Inside Out (mcwflint)

December 15, 2007

Tina Brown: Media challenge, no blog for her

Shoma Chadhury caught up with Harold Evans and Tina Brown in Delhi where they spoke to about the challenge of journalism in the world today

I pulled out a few things that I was most interested in, starting with this question:

What is the biggest challenge facing media in America today? And India?
Corporatisation. The sophistry of the big conglomerate guys is to say there’s never been more plurality of outlet.

Here's the rest of her reply.

Sure. We have a thousand and one outlets now, but their circulation is zip.

There isn’t a place to have any meaningful public discourse. You’re just talking to yourself. Most publications and networks don’t have the critical mass.
And the major networks and newspapers don’t want to do the work.

... Journalists have to become entrepreneurs. The search for the billionaire with a conscience is a dead end.

... But though media is almost more important than politics at this point, the trouble is American newspapers where my heart lies are really a dying thing and you can’t persuade people to invest in them.

It has to be online. I’ve been working on a website.

I’m determined to make global journalism sexy.

But the web is a capricious thing. No one has figured the economic model. It will get resolved. We are in the in-between stage.

It’s like being in the middle of the Industrial Revolution.

Until we figure the online model, we’re stuck with old models with the corporations killing everything. There isn’t a serious journalist who doesn’t feel this. This is not just about professional dissatisfaction. It’s— as Al Gore says in his book — really affecting the marketplace of ideas.

She also shared why you shouldn't expect a blog from her anytime soon.

What do you think the trick on the web will be? I find blogs totally overrated. No rigour.

That’s what the DNA of my website will be. Rigour. I don’t want any more spouting of sloppy opinions. I don’t have the time. ABC just fired 75 TV journalists and hired 75 bloggers instead, responsible only to themselves. It’s insane to do that to your brand. This is just the exuberance of a new medium. No one wants to look uncool, but who’s reading it? People keep asking me to blog, but I’m not going to lower my standards, and why would I write for nothing? Haven’t done that since childhood.

Interested? Then read the rest online

Hurry! It's time for Fantasy Congress

Now, my husband will tell you that this former political science student doesn't get excited about politics much anymore.

And there are a ton of friends and colleagues who will tell you I am not a fan of rotball and other fantasy sports games. But this looks interesting: Fantasy Congress.

Gee, if only I could influence the way Medicare Part D is administered. To start, I would make sure that each company that puts approved drugs on the their list HAVE to keep the drugs on the list all year.

Wonder if they have a California game. Imagine the time I could save each year with some changes in the Medicaid program there. I would no longer have to prove:

He still has Alzehimers
His military discharge hasn't changed,
He still is an American citizen and
Yes, he is still broke.

Want to play? You have until Jan. 4.

December 12, 2007

So, don't I know you?

As I spend more and more time on Linked-In, Facebook and other social networking sites, I am learning about how many people I have forgotten and how many have forgotten me.

In fact, this whole networking thing is becoming one of my regrets of life. How come I was so busy with work and family that I "forgot" to keep up with the people I met at conferences, through blogs and listservs, via places like downtown Flint, Lansing, East Lansing and Michigan State University, or through events like Wheatland Music Festival, Walnut Valley Festival, and the Flint Bluegrass Festival.

(OK, my family might argue about me keeping up with the family. After all, they laughed when they read on Facebook that I was a recovering workaholic and perfectionist.)

I recently had a Facebook outrage when an innocent question from a colleague about something in my status uncovered a range of emotions and feelings I didn't realize I had.

The statement that started the whole discussion revolved around being tired of institutions claiming they were only doing what their constituents wanted, ignoring the flaw in the way the "wants" were collected.

Before the discussion ended, I dumped on the colleague for forgetting our past. Yeah, I couldn't believe this person could forget that I interviewed him about 11 years earlier and written countless comments on his blogs over the years. Or that he didn't know me from other times our paths had crossed.

It didn't take long for me to understand what I was criticizing him for was the exact same thing I was doing to others. (Not a new "revelation", even making Anil Dash's blog way back in 1999, which yes, I forgot I used to read religiously.)

Why in just one week, I heard from three "strangers."

The first was a man whose book I helped edit. A book!

Then I started having e-talks with a man who got me into IRC years ago so we could chat about community computer networks in real time instead of through the use-net group. (Long before AIM)

Then I heard from this guy who wanted to know if I still collected recordings of "Jerusalem's Ridge" because he'd found a version he knew he hadn't given me in the years I did a radio show called Just Country.

