February 1, 2008Newsletter

February is action-packed-- this is your last chance to register for the 2008 Making Your Media Conference, on Feb. 7- 8. Games meet videos for social change; Byron Hurt explains one of the most successful outreach projects ever; cross-cultural videos explained! Plus networking, networking, networking. Click here for the full agenda, and to sign up for our special Birds of a Feather networking lunch. Watch with us Byron Hurt's Hip-Hop: Beyond Beats and Rhymes (a fair use success story) on Feb. 6. And there's more - check below for our upcoming visiting filmmakers, report from Sundance, and news of our latest Mapping Public Media initiative.

We'll see you on Feb. 7-8 at the Making Your Media Conference!

Register now for the 2008 Making Your Media Matter conference!
Who should come: Established and aspiring filmmakers, non-profit communications leaders, funders and students looking so learn and share cutting-edge practices in creating media that matters for public knowledge and action.

What you'll find: Panel discussions on the latest tools and trends in creating and distributing social issue media; demos of cutting edge practices; networking opportunities; and--yes--free lunch.

Visiti centerforsocialmedia.org/mymm to register and learn more - space is almost gone!

Hip Hop: Beyond Beats and Rhymes - Free Film Screening
Wed., Feb. 6, 5:30 pm, Wechsler Theater, AU campus
HIP-HOP: Beyond Beats and Rhymes, a film by Byron Hurt, takes an in-depth look at representations of manhood, sexism and homophobia in hip-hop culture. This groundbreaking documentary is a "loving critique" of disturbing developments in rap music culture by a fan who challenges the art form's representations of masculinity. Byron Hurt is also an ally of the Center in the good fight to expand fair use rights; Hip Hop reached screens in part because of the Center's fair-use best practices code.

Discussion to follow screening - check out our website for details.

Innovator's Forum Speaker Series: Free Lecture with Pegie Stark of the Poynter Institute
Dr. Pegie Stark, co-director of The Poynter Institute's Eyetrack 2007 will speak on February 23 to discuss the institute's findings from its landmark study on how the public reads the news, both online and in print.
WHEN: Sat., Feb. 23, 12:15 - 1:15 pm
WHERE:: Butler Boardroom, Butler Pavilion, American University
FREE! - Bring your own lunch, beverages & dessert provided!
More info:: Visit our website

Center welcomes Spring 2008 Visiting Filmmakers
The Center is delighted to welcome this spring several filmmakers whose work exemplifies the best in public media. Mark your calendar, and join us for a series of FREE discussions:

• Feb. 21: Telling the Hardest Stories: Lion in the House, with Julia Reichert and Steve Bogner
• March 20: Environmental Filmmaker Liz Miller, discussing her film The Water Front(Part of the 2008 Environmental Film Festival)
• March 27: Digital Storytelling, with Center for Digital Storytelling's Stefani Sese
• April 3: Participatory Video for Social Change, with independent filmmaker Deedee Halleck

Visit www.centerforsocialmedia.org/events for more information.

New Center Mapping Public Media Initiative Charts the Cutting-Edge
How can media-makers, researchers and funders recognize and understand public media in a participatory, digital era? The goal of the Center for Social Media's Mapping Public Media initiative-funded by a grant from the Ford Foundation-is to reveal the resources and connections that sustain this active, productive, but rarely visible world devoted to helping audiences recognize themselves as publics and act from that knowledge.

The initiative's analysis contrasts two research methods-case studies by CSM fellows and Web network mapping by the Amsterdam-based Govcom.org Foundation-to examine three innovative public media projects. The findings suggest both distinct characteristics shared by public media, and multiple arenas for future research. Read more at centerforsocialmedia.org/mpm.

Innovation in Focus: The Sundance Documentary Film Program's DocSource Project
Each month, we feature a roundup of the innovative projects by public media outlets and their allies. This month, we're taking a closer look at DocSource, an online hub from the Sundance Institute that connect filmmakers, human rights advocates and publics from around the globe. Like the Center, the Sundance Institute is part of the Ford Foundation Future of Public Media Initiative, a group of nonprofit organizations with a common goal to push forward into the future of public media. Read more>>

Sundance Film Festival
The Sundance Film Festival is the most important festival for independent work made for public knowledge and action; it opens distribution doors. Take a peek at Pat Aufderheide's take on this year's activist films and the issues they raise for public media. Also check out Center Associate Director Ann William's observations on on the cutting-edge digital media on display at Sundance. Williams held court at the Sundance Outreach Table on Sunday, Jan. 20, welcoming old and new friends. (The Outreach Table at the Filmmakers Lodge on Main St. in Park City is prime real estate for nonprofits and social-issue filmmakers.) Pat Aufderheide's book signing was sold out within a half hour at Dolly's Book Shop, thanks to self- organizing doc filmmakers, all of whom brought friends. The Center also got attention from trade paper Variety and from Aaron Barnhart of the Kansas City Star and TV Week.

Center's New Study on Online Video Widely Cited
Recut, Reframe, Recyle a new study co-written by Pat Aufderheide and Peter Jaszi, co- director of the law school's Program on Information Justice and Intellectual Property, has traveled far since its release at the Consumer Electronics Show in early January. Bloggers from BoingBoing to MediaShift have been talking about it, and it became part of the conversation around a New York Times online copyright feature as well. The study shows that many ways online videos use copyrighted material could be both legal and at risk for private censorship. Go to centerforsocialmedia.org/recut to read the full report.

UFVA Fair Use & Free Speech Contest - $500 for best fair use!
The Center is collaborating with UFVA on a contest for the best short documentaries employing fair use, made by higher education students and faculty. Click here for more information and to download a submission form. The deadline is May 1, 2008.

Fair Use FAQ Featured Question of the Month - Incidental Use
Want your questions on Fair Use Answered? Someone else may have already asked. Check out the new Fair Use FAQ, where our most frequently asked questions find answers. This month's featured question: incidental use.

2008 Flaherty Film Seminar, "The Age of Migration":
The 54th Robert Flaherty Film Seminar will be held June 21-27, 2008 at Colgate University, Hamilton, New York. Guest curator Chi-hui Yang, Director of the San Francisco International Asian American Film Festival, will program the seminar titled "The Age of Migration." Register to join national and international media artists, critics, scholars, curators, librarians, and students for a week of intensive film viewing and impassioned discussion in a relaxed retreat environment. The early registration deadline is May 1, 2008. Limited fellowships are also available and the fellowship application deadline is March 14, 2008. For more information about the 2008 Flaherty Seminar, registration, and fellowships please visit www.flahertyseminar.org.