The 2014 Media Impact Forum

Collaboration and invention were key concepts for the mid-afternoon sessions at the 2014 Media Impact Forum, which honed in on how cross-platform public media initiatives are filling holes in local news and healthcare coverage and influencing audiences and policymakers. View highlights from this discussion below, or go to our YouTube page for the full session. Media Impact Funders Executive Director Vince Stehle moderated the discussion on innovation in local journalism, which featured Laura Walker, the president and CEO of New York Public Radio; Laura Frank, the executive director of I-News and vice president for news at Rocky Mountain PBS, and Clark Bell, the director of the McCormick Foundation’s Journalism Program. Walker heads up a clutch of award-winning public stations—WNYC-FM, WNYC-AM, WQXR, WQXW, and New Jersey Public Radio—which, along with related digital properties and programs, reach an average 14.2 million people each month. She spoke about the importance of partnerships in building better local coverage across the region, especially in New Jersey, where major outlets have collapsed. With support from such funders as the Charles H. Revson Foundation, The Gates Foundation, The Wyncote Foundation, and the Jerome L. Read More

‘Social good’ games can do so much — from teaching players about issues such as poverty, civic participation and the environment, to helping them become creative problem solvers or make healthy choices. The opportunities to engage audiences are as varied as the types of games available, and funders are increasingly interested in supporting game-based elements in their work. On February 25, Media Impact Funders and Philanthropy New York presented a special preview session of the annual Games for Change conference to learn about how game developers and funders are working together. This year, Games for Change has partnered with the Tribeca Film Festival (April 22-26), reflecting the increasing interconnection between film, games, and social issue campaigns. Media Impact Funders Executive Director Vince Stehle moderated this vibrant discussion — see  the Storify from the event for a sense of the in-person and online buzz. Afterwards, Stehle reflected further on how nonprofits use games to connect more viscerally with audiences in a column for the Chronicle of Philanthropy. “For grant makers and media makers alike,” he writes, “the power of games may be the deeper engagement they deliver.” During the event, we heard… Read More