State of the Commons

Here are some journalism/information technology organizations who are critical stakeholders in the region.

We know we’re missing some, please leave ideas and suggestions in the comments!

	Meetup with other local professionals who are interested in the Online News Association (ONA) and the Western Washington chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists. Gather with writers, editors, photographers, producers, and all with an interest in the production of news for digital presentation. For more information or to become an ONA member, check out http://www.journalists.org. For more information or to join SPJ, visit http://www.spj.org or http://www.spjwash.org.
	The worlds of hackers and journalists are coming together as reporting goes digital and Internet companies become media empires.Journalists call themselves “hacks,” someone who can churn out words in any situation. Hackers use the digital equivalent of duct tape to whip out code. Hacker-journalists try and bridge the two worlds. This group is to bring all these people together — those who are working to help people make sense of their world. It’s for hackers exploring technologies to filter and visualize information, and for journalists who use technology to find and tell stories. In the age of information overload, all their work has become even more crucial. This group aims to help members find inspiration and think in new directions, bringing together potential collaborators for projects and new ventures. Please also check out our blog at http://hackshackers.com Help us build the future of media!
	Founded in 1981, the Asian American Journalists Association (AAJA) is a non-profit professional and educational organization with more than 2,000 members. Since 1985, Seattle’s AAJA chapter has provided scholarships for students, professional development for journalists and service to the community in the Pacific Northwest. The Seattle chapter promotes the association’s three-part mission: – To encourage young Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders to enter the ranks of journalism. – To promote fair and accurate coverage of Asian Americans and Pacific Islanders. – To increase the number of Asian American and Pacific Islander journalists and news managers in the industry.
	Western Washington Pro Chapter Region 10 Chapter – (Pacific Northwest)
	Seattle 2.0 was created in 2007 with one goal in mind: To help tech entrepreneurs build great companies. What makes this different from other sites and blogs is the fact it’s written by doers. We are not journalists, reporters or analysts. We are entrepreneurs, investors, advisors, consultants and members of a healthy and ever-growing startup community around Seattle. Our primary audience is the entrepreneurs and startup employees in the tech space… Events Calendar
	One of our founding partners is the Journalism Accelerator, “a forum about innovation in journalism, beyond the usual suspects.” When participants in the Commons need authoritative help, the JA is a resource for efficiently tapping into a wider network of experts and innovators. To learn more, visit the Journalism Accelerator’s Frequently Asked Questions.

What might happen if people could connect to create more and better journalism than the Seattle area has ever known? That question motivates the Seattle Journalism Commons, an initiative of Journalism That Matters.

“More and better” may seem overly ambitious, given the dramatic loss of news jobs in traditional media in the Seattle area during the past decade. Seattle’s loss – almost 60 percent of newspaper newsroom jobs – is about double the national average for the industry. But Seattle has more emerging media than most cities and the collaboration already underway among journalistic entities, old and new, is encouraging.

A glimpse of what might happen can be seen in the convening of Journalism That Matters Pacific Northwest at the University of Washington in January 2010. Under the banner of “Re-imagining news and community,” about 240 people participated in various activities over three and a half days. The gathering catalyzed projects for digital media literacy, global health reporting, government transparency and civic dialogue, among others.

One project that emerged was to revamp the national JTM website to enable journalists, citizen journalists, activists and civic leaders around the country to connect and participate. People can now use the site to publish their own blog, create groups to publish a collaborative blog, create online sessions to discuss topics, find support for new media ideas, follow JTM sessions, develop resources, cross-pollinate ideas with community activists and more. Find out more here.

Another project was to create the virtual equivalent of that UW convening, so that people in the Northwest could extend and sustain opportunities to share ideas and resources. That became the Seattle Journalism Commons, which is beginning to take form.

What might happen? People might:

• Create new alliances and partnerships, especially between private, non-profit and public media.

• Help to find and nurture funding sources for new local journalistic endeavors.

• Solve common technology problems.

• Create new ways for the public to engage in the purposes and functions of journalism.

• Promote open government and facilitate productive uses of government data.

• Encourage digital natives to direct their talents to serve local journalism.

• Develop new tools to identify and serve unmet news and information needs.

• Increase the role of higher education, community and nonprofit institutions as hubs of journalistic activity for local communities.

• Promote diversity and inclusion in local news.

• Explore and develop new business models to evolve journalism.

• Create a model for other communities.

One feature of the SJC, which was added by popular demand, is a shared calendar of journalism events in the greater Seattle area. Once an event is over, the SJC will report on or link to available information about what happened. The calendar also will include deadlines for contests and grants concerning local journalism.

Another popular demand is for the Journalism Commons to help build connections in person. The Seattle area is blessed with many vibrant journalism organizations, such as the Society of Professional Journalists, the Online News Association, Hacks and Hackers, the Asian American Journalists Association and others. The SJC will partner to promote synergy among these and other civic groups.

As with any networked endeavor, the success of the Seattle Journalism Commons depends on people joining in, telling their stories, asking their questions and inviting their friends.

Join in now.