Some background at: The fight over Kimberley gas
Also: Hands Off Country
We took these photos while camping at the point in 2007.
When it's gone, it's gone forever!
Thursday, September 30, 2010
Save James Price Point: A Special Place
James Price Point is a very special place. It is also the centre of a major dispute about where to put a LNG Gas Hub in North Western Australia.
Some background at: The fight over Kimberley gas
Also: Hands Off Country
We took these photos while camping at the point in 2007.
When it's gone, it's gone forever!
Some background at: The fight over Kimberley gas
Also: Hands Off Country
We took these photos while camping at the point in 2007.
When it's gone, it's gone forever!
Thursday, September 23, 2010
Mashable & 92Y Social Good Summit: Livestream
The Mashable & 92Y Social Good Summit
Mashable and 92Y present a summit of today’s most inspirational and promising leaders discussing effective ways in which new media can help address the world’s challenges. By focusing on the UN’s Millennium Development Goals (MDGs) — being addressed in high-level plenary sessions at UN Week in September 2010 — the Mashable/92Y Social Good Summit celebrates the power and potential of new media to effect change. The Summit is presented in partnership with the United Nations Foundation, a public charity that advocates for the UN and provides a platform for connecting people, ideas and resources to help the UN solve global problems.
Watch live streaming video from mashable at livestream.com
You wouldn’t miss a St Kilda Grand Final for quids!
You wouldn’t miss a St Kilda Grand Final for quids!
The St Kilda crowd on the Sandringham train was subdued on the way home from the Preliminary final win over Footscray last Saturday. Going by his age, the bloke opposite me was almost certainly at the ’66 grand final win. He didn’t smile once. If you’re not sure why, then please read my 2009 post 1966 is a long time for this Saints supporter.
He alighted at Hampton station. Saints fans are an overwhelming majority on our line. Hardly a red, white and blue Bulldog scarf clashed with our red, white and black last week. In the days of the Victorian Football League, footy supporters were essentially suburb-based tribes. Collingwood were the most infamous and dangerous. If they won at their Victoria Park home ground, their exuberant youths would attack anyone wearing the opposing club colours. If they lost they’d fight one another as well. We used to put any livery in our bags on the journey home. The Saturday evening Sporting Globe newspaper was either a sell-out or a no-sale that night in the woodlands.
Times have certainly changed. Apparently their coach, Mick Malthouse, lives in Hampton.
There were many difficult times in the Collingwood outer. In 1972 I was late for the round 14 match but many of my family watched as magpie John Greening (and Brownlow medal favourite) was felled behind the play by saint Jim O’Dea. Greening suffered a cerebral concussion that virtually finished his VFL career. It was a dark day all round.
In 1993 I missed the iconic moment when Nicky Winmar lifted his jumper and pointed to his aboriginal skin. It followed racist abuse from the crowd during the game. In earlier years the racism was usually anti-semitism targeted at St Kilda’s large Jewish supporter base. It was and still is part of the local suburb’s demographic. One of the few Jewish players, Ian Syman, played in the ’66 premiership team after receiving a dispensation from synagogue attendance for Yom Kippur.
As inner suburbs both St Kilda and Collingwood have become gentrified. Their homogeneous team loyalty has been diluted as a consequence.
During the bleak days of the early ‘80s, I stood alone watching the dying minutes of a disastrous loss. Most other Saints followers had left. One of our young players came on, marked on the wing, took two bounces, evaded three Collingwood players, bounced again and kicked a sixty-metre goal from the boundary. None of the triumphant magpie supporters joined in my applause. They’ll be just as tough and unforgiving next Saturday. (This memory could well be apocryphal.)
Last Saturday was one of those rare moments when the Prime Minister Julia Gillard and I were on opposite sides. Julia is just one of sports tragic PMs. As a Labor pollie, Footscray fits her role, her western suburbs work class electorate and her bulldog birth in Wales.
Usually politicians, journalists and commentators squeeze every clichéd metaphor out of sport. Especially football, whatever the code: line ball, offside, scrums, free kick, own goal. Pollies often appeals to the umpire. Political parties have loyal supporters, their true believers, just like footy clubs. New members of parliament are rookies.
There were no rookies in ’66. We hadn’t imported the term yet. Veteran sports-caller Bruce McEvaney has a generic vocab. It’s very bland commentary, enabling an all-seasons dumbed-down approach for both Bruce and his viewers. I’m still looking for left field at the MCG, whether it’s cricket or AFL. His pinch hitters rarely carry bats. If it’s a draw (or should it be a tie) this week, we’re bound to have a hung game.
Collingwood has 14 Premiership Cups. St.Kilda has just its one-point victory against them in 1966. Something we have let them forget. Let’s halve that ratio this year! It’ll be better than winning an election.
I’ll be sitting on the flank opposite my 1966 seat. As I penned last year: “Saints fans have had to be stoic. We’ve snatched the proverbial cliché from the jaws of victory too often. It’s been along time carrying the flag.” But you wouldn’t miss it for quids!
The St Kilda crowd on the Sandringham train was subdued on the way home from the Preliminary final win over Footscray last Saturday. Going by his age, the bloke opposite me was almost certainly at the ’66 grand final win. He didn’t smile once. If you’re not sure why, then please read my 2009 post 1966 is a long time for this Saints supporter.
He alighted at Hampton station. Saints fans are an overwhelming majority on our line. Hardly a red, white and blue Bulldog scarf clashed with our red, white and black last week. In the days of the Victorian Football League, footy supporters were essentially suburb-based tribes. Collingwood were the most infamous and dangerous. If they won at their Victoria Park home ground, their exuberant youths would attack anyone wearing the opposing club colours. If they lost they’d fight one another as well. We used to put any livery in our bags on the journey home. The Saturday evening Sporting Globe newspaper was either a sell-out or a no-sale that night in the woodlands.
Times have certainly changed. Apparently their coach, Mick Malthouse, lives in Hampton.
There were many difficult times in the Collingwood outer. In 1972 I was late for the round 14 match but many of my family watched as magpie John Greening (and Brownlow medal favourite) was felled behind the play by saint Jim O’Dea. Greening suffered a cerebral concussion that virtually finished his VFL career. It was a dark day all round.
