Thursday, January 8, 2009

Media optimism found at Harvard Media Re:public: News and Information as Digital Media Come of Age is a series of papers on "the potential and the challenges of the emerging networked digital media environment" generated in or around Harvard Law School's Berkman Center for Internet & Society... and involving "journalists, bloggers, citizen journalists, public broadcasters, publishers, advertising networks, researchers, technologists, and many others." Shortcut: http://www.mediarepublic.org Blog summary: http://blogs.law.harvard.edu/mediarepublic I haven't begun to wade into the collection of reports, but I did notice this passage in an overview, handy as inspiration with a new semester starting (emphasis added): "On balance, Media Re:public is cautiously optimistic. There have never been more people involved in the media; their energy has enormous potential to expand the reach of journalism and to bring it closer to the people who need it. The tools that are enabling new kinds of reporting, flexible ways to combine information, and networks that connect people to information and to each other are getting better and better. "There are thousands of organizations and skilled people steeped in a strong journalistic tradition whose expertise is irreplaceable. Despite the economic downturn, the world[base ']s largest advertising market and America[base ']s strong traditions of institutional and personal philanthropy represent fantastic resources." The project's main report is 52 pages by Persephone Miel and  Rob Faris, Berkman research director.  Berkman's John Palfrey also recommends Ethan Zuckerman's pdf on International News and the project's teaser on YouTube. 1:13:53 AM    comment []

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