From Eric Newton, VP/Journalism Program, Knight Foundation:

Much well-deserved buzz over the Reconstruction of American Journalism, a new report by Leonard Downie, Jr., and Michael Schudson. To its credit, Columbia Journalism Review is reporting even critical reaction. Harvard's Nieman Journalism Lab calls the report "a welcome palate cleanser."

The report supports easier nonprofit designation for news organizations, more foundation money for journalism, changing the Corporation for Public Broadcasting into the Corporation for Public Media, more news organizations based at universities, an FCC Fund for Local News and greater government transparency. The document credits Knight Foundation's work in media innovation. (More on foundation support for news can be found here, for example, and more on open government can be found here.)

On Oct. 2, the Knight Commission on the Information Needs of Communities in a Democracy issued its own report with 15 recommendations for improving the flow of news and information to communities. Topping that list: universal broadband access, digital literacy and greater news innovation in both the public and private sector.

If you've been following this blog, you probably already know Knight Foundation is giving $3.3 million to libraries in 12 communities to transform them into digital centers for their communities. We often think of libraries as being good places to find books, and they are. But in the 21st Century, they're serving many other functions as well, and this grant is about expanding those functions.

Here are five ways these grants will help communities:

• They'll create and expand wifi access.Increased bandwidth and new hardware in communities such as Wichita, Kan., and Myrtle Beach, S.C., will allow libraries to better meet a vastly expanding need for Internet access. Wichita's public library system has seen demand for Internet access increase by 25 percent (pdf) over the last year alone.


• They'll allow the libraries to purchase new equipment. In places such as Tallahassee, Fla., and Conway, S.C., money from these grants will cover the costs of updated equipment, including dozens of laptops for patrons to use all throughout the library. These additional capacities will greatly increase the ability of the library to serve patrons. In Tallahassee, for example, the new computing power is expected to mean an additional 380,000 hours of Internet access a year.


• They'll bring the capabilities of the library to under-served communities. Libraries are more than physical buildings. In places such as Lexington, Ky.,, Knight's grants will go towards the creation of mobile computing labs, enabling libraries to reach rural areas, retirement complexes and neighborhood centers.


• They'll help people find jobs.Lacking Internet access to search for jobs and correspond with prospective employers can leave job-seekers at a profound disadvantage. To help provide relief from a severe recession, Knight's grants will allow libraries to beef up their services for the unemployed. In Charlotte, S.C., for example, our grant will fund the creation of a Job Help Center, projected to assist 22,500 residents in its first year of existence. As a reminder of how powerful this assistance can be, don't miss this video featuring a patron of the library system in Charlotte.


• They'll help train people on using digital technologies. In many communities, the local library is the chief hub for continuing education. As digital skills become increasingly vital for citizens to actively participate in their democracy, these grants will allow libraries to give patrons critical training in digital technologies.

 

Marly Falcon is a contributing blogger at Knight Foundation

Journalists are anxious to shift from print-only responsibilities in the newsroom to multimedia responsibilities, according to the survey' 'Life beyond print: Newspaper journalists' digital appetite'. The survey is part of a report issued by the Media Management Center.

Out of almost 3,800 journalists in print, online or hybrid jobs at 79 U.S. newspapers surveyed, most were found to be involved in digital activities within their personal lives and wanting the same digital involvement at the workplace.

The typical newspaper newsroom in 2009, according to Life beyond print, has six types of journalists ranging from the 'Digitals' who spend a great deal of time online, to the 'Turn Back the Clock' type, who wish print was still the ultimate ruler. As the chart'shows, there also'is the extreme 'Major Shift' group, which'would give five times its effort to online if it could. And the'"Moderately More" group, which would like its digital and print efforts to be equal within the newsroom.