In 1993 I missed the iconic moment when Nicky Winmar lifted his jumper and pointed to his aboriginal skin. It followed racist abuse from the crowd during the game. In earlier years the racism was usually anti-semitism targeted at St Kilda’s large Jewish supporter base. It was and still is part of the local suburb’s demographic. One of the few Jewish players, Ian Syman, played in the ’66 premiership team after receiving a dispensation from synagogue attendance for Yom Kippur.
As inner suburbs both St Kilda and Collingwood have become gentrified. Their homogeneous team loyalty has been diluted as a consequence.
During the bleak days of the early ‘80s, I stood alone watching the dying minutes of a disastrous loss. Most other Saints followers had left. One of our young players came on, marked on the wing, took two bounces, evaded three Collingwood players, bounced again and kicked a sixty-metre goal from the boundary. None of the triumphant magpie supporters joined in my applause. They’ll be just as tough and unforgiving next Saturday. (This memory could well be apocryphal.)
Last Saturday was one of those rare moments when the Prime Minister Julia Gillard and I were on opposite sides. Julia is just one of sports tragic PMs. As a Labor pollie, Footscray fits her role, her western suburbs work class electorate and her bulldog birth in Wales.
Usually politicians, journalists and commentators squeeze every clichéd metaphor out of sport. Especially football, whatever the code: line ball, offside, scrums, free kick, own goal. Pollies often appeals to the umpire. Political parties have loyal supporters, their true believers, just like footy clubs. New members of parliament are rookies.
There were no rookies in ’66. We hadn’t imported the term yet. Veteran sports-caller Bruce McEvaney has a generic vocab. It’s very bland commentary, enabling an all-seasons dumbed-down approach for both Bruce and his viewers. I’m still looking for left field at the MCG, whether it’s cricket or AFL. His pinch hitters rarely carry bats. If it’s a draw (or should it be a tie) this week, we’re bound to have a hung game.
Collingwood has 14 Premiership Cups. St.Kilda has just its one-point victory against them in 1966. Something we have let them forget. Let’s halve that ratio this year! It’ll be better than winning an election.
I’ll be sitting on the flank opposite my 1966 seat. As I penned last year: “Saints fans have had to be stoic. We’ve snatched the proverbial cliché from the jaws of victory too often. It’s been along time carrying the flag.” But you wouldn’t miss it for quids!
MDG Summit Lying Low Down Under
Cross post, Global Voices/Th!nk3:
The Australian media seem distracted from this week’s UN Millennium Development Goals Summit. Our Federal election with its hung parliament and the football finals season are among the causes. Nevertheless, deposed Kevin Rudd has received a lot of attention for his current overseas trip. Unfortunately it has been mainly for local political reason.More: Australia: MDG Summit Lying Low Down Under
Thankfully the Oz blogosphere has plenty of MDG traffic, though most of it is confined to NGOs and church groups.
Wednesday, September 22, 2010
UN Millennium Development Goals: Global Voices Special Coverage
Global Voices has special coverage of the
UN Millennium Development Goals Summit:
UN Millennium Development Goals Summit:
Ten years ago, world leaders developed a blueprint for improving the social and economic situation in the world's poorest countries. To ensure progress, United Nations member states agreed to adopt a set of targets called the Millennium Development Goals (MDGs). The deadline for achieving these eight goals is 2015.
With only five years to go, world leaders are currently attending a United Nations Summit in New York on 20-22 September 2010 to discuss how to accelerate global poverty reduction. On Twitter, you can follow these Global Voices bloggers who are there in person: @SonamOngmo @bhumikaghimire @andrea_arzaba and @lastoadri
Together with our friends at the UNFPA blog Conversations for a Better World (On Twitter, @_conversations_) we would love to hear more examples and ideas from bloggers worldwide.
UN MDG Summit: Poverty On Target
Some encouraging news from the UN Millennium Development Goals Summit in New York:
This week, as nations gather to assess the goals, the UN announced that the world was on track to halve the percentage of people on the lowest rung of the economic ladder.
Even with the global recession, the ranks of the world's desperately poor are likely to shrink to 15 per cent of the population by 2015, less than half of the original 42 per cent, according to a recent UN report.
UN says world on track to halve severe poverty
Tuesday, September 21, 2010
Monday, September 20, 2010
When Ignorance Equals Racism
An event involving religion, sport and gender. The Oz media were certain to get it very wrong!
We definitely live in parallel universes. Last week we only had the choice of Seven Sunrise or the Today Show for morning News/Weather. We had had the same problem the previous week. I gave up on the Today Show the morning after the two independent MPs announced their support for a Gillard minority government. Everyone on the set except the boom operator, shared their anti-labor venom about this decision. Laying claim to be the Fox Television Network of the antipodes perhaps?
At 7 David Koch's panel 'Kochie's Angels' discussed a restrictive dress code for a Ramadan event at a swimming pool in Melbourne next year. When one angel wondered if Australia is " a bit of a racist nation", Koch shared his expertise on our region:
Mono-cultures?! Indonesia? Papua New Guinea? China? Malaysia? Singapore? India? The Philippines?
Koch should visit the CIA World Factbook. Even Singapore, with its authoritarian government, has the following mix: Chinese 76.8%, Malay 13.9%, Indian 7.9%, other 1.4%.
Which brings me to "tolerance". My Global Voices post Australia: Muslim Dress Code Backlash has a roundup of some of the online comment on this issue. The 773 comments on the Herald Sun 'news' story might just test this self-image. I'm in full agreement with one of the bloggers:
Is it too much to expect the mainstream media to find out the facts before they share their prejudices?
We definitely live in parallel universes. Last week we only had the choice of Seven Sunrise or the Today Show for morning News/Weather. We had had the same problem the previous week. I gave up on the Today Show the morning after the two independent MPs announced their support for a Gillard minority government. Everyone on the set except the boom operator, shared their anti-labor venom about this decision. Laying claim to be the Fox Television Network of the antipodes perhaps?
