Key findings from Society for New Communications Research (hint: blogging is being taken seriously!)
May 25, 2010
Key Findings From the 2009 Middleberg / SNCR Survey of Media in the Wired World
Author
Jennifer McClure
Don Middleberg
Society for New Communications Research
Publication Date
February 1, 2010
Summary
The Second Annual Middleberg/SNCR Survey of Media in the Wired World examines: 1) how journalists are adopting these new social media and citizen journalism tools and technologies, and 2) their attitudes about how social media and citizen journalism are affecting their profession. The study found growth in the use of these tools across all their data sets, in contrast to the 2008 study in which uptake was higher among younger versus older journalists.
* “Nearly 70 percent of journalists are using social networking sites, a 28% increase since the 2008 study
* 48 percent are using Twitter or other microblogging sites and tools, a 25% increase since 2008
* 66 percent are using blogs
* 48 percent are using online video
* 25 percent are using podcasts
* More than 90 percent of journalists agree that new media and communications tools and technologies are enhancing journalism to some extent”
“…91 percent of respondents agreed that new media and communications tools and technologies are enhancing journalism. Journalists that participated in the study reported that they are increasingly using social media to disseminate news, find story ideas and sources, monitor sentiments and discussions, research individuals and organizations, keep up on issues and topics of interest and participate in conversations. Additionally, journalists’ perception of the credibility of most social media channels is increasing. Nearly 80 percent of respondents agreed that new media and communications technologies allow them to report with greater accuracy, and 80 percent of journalists believe that bloggers have become important opinion shapers in the 21st century and many are increasingly incorporating citizen-generated media into their reporting.”
Click here to read this document in PDF format.
In order to expand our professional portfolio and create more connections with peer nonprofit organizations, 501(c)ommunications is currently doing some pro bono, project-based communications and marketing work with selected candidates. For example, we are currently working with Answer, a program created by the Rutgers University Center of Applied Psychology, on a social media marketing campaign.
About 501(c)ommunications:
Basically, 501(c)ommunications is a small, intimate, shared, professional and affordable, and multi-skilled communications and marketing team solely for non-profits– created, produced and staffed by nonprofit professionals (meaning: we are experienced and sensitive to the needs and challenges of the nonprofit industry.)
Essentially, 501 (c)ommunications caters to new, small and/or under-sourced NGOs who need professional multi-media PR, marketing, communications, and IT work done in order to maintain and/or develop their services and products, but cannot afford to hire full-time staff, or a team. We do everything from branding to project management.
Therefore, if you have a specific communications or marketing project that needs to be done yesterday, I suggest you contact me to see if your organization and your project qualify as a pro bono candidate.
For more information, contact me at Kelly@501communications.org
2010 – 2011 SEVEN-CIFA Essay Competition
Filed Under:
* faith
* poverty
* competition
Deadline: October 15, 2010. Two (2) prizes of US $5,000.
“Faith and Development”
The S.E.VEN Fund (SEVEN) is pleased to announce its 2010-11 Essay Competition in partnership with the Washington DC-based Center For Interfaith Action on Global Poverty (CIFA). We are seeking essays on enterprise solutions to poverty from around the globe that are faith-based, faith-inspired, or interfaith efforts. The competition will award two (2) prizes of US $5,000. The submission deadline is October 15, 2010 at midnight Eastern Standard Time (EST). Winners will be announced on December 15, 2010. This essay competition is open to all participants globally.
Writers are asked to submit a first-person narrative describing enterprise solutions to poverty that are faith-based, faith-inspired, or interfaith efforts. Illustrations may come from any domain, including healthcare, education, consumer products, human rights, and others; examples must represent innovative private solutions to public problems.
For more information, or to participate in the competition, please visit our competition website at: http://www.sevenfund.org/faith-and-development/.