I didn't remember any of them until they reminded me.

Yikes!

Wish I had been smart like Robb Montgomery, who uses several social networks to keep in touch with the colleagues he has met over the last 20 years.

"I have a photographic memory - I have to take photos to remember things. I can connect photos and contacts and remember people and events better."

Heck, right now I wish I had been smart enough to not wipe out all of my contacts on the Iphone this week. Or knew how to easily get them back (and, no my backup was useless.)

More on data as journalism

Looking over some of my past Tweets reminded me about this whole issues of data as journalism, and journalism as data.

At The Flint Journal, I recently helped reporter Ron Fonger use Google maps to discover patterns in where the City of Flint was demolishing houses. The maps let you zoom in and out so that readers could get as close to the data as they wanted.

Whenever I think of this subject, I think of the presentations that Adrian Holovaty gives where he shows how easily we could take some "common everyday journalism" stories and present them in a more usable way with databases. Say crime stories or even weddings.

I also have to remember the outrage the Lansing (MI) State Journal faced when it published all of the salaries of state government employees in the state. (And, of course, I have to laugh at how much traffic dropped at the end of the work day.)

The Readership Institute in November explored the whole "data as journalism, journalism as data" thread in this post.
Rich Gordon sums up why Gannet has pushed the Information Center idea online:

Data is "evergreen" content.
Data can be personal.
Data can best be delivered in a medium without space constraints.
Data takes advantage of the way people actually use the Web
Data, once gathered, can be excerpted in print.

He also talks with folks at the Indianopolis Star, highlighting some of the newspaper's sucessful databases and telling how they were done. (He includes links to their Siren Calls work as well as how Colts player Peynton Manning does

He follows with suggestions of what every online news center should do, again with lots of ideas and examples. You really need to read the original post.

(As an aside, I loved how he pointed out how many of the people involved with "computer-assisted journalism" - a phrase I hated and shared in a Nov. 2 1991, piece for Editor & Publisher - are often the ones leading the databases online approach.)

December 10, 2007

State schools sue to stop sale of photographs

Scary stuff for newspapers counting on revenue from photo sales. This
battle in Illinois, where the Illinois High School Association is suing newspapers, is one newspapers should follow closely

December 9, 2007

Graphing Social Patterns: The Business

Twitter summaries of a recent conference helped me understand some of Twitter's appeal and started me thinking of new ways to use some of the technology that springs up so. This site gave more background and insight as it explained Graphic Social Patterns and an upcoming conference.

So let's see if I have it right: First, there was the Internet, the linking of computers. This allowed basic document sharing and simple email as long as you were geeky enough to learn a little code and satisfied with text only. (brief text in the days of slow modems.)

Then, the world wide web brought images to the Internet. That act opened the Internet to many more.

Now, a third wave is here/coming. It is connections, reaching out to all we know -or want to know - in social networks. The growing pains now center around open ID, sharing of profiles across platforms.

In a way Facebook and the whole social network movement reminds me of the angst of mailing lists. After managing a listservs for so many years, I can predict some of the squabbles that will arise by the time of year.

Are the Facebook growing pains unlike the struggles free-nets experieced?

How could you have townhall-organization of information without allowing businesses online?

Now, it seems silly to keep businesses offline as many wanted in the early 1990s.

Someday perhaps the issue of ads on social networks will seem the same. (No. I am not in favor of the Beacon system that didn't allow choice).

Interesting twist:: Staten Island Ferry inspires blog

I like how someone noticed activity in a forum and decided to create a blog on the same topic,

Ahoy all Staten Island Ferry riders ... I hope this Weblog will be a place that you will call home every day. I want to hear your ferry stories, gripes, questions and see your photos.

Now I want to know how many are reading blog about riding the Staten Island ferry.. How does that compare to the forum traffic?

It hadn't occurred to me to create a forum or blog on a community gathering place. Of course, as blogs tend to do, the ferry one led me to Overheard in New York. So now I want to combine Twitter feeds into a place blog that includes longer posts.

Next up - which Flint places? Downtown? Coney islands? Auto City Speedway? Or...

All of that gives me one more argument for site software that lets users create own topics, blogs as the new MovableType community piece. If only it wasn't so pricey. I like it, but can't justify cost for groups I can see using it.

Update: The blog changed addresses in July 2008.

New J-school requirement?

After reading "Entrepreneurial Journalism in the Facebook Age" online in the Bits Technology - New York Times Blog, I have to ask:

Will we need to insist that running your own business classes become part of the curriculm for j schools?