At 7 David Koch's panel 'Kochie's Angels' discussed a restrictive dress code for a Ramadan event at a swimming pool in Melbourne next year. When one angel wondered if Australia is " a bit of a racist nation", Koch shared his expertise on our region:
"Every nation is racist. Every nation has an element of racism. We live in a region surrounded by mono-cultures. Talk about racism. Go to Japan. Go to Malaysia. Go to the Philippines. No comparison. We're pretty tolerant."The video of the discussion is online:
Mono-cultures?! Indonesia? Papua New Guinea? China? Malaysia? Singapore? India? The Philippines?
Koch should visit the CIA World Factbook. Even Singapore, with its authoritarian government, has the following mix: Chinese 76.8%, Malay 13.9%, Indian 7.9%, other 1.4%.
Which brings me to "tolerance". My Global Voices post Australia: Muslim Dress Code Backlash has a roundup of some of the online comment on this issue. The 773 comments on the Herald Sun 'news' story might just test this self-image. I'm in full agreement with one of the bloggers:
Rather than smoothing the waters between different religious groups, yet another wave of discontent has been created through media misinformation.Some light was shed on the facts by Matt Feutrill, Chief Operating Officer of the YMCA, a co-sponsor of the event:
"We've been working with the women's only swim group for the past two years in the city of Dandenong. It is a multi-faith group, multi-nationalities, multi-disabilities who feel comfortable swimming together. This Ramadan, because there are members of the Muslim community, the members felt it was such a rewards experience to share the celebration of Ramadan together that they would like to extend next year, that session, as a one-off to their broader family to join in, to join with this group of people of mixed faiths, mixed nationality, to enjoy the celebration of Ramadan."The full post with links to these items is also available in French.
Is it too much to expect the mainstream media to find out the facts before they share their prejudices?
UN Millennium Development Goals Summit Today
The United Nations Millennium Development Goals Summit in New York starts today.
Foreign Minister Kevin Rudd is attending and will address the general assembly.
For more inforamtion, please click the image:
UN Summit 20-22 September
2010 New York
Foreign Minister Kevin Rudd is attending and will address the general assembly.
For more inforamtion, please click the image:
2010 New York
Tuesday, September 14, 2010
UN Millennium Development Goals: Asia Pacific Stories
There are just 6 days left until the United Nations Millennium Development Goals Summit in New York.
That's the one where Foreign Minister Kevin Rudd will be representing Australia's new Prime Minister Julia Gillard.
This regional publication can be downloaded by clicking the link above.
MDG Success Stories from Asia and the Pacific
That's the one where Foreign Minister Kevin Rudd will be representing Australia's new Prime Minister Julia Gillard.
This regional publication can be downloaded by clicking the link above.
MDG Success Stories from Asia and the Pacific
Our Generation Indigenous Documentary
Our Generation Official Trailer. 'The ground-breaking new documentary on Aboriginal rights, by Sinem Saban and Damien Curtis'.
Sunday, September 12, 2010
Oz Bloggers on Gillard Minority Government
Latest post at Global Voices:
Australia: Julia Gillard Forms Minority Government
"So, it’s game over and game on! Australian politics have not been so unpredictable since the days of Gough Whitlam’s Labor government of the early 1970s."
Australia: Julia Gillard Forms Minority Government
"So, it’s game over and game on! Australian politics have not been so unpredictable since the days of Gough Whitlam’s Labor government of the early 1970s."
Saturday, September 11, 2010
Megacities: Dhaka Tops 15 Million
From the PBS/GlobalPost series: Megacities Reflect Growing Urbanization, But Poverty Still Rampant
SUMMARY
SUMMARY
"The World Bank says Dhaka, the capital of Bangladesh, is the fastest growing city in the world with a population of 15 million. But as more of the world's impoverished flee to megacities for economic opportunities, the perils of urbanization are being exposed."
Saturday, September 4, 2010
New News 2010: More Breaking News
The Hark Singers bring news updates to the New News 2010 Conference at the Melbourne Writers Festival on 2 September 2010:
Pakistan floods, Filicide, Chimney lover's cremation, Lovers blowup.
This video is also available on TeacherTube. Choose the 'Fill window' for best results.
Pakistan floods, Filicide, Chimney lover's cremation, Lovers blowup.
This video is also available on TeacherTube. Choose the 'Fill window' for best results.
Friday, September 3, 2010
New News 2010: Reflections on Day 1
A reflection on Day 1 of New News 2010 conference at the Melbourne Writers Festival:
Updated 5.30 PM Sat. September 4, 2010
There were frequent references to and much discussion about the role of the media in the recent election campaign. The mainstream media reps were mostly on the defensive blaming the political parties for the shallowness of the coverage and the poor analysis of the policies and issues. It was the bus (code for the control by party apparatchicks), the debate format, the Tony Abbott’s small target strategy; the extraordinary circumstances.
The critiques by Grog’s Gamut and other online analysts were dismissed in the main as "beard-stroking" to use Mark Scott's term from his keynote conference address 'The Quest for Truth: Quality Journalism and a 21st Century ABC'. Lots of self-praise. We readers and consumers of the MSM got it wrong again. In fact the audience was also to blame as we were turned off. Strangely we avidly gobbled/googled up alternative online sources of information and debate.
We had no serious coverage of the Afghanistan war because there was bi-partisan support. When the leaders suspended campaigning to attend the funerals of soldiers killed in that conflict, the MSM colluded by helping us to suspend disbelief. Those who wanted some debate such as the Greens were largely ignored. Few questions were asked of the leaders.
I was in Malaysia for the last week of the campaign but I did not notice any questioning of Gillard’s claim of 1 Gigabit speeds for the National Broadband Network. Yesterday there was some acknowledgment that organisations such as Fairfax and the ABC should have employed teams of economic “experts” to monitor costings of promises and provide some independent analysis of the drier side of the election financial equations. Instead we are left the fiasco of independent politicians making their own ill-informed judgments. Bob Katter as de facto Treasurer is not what the voters wanted.
