JLab: The Institute for Interactive Journalism

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J-Lab The Institute for Interactive Journalism

• Transforming journalism for today. Reinventing
  it for tomorrow.

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J-Labs Origins

• Launched 2002, U-Maryland
• Spin off from Pew Center for Civic Journalism, a
  14 milllion project that funded 120 newsroom
  experiments.

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Organizing Principles Rethink journalism so
that it

• Has civic impact.
• Builds community, not fractures it.
• Adds value
• Holds public officials AND citizens accountable
• Provides new entry points for news -- games,
  databases, visualizations.

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J-Lab helps journalists and citizens use digital
technologies to develop new ways for people to
participate in public life with projects on

• Innovations
• Citizen media
• Interactive news stories
• Entrepreneurship
• Training and E-Learning
• Publications

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Six Scopes of Work

• Award Innovations - Knight-Batten Awards for
  Innovations
• Fund citizen media startups
• Spotlight news games, exercises
• Fund women-led entrepreneurial news startups
• Build e-learning portals, training
• Research

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Five Web Sites

• J-Lab.org - Knight-Batten Awards, news games
• J-NewVoices.org - fund 40 citmedia startups.
• KCNN.org - Knight Citizen News Network
• Learning modules
• Citmedia site directory
• J-Learning.org - How-to community publishing
• NewMediaWomen.org - women media startups

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www.J-Lab.org
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Knight-Batten Winners
Choices game
WikiScanner
ChicagoCrime.org/Everyblock
Global Blogging
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News Games
Moral Compass
PBS Engage
MPR budget balancer
Garbage Game
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www.J-Learning.org
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www.J-NewVoices.org
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40 New Voices Start-ups 17,000 over 2
years
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www.J-NewVoices.org
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All-Star New Voices Projects

• The Forum (forumhome.org),Deerfield, NH
• NewCastleNOW.org, Chappaqua,NY

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Recent New Voices startups
VermontClimateWitness.org
CCTVs NeighborMedia
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GreaterFultonNews.org
StoriesThatFly.org
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J-Lab Observations

• Citizen seek to BUILD community, not COVER it.
  Stories have
• Less conflict
• Fewer stereotypes
• No parroting of experts/quotes
• No false equilibrium
• No scorecard journalism

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Knight Citizen News Networkwww.KCNN.org
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KCNN.org Learning modules
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Inside KCNN.org

• 10 tips for Limiting Legal Risks
• Blog that answers legal questions

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Inside KCNN.org

• Citizen Media Site Directory
• Tools for Citizen Journalists

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Research

• Citizen Media Fad or the Future pf News?
• Journalism 2.0 How to Survive and Thrive
• A Digital Literacy Guide for the Information
  Age

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www.newmediawomen.org
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New Scopes of Work

• Networked Journalism Project -partnering 5 MSM
  orgs with 5 local citmedia sites.
• Community Media Toolkit - entice local
  foundations to support local media.
• Big Think project - Revisiting journalism on
  auto-pilot.

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• Citizen Media Resources
• KCNN.org -Knight Citizen News Network
• J-Learning.org - How-to publish
• J-NewVoices.org - Folo startups
• J-Lab.org - Cool ideas