[Seattle-editorial] Editorial Collective -- thoughts, and year-end inventory

[Sheri Herndon]

WOW susan.  what an amazing compilation and record.
and i definitely think we should toast jonathan!

i think a meeting would be great for helping us all move some things 
forward and to feel the collective nature of this group.  the 
editorial group has not met in a long time, but i remember those 
meetings as some of the most inspiring, intellectually stimulating 
and inspiring meetings of my entire indymedia involvement.  i would 
love to participate in some capacity (even if i don't write feature 
these days - i would like to contribute).
getting together seems like a good thing to do no matter what.  i am 
open for meeting informally over beers tonight if we have enough 
momentum.

and thanks so much susan for pulling together this invaluable 
information which allows us to see our features in a snapshot....one 
feature every 4 days is quite a good record and i have been very 
inspired by the work of jonathan and others who contribute.  i also 
know that often the global www-features group looks to the seattle 
features as ones to highlight.  so people are seeing our good work 
outside our local community as well.

peace
sheri

At 12:33 PM -0800 11/7/02, Susan wrote:
>Hi folks,
>
>In reference to recent comments by Lance and Joseph regarding the 
>longevity of features in the top slot, I thought it might be helpful 
>to look at an inventory of Seattle IMC features over the past year 
>(see full list below).
>
>I think that the inventory can be useful for a number of purposes 
>.... maybe we, as the editorial collective can take the opportunity 
>to look at our total efforts over the past twelve months, and create 
>some goals for the months ahead. Let's especially think about 
>Dec-Jan coverage ... last year, when JL and I were on vacation, and 
>others too, we didn't have a new feature for 30 days!
>
>We can look at the types of stories we've given emphasis to, which 
>we've missed, and which we'd like to highlight in the months ahead. 
>We can talk about solutions for distributing the editorial work, 
>generating more features more regularly, and getting more folks 
>involved.
>
>Personally, I think we ought to go out for beers and toast Jonathan 
>for his incredible work this past year .... writing 66 out of the 
>year's 88 features (70%), in many cases helping others to put their 
>features together, and on the whole, having a great sense of which 
>stories needed to be featured.  I think he's a terrific editor and 
>writer, and we've been lucky to have him --  I don't know how much 
>his new full-time job will pull him away from seattle imc editorial 
>work.
>
>As for meeting tonight -- perhaps we could do so informally, since 
>it's too late to convene a meeting.  There's a seattle-tech meeting 
>tonight at 8:30 
>(http://lists.indymedia.org/mailman/public/seattletech/2002-November/000647.html 
>), and at one point or another, several editorial folks will be at 
>the IMC tonight.  Alternatively, we could actually convene an 
>editorial collective meeting for next Thursday (the 14th .... 
>there'll be a Swarmcast meeting at 8, with a potluck beforehand, but 
>we could find a space to huddle and meet).
>
>Regarding the current concern of how long a feature remains on top, 
>I have a couple of quick personal responses:
>* i don't think it's desirable to have an across-the-board rule 
>regarding length of placement.
>* on the whole, i think the site is better off, and more useful to 
>our readers, when features are being added regularly.  the more that 
>features remain static, the less frequently folks will want to turn 
>to our site for 'news'.
>* in many cases, as noted below, several features went up on the 
>same day -- due to a variety of reasons:  the ebb & flow of having 
>no one writing features for days on end, and then suddenly several 
>people taking the initiative at once; several events happening 
>together at once; a large event generating several related features 
>at once
>* features being in the # 2 and #3 slots -- not a terrible thing. 
>it doesn't take much scrolling ... people WILL scroll if they see 
>that new features have gone up, plus every feature is also 
>highlighted on the global indymedia site (on the features newswire).
>* in this specific situation (re Burning Man vs. Jobs w/ Justice), I 
