It's a shame e-dem is not one of the winners, not for lack of trying on your
part.
CityCamps might want to take note of winners in their geographic areas.
CityCampCO should be interested in "Unlocking Public Data for Denver
Residents" & "Turning Data into Engaging Stories in Colorado." I don't think
there's anything happening with CityCamp Atlanta, but folks there should
look at "Empowering Atlanta Neighborhoods to Use Data for Community Change"
part.
CityCamps might want to take note of winners in their geographic areas.
CityCampCO should be interested in "Unlocking Public Data for Denver
Residents" & "Turning Data into Engaging Stories in Colorado." I don't think
there's anything happening with CityCamp Atlanta, but folks there should
look at "Empowering Atlanta Neighborhoods to Use Data for Community Change"
On Wed, Sep 21, 2011 at 11:38 AM, Steven Clift <<email obscured>>wrote:
> Looks like some interesting projects. - Steve
>
> From: Barbara Beck <<email obscured>>
> Date: Wed, Sep 21, 2011 at 10:31 AM
> Subject: Community foundations increase impact by supporting local news and
> information projects
>
>
> Community foundations increase impact by supporting local news and
> information projects
>
> Nineteen ideas receive $2.26 million in matching funding from Knight
> Foundation
>
>
> EMBARGOED UNTIL SEPT. 21, 2011
>
> SAN FRANCISCOSept. 21, 2011 To help ensure that communities are informed
> on key issues, the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation today announced
> funding for 19 local foundations to support community news and information
> projects.
>
> The foundations will receive a total of $2.26 million in matching grants as
> part of the Knight Community Information Challenge. The annual contest
> engages North American place-based foundations in meeting local information
> needs.
>
> If you care about whats going on in local government, the local
> environment or any local issues, you need to know about it to make a
> difference, said Trabian Shorters, vice president for communities, Knight
> Foundation. These community and place-based foundations are stepping up to
> make sure that their communities get good information.
>
> As newspapers and other traditional media continue to struggle, community
> foundations and place-based foundations play an increasingly important role
> in helping groups provide local news and information.
>
> The winning ideas, announced at the Council on Foundations fall conference
> for community foundations, are from organizations large and small
> throughout
> the country. They include:
>
> Providing information about specific issues: Whether it is increasing the
> coverage of charter schools in New Orleans, encouraging healthy food and
> lifestyles in Lexington, Ky., or helping rural Puerto Ricans find and
> create
> jobs, foundations are helping to shine the light on critical topics.
>
> Telling stories through data: In Denver and Atlanta, three foundations are
> finding ways to take advantage of increasingly available government data
> and
> put it to use for communities.
>
> Strengthening local, professional journalism: Projects will connect rural
> journalists in South Dakota, hire beat reporters for a Vermont start-up and
> expand public radio in the Adirondacks region of New York State.
>
> All the winners are listed below.
>
> Through their news and information projects, community foundations are
> seeing their own organizations transformed, as they raise their visibility,
> engage residents and strengthen their leadership roles.
>
> A new report, Opportunities for Leadership: Meeting Community Information
> Needs, details the stories of foundations and their projects. The report
> highlights organizations like NJ Spotlight, a start-up the Community
> Foundation of New Jersey began to fund when the local paper announced
> layoffs. The Spotlight has broken major statewide stories. In Western New
> York, the Community Foundation of Greater Buffalo is helping to bring the
> environmental movement together through an information hub. The report is
> available at http://www.informationneeds.org.
>
> The Knight Community Information Challenge is part of the foundations Media
> Innovation Initiative, a $100 million plus effort to help meet Americas
> information needs.
>
> Knight Foundation will again accept applications for the next round of the
> Knight Community Information Challenge beginning on Jan. 18, 2012. In
> addition, foundation leaders are invited to register for Knights fourth
> annual Media Learning Seminar, a gathering to discuss ways in which
> foundations can support news and information needs and opportunities. The
> seminar will take place Feb. 20-21, 2012 in Miami. Register at
> http://www.informationneeds.org.
>
> About the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation
>
> Knight Foundation supports transformational ideas that promote quality
> journalism, advance media innovation, engage communities and foster the
> arts. The foundation believes that democracy thrives when people and
> communities are informed and engaged. For more, visit KnightFoundation.org.
>
> Contacts:
>
> Barbara Beck, Sage Communications, <email obscured>,
> 215.209.3076.
