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How Can We Help You?

Jarvis at CUNY's New Biz Models for Local News

Over the last week, I've attended two lively and inspiring gatherings: a meeting of the Navigating Change Media Think Tank in Connecticut, and the New Business Models for (Local) News Hyper Camp at CUNY's Graduate School of Journalism. In both places, I heard the same question: "how can we help you?"

There is a generosity among those of us who are inspired, rather than terrified, by the changes in journalism and media. None of us have this thing figured out, and while there's certainly money to be made for the first ones to get the "answer," it's also simply a time of heightened brain activity. And people want to help. You've got a wild idea? What do you need from us?

Media Big Brain Jeff Jarvis sees the balance shifting, as he writes on his Buzz Machine blog: "the room was filled with people who were, each in his or her own way, building that future and they all recognized that they have to work together to do so. The future of news is also an ecosystem. That’s what became apparent yesterday and that, for me, was the highlight of the event."

And so it is.  Rupert Murdoch may want to unplug from Google (best of luck on that), but for the rest of us, the invitations to plug in and connect are limitless.  Some of us have ideas, some have connections, some have money.  And at Navigating Change and the CUNY Hyper Camp, the cards were exchanged and the ideas were brainstormed.  If you're not already in on this, get in on it.  If you don't know how, ask me.

How can we help you?