Speaking of a hung parliament, a couple of Lateline interviews of independents at the death knell is hardly meaningful analysis or discussion. Australia waits for better political coverage by the media giants.
In his apologia Mark Scott spends some time on the new media and the effects on the way MSM are doing their political job:
The ABC's so-called online interaction such as the Drum/Unleashed seems like a one-way street. The increased range and number of voices and viewpoints is encouraging. However, it works like old media - articles and letters. Fast but somehow still static. Comments often close early. There are few replies from authors. Links are not allowed, prohibiting readers access to the commenters, their detailed ideas and their sources.
More later.
Updated 5.30 PM Sat. September 4, 2010
There were frequent references to and much discussion about the role of the media in the recent election campaign. The mainstream media reps were mostly on the defensive blaming the political parties for the shallowness of the coverage and the poor analysis of the policies and issues. It was the bus (code for the control by party apparatchicks), the debate format, the Tony Abbott’s small target strategy; the extraordinary circumstances.
The critiques by Grog’s Gamut and other online analysts were dismissed in the main as "beard-stroking" to use Mark Scott's term from his keynote conference address 'The Quest for Truth: Quality Journalism and a 21st Century ABC'. Lots of self-praise. We readers and consumers of the MSM got it wrong again. In fact the audience was also to blame as we were turned off. Strangely we avidly gobbled/googled up alternative online sources of information and debate.
We had no serious coverage of the Afghanistan war because there was bi-partisan support. When the leaders suspended campaigning to attend the funerals of soldiers killed in that conflict, the MSM colluded by helping us to suspend disbelief. Those who wanted some debate such as the Greens were largely ignored. Few questions were asked of the leaders.
I was in Malaysia for the last week of the campaign but I did not notice any questioning of Gillard’s claim of 1 Gigabit speeds for the National Broadband Network. Yesterday there was some acknowledgment that organisations such as Fairfax and the ABC should have employed teams of economic “experts” to monitor costings of promises and provide some independent analysis of the drier side of the election financial equations. Instead we are left the fiasco of independent politicians making their own ill-informed judgments. Bob Katter as de facto Treasurer is not what the voters wanted.
Speaking of a hung parliament, a couple of Lateline interviews of independents at the death knell is hardly meaningful analysis or discussion. Australia waits for better political coverage by the media giants.
In his apologia Mark Scott spends some time on the new media and the effects on the way MSM are doing their political job:
One of the questions of this campaign is whether we took advantage of the increased capacity to create and deliver content using digital media to provide the breadth and depth of coverage that was possible. And if we did - whether we really helped interested voters to find it.His response:
At the ABC, we identified that the dynamic political news was crowding out proper reporting of policy initiatives in some news bulletins – and that we needed to allocate more time to reporting some of these issues properly. We adjusted our strategy as we listened to critics, our audiences - and critiqued our own coverage. Politics and policy are not binary choices. We need to do both.Read the speech and make your own judgments. It was hard to find people at New News 2010 who did not echo Grog's analysis and dissatisfaction.
The ABC's so-called online interaction such as the Drum/Unleashed seems like a one-way street. The increased range and number of voices and viewpoints is encouraging. However, it works like old media - articles and letters. Fast but somehow still static. Comments often close early. There are few replies from authors. Links are not allowed, prohibiting readers access to the commenters, their detailed ideas and their sources.
More later.
New News 2010 Day 2
9AM
Refreshing change. Indigenous media panel.
Speaking Up: Telling Indigenous Stories and the Opportunities of New Media
Kerry Klimm (Kinnected) with Leigh Harris (Blackvine Media Group), Kerri-Lee Harding (Yalarry Indigma Media), Bess Nungarrayi Price and Rita Cattoni (Indigenous Community Television).
Rita & Bess showing a cross selection from Indigitube of community produced video.
Rita:
Needed to get back TV access as web limited in remote Australia. Now have weekend satellite broadcasting thanks to WA govt. ICTV Alice Springs based.
Bess:
Storytelling for indigenous people: learn, listen, tell stories essential for traditional survival. Mobile phones now everywhere in communities. Enthusiastic use of new media.
Kerri-Lee: Her story - 15 years broadcast experience in mainstream and indig media. Family grew up on Cherbourg Mission QLD. Now freelance journalist about to work with Koori Radio.
Cultural component vital to indig media. NAIDOC Week ABC digital radio was exciting. Featured ABC's Speaking Out and Awaye! programs amongst many others.
Leigh:
From QLD. Blackvine developing websites esp. for mobile devices. Avoids govt. money.
Involvement includes: Inguides available on all mobile phone platforms. Working with CNNiReport to upload content. iPad interactive languages map. One laptop per child.
Huge digital gap, training needs. Need for a 'datacentre' to host and access content.
One mobile per child.
Update 1
Kleptomaniacs and Walled Gardens
Will people pay to access news content online, or will news have to be free?
Julianne Shultz (PIJ Board, ABC Board and Griffith Review talks to Andrew Hunter (Head of Network, ninemsn) and Alan Kohler (Eureka Report, Business Spectator).
Andrew:
ninemsn makes lion-share from ads. Unlikely to change in near future for their digital platform. Syndication business supplies news to others. Couponing business just launched. Owners PBL Media and Microsoft provide about half of content: Channel 9 and magazines. also use wire services. 10% content: written, graphic and video from repackaging of 9 & other material, original content as well.
Apps good for commuters.
Websites not as attractive as TV: HTML 'boxy'.
Alan:
Eureka Report 5 years old. Subscription online newsletter. Aimed at self-managed super funds. Business Spectator originally planned as paid product but how do stop sharing of online? or compete with free competitors. Decision to go free correct one but ad revenue low. Advertising price has collapsed. Audience for ads online is known v. newspapers.
Ad rates unlikely to recover.
Explosion of people undertaking journalistic work for little financial reward.
Paying for Apps waste of money if you don't get anything more than free website.
Q. News Limited paid experiment:
Alan: Will fail. Struggling. Rupert doesn't use or understand the Internet. Content not different enough for people to pay. Australia NL trying to wriggle out of it.
