Shining the Light on Government

So, every once in a while I get to do something really interesting at my job. Most recently, I wrote this special section on open government in collaboration with the Washington Coalition for Open Government (WCOG). Even better, this section was mentioned by not one, but two of my favorite Seattle journalist-bloggers, Knute Berger (Crosscut) and Mike Fancher (Press Here). So that was pretty nice.

Orwell Comes to America

Haven't been here in a while. Things come up every day that I think, "I should write a post about that!" But then time passes, and I get distracted and it doesn't happen. But today, as I was watching C-Span with one eye and trying to read a book on French cooking with the other, I saw this great panel on the future of journalism, so I thought I would post the link.

Apparently, there was a conference in November called "Orwell Comes to America," which included a panel made up of representatives from NPR, the NY Times, and the FCC. The panel was called, "Solutions: The Future Political Landscape" and was the portion of the program I saw. The program can be viewed on the New York Public Library website (another reason to love libraries).

Highlights included a discussion of language and journalism and what the concept of "objectivity" really means (and if it is even an obtainable standard to set).

It is worth watching, if you are interested in this discussion. And/or if you care about the future of democracy.

As a side note, C-Span is still on and that guy Tom Casey (State Dept Spokesman) seems like a bit of a jerk. Just saying.

Back to Croque-Monsieur...

online portfolio

I have created a couple of online portfolios through catalyst, a program through the UW. The layout is boring, which I guess means professional. I have not added much yet, but hope to keep it up to date with writing and work projects...

academic portfolio
professional portfolio

The Katha School

So I just read an interesting article in the latest Educational Leadership journal (this month's issue is devoted to Educating the Whole Child). It is about the Katha school in New Delhi and the work they do with kids to strengthen the community through sharing and writing their stories. The Katha website is massive, and it seems like there are a lot of different projects going on related to creativity in the classroom, community and civic engagement, problem-posing education, and storytelling as liberation. I think I am going to contact this school and research some possible project ideas...

google pages

SO. I created a web page (for people who actually develop web pages, I am sure they do not consider mine an actual web page, since google pages did all of the work, but I was very excited). I wanted a place where I could post about stuff (gasp!) unrelated to New Literacy Studies...you know, like recipes and Lost conspiracy theories and my attempts to learn needlepoint. So, if anyone is interested...visit my google page. There is actually almost nothing there right now, but I am sure I will find something to say soon...and for now this page will remain a New Literacy Studies exclusive blog-o-log.

on the flip side

The Seattle Weekly's blog (far inferior to the SLOG, but I still read it) has an interesting post up about print news and the move to online news and Microsoft's role/interest in the switch. I think it zeros in on exactly why this move has the potential to really destroy ethical journalism if we are not careful. This move is already kind of happening in print journalism--in some newsrooms (usually those owned by the larger media conglomerates, but to some degree all over) the lines between advertising and news content have become very blurry and news has become really watered down (if not totally bastardized) as a result. April's Mother Jones has a great story that touches on this as well--I meant to write something about it, but haven't yet. The most resonant point for me can be summarized with this quote from the article:

"What's really at risk here is not the future of newspapers but of the news itself. While our democratic culture could survive the loss of the daily paper as we know it, it would be endangered without the kinds of reporting that it provides. It's the journalism, not the newsprint, that matters."

To read The Weekly's blog post, click this link and scroll down (their website is stupid that way).

For the Mother Jones article, click here.

For a cute picture of meerkats, click HERE.

changes in the air

So, my advisor is leaving the U of Wa to teach rhetoric in Alaska, which leaves me in a bit of a pickle. I have been going over many plans/capers in my head over the past few weeks since learning this information. These include: transferring schools, leaving the country immediately, quitting my job, applying for a Fulbright, completing a certificate in non-profit management, and generally...(re-)finding my bliss, which may involve joining some kind of art collective and selling all of my worldly possessions or may just mean focusing down more on what I want out of school and continuing to complete my PhD and eventually working, as I have been intending, in academia--which, to me, translates to never having to feel guilty about lingering over my morning coffee if I so choose. (that was a long sentence)

The Fulbright idea appeals to me, as does the non-profit certificate, in a different way than the degree...I kind of feel like doing something a little more hands-on right now, if that makes any sense. I spend so much time reading, thinking and writing, but so little time actually acting on the ideas I have about education. But I guess in some ways that is what I signed up for...

On a related note, I have been looking for organizations world-wide that I may be able to partner with somehow (whether through a grant-related project or who knows what). Here are a couple that look interesting:

Center for the Study of Social and Global Justice

Alliance for a Media Literate America

That last one is holding a conference in June that I may attend...in St. Louis, where my dad is from...I hear the ambrosia salad is to die for.

That is all for now.