Contact: info@sevenfund.org
Alter-Ciné Foundation Documentary Film Grants for African, Asian, and Latin American filmmakers
April 25, 2010
Alter-Ciné Foundation Documentary Film Grants
Regions:
Africa, Eastern Europe/Central Asia, Latin America, South Asia, South East and East Asia
Deadline Date
August 15, 2010
The Alter-Ciné Foundation offers a yearly grant to young film and video makers born and living in Africa, Asia, and Latin America to direct a documentary film on the theme of rights and freedoms, including social and economic rights, women’s rights, the right to culture, and artistic creation. The Foundation will award a grant of CDN$10,000 to a video or filmmaker to assist in the production of a documentary project. The grant is aimed at young video and filmmakers who want to direct a film in the language of their choice that respects the aims of the Foundation.
The Foundation particularly supports documentary films that, as stated on their website, “dare to go against the tide, that take the side of the defenceless and question common assumptions by giving a voice to the voiceless, enriching our understanding of the world and helping us reflect on the possibility of changing the world from a perspective of peace, justice, equality and respect for differences.”
The Alter-Cine Foundation was created in the memory of Canadian filmmaker, Yvan Patry who passed away on October 14 1999. Patry was a co-founder of the production company Alter Ciné and directed numerous documentaries and current affairs programmes in Africa, Latin America, and Asia. Patry’s documentaries, according to the Foundation, have contributed to tearing down walls of silence, denouncing injustice and barbarism, and giving voice to victims of horror.
To apply, the video/filmmaker must complete the PDF format application available here.
Contact
Alter-Ciné Foundation
5371 avenue de l’Esplanade
Montréal Québec
H2T 2Z8
Canada
Tel: 1 514 273 7136
http://altercine.org/prog_an.html
alter@mlink.net
“10 Ideas for Tomorrow’s Africa” Competition
April 25, 2010
“10 Ideas for Tomorrow’s Africa” Competition
Deadline Date
April 30, 2010
Within the framework of the 50th anniversary of African independence, the Social and Human Sciences Sector of the United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization (UNESCO – SHS) is launching a “Call for Ideas” for prospective proposals in favour of Africa’s development within the next decade. The 10 ideas selected will be presented by their authors during 10 small-scale conferences to be held at UNESCO Headquarters, in mid-June 2010. These 10 contributions to the thinking on Africa’s future will also be published in a special issue of SHSviews magazine.
Each proposal is expected to develop one idea which would amplify the positive effects and reduce, or contain, the negative impacts of the major trends observed in Africa on one of the 10 following topics:
* Topic 1: Economy and Development (Environment, Food Security, New Information and Communication Technologies…)
* Topic 2: Governance, Policy, Institutions, Leadership
* Topic 3: Regional Integration, Population, Migration, Urbanisation
* Topic 4: Cultural Identities (Languages, Religions…)
* Topic 5: Youth
* Topic 6: Human Rights, Gender, and Justice
* Topic 7: Diaspora
* Topic 8: Peace, Security, and Conflict
* Topic 9: Health, Education, and Social Development
* Topic 10: International Relations
In particular, each proposal should detail what the “change agent” could be which would amplify the positive effects of one or several known trends in the relevant field and which would be able to implement the supported idea.
Application Information
Texts, which can be written in English, Spanish, or French, should be no longer than 4 pages. Each contribution received should also be accompanied by an abstract of the curriculum vitae not exceeding one page, along with an ID photo in the requested format used for official documents such as passports (scanned at more than 300 dpi if sent by electronic mail).
Click here for more information.
Contact
Mr. Arnaud Drouet
United Nations Educational, Scientific and Cultural Organization Social and Human Sciences Sector (UNESCO – SHS)
Competition “10 Ideas for Tomorrow’s Africa”
1 rue Miollis
75732 Paris
cedex 15
France
Tel: +33 1 45 68 38 24
a.drouet@unesco.org
shs@unesco.org
Best new condom advert (from Africa!) Bravo!
October 5, 2009
I am thoroughly impressed with this condom advert and I am overjoyed that it was created by Africans–BRAVO!
