Principal convenor
Minnesota Journalism Center
Minnesota News Council

Discussion: “A Passion for Place”:

“Wed., 4:45 p.m.-5:30 p.m.”

Concepts for the American Society of News and Community Forums (ASNCF)

Entrepreneurs and operators of local online news and community websites are emerging across the United States. Often drive by a passion to inform and influence, some are now begining to think about mechanisms for sustaining and growing their enterprises. Others are well underway. Part news organization, part bulletin board, part civic booster, watchdog or wag, these “placebloggers” have these questions:

*What’s the best technology?
*How does advertising work?
*What are my legal and practical liabilities?
*How do I train bloggers, writers and volunteers?
*Should I incorporate? As a profit or non-profit?
*What about alliances with other media and groups?

All of these questions lead to a larger one: Would a national society, or trade group help?

Bill Densmore, of The Media Giraffe Projectat UMass Amherst, and a part-time news-community operator, will start a discussion aimed at answer that question.