>
> Marc Fest, VP/Communications, Knight Foundation, 305-908-2677;
> <email obscured>
>
>
> Knight Community Information Challenge 2011 Winners
>
>
> Putting 21st Century Public Media on a Rural, New York Map
>
> Recipient: Adirondack Community Trust, Lake Placid, N.Y.
>
> Project: North Country Public Radio
>
> Amount: $302,000
>
> Summary: To improve this rural communitys access to news and information,
> North Country Public Radio will expand and deepen its broadcast and digital
> operations and encourage residents to contribute content and help sustain
> its regional news and information service. Training programs will both
> engage community members in the news and help establish a path for the next
> generation of public media professionals.
>
>
> Promoting Healthy, Informed Choices in Kentucky
>
> Recipient: Blue Grass Community Foundation, Lexington, Ky.
>
> Project: Food Information Center
>
> Amount: $52,000
>
> Summary: To promote healthy, informed lifestyle choices in the East End
> neighborhood of Lexington, the Blue Grass Community Foundation will create
> a
> virtual food information center where locals can share information about
> local food and health assets. Community members, including kids in this
> area
> where 97 percent of students receive free or reduced lunches, will
> interview
> elders to produce stories. The site, in addition to in-person seminars,
> will
> ensure that residents can learn about gardening, food preparation, cooking
> and entrepreneurship.
>
>
> Providing a Voice for Brooklyn Residents
>
> Recipient: Brooklyn Community Foundation, Brooklyn, N.Y.
>
> Project: The Brooklyn Bureau
>
> Amount: $52,000
>
> Summary: To provide hyper-local news to underserved neighborhoods in
> Brooklyn, N.Y., the Brooklyn Community Foundation will establish The
> Brooklyn Bureau, an investigative reporting website featuring timely and
> compelling stories about key local issues. While Brooklyn is home to
> several
> strong community and ethnic newspapers and known for its fleet of bloggers,
> many of the boroughs more than 70 neighborhoods are still underserved. The
> project will use multiple platforms to capture its diverse readers,
> including a website, mobile apps, RSS feeds and more. It will also host
> online forums on pressing community issues.
>
>
> Raising Awareness about Towing Practices in California
>
> Recipient: California Community Foundation, Los Angeles, Calif.
>
> Project: Report and Map It
>
> Amount: $77,000
>
> Summary: To raise awareness about the impounding of cars, the California
> Community Foundation will enable locals to use mobile phones to anonymously
> report car impoundments. The Report and Map It campaign will feature a
> mobile app that will aggregate information and location details from text
> messages and photos sent by residents. This data will be presented in a
> digestible way, aiming to stop abuses by influencing policy. The campaign
> will also establish a bilingual, region-specific website and training
> sessions to help residents learn about their legal rights.
>
>
> Expanding the Reach of Hyper-local News in Charlottesville, Va.
>
> Recipient: Charlottesville Area Community Foundation, Charlottesville, Va.
>
> Project: Charlottesville Tomorrow
>
> Amount: $52,000
>
> Summary: To strengthen engagement with readers and donors, the
> Charlottesville Area Community Foundation will increase the staff of the
> communitys hyper-local news site and expand coverage for its community
> wiki, which provides in-depth information on local issues, and for its 3D
> mapping projects, which aids in community planning. In doing so,
> Charlottesville Tomorrow seeks to increase community involvement in local
> issues .
>
>
> Empowering Disenfranchised Communities to Take Action on Environmental
> Justice in Western New York
>
> Recipient: Community Foundation for Greater Buffalo, Buffalo, N.Y.
>
> Project: Grow Citizen Journalism
>
> Amount: $132,800
>
> Summary: To empower disenfranchised local communities affected by
> environmental issues, the Community Foundation for Greater Buffalo will
> expand its GrowNY.org site, a previous challenge winner, to include mobile
> reporting, mapping and new information applications. These new tools will
> give a voice to low-income communities and people of color who are
> disproportionately affected by environmental pollution and have few
> resources to take action. The Grow Citizen Journalism project will also
> train citizens in story creation techniques so they can share their
> first-hand experiences with their toxic surroundings to raise awareness of
> the issues and encourage action.
>
>
> Creating a Watchdog for New Orleans Charter Schools
>
> Recipient: Greater New Orleans Foundation, New Orleans, La.
