So, we're trying to go out in the community, somewhat BarCamp style, and do more hands-on sessions with people interested in applying to the Knight News Challenge this year. We have a set of sessions planned around the country, and we're running them al in a similar way--Talking about the program, explaining the guidelines and key criteria (like having a geographic focus and being innovative), showing a couple of little seesmic videos.

Last week we did two sessions in New York, one at Coumbia Journalism School for faculty and students, and another, that evening, at CUNY (thank you, Professor Jarvis!) for the public and the school. We had about 40 people at each session, many of whom took part on the extensive and detailed Q&A after the brief talk (and that cute David Cohn seesmic video).

Questions ranged from "Can a project make money and be commercial?" (Yes), to "Will you fund something that might just exist for a year or two as an experiment?" (Yes) to "If it's something that will help all local communities, so I don't want to limit myself to one, will that fit your guidelines?"
(Probably not.) At the end of each session, I felt like many of the people in the room might apply.

We did another session a few days latter at the much revitalized ONA conference in DC. There Gary Kebbel, Kristen Taylor and myself shared program plans and detailed with about 75 conference attendees, including some past winners. he audience was focused and engaged, again with lots of questions and comments. I left that meeting feeling like perhaps half of the audience would apply,

If you're interested in a meet up for your area, check the schedule we're posting; if you need connection, come to the News Challenge garage and post and comment, just as you wish others would do for you.

If you're debating applying for the Knight News Challenge this year, but haven't done anything yet AND you live in the Chicago area, you might want to come to the meet up on Thursday of this week. We'll have two KNC team members and a local winner there to share info about the program, the mentoring program and peer review in the Garage and what kinds of projects KNC08 supports.
Check out the Facebook event invite for KNC's Chicago meetup!
Thursday, September 25th, 6:30-9:30 p.m.
Columbia College, Room 219
33 E. Congress, Chicago, IL

Here's what the notice says:

The Knight News Challenge is in the third year of a program that gives away $5MM a year to digital innovations. Do you have a big idea for informing and inspiring a geographic community using social media, Web 2.0 tools or OpenID? How about exchanging information via video, photos or text messaging? A way to integrate game theory with web browsing to support local community engagement? Come on, push the edge - we're seeking true innovation!

Come to this meet up to find out how to apply, share ideas, and get a chance to talk to KNC evangelists to find out how to apply and improve your chances of winning funding for your great open source idea.

Check out www.newschallenge.org for more information or http://garage.newschallenge.org to start your application now.

Note: You need to RSVP to be able to attend, via Facebook, phone (847-942-6732) or email (miller@knightfdn.org).

This is a truly innovative program to push the edge of what digital democracy and discourse can look like and I hope to see online journalists, media folks, technologists, activists, educators and others I'm not naming here all apply.

(Cross posted to Susan Mernit' Blog)

Editor's note: Scott Piepho is an Akron blogger; below, he walks us through the new Akron headquarters of the Knight Center of Digital Excellence. The video was shot by Knight V.P. of Communications Marc Fest and edited by webmaster Robertson Adams.

High tech gear and a fruit salad of furniture colors meet turn-of-last-century architecture as the staff of the Knight Center of Digital Excellence settle in to their Akron headquarters. Three weeks ago the center took over the seventh floor of renovated downtown office building, hosting a grand opening event that brought together Knight Foundation program officers from around the country.

The Knight Center offices serve as work space for the staff of the online Resource Center and as a home base for the members of the Connected Communities Team (CCT). Two of the CCT Program Managers ' Todd Adams and Jim Nice -- work out of Akron. Team director Karen Archer Perry works from her home in New Jersey and Lynda Goff, the newest member of the team, works out of Winston-Salem, North Carolina. The center headquarters gives the team space to meet and collaborate. This week all four were in town to touch base and share ideas.

'We are doing something new; we are trying to create a new model,' explains Ms. Perry. In each community the team is trying to encourage connectivity projects developed and ultimately owned by the community. Team members take time to compare notes on how that model works in different communities with different needs, assets and cultures.

In any organization with a strong field staff, calling them home can be a challenge. The new Knight Center offers an appealing place to come home to. The building retains much of its classic interior. The elevator opens into a hallway wainscoted in marble ' complete with a built-in drinking fountain. Original wood-grained doors (metal as it turns out ' first of their kind in Akron) include textured glass and still-functioning transoms.

But beyond a hallway which could double as an Eddie Capra movie set, the office space is funky modern. Two-drawer filing cabinets on casters double as ottomans topped with brightly upholstered pads. Meeting room chairs and cabinet tops were ordered in each color offered ' a first, which prompted the manufacturer to visit and take pictures of the prismatic cheeriness.

Most of all, the office is full of light, with gaping window offering views of northern downtown and beyond, across the Cuyahoga River valley. 'It's a big difference being in this building,' notes Perry. 'We had no windows in the Cleveland offices.'

The center continues settling in and melding the old and the new. The latest delivery is a state-of-the-art smart board that staff are now learning to use. The next should be a map cabinet ' Program Manager Jim Nice still likes paper maps.