First Amendment Forum, Pittsburgh, PA 2001

Partners:

Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
KDKA-TV
KDKA-AM
Pennsylvania Newspapers Association

The Pennsylvania legislature passed a new, more liberal open-records law in the summer of 2002 after a 10-month effort by the partners to encourage citizens to use public records to make government accountable and accomplish community goals. Post-Gazette editor Jane Elizabeth did not give the project full credit for the new law but she said, "We certainly didn't hurt it."

The effort began Oct. 13, 2001, when 300 people attended a "First Amendment Forum" in downtown Pittsburgh to learn how to gain access to public records and meetings. On evaluation forms, they gave the event an average score of 4.3 on a scale of one to five. The paper learned where citizens needed help most and developed sources for reporting on the issue.

In March 2002, the partners launched a First Amendment Web page devoted to helping citizens gain access to public records and public meetings through the state Sunshine Law and the Freedom of Information Act. Along with tips, resources and links to more information, the site featured a news story every month about the experience of an individual or grass roots organization trying to use the laws. The stories were also published in the Post-Gazette's community editions. Users could post comments and communicate with one another through a site bulletin board The site received an average of 3,600 visits a month through the summer.

Once the new law was passed, the site geared up to explain the new law and help citizens use it. The partners also produced a pamphlet on the new law and mailed it to every municipal office in the region. The paper found that secretaries, clerks and administrative assistants were often the biggest impediments to open records, simply because they didn't understand the law and would deny access that should have been granted. The pamphlet was intended to educate these frontline record keepers on the new provisions. When the project ended, the Pennsylvania Newspaper Association took over the Web site.

Contact:

Jane Elizabeth
Education Editor
Pittsburgh Post-Gazette
34 Boulevard of the Allies
Pittsburgh, PA 15222
Phone: (412) 263-1510
Email: jelizabeth@post-gazette.com

SchoolNet, Philadelphia, PA 2001

Partners:

Philadelphia Daily News, philly.com

At the height of a crisis in Philadelphia public schools, the paper launched a rich, online source of information to encourage parent involvement and public problem-solving. SchoolNet included a wide range of features. There was contact information for district offices to help parents navigate a sometimes-convoluted bureaucracy. There was a grade-by-grade breakdown of what children should be mastering in school each year and several online forums so parents could connect with each other. To ensure that any parent would have access to the site, the Daily News put detailed brochures in the free Internet access section of 55 city libraries.

Reporter Becky Batcha spent three months researching the content for what the paper dubbed a "virtual home and school association." She discovered an out-of-print school district publication detailing the curriculum for each grade and the paper purchased the database so parents could access it.

The paper also sought public input in designing the site. After launching its school reform project with a special eight-page, pull-out section, it printed a clip-and-send coupon, soliciting reader ideas for which issues should be the focus of online forums. The paper also invited concerned citizens to sign up for three public forums at the paper. The paper learned that parents of special education students had a particular need for more and better information, and it created a channel on SchoolNet page just for those parents. There was also a teacher exchange and more general channels on reform, parent involvement and "great ideas."

The launch, unfortunately, coincided with the Sept. 11, 2001, attacks on the Pentagon and World Trade Center, forcing the paper to scuttle plans for a series of public forums to call attention to the site. The paper did hold two public forums, attracting about 60 people, on charter schools and on homework. Technical difficulties prevented the paper from determining how many users the site attracted, and the site was dismantled in early 2002, when parent company Knight-Ridder changed the platform the paper's Web site had been using.

Contact:

Deborah Licklider
New Initiatives Editor
The Philadelphia Daily News
400 N. Broad St.
Philadelphia, PA 19130
Phone: (215) 854-5879
Email: licklid@phillynews.com

Redefining Disenfranchised Communities, Philadelphia, PA 2001

Partners:

WHYY-TV 12 (PBS)
WHYY-FM

The station held two focus groups, one with labor union members and one with victims of catastrophic illness, in an effort to redefine the concept of community - away from geography and demography, toward areas of shared concerns. Participants included men and women from different neighborhoods as well as different racial and ethnic groups.

The station found that, indeed, despite their varied backgrounds, participants shared common needs and concerns that were not always served by the media. The focus groups generated a number of story ideas and frames for covering these communities in a more meaningful way. The information was not used to produce news stories, as had been hoped, however, because the station found funding was insufficient to cover production costs.

Contact:

Paul A. Gluck
VP & Station Manager
WHYY-TV
150 N. 6th Street
Philadelphia, PA 19106
Phone: (215) 351-2003
Email: pgluck@whyy.org