I might have mentioned before that I have moved to Nosara, Costa Rica, in order to transform a beach-side bed and breakfast into a eco-conscious, spiritual, healing retreat center (and yes, I am still writing about Alternative Recreation for the SF Examiner!) Thus, I introduce Nosara Retreat Center. For basic details and some photos please visit:
http://www.NosaraVacationHomeRentals.com
(Please note that part of my job is to re-do the website, so please be patient with the current websites!)
I will start with what is already here, and then what we envision within the next year. And then you tell me, if you think you might want to be part of this in some way…
What is…
- I do not need to describe just how beautiful it is here. A natural orgasm. I will borrow a camera and take some photos soon.
- Two-minute walk to the perfect swimmer’s, yoga, T’ai Chi, jogging, horse-back-riding, fishing beach with little to no coral/shells—soft but solid sand—few people. You can even cliff-climb here! (And just a beach away is a world-famous surfing beach!)
- Charming hippie bungalows; precious decor
- Bonfire pit (which can be used for a sweat lodge pit)
- Mel Gibson is our neighbor and he has his own one-person helicopter and likes to fly around the jungle (he is a freak!)
- Campgrounds
- Individual herbal bath set-up
- Massage room
- Washing machine
- Outdoor pavilion for yoga (and ecstatic dance coming soon!)
- Our immediate neighbors include a surfing school, a couple posh resorts, a few cafes, a pulperia, kayaks, boats, ATVs (quad bikes), art gallery and dance club, yoga institute, lots of alternative medicine practitioners and surfers.
- A puppy named Petuca and a female cat named Tom.
- Hammocks
- Yoga classes
What will be…
- WiFi
- Renovated kitchen
- Water systems (Gray and Catchment)
- Natural pool
- Roof platform
- Human Resources Team—cook, housekeeper, maintenance/landscaping, “team management” (this is Deborah, Michael and I), bookkeeper
- Pound system
- More native plants (with signs to identify plants)
- Organic garden/herb garden
- A/c in the office
- Electric front gate
- Paved roads/parking
- Renovate/up-scale facilities/re-paint
- Guard dog
- Movie night (dvd, projector, screen, etc.)
- More paths around the property
- Community center area
- Programs to assist the local economy (micro-loans and whatnot)
- Recycling station
- Compost
- Art/crafts workshop, gallery and library
- Kayaks, boats
- 12 step meetings
- More rooms
- Improve linens/décor/furniture/curtains
- Safes (for each room)
- Bikes
- ATV’s
- Separate bathroom in main house
- Printer
- Healing conferences
· Colonic cleaning station
· Café/juice bar
· Satellite TV
· Permaculture teacher/Woofers
· Fast growing coconut trees/more fruit trees
· Fountain/koi pond
· Eco-cabins
Kelly’s Specific Additions
- nightly activities that feed the mind/body/soul—board game night, drum circle, bon fire, music jam, poetry night, meditation, etc. (not much night life here but no worries, we have already met two DJs!!!)
- daily yoga/ T’ai Chi/Qi Gong
- volleyball on the beach
- boogie boards
- snorkel equipment
- community pot lucks
- Ecstatic dance on Sundays (this is my church!)
- Mud baths
- Regular visiting healers and practitioners
- Watsu
- Full-moon, harvest, spiritual events
- Microwave
- Zen rock garden
The overall plan is that we will ride out the dry season (until April) as a bed and breakfast, and then during the rainy season cultivate our local community events and nightly activities. Hope to have full-on retreats here by next dry season (late November.) There is already a writer’s retreat “LET THE CRAZY CHILD WRITE WITH CLIVE MATSON”
FEBRUARY 20TH – MARCH 1ST, 2009 (http://www.nosararetreat.com/Clive_Matson_Workshop.html) scheduled in Feb. for two weeks, and next Tuesday, we have a Tico Aryuvedic Practitioner (trained in India, practiced in France for years, and then his guru told him to return to Costa Rica) visiting to scope out the place for his sessions—I am told, he has quite a following down here.
