Writing about the political paralysis facing our neighbours to the south, a paralysis many observers believe has worsened over the past year, Slate's Jacob Weisberg points a finger at one suspect - or group of suspects - who often escapes scott-free.
We the people.
This
very provocative piece, Weisberg suggests that instead of blaming various politicians or cable news stations, the American public needs to stop simultaneously demanding then rejecting change on any number of issues (witness health care, climate change, economic stimulus). To quote from his piece, "our collective illogic is mostly negligent rather than militant... we like the idea of hard choices in theory [but] when was the last time we made one in reality?"
It's a good question. And how are we faring here? As at least one writer
points out, we don't really do the tea party thing. We'd rather just stew in the status quo. Earlier this year, columnist Gary Mason
almost pleaded that we engage in some discussion on the host of long-term challenges that confront us - from healthcare to pensions to the environment.
That said, there are plenty of movements afoot, nearly all of them citizen-led. Last weekend,
a group assembled in Edmonton to advance discussions on Alberta's future. Next week,
another will gather in Toronto to figure out how to strengthen relationships between people and civic institutions. In March,
others will meet in Ottawa to plan for Canada's 150th birthday, and later in March,
another group will do the same. Type
TEDx into Google and you'll see lots of Canadian discussions in the works.
And here at Samara, we're
doing what we can to get at the disconnect among politicians, our media and citizens. Please stay tuned. Advice, ideas always welcome.
Labels: apathy, Change Camp, Conference on Alberta's Future, featured, Gary Mason, Jacob Weisberg, John Ibbitson, media and citizens, sesquicentennial, Slate, TEDxTO
Earlier this month, we
shared a couple of events of interest to those who care about the vibrancy of our public debates. In case you missed them, here are the highlights of two and links to where you can learn more.
TEDxTO was excellent. Kudos to the organizers. The Torontoist's
summary is a good one and the videos should be on at the TEDxTO site soon. Almost all the talks were fantastic, so we won't pick favorites, but those interested in the changing media environment will be particularly interested in Mathew Ingram's talk on the five ways new media will save old media. What are the ways, you ask? This will happen, he argues, by:
- Enlarging the size of the media pie. Tools are cheap and widely available. The more the merrier!
- Making media a process and not a product that occurs in a time-specific package.
- Making the media more human, instead of a faceless institution designed to hide mistakes.
- Making media more multi-directional. People "formerly known as readers" know and think stuff too, and can now be included.
- By allowing greater choice and opportunity for trade-offs (e.g., Twitter can allow people to trade off accuracy for immediacy).
Underlying all this are ways of strengthening relationships with readers, and using trust and relationships as a key competitive advantage.
And on the topic of the media, The Canadian Journalism Foundation held its first discussion of the year, an exploration of the changing media environment. It featured Rem Rider from the American Journalism Review and Ira Basen, the producer of an excellent overview of the news in the age of social media for CBC Radio's The Sunday Edition (scroll to the June 21 and 28
podcasts). You can read the event report or watch a webcast of the discussion
here.
If you recently attended other events of interest, please get in touch if you'd like to include details of them on this blog.
Labels: brain candy, Canadian Journalism Foundation, featured, Ira Basen, Mathew Ingram, media and citizens, political leadership, Rem Reider, TEDxTO
Fall is here, and with it comes a great line up of interesting events to inject a little mo-jo into our public discourse. Here are a few we're planning to attend (biased toward, although not limited to Toronto):
1. TEDx comes to Canada: Lovers of the brain candy provided by the podcasts from
TED's various conferences will be delighted to know that an independently-organized Canadian version is coming to a city near you. A TEDx event will be held in
Toronto on September 10 with live podcasts available to anyone with an internet connection and in several viewing locations. In the coming year, TEDx hits
19 other Canadian cities (on top of
two previously-held events), and many more places beyond.
2. For media junkies, on September 15 the Canadian Journalism Foundation will host a discussion with
Rem Rieder, editor and publisher of the
American Journalism Review and
Ira Basen, who produced an excellent 2-part overview of the evolution of news in the age of social media for CBC Radio's The Sunday Edition (scroll to the June 21 and 28
podcasts). Tickets are
gratis. While they don't webcast events, they do provide reports for the curious post-event.
3. Maytree's annual leadership conference, held on October 1, focuses on the power of stories and social change and includes some great speakers and workshops. If you live in Toronto, you can register
here. If you don't, I'd still encourage you to visit their site and learn more about their work, and that of their
partners.
Any other great events dedicated to elevating our public discussion? Please comment below, or let us know.
Labels: CJF, featured, Ira Basen, Maytree, media and citizens, Rem Reider, TEDxTO