The tag line on the website Between the Bars, a blogging platform for the outside world to communicate with prisoners, is a simple request that packs so much punch: Leave a comment….we’ll pass it on. Behind the scenes, Between the Bars is an intense—and difficult to scale—operation. Five core volunteers open mail, yes, that old […]
Article · July 20, 2011 by Annie Shreffler
One mark of a successful online project intended to foster community is when that community finally responds – and extracts the content for its own use. For the website Crónicas de Héroes, archiving positive stories of the everyday heroes of Juarez, Mexico, this moment happened when a group of street artists asked permission to paint […]
Article · July 15, 2011 by Annie Shreffler
Above: iGeigie from Joi on Flickr Yesterday, we looked at crowdsourcing in crisis, taking the Middle East as an example. The thoughts came from Al Jazeera’s head of New Media Mohamed Nanabhay, who spoke on a panel at the MIT-Knight Civic Media Conference. Today, we turn to the experiences of Joi Ito, new director of the […]
Article · June 30, 2011 by Annie Shreffler
If you take a look around these days at any event, you can be sure to spot mobile phones taking pics and video – allowing anyone to share news in real time. So how does our society adjust to gather and disseminate accurate information? That was a session topic at last week’s MIT-Knight Civic Media […]
Article · June 29, 2011 by Annie Shreffler
Each year at the Knight-MIT Civic Media Conference, to foster the spirit of innovation and cooperation, attendees are welcome to participate in the Collaboration Contest. Ideas are pitched during dinner, feverish campaigning occurs to win votes, submitted by text, and the winners are announced during the conference wrap-up. Third Place $1000 VoMU (vehicle of many […]
Article · June 27, 2011 by Annie Shreffler
“Like” it? Put it on a t-shirt. Social media tools may connect us over geographic or social barriers, but are we hitting that “Like” button too much rather than actively participating in our own governance? Chris Faulkner thinks so. As a political consultant and Tea Party member, he wants to see people leave their screens […]
Article · June 24, 2011 by Annie Shreffler
When is it OK to create an online persona – and when is it wrong? The answer varies, depending on whether the alternative persona is for works of fiction or deception, for entertainment or personal protection, panelists said at the MIT-Knight Civic Media Conference Thursday. “There are some civic-ly useful stories that are probably best […]
Article · June 24, 2011 by Annie Shreffler