>think that our friends at JwJ, and other Bellingham activists, will 
>be turning to IMC to see what kind of coverage we have of their 
>major victory -- where else would they go?  i think sometimes we can 
>make editorial choices about which news is 'bigger' or effecting the 
>greatest number of people, and choose story placement in 
>relationship to that.  all that said -- i think the Burning Man 
>article is very cool. i just don't want to hang up the JwJ story til 
>Friday because of it.
>
>Thanks for your patience with a long email.  Enjoy the editorial 
>review below .... and congratulations to everyone for a great year 
>of editorial activity!!!!!
>
>love,
>Susan
>
>SEATTLE IMC FEATURES INVENTORY -  November 2001 thru November 2002
>----------------------------------------------------------------------------------------
>* many headlines have been changed or paraphrased for easier 
>recognition in this list
>
>Nov 6 - Burning Man - analysis and local event announcement (Lance)
>Oct 28 -' Pax Americana' & Anti-War Protests (Jonathan) - top story for 9 days
>Oct 24 - FTAA  (Jonathan) - top story for 4 days
>Oct 24 - Press Blackout on Anti-War Movement (Jonathan) - top story 
>for hours/minutes
>Oct 24 - FCC Approves LPFM for WA (Jonathan) - top story for hours/minutes
>Oct 11 - US Troops, Out of the Phillipines Now! (Lance) - top story 
>for 13 days
>Oct 7 - 10,000 Protestors at Anti-War Rally & March  (Susan) - top 
>story for 6 days
>Oct 6 - Anti-War Rally announcement (Susan) - top story for 1 day
>Oct 5 - Nine Lives in Nine Years - NAACP march (Brandon) - top story for 1 day
>Oct 5 - Media Blackout on Homelessness and Poverty (Lance) - top 
>story for hours
>Oct 2 - McDermott Tours Iraq (Jonathan) - top story for 3 days
>Sep 28 - Port Bosses Lock Out Longshoremen (Jonathan) - top story for 4 days
>Sep 27 - Anti-War Activists Embrace Diverse Strategies (Susan) - top 
>story for 1 day
>Sep 23 - Hate Free Zone Testimonials at Town Hall (Jonathan) - top 
>story for 4 days
>Sep 19 - Hate Free Zone event announcement (Susan) - top story for 4 days
>Sep 9 - Reclaim the Media pre-event coverage (Jonathan) - top story 
>for 10 days
>Sep 9 - Clear Channel's Broadcast Interference (Heather) - top story for hours
>Sep 1 - Reclaim the Media event announcement (Jonathan) - top story for 8 days
>Sep 1 - Moquito Fleet announcement (Jonathan) - top story for hours/minutes
>Sep 1 - Radical Art (at RTM) announcement (Jonathan) - top story for 
>hours/minutes
>Sep 1 - Labor Council Passes First Statewide Anti-War Resolution 
>(Susan) - top story for hours/minutes
>Aug 30 - East Timor and the ICC (Jonathan) - top story for 2 days
>Aug 22 - 'Urban Warrior' announcement (Jonathan) - top story for 8 days
>Aug 19 - Rolling Thunder announcement (Jonathan) - top story for 3 days
>Aug 16 - U.S. Relations with Zimbabwe (Lance) - top story for 3 days
>Aug 14 - Media's Distortions Pave Way for War (Jonathan) - top story 
>for 2 days
>Aug 9 - Longshoremen Unite Against Gov't's Union-Busting Plans 
>(Jonathan) - top story for 5 days
>Aug 8 - Black Community Activists (Garrett and Allah) Arrested 
>(Jonathan) - top story for 1 day
>Aug 8 - Ujaama Detained Indefinitely (Susan & Jonathan) - top story 
>for hours/minutes
>Aug 7 - "The Buzz" Pressured to Clean Up Hate Speech (Jonathan) - 
>top story for 1 day
>Aug 2 - "Democracy Now" Coming to KBCS and SCAN (Jonathan) - top 
>story for 5 days
>July 28 - 'Racist Scapegoating' at Sea-Tac (Jonathan) - top story for 5 days
>July 26 - Free Speech and the Threat of Cable Monopolies (Jonathan) 
>- top story for 2 days
>July 26 - Vandana Shiva in Seattle (Jonathan) - top story for hours/minutes
>July 25 - Enron and India's Biggest Dam (Gentry) - top story for 1 day
>July 19 - Activists Block Pipeline Drilling, Defend Forests (Susan) 
>- top story for 6 days
>July 17 - Victory for Somali Grocers (Jonathan) - top story for 2 days
>July 5 - "Seattle Crimes" Hits Streets, and PCJ's 'No Confidence' 
>Vote (Jonathan) - top story for 12 days
>July 5 - Holes in the Social Service Safety Net (Jonathan) - top 
>story for hours/minutes
>June 28 - G-8 Protests in Calgary (Susan) - top story for 7 days
>June 22 - City OK's AT&T Comcast Merger, Snubs Public Interest 
>(Jonathan) - top story for 6 days
>June 16 - Greg Palast announcement (Jonathan) - top story for six days
