COMING & GOING - Governor's Press Secretary off to law school; another second generation addition to statehouse press corps

Yesterday, vermontpressconnections met Eli Sherman, the son of Bob Sherman, former Vermont journalist and currently a partner with KSE Partners, a Montpelier lobbying firm. An intern reporter for Vermont Digger, he was covering Gov. Peter Shumlin's press conference. They may have been there, but we didn't see any reporters from WCAX - if so that may explain why there's an ad in the paper for a general assignment reporter at the South Burlington TV station.

This morning, we received a note from former WCAX reporter and current gubernatorial press secretary Bianca Slota:

Dear colleagues, friends, members of the media, and more:

As many of you already know, I am leaving my position in the Governor’s Office to start a new adventure in law school. Tomorrow – Friday July 29^th – will be my final day at work.

Sue Allen will handle all press-related matters from here on out. You can reach her at susan.allen@state.vt.us  And Ari Wengroff will be taking over my social media and web responsibilities. You can reach her at ariel.wengroff@state.vt.us  You can reach them both by phone at 802-828-3333.

While it has been brief, I have thoroughly enjoyed my time in this position. Being on the “inside” gives you a whole new perspective on things and I have learned so much. Plus, I get to work with amazing people every day.

I will be in Vermont through the weekend but will pack up my things early next week and head to Connecticut. I don’t know if I’ll return to Vermont to live and work but I will certainly come back to play! If you wish to keep in touch my personal email is biancaslota@gmail.com

So long for now,

Bianca

Digger scores six-figure grant from Knight Foundation for investigative reporter

Vermontpressconnections has been busy, but we haven't gone away! The following release from Vermont Digger got our attention -


MIDDLEBURY, VT – The Vermont Community Foundation recently received a three-year, $104,000 grant to build the capacity of public policy journalism in Vermont. The Foundation will partner with VTDigger.org, a nonprofit news website that provides in-depth coverage of statewide issues affecting Vermonters. The funding will allow VTDigger.org to hire a full-time investigative reporter to cover health care and energy issues in Vermont. It will also allow Founder and Editor in Chief Anne Galloway the chance to extend her energies beyond reporting.


“VTDigger.org has grown from a very low budget, all-volunteer operation to a funded news organization with paid staffers in just two years,” says Galloway. “This generous grant will enable us to deepen our coverage of key issues that affect the daily lives of Vermonters and make it possible for us to focus on building the long-term sustainability of VTDigger.org.”

The grant was awarded by the John S. and James L. Knight Foundation as a part of its Knight Community Information Challenge. The challenge is a five-year, $24 million initiative that helps community and place-based foundations support news and information projects that inform and engage residents. The Vermont Community Foundation is one of only 19 foundations throughout the country that was selected to receive a grant this round, and will match Knight’s grant dollar-for-dollar with contributions from their funds and larger supporting organizations.

“Strong democracy depends on strong journalism and informed debate,” said President & CEO of the Vermont Community Foundation Stuart Comstock-Gay. “Vermont stands out as a state with very high levels of citizen engagement, but we still need good information. We’re thrilled that the Knight Foundation has identified our proposal as worthy of funding.”

VTDigger.org first launched in 2009 when a group of concerned citizens and journalists, led by Galloway, came together to create a platform for fact-driven reporting and open debate on key issues impacting Vermonters. Now with 50,000 readers a month, VTDigger.org publishes daily stories on Vermont politics and public policy matters and serves as a critical resource for lawmakers and community leaders tracking down information on key issues.

When asked what sets VTDigger.org apart from other news sources, Galloway says: “Our total focus is on politics and public policy and we tend to write frequently and relentlessly about a given topic. Traditional papers tend to cover the end game of lawmaking, not the process.”

Galloway cites their extensive coverage around health care, broadband infrastructure, and campaign finance reform as particular points of pride for the nascent organization. This summer, VTDigger.org also launched Tipster – a virtual, public newsroom with the functionality of a social networking site like Facebook.

Designed to facilitate interaction among readers and journalists, Tipster users can suggest questions and post tips and source materials for reporters. “Official sources tend to drive the information in the news,” says Galloway. “Tipster is about bringing a more grassroots voice to the surface.”

