Posts in Minnesota Voices Online
PEG Access TV Embraces Online Journalism as Funding Uncertainty Grows http://bit.ly/bFW5Ed By Bill Densmore and Colin Rhinesmith With the nation's non-profit public-access television services often unable to count on a reliable stream of government-enforced funding from the cable industry, many are beginning to embrace the Internet and even journalism training as ways to further their public-service mission. The change is spurred by two counterbalancing trends. On the one hand, large cities such as Los Angeles and Las Vegas have pulled the plug on funding for public-access cable services. On the other hand, the plunging cost and easy use of web-based video technology is making it easier for the services that remain to embrace an entirely new method for delivering citizen-generated multimedia and information to mobile- and web-enabled citizens. In the process, the managers of an industry once know by the acronym "PEG access" – for Public, Educational and Government access cable television – are increasingly thinking of themselves as "Community Media Centers" that embrace multiple delivery methods. Nowhere recently was this change more evident than at the Alliance for Community Media annual conference – the PEG access TV industry's trade group – which was convened July 7-10 at a Pittsburgh hotel. In a day-long workshop, and during panels throughout the gathering, operators from cities like Sacramento, California, Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, Grand Rapids, MI, and the Boston area told stories of the web-based innovation that they say is expanding rather than supplanting their traditional cable-based audience, and enlisting a new set of constituents in creating – not just consuming – locally-focused stories. ... More: http://bit.ly/bFW5Ed Steven Clift - http://stevenclift.com Executive Director - http://E-Democracy.Org Follow me - http://twitter.com/democracy New Tel: +1.612.234.7072
I thought folks might be interested. From: Brett Meyer <email obscured>] Sent: Wednesday, July 14, 2010 12:08 PM To: <email obscured> Subject: Announcing the Nonprofit Technology Leadership Academy (We Hope You'll Apply) NTEN Logo: The Nonprofit Technology Enterprise Network <http://nten.org/sites/nten/files/default_logo.jpg> 1220 SW Morrison St. #535 Portland, OR 97205 415.397.9000 http://nten.org <http://nten.org/> Hi Ann, Now more than ever, nonprofit leaders must understand the potential technology has to help them meet their missions. You require effective ways to manage technology and lead others to use the available tools to your best organizational advantage. That's why we're thrilled to invite your organization to apply for the Technology Leadership Academy <http://www.nten.org/techacademy/application?utm_source=netforum&utm_medium= email&utm_content=comm_mem&utm_campaign=techacademy> , our 9-week online training program designed to help nonprofit leaders do just that. > Learn more and apply to the Technology Leadership Academy here <http://www.nten.org/techacademy/application?utm_source=netforum&utm_medium= email&utm_content=comm_mem&utm_campaign=techacademy> . The Academy will be a unique opportunity to learn and interact with your peers while creating a tight network of nonprofit leaders working toward a common mission: to use technology to create more social change. Thanks to the generous support of Microsoft, we're able to offer the Technology Leadership Academy at no charge to qualifying organizations. You must apply for acceptance to the Academy <http://www.nten.org/techacademy/application?utm_source=netforum&utm_medium= email&utm_content=comm_mem&utm_campaign=techacademy> , and there are, of course, some application requirements <http://www.nten.org/techacademy#guidelines> . But oh, will it be worth your time. Your instructors during the weekly core sessions will be top nonprofit leaders like Beth Kanter, Katya Andresen, and Edward Granger-Happ. You'll also have the opportunity to interact with field experts like Charlene Li, Founder of Altimeter Group and Author of <http://www.charleneli.com/> Open Leadership, in Ask the Expert sessions. The online sessions will take place weekly from September 29th through November 22nd. You can see the full schedule here <http://www.nten.org/techacademy/schedule?utm_source=netforum&utm_medium=ema il&utm_content=comm_mem&utm_campaign=techacademy> . At the end of the 9 weeks, you'll be able to: * Articulate the value of technology in your organization for yourself, your staff, funders, and other key stakeholders. * View technology as integral to every department in your organization. * Recognize options for funding IT projects in your organization. * Staff technology effectively. * Manage the organizational change that technology can produce. At the end of the course, you will receive a certificate of completion from NTEN and Microsoft. Space is limited, however: for this pilot effort, we will only be able to accept 50 organizations with annual budgets under $2 million. So, yes, the Academy will require commitment, but, knowing our community, we don't expect that will be a problem for you. Please take some time to review the application guidelines <http://www.nten.org/techacademy#guidelines> , gather the necessary materials, and apply to the Technology Leadership Academy before July 30th <http://www.nten.org/techacademy/application?utm_source=netforum&utm_medium= email&utm_content=comm_mem&utm_campaign=techacademy> . (By the way, participants will be able to earn points <http://www.nten.org/techacademy/rewards?utm_source=netforum&utm_medium=emai l&utm_content=comm_mem&utm_campaign=techacademy> toward some special software donations from Microsoft, free 2011 NTC registrations, and more.) > Learn more and apply to the Technology Leadership Academy here <http://www.nten.org/techacademy/application?utm_source=netforum&utm_medium= email&utm_content=comm_mem&utm_campaign=techacademy> . We look forward to reviewing your application and learning more about your plans to use technology to help your organization meet its mission,
Hi guys! I thought that you might be able to help and/or that it might be great marketing for some of you who make their living helping others use technology. Creating a Technical Assistance Directory for Rural MN As part of the MN Intelligent Rural Communities program, the Blandin Foundation is creating a directory of Technical Assistance Providers. (An important indicator of a community's technology vitality is healthy tech support - computer sales and service, training, web development and data base administration. ) Currently we are gathering information on businesses and organizations who provide such services in rural Minnesota. We have created a quick form for anyone who would like to be included: http://www.surveymonkey.com/s/tadirectory Thanks!! Ann PS you can learn more about MIRC here if you're interested: http://broadband.blandinfoundation.org/programs/programs-detail.php?intResou rceID=1060
I plan to be there, Steve.
