I attended this workshop last year at Anarchapulco. It was previously marketed as a journalism bootcamp, and I’d guess it still includes elements of that. This year it appears to have a new focus on travel hacking, which obviously appeals to me, too. If I were in Mexico now, or at least on that side of the world, I’d definitely attend again.
Left to right: Luke, Dan and Josh
Left to right: Luke, Dan and Josh
The workshop is put on by Luke Rudkowski, of We Are Change, with assistance (at least last year) from Dan Dicks, of Press For Truth, and Josh Sigurdson, of World Alternative Media. All 3 of them have built popular alternative media brands and businesses. Last year, they went over the ins and outs of how they monetize their operations and package and market their work. There were also some candid discussions about media ethics. Likewise, there was an impromptu video recording, with workshop attendees getting to watch the process of Dan Dicks conducting an interview from start to finish.
For me, Q&A, which took place intermittently throughout the day, was probably the most valuable part of the workshop. If you do attend, I recommend you not be shy about asking questions related to your personal situation and media venture. I found myself frustrated at times with some of the answers I received. But looking back, I see how the comments made by Luke, Dan and Josh were very reflective of market demand in digital media, which is something I need to confront if I am going to grow my own brand.
If you’ll be at Anarchapulco or a related event this year and you are interested in digital media, travel and/or personal development, I highly recommend attending this workshop. In particular, I think this workshop would be valuable for university journalism students. The workshop showcases prospective career paths, media ventures and branding opportunities that would typically get glossed over or shunned upon at journalism school, yet could prove lucrative or even essential in this rapidly changing media environment. I discuss that briefly in my recap of last year’s Anarchapulco at 2:10-3:25 in the following video: