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Elevate Engagement Manifesto and more

July 17, 2017 Journalism That Matters

On May 18-21, 2017, a diverse group of 130 journalists, researchers, engagement practitioners, and community leaders gathered at the Agora Journalism Center for Elevate Engagement.

Over a four-day journey, participants explored how engaged journalism can help communities thrive. More specifically, how could we take listening, connection, and trust to the next level?

On the final day, participants identified themes that could support an emerging engaged journalism community of practice to thrive. The result is a proposed foundation for such a community in the form of an Elevate Engagement Manifesto.

Here are other highlights related to the conference:

Audience (formerly), JTM News, Member News

Journalism Panel at Civic Engagement Conference

December 20, 2016 Peggy Holman

Check out the just-released video of the journalism panel that was organized and moderated by JTM’s Executive Director, Peggy Holman, for the National Coalition for Dialogue and Deliberation (NCDD) last October.

On the panel:

Michelle Ferrier, Ph.D. – Associate Professor, E.W. Scripps School of Journalism at Ohio University and Journalism That Matters board president
Linda Miller – Director of Network Journalism & Inclusion, American Public Media Group and Journalism That Matters board member
Chris Faraone – Co-Founder of the Boston Institute for Nonprofit Journalism
Christa Case Bryant – Politics Editor for the Christian Science Monitor
Ellen Mayer – Community Manager, Hearken

The panel was distinctive for a couple reasons:

Based on the feedback we got, it shifted attitudes among civic engagement practitioners from “how do I get journalists to cover my work?” to “how can I partner with journalists in doing my civic engagement work?”
Rather than being just information-out with an anemic Q&A, this panel successfully became a conversation in the room about what’s possible when journalists and civic engagement practitioners work together.

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Stories for Navigating the Waves of Change

February 10, 2014 Peggy Holman 1 Comment

How can journalists discern what stories are most useful for helping us navigate through turbulent times?

One way to decide is by understanding the roles people play in changing times. I recently described some key roles on the Seapoint Center leadership blog. In brief:

Stabilizers maintain the old systems and structures, for better and worse.

Originators experiment with a range of ideas, from the hair-brained to the brilliant.

Adapted from Berkana Institute’s Two Loops Theory of Change

These two roles are immersed in the shifting waves of change, caught up in two primary and conflicting forces: maintaining the old and inventing the new. Three other roles work with these forces:

Hospice workers help us to mourn what is dying.

Midwives help launch innovations.

Wave riders assist us in transitioning between old and new cultural narratives.

Journalists can help us appreciate the contributions of people performing each of these roles. They can honor legacies and illuminate values that still endure, even as they report on the shortcomings of failing institutions . They can extend the reach of promising innovations, giving us hope for the future and more ability to embrace the unfamiliar. Through telling these stories, journalists support hospice workers and midwives by bringing their work to a larger, and ideally more diverse audience.

Perhaps most critical, journalists can help us through change by being wave riders themselves, making sense of the shifting narratives of our times through the stories they tell. For example, central to journalism’s traditional narrative is “giving voice to the voiceless” and “holding the powerful accountable”. While this narrative still informs journalism, through its convenings among the diverse players in the changing news and information ecosystem, JTM has tracked shifts in journalism’s narrative.

While by no means definitive, the table below is a snapshot of recent observations informed by conversations among JTM participants. I suspect that we are years from a well-functioning news and information ecosystem. Still, we are seeing glimpses of emerging patterns.

Journalism’s narrative…
Traditional	Emerging
Journalism is about the public good.	Journalism is still about the public good. And now it is entrepreneurial.
News organizations have a large influence on a community’s cultural narrative.	Communities take primary responsibility for their cultural narrative. One strategy: embed journalists in the community.
News organizations are institutions that bring credibility.	News organizations are of all shapes and sizes. Some bring credibility. Some bring heart. Collaborations bring us the best of both.
Independence brings stories focused on problems, winners/losers, and scarcity.	Independence within interdependence brings engagement in diverse community that leads to stories focused on possibilities, adaptation, and abundance.
Unless it is an editorial, no advocacy. Period.	Advocacy for a better world (e.g. better education, environment, health care, governance) without attachment to specific solutions.
Stories delivered via print, broadcast, and online.	Stories delivered via print, broadcast, online, social media, hip-hop, video games, and other means.

By putting a name to what is changing, stories give us a chance to consider what endures from the past that is still relevant and what we wish to embrace that wasn’t possible before. Naming provides language for conversations about changing perspectives and their implications to the practice of journalism. Where do you see yourself in these shifts? What do the changes mean for you and your work?

What if journalists characterized changing assumptions for education, healthcare, governance, or other systems they care about? How might that spark conversations about underlying beliefs and assumptions? How could it lead to greater understanding of the tensions among people in the system and in the process, cultivate greater understanding, compassion and creativity in changing times?

What are the stories you can tell that help us navigate through change?

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Changing Stories in Journalism

For more than a decade, JTM has tracked the narrative of journalism through the conversations it has hosted among diverse groups of people involved with news and information.

Created originally for NewsTools 2008 in Silicon Valley, the two value network maps below highlight shifts in key roles and exchanges in the news and information ecosystem.

The charts of changing views that follow were compiled between 2006 and 2009. They still stimulate rich conversations about the changing story of journalism.

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Mapping the News and Information Ecosystem

October 16, 2013 Peggy Holman

Envisioning what the news and information ecosystem looks like contributes to creating it.

Understanding a complex system is no easy task. Maps simplify reality to highlight useful distinctions. They give form to an abstract idea, like a news and information ecosystem. Just as nature’s ecosystem is a community of living organisms — plants, animals and microbes — interacting with nonliving components in their environment — air, water and soil, a news and information ecosystem consists of the interactions among its organisms — journalists, the public, journalism educators, media reformers, and others — in their environment — organizations, associations, the Internet, mobile devices.

Whether natural systems or social systems, mapping makes visible nonlinear, complex relationships. Think of the many maps of the human body from science class: circulatory system, nervous system, muscular system and others. Communication becomes easier because of a common framework. Consider the breakthroughs attributed to mapping the human genome. Health care providers have an increased capacity to treat, prevent and cure disease. New technologies for sharing information and working with it are also among the benefits.

Imagine a comparable set of maps of the news and information ecosystem. They could help us to pursue questions like:

Where are innovations happening?
Where are opportunities for new ideas?
Who’s funding what aspects of the system? And what needs funding?
What’s missing? What else needs to be visible on the map?

Different kinds of maps help us understand different aspects of a system. They can be used for understanding what to measure. As noted in the Knight Commission report on the news and information needs of communities, “If activists, policymakers, and the general public had more concrete ways of describing, measuring and comparing the systems of community news and information flow, it would be much easier to mobilize public interest around community information needs.”

One news executive experienced the practical benefits of mapping when he saw a network map (one segment below) created for the 2010 JTM Pacific Northwest conference. He noticed the competition near the center. His organization was off to the side. A colleague explained antiquated technology caused the problem. Shortly after the conference, that technology changed.

Thanks to Richard Rogers, director of Govcom.org Foundation, Amsterdam for creating the map.

Dr. Michelle Ferrier, Associate Dean for Innovation at Ohio University’s Scripps College of Communication (and JTM board member), is creating geographic maps of media deserts. By mapping places where fresh news and information is lacking, these maps identify where resources are most needed. Her proof of concept used North Carolina. One of the series is pictured here.

Screen_Shot_2013-10-15_at_1.51.36_PM.png

In 2008, JTM created its much copied value network maps of the old and emerging news and information ecosystems. (Visit the link for the emerging ecosystem map.)

Value Network Maps are a terrific approach for understanding the interactions of a complex system. They help identify opportunities for partnerships, innovation, development, and much more.

Much has happened since that 2008 map making session. Were we to map what’s emerging today by focusing on possibility, engagement, and diversity, we could chart pioneering territory, making visible opportunities for further advances and wider adoption.

As a start, I offer a simple functional map of a news and information ecosystem, along with a preliminary list of agents. Far from complete, it gives a glimpse into what is emerging.

Roles in a News and Information Ecosystem

Content Creators/Storytellers

Reporters
- Professional
- Amateur
- Community
- Organizational (business, nonprofit)
- Investigators
- Long form narrative writers
- Short form narrative writers
- Editorial writers
- Beat reporters
- Bloggers
- Data handlers
  - Technologists
  - Transparency creators (e.g., Sunlight Foundation, Public Data Ferret)

Publishers/distributors

Print
Broadcast
- Radio
  - Traditional
  - Low power FM
  - Satellite
  - Internet
- TV
Online
- Social media
- Blogs
- Emerging forms
  - Games
  - Hip hop
  - Comedy
Other dimensions
- Public/private
- Large/small
- Geographic/topical

Sense-Makers/Discerners

Curators
Aggregators
Fact checkers
Transparency advocates

Users/Communities

General Public
Supporters
- Community stewards/ navigators/ombudsmen
- Media Reformers
- Community organizers
- Librarians

Archivers

Librarians
Others?

Researchers/Evaluators

Academics
Librarians
Historians
Evaluators

Influencers

Government
Business
Media Advocates
Educators
Ethicists – people who bring important questions like:
- What is newsworthy?
- What lenses serve our storytelling?
- Who tells our stories?
- What are the roles of the system and how can they best serve the needs of communities and democracy?
- How do we reach everyone?
- What is advocacy?