I'll be there! Hosting a discussion about employees representing organizations
online.
You should definitely come. It's a really fantastic event.
Key peoples with Twitter handles: Meg Canada, @dotmeg; Mykl Roventine,
@myklroventine; Don Ball @donmball
The Unsummit was a response to the MIMA Summit several years ago. I
think this is at least the third, maybe the fourth. MIMA charges
$300+. The Unsummit is free.
I think it's one of the best unconferences around now. This year's
site, the Coco Coworking space, is very nice.
I'll be presenting on "Creating a Very (Hyper) Local Community with
Online Resources" at 3:30.
Anyone here going? Who are some of the key people behind this effort? http://unsummit.org Steven Clift http://stevenclift.com Sent via mobile - +1 612 203 5181
Dear Colleagues,
I thought you might find the following of interest. Please feel free to
forward this information to others in your network.
Happy Spring!
Christy James
*****************************
Christy James & Associates, Inc.
763 Hoyt Avenue East
St. Paul, MN 55106
Phone: 612-963-0467
Email: <email obscured>
Facilitator, trainer and small enterprise advocate
Specializing in integrated community development and community revitalization
The finalists video preview: Vote here: http://www.mnideaopen.org/challenge1 More on the three finalist for the $15,000 to make it a reality. * Take The Soul Patch Statewide Idea description:The Soul Patch is a community-tended garden that benefits the Morrison County Food Shelf. Civic organizations, youth groups, businesses, and community volunteers came together to produce over 2,000 lbs. of garden-fresh produce that was donated to the clients of the Food Shelf. Author: Erik Warner More: http://www.mnideaopen.org/node/412 * Kids Lead the Way Idea description:Our idea is to facilitate the creation of “Kids Lead the Way,” a youth-led program, where students create once a week field days and activities for their classmates with community partners. Participants will be asked to bring ideas for “active” pick-up games, like Kick-the-Can, that can be played at the field day, and then replayed with family and friends later. Author: Christine Tubbs More: http://www.mnideaopen.org/node/2879 * Library Wellness Challenge Idea description:The Hamline Midway Library Association (HMLA) will partner with the Hamline Midway branch of the St. Paul Public Libraries to provide new and innovative ways to address the health of the community. We believe we can address obesity in Minnesota by utilizing our libraries as community gathering spots to host health and wellness related events and by bolstering the collection of health and wellness materials available for check-out. Author: Amy Schroeder Ireland More: http://www.mnideaopen.org/node/2901 Steven Clift - http://stevenclift.com Executive Director - http://E-Democracy.Org Follow me - http://twitter.com/democracy New Tel: +1.612.234.7072
Ouch. I suppose there are journalists who would do this--although then
you've thrown away your career in real journalism, haven't you?
I wanted to share this super interesting article from Jennifer. (Thanks Jennifer.) I'm just going to excerpt the first and last paragraphs from the story. The meat of the story, as you might guess, is in the part I didn't include - but I thought the first and last paragraphs would get to the root of why we should care. Now conservative or liberal, I think urgency remains the same when the only growing news sources are funded by organizations with an agenda. OK we can debate whether newspapers have/had an agenda too - but it's a moot point when we're not even striving for impartiality. Thanks! Ann PS for some folks maybe this is an opportunity to go North to Alaska. J A growing number of conservative groups are bankrolling startup news organizations around the country, aggressively covering government and politics at a time when newspapers are cutting back their statehouse bureaus. . Some of the jobs pay better than newspaper reporting gigs. The Alaska Policy Forum recently put up a help-wanted Internet ad offering to pay an investigative reporter up to $75,000 to cover government in Juneau. Ann Treacy Treacy Information Services 1841 Fairmount Ave St Paul MN 55105 651-212-9107 <http://www.treacyinfo.com/> http://www.treacyinfo.com <email obscured>> <email obscured> From: Jennifer Armstrong <email obscured>] Sent: Thursday, April 15, 2010 10:15 AM To: Ann Treacy Subject: big problem with losing objective journalism http://politicsinminnesota.com/blog/2010/04/news-sites-funded-by-think-tanks -take-root/
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Tarey and Others:
Here's the difference between the fiber line and the cable/dsl
connection you referenced. The fiber line comes with a QOS /
availability guaranty, whereas the DSL/cable line is a more casual
service.
