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CARIMAC & Southern Oregon University to Host Pivotal Forum on "Democracy in the Digital Age" at UWI Mona

[CARIMAC, UWI Mona – June 6, 2025] - THE CARIBBEAN School of Media and Communication (CARIMAC), in partnership with Southern Oregon University’s Democracy Project, is set to host a thought-shifting media and democracy public forum on Wednesday, June 25, 2025, at the UWI Mona campus.

The forum, to be held under the theme, “Democracy in the Digital Age: Challenges and Opportunities for Jamaica’s Media Landscape”, is a central component of SOU’s internationally acclaimed Democracy Project – an initiative that fosters global dialogue on democracy through student travel and intercultural exchange.

This year, the programme spotlights Jamaica, and will see students engaged in activities aimed at deepening their understanding of Jamaica’s history, culture and social realities. The media and democracy forum will delve into the evolving role of media in democracy, youth engagement, and the digital transformation of political discourse, and will feature a distinguished panel of political scientists from UWI and SOU alongside journalists and media professionals from Jamaica.

The panellists include Dr. Michelle Munroe, head of the political science unit in the Department of Government at Mona, and Professor Emeritus, Sociology & Environmental Studies at SOU, Dr. Mark Shibley. The Jamaica Observer’s Business Content Manager and President of the Press Association of Jamaica, Mr Dashan Hendricks will join senior journalist at Nationwide News Network, Mr George Davis to round out the panel. Acclaimed media professional and attorney-at-law, Mrs. Helene Coley-Nicholson will serve as moderator.

The event is scheduled to begin at 10:00 a.m. on Wednesday, June 25, 2025 at the Faculty of Social Sciences Lecture Theatre (SSLT) and is free and open to the public. UWI and other university students in journalism, political science, government, and marketing and communication are especially encouraged to attend.

Contact: Dr. Patrick Prendergast

patrick.prendergast02@uwimona.edu.jm

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Jamar Cleary's 'Raizal' Wins Cultural Resonance Award and Earns Prestigious Festival Selections

Jamar Cleary's short documentary film, Raizal: The Jamaican/San Andreas Connection, produced for the course COMM3399 Media Research and Production at CARIMAC, won the Cultural Resonance Award at the Films That Move Festival in December 2024. In addition to this win, Cleary's work has garnered notable recognition on the festival circuit since its screening. The film was selected as an Official Selection for the 15th Annual Silicon Valley African Film Festival 2024, the Heritales VI International Heritage Film Festival 2024, and the Lift-Off Global Film Festival 2024. These selections highlight the film's impact and Jamar's strong storytelling skills in the realm of documentary filmmaking. For more, see RAIZAL THE JAMAICAN CONNECTION, Jamaica Observer & Kaboom Magazine.

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Dr. Patrick Prendergast Appointed as Director of CARIMAC

The Caribbean School of Media and Communication (CARIMAC) is pleased to announce the appointment of Dr. Patrick Prendergast as its new Director. Dr. Prendergast brings a wealth of experience and expertise to this leadership role having served in various capacities within the field of communication and education.

Dr. Patrick Prendergast is a seasoned professional with over three decades of experience in creative and cultural arts, media production, teaching, and educational administration. He returns to CARIMAC after 15 years at The University of the West Indies, Mona – Western Jamaica Campus, Montego Bay, where he served as campus director from May 1, 2015 to July 31, 2024. He also previously held the position of CARIMAC Coordinator and lecturer at the Western Jamaica Campus.

Dr. Patrick Prendergast began his CARIMAC journey as a student in the Diploma in Mass Communication programme some 30 years ago (photo credit: CARIMAC)

Dr. Prendergast holds a doctorate in Community Communication from the University of Amsterdam. He also possesses graduate and undergraduate degrees in Social and Behaviour Change Communication, Social Marketing, and Television Production from the University of the West Indies. Additionally, he earned a Diploma in Theatre Arts with a major in Directing and Community Drama from the Jamaica School of Drama.

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Global Game Jam Jamrock 2024: A Resounding Success

Global Game Jam Jamrock 2024: A Resounding Success

KINGSTON, Jamaica. Monday, January 29, 2024

Global Game Jam (GGJ) 2024, the world's largest game creation event, concluded on Sunday, January 28, 2024 after 48 hours of intensive collaborative game development. The Jamaican staging of the event entitled 'Jamrock' was hosted by the Jamaica Game Developer Society (JGDS), in association with the Caribbean School of Media and Communication (CARIMAC). The hybrid event brought together 40 in-person participants to CARIMAC Annex 2 and 8 online participants to celebrate creativity and diversity in the gaming industry.

The majority of the jammer were students from the University of the West Indies (UWI), University of Technology (UTECH) and the Caribbean Maritime University (CMU). The participants formed teams to create a total of eight different games based on the Global Game Jam theme ‘Make Me Laugh,’ showcasing a wide range of ideas. These games demonstrated not only technical skill but also the creativity and innovation fostered during the intense 48-hour jam.