Or perhaps the training is needed only for those of us born after 1980? Read the original post on new ways to be a journalist for yourself to see what today's journalism students are thinking about for careers.

When I think about all the laid-off and boughtout journalists, I realize there is a lot of power capable of changing communities if the skills of that group were tapped. Money wasn't the motivator when they pursued that career choice. Figure out what was and change could happen. (does that sound too '60ish?)

November 18, 2007

Need for a new Trash 80

Jack Lail talks about the search for a new Trash 80. I liked the test for a computer's strength:

The "Trash 80" or as Tandy labeled it, the TRS-80 Model 100, 102 or 200, was completely able to survive the dreaded "sports reporter" treatment, which should be de rigueur testing for all laptops billed as durable.

I'm assuming that would be drop, kick and ....

Some would rather die then change

"Postmodernism is a change-or-be-changed world. The word is out: Reinvent
yourself for the 21st century or die! Some would rather die than change."

Leonard Sweet, cultural historian.

Food for thought on downsizing

One of the unintended consequences of downsizing is that we're sending capable people into the world to compete against us on the Web rather than creating new media options for them from which we also benefit. In this sense, traditional media companies may be supplying a two-by-four that will one day be smacking them over the head.

Terry Heaton shares examples and says "So now these former employees are competing with their former employer as freelancers for a start-up". Do you see a pattern developing here?

Heaton points to Glenn Reynolds who in his book, An Army of Davids talks about “the triumph of personal technology of mass technology.” Despite this new reality, mainstream media companies continue to lay people off instead of exploiting the tools and energy of the personal media revolution to better serve their communities.

(This trip started for me through Jack Lail's Downsizing Old Media)

random thoughts to start on computers

TRS 80 - first computer used after leaving Michigan State; late 1970s
At Michigan stae - Cobol! Fortran! Crashing system at Lyman Briggs, mainframe 1972 - 73

Before that - IBM cards turned into wreaths

one of the first "home computers" for me was in 1983 - PFS file to do bluegrass festival; larry used for classwork; we dialed into university.

The Commodore 64 is an 8-bit home computer released by Commodore International in August, 1982, at a price of US$595. Preceded by the Commodore VIC-20 and Commodore MAX Machine, the C64 features 64 kilobytes (64×210 bytes) of RAM with sound and graphics performance that were superior to IBM-compatible computers of that time.[citation needed

At work, I used the "Trash 80" or as Tandy labeled it, the TRS-80 Model 100, 102 or 200. It was completely able to survive the dreaded "sports reporter" treatment, which should be de rigueur testing for all laptops billed as durable (Jack Lail).

November 23, 2002

407 JRN web links, documents, etc.

Here is where I'll link everything

The first three files are PowerPoint, so if you have access to that program you can download the presentation
Mapping for Journalists MSU.pptx
Mapping for Journalists - Census.pptx
Mapping for Journalists - Build maps.pptx

These three files are the PowerPoints converted to web pages automatically. They work in some browsers, such as Internet Explorer.
MSU Mapping for Journalists MSU.htm
Mapping for Journalists - Census.htm
Build maps in class

Then, here are some links that may help:
Learn more about Google maps:
Add content to Google map

Depending on your location, you can create personalized, annotated, customized maps using Google Maps. Your maps can contain the following:

Once you have created a map, you can:

Add descriptive text, including rich text and HTML
Embed photos and videos in your map
Share your maps with others
Collaborate with others New!
Import KML or GeoRSS to your map New!
Open it in Google Earth

To create or edit maps, you must be signed into your Google Account. You do not need to be signed in to view a map. You can also search for maps made by specific users.

You can also use and add additional content in Google Maps. Learn more.

June 24, 2000

The Hunstvlle Times

I blog about The Huntsville Times in:

Huntsville Times getting new design director March 24, 2010
Buyout offers popping up at Newhouse newspapers in Alabama Dec. 16, 2009
Pink Power: Black and white and pink all over in Alabama Oct. 4, 2009
Advance addiction fed by Alabama lawsuit Sept. 21, 2009
Ex-publisher sues newspaper, Advance Publications; says forced retirement, job pledge change wrong Sept. 18, 2009
Moving is today's theme at Advance Publications in Alabama Aug. 29, 2009
Advance Publications grabbing big share of today's headlines Aug. 17, 2009
Talking about Advance from Oregon to New Jersey: There's pain, envy, honors Aug. 6, 2009
Alabama paper makes it local, local, local May 21, 2009
Advance execs share outlook on TV April 8, 2009