In November 2010, VTDigger.org combined operations with The Vermont Journalism Trust (VJT), an organization dedicated to the funding of investigative reporting that provides scrutiny to under-covered issues and helps Vermonters make civic policy decisions based on informational integrity. “VTDigger.org is the ideal platform on which to build out Vermont Journalism Trust’s commitment to expanding quality journalism in all media,” said VJT Founding Director Doug Clifton at the time of the merger.

“The Vermont Community Foundation and others like it are part of a growing number of community and place-based foundations working to ensure residents have the information they need to make important decisions about their communities,” said Trabian Shorters, Knight Foundation’s vice president for engaging communities. “Ultimately, our democracy will only thrive if we have informed and engaged communities.”

About The Vermont Community Foundation

The Vermont Community Foundation was founded in 1986 with a mission to grow philanthropy in the state and ensure that donors and nonprofits have the resources they need to be effective. Since then, almost 600 individuals, families, businesses, organizations, and private foundations have established funds with us. Our family of funds award more than $10 million a year in grants. For more information about the Foundation, visit www.vermontcf.org or call 802-388-3355.

About VTDigger.org

VTDigger.org is a statewide news website dedicated to coverage of Vermont politics, consumer affairs, business and public policy. Created in 2009, VTDigger.org publishes original news reporting, video, audio and photos, in addition to raw information in the form of press releases and government documents whenever possible. New content is published six days a week, Monday through Saturday.

About The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation

The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation supports transformational ideas that promote quality journalism, advance media innovation, engage communities, and foster the arts. We believe that democracy thrives when people and communities are informed and engaged. For more information, visit www.knightfoundation.org.

Contact:

Christopher Kaufman Ilstrup
The Vermont Community Foundation
(802) 388-3355, ext. 295
cilstrup@vermontcf.org
Anne Galloway
VTDigger.org
(802) 441-1016
agalloway@vtdigger.org
Marc Fest
The John S. and James L. Knight Foundation
(305) 908-2677
fest@knightfoundation.org

Google search algorithm controversy has Vermont players, ramifications

I am vaguely aware that an algorithm is an important part of trigonometry, the high school course I dropped a week into the semester, thus ending my unimpressive career as a math scholar. And I am just tech-savvy enough to know that search engines use algorithms to answer “googles.”

Yesterday I listened to a discussion led by FairSearch.org, an organization of small-to-middling internet based companies committed to, well, fair searches on the internet. It seems there is a controversy stirring about search engine fairness or the possible lack of it by Google, the big boy on the block. Somewhat to my surprise there are three major Vermont public figures involved, or at least connected. Who wins and who loses may seriously affect many web-based Vermont businesses and media.

Fairsearch is concerned about Google’s new search algorithm. In short, this algorithm responds to your search with an answer that is very likely to send you immediately to a website owned by a Google partner, very possibly another internet giant. For example: let’s say you are goofing off at your Manhattan office desk and ask your computer search engine to find “Bed and Breakfast in Cambridge, Vermont.” Does the search engine rush to tell you about a B&B opened recently on Main Street by a friend of mine? Maybe, but it is more likely to send you to a big national or international website that just happens to be a Google partner. The algorithm is making you work harder to find the Little Guy’s website. You can still “get there from here.” It just takes longer.

According to Fairsearch, this is all about big corporate power and control. On the face it, this is bad business for small Vermont businesses – the same folks who buy community newspaper advertising. As their marketing partners, Vermont newspaper publishers want to encourage policies that highlight them. In the old-fashioned newspaper terms that I understand, Google has given a few select advertisers a constant, preferred position on the Front Page. By comparison, smaller internet-dependent businesses are relegated to the gutter. On the left hand side. On page 10.  

According to Fairsearch, a committee chaired by Sen. Patrick Leahy is investigating the situation. Attorney General William Sorrell will chair a panel discussion of this (and other) issues in Chicago next week. At the very least, these meetings should yield information. So, too, might some reportorial Q & A with Matte Dunne, a former Windsor County state senator and candidate for governor who works as a marketing executive for Google. During his campaign, he talked about being on the cutting edge of internet communications. His perspective might be helpful and interesting.

The Wall Street Journal has a story on this; if you have access, “Sites Rotool for Google Effect” is at:

http://online.wsj.com/article/SB10001424052748703806304576236983790385202.html. Or, you can reach Vermont's Fairsearch team at 802-223-9160.