Andrew: NL UK situation uncertain. If still have 10% of audience doing well but unlikely. Rupert sees Google as kleptomaniacs. Facebook the other competitor.
Audience: Facebook corporate pages becoming increasing important.
Alan: Value/usefulness/employability of journalism qualifications questioned.
Andrew: Still valued. Need fro J schools to keep up with new media.
Q. of Micro-payments: Alan: Upfront subscriptions more secure. Andrew: iTunes seems to have it right.
Update 2
Noon.
The Ethical Journalist Online
Chair: Denis Muller (Swinburne), Paul Chadwick (ABC), Chris Chapman (ACMA), Julian Disney (Press Council)
Chris:
Challenges of public interest journalism eg privacy. Legislation not up to new digital media. Connected behavior needs a legal framework. Existing, accepted ethics/standards in traditional/old media. Licensee codes (ACMA & ABC) for TV specify or imply many of these: privacy, vulnerability, consent, privacy v. public interest, death & grief. Others: covert recording, disclosure, commentary v. analysis.
Sponsored content a concern - draft coming.
Need an enforceable regime for online/new media
Paul:
Old Js v. new Js ethics
Samenesses: accuracy, fair (cool and adjusted), not bribed or intimidated, independent, attribute, avoid deception, understanding of human rights (privacy, liberty, non-discrimination), public interest, trusted important
Purposes: what are ethics for? the verbs describe, inform etc.
Changes: power (few to many, privileged to everyone) what to omit in new codes?
'Artificial intelligence' means reconsideration of what new J can do/should do. E.g. Accuracy, sourcing, info gathering, pseudonymity, private v. public self (personal voice v. employers). Our authentic selves v. public persona.
Julian:
Print media experience. Council role: Protect access to info and freedom of expression for Js. Handle complaints. Jurisdiction over members' websites eg newspapers.
Issues for online:
Time pressures on content, temptations to cut corners. Correcting mistakes online easier but can be tempting: publish and withdraw later. Illusion that corrections happen online.
Archives can affect reputation eg past convictions. Hard to rectify mistakes or damage.
Identification of source eg letter to editor. Comment streams moderation patchy.
Taking from other sources without checking its accuracy etc.
* * * * * * *
Q. of verification:
"If it's wrong it won't be long for long". How do corrections get to same audience? Same standards for online Js?
How do you write standards in absolute terms? Are audience expectations in different contexts a factor?
Same standards but extended version for online? Do ethics need to be used/applied more often?
Update 3
1.30 PM
Doing it Better: Opportunities for Better Coverage of the Issues that Matter
Chair Elaine Henry (PIJ Board, Smith Family CEO) talks to Alan Attwood (The Big Issue), Jan Schaffer (J-Lab) and Ben Naparstek (The Monthly).
Alan:
Publication, the Big Issue, helps those who sell it. Very involving. Aim to sell on content not as donation/ Old tech. print. Circulation surviving against flow.
Ben:
15 months at . Literary J. Literature pportunity to read widely about subjects in depth. Most academia at Johns Hopkins sneered at journalism - "stuff general public". The Monthly - high quality but not exclusive. speaks to wider public about ideas/things that matter.
Jan:
'Old' U.S. paper J. from 70s. Moved to civic J. project. Not popular with "cardinals" of journalism (cg Laurie Oakes). Then J_Lab. in 2002 helping independent community news people to use digital tech. for citizen media.
Who decides what matters?
Big Issue (fortnightly) ignores news. Liberating. Interesting, quirky. Personal stories. Cits writing about themselves.
Monthly can't be news. Politically heterodox. Looking for diversity. Unpredictably. Trying to expand pool of writers. MSM Js often unavailable.
Jan: Js often have no handle on what matters to ordinary people. Ask your audience! Understanding how people frame their issues. Help with background, context. Ignore scorecard J.
Who are the stewards for new media eg to protect public?
Jan: community members. Media literacy education needed.
Ben: increasingly blogosphere public protects itself.
Alan is not part of the blogosphere. Desire to be published (rather than be J) very strong and widespread. Need to open up communication with your community of writers & readers. Ben has much smaller pool of potential writers.
Alan: people want stories that are not just the "serious" pieces. Animals always a winner.
Ben: tony Abbott in lycra has limited appeal.
Jan: conflict a winner, even of ideas.
4.15 PM
Keynote finale: Closing Address
Jan Schaffer, Pulitzer Prize winner and Executive Director of the Insitute for Interactive Journalism (J-Lab) delivers the closing address for New News 2010.
Optimistic that citizens will get their media needs met. Includes citizen media makers/journalists, partnership coordinators, fact entrepreneurs, creative technologists, philanthropic foundations, universities, advocacy groups, government.
New news: Sharing info, facilitating conversations, crowd sourcing, smart curation, aggregation, data mining and visualisations, social media distribution.
Deputise new reporters, incentivise new sources, empower new ideas, re-imagine journalism
8 J-Lab trends:
Hyperlocal news sites:
individuals, old media companies, new media companies
Statewide news ventures:
Texas Tribune, California Watch, NJ Spotlight
Independent Metro news sites:
MinnPost.com
University-based news sites
Grand Avenue News, GrossePointToday.com
Creative Technologists:
Document cloud (NYT) Word Train
Net-J Collaboration:
The Seattle Times
Philanthropic Foundations:
Knight Citizen News Network database
Advocacy news sites:
Sunlight Foundation, The Notebook
Tremendous experiments in new journalism/media: J-Lab projects
Adding value to J:
Master narratives, connecting dots, explanatory J., asking obvious Qs, revisiting paradigms, "zag instead of zig" leaving the pack.
Validate consensus as well as conflict.
Still steeped in conventions of old J. Need to break away.
How CitJs do their work incredibly important. Training!
5 Key Lessons:
Measures of success:
Refreshing change. Indigenous media panel.
Speaking Up: Telling Indigenous Stories and the Opportunities of New Media
Kerry Klimm (Kinnected) with Leigh Harris (Blackvine Media Group), Kerri-Lee Harding (Yalarry Indigma Media), Bess Nungarrayi Price and Rita Cattoni (Indigenous Community Television).
