Jean-Pierre Golay

From Telemedium, The Journal of Media Literacy

Vol 42, No 3. Published Fall 1996

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Jean-Pierre Golay Receives 1996 Jessie McCanse Award

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Jean-Pierre Golay, Swiss educator, scholar, philosopher and a pioneer in the develop­ment of media literacy education in Swit­zerland and beyond, is the recipient of the 1996 Jessie McCanse Award for Individual Contribution to Media Literacy.

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Currently holding the position of Honor­ary Fellow in the School of Journalism at the University of Wisconsin-Madison, Jean-­Pierre Golay's contributions to the field of media literacy span a distinguished career as teacher, dean, professor at the State Teachers' College, and as the founder in 1967 of a media research Institute, the Cen­ter for Introduction to the Cinema and Mass-Communication (CIC), based in his native Lausanne, Switzerland. Golay de­veloped and directed the Center for over twenty years until his retirement in 1988.

Through the Center's research and educa­tional functions, Golay worked to develop pedagogically sound approaches to intro­ducing young people to the media, includ­ing the project "video workshop," which provided students with hands-on produc­tion experience in the three-camera studio of the CIC. Through his numerous publi­cations and active international participa­tion; through his work as consultant to the Council of Europe; as co-founder of the educational Radio and Television Program for French-speaking Swiss States, and rep­resentative of his state, the Canton of Vaud, Jean-Pierre contributed significantly to Eu­ropean developments both to improve children's programs and to develop media literacy education in his state's schools.

It is noteworthy, in watching Jean-Pierre Golay at work, to see him making connec­tions between the concepts of media lit­eracy which he values and the world of art which he cherishes.

Retirement and the move to the Madison campus and the community have not slowed down this remarkable educator. Today, as a member of the NTC Board and Chair of its Education Committee, Jean­-Pierre continues to share his broad-based expertise in conferences, workshops and a summer institute, and in the pages of Telemedium. On page 4 of this issue, the recipient of the 1996 Jessie McCanse award shares with us a vividly moving personal example of the first component which he considers essential to becoming media lit­erate-understanding oneself.