>
> Project: School Board Coverage
>
> Amount: $52,000
>
> Summary: To provide greater transparency and accountability in charter
> schools, the local news site The Lens will train college journalism
> students
> to tweet from and write about the meetings of local charter schools. New
> Orleans has the highest percentage of students attending charter schools in
> the country, yet there is little coverage of the boards that govern the
> schools. Each student journalist will cover a different school and report
> the events and details of important board meetings and gatherings. All
> relevant content will be archived, in order to ensure greater
> accountability
> in how the schools are run.
>
>
> Reporting on Nebraskas Refugee Communities
>
> Recipient: Lincoln Community Foundation, Lincoln, Neb.
>
> Project: Refugee Storytelling
>
> Amount: $26,000
>
> Summary: To provide more coverage of the citys refugee community,
> journalism students from the University of Nebraska will move a class to a
> local community center and use multimedia storytelling to share stories.
> The
> content will then be offered to local outlets, aiming to promote both
> understanding in Lincoln and civic engagement among the citys newest
> residents.
>
>
> Rethinking Public Broadcasting in Long Beach
>
> Recipient: Long Beach Community Foundation, Long Beach, Calif.
>
> Project: Public Access TV
>
> Amount: $327,000
>
> Summary: In returning public access television to Long Beach, this project
> will create hyper-local, multilingual programming on a variety of
> platforms.
> Programming, some contributed by residents reporting from a network of
> neighborhood studios, will be presented in English, Khmer and Spanish. A
> nightly program will showcase professional and citizen-created content,
> aiming to get more people engaged in local issues. In addition, an outreach
> and training program will encourage people of all ethnicities and age
> groups
> to participate.
>
>
> Using Information to Spur the Economy in Rural Puerto Rico
>
> Recipient: Puerto Rico Community Foundation, San Juan, P.R.
>
> Project: Increasing Rural Access to Information
>
> Amount: $127,000
>
> Summary: This project will provide information on jobs and entrepreneurship
> to communities in rural Puerto Rico, where the unemployment rate is about
> 40
> percent. Organizers will share tips on how to create jobs, get permits and
> manage projects, among other topics, either online or through texting and
> other mobile technologies.
>
>
> Empowering Latino Youth in the Voting Process
>
> Recipient: Silicon Valley Community Foundation, San Jose, Calif.
>
> Project: Mobile Vote App
>
> Amount: $37,000
>
> Summary: To empower and engage young Latinos, the Silicon Valley Community
> Foundation will team with Voto Latino to create a mobile app that will
> connect voters to information about voter registration. The multifaceted
> mobile voter application will be available to Apple and Android devices,
> and
> will target young Latinos currently the fastest growing segment of the
> U.S. population. It will explain the voting and registration processes,
> provide details on prerequisites and answer frequently asked questions.
>
>
> Strengthening Rural Journalism in South Dakota
>
> Recipient: South Dakota Community Foundation, Pierre, S.D.
>
> Project: Dakotafire Media
>
> Amount: $242,000
>
> Summary: To strengthen regional coverage, Dakotafire Media will create an
> alliance of rural journalists to provide in-depth reporting on topics vital
> to rural South Dakota. The alliance will connect these journalists through
> online meetings, social networking and collaborative writing software
> allowing them to cover topics they couldnt meaningfully address alone. The
> journalists, many of whom come from newspapers with staffs of three or
> fewer
> people, will also be able to exchange ideas and learn from each other. As
> some of these newspapers dont have websites, Dakotafire will offer an
> online presence for them. The funding comes at a time of great change in
> the
> rural Dakotas, where the population is declining and aging, and metro
> newspapers are retreating to urban centers.
>
>
> Empowering Atlanta Neighborhoods to Use Data for Community Change
>
> Recipient: The Community Foundation for Greater Atlanta, Atlanta, Ga.
>
> Project: Neighborhood Corner
>
> Amount: $52,000
>
> Summary: To help inform residents and engage them in neighborhood issues,
> The Community Foundation for Greater Atlanta will connect residents to an
> extensive data hub and train them on how to add their personal stories,
> photos and videos of their communities. The hub, called Neighborhood Nexus,
> is a comprehensive information resource that empowers community leaders to
> enhance the quality of life in the Atlanta region. The Community Foundation
> hopes the online collaboration and in-person dialogue will transform
> decision making and empower citizens and leaders to lobby for and make
> improvements in their area.