Rita & Bess showing a cross selection from Indigitube of community produced video.
Rita:
Needed to get back TV access as web limited in remote Australia. Now have weekend satellite broadcasting thanks to WA govt. ICTV Alice Springs based.
Bess:
Storytelling for indigenous people: learn, listen, tell stories essential for traditional survival. Mobile phones now everywhere in communities. Enthusiastic use of new media.
Kerri-Lee: Her story - 15 years broadcast experience in mainstream and indig media. Family grew up on Cherbourg Mission QLD. Now freelance journalist about to work with Koori Radio.
Cultural component vital to indig media. NAIDOC Week ABC digital radio was exciting. Featured ABC's Speaking Out and Awaye! programs amongst many others.
Leigh:
From QLD. Blackvine developing websites esp. for mobile devices. Avoids govt. money.
Involvement includes: Inguides available on all mobile phone platforms. Working with CNNiReport to upload content. iPad interactive languages map. One laptop per child.
Huge digital gap, training needs. Need for a 'datacentre' to host and access content.
One mobile per child.
Update 1
Kleptomaniacs and Walled Gardens
Will people pay to access news content online, or will news have to be free?
Julianne Shultz (PIJ Board, ABC Board and Griffith Review talks to Andrew Hunter (Head of Network, ninemsn) and Alan Kohler (Eureka Report, Business Spectator).
Andrew:
ninemsn makes lion-share from ads. Unlikely to change in near future for their digital platform. Syndication business supplies news to others. Couponing business just launched. Owners PBL Media and Microsoft provide about half of content: Channel 9 and magazines. also use wire services. 10% content: written, graphic and video from repackaging of 9 & other material, original content as well.
Apps good for commuters.
Websites not as attractive as TV: HTML 'boxy'.
Alan:
Eureka Report 5 years old. Subscription online newsletter. Aimed at self-managed super funds. Business Spectator originally planned as paid product but how do stop sharing of online? or compete with free competitors. Decision to go free correct one but ad revenue low. Advertising price has collapsed. Audience for ads online is known v. newspapers.
Ad rates unlikely to recover.
Explosion of people undertaking journalistic work for little financial reward.
Paying for Apps waste of money if you don't get anything more than free website.
Q. News Limited paid experiment:
Alan: Will fail. Struggling. Rupert doesn't use or understand the Internet. Content not different enough for people to pay. Australia NL trying to wriggle out of it.
Andrew: NL UK situation uncertain. If still have 10% of audience doing well but unlikely. Rupert sees Google as kleptomaniacs. Facebook the other competitor.
Audience: Facebook corporate pages becoming increasing important.
Alan: Value/usefulness/employability of journalism qualifications questioned.
Andrew: Still valued. Need fro J schools to keep up with new media.
Q. of Micro-payments: Alan: Upfront subscriptions more secure. Andrew: iTunes seems to have it right.
Update 2
Noon.
The Ethical Journalist Online
Chair: Denis Muller (Swinburne), Paul Chadwick (ABC), Chris Chapman (ACMA), Julian Disney (Press Council)
Chris:
Challenges of public interest journalism eg privacy. Legislation not up to new digital media. Connected behavior needs a legal framework. Existing, accepted ethics/standards in traditional/old media. Licensee codes (ACMA & ABC) for TV specify or imply many of these: privacy, vulnerability, consent, privacy v. public interest, death & grief. Others: covert recording, disclosure, commentary v. analysis.
Sponsored content a concern - draft coming.
Need an enforceable regime for online/new media
Paul:
Old Js v. new Js ethics
Samenesses: accuracy, fair (cool and adjusted), not bribed or intimidated, independent, attribute, avoid deception, understanding of human rights (privacy, liberty, non-discrimination), public interest, trusted important
Purposes: what are ethics for? the verbs describe, inform etc.
Changes: power (few to many, privileged to everyone) what to omit in new codes?
'Artificial intelligence' means reconsideration of what new J can do/should do. E.g. Accuracy, sourcing, info gathering, pseudonymity, private v. public self (personal voice v. employers). Our authentic selves v. public persona.
Julian:
Print media experience. Council role: Protect access to info and freedom of expression for Js. Handle complaints. Jurisdiction over members' websites eg newspapers.
Issues for online:
Time pressures on content, temptations to cut corners. Correcting mistakes online easier but can be tempting: publish and withdraw later. Illusion that corrections happen online.
Archives can affect reputation eg past convictions. Hard to rectify mistakes or damage.
Identification of source eg letter to editor. Comment streams moderation patchy.
Taking from other sources without checking its accuracy etc.
* * * * * * *
Q. of verification:
"If it's wrong it won't be long for long". How do corrections get to same audience? Same standards for online Js?
How do you write standards in absolute terms? Are audience expectations in different contexts a factor?
Same standards but extended version for online? Do ethics need to be used/applied more often?
Update 3
1.30 PM
Doing it Better: Opportunities for Better Coverage of the Issues that Matter
Chair Elaine Henry (PIJ Board, Smith Family CEO) talks to Alan Attwood (The Big Issue), Jan Schaffer (J-Lab) and Ben Naparstek (The Monthly).
Alan:
Publication, the Big Issue, helps those who sell it. Very involving. Aim to sell on content not as donation/ Old tech. print. Circulation surviving against flow.
Ben:
15 months at . Literary J. Literature pportunity to read widely about subjects in depth. Most academia at Johns Hopkins sneered at journalism - "stuff general public". The Monthly - high quality but not exclusive. speaks to wider public about ideas/things that matter.
Jan:
'Old' U.S. paper J. from 70s. Moved to civic J. project. Not popular with "cardinals" of journalism (cg Laurie Oakes). Then J_Lab. in 2002 helping independent community news people to use digital tech. for citizen media.
Who decides what matters?
Big Issue (fortnightly) ignores news. Liberating. Interesting, quirky. Personal stories. Cits writing about themselves.
Monthly can't be news. Politically heterodox. Looking for diversity. Unpredictably. Trying to expand pool of writers. MSM Js often unavailable.
