About the CMAQ

Here you will find all background information regarding the CMAQ: its history, global mission, editorial policy, specific mandates of its various committees, etc.

CMAQ's editorial policy

We consider that by publishing on the CMAQ's site, collaborators tacitly accept that their articles and other submitted documents can be freely reproduced by other alternative media, provided the author's name is mentioned.

The contributors, and only the contributors, are responsible for the content of their submissions. The content of articles and other documents does not obligate the CMAQ in any way.

Submissions which do not respect the Editorial Policy will be rejected.
Rejected submissions are viewable in this section.

In cases of sexism, racism, homophobia, hate-mongering propaganda, defamation, or threats, the relevant submissions or comments will no longer be freely accessible. Abuses of this nature can be reported by writing to infocmaq.net.

Comments made regarding submissions are also bound by the Editorial Policy, and must be respectful towards other users. Comments which contravene these rules will be deleted.

The following Editorial Policy text was adopted [in its French-language form] on September 1st, 2002 by the members of the Collective who participated in the first CMAQ "Jamboree", held at Val-des-Lacs, Québec.

I. Definition and goals of the CMAQ

The CMAQ is as much a meeting point in physical space as it is a virtual platform for the exchange of alternative and independent information. It aims to be a true embodiment of democracy by encouraging citizen involvement through -- and for -- the re-appropriation of information.

The CMAQ belongs to the Indymedia network (learn more about Indymedia) and supports the philosophy of Open Publishing.
However, since its beginnings, the CMAQ Collective chose -- as opposed to the rest of the network -- to function using a validation system for its submissions, which disqualifies submissions that transgress its Editorial Policy. Material submitted to the CMAQ is thus validated by a Committee BEFORE rather than AFTER its publication online.

The selection is determined according to a set of criteria resumed in the CMAQ's Editorial Policy.

This choice stems from of a concern for rigour and a will to insure the cohesion of the site.

The validation system effectively allows to:

• manage the revision, organisation, classification and coherence of the information;
• avoid the pitfalls of overly lax publishing ;
• guarantee the transparency of the editorial process;
• allow for non-hierarchical, collective-based functioning and maximal democratisation of the validation process (the Validation Committee is open to any user who wishes to participate in it. Responsibility for the process is thus shared by a community rather than by an individual or a closed, restricted group);
• maintain a link of trust at the heart of a broad users' community thanks to the horizontality of the decision-making process.

Any material which does not meet the requirements defined in the Editorial Policy is excluded from the main categories listed on the main page, but remains accessible to users via the "Hidden Zone" (Dungeon).

Any exclusion must be justified explicitly by a comment appended to the submission, which is then redirected to the Dungeon, and by an explanatory letter to the contributor (if a return address is known for the latter).

The contributors, and only the contributors, are responsible for the content of their submissions.

II. Validation Process: Refusal Criteria

1. Absence of pertinence

The pertinence of a submitted document is evaluated according to whether it presents perspectives of social transformation and / or promotes Social Justice.

Privileged themes are, for example:

• globalisation and its many repercussions
• free trade economics
• resistance and opposition to injustice
• popular mobilisations
• the environment
• the development of alternative economic models (for example, promotion of free software, fair trade, or participatory economics)
• values of equity and solidarity
• culture as a means of civic involvement
• ...

It should be clear that any promotional material of a commercial nature (with the goal of making profit) AND that which has no clear link to the promotion of social justice will be rejected to the Dungeon.

Open publishing philosophy predominates: when in doubt, we publish.

2. Material of a defamatory nature

Any material of an insulting, sexist, racist, homophobic, or hateful (i.e. inspired by and / or inciting to hate) nature will be rejected to the Dungeon.

In order to agree on a consensual definition, the validators will refer to the definitions of the above terms as they appear in dictionaries.

Open publishing philosophy predominates: when in doubt, we publish.

3. Copyright violations

Because open publishing philosophy is inherent to the CMAQ, it is most often extremely difficult to insure the protection of author's rights for submitted material.

In the sole case of the obvious violation of a document's copyright, the document is submitted as a link.

The CMAQ strongly advises its contributors to remain vigilant on the issue of copyrights and, when in doubt, to submit an URL with a concise summary of the document.

Furthermore, it may be considered, on a voluntary and non-systematic basis, that the validator ask the author of submitted material for agreement regarding publication of the latter on the CMAQ's site.

Open publishing philosophy predominates: when in doubt, we publish.

4. Illegibility / unintelligibility of material

The contributors, and only the contributors, are responsible for the content of their submissions.

Submissions which are graphically meaningless (e.g. edfgub0rwivn-wrf20tkbçvpl3t) will be relegated to the Dungeon.

Spelling and syntax

Insofar as the text is legible, the validator reserves the right to correct flagrant spelling errors.