>June 14 - Local Anti-Sanctions Activist Fined $10,000 (Jonathan) - 
>top story for 2 days
>June 12 - Madeline Albright to Deliver UW Commencement Speech 
>(Lance) - top story for 2 days
>June 10 - G-8 in Canada pre-event coverage (Thatcher & Jonathan) - 
>top story for 2 days
>June 10 - Unions Fight Corporate Media De-Regulation  (Jonathan) - 
>top story for hours
>June 3 - Unions Rally Against Clear Channel's Anti-Labor Policies 
>(Jonathan) - top story for 7 days
>May 23 - Activists Occupy Cantwell's Office Re Fast Track Vote 
>(Jonathan) - top story for 10 days
>May 20 - Palestine Solidarity Activists Reportback (Jonathan) - top 
>story for 3 days
>May 20 - Issues with Housing Projects in the Central Area & Downtown 
>(Jonathan) - top story for hours
>May 20 - Immigrants Face Discrimination and State Terror, Post 9/11 
>(Lance) - top story for hours
>May 14 - Shaping the Network Society event announcement (Jonathan) - 
>top story for 6 days
>May 9 - Seattle Activist Enters 14th Day of Hunger Strike (Susan) - 
>top story for 5 days
>May 4 - CARP Strangles Internet Radio in the U.S. (Jason) - top 
>story for 5 days
>April 28 - Seattle IMC Volunteer among activists at the Church of 
>the Nativity (Susan) - top story for 6 days
>April 28 - U.S. Computer Recycling Creates Environmental Hazards in 
>Asia (Jonathan) - top story for hours/minutes
>April 24 - April 20th Weekend of Activism (Lance) - top story for 4 days
>April 12 - A20: A Day of Action pre-event coverage (Jonathan) - top 
>story for 12 days
>April 12 - Other Weekend Events: Earth Day, Amnesty Int'l USA 
>Conference (Jonathan) - top story for hours/minutes
>April 12 - SPD Pressures School, Church to Shut for April 20 
>(Jeremy) - top story for hours
>April 1 - War in Palestine: Indymedia Coverage (Jonathan) - top 
>story for 11 days
>April 1 - Who Will Police the Police? (Jonathan) - top story for hours/minutes
>March 23 - Media Democracy Events Broadcast Live From DC (Susan) - 
>top story for 9 days
>March 21 - Seattle School Bus Drivers Try to Save Union Contract 
>(Jill & Jonathan) - top story for 2 days
>March 18 - 400,000 protest "Europe of Capital" in Barcelona 
>(Jonathan) - top story for 3 days
>March 16 - Qwest and Immunex: Local Enron Wannabes (Jonathan) - top 
>story for 2 days
>March 14 - Activists Condemn US-backed Attacks on Palestinian 
>Civilians (Steve) - top story for 2 days
>Feb 24 - WA State Anti-Terror Legislation (Melissa & Jonathan) - top 
>story for 18 days
>Feb 23 - Secwepemc Elders and Activists fight Resort Expansion 
>(Susan)  - top story for 1 day
>Feb 20 - IMC's Under Attack in Italy & Switzerland' (Jonathan) - top 
>story for 3 days
>Feb 9 - Salt Lake City Olympics: Homelessness & State Repression 
>(Jonathan) - top story for 11 days
>Feb 6 - Day of Solidarity with Leonard Peltier (Jonathan) - top 
>story for 3 days
>Jan 31 - WEF in NYC... WSF in Porto Alegre (Jonathan) - top story for 6 days
>Jan 27 - Somalian Killed in Walla-Walla Prison Shooting (Jonathan) - 
>top story for 4 days
>Jan 25 - "Alternative" Weekly Doesn't Worry, Stays Happy (Jonathan) 
>- top story for 2 days
>Jan 22 - Anti-Terrorism Legislation Brews in Olympia (Jonathan) - 
>top story for 3 days
>Jan 12 - Martin Luther King's Living Challenge (Jonathan) - top 
>story for 10 days
>Jan 11 - Public Space Activists on Trial in Bellingham (Jonathan) - 
>top story for 1 day
>Dec 12 - Afghan Civilian Death Toll Surpasses Sept. 11 (Jonathan) - 
>top story for 30 DAYS!!
>Dec 4 - Fast Track Scheduled For House Vote (Jonathan) - top story for 8 days
>Nov 30 - A Peoples' Holiday: Global Resistance (Jonathan) - top 
>story for 4 days
>Nov 29 - Waging War Against Dissent (Jonathan) - top story for 1 day
>Nov 26 - Voices of the Global South: Breaking Free From Debt 
>(Jonathan) - top story for 3 days
>Nov 14 - Anti-War Solidarity Fast Begins in Seattle (Jonathan) - top 
>story for 12 days
>Nov 11 - Bush Dragnet Targets Seattle's Somalian Community (Susan) - 
>top story for 3 days
>Nov 8 - Criminal Justice Reform Summit, Nov. 10-11 (Jonathan) - top 
>story for 3 days
>Nov 8 - WTO meets in Doha, Qatar (Jonathan) - top story for hours/minutes
>Nov 6 - Killing Continues in Afghanistan as Anti-Bombing Activists 
>Gather Forces (John Yu)
>
>88 features in 365 days --- we're averaging a feature every 4 days.
>
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