Ahmed Mukhtasam Mustafa Ahmed,

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Postgraduate student Belgorod State national research university

Abstract.In this article represent main approaches to alternative media in contemporary social theory. The author focuses on specifics of alternative media. Therefore, the main task of the article is to identify signs and criteria for alternative media. The author also examines the relationship between the concepts of «alternative media», «new media», «traditional» and «non-traditional media», which also has its own changes in the context of transformation of public relations and technological progress.

Key word:mass media, alternative media, criteria, non-traditional media, mainstream.

The issue of alternative media, the identification of their special features and identification in relation to other forms of media today is one of the most difficult and topical issues in the social sciences.

Various authors have proposed different approaches to defining and understanding alternative media and their classification. An analysis of these approaches allows us to highlight that the term «alternative media» has many aspects. This is due to the fact that the very concept of media is multifaceted in its meaning. Based on the etymology of the word alternative, which means «opposed to the other and excluding him» [7], it can be assumed that alternative media are those media that oppose themselves to the dominant, «official» media [2]. However, when the question of specific examples arises, both Russian and Western researchers offer different criteria for determining and options for the list of alternative media.

The issue related to alternative media became relevant in the early 80s of the last century. David Amstrong [8] was the first to initiate scientific research on alternative media; it has been the subject of close scrutiny on alternative media published and circulated throughout the history of the United States. These funds included clandestine newspapers, pamphlets and radio broadcasts that were produced to influence social processes, whether it was the struggle for independence against British rule or the end of the Vietnam War. For the most part, Armstrong viewed alternative media as news produced and disseminated by activists. This early work was the starting point for discussions on alternative media.

Another American philosopher and linguist, Noam Chomsky, in his works with this term also sought to designate a media environment that was opposed to the state and official opinions. His list included underground organizations, unlicensed production of media products, and pirate radio stations. His references to such criteria as the source of information, which, as a rule, differed from the source of the official media, lack of commercial interest, and, as a consequence, different sources of funding and principles of media production, were also very fruitful [11].

Also, the clarifications of the German scientist Ulrich Schmitz are valid, who conducted a comparative analysis of the «old», traditional, media with new, «non-traditional» ones. He highlighted that non-traditional media, and hence alternative ones too, are characterized by not only opposition in terms of events, but also a tendency towards technological diversity in the transmission of information to the target audience [15]. Today these criteria are the most discussed among experts in connection with the development of Internet technologies by traditional media. The resulting convergence of traditional and non-traditional media significantly complicates the formation of a holistic picture of alternative media. Other researchers Kumble R., Martin K. and Fabus B. consider as an example of an alternative to the underground press [12, p. 296-297].

We see similar approaches to alternative media in Russian post-Soviet studies. The history of alternative media in Russia begins in the 19th century and is represented by revolutionary editions of newspapers, magazines and leaflets. As examples from the Soviet period of the development of alternative media, samizdat products are most often mentioned, some of whose publications continued to function in the post-Soviet period. Today, in the Russian media classification, blogging (blogging) [1; 6] and so-called spatial, outdoor advertising (for example, «Ambient Media») [3] are referred to as alternative ones; sometimes the whole Internet is singled out separately. Those the concept «alternative» is used here in the sense of «new», non-traditional means of disseminating information.

As you can see, those media are defined as alternative media that oppose themselves to the mainstream media [1]. In everyday life, the concept of mass media in a general sense is often mistakenly used as a synonym for mainstream media. This is due to the fact that the mainstream major media (for example, FOX News, CNN, BBC, TASS, etc.) are constantly heard by the media consumer and are more popular among the masses. You can also find a small number of target audience in the list of characteristics of alternative media. However, with the advent of the Internet and with the widespread use of interactive means of communication, the quantitative and qualitative development of alternative media has become relevant, the status of which modern experts are ready to recognize as mass media. Alternative media can also be «mass media» in the sense that they use technology that can reach many people, even if the audience is often smaller than that of the major media. In this situation, the term «mass» does not mean that a particular large number of people receive media products, but rather that the products are in principle available to a multitude of consumers.

The convergence of traditional and non-traditional media is another factor blurring the line between the mainstream media and its alternatives. Mainstream media, for their part, are eager to embrace new technologies, adapting to changes, both technically and commercially. Non-traditional media, in turn, absorb or push traditional media to the periphery. What is the reason for this? The first thing that specialists pay attention to is a new level of communication abilities of non-traditional media. The second reason is the close dependence of traditional media on advertisers [5, p. 140].

Other researchers can expand their understanding of alternative media. So, in the works of the famous British sociologist and media historian Denis McQuile, alternative media, along with opposition media, can be understood [13, p. 78] media containing «frivolous», entertaining content [13, p.43]. In an effort to resolve the issue of distinguishing the alternative from the media media, John Downing (1984; 2001) began researching various «radical media» around the world. In his book Radical Media, he expands on Armstrong's theory to include not only news but also works of art such as wood carvings, performance art or graffiti on the list of alternative media. For him, the only criterion is important - the reflection in the content or in the works of art of social protest and critical attitude to power. Chris Etton, another American expert, in turn focuses on production methods and organizational practices. According to Etton, those media that are produced in traditional media structures relying on advertising to generate income and pay for organizational and production costs cannot be considered alternative media [10].

The emphasis in research on the form of media production has raised a counter-question about the status of those media that are considered alternative audiences, but do not meet the criteria set by Etton. It is posed in their work by the leading alternative media researchers, Atkinson D. Joshua and Kenix Linda. They explain that «for example, many left-wing activists read and consider publications such as the Progressive or the Huffington Post as alternatives, and many conservative activists regularly listen to the radio program of Limbaugh Rush, an American public figure known for his criticism of the mainstream. Yet all three media are created in organizations that have typical mainstream structure and organizational roles: editors, writers, and support staff. In addition, all three of them rely on advertising to generate income in order to pay rent or production costs of media products» [9, p. 8]. We can see the same thing in the blogosphere: the author on some services and social networks can connect the so-called monetization, earning money from contextual advertising, ads and banners of commercial partners.

Jennifer Rauch (2007), considering in her research the issue of alternative media, focuses her analysis on the interpretation given by the audience of one or another media. Almost everything can be alternative, as long as the audience interprets it in a similar way [14]. Those Rauch takes intersubjective opinions as a criterion, rather than any objective criteria. Her approach also has good reasons, although it conflicts with the criteria of Etton, Armstrong and other specialists.

As we can see, the development of criteria for alternative media today is a difficult task for specialists and various experts. The criteria they propose, which have an absolute value forty or thirty years ago, today require adjustment, which is directly related to the development of the media sphere. Sometimes the criteria may conflict with each other, which is quite explainable by the complexity and multidimensionality of the phenomenon of mass communications and information. However, we can say that today there are several perspectives from which the media are viewed by researchers as alternative: alternative media as a form of non-traditional media, alternative media as an antipode to the mainstream media industry, alternative media as a media environment, opposition to the dominant political power and large media corporations, alternative media as illegal media production (piracy, plagiarism), alternative media as media containing entertainment genre content. In reality, these features overlap, but the question remains, which of them are more defining, and whether it is possible to consider alternative media if they do not fall under one of them.

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