It is not permitted for the validators to change other than minor syntax errors, if and only if the corrections made do not modify the meaning or integrity of the text in any way.

Insofar as the text is illegible because of extremely deficient spelling and / or syntax (i.e. that which is judged to possibly impede the comprehension of the content or the transmission of information), the validator reserves the right to:

• communicate with the contributor, if a return address is known, so as to explain the reasons for refusal and discuss with him / her in what way the document can be corrected prior to publication;
• if it is impossible to communicate with the contributor (as in the case of an anonymous submission or an inoperable e-mail address), the refusal must be explicitly justified with a commentary appended to the rejected submission, in the Dungeon.

5. Duplication

In cases of documents which have previously been submitted (whether under an identical title or a different one), the validator adds the term [DUPLICATA] to the text and rejects the submission to the Dungeon.

III. Validation Process: Instructions

In order to insure maximum transparency for the validation process, we reproduce below the main instructions to be followed by members of the Validation Committee. You may also consult the "Validator's Manual", which contains examples and details for every instruction.

1. Communicating with the Validation Committee

A validator confronted with a document whose pertinence cannot be established and whose non-defamatory character is unobvious, or one who is tempted to refuse validation of a copyright-protected document, may refer, on a voluntary basis, to the opinion of the Validation Committee.

Any exclusion must be justified explicitly by a commentary appended to the submission, which is then redirected to the Dungeon, and by an explanatory letter to the contributor (if a return address is known for the latter).

2. Correction of factual errors

Certain factual errors can find their way into submissions. For example, names or dates could be erroneous, citations could be misattributed, counts could be over- or under-valued, etc.

• insofar as the information is verifiable and the error correctable, the validators reserve the right to make the necessary corrections, by appending an explanatory comment to the submission, listing the source of the correction;
• in cases where the information is difficult to verify (for example when dealing with a crowd count), the CMAQ defers to its "notice of dissociation", namely: that the contributors, and only the contributors, are responsible for the content of their submissions;
• whenever it is possible, the validators should always contact the collaborators to inform them of corrections they make. Otherwise, all corrections must be explicitly justified with a commentary.

3. Layout and re-classification

The validators reserve the right to:

• improve a submission's layout if it impedes its legibility (for example, long spaces in between paragraphs, fragmented paragraphs, etc.)
• modify a title for practical reasons (for example, when the title is too long, or not representative of the content, or absent altogether, etc.)
• add, rectify, or shorten the text of a summary (while accounting for the way it represents the content) if a submission is to be made part of the headlines
• reclassify a submission into one or another theme or category, as appropriate, depending on its content
• reduce the "weight" of a photographic document deemed too "heavy"

The validators are not obliged to notify the contributor regarding these types of modifications.

4. Communicating with contributors

The CMAQ's site allows contributors to submit material on an anonymous basis, without a return address. However, this possibility raises potential problems in the case of a refusal to validate.

• in cases where communication with the collaborator is impossible, the validators must systematically justify any rejection or modification by using the comment module;
• a rejected submission will remain accessible in the "Dungeon" section, with a justification for its refusal appended as a comment.

The CMAQ strongly encourages its contributors to create a user name and supply a valid return address. This will resolve the communication problem.

IV. Headline Selection and Management

In order to insure a greater diversity of methods and viewpoints, headlines are collectively chosen and managed by members of the Validation Committee.

1. Selection criteria

Headline selection criteria are as follows:

• Documents presented as headlines must always be related to current events.
• Documents pertaining to large mobilisations taking place, by order of priority, in Québec, in Canada, in the Americas, and elsewhere in the world will be highlighted.
• No category is formally excluded from the headlines. However, "communiqués" should rarely be made into headlines, and submissions from commercial press should be extremely rare in the headlines (such a selection should be justifiable through other pertinent selection criteria).
• Hence, the order of priority for headline selection is as follows:
  • I. Newswire / Analyses
  • II. Communiqués
  • III. Commercial press
• The other selection criteria are originality, diversity of sources, opinions and topics, as well as the overall quality of the document.

2. Headline dynamics

The Content Committee favours the pertinence of documents used as headlines while encouraging, as much as possible, a frequent -- even daily -- rotation of material appearing on the front page.

CMAQ's global mission

Quebec's Centre for Media Alternative is a physical meeting point and a virtual platform for independent and alternative information.

1. To break with conformity: a convergence for alternative media and independent journalists

By forging a partnership network with other local and national media organisations which, just like us, think information should be freed from the mass media’s rigid models, CMAQ wishes to consolidate and enlarge the scope of the independent media community in Quebec. Further, CMAQ is open and eager for any kind of services exchanges with independent journalists from here and elsewhere.