Jan: Js often have no handle on what matters to ordinary people. Ask your audience! Understanding how people frame their issues. Help with background, context. Ignore scorecard J.
Who are the stewards for new media eg to protect public?
Jan: community members. Media literacy education needed.
Ben: increasingly blogosphere public protects itself.
Alan is not part of the blogosphere. Desire to be published (rather than be J) very strong and widespread. Need to open up communication with your community of writers & readers. Ben has much smaller pool of potential writers.
Alan: people want stories that are not just the "serious" pieces. Animals always a winner.
Ben: tony Abbott in lycra has limited appeal.
Jan: conflict a winner, even of ideas.
4.15 PM
Keynote finale: Closing Address
Jan Schaffer, Pulitzer Prize winner and Executive Director of the Insitute for Interactive Journalism (J-Lab) delivers the closing address for New News 2010.
Optimistic that citizens will get their media needs met. Includes citizen media makers/journalists, partnership coordinators, fact entrepreneurs, creative technologists, philanthropic foundations, universities, advocacy groups, government.
New news: Sharing info, facilitating conversations, crowd sourcing, smart curation, aggregation, data mining and visualisations, social media distribution.
Deputise new reporters, incentivise new sources, empower new ideas, re-imagine journalism
8 J-Lab trends:
Hyperlocal news sites:
individuals, old media companies, new media companies
Statewide news ventures:
Texas Tribune, California Watch, NJ Spotlight
Independent Metro news sites:
MinnPost.com
University-based news sites
Grand Avenue News, GrossePointToday.com
Creative Technologists:
Document cloud (NYT) Word Train
Net-J Collaboration:
The Seattle Times
Philanthropic Foundations:
Knight Citizen News Network database
Advocacy news sites:
Sunlight Foundation, The Notebook
Tremendous experiments in new journalism/media: J-Lab projects
Adding value to J:
Master narratives, connecting dots, explanatory J., asking obvious Qs, revisiting paradigms, "zag instead of zig" leaving the pack.
Validate consensus as well as conflict.
Still steeped in conventions of old J. Need to break away.
How CitJs do their work incredibly important. Training!
5 Key Lessons:
- CitJ high-chum, high-touch
- sweat equity is key
- social media is game-changing
- academic calendar not good enough
- hyperlocal sites not business yet
Measures of success:
- new local coverage
- go-to places for crisis info
- empowered voters
- help solve community problems
- foster community media skills
New News 2010: Hark Singers Break the News
The Hark Singers bring news updates to the New News 2010 Conference at the Melbourne Writers Festival.
Thursday, September 2, 2010
New News 2010 Off and Singing
The 2-day New News 2010 Conference at the Wheeler Centre has kicked off with some daily news sung by its resident choir. It's part of the Melbourne Writers Festival.
Update:
Introduction:
Speaker: Julianne Schultz ABC Board
Paradigm change in politics. Need for new paradigm for the media. New rules of engagement. New ways of doing political journalism.
Journalists need more informed and nuanced relationship with audience.
Q&A Chaser Gruen Nation more than icing.
Public forums: town hall meetings, Q&A let down by reporting next day: focus on game not substance.
Understanding flaws in complex systems v stenogrpahers catching up of fast moving mob.
Update 2
News Media in the Digital Age
Julian Thomas World Internet Project:
Internet has emerged quickly as primary source of info.
Patchy - rural/regional access/participation
Annie Baxter (Google)
Form of news: atomic unit of consumption - interaction at story level not publication level
We go online for news
Proliferation of sources - need to teach youth to be discerening
Mobile future
Fast flip - mags online 3 times longer than normal visits
Building stories update
Nicholas Gruen (Gov 2.0)
News as cultural exchange – best between equals. Producer needs to have more than conventional relationship. More like teacher/student parent/child - each party takes something and produces something important to them.
Update 3
Q: What’s true/reliable?
NG: Wikipedia created by human beings doesn’t pretend otherwise
JT: Does info come from network you know/trust?
AB: News orgs rely on trusted sources
Q: Living Stories NYT WashPO (0ne URL for unfolding story) outcomes
AB: Very positive - 9 mins per story per visit.
NG: Lessons from party costing for election promises - media need to be more vigilant; employ experts to monitor economic issues
Update 4
In the Wild: Innovators and Citizen Journalists Online
Venturing into the world of citizen journalism and web-based news, the panel will discuss innovative and participatory forms of journalism.
Chair Peter Browne (Inside Story) will be joined by Karen Poh (Meld Magazine), Lindsay Tuffin (Tasmanian Times), Eyal Halamish (Our Say) and Matthew Gordon (Our Say).
KP: Meld not-for-profit mag. Nothing out there for international students.
Site design crucial.
LT: rage against conformity mentality of tabloid world
TT basically has nothing. 20-30,000 unique hits per month. Organic. Growing without promotion. Not top-down, not heritage media who “hate’ him.
MG: Our Say engaging new voices - Q&A from politicians
website easy to share content through social media, focus on target audience
EH: Our Say used social media campaign but can’t force people to do what you want
Q. Where does funding come from? How to pay contributors?
2 PM Roundtable
Do we spend too much time on delivery methods to save the MSM rather than improving content?
Paul Ramadge (Chief Editor The Age):
Fast versus deep.
Some investigative pieces take 3 months.
Not enough discussion of quality journalism. Trust is essential.
Set of common values and goals needed.
Importance of curation and aggregation.
Discussion:
Trust can be enhanced by linking to sources.
My comment: quality yes, but I don' trust any media to be accurate. Some online MSM not really interactive - links not allowed.
Paul: Relationship between print and online could extend into more interactive forms.
Rapid explosion of hyper-local content will stimulate community media.
Matthew G: Tools to cross reference can help trust.
Update 5 3.30PM
Forum: Leadership in Journalism
Chair Steve Harris (Centre for Leadership and Public Interest, Swinburne University of Technology) with Paul Ramadge (Editor in Chief, The Age), Phil Gardner (Editor in Chief, Herald and Weekly Times), Sophie Black (Editor, Crikey) and Kate Torney (Director of News, ABC).
