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May 13, 2005
A couple quick notes and observations on lunch, first set of sessions, and reporting
Meals are pretty much on your own with this conference, and that's fine -- food is expensive to provide. But this part of downtown, in the words of Drew, is "a corporate desert." Fine if you TGIFriday's and Max & Erma's, not so great if you don't like corporate consolidation of dining.
Drew and I wandered a bit for lunch -- just getting out of the Millenium was a like being caught in a cattle call, just keep moving, don't dauddle. We found a local Italian place called Caleco's -- seems like real St. Louis Italian, decent food, not too filled with conference folk. But then, who should walk in, but John Nichols -- we must have found one of the secret places not in the guide. And I'm 90% sure one of his companions was Patti Smith. I didn't bug her, because I'm sure she was at least as hungry as me and Drew. They didn't stay long.
Howard Feld, who we Urbana folks met at the Community Wireless Summit last August ended up at the adjoining table. Began to feel like a NCMR ghetto.
I don't want this to turn into Media Reform Celebrity Watch, so I'll move on...
I'm in the Media Consolidation session right now, and I really appreciate the perspectives here, because I don't often hear from the labor side of reporting, indpendent newspaper publishers or about the Spanish-language industry.
Everyone makes a lot of the same calls to action and fact-checks that we've been hearing all week, but I'm glad to get some different data that isn't so prevalent even in the Media Reform movement.
This session is well attended, but not packed. Probably 1/2 full, with between 2 and 6 video cameras during the height.
Next door is the News, Information and Corporate Media session with all the big stars, like Donahue, Klein, etc. It's full to capacity and my friend Pauline Bartolone from national Radio Project (and UCIMC alumna) stopped through here saying that they wouldn't let her in, even as a member of the press, to record. Lisa Rudman from the Radio Project is here in this session -- she is very nice and helped me gaffer tape down the minidisc recorder to a chair to create a de facto minidisc zone.
Lisa told me that this week's Making Contact is a Pauline production: Media Justice: Access and Accountability. Pauline is a great producer with incredible empathy and skills -- I will have to get a copy to listen to it (it aired on WEFT during the Tuesday night Media Consolidation Conference festivities).
I'm glad to see that most of the reporting is grassroots and independent here, and that there is so far a good deal of cooperation and comraderie. The folks running the sound are also very helpful and cooperative, making it easier on everyone. Free Press is asking all journalists recording sessions to sign a sheet at each session so that we can all network afterwards to exchange audio.
This is one big thing that Free Press is doing right -- they are putting emphasis on networking and facilitiating connections, and that is one of the big benefits for me to be here in the first place.
Posted by paul at May 13, 2005 03:10 PM