>
>
> Empowering Youth to Share Their Viewpoints on Air
>
> Recipient: The Community Foundation of Utah, Salt Lake City, Utah
>
> Project: Youth-On-Air
>
> Amount: $27,000
>
> Summary: To engage young people in local issues, Salt Lake City teens will
> have the opportunity to develop a Youth-On-Air broadcasting program.
> Working
> with Spy Hop Productions, the students will produce original stories about
> the issues affecting their lives. These stories will then be shared on TV,
> on radio and online through Web streaming. Their stories will aim to inform
> and engage citizens of all ages in conversations about social, political
> and
> economic issues of significance, while empowering teens to express
> themselves and take action for change.
>
>
> Unlocking Public Data for Denver Residents
>
> Recipient: The Denver Foundation, Denver, Colo.
>
> Project: Colorado Data Commons
>
> Amount: $134,900
>
> Summary: To increase residents access to useful news and information, The
> Denver Foundation, partnering with The Piton Foundation and the Rocky
> Mountain Investigative News Network, will create an online tool to unlock
> public data and make it easy for anybody to read and use. The project,
> called the Colorado Data Commons, will begin by identifying the barriers
> that keep government data from being more accessible, then devise tools to
> solve those problems. Some key features include an ability to link data
> sets
> and provide multiyear comparisons, creating not only tools to remove the
> barriers but also ways to visualize data that integrate social media so
> people can share their analyses. As an example, community groups could use
> the system to create a dashboard that tracks, or even maps, issues
> important
> to them.
>
>
> Turning Data into Engaging Stories in Colorado
>
> Recipient: The Piton Foundation, Denver, Colo.
>
> Project: CitizenAtlas
>
> Amount: $202,000
>
> Summary: To foster greater civic dialogue, The Piton Foundation will draw
> on
> its 15 years of democratizing information to create free tools to help
> citizens translate public data into captivating stories. A major component
> will be an easy-to-use, online platform that allows users to post their
> stories and search data and content for others to interact with. The
> program
> will also provide training and outreach programs to empower underprivileged
> communities to navigate the site and tell their stories. The Childrens
> Corridor, a North Denver neighborhood home to some of the citys poorest
> communities, will serve as a pilot for the public release.
>
>
> Expanding a Crowdsourced Community News Site in Ohio
>
> Recipient: The Raymond John Wean Foundation, Warren, Ohio
>
> Project: NewsOutlet.org
>
> Amount: $62,000
>
> Summary: To keep citizens up to date on local issues, The Raymond John Wean
> Foundation will expand NewsOutlet.org, a collaborative, investigative
> reporting platform run by college students and professional editors. The
> project will use the existing model in Youngstown, Ohio, which crowdsources
> story topics from and about the community, and expand it to other
> universities and media partners throughout the state. The foundation hopes
> that greater interaction and increased local content will foster solutions
> to neighborhood problems.
>
>
>
> Expanding Citizen Voice in Canadian Media
>
> Recipient: The Winnipeg Foundation and The Winnipeg Foundation USA,
> Winnipeg, Manitoba
>
> Project: Community News Commons
>
> Amount: $202,000
>
> Summary: To strengthen the flow of community news in Winnipeg, the
> Community
> News Commons project will create local hubs to train, engage and empower
> citizen journalists. The hubs, including a partnership with Canada's first
> news caf operated by the Winnipeg Free Press daily newspaper and the
> city's libraries, local community college programs and other media
> partners,
> will host training and provide internships and reporting mentorship for
> local residents and college journalism students. Multimedia reports will be
> distributed through an onsite news station, via the Web and at caf-hosted
> community news events.
>
>
> Strengthening Investigative Journalism in Vermont
>
> Recipient: Vermont Community Foundation
>
> Project: VTDigger.org
>
> Amount: $104,000
>
> Summary: To bolster watchdog journalism, VTDigger.org will use funds to
> hire
> an investigative reporter to cover health reform and energy issues in
> Vermont. The reporter will gather material for long-form stories while
> providing daily coverage to the news sites 23,000 readers statewide.
> Stories will focus on health and energy as they are issues that drive the
> states economy and are among the topics Vermonters care about most.
>
> Steven Clift
> Ericsson, Minneapolis
> About Steven Clift: http://forums.e-democracy.org/p/stevenclift
>
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