Project Topic: Project Topic

Passing the Test, Monroe, LA

 in Education

Passing the Test, Monroe, LA 2001

Partners:

The News-Star, newsstar.com
Louisiana Tech University
Grambling State University
SPJ Lincoln Collegiate Chapter

The paper used civic mapping to explore why more than a quarter of Monroe’s fourth- and eighth-grade public school students had failed high-stakes state math and reading tests. The project generated an outpouring of community help for local schools.

The News Star focused on five Monroe public schools for its mapping effort and partnered with the journalism schools at Louisiana Tech and Grambling to recruit the manpower needed to explore the five communities. Teams of one reporter and two students went into the community, meeting with teachers, administrators and parents and walking the streets to find “third places” outside the schools themselves. Read more

Under One Roof, Washington, D.C.

 in Race Relations

Under One Roof, Washington, DC 2001

Partners:

Black Entertainment Television (BET),
BET.com

After decades of reporting about the African-American family by white news organizations or think tanks, BET – Black Entertainment Television – tackled the subject in a civic journalism project that combined the forces of the popular cable service’s new newscast and its online division, BET.com. “Under One Roof” was a year-long project that included weekly reports on BET Nightly News tied to interactive features on the Web site. Read more

Bridges to the New California and The World According to Young People, San Francisco, CA

 in Race Relations

Bridges to the New California and The World According to Young People, San Francisco, CA 2001 

Partners:

Pacific News Service
New California Media/a>
KALW-FM
San Francisco Chronicle 

The partnership gave wider circulation, through the Chronicle’s Sunday edition and through KALW programs, to the diverse ethnic and youth voices gathered by two of the Pacific News Service’s major projects: New California Media and YO! Youth Outlook. 

The New California Media (NCM) project distilled the major stories in dozens of ethnic newspapers in the Bay Area, papers such as the Sing Tao Daily, Iran Today, India West, and Philippine News. Beginning in April 2001, the Chronicle ran articles from NCM under a sig called “Bridges to the New California.”  Read more

Lawrence is Growing, Lawrence, KS

 in Quality of Life

Lawrence is Growing, Lawrence, KS 2001 

Partners:

Lawrence Journal-World
6News
J-W Web Works

With “Lawrence is Growing,” the partners helped citizens of the university town, long polarized on the issue of growth, find common ground and make concrete proposals to public officials on how to manage growth.

The six-month project began April 15, 2001, with a three-week series about the history of growth in Lawrence, alternatives for future growth and how other communities had managed it. Stories appeared daily in the paper and on TV, while the Web site offered content from both as well as interactive elements including bulletin boards for comment and a clickable map showing how Lawrence had grown over the years and various scenarios for future growth. Read more

Your Neighborhood, Your Future, Portland, OR

 in Economy

Your Neighborhood, Your Future, Portland, OR 2001 

Partners:

KGW-TV (NBC), KGW.com
Portland Tribune
Beaverton Valley Times
Tigard Times
Gresham Outloo
Clackamas Review

As elected planning officials in the Portland area began seeking public input on a long-term growth plan, the media partners launched a project to inform citizens and engage their interest in the process. “Your Neighborhood, Your Future” included dozens of TV and print stories about crucial growth issues. A poll and a town meeting provided a barometer of public opinion on the issues. Read more

Growth on the Strand, Myrtle Beach, SC

 in Economy

Growth on the Strand, Myrtle Beach, SC 2001 

Partners:

The Sun News 
Myrtlebeachonline.com 
Coastal Carolina University 

With Myrtle Beach becoming the fastest-growing relocation destination in the nation, the paper gave residents a chance to try their hand at managing growth in the region with an interactive Web-based game, similar to the model pioneered by The Herald in Everett.

“Chart the Strand’s Future,” a feature introduced on the paper’s Web site in April 2002, allowed users to drop icons onto a map in order to design a growth plan, as in the popular game “Sim City.” The paper did not, however, collect and analyze the designs, as the The Herald in Everett, WA, did. Rather, the game was an end in itself, designed to give users a taste of the trade-offs and challenges city planners face when managing growth. The game included a meter by which users could see how each choice for development affected both the community’s financial health and quality of life. The paper received informal, positive feedback but could not keep track of how many people participated. Read more

Stray Voltage, LaCrosse, WI

 in Economy


Stray Voltage, LaCrosse, WI 2001 

Partners:

La Crosse Tribune

This project examined the hazards of stray voltage – electrical current that leaks from power lines – for farms and livestock through a series of newspaper stories and a dedicated Web site that drew comments and questions from around the world.

The stories, looking at causes, effects and possible solutions of stray voltage, were denounced by utility companies, who tried to pressure the Tribune by going directly to the editorial board to complain and even questioning the Pew Center about its support of the project. But the project was embraced by farmers and some public officials. The Michigan Attorney General included several of the stories as evidence in legal action against the state’s second largest utility. The Wisconsin Rural Energy Management Council invited reporter Chris Hardie to display his story and answer questions on the subject as part of its research for the state legislature. Read more

Rural Idaho: Challenged to Change, Idaho

 in Economy

Rural Idaho: Challenged to Change, Idaho 2001 

Partners:

The Idaho Statesman
Idaho Spokesman-Review
Lewiston Morning Tribune
(Idaho Falls) Post Register
KTVB-TV (NBC in Boise)
Idaho Public Television

The news organizations gave a statewide scope to the problems of rural Idaho with their collaboration on “Rural Idaho: Challenged to Change,” a five-part series that ran simultaneously in all four papers, and as a three-part series on KTVB in October of 2001. The series’ revelations led to a November conference, attended by several hundred citizens, co-sponsored by the Statesman and two non-profit public policy organizations that, in turn, generated a white paper to the state legislature on measures needed to shore up rural Idaho. Read more