Month: February 2005

This morning I led a workshop at the 2005 SURGE Conference about using the Internet as a tool for activism. I promised the participants that I would post some links here to the websites we discussed.

• Anton’s Blogging 101 (a great introduction to blogs)
• Bloglines (aggregators like this are a great way to keep up with lots of blogs)
  Check out my line-up in Bloglines.

Network-centric/grassroots advocacy:

• Daily KOS (progressive/Democratic activists’ community)
• Network-Centric Advocacy
• Movement as Network
• The Rise of Open Source Politics (article in The Nation)

Local stuff:

• Orange Politics and the local blogroll
• Chapel Hill Blogger Conference, Saturday Feb. 12
• Greensboro 101

Pro-choice blogs:

• Planned Parenthood: Now What
• NARAL: Bush v. Choice
• EMILY’S List: Emily’s Blog

Blogs & journalism:

• Ed Cone (Greensboro News & Record columnist)
• Dan Gillmor (“The End of Objectivity”)
• Jay Rosen’s PressThink
• The Lex Files (The News & Record’s attempt at “open source journalism”)
• Audio Activism (about podcasting and grassroots journalism)
• There’s a discussion about blogs and community journalism this Wednesday (2/9) at the N&R

Some of the important things we discussed about blogs:

1. The first person voice is more authentic than the so-called “objectivity” of the mainstream media.
2. Blogs are a discussions, both within the comments of a particular blog and between blogs.
3. Blogs are network-centric and grassroots, so remember to emphasize those strengths and don’t try to exert too much control (except for trolls).

Whew! That was quite a brain dump. Please feel free to add your own links and suggestions in the comments. Thanks again to those who participated in today’s workshop.

Here it is:

Stan’s new website!

Hi, I’m showing my friend Stan how easy it is to blog! Here’s a link to his old site, new one coming soon…

One friend recently asked me to post my travel schedule on the blog so that she could keep up with whether I was around. This week my schedule is such that I need to write it down just to keep myself straight.

Tomorrow I am going to DC for a commitment that isn’t until Friday, which sucks. I found out too late that this conference expected me to pay to attend the parts at which I am not presenting. I declined to waste my boss’ money (I don’t work for The Man, but The Woman) on the event. So I will be there way early, but I will be plenty busy. In fact, now I am trying to get to DC even sooner than I had intended because there are many activities that I would prefer to be on the ground for rather than in the air. One includes meeting our new interim honcho.

Thursday will be a regular work day, except I will be in an office instead of my house. Strange (for me). Thursday night I will visit one of my oldest friends in the world, who lives in Baltimore. I don’t think I’ve ever been there properly, so this will be an educational as well as a fun experience. Finally on Friday, I get to make the 20 minute panel presentation that I schlepped there for, attend a quick meeting, and then hightail it for the airport.

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