Spring 2001
Record Numbers Attend First Quarter Civic Journalism Conferences
The Pew Center hit the first quarter of 2001 running with a blitz of conferences that spanned the country geographically and attracted record numbers of print, broadcast and online journalists.
First up was the Feb. 2-4 conference in Pasadena, CA, “Interactive Data: Building Census, Mapping and Online Skills,” that drew 109 attendees and a lengthy waiting list . The workshop was sponsored by the Pew Center and Investigative Reporters and Editors.
On Feb. 9-11, 108 writers, editors, producers and educators traveled to Eugene, OR, for a workshop on “Civic Innovations in Newsrooms and Classrooms.” Sponsored jointly by Pew and AEJMC’s Civic Journalism Interest Group, the sessions explored ways to do and teach civic journalism.
“Civic Journalism 2001: Building Better Stories,” in Atlanta, March 2-4, was a joint production of Pew and the Radio and Television News Directors Foundation. Attending were 115 print and broadcast journalists who heard experts on media convergence, civic mapping and other innovations to help write better stories.
On March 18-19, a brainstorming summit of 24 television news directors was held in Baltimore to discuss, “Future News: Aspirations & Impediments.” The subtitle of the session, “Big Hairy Ideas and Audacious Executions,” captured the free-flowing session.
“Interactive Data: Building Census, Mapping and Online Skills,” Pasadena, CA:
(from left to right) David Boardman, Seattle Times; Ron Nixon, NICAR; Kate Parry, St. Paul Pioneer Press; Steve Doig, Arizona State University.
“Civic Innovations in Newsrooms and Classrooms”, Eugene, OR:
(clockwise from bottom left) Morgan Holm, Oregon Public Broadcasting; Mark Briggs, The Herald, Everett, WA; Terrie Claflin, Southern Oregon University; Jack Keith, The News Tribune, Tacoma; and Ken Sands, The Spokesman-Review
“Future News: Aspirations & Impediments”, Baltimore, MD:
(left) Andrea Parquet-Taylor, WRAL-TV, Raleigh; (right) and Tim Geraghty, WTVJ, Miami.
“Civic Journalism 2001: Building Better Stories,” Atlanta, GA:
(clockwise from bottom left): Jessica Tomlinson, MaineToday.com; Tracy Haynes, WSB-TV, Atlanta; Nancy Agosto, KMEX-TV (Univision), Los Angeles; Rachel Jones, ChildWire Inc.; and Gil Thelen, The Tampa Tribune.