Funders

Advertisers
Foundations
Public – Fees for service, products
Venture capitalists
Angel investors
Others?

Educators

Teachers
Students
For the public – Media literacy organizations
For the story tellers
Topics
- Craft
- Ethics
- Technology
- Analysis
- Investigation
- Engagement
- Systems Thinking and Change
- News Judgment – choosing stories
- Entrepreneurship
- Media law

You can help make it better. What roles, functions, and connections do you see in the ecosystem? The clearer the picture of what we want to create, the greater our ability to realize it.

I end my series on journalism in changing times with a challenge. We are in a pioneering era in which the mental maps that guide us are being redrawn. Not just in journalism, but also in education, health care, governance, and every social system. No matter where you are, learn to navigate uncertainty. Look for possibilities, engage others, and welcome the creative potential diversity brings. Tell your stories, map new terrain. Make a difference wherever you are.

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Got something to contribute?

Unless you explicitly request otherwise, I will post comments received from all media in the comment space below.

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Read the other posts in this series:

The Possibility Principle

The Engagement Principle

The Diversity Principle

The Changing News & Information Ecosystem: What can you do?
Mapping the News and Information Ecosystem (this post)

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The Changing News and Information Ecosystem: What Can You Do?

October 9, 2013 Peggy Holman 1 Comment

How can you contribute to a healthy journalism ecosystem?

Picture a news and information ecosystem that not only informs, but also engages, inspires, and activates. Imagine journalism that helps us navigate through uncertainty, contextualizing conflict and struggle within aspirations and hope.

Envision telling stories of possibility, highlighting diverse voices, using diverse forms, and engaging with each other around them.

How do we do it?

Journalism is no longer a spectator sport. Whether you are a journalist, an educator, a technologist, or a member of the public, get involved in creating a news and information ecosystem that meets the needs of communities and democracy.

The dominant narrative of how we organize to get stuff done is shifting from hierarchies to networks. No longer just from the top, change happens when people take responsibility for what they love. So join a hub of activity, as many are already doing. Or link people and organizations to each other. Journalism That Matters (JTM) aspires to be a learning hub for connecting journalism innovators. So tell JTM about what you’re doing by commenting below and join the conversation.

If you’re not sure where to begin, I offer some ideas:

Learn about change. We live in interesting times. Disruption is a normal part of the landscape. The more each of us understands change, the better equipped we are to work with it. Resources abound! My book, Engaging Emergence: Turning Upheaval into Opportunity is one roadmap.

Seek possibilities. Turn deficit into possibility by asking questions that uncover hopes and aspirations. Questions like: given what’s happening, what’s possible now? Or what’s the best possible outcome from this situation?

Many people focus on what they can’t do, what the problems are, what isn’t possible. When someone says, “The problem is x,” ask, “What would it look like if it were working?” If someone says, “I can’t do that,” ask, “What would you like to do?”

Invite others to join you. You can have more fun and help each other grow into the habit of asking possibility-oriented questions. Over time it will change the nature and quality of our discourse.

Engage. There’s something for everyone in the emerging media landscape. Take a course in media literacy. Or teach one.

If you are a journalist, remember: engagement is essential for journalism to be relevant and trusted in the digital world. Take the TAO of journalism pledge to be Transparent, Accountable, and Open. Check out resources on engagement at J-Lab, including the 2012 Report on Engaging Audiences. The Poynter Institute has a variety of articles about engagement. Or take a look at the ideas in my earlier post on engagement.

If you are not a journalist and you have a story to tell, do so. Whether text, audio, video, or other media, provide content for a news outlet, your own blog, or social media. If writing isn’t for you, find media that cover places and issues that matter to you and jump in. Point family, friends, and groups that you are part of to stories that you think make a difference.

Use social media, like Twitter, Instagram, Tumblr, Pinterest and Facebook, to discuss stories with friends and strangers. Or to share what you learn about using social media. Comment on stories that move you. Organize around them. If fact, learn about hosting conversations. The National Coalition for Dialogue and Deliberation is a great resource for practices and people.

In other words, whatever your roles in the ecosystem, make media, share it, and use it.

Invite diversity. We spend so much of our time with people like ourselves! Whenever you engage with media, notice who else needs to be involved and speak up. Reach out. Support media makers who tell stories that incorporate diverse perspectives. And remember, if you wish to engage with people from a different age, race, culture, etc., go to them. Be humble. Listen. Learn. They are more likely to join with you if they see that you are interested in a respectful partnership.

Ultimately, these actions are not just about the quality of our news and information. They are about cultivating societies that are compassionate, creative, and wise. Able to deal with whatever complexities come our way. Each of us has a role to play. So step in.