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Communications and Society Program
FOCAS 2008 Agenda
Overview
The Aspen Institute Communications and Society Program presents its annual policy Forum on Communications and Society on the theme of Media and Democracy to be held at the Aspen Institute Aspen Meadows Campus in Aspen, Colorado, August 10-12, 2008. The sessions will be held in conjunction with the Knight Commission on the Information Needs of Communities in a Democracy.
The purpose of the Forum is to develop recommendations for leaders in media, government, politics, and other societal institutions to promote positive democratic values through the various communications media without undue governmental regulation. The Forum will explore how the new technological and behavioral environments are changing the way that media—old and new—will serve citizenry in a democracy.
The Knight Commission, co-chaired by Theodore B. Olson and Marissa Mayer, is composed of 15 luminaries from the worlds of media, community and policy. The aim of the Commission is to assess the information needs of a community, to survey how well media meet those needs and to make recommendations for how to improve in new and better ways. This conference affords the Commission an opportunity to interact with leaders in related fields, and collaborate on how media can better serve democratic values in the United States and beyond.
The Forum will begin with a panel from the Knight Commission, which will meet the day before. FOCAS Members will then break into four distinct Rountables, two occurring each day. Individual participants will participate in one of the two Roundtables each day. In addition, all FOCAS Members will have an opportunity to participate in one of three Working Groups to develop more specific recommendations. The final day will consist of reports from each of the Working Groups with the purpose of finalizing recommendations for the Knight Commission to consider as well as other media, governmental and political institutions.
All sessions including, lunch discussions, will take place in the Doerr-Hosier Center on the Aspen Meadows Campus.
August 9, 2008:
9:00 a.m. – 5:00 p.m. Pre-conference Meeting of the Knight Commission on the Information Needs of Communities in a Democracy. FOCAS participants are welcome to observe.
7:00 p.m.— 8:30 p.m. Pre-conference Reception for FOCAS Participants
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August 10 |
August 11 |
August 12 |
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8:30 a.m. – 9:45 a.m. Introduction and Opening Remarks Plenary Session:
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8:30 a.m. – 9:45 a.m. Plenary Session: The 2008 Election
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8:45 a.m. – 9:45 a.m. Plenary Session: Recommendations for Citizenship Solutions Presentation of working group proposals
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9:45 a.m. – 11:10 a.m. Roundtable A: Media and Elections Opening Remarks |
9:45 a.m. – 11:10 a.m. Roundtable C: Information Rights and Responsibilities of Citizenship Opening Remarks |
9:45 a.m. – 10:45 a.m. Plenary Session: Recommendations for Media Solutions Presentation of working group proposals |
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11:35 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. Roundtable B: Media and Public Engagement Opening Remarks |
11:35 a.m. – 1:00 p.m. Roundtable D: Global Citizenship and the Media Opