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A-CONFERENCE
TRACK TWO: Citizen Media Bootcamp and frontline lessons
By Chris Grotke & Lise LePage (iBrattleboro)
Jan 14, 2006, 11:59

Track Managers/Hosts:
Lise LePage and Chris Grotke, founders
iBrattleboro.com (lepage (at) musearts.com / grotke (at) musearts.com)

Share up-to-the-minute information about fast-growing local online news communities -- how they operate, how they're financed, and what motivates the people who start them. Break into small groups, tackle real-life examples of local news community development, with access to peers and experts as the "Media Giraffe Institute: Lessons from the Frontlines". Check in 4 p.m.-9 p.m., Thurs., June 29 / 7 a.m.-8:30 a.m., Fri., June 30.  Program ends noon, Sat., July 1.

Click HERE for instructions on how to register online for just this track.
Click HERE to register for the full Media Giraffe summit as well as this track.

TRACK TWO –  Citizen Media Bootcamp

Thursday, June 29, 2006

Special Event – THURSDAY AFTERNOON ONLY

12:30 p.m. – 5:30 p.m.   Special registration: $40 for afternoon; no food; Filmmaking track only CC168-C

CITIZEN MEDIA FILMMAKING WORKSHOP & FESTIVAL CONVENERS: Aldon Hynes, Ned Lamont Senate Campaign; Steve Garfield, RocketBoom.com. As digital video cameras become more popular, as people start taking videos from their cellphones, and as new sites emerge online to distribute these videos, citizen filmmaking is taking off. Many people will be simply sharing home movies. Others, however, will want to create documentaries, political advertisements, and citizen journalism. The Workshop & Festival will celebrate noteworthy citizen filmmaking and provide workshops for those wishing to learn how to become more involved.

Thursday, June 29, 2006 -- TRACK TWO  

4 p.m. – 9 p.m.	Conference check-in, Campus Center Concourse level
6:30 p.m.-7:30 p.m.	Reception for all conference attendees
7:30 p.m. – 9:30 p.m.	Buy-your-owner dinner, cafeteria style, in the Blue Wall, with Friday’s agenda update  from track leaders Christopher Grotke/Lise LePage; Aldon Hynes, Norman Sims, Rob Williams ,  Steve Garfield and others.

 

Friday, June 30, 2006
Tracks TWO

7:00 a.m.-10:30 a.m.	Conference check-in, Campus Center Concourse level
7:00 a.m.-8 a.m.	Continental breakfast for summit participants  (Campus Center lower concourse)
8 a.m.- 9:15 a.m. GENERAL SESSION CC Reading Room	Report from Thursday’s summit:   “Setting the scene: What’s the future of the web and news?” CONVENERS:  Dale Peskin, The Media Center at API; Lee Rainie, the Pew Project on Internet & Society; Tom Rosenstiel, Project on Excellence in Journalism. A news-industry  futurist, , an Internet demographics researcher and a key observer and facilitator of online multimedia news trends forecast the next year and the next decades for the Fourth Estate. How should media executives, citizen journalists, political strategists / public officials, educators and technologist prepare and collaborate?
9:15 a.m.-9:30 a.m.	Media Café break
9:30 a.m.-10:15 a.m. TRACK TWO CC163-C	Media – “Experiment in Collaboration: Can MSM and citizens work together?” PRESENTER: Lew Friedland,  Univ. of Wisconsin and Madison Commons.  A quick summary of the issues  involved in a unique  effort by the Madison, Wis., daily newspapers to join and assist a local citizen-media news collaborative, the Madison Commons.
10:30 a.m.-12:30 p.m. TRACK TWO CC163-C	CITIZEN MEDIA BOOTCAMP – Morning session 9:30 a.m.-11:30  a.m. – Bootcamp Orientation: “Why Citizen Journalism?”  Can citizens be journalists? A discussion and debate. What is the role of advocacy jouranalism? How does citizen journalism relate to professional media? What are the effects of citzen journalism on the civic arena? Can a lost dog be news . . . and much more.  MODERATOR: Tish Grier, editor, Corante Media Hub.  DISCUSSANTS: Eesha Williams, author “Grassroots Journalism,” , Ilona Meagher, ePluribus media;  Lisa Williams H2OtownLise LePage, iBrattleboro.
10:45 a.m.-11:00 a.m.	Media Café break
11:00 a.m.-12:15 p.m. TRACK FIVE CC Auditorium	Technology:    “The Maine Blogger: A Case Study of a Blogstorm” CONVENERS: Robert Cox, Media Bloggers Association; Lance Dutson, Maine Web Report (defendant); Fred Frawley, Preti Flaherty Beliveau & Pachios (attorney for WKPA); and Greg Herbert, Greenberg Traurig (attorney for Lance Dutson).  When New York ad agency Warren, Kremer, Paino Advertising filed a seven-figure federal lawsuit against blogger Lance Dutson, an unknown gadfly was transformed overnight into a First Amendment martyr. When the lawsuit was withdrawn amidst a withering media campaign organized by the Media Bloggers Association, the "Maine Blogger" became a cause celebre in the blogosphere. Join us as we go behind the scenes with the key players to examine the legal issues raised by the case, the blogstorm which erupted and the implications for citizen journalists and the businesses and government officials they cover.
12:15 p.m.-12:30 p.m.	Media Café break
12:30 p.m.-2:00 p.m. CC  CC Auditorium	Buffet lunch (CC Auditorium or Campus Center Ballroom)  “Is Media Performance Democracy’s Critical Issue?” SPEAKER: Tom Stites, Center for Public Integrity;  INTRODUCED BY: Chris Peck, Memphis Commercial Appeal. Thirty years ago, if your policy message was on the three networks, The New York Times or the Washington Post, it spread quickly across America. We are now in an era of micr0-media – blogs, email, dozens of networks and cable channels, multimedia chaos and creativity.  Political strategists who disagree on issues often agree that media structure and performance is now their No. 2 issue.  Has the state of our media become the most important threat to participatory democracy? Why?
1:30 p.m.-3:30 p.m. TRACK TWO CC 163-C	CitiMedia Bootcamp --  “Citizen Journalism in Action: A Practicum” An overview of web-based citizen journalims in action with an emphasis on doing it yourself.  The panel will look at examples of successful citizen-journalism projects and issues of interest to those looking to launch such ventures themselves – how to get started, add interactivity and features, and tackle technical issues as well as build participation, create policies and procedures and relate to the community at large.  MODERATOR: Lisa Williams, H2Otown.  DISCUSSANTS: Christopher Grotke, iBrattleboro, Maureen Mann,  Philbrick James Forum;  Gordon Joseloff, Westport Now; Dan Barlow, reporter and citi-J site user.
3:30 p.m.-4:15 p.m.	Media Café and free ice cream social, courtesy of Ben & Jerry’s Homemade, Inc.
4:15 p.m.-5:30 p.m. TRACK TWO CC-163C	Citizen Media – “Your Project: Expert Feedback” CO-CONVENER: George White, UCLA Center for Communications & Community.  Any and all citizen journalists are invited to be on hand to provide advice to others. Designed to provide real interaction between attendees hoping to sart or strengthen their own projects. Join citizen-media veterans, as participants, for an idea exchange. Come prepared to tell others what your project is about and specific problems you face. Fellow participants and experts will provide feedback, suggestions and ideas specifically for you.
5:30 p.m.-5:45 p.m.	Media Café  -- networking / discussion
5:45 p.m.-6:30 p.m.	Campus Center Reading Room – reception and hor d’oeuvres for all attendees. (Spill out into CC Concourse)
6:30 p.m.-7:30 p.m. DINNER   7::30 p.m.-8:15 p.m. SPEECH         8:15 p.m.-9:30 p.m. DISCUSSION	Dinner and discussion, CC Auditorium,  Campus Center     SPEAKER: Dr. Rob Williams, president, Action Coalition for Media Education; professor, Champlain College, Burlington, Vermont:  “Why Doesn’t Johnny Care? How Media Can Bring Young Adults Back Into The Public Sphere?”   Young adults have abandoned the news as presented in traditional forms. Newspaper and TV users are aging. But they are heavy media consumers.  What will put public affairs back into their diet? And why does it matter?  DISCUSSANTS: Andrea Frantz, Wilkes University; Melissa Krodman, Project Think Different; Mark Lopez, CIRCLE .
9:30 p.m.-11:00 p.m. CC Auditorium	Media Café Extra: “War Stories – Avoiding Other’s Mistakes” An informal session for all participants able to share “war stories” from the trenches of citizen journalism. What has been your worst experience? Share your nightmares and tales of woe over beer, wine or whatever.

