Silver responding to Larry Grossman’s skepticism – other countries have made Internet access accessible. We just need to copy other successful political movements to make this happen.

I cannot help but agree with with Larry Grossman. Ellen Goodman believes that the case just has to be made. But the reality is that the massive federal deficits will handcuff policymaking for years to come. Goodman wants people to focus on how public broadcasting impacts their lives? How can we do that?

Silver admits that it could take 30 years before we see a real renaissance in public funding for public broadcasting. But that is dependent on constant advocacy and vigilance – and it should not deter us from making the effort.

Creative Destruction – following up on Paul Bass’s presentation from the last panel

We have heard about the trouble that the news industry is in, the fact of the matter is that we are living through the creative destruction of a $50 billion industry.

The Web is killing off the news media of the 20th industry. Every single monopoly newspapers is in serious financial trouble – not to mention the major news magazine and network television news.

Even the normally wealthy Forbes, Fortune, and Business Week are suffering.

This is evidence of capitalism’s propensity for creative destruction.

Presidential Election, Michael Jackson’s Death, and Shooting spree in Fort Hood. Once the videos are seen, the viewers do not go back to the old media forms.

Six grandchildren from ages 18-28 and never seen any of them read a newspaper in print, let alone purchase a newspaper in print.

Perhaps the most intriguing statistic of the day – for the first time, the annual survey from the Society for the Protection of Journalists – demonstrated that the largest single group of imprisoned journalists was Internet journalists.

We should stop trying to save “old” media. It is dead and it isn’t coming back. So how do we ensure that the new journalism will flourish?

And regardless, we are not looking for a return to the days of party-controlled journalism or Father Coughlin-style radio reporting (think Lou Dobbs but rabid anti-semitism that made Dobb’s xenophobia look like niceties)

Reconstruction of American Journalism Report – focus on local news coverage will require a big increase in funding from Congress. But this is neither a practical or realistic solution. The lack of funding is pathetic and not even close and the high budget deficits make it next to impossible to imagine additional funding for public broadcasting.

Although weak, there are interesting entittes, like the New Haven Independent and the Chicago News Cooperative. But perhaps the pooling of resources that so many papers are engaging in will provide a model for the future.

But the biggest impetus for expansion will come from the new digital technologies themselves.

Wins the prize with the first reference to the Kindle.

Describing her subway ride in NYC where only five people were reading a paper newspaper, and three of those were the free am newspapers.

Public Media must aim to preserve local democracy.

3 Specific Areas of focus in the journalistic world
1. Local Coverage
2. Deep Coverage

Investigative Journalism (doesn’t pay and we need to make sure someone is asking those questions)

3. Represent the diverse voices in this country

Forget nostalgia. The New York Times newsroom in 1961 wasn’t all that great. You wouldn’t even know there was an African American person in this country – and the only women were on the Society Pages.

We are no longer just telling a story but we are also initiating and facilitating a conversation.
- This is a major theme that is emerging. Journalism is more of a conversation. But it is not a free flowing conversation with no restraints but rather one led and moderated by the professional journalists – especially those funded by public institutions.

But there are limits. We need to make sure that as we evolve, we maintain very high standards for journalism.

Fort Hood Example – there was a lot of WRONG information coming out from a 30-year-old Twitterer female soldier. She said that the shooter was dead and that there was a second shooter. How do the “journalists” do the fact checking necessary to ensure accuracy?

As the role of the journalist changes, so do the pay models. The pay walls are coming. And in the not-for-profit world, it is key that we come up with sustainable business models. It will help protect against funders with an agenda.

Although there is somewhat of a contradiction here in that arguing for public funding and yet recognizing that can influence the content. The key is mixed partnerships that is not all one or the other.

We have an opportunity and the responsibility to fill the void of local journalism.

We need more public funding – not just for infrastructure – but most importantly, for the CONTENT.

This movement is not going to resonate like suffrage but that doesn’t mean that we can’t talk to Congress and increase our funding.

The recipe for change – thinking big – add 500 reporters in communities across this country. We need to challenge others to come up with plans to really cover their local areas.