CMAQ is also trying, through a team of dedicated volunteers, to guarantee dynamic coverage of local events on current social issues. Eventually, CMAQ would like to better organise this latter function by putting together a collectively managed pool of volunteers and an assignment calendar.

2. By and for citizens: a democratic forum for exchange and reflection

Essentially, CMAQ wishes to be as much a meeting place for the activist community to exchange and evolve as an outlet for citizens who want to reach their contemporaries and who, otherwise, have limited means to make their voices heard.

On this topic, the “open publishing” principle, initially put forth, by the Independent Media Centre (IMC) in Seattle in 1999, was a genuine revolution in the exercise of democracy. From now on, any citizen or independent organisation wishing to spread information, publish a critical analysis, promote an event or simply diffuse alternative coverage on current events, while potentially reaching thousands of people and more, find open publishing a precious and efficient tool.

Obviously, the CMAQ wouldn’t be complete without its dynamic discussion forums where current social, political and economic issues are constantly debated in a constructive and engaged context.
Also, with its new site, CMAQ is proud to join the “open source” community, which means that in the future, the source code will be available for reutilization and restructuration by any individual or organisation who wishes to join the independent media community and adopt the open publishing philosophy. This transition is, we think, an essential aspect of our contribution to the establishment of an effective democracy on the Web.

3. A crossroads for services exchanges

Up to January, 2002 Alternatives in Montreal was the CMAQ's home. The CMAQ is now headquartered in a Community Centre in Montreal's largely working class and immigrant neighbourhood of Parc-Extension. This transition will allow CMAQ to get closer to the general public and to the various cultural groups who give life to this part of the city. It will also give the CMAQ volunteers a feeling of belonging and independence which will likely encourage them and give them confidence.

The CMAQ wants to share its technical infrastructure with the community, providing it with material support and giving it access to its office and media production equipment.

Also, to give greater visibility to the hard work put in by local activists promoting social justice, the CMAQ will collaborate with a plurality of local non-governmental organisations who share the same social mission, to support the creation and the hosting of their own Web sites.

4. The role of popular education

The CMAQ also wishes to participate in the spreading of knowledge by sharing the various abilities of its volunteers, notably the technical expertise acquired since its creation.
Thus, the technical team will give workshops on how to find and/or spread alternative information using the new technology, from assisting the Parc-Ex Community Centre’s CyberCafe users, to the organisation of courses on Web site creation, and more. Moreover, if CMAQ itself doesn’t have the ability to offter journalism or topical workshops (say on globalisation, climactic change or fair trade), it would like to be a physical place (office and auditorium) likely to facilitate the organisation of such events as meetings, conferences, film screenings, etc. We would like to initiate events that will contribute to the livelihood of popular and civil education, while facilitating the journalistic training of all interested.

5. To put ideals in practice: a mobilisation space

Finally, and perhaps most importantly, CMAQ wants to be mobilisation space for the community. The Events section and its calendar provides local activists with the tools to promote local, regional and national events. The obvious goal being to consolidate the activist movement and (re)awake the people to the efforts being made, by various networks to promote social justice.

More than ever, another world is possible. But the work yet to be done is colossal. The Centre for Media Alternatives - Quebec wishes to contribute to the “Peace Effort” by giving itself the mission of convincing every Quebecer that this new world can only be built by and for them and that, let it be known, each and every one holds in his or her heart an indispensable part of it.

To conclude, we need to thank our brothers and sisters of IndyMedia. We would like to underline the exceptional work they put in throughout the world in the past 3 years or so. Without them, it is very likely we would not be here today. These women and men are the pioneers of the movement and, we couldn’t repeat enough the extent to which we owe them our more sincere respect and gratitude. So, boyz and girlz, we salute youz.

CMAQ's History

It didn't start in Seattle, and it didn't end in Quebec!

The fall of 1999 saw the emergence, not only of a new popular movement, plural, activist and anti-globalisation in nature, but also of the first truly Independent Media Centre (IMC or Indymedia). Thanks to the Internet, the whole world was indeed watching, and it could follow, as it was happening, the unfolding events as reported by a plurality of emancipated voices. The people making the news were, for once, REALLY the people.

One year later, and primarily to cover the then upcoming Summit of the Americas, it was Quebec’s turn to enrich itself with an alternative media centre, largely based on the experience of Seattle.

Supported by Alternatives, the CMAQ (Centre des Médias Alternatifs du Québec) went online on October 1, 2000. It was presented as a platform for the independent media community (more than 300 in the province of Quebec) and as a meeting point for members of civil society who wanted to participate in the debates on globalization and the promotion of social justice.

Two editorial collectives (in Montreal and Quebec City) were created. They soon adopted a clear editorial policy (only slightly different from that of the IMC’s, due to the cultural particularity of Quebec) and, from then on, embarked themselves on one strange and fascinating odyssey: the preparation for the coverage of the Summit of the Americas!