So I am just putting this out there in case you have any ideas as to organizing/leading your own retreat, or if you might like to do a work-trade, or you just want to come hang out in Paradise for a little while. Keep in mind, I flew from SFO to Miami for less than $100 USD, and then found RT airfare to Costa Rica from Miami for only $200 USD and the cost of living here is super cheap. Americans/Canadians do not need a visa for 90 days—just a return ticket.
And for those of you that repeatedly tell me I am living your dream…well, now is your chance!!! (You know who you are!) Please email me at kellyofthepattersons@yahoo.com if you are interested in discussing future retreats or a visit.
Namaste,
Kelly of the Pattersons
Deadline January 21, 2009 for media and technology ventures for social good. Competition will award up to $25,000 in seed funding to one nonprofit venture and will provide $25,000 in seed capital to the best new commercial idea.
What happens when everyone has the power to tell the story?
Join We Media and Ashoka’s Changemakers in the search to find the best new ideas for inspiring a better world through media and technology. We are looking for business and non-profit venture ideas and will award $50,000 in seed funding to the innovators who can bring the best ideas to life.
Submit your entries by January 21, 2009 6:00 pm EST (21:00 GMT)
We Media and Ashoka have teamed up to present the We Media Changemakers $50,000 Challenge, “The Power of Us,” which aims to find and help launch the best new ideas for inspiring a better world through media and technology. We’re looking for groundbreaking and impactful ideas from people who can bring those ideas to life. The winning ideas should incite action, encourage collaboration and lead society to knowledge.
We invite entries from all fields. We will have two categories, one for business ventures and one for non-profit ventures, and will award up to $50,000 in seed funding. Thanks to a generous grant from the Ethics and Excellence in Journalism Foundation, we will provide $25,000 in seed capital to help launch the best new non-profit idea. Similarly, for the best new commercial idea, we will award $25,000 in seed capital.
The search is hosted at http://changemakers.net/. Entrants will find resources, including collaborative partners and potential investors, while the global online community will discuss, debate and improve upon the most creative solutions.
All entrants are invited to join We Media and Changemakers at the fifth annual We Media Conference in Miami, February 24-26, 2009. Entrants will have the opportunity to present their ideas to potential funders and partners as part of an innovation showcase.
Going Once, Twice, Thrice….Online Auctions
December 15, 2008
One of the most effective online fundraising tools is the online auction. Nonprofits know that auctions are time consuming and difficult to manage, but also very lucrative. In 2006 alone, more than 16 billion dollars was raised through charitable auctions in the U.S. (National Auctioneers Association). The use of an online auction will reduce the amount of resources required to host the auction while maximizing the potential profits.
The Fundraising Team can solicit auction-able items from local businesses (gifts-in-kind of products or services), parents, staff, and even the students themselves.
Options Available for Online Auctions
Three viable options are available, each of which has been analyzed below.
On Website – Some organizations have taken the path of hosting an online auction on their own website. The advantage to this method is that the organization does not have to pay any commission on items sold, and they have control over the auction at all times. Disadvantages are significant however, as it requires considerable computer savvy and time to create a successful auction. Furthermore, payment arrangements and credit card security must be addressed.
Or you can outsource:
Mission Fish – Mission Fish allows nonprofits to sell and buy auction items on eBay’s Giving Works. To list your auction on Giving Works, you will first need to set up a free Mission Fish nonprofit account, then an eBay account.
Advantages of Mission Fish:
1. Huge number of potential buyers.
2. Relatively inexpensive. Mission Fish is free, but eBay generally charges between 4-6% of auction selling price.
3. Easy to set up and little continued involvement.
4. Any seller can donate between 10%-100% to your nonprofit. Your nonprofit is listed on Mission Fish so sellers can select and decide how much they wish to contribute.
Disadvantages of Mission Fish:
1. Ebay shoppers are looking for the best deal. Nonprofits would ideally like people to pay equal or more than the market value of the item to contribute to their cause.