Vermont Digger to debut interactive feature June 8

Vermont Digger has a new interactive feature called Tipster, set to begin June 8. The following notice was received today from Editor Anne Galloway:

Tipster is designed to give you an opportunity to communicate directly with reporters and place news information in an open, virtual newsroom where reporters, readers and other PR professionals congregate online.

As a spokesperson, you can post press releases, statements, advisories, tidbits and media placements under a special call-out to readers called PR posts. You can also post events listings.

Like Facebook, on Tipster you can friend members (or not).

You can post events listings, and upload images, links and PDFs as needed.

Nonmembers can view the forum, groups, postings and events, but cannot access complete postings or participate in forums. Profiles of members are inaccessible to nonmembers.

Through the group forums, you can start topics, hold open discussions -- or take a conversation offline in a private message.

WCAX wins New England Emmy

the following was received Tuesday, May 17 from WCAX News Director Anson Tebbetts -

WCAX-TV News Wins Boston New England Emmy

This weekend, WCAX-TV News was awarded a New England Emmy for its series “Mission Afghanistan.” Reporter and Evening News Anchor Darren Perron and photographer Lance MacKenzie accepted the award at the 34th annual Emmy Awards Ceremony on Saturday in Boston. 
Last summer, Perron and MacKenzie followed members of the Vermont National Guard in Afghanistan, showcasing the mission of the Green Mountain Boys. The deployment to Afghanistan of more than 1500 soldiers was the largest mission for the Vermont National Guard since World War II. “This deployment had an enormous impact on Vermont; it was a sacrifice for our soldiers and for their families,” said Perron.
Mackenzie called it “an honor to receive the award,” saying he was “proud to be  Vermonter.”
“WCAX-TV News will continue telling the stories of the soldiers and their families” said News Director Anson Tebbetts. “While the mission may be finished in Afghanistan, there are many stories to tell about these veterans and their families as they transition back into the workplace and home, “said Tebbetts.
The National Academy of Television Arts and Sciences is the premier and most recognized non-profit group dedicated to the advancement of excellence in television. 
WCAX-TV is the CBS affiliate in Burlington, VT and is owned and operated by Mt. Mansfield Television, Inc.

True North Reports' TV debut

  

True North Reports not only has a website and a statehouse press bureau - it's in television now, on Burlington's Channel 17. The following notice was announced earlier this week:

 

For those of you who missed our first appearance on Burlington CCTV's Channel 17 Live @ 5:25, you can (soon) view it online HERE. Or, it will re-air on Channel 17 at the following times:

 

Friday May 20, 1:00 PM
Friday May 27, 1:00 PM
Friday June 3, 1:00 PM

Vermont Digger named to Columbia J Review E-News Database

The following post by Vermont Digger editor Anne Galloway was printed under "Editor's Notebook" of the revamped news website:

VTDigger.org was added to the Columbia Journalism Review’s News Frontier Database last week. The searchable database was launched earlier this year with 50 short profiles of digital news outlets across the country. CJR’s objective is to develop the “most comprehensive” resource of its kind.

The list gives readers a sense of the scope and the character of the new media ecosystem evolving across the United States. It includes famous national news websites like Politico and The Huffington Post, and well-established regional online publications, such as MinnPost and voiceofsandiego.org.

What do all of these sites have in common, according to the CJR authors? “Ambitious journalism (and philanthropy, and capitalism).”

VTDigger.org fit CJR’s four criteria: We are devoted to original reporting and content; we have one or more (in fact two) full-time employees; we are a standalone online news operation (we’re not an arm of a “legacy” media outfit); and we are pursuing funding through advertising, grants and donations.

We are humbled and honored to be included in CJR’s database.

VTD has made several other notable lists recently.

We are grateful to Seven Days Newspaper for putting VTD second from the top of the “Just Say Know” Sunshine Week lineup on March 16. This is one of our proudest accomplishments. Last fall, Charles Lewis, the executive editor of the Investigative Reporting Workshop and a former producer for 60 Minutes, included VTD in a list of websites he highlighted as part of the growing national online media ecosystem. The roster includes 60 news websites in more than two dozen states. We are delighted to be counted among the pioneers.