Introductions and discussion of workshop plan, including what’s expected of the content teams created at time of selection (fellows will be broken into teams of three. Each team will be assigned a news issue or topic which will be the focus of their workshop project.) There will be two teams assigned to each topic, encouraging innovation and diversity in the final projects. Topics will be: Immigration; Election 2008; National Security and Civil Liberties. 

What do you need to know and why about who they are and how they “consumer” online news?

• How do you go about knowing your audience? Review of tools, techniques, data analysis, other strategies, etc.
• How do you serve and grow your audience?

• Michael Pond, Media Analyst, Nielsen//NetRatings

Standards, Quality and Ethics: Manipulation, attribution, verification and deadline decision-making.

• Howard Finberg, Director of Interactive Learning, The Poynter Institute

Immigration Reform: Dan Kowalski with Margaret Stock, legal specialists in immigration issues

Election 2008: William Bradley with Gary South, Democratic political consultant, and Don Sipple, Republican political consultant

National Security and Civil Liberties: Bruce Shapiro with Jason Vest, contributing writer for The Nation on national security issues

• Margaret Stock, lawyer
• Garry South, Democratic Political Consultant
• Don Sipple, Republican Political Consultant
• Jason Vest, contributing writer for The Nation on national security issues

• Chip Scanlan, Senior Faculty, The Poynter Institute

Online copyright and fair use of copy, images, video and audio, intellectual property rights Privacy, Libel and defamation

• Samuel Fifer, Partner, Sonnenschien, Nath & Rosenthal LLP

Teams will brainstorm an online journalism web project focused on the topics to which they have been assigned. The project will require hands on creation of a content plan and template for both breaking news related to the content topic as well as following story lines, stressing identification of audience and use of multiple interactivity models.

How to program front-page news and other content to drive and deepen user engagement - Would include: Planning Content:

• How is it done
• How to plan portal content on an annual, monthly, weekly and daily basis
• Why planning is critical
• Can you plan for news? The answer may surprise you.
• How do you balance 25+ properties/channels on the homepage of a portal. The Thin Green Line (content, marketing and advertising)

• Don Sena , Managing Editor, MSN Portal, MSN.com

Blog and UGC movements as agents of change

• Elizabeth Osder, Senior Director of Product, Yahoo!

Digital story-telling and online integration of multi-media.

• Ashley Wells, creative director, MSNBC.com

Significant focus on aggregation; tactics for working with breaking news - Roles: Who does what during breaking news?  Check and balances of putting news up quickly. Content juxtaposition issues.

• Don Sena , Managing Editor, MSN Portal, MSN.com

Teams resume their practicum projects.

Team project presentations with critiques by fellows and faculty