Adam Haupt is a South African scholar and author of Stealing Empire, which tells the story of people defining themselves as active, creative and politically conscious agents in a consumerist society. For the ‘My Bubble, My Space, My Voice’ workshop he is introducing a number of key questions that will guide the participants in reflecting upon their own practices in the first day of the workshop. According to Adam, when looking at youth agents who have grown up with technology, these key questions are: What is social change? What is power? How is social change effected or how is power exercised? What tools do you use to exercise power? How do you use technology to exercise your creative and/or political agency?

In his research Adam looks at music and the way music can and has been used by people to express themselves politically and be subversive. “In the 1980’s I discovered hip hop artist in Capetown who where expressing black consciousness through hip hop”. For them music was a way to find an audience and like minded people. Use this art form for social change. Before they become more established hip hop crews, they would perform at (political) rallies, in their communities and at school etc. These artists would be organizing workshops and trainings and use this as a space to spread their message and music. This all took place before the internet, when they just went into the community, distribute cassette and created pirate radio’s. After the release of Nelson Mandela these pirate radio’s turned into what we now know as bush radio.

Adam was sharing this story with the rest of us to show ways of mass mobilisation before the age of the internet. These methods are still used; radio is the cheapest way to reach people at current day and age in their mother tong. At the moment there is a shift to mobile media, hip hop programmes use a combination of mobile and radio to engage with their fans, followers.

If you look at the three questions in relation to hip hop activism in Capetown one can draw the lesson that you can build fancy tools and platform but if your constituencies are not there it is a waste of money. You need to find them on the platform where they are, both on and offline.

The presentation of Adam started of a lively debate on new media and social change. Has the world changed with the introduction of technology or has it not changed at all? Participants felt that it is the intermix between technology and social networks (offline) that drives change. Adam added to this intersection by saying that yes it is about the people and not about the tools but the tools enable, communicate and increase the outreach