NewsDesk on Access SF is a project to train local nonprofits in citizen journalism. It is funded by J-Lab. The goals of NewsDesk include:
- Supporting nonprofits to find their unique media voice inside a uniquely local news magazine television format;
- Empowering nonprofits to use television production tools that help tell their story and get their message out;
- And, providing a sustainable local media outlet for nonprofit to stake their claim as news makers among the cacophony of local journalism players.
What is J-Lab?
J-Lab is an incubator for innovative news experiments that use new technologies to help people actively engage in critical public issues. Its core mission is to improve public life by transforming journalism for today and re-inventing it for tomorrow.
Its projects are supported with grants from the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation, the Ethics and Excellence in Journalism Foundation, the Ford Foundation and the McCormick Tribune Foundation.
J-Lab is a center of American University's School of Communication in Washington, D.C. It is a spin-off of the Pew Center for Civic Journalism.
What is NewsDesk?
Access SF trained seven participating nonprofits to create 30-minute programs which included the following components:
- Each organization recorded 3-4 minute segments in the Access SF flash studio.
- Access SF provided NewsDesk participants with a small portable video camera called the Flip Camera. The Flip is about the size of a cell phone and it allowed the teams to easily gather 6 to 10 minutes of additional field video to integrate into the 30-minute shows.
- A live-to-tape in-studio 30-minute NewsDesk episode, hosted by Rebecca Arnold. These shows featured 1-2 guests from each organization and were recorded during the last week of May. Each show will air six times through the end of June.
Who are the participating nonprofits?
- Communities in Harmony Advocating for Learning and Kids, or CHALK, is a San Francisco project providing a range of youth services with a specific focus on transformative youth development and employment.
- World Savvy's mission is to educate and engage youth in community and world affairs.
- Senior Action Network (SAN) is a citywide federation of senior organizations organizing to improve the lives of San Francisco's seniors and all of our city's residents. We are an umbrella coalition of over 140 member groups representing over 30,000 seniors. SAN has activists from every neighborhood, ethnicity, linguistic background, economic status, and cultural identity that the diverse city of San Francisco represents.
- The Living Wage Coalition is a grassroots movement of low-wage workers and their allies fighting for economic justice. We have been struggling since 1998 to change political priorities so that government does not subsidize poverty wage employers. We are engaged in a radical rethinking of the economy that makes the goals of economic development a more prosperous, healthier and livable community.
- Ozcat Entertainment was founded in June 2006 by singer-songwriter David Martin and his wife Kathleen. They developed the idea for a non-profit entertainment company dedicated to local popular arts after learning firsthand just how difficult it is for local and indie artists to gain exposure in the industry.
- Quesada Gardens Initiative is 100% Bayview Resident-Led. We are Building Community in the Bayview Hunters Point Neighborhood
- Through the power of storytelling, Streetside values and cultivates young people's voices, fostering educational equity and building community, literacy and arts skills.
Booker T. Washington Community Services Center
- Building on its rich history, culture and reputation, the Booker T. Washington Community Service Center provides leadership to a community in action, in an inclusive environment, and responds to and nurtures individuals to become positive, contributing leaders in our communities. Since its incorporation in 1923, Booker T. Washington CSC and its supporters have followed the philosophy of Booker T. Washington. By instilling the values of self-help and self responsibility, the Center has become a unique oasis for personal and community empowerment.
Vallejo Community Television - Lifeskills411
- Lifeskills411 is a unique organization that combines interactive workshops, seminars and mentoring to motivate youth in becoming strong leaders at school, home, work and in the community
