Pre-Conference Workshops - 2010

From Wikimedia

These workshops are scheduled for Wed., July 7, 2010 at the conference hotel in downtown Pittsburgh. There are separate convenors for each. For a detailed schedule and contact information, click on the headline of each.

Citizen Journalism (9:30-5:00)

As the decline of newspapers is felt throughout the country, could media centers be the new model for local news? Could Citizen Journalism be an opportunity for community media centers like PEGs to earn income, create trained citizen reporters, build partnerships, and serve up local content?

These and other topics will be discussed during this one day pre-conference designed for community media staff, volunteers, journalists, academics, concerned citizens, and others interested in launching, sustaining, or participating in a hyper-local citizen journalism project. Experts in the field from across the country will present their citizen journalism experiments and share emerging best practices during the session. The ultimate goal of this one-day session is to provide practical solutions to critical questions that will help individuals and organizations develop and sustain successful citizen journalism projects. We hope this pre-conference session will set the stage for the Citizen Journalism Track at the conference.

Moderator/Speaker:

• Jan Schaffer, Executive Director, J-Lab: The Institute for Interactive Journalism, Washington, DC;

Speakers:

• Laurie Cirivello, Executive Director, Grand Rapids Community Media Center, Grand Rapids, MI
• Benjamin Ilfeld, COO and Co-Founder, Sacramento Press, Sacramento, CA
• Steve Reinbrecht, Managing Editor, Berks Community Television, Reading, PA
• Jessica Durkin, New America Foundation Media Policy Initiative Fellow & Founder, InOtherNews.us, Scranton, PA

12:30-1:30 - Lunch; 1:30-2:15 - Unconference Session I; 2:30-3:30 - Unconference Session II; 4:00-5:00 - Report Backs & Next Steps

Community Media Centers Connecting to the New Broadband Networks (9:30-12:00)

As we begin the migration from cable networks with limited capacity to broadband networks with unlimited wireline capacity and wireless mobility, PEG Access/Community Media Centers need to begin the same learning process we went through when our centers, services and staff began the migration from analog to digital technology but now the stakes are even higher. Will we survive this next round of migration in the public policy and planning arenas?

Due to the Obama Stimulus Package's BTOP and BIP programs, cities and counties all around the country are going through a grant preparation process for submission to the NTIA and the RUS, as well as to their state broadband authorities. How can CMC’s achieve the “anchor institution” status under these programs? Can we develop a vision, plan and strategy for the community partnership building process that is necessary with the other ”Anchor Institutions” in the community? How do we insure that we are "at the table" when the telecommunications planning process, the community needs and services assessment, the network design cost estimate and the sustainable business plan are all assembled. These issues plus many others related to the potential marriage of CMC’s and the new broadband networks will be discussed during this timely and informative preconference.

Preconference Organizers:

• Sean McLaughlin, Access Humboldt
• Chuck Sherwood, Community Visioning Partners

Moderator:

• Chuck Sherwood, Senior Analyst, TeleDimensions, Inc., South Dennis, MA

Speakers:

• James Losey, Program Associate, Open Technology Initiative, The New America Foundation, Washington, DC
• Sean McLaughlin, Executive Director Access Humboldt, Eureka, CA
• Michael Max Knobbe, Executive Director, BronxNet, Bronx, NY
• Bice C. Wilson, AIA, Principal, Meridian Design Associates, Architects, P.C., New York, NY

Final Cut Pro Training Clinic/Basic (9:30-12:00)

This hands-on Basic Final Cut Pro clinic will introduce the user to basic editing, the software interface, with an emphasis on keeping the project organized. After a tour of the FCP layout, the student is guided through fine-tuning their idea using editing points, still images and text, among other key features. If you have purchased FCP loaded on your Mac and haven’t been able to wade through the manual, or if you are already familiar with Final Cut Pro but find that teaching it to “non-techies” can be challenging, this workshop is for you.

Preconference Trainer:

• Angela Breene, Manager, Olelo Wahiawa, Leilehua High School, Wahiawa, HI

Mapping Your Fundraising Future (1:30-4:00)

Organizations, leaders, and policy makers often believe all that is needed to solve a sudden loss of revenue is to start fundraising. It sounds good. But where does an organization start if they have no history or experience raising funds? What tools are necessary to do the job? And what is realistic for your community, and for your organization?

Participants in this workshop will learn about the structures and tools necessary for starting successful fundraising for a non-profit organization, will look at case studies of media centers that started from zero, and will map out assets they can use for successful fundraising strategies in their communities. At the end of the workshop, participants will be given an opportunity to be a part of a learning community that will focus on improving fundraising for community media.

Speakers:

• Antoine Haywood, People TV, Atlanta, GA
• Mike Wassenaar, Executive Director, St. Paul Neighborhood Network, Saint Paul, MN

Social Media and Your CMC: Promotion, Engagement and Community Service (1:30-4:00)

Tentative about Twitter? Frustrated by Facebook? Clueless about Spezify, Hootsuite, or Jing? Not to worry! Effective social media isn’t about creating a fancy Fan Page; it’s a new way of thinking about, communicating and engaging around what you already know.

This half-day seminar will examine trends in social media and the potential impact on the work of your CMC. From use of micro-blogging to engage viewers, to enhancement of your value to your nonprofit community…social media tools are invaluable for positioning your organization as vibrant and connected.

We will explore a number of common (and some less common) social media tools, and most importantly, discuss best practices for their use. Discover strategies for applying social media both within CMC organization, and as a valuable knowledge resource for the community. Attendees will be encouraged to engage in robust discussion and brainstorming around the value of social media, impact, strategic deployment and managing the tools (so they don’t manage you!)

Not an advanced, or tech-intensive seminar, this lively session is geared toward community media leaders and program staff who are new or intermediate social media users. Come prepared to participate.

Preconference Organizer and Speaker:

• Laurie Cirivello, Executive Director, Grand Rapids Community Media Center, Grand Rapids, MI

Boards that Work: Effective Community Leadership for Community Media Centers (1:30-4:00)

Whether you are in a mature Community Media Center or a new start-up, identifying and maintaining a quality Board of Directors can be a challenge. This interactive half-day workshop will provide valuable information on “best practices” for creating and maintaining an effective Board of Directors for your community media nonprofit organization. Topics that will be addressed will include, the role and responsibilities of Board members, Board/Staff relationships, Board recruitment, Board conflict of interest policies, developing and implementing Committees, effective meetings and of course the role of the Board as fundraisers.

Speaker:

• Sue Buske, President, The Buske Group, Sacramento, CA

Final Cut Pro Training Clinic/Advanced (1:30-4:00)

This hands-on ADVANCED Final Cut Pro workshop will include training in color correction, key framing, multi-camera editing, compositing, advanced audio, and other advanced features of FCP. Attendees are invited to ask about specific features with which they may be struggling. Previous Final Cut experience is required to attend this workshop.

Preconference Trainer:

• Angela Breene, Manager, Olelo Wahiawa, Leilehua High School, Wahiawa, HI

Alliance for Community Media: Leadership Training Seminar (1:30-4:00)

This workshop is designed to provide ACM members the opportunity to learn about how to get more actively involved as a leader at the chapter, regional, or national level within ACM. ACM Board members from the Membership and Board Development Committees will lead this session that is designed to provide a better understanding of the ACM organizational structure as well as where leadership opportunities exist within the ACM. This free training workshop will provide a great opportunity for you to “step up" and get involved with ACM in a really meaningful way!

Workshop Leaders:

• ACM Board Development Committee