How to sustain the energy and connectedness of the group so as to generate action?

Convener: Jim Shaffer

Note taker: Jim Shaffer

Initial attendees: Ralph Gage, Bill Krasean, Nora Paul, Chris Peck, Steve Silha, Dueane Stoltzfus,

What future action?

Ralph: Here’s a wild ass idea: I know ________, Chris’s brother, who’s a hardworking journalist at a small daily. Hasn’t had a day off in years, why not create a SWAT team of journalism professors and students that could take over his paper for a week and give him a vacation? The idea would be a match people with portable skills that need experience with temporary experiences.

Duane: Another idea would be to develop an economic template – a cookbook – for journalists that don’t know the business side to fill out the blanks and test the economics of the new venture ideas.

Bill: I’d like to see a website that connects us all. Who’s doing this now?

(Dan earlier volunteered to add this to his school’s site with links. Need Dan.)

Nora: We need to free ourselves up with a planning grant …

Steve: Kellogg said they were interested.

Nora: Would like to do more research on different models of news “ownership.”

Chris: We need to re-think who needs to be connected to develop last night’s idea.

Several: Let’s ask Fetzer to help us flesh out last night’s idea and write a grant proposal to Kellogg.

90-day window?

Nora: We need a real live organization to work with.

Chris: So we need to

  1. Identify and convene the key people to flesh out the vision
  2. Polish the vision
  3. Go for some foundation money to plan
  4. Go for a existing news org partner that needs help with the future

(Peggy Holman joins)

Nora: Thinking about Forum Communications, they might say, “Take our newsroom …”

Several: Averse to big media organizations. Too slow … Need agile partners.

Peggy: Too soon to choose target partners?

Jim S: Could at least choose criteria as part of the grant proposal. Fetzer can help us find …

Duane: Remember PM in NYC? It attracted energy and talent from many journalists. Such experimentation DOES tie with healthy journalists.

Ralph, Chris:   (Once the planning grant $$ is in) start with a specific proposal to a target organization. Ralph: Caveat! First one or two shouldn’t be in a competitive market. Need fault tolerant environments.

Peggy: Create a model that would help …others … rescue markets.

Nora: Like college towns. Receptive to journalism.

Peggy: Editor of Biloxi looking …

Jim S: Switching subjects, how to keep the connectedness?

Peggy: Perhaps a monthly conference call, open to all interested …

JS: Combine with dynamic website for all to watch during the call?

(Dan Gilmor joins, Jim reviews)

Dan: Can offer a group blog w/ discussion capability, maybe internal e-mail

Nora agreed to work with Dan to set up a community site, categories include:

Healthy Journalists

New economic models

Duane: Be sure to allow for personal connection

Ralph: Make it searchable so we can go back and extract… interest… around various topics

(Lew Friedland joins)

Dan: Keep this private? Or allow public.

(discussion)

Peggy: Whoever comes is the right person …

Chris: But need to clarify the purpose of the site …

Nora: 3 threads?

Continuing the work of this retreat

Planning for a project

World wide white board

(Linda Grdina joins)

Peggy: Q is how “contained?” The energy sits in the room, but more a field than a bowl.

JS: Time’s almost up. Let’s review Monday morning tasks.

  1. Ask Fetzer for one more round with eye toward creating

Foundation $$

Operating partner

Platform for continuing this energy

And PROJECTS

  1. Nora and Dan to work on web-based communications platform. (Peggy to be available to advise.)
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