June 18, 2000

Writing about jobs for journalists

Sometimes, the hardest part of finding a job is figuring out what you can do with what you know. Here are some posts I've written that might inspire those who have worked as journalists:

A job for you, a job for me: Suggestions flying in Aug. 7, 2009
New jobs: Building on skills, interests leads to non-media jobs Aug. 5, 2009
Fascination with journalists, jobs leads to suggestions for reading July 31, 2009
Facebook quiz leads to post-journalism jobs March 25, 2009
Resume-building sites, blogging advice can help you be JWJ (journalist with job) March 21, 2009
Blogging 'kvetch"' Tough noogies and self help for journalists March 20, 2009
Jobs for journalists via RSS Feb. 24, 2009
Talent will outlast jobs, careers Feb. 11, 2009
It hurts to laugh; it helps to prepare Jan. 8, 2009
Beyond the buyout, beyond the byline Aug. 5, 2008
Journalists not the first to start over Aug. 1, 2008
Buyout journalists, remember this March 17, 2008
What every good journalist needs to do, but won't Dec. 27, 208

I want to know why more folks don't let you know the job isn't yours

Some sites to use:
Wired Journalists

Some places to search for jobs:
JournalismJobs.com
I Want Media

Writing about The Star-Ledger

Here are some of the Inside Out posts that mention the New Jersey Star-Ledger:

Going back: Happiness better then safety Sept. 17, 2009
Newspapers agreed to wait on endorsements Sept. 1, 2009
Advance opinions: Open eyes, dignified hats, virtual running Aug. 13, 2009
Talking about Advance from Oregon to New Jersey: There's pain, envy, honors Aug. 6, 2009
Advance news organization changing video to match market July 10, 2009
Newhouse reporter talks of 'hunkering down" June 7, 2009
NYT notices NJ effort, 5 Bs still hoping June 1, 2009
Newhouses praised for Star-Ledger cuts May 12, 2009
Why May for Advance pension changes and other musings online about Monday's talks March 24, 2009
Nothing new in news business Feb. 19, 2009
A set of thanks due to byeout Jan. 11, 2009

June 16, 2000

Writing about The Oregonian

Here are some of my posts about the Oregonian:

Watchers of media release forbidden words March 30, 2010

Oregonian now Stickel-less Jan. 6, 2010

New editor at the Oregonian Dec. 7, 2009

Oregonian editor: Not enough taking buyout; 70 must go Nov. 5, 2009

One year later: Journalist to lobbyist Nov. 3, 2009

Anderson named publisher at Oregonian Oct. 26, 2009

Four Advance publications get printing awards Oct. 19,2009

Oregonian editor tells newsroom new arrangments, new journalists needed Oct. 9, 2009

Oregonian public radio station focuses on future of journalism Oct 9, 2009

Oregonian employees weighing new buyout offer Sept. 28, 2009

Always more to say: Following up on Stickel Sept. 19, 2009

Oregonian employee sues, says Advance Publications wrong to deny buyout Sept. 18, 2009

Two more publishers leaving Advance Publications Sept. 16, 2009

Oregonian's breast cancer series finalist with wired in online news contest Aug. 31, 2009

Blogger: Advertising wraps front page of Oregonian Aug. 16, 2009

Advance opinions: Open eyes, dignified hats, virtual running Aug. 13, 2009

Is Google cartoon correct? Aug. 12, 2009

Talking about Advance from Oregon to New Jersey - pain, envy, honors Aug. 6, 2009

Wikipedia for journalists and other advice coming at Digital Media Camp July 28,2009

Month brings new price for Oregonian July 2, 2009

Advance editors weigh in on fate of newspapers April 27, 2009

Why May for Advance pension changes and other musings March 24, 2009

Oregonian blogger: Enjoy weekend March 21, 2009

Blogger unhappy with shrinking Oregonian March 13, 2009

June 11, 2000

I am a Girl Scout

I blog about Girl Scouts

I bleed green - that's what it says on my Facebook profile. It is because I graduated from Michigan State University - its school colors are green and white.

But mostly I bleed green because I am a Girl Scout.

I became a Girl Scout in the fourth grade, two years later then I wanted to because there was no room for me in the Brownie Girl Scout troop at my school.

Once in, I stayed. I'm now as a lifetime member who facilitates, blogs and operates WAGGG S-L, an email list that predates the Yahoo groups and most other online Girl Scout resources.

