Smithsonian Director Emeritus Brent Glass on science and democracy

Editor’s note: Last month, funders from across the country gathered at the American Philosophical Society in Philadelphia for our annual Media Impact Forum, a daylong symposium aimed at helping philanthropy focus on the role of science in our current political and social landscape. The day before, a smaller group of funders attended a special meeting to address the particular challenges associated with communicating science. Below is the full text of the remarks given by Brent Glass, director emeritus of the Smithsonian’s National Museum of American History, the world’s largest museum devoted to telling the story of America. The American Philosophical Society was established in 1743 in Philadelphia; a century later, in 1846, the Smithsonian Institution was founded in Washington, D.C. The story of these two institutions centers on two men: Benjamin Franklin and James Smithson with a cameo appearance by Joseph Priestley. It is the story of the link between science and democracy in the founding of America and the essential role of science in the formative decades of the new nation. There are two other narratives that define this century. First, the line between science and humanities was not as distinct as it is today. We talk… Read More

Editor’s note: Last week, funders from across the country gathered at the American Philosophical Society in Philadelphia for our annual Media Impact Forum, a daylong symposium aimed at helping philanthropy focus on the role of science in our current political and social landscape. The day before, a smaller group of funders attended a special meeting to address the particular challenges associated with communicating science. Below, consultant Louise Lief offers a comprehensive recap of the days’ events. The piece originally appeared on the Knight Foundation’s Trust, Media & Democracy blog on Medium. By Louise Lief | Independent consultant; Founder of the Science and the Media Project A couple of statistics convey the challenge ahead for scientists as their work is doubted and their policy contributions marginalized. In 2011, two-thirds of Americans could not name a single living scientist. By 2018, 84 percent could not. Scientists’ decreasing visibility is but one of several warning lights flashing on the civic dashboard. A majority of those who vote or lean Republican believe colleges and universities are having a … Read More

On May 10, we convened our annual Media Impact Forum at the American Philosophical Society—the home of America’s oldest learned society—in Philadelphia. From its earliest days, the American republic has relied on scientific inquiry to propel our nation forward, in all facets of our life–in commerce, national defense, social policy and creative expression, among many other areas. The meeting helped philanthropy focus on the special role of science in our national debates, the importance of sharpening the communications of science, and broader issues about understanding how and when communications and storytelling make a difference. Below, you’ll find video clips of each session. If you want the highlights, check out the thread we made for Twitter Moments. Or just read the notes here. And here are some more in-depth impressions from those who were there: One of our speakers, Ethan Zuckerman, director of the Center for Civic Media at MIT, posted his entire talk over on Medium. The gist? That Benjamin Franklin, in response to polarization and fake news, would say that these are not even remotely new concepts. Independent consultant Louise Lief wrote a nice recap for the Knight Foundation’s Trust, Media &… Read More

Agenda 9 a.m.—Welcome and Introductions   Vince Stehle, Executive Director, Media Impact Funders David Rousseau, Vice President and Executive Director, Media & Technology, The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation 9:15 a.m.—Returning to Public Media’s Roots A conversation with NPR’s founding architect and one of today’s leading public radio reporters on how public media has served us for the last 50 years and where it will take us in the future. Bill Siemering, President, Developing Radio Partners Korva Coleman, Newscaster, NPR 9:45 a.m.—Policy Visions, Platform Realities How have the founding policy visions for public broadcasting translated into current cross-platform efforts to serve all Americans with news, education and insight? Korva Coleman, Newscaster, NPR (moderator) Michael Copps, former Commissioner of the Federal Communications Commission (FCC) Thomas Hjelm, Chief Digital Officer, NPR 10:30 a.m.—Spectrum Auction: The First $2 Billion  With federal cuts looming, the spectrum auction may breathe life into local news and the public sphere. What are the plans for the first $2 billion? How much of it will go to public media? Tim Isgitt, Managing Director, Humanity United Patrick Butler, President and Chief Executive Officer, America’s Public Television Stations 10:50 a.m.—Networking Break   11:20 a.m.—Tech… Read More

At the 2016 Media Impact Forum, we explored the networks, data and collaborations that support and amplify powerful narratives in film, journalism virtual reality and more. Agenda 9:30 a.m.—Welcome and Introductions Vince Stehle, Executive Director, Media Impact Funders Andrew Rasiej, Founder/CEO, Civic Hall Musical interlude Michael Thurber, Composer, Performer, From the Top 9:55 a.m.—Tech Support: Mapping Our Networks Foundation Maps for Media Funding Sarah Armour-Jones, Consultant, Media Impact Funders Nicholas Savot, Electronic Grant Analyst, Foundation Center Mapping the System Dynamics of Local Journalism Jessica Clark, Research and Strategy Director, Media Impact Funders Paul Waters, Program Associate, Democracy Fund The Story that Moved Us: When I Walk + AXS Map as Building Blocks for Change Jason DaSilva, Producer, Director, Writer, Activist & Founder, AXS Labs Vince Stehle, Executive Director, Media Impact Funders 11 a.m.—Networking Break 11:30 a.m.—The Power and Impact of Investigative Reporting David Rousseau, Vice President and Executive Director of Health Policy Media Technology, The Henry J. Kaiser Family Foundation Troubled Water: Uncovering Massive Fraud in Flint, Michigan Amy Goodman, Co-host, Democracy Now! Curt Guyette, Investigative… Read More

Puzzling through your theory of change for a journalism grant? Wondering what happened once the stories you supported hit the street? Get your mitts on one of our handy new Journalism Impact Spinners, released at the 2015 Media impact Forum. Read More

At this year’s Media Impact Forum, we asked two important questions: “What do we want from media innovation in the public interest?” and “How do we get it?” To explore answers, we brought together leading thinkers, funders and media innovators to share their ideas and projects for an inspired digital future. The key theme for the morning was inclusion—from providing tech opportunities for all to ensuring access to knowledge for all. Wendy Hanamura of the Internet Archive served as the emcee, and David Rousseau of the Kaiser Family Foundation as the day’s host, welcoming attendees to the foundation’s Menlo Park headquarters. Watch videos from the day here. What do we want? We started with Van Jones who masterfully grounded our conversation in contrasting stories of hatred and exclusion versus those of love and inclusion. In the agricultural age, he noted, African Americans were property. In the industrial age African Americans were also at the bottom of the economic ladder and the last to be included in industrial revolution. Now with digital age, how will we create one that includes everyone? The good news? It’s only after we have a breakdown that we… Read More

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