About

Transmission charter

What is Transmission?
Transmission is a network of citizen journalists, video makers, artists, researchers, programmers and web producers who are developing online video distribution tools for social justice and media democracy. Our objective is to make independent online video distribution possible (using FLOSS software) by building the

• tools
• standards
• documentation
• social network.

How does it work?

The following describes our way of organisation.

Infrastructure The transmission network provides the communication infrastructure for conducting research, identifying needs and developing solutions. The infrastructure is

• a social network of individuals
• a listserve and websites
• a series of gatherings (2006 June, 2006 October).

Projects

If there is an idea, then the development, design and implementation of the idea is carried out by one or more Transmission members. Thus, the network itself as an entity is not doing projects, but facilitates collaborations between its members. Each project has a working group, and a coordinator to get things done and report to relevant areas of the network. The goal is for everybody to know what is going on and benefit from their projects.

Funding

No group or person can speak in the name of the Transmission network, nor may they apply for funding of a project in the name of Transmission. Groups and individuals who are organising a meeting can apply for funding in the name of their organisations to organise a Transmission-related event or project. For projects, the groups who are collaborating on the project should apply for funding in their own names. They can however make reference to their connection to the network in support of their organisational application.

Participation

Members/participants are people who are subscribed to the discuss@transmission.cc mailing list. Many represent one or more organisations. We also speak about these organisations as members of the Transmission network, but in another sense. Joining the network is possible through the invitation of an existing member. If the decision is not blocked by any other member, it passes.

Decision making

Decisions are made by rough consensus* on the discuss@transmission.cc mailing list, and proposals may come from

• Meetings at Transmission conferences
• Working groups of the Transmission network
• Individuals who are part of Transmission
• or any other sources but these are the most important ones.

* For the explanation of 'rough consensus', see http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Rough_consensus