Project Topic: Project Topic

Home for Good, Huntington, WV

 in Economy


Home for Good, Huntington, WV 2001 

Partners:

The Herald-Dispatch
West Virginia Public Broadcasting 
WMUL-FM 

The out-migration of young people from West Virginia was as accepted as the export of its coal until the partners explored the consequences in “Home for Good,” a project that included a six-part newspaper series, radio reports, a televised public forum and an interactive Web site. 

One of the initial challenges, finding those who had left, was nearly solved with a virtual focus group online. The Herald-Dispatch persuaded papers statewide to run an ad around Christmas Day 2001 – when former residents would most likely be visiting – asking them to contact the paper and fill out a brief questionnaire. Four-hundred people responded, creating an instant database of the diaspora. The paper emailed each one a link to a longer survey, asking why they left and what it would take to get them back; 147 people answered.  Read more

Waterfront Renaissance, Everett, WA

 in Economy

Waterfront Renaissance, Everett, WA 2001 

Partners:

The Herald
KSER-FM Public Radio

The paper’s “Waterfront Renaissance” project marked a new development in interactive journalism, marrying the credibility of the news organization with Web-based game technology that had previously been used mainly on advertising and entertainment sites. 

When the Herald set out not simply to inform but also to engage residents in the city’s effort to develop a comprehensive shoreline plan, it used many familiar civic journalism tools. A four-part series of stories, which began April 22, 2001, explained the options for the waterfront and included success stories from other cities, as well as a clip-and-send form to get citizen input into what should happen on Everett’s waterfront. The paper also sought citizen input through 10 neighborhood meetings and a larger town meeting where a national waterfront-development expert spoke.  Read more

Dropping Out: Why students leave Decatur schools, Decatur, IL

 in Youth/Children

Dropping Out: Why students leave Decatur schools, Decatur, IL 2001 

Partners:

Herald & Review
WILL-TV (PBS)
WILL-AM

“Dropping Out: Why students leave Decatur schools” was a civic journalism project that involved citizens, including those who’d never finished high school, in developing ideas to help keep students in school through graduation. 

In November 2001, the partners commissioned a survey of 102 adults who had dropped out of Decatur public schools in the previous 40 years. For many of the respondents, it was the first time they had ever been asked why they’d left. Their answers pointed to some concrete steps for retention programs. One-third said additional help from a teacher or administrator might have kept them in school. Another third said more interesting classes would have helped. Read more

SchoolNet, Philadelphia, PA

 in Youth/Children

SchoolNet, Philadelphia, PA 2001 

Partners:

Philadelphia Daily News, philly.com

At the height of a crisis in Philadelphia public schools, the paper launched a rich, online source of information to encourage parent involvement and public problem-solving. SchoolNet included a wide range of features. There was contact information for district offices to help parents navigate a sometimes-convoluted bureaucracy. There was a grade-by-grade breakdown of what children should be mastering in school each year and several online forums so parents could connect with each other. To ensure that any parent would have access to the site, the Daily News put detailed brochures in the free Internet access section of 55 city libraries. Read more

Teaching Tucson’s Children , Tucson, AZ

 in Youth/Children

Teaching Tucson’s Children , Tucson, AZ 2001 

Partners:

The Arizona Daily Star
Tucson Citizen
KVOA-TV (NBC)
KOLD-TV (CBS)
KGUN-TV (ABC)
KUAT-TV (PBS)
KWBA-TV (WB)
KMSB-TV (Fox)
KTTU-TV (UPN)
KHRR-TV (Telemundo)
KUVE-TV (Univision)

This unusually comprehensive partnership – involving all of Tucson’s major media – joined forces for “Teaching Tucson’s Children,” a project on improving local public schools that culminated in a town hall meeting, Aug. 24, 2001, that drew 300 people in person and thousands more to their TV screens during the six rebroadcasts of the session.  Read more

2001: A Learning Odyssey, Savannah, GA

 in Education

2001: A Learning Odyssey, Savannah, GA 2001 

Partners:

Savannah Morning News
WSOK-AM

The paper brought together 60 citizens in August 2000 as the first step in its project on Savannah’s failing public schools. The 39,000-student district was among the worst in the nation. It had gone through three superintendents in five years, the school board was fighting with the governor over school reform, and six schools were about to be taken over by the state. Yet, the meeting was the first effort to involve citizens in developing strategies for school improvement.  Read more

Redistricting Game, Rochester, NY

 in Citizenship

Redistricting Game, Rochester, NY 2001 

Partners:

Nycitizens.org
and public television stations WXXI, WPBS, WCNY, WNET, WLIW, WMHT, WCFE, WSKG, WNEDWNED

Nine public television stations collaborated on NYcitizens.org, a Web site dedicated to helping New Yorkers understand and become engaged in the process of redrawing congressional districts through an online game and other interactive features. The partners launched the Web site in the fall of 2001 as the state legislature began the redistricting process, including simple explanations of the politics and processes involved in the task. They found a way to give users a first-hand look at the complexities, however, in February 2002, when they added the Redistricting Game. Read more

First Amendment Forum, Pittsburgh, PA

 in Citizenship


First Amendment Forum, Pittsburgh, PA 2001 

Partners:

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
KDKA-TV
KDKA-AM
Pennsylvania Newspapers Association

The Pennsylvania legislature passed a new, more liberal open-records law in the summer of 2002 after a 10-month effort by the partners to encourage citizens to use public records to make government accountable and accomplish community goals. Post-Gazette editor Jane Elizabeth did not give the project full credit for the new law but she said, “We certainly didn’t hurt it.” Read more