  Saturday, July 1, 2006   

7:30  a.m.-8:30 a.m.	Continental breakfast for summit participants ( Campus Center Lower Level Concourse)
8:30 a.m.-9:45 a.m. TRACK TWO CC 163-C	Citizen Media:  “The Daily Grind” Discuss the day-to-day operation of a citizen-journalism site project, from moderating submissions and comments, setting a tone, dealing with users, building traffic, selling ads and other facets of running a citizen-journalism outlet.  DISCUSSANTS from the Philbrick James Forum, H2Otown, VillageSoup.com, WestportNow.com,  CTNewsJunkie.com, the New Haven Independent, ePluribus Media and other sites.
10:00 a.m.-11:15 a.m. (same rooms as earlier sessions)	Media Café collaboration and Track meet-ups for “next step” ideas:   Topic ideas:   POLITICS:  Pitching the big tent TECHNOLOGY:  Making adoption easy CITIZEN MEDIA:  Inviting participation EDUCATION:  Making media cool
11:15 a.m.-12:45 p.m. CLOSING SESSION AND BOX LUNCHES  CC Room 101	“What Did We Learn/What’s Next” -- Reports from track managers or designees “Speak to the Group” – Moderated  open microphone session   Closing Talk: “Keeping Participatory Democracy Alive: Talking Across The Divides Of Media, Politics, Education And Technology.” CONVENERS: Norman Sims, UMass Amherst and  principal investigator, Media Giraffe Project;  Bill Densmore, director/editor.
12:45 p.m.	Conference Ends
1:30 p.m. – 4:30 p.m. Independent meet-ups and outdoor bootcamps	POST-CONFERENCE MEET-UPS:   Independent groups with membership at the conference hold planning or strategy sessions in rooms provided at no additional charge by the Media Giraffe Project and UMass Amherst.   MUSEUMS 10 – at WikiPedia  /   ACTIVITIES/TRIPS:  (LINK: Amherst area)   INDIVIDUAL LINKS:   Hiking: Mount Toby, the Norwottuck Trail Rafting on the Deerfield River (Charlemont, Mass.) Eric Carle Museum of Picture Book  Art  (Amherst, Mass.) Historic Deerfield or Yankee Candle (South Deerfield, Mass.) Amherst College Mead Art Museum (Amherst) Amherst College Museum of Natural History Smith College Museum of Art (Northampton) National Yiddish Book Center (South Amherst) Emily Dickens House Museum (Amherst) Official NBA Basketball Hall of Fame (Springfield, Mass.) Mass. Museum of Contemporary Art (North Adams, Mass.)
Saturday evening	Events in the Five College Area: Tanglewood (BSO-Lenox, Mass. –Garrison Keillor / Prairie Home Companion Live, 5:45 p.m., Sat., July 1)