The heavyweights.
Role and value of journalism today?
Their leadership?
Paul:
His role. What content on what platform and why? how much depth?
Deep world: words that matter versus fast info. (see above)
Readers want unexpected,hidden, previously undisclosed.
How do we fund quality journalism?
Media leadership?
J's need multimedia presentation and web research skills.
No secret way forward.
Phil:
Role and value of journalists will never change: to engage, enlighten, educate and entertain. Different for each platform. News rooms being redesigned.
Non-negotiable: content must be compelling, relevant.
Technology nothing without great content. Basics the same.
Kate:
Trust!
Tapping into new audiences.Choices diverse. Free flow empowering but highlights need for quality. Curating a range of views and opinions.
On-way in past. Engage audience, identify their needs.
Social value of content important to ABC.
J's need time to create great journalism.
Sophie:
Bringing media and technology together. Terrifying at times.
How to maintain & enhance role of journalism. Nobody has all answers.
Funding model & delivery platform the challenge for Crikey. Subscriber newsletter email versus online. 5 of 25 stories free each day.
Agile & spontaneous risk-takers - funding & content. Risk minimisation not an option.
Reading tied to social activity.
Update:
Introduction:
Speaker: Julianne Schultz ABC Board
Paradigm change in politics. Need for new paradigm for the media. New rules of engagement. New ways of doing political journalism.
Journalists need more informed and nuanced relationship with audience.
Q&A Chaser Gruen Nation more than icing.
Public forums: town hall meetings, Q&A let down by reporting next day: focus on game not substance.
Understanding flaws in complex systems v stenogrpahers catching up of fast moving mob.
Update 2
News Media in the Digital Age
Julian Thomas World Internet Project:
Internet has emerged quickly as primary source of info.
Patchy - rural/regional access/participation
Annie Baxter (Google)
Form of news: atomic unit of consumption - interaction at story level not publication level
We go online for news
Proliferation of sources - need to teach youth to be discerening
Mobile future
Fast flip - mags online 3 times longer than normal visits
Building stories update
Nicholas Gruen (Gov 2.0)
News as cultural exchange – best between equals. Producer needs to have more than conventional relationship. More like teacher/student parent/child - each party takes something and produces something important to them.
Update 3
Q: What’s true/reliable?
NG: Wikipedia created by human beings doesn’t pretend otherwise
JT: Does info come from network you know/trust?
AB: News orgs rely on trusted sources
Q: Living Stories NYT WashPO (0ne URL for unfolding story) outcomes
AB: Very positive - 9 mins per story per visit.
NG: Lessons from party costing for election promises - media need to be more vigilant; employ experts to monitor economic issues
Update 4
In the Wild: Innovators and Citizen Journalists Online
Venturing into the world of citizen journalism and web-based news, the panel will discuss innovative and participatory forms of journalism.
Chair Peter Browne (Inside Story) will be joined by Karen Poh (Meld Magazine), Lindsay Tuffin (Tasmanian Times), Eyal Halamish (Our Say) and Matthew Gordon (Our Say).
KP: Meld not-for-profit mag. Nothing out there for international students.
Site design crucial.
LT: rage against conformity mentality of tabloid world
TT basically has nothing. 20-30,000 unique hits per month. Organic. Growing without promotion. Not top-down, not heritage media who “hate’ him.
MG: Our Say engaging new voices - Q&A from politicians
website easy to share content through social media, focus on target audience
EH: Our Say used social media campaign but can’t force people to do what you want
Q. Where does funding come from? How to pay contributors?
2 PM Roundtable
Do we spend too much time on delivery methods to save the MSM rather than improving content?
Paul Ramadge (Chief Editor The Age):
Fast versus deep.
Some investigative pieces take 3 months.
Not enough discussion of quality journalism. Trust is essential.
Set of common values and goals needed.
Importance of curation and aggregation.
Discussion:
Trust can be enhanced by linking to sources.
My comment: quality yes, but I don' trust any media to be accurate. Some online MSM not really interactive - links not allowed.
Paul: Relationship between print and online could extend into more interactive forms.
Rapid explosion of hyper-local content will stimulate community media.
Matthew G: Tools to cross reference can help trust.
Update 5 3.30PM
Forum: Leadership in Journalism
Chair Steve Harris (Centre for Leadership and Public Interest, Swinburne University of Technology) with Paul Ramadge (Editor in Chief, The Age), Phil Gardner (Editor in Chief, Herald and Weekly Times), Sophie Black (Editor, Crikey) and Kate Torney (Director of News, ABC).
The heavyweights.
Role and value of journalism today?
Their leadership?
Paul:
His role. What content on what platform and why? how much depth?
Deep world: words that matter versus fast info. (see above)
Readers want unexpected,hidden, previously undisclosed.
How do we fund quality journalism?
Media leadership?
J's need multimedia presentation and web research skills.
No secret way forward.
Phil:
Role and value of journalists will never change: to engage, enlighten, educate and entertain. Different for each platform. News rooms being redesigned.
Non-negotiable: content must be compelling, relevant.
Technology nothing without great content. Basics the same.
Kate:
Trust!
Tapping into new audiences.Choices diverse. Free flow empowering but highlights need for quality. Curating a range of views and opinions.
On-way in past. Engage audience, identify their needs.
Social value of content important to ABC.
J's need time to create great journalism.
Sophie:
Bringing media and technology together. Terrifying at times.
How to maintain & enhance role of journalism. Nobody has all answers.
Funding model & delivery platform the challenge for Crikey. Subscriber newsletter email versus online. 5 of 25 stories free each day.
Agile & spontaneous risk-takers - funding & content. Risk minimisation not an option.
Reading tied to social activity.
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
Online Journalism: 21st Century News Room
Excellent video presentation by Paul Bradshaw at the Online Journalism Chances and Challenges conference in Malaysia recently: A model for the 21st Century newsroom
Kuala Lumpur OJCC - A Model for the 21st Century Newsroom - Paul Bradshaw from European Journalism Centre on Vimeo.
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