It is not at all uncommon for DSL/Cable subscribers to encounter outages
for extended periods of time, or to experience slow-downs on their
connections.
If you purchase a business class fiber connection, uptime and bandwidth
data rates may be guaranteed, quality of service may be supported, and
blocks of static IP addresses are commonly included.
Even on a lowly T-1 connection, you are getting a lot more service from
your provider: they monitor the connection, and will often discover
outages before the subscriber notices. And, if there is a connectivity
problem, they will dispatch technicians to deal with it on a 24x7x365
basis.
So, for that extra money, you are buying availability. Many small
businesses are okay with a simple DSL/cable connection, but it comes
with certain risks. If those are acceptable, go with it. But don't
begrudge your telco if they need to charge a higher rate for a dedicated
and guaranteed connection.
Ran into a minor set back. That fiber line it metered at $100 per mg. So if I
want 5 megs it will cost me $500/month with a five year commitment. With cable
offering 10 megs at $80, it gets retarded.
I'm beginning to see how rural areas are fighting to stay in the dark ages.
The fourth http://Neighbor.be "hackathon" will be at my home from 2 p.m. to 6 p.m. this *Sunday* April 11th. So come along to: 3211 E. 44th Street Minneapolis, MN 55406 This is a few blocks from the 46th Street light rail stop, A Baker's Wife and Chris and Robs (formerly JoeyDs). Map: http://bit.ly/aImafm This time we can informally close the hackathon at Chris and Rob's with some great hot dogs etc. at 6 p.m.. If you haven't RSVPed to the online working group, you can do so to: <email obscured> Also, feel free to pass along the invite to other technical communities. Send folks to: http://neighbor.be And, definitely join the online working group if you are not a member yet: http://forums.e-democracy.org/groups/neighborly For emerging technical stuff, see: http://github.com/ianb/neighborly http://wiki.github.com/ianb/neighborly/ Warning - we have a cat, so take your allergy medicine if needed. Steven Clift - http://stevenclift.com Executive Director - http://E-Democracy.Org Follow me - http://twitter.com/democracy New Tel: +1.612.234.7072
Thanks to Steve Clift for suggesting that I share with MN Voices on Line some more detail about the $4.7 million ARRA Broadband Technology Opportunity Program (BTOP) grant just received by Blandin Foundation. Here's a link to the announcement we posted on our Blandin on Broadband (BoB) blog, and also to a presentation I did before Milda Hedblom's TISP forum last fall. The TISP presentation goes into a bit more gritty detail. This week the BoB blog has posted accounts from a series of meetings our foundation team recently held with project partners. Check it out to see those introductions. Bernadine Joselyn Director, Public Policy & Engagement Blandin Foundation http://blandinonbroadband.org/2010/03/25/rural-minnesota-awarded-arra-broadband-funding TISP presentation: http://blandinonbroadband.org/2009/10/02/blandin-stimulus-project-for-tisp
Tarey, this is really great. Your stars are aligning. Aaron Brown wrote an article about technology on 'da range this weekend. http://www.minnesotabrown.com/2010/04/column-fiber-and-steel.html I'm eager to watch your efforts progress ...as you bring high-tech/innovation attitude one step closer to me!
I'd love to invite their volunteers to get involved with http://neighbor.be... next hackathon on Sunday. Steven Clift http://stevenclift.com @democracy
I know the folks at both Coco and 3rd Place would be happy to talk
with you about coworking startups either via email or if you wanted to
visit.
Peter
On Mon, Apr 5, 2010 at 5:26 PM, Tarey Johnson
<email obscured>> wrote:
>
> As it turns out there's a print shop that the owner just walked away from and
the bank is dying to get off their hands. Then, as luck would have it I was at
the local coffee shop when the guy who's rolling out WiFi in town was there.
We got to talking and he explained that there's a fiber optic line that runs
right in front of that old print shop. ::: it's a sign!:::
>
> I could incorporate the print part as a Kinko's kind of format to compliment
this idea of a broadband store. How perfect is that!? The place comes with
land, so if this takes off we could build out.
>
> Then today, I'm downtown and this guy comes up to me and asked about cell
phone service in the area. Turns out, him and his wife just moved to the area
from Apple Valley. She got a job at the local prison and he's some kind of
service tech for a global software company. He's servicing the US and his
company is all for him working remotely. He was waiting for Qwest to hook up
his DSL and using the local coffee shop in the meantime.
>
> Tomorrow I'm going to meet with the WiFi company and get the details on
hooking up that glass to the print shop.
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