You are invited to the Twin Cities Media Alliance’s November Brown Bag Lunchwith featured guest Joel Kramer, founder and publisher of MinnPost.
When: Wednesday, November 18| Noon
Where: East Lake Public Library, 2727 E. Lake St., Minneapolis,
COGI-tations: A program of the Minnesota Coalition on Government Information
When: Tuesday, October 27, 2009 | 4:30 – 6:00 p.m.
Where: Midtown Commons, 2324 University Ave West, St. Paul (just East of Raymond) Women Venture meeting room
Free and convenient parking West of the Midtown Commons complex. More »
The Minneapolis Star Tribune, Minnesota’s largest daily newspaper, receives 15,000 comments to its online stories every month. The St. Cloud Times receives comments by the thousands, as does the Pioneer Press.
But are they worth anything? Or as David Brauer, media reporter for MinnPost.com recently characterized it, are on-line comments nothing more than “a cesspool” of hate, personal attacks and other sentiments that aren’t worth the electrons they occupy?
A distinguished panel of experts, including online editors, columnists, reporters and a media lawyer, discussed the phenomenon this week at a forum sponsored by The Minnesota News Council and the Minnesota Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists.
If there was any consensus, it was that readers’ online comments are popular.
“Four to five percent of all online users comment online, which may not sound like a lot, but many commenters are active, repeat users,” said Star Tribune Assistant Managing Editor/Digital Terry Sauer.
There was less agreement on a variety of other points, however, such as whether comments should be monitored, and whether they’re harmful. More »
Photos and video are now available online from the September 29 forum, The Comment Conundrum.
CLICK HERE to view photos on Flickr
CLICK HERE to view video from the event.
All photos by Scott Theisen for MNC/MNSPJ.
Video by Jeff Achen for MNC/MNSPJ.
The Comment Conundrum
Tune into the Minnesota Society of Professional Journalists’ Web site to view streaming video of the event tonight if you cannot attend. Full video, photos and an event recap will be posted soon!
CLICK HERE for streaming video – 7:00 – 9:00 p.m. CST
When: Tuesday, September 29 | 7:00 – 9:00 p.m.
Where: University of St. Thomas, St. Paul Campus
3M Auditorium in Owens Science Hall (MAP)*
Cost: This event is free and open to the public and sponsored jointly by the Minnesota News Council and the Minnesota Society of Professional Journalists.
What are news outlets doing to ensure civil discourse on their sites? What happens when inappropriate content is posted on comment sites? What are the legal ramifications for news outlets? For the commenters? What draws readers to comment on stories? Which sites have the best and worst commenters?
Come discuss journalism’s comment conundrum.
When: Tuesday, September 29 | 7:00 – 9:00 p.m.
Where: University of St. Thomas, St. Paul Campus
3M Auditorium in Owens Science Hall (MAP)*
Cost: This event is free and open to the public and sponsored jointly by the Minnesota News Council and the Minnesota Society of Professional Journalists.
Panelists include:
David Brauer, MinnPost.com (Moderator)
Mike Knaak, Assistant Managing Editor – St. Cloud Times
Terry Sauer, Assistant Managing Editor/Digital – Star Tribune
Leita Walker, Associate – Faegre & Benson
You’ll also hear reactions from local reporters whose stories are often the target of comments that range from helpful and constructive to angry and libelous.
Selected reading list:
Newspapers take renewed aim at the comment cesspool – MinnPost.com
Racism, Attacks Lead News Sites to Disable Story Comments – Poynter
What: Classes and workshops for citizen journalists, writers, bloggers.
When: Ongoing
Click here for a full schedule.
Email jeremy@tcdailyplanet.net for more information.
What: Twin Cities Media Alliance Fall Media Forum: “Networking And The New Media Landscape: Reporting News, Building Community, Making Money”
When: Saturday Nov. 7 | 9 a.m. – 3 p.m.
Where: Minneapolis Central Library
Join the Twin Cities Media Alliance Executive Director (and News Council member) Jeremy Iggers at noon on Wednesday, September 30 for a Brown Bag Lunch at the East Lake Public Library, 2727 E. Lake St., Minneapolis, with featured guest Laura Yuen, reporter for Minnesota Public Radio.
Laura covers St. Paul and has reported extensively on Minnesota’s Somali-American community. She came to MPR in January 2008 after eight years of writing for daily newspapers, including the St. Paul Pioneer Press and the Lexington (Ky.) Herald-Leader. Laura is a graduate of Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism and is a native of the Chicago area. Her work has also appeared in The Boston Globe and The (Portland) Oregonian. A three-part series on Hmong chicken farmers in the Ozarks won a national award from the Asian American Journalists Association. Laura lives in Minneapolis with her husband.
The Twin Cities Media Alliance’s monthly Brown Bag Lunches are your chance for casual conversation with some of the Twin Cities’ most insightful journalists — about journalism, politics, or whatever is on your mind.
More info at www.tcmediaaliance.org.
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In this issue: you’re invited to our fall forum, The Comment Conundrum; tell us how YOU think public trust in journalism can be improved; and support our work with a financial contribution today!
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