I even earned the highest award - First Class - before graduating from high school. Then, I was part of the Detroit Metro Girl Scout Council.

While attending Michigan State University and studying journalism, I helped with a Girl Scout troop in the hometown of a roommate. That troop was in Fair Winds Girl Scout Council.

After college, I moved to the city where I helped with that troop. But, I didn't hook back up with the Girl Scouts right away.

Daughter joins

When my daughter was old enough, I volunteered first as a parent, then co-leader, then leader, advisor, and trainer. There were a few neighborhood/service unit positions in there somewhere too.

Fair Winds Girl Scout Council, now part of Girl Scouts South East Michigan gave me the Thanks Award for creating the first online presence - first as a gopher site, then on the World Wide Web. That was back in the mid 1990s.

Even after my daughter graduated from high school and Girl Scouts, I stayed on.

'Career' higlights

I was a council delegate at the 48th National Girl Scout Convention.

Our council even paid for me and three girl Girl Scouts (also delegates) to go a day early so we could tour Kansas City before the business of the convention. We also went to a WAGGGS-L gathering at a Girl Scout camp.

Convention Talk

I was thrilled when I got to start Convention Talk, a discussion board for the national Girl Scouts organzation in October 2008.

But that's nothing compared to what I gained by being a part of the StoryWeavers and Conversations That Matter initiative at the 2008 Girl Scout convention, even though I left Indianapolis before the opening ceremony.

As a longtime journalist, I know the importance of story, openness, and community.

I always knew I wanted to return to a Girl Scout convention. I decided to treat myself to the 51st convention during my first year as a bought-out journalist. I planned to go as a visitor, but in July 2008 I saw a plea for volunteers for the StoryWeaving project.

For the next three months, the national Girl Scout convention was my main focus in life I learned about Open Space, Appreciative Inquiry, wikis, and a whole lot more as part of the planning committee. Oh, and how could I forget texting.
51st girl scout convention patch

As a mother, I know that what my daughter learned in and as a result of Girl Scouts is why she is alive today.

I am who I am because of Girl Scouts. I want other girls to discover, connect and take action in Girl Scouts too.

Find me online:

My Girl Scout Twittering is done as mcwgs

There is a FriendFeed group, Girl-Scouts.
Learn about WAGGGS=L

Writing about AnnArbor.com, Ann Arbor News

AnnArbor.com is the new news company that will replace The Ann Arbor News, one of the newspapers owned by the Newhouse family through its purchase of the Booth Newspapers in Michigan in the 1970s.

Here are some posts where I mention the new site:

Michigan newspapers announces changes March 23, 2009
AnnArbor.com evolving March 25, 2009
What's being said about Advance March 26, 2009
Is Advance the surviving five-and-dime? March 26, 2009
Blogger: Print's death to damn river of news April 6, 2009
What they're saying in Ann Arbor, elsewhere about AnnArbor.com April 8, 2009
1 meeting, 3 takes on AnnArbor.com April 10, 2009
AnnArbor.com editor to discuss newspapers April 20, 2009
Sailing into sale of goods keeps me rushing May 28, 2009
Bye, bye, bye - bloggers calling it quits June 10, 2009
AnnArbor.com picks up two ex-Boothies July 8, 2009
Michigan city says yes to AnnArbor.com July 9, 2009
Another Michigan publication shifting to AnnArbor.com July 10, 2009
Whining about wine: AnnArbor.com watch continues July 22, 2009
AnnArbor.com growing bumper crop of recognition July 23, 2009
In love: Blogging leader skillful in reply July 25, 2009
Final words on the Ann Arbor News July 26, 2009
Oh no! Vehicle, not guns, killed swans Aug. 6, 2009
Killing the news to save it Aug. 7, 2009
Assistant photo director from Ann Arbor sad Aug. 13, 2009
Blogging leader's insights Aug. 17, 2009
Blogger: Is AnnArbor.com's reliance on unpaid writers how news units will survive? Sept. 2, 2009
Scooped by site when content keeps flowing? Sept. 3, 2009

AnnArbor.com on itself:

Ann Arbor News covers the change

The Ann Arbor News has covered the launch of the new site. Here are links to some of those stories:

PaperTiger No More

Jim Carty, a former sportswriter for the Ann Arbor News, interviewed Dearing and shared other news about AnnArbor.com in his blog Paper Tiger No More.

Free From Editors

What other links should I add here? Leave your suggestions in a comment or email me

I wiped out the contents of this post on Sept. 30, 2009, and reverted to an earlier version.