2. Difficult to create community. Anyone and everyone can bid for an auction item so it is much harder to build a sense of community and get supporters personally involved.
cMarket – cMarket is another online auction tool that is specifically designed for nonprofits. This is a more hands off approach to online auctions because after the sign up process is complete cMarket manages the entire process.
Advantages to cMarket:
1. Simplest way to have an online auction. cMarket has hosted more than 2,000 online auctions for nonprofits and the auction is handled by professionals.
2. Vacations, cruises, and many other prizes can be acquired risk free. Many of the prizes are available through cMarket and are free of charge if the auction is not a success. If the auction is successful however, the items selling price to the nonprofit is still well below market value.
3. Bidders are supporters. cMarket is smaller in scale and most of the bidders will be people notified about the auction through emails, phone calls, or personal requests.
Disadvantages of cMarket:
1. Expensive. The additional services come at a price of $295 per year and 9% commission.
Recommendation – For the first time, use Mission Fish because it is lower risk (you will probably get near market value) and inexpensive. However, cMarket is a promising tool for many nonprofits in the future.
Conclusion: e-Philanthropy is a very new concept in general (keep in mind the internet is not that old itself!); however, it happens to be the current fundraising trend and I expect it will evolve/develop even more. This means “we” (fundraisers) still have a lot to learn about quality e-philanthropic fundraising methods.
Poverty and Social Protection Conference 2009 (Bangkok)
December 10, 2008
11th- 13th of March 2009, Bangkok, Thailand. Early registration (discount) deadline: December 15, 2009.
Poverty and Social Protection Conference 2009
will focus on issues of poverty and its eradication, social inequality, race relations and policy management and mismanagement with an international perspective. As poverty continues to be an ongoing, often-inhumane problem, this conference aims to provide a comparative perspective in analyzing past/current trends and conditions to better understand the never-ending downward spiral many individuals and families find themselves in.
The 2009 Poverty and Social Protection Conference (P.S.P) will address questions regarding the role and importance of equal distribution of resources and social inclusion. The potential roles and impacts less-developed countries have on politics, business, education and the public sector. In addition, major social and economic trends and their potential for poverty reduction.
The 2009 P.S.P Conference will focus on how poverty is measured, the effects of welfare states, the major causes of poverty including environmental and economic factors such as the World Bank as well as governance, demographics and social factors. P.S.P Conference 2009 will also address the many effects of poverty, including social isolation, human trafficking, displacement, suicide and homelessness. Poverty reduction strategies, economic growth, free market, fair trade, social aid and the unavoidable effects of globalization.
As a P.S.P conference participant you will have the opportunity to learn and discuss these and many additional issues of importance in creating strategies for the eradication of poverty, particularly amongst underdeveloped countries and within disadvantaged groups.
The 2009 P.S.P. Conference will welcome scholars, NGO representatives, corporate and Governmental representatives gathered with a common goal- that of poverty reduction and to increase social responsibility. Fostering partnerships and international cooperation are integral steps towards notable change.
Tomorrow People Non-Profit Organization hopes you will have the opportunity to join us as we embark on this international event, combing perspectives, underlining goals, and networking for positive change. We look forward to meeting you in Bangkok in March!
Key objectives:
* Identify main players as well as affected groups and sub-groups
* To better understand the role of civil society in poverty eradication
* To better understand the governmental role in poverty eradication
* Analyze & develop specific policies & targeted groups
* Build a knowledgeable global network committed to change
Poverty and Social Protection Conference 2009
11th- 13th of March 2009, Bangkok, Thailand
Dates
* Poverty and Social Protection Conference 2009 will be held from 11th- 13th of March 2009
* Applications and abstract submissions will be accepted starting from September 15th 2008
* Deadline for abstracts submission is February 1st 2009
* Deadline for final papers submission is February 15th 2009
Location
Poverty and Social Protection Conference 2009 will take place in the city of Bangkok, Thailand. All sessions will be held in the “Royal Benja Hotel” conveniently located in one of the best commercial areas in Bangkok and only 20 minutes away from the Bangkok international airport.
Introducing the Nonprofit Guru: Kelly N Patterson 