About the Journal

Mission

The cinéSPEAK Journal is an online-only journalism publication using moving image as a tool to encourage audiences to demand social justice and equity both onscreen and throughout society. We publish articles about how film and media contribute to social movement building, with a primary focus on Philadelphia and connections to the world at large. Our Editorial Collective, made up of an appointed (nominated from within) group of filmmakers, journalists, and community organizers, informs the processes of the journal.

Core Values 

We commit to creating a publication by and for the people of Philadelphia. 

  • We aim to support journalists, filmmakers, and mediamakers in Philly by creating jobs at the journal.
  • We aim to center equity in the arts and culture reporting in our city. 
  • While the journal covers events and films across the globe, we always aim to draw connections to Philadelphia and support local writers through our editorial decision making. 

We commit to building a leadership structure, editorial staff, Editorial Collective, and communities of contributors that counteract the ways in which both the moving image and journalism industries have grossly failed communities of color and other historically excluded communities. 

  • Our journal will center the voices of: 
    • Black, Brown and Indigenous Peoples of color. 
    • Women-identifying people. 
    • People who are LGBTQIA+, Two-Spirit, Trans, genderqueer, gender nonconforming, nonbinary, and/or queer. 
    • Those who are disabled, immigrants, formerly or currently incarcerated, or have other lived experiences that are historically excluded from journalism and mediamaking. 

We commit to intentionality in deciding who tells which story. 

  • Given the ways that the film and journalism industries consistently tell stories from the perspectives of the oppressor/privileged, we aim to make intentional choices about who writes each article, taking into account what each writer’s personal perspective and experiences brings to the story. 

We commit to a culture of transparency in our collective process. 

  • We aim to be as open as possible about our internal processes, including how we hire, how much we pay, how we make decisions, who makes up our leadership, and about our core values. 

We commit to a porous and adaptable future where we are defined by the wants, needs and desires of the people of Philadelphia, our journalists, and our readership. 

  • We are open to learning and recognizing our mistakes as growth opportunities. 
  • We encourage feedback from our contributors and our larger communities. 
  • We value listening, accountability, and healing in our process of becoming the best publication we can be.