lab (MASCLab) members are able to showcase the amazing podcasting and media-making that they do all year. They create interactive exhibits featuring ongoing projects at the intersection of media and social change featuring media production, multimodal scholarship, media and civic engagement research, participatory youth media, and more. This year, MediaFest was hosted on April 26th in the Smith Learning Theater and was attended by students, faculty, alumni, and administration in the MST department and beyond. A few of the exhibits from MediaFest 2024 are recapped here!
One of the MASCLab’s long-term projects, LAMBOOZLED!, displayed their project timeline and gave MediaFest attendees the opportunity to playtest the game. LAMBOOZLED! is a media literacy game set in the fictional sheep town of Green Meadows — where, as the game’s tagline reads, “some news stories just want to pull the wool over your eyes!” Players must help the sheep citizens of Green Meadows figure out what’s true and what’s not, by using their best evidence to win them over. It was originally a deck-building card game, and the team is in the process of developing a digital version of the game. The LAMBOOZED! Team is led by CMLTD Associate Professor Ioana Literat.
MASCLab Post-doctoral Fellow OreOluwa Badaki and CMLTD alum Azsaneé Truss also developed an exhibit showcasing their TC Digital Futures Institute (DFI)-supported podcast, Groovin’ Griot. Groovin’ Griot is a podcast about how we use dance to tell stories. The term “griot” comes from the West African tradition of oral and embodied storytelling. Griots are traveling poets, musicians, genealogists, and historians who preserve and tell stories via a variety of modalities. OreOluwa and Azsaneé’s station featured copies of their zine, as well as content from their past projects which inspired their collaborative podcast.
MASCLab member April Wu also presented her project, “Constructing Online Misogyny.” The project explores the male-dominated Chinese online community Hupu and its users' discussions about the predominantly female-oriented platform Xiaohongshu. April conducted a thematic analysis to investigate how gender imbalances and shared online identities shape discussions and contribute to the formation of a "manosphere" (misogynist Internet space) on Hupu.
Finally, MediaFest 2024 showcased two captivating dance performances and featured videos of MASCLab alumni sharing their favorite memories and aspirations for the lab's future. Attendees also enjoyed slices of the delicious cake celebrating the lab's 10th anniversary. The MST Department is always thrilled about MediaFest, and we eagerly anticipate the event's continued growth!