In February of 2001, a press and service room was inaugurated in Quebec City. It initially served, among other things, as a permanent location for the logistical organisation, and as a facility where you could research and get material support for covering the Summit. It also soon became a place where one could get a crash course in politics, journalism and the marvels of new technology. It finally turned into the meeting point, in April 2001, for more than 500 independent journalists.

All along, a team of tenacious volunteers bravely worked to coordinate the logistics, be it that of production (press review, validation, assignation, linking between the different teams) or that of the reception of journalists (registration, housing, equipment, etc.). Close to 80 people collaborated on the project, at one level or the other.

Also, the two collectives put together a “Convergence of alternative media” meeting, at the end of March, to coordinate and prepare the crucial week in April.

And so, from April 18 to 22, more than 370 articles were published on the CMAQ site. A continuous radio program (Radio of the Americas) was aired 24 hours a day, in 4 languages, and with the collaboration of Quebec radios and AMARC. A tabloid paper (“Autres Voix/Voices Outside The Wall”) was published by the thousands and distributed to the people under the People’s Summit Big Top and at OQP 2001’s convergence centre. Finally, a slew of photo and video documents were produced and put online by journalists associated with the CMAQ.

Throughout the entire period, journalists wearing the CMAQ press card were running through the city, reporting live on the latest events in the streets, calling the people and other journalists to join the action.

Finally, and in spite of the expected glitches, CMAQ, along with their IMC partners, was the only press agency to cover the demonstrations in an extensive manner, the large mainstream media having fled the scene, as they do, after merely filming the first confrontations.

CMAQ after the summit of the Americas

Since the Summit of the Americas held in April 2001 in Quebec City, the CMAQ has been in a period of transition. As a group we felt that a period of reflection and soul searching was in order. The main items on the agenda were: how the mandate of the CMAQ should change, post-summit, and the need to migrate towards “Open Source” code.

Firstly, we all agreed that outlets such as the CMAQ continue to be absolutely vital, perhaps even more than before April. We also felt that since so much work had already been done it would have been irresponsible to simply abandon the project. One does not plant seeds in the spring, only to walk away in the fall. However, the mandate clearly needed to be expanded in scope beyond the events surrounding the Summit of the Americas 2001.

Probably the most fundamental change has since April has been our transition from “proprietary” to “open source” code. This allows the CMAQ to share its code with other organisations and to participate in the broader open source movement. Between July and February, the tech team has been hard at work adapting the Drupal PHP package to meet our specific needs.

You can now create your own CMAQ account, allowing you to customize the look and content of the site. Furthermore, submissions can now be categorized by theme, thus helping alleviate information overload.

The other big change in the CMAQ has been taking place behind the scenes. Thanks to Quebec City many new faces have joined the Montreal and Quebec City collectives, bringing with them much needed new ideas and new energy. Thanks in large part to them, we now have a permanent office in a community centre in the Parc-Ex region of Montreal, have organised conferences and video screenings and in general are trying to be active members of civil society.

The story does not end here. We don’t know what tomorrow will bring, what we do know is that circumstances are constantly changing and we are doing our best to change with them. If you have any ideas, or would like to get involved, or have any comments about the new site (both good and bad) we look forward to hearing from you.

Get involved!

This media belongs to you, participate !

Had enough of being considered a mere spectator and consumer?

The CMAQ proposes a new way of looking at, collecting, and providing information.

The CMAQ is a collective. This means all decisions are made by consensus: you get involved, you propose, you decide!

From Montreal, Quebec City, other regions, or from any where else, you can participate in the CMAQ's activities in many ways.

16 sept. 2007 :
Currently, for all of Quebec, there is one collective, but also a Tech Committee.

Meetings: The Collective will meet once a month (in 2007-2008) and you will be able to participate from afar through a voice on the Internet software (see WengoPhone PC/Mac/Linux). Users are invited to check the block to the right named Vie associative, where will be posted announcements for the meetings.

:: More info below

By publishing articles or other documents on the CMAQ website

You can submit your articles, photos and other documents directly on the CMAQ website, by clicking create content

By becoming a partner!

While constantly looking for financial support to keep the CMAQ going, we also want to establish services exchanges.

Among other things, we propose to share our technical expertise by

- Hosting websites on our server
- Creating websites
- Providing technical assistance

We can also share our experience and our know-how, in terms of editorial competences. We will organize journalism and writing workshops.

In counterpart, we need money, but also material (computers and all kind of related stuff, photocopier, office supplies, furnitures, green plants... name it).

If you think we can help and/or if you wish to become a partner of CMAQ, in any way, CONTACT US! info [AR] cmaq.net