The jammers revelled in the experience and expressed the network opportunity as the main benefit of participating in the event. “I had a very full experience. Met a lot of new people. I was satisfied with accommodation and food, and I will come next year if I can" noted Safiya Burgess, 19-year old student of Engineering in Mechatronics. Another participant, Jamaica Game Developer Society member Cleon Williams said, "I had a great time. Had fun, met new people. The food was great as well. I got looked after and the hospitality was good."

     

Mr. Glen Henry, co-founder of the JGDS, was more than satisfied with the staging of the event and had high praises for the group of final-year Integrated Marketing Communication (IMC) students who were the organizers. "The student team excelled in bringing everything together,

securing sponsors who were genuinely interested in the event and our project goals. Witnessing returning jammers enthusiastically supporting and participating was truly heartening. The seamless collaboration among the teams from the very beginning vividly illustrates the essence of the Jam—a spirit of creation firmly taking root. CARIMAC's ongoing support remains outstanding and highly valued. I'm genuinely impressed by the accomplishments of the student volunteer team and what they have achieved with the event."

The sponsors for the event included Real Decoy, Grace, Pizza Hut Jamaica, Red Bull Jamaica, Nardo’s One-Stop Shop, UWI Social Welfare and Howlers Café. The organizing team, CARIMAC and the JGDS extend profound appreciation to these local businesses who were essential to the success of Global Game Jam – Jamrock 2024.

Although the event has come to an end, there is more to expect this year in the game development community as expressed by Mr. Henry. “Stay tuned for forthcoming announcements on an array of meticulously planned events, workshops, and initiatives, poised to elevate and shape the gaming industry in the months ahead”.

     

 

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Global Game Jam 2023: The Ultimate Game Creators

Global Game Jam (GGJ) is the world's largest game-creation event. It is a prestigious nonprofit event registered in California annually for gamers worldwide. Numerous countries worldwide participate in the event, including Jamaica. Hence, it is a privilege to invite gaming creatives attending universities from all over Jamaica to attend and participate in this collaboration.
The Global Game Jam event lasts 72 hours, requiring participants to be in groups to create and develop a game fitting for the secret central theme. This theme will be revealed at the start of the event. This will commence on February 3, 2023, at 8 pm and end on February 5, 2023, at 8 pm. The event fosters networking and teambuilding skills amongst game developers around the globe and presents them with the opportunity to showcase and advance their skills.
The 15th staging of Global Game Jam will be held at The University of the West Indies, Mona, in CARIMAC Annex 2. We promise a specular event and look forward to the continued support of gamers in Jamaica.

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CARIMAC recognizes World Television Day

“Our Jamaican stories are rich and can be shown across the world. Television is a method of distribution, just like social media, radio, and billboards. At the end of the day, it comes down to our content, and the content that we produce and the stories that we tell are universally impactful,” noted Delano Forbes, CEO and Creative Director of Phase 3 Productions, while participating in a panel discussion organized by CARIMAC in recognition of World Television Day on Monday, November 21, 2022.

Forbes was joined by some other ‘movers and shakers’ in the television industry - Judith Alberga, Homegrown and Content Monetization Manager at Television Jamaica (TVJ); Sharon Schroeter, Senior Managing Director/Senior Producer at Benchmark Media Productions Ltd. and Rory Roberts, Talent Manager, Co-Writer, and Co-Director at Barracks Entertainment.

On the theme of ‘Local Content, International Value’, the panelists underlined the relevance of television in today’s seemingly social-media obsessed world. They noted that television and social media are alike because they are both effective avenues to tell stories, but television is more ethically structured, and it works better to produce a well-ordered society. The discussion further led to the prospects of more Jamaican, and to a wider extent, Caribbean content, entering the international market.

“We could definitely get more international recognition if we were to have some reruns of our classic television programmes and provide English and Spanish subtitles,” said Judith Alberga.

She continued, “A lot of our programmes use the Jamaican dialect and even though our international watchers enjoy this, I know that the language barrier can create some misunderstanding and less appreciation for what we are communicating. This panel discussion is necessary to voice these things so that we in the business and other television practitioners can make greater efforts to increase the international value of our local content”.

Also participating at the event were Saeed Thomas, President of the Jamaica Film and Television Association (JAFTA) and Dr. Livingston White, Director of CARIMAC, who brought remarks and the welcome respectively.

The event was organised by final year Public Relations students at CARIMAC and hosted by Isheba “Energy Queen” Cornwall with support from  Newstalk 93 FM, Digicel, Sage Network by Sagicor, Benjamins, Juici Patties, Red Bull, Gabby Glam, Nature’s Caress, Beads of the Fae, Café Blue, Lloyds Decor & Rental, 876 Sunnies, Shemle’s Photography, Polar Ice and Tastee.

 

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