Franklin 1

Jonathan Franklin
September 20, 2015
English 380
Dr. Hall
Project Abstract
For my final project in our New Media Theory class, I am hoping to investigate
and explore into a topic that I consider myself to be very passionate about. Being an
advocate of all things social justice, it was a little difficult to try and narrow down a
specific focus to what I would like to present to the class and submit as my final project
for the course. After careful consideration and where my passions and focus were
generating to, I have decided to center my project on how Black Americans are viewed in
the media and how this has played a role in terms of social justice movements in the
United States otherwise known as the Black Digital Intelligentsia Movement.
I know one may think, Why the Black Digital Intelligentsia Movement? Why not
another movement or another racial group? But in actuality, the way we view certain
racial groups affects our society whether it may be good or bad. Thinking back on the
current events happening in our nation today, it has been the common misconception that
the way we view a certain racial or ethnicity group is all based on what we see in our
media. As funny as that may sound, in actuality it is indeed true. I hope to explore how
exactly the media has an impact on how we, as Americans, view other racial groups in the
United States and how our perceptions may or may not hinder our views. I am also going
to look at how exactly the work of the Black Digital Intelligentsia Movement and the
work Ive done in terms of my personal experience regarding social justice intersect and
how this impacts us as a society.
Additionally, I am hoping to see if these two components are of a larger landscape
that reflects the role of social media and social justice in any way shape or form. One
piece of work that has inspired me to explore more in regards of this topic is the article:
Think Out Loud: The Emerging Black Digital Intelligentsia in which the article
explains how the emerging Black digital intelligentsia has embraced online technology to
change American ideas.
With more research, commitment, and dedication towards this topic, I hope to
present to the class at the end of the semester a quality presentation that will have the
class ponder race in terms of the effects media has on it.