Cutting-Edge Links for 10 Town Halls
VBricks, an innovative new technology that turns cameras and microphones into computers, transformed 10 West Virginia sites into one big town meeting last September, enabling an unprecedented statewide discussion of the state’s future without coal. Teaming up with The Herald-Dispatch, West Virginia Public Broadcasting (WVPB) installed the technology, which provided the benefits of satellite hook-ups at […]
Reid Ashe Calls for Raising Value of News
By Reid Ashe Publisher The Tampa Tribune It’s a special privilege to speak at the presentation of the Batten Awards. Jim Batten meant a lot to me, as he did to all of us who had the privilege of working for him. Jim was my boss during an especially exciting time in my life, the […]
Batten Award Winners: How They Did It
“West Virginia After Coal” The Herald-Dispatch, Huntington, West Virginia Public Broadcasting Len LaCara, Managing Editor, The Herald-Dispatch: The whole point of what we set out to do is to get people talking and to get a dialogue going on what West Virginia needs to do to prepare for a future whether there’s coal there or […]
How to Reach Diverse Communities
By Don Heider Assistant Professor of Journalism University of Texas-Austin Author of “White News, Why Local News Programs Don’t Cover People of Color” The latest census figures make it clear: The demographics of the country are changing. At the same time, local television news is losing viewers, and newspapers are struggling to hold onto readers. […]
Mapping Reflects Real Life, Real People
By Kamrhan Farwell Assistant Metro Editor The Press-Enterprise, Riverside, CA I call it fast-food journalism. Make two calls, snag an expert, skim the best from the Internet and grab a token “real person” to make it seem like home cooking. Bing, bang, bong. And that burger’s done, just like the 30 million before it. We […]
West Virginia Partners Split Top Batten Award Two Runners-Up Spark Civic Turnarounds
The Huntington Herald-Dispatch and West Virginia Public Broadcasting swept the 2001 Batten Awards for Excellence in Civic Journalism for ambitious and interactive coverage of the single biggest issue in the state – its future without coal – and the creation of a groundbreaking database of how coal severance taxes are used. Their “West Virginia After Coal” partnership […]
Tech Tools Strengthen Civic Reporting
llectors of feedback and even eyewitness accounts of police skirmishes. Visioning-Community Mapping Programs. Clickable maps are interactive online exercises that give community residents a way to have direct input on public decisions. “Waterfront Renaissance” Web maps provided by The Herald’s HeraldNet.com allowed Everett, WA, residents to click on icons, drag them to a location and “vote” graphically for their […]
Community Mapping Reveals Dire Needs
By Kathy Spurlock Executive Editor The News-Star, Monroe, LA Imagine an elementary school child at bath time. Playtime, bubbles, rubber ducks and boats come to mind. Now, imagine the bath transformed into another chore – washing the child’s only school uniform each night so it will be clean for the next day. The News-Star discovered that […]
Series Triggers New Hispanic Weekly
By Alan White Managing Editor The Eagle-Tribune, Lawrence, MA In 1919, Eamon de Valera, the first president of the Irish Republic, visited Lawrence to raise money and thank the city council for being the first U.S. government body to recognize the republic. Today, Lawrence is a must stop for candidates running for president of the […]
Residents Laud Mapping Project; Seek Even More Choices
By Catherine Lee Pew Center Dean Nichols was surprised when he clicked on The Herald’s state-of-the-art Internet map and found no specific icon for a soccer field. Susan Adams found no fish icon reflecting the plight of endangered salmon around Everett, WA. But that didn’t stop Nichols, Adams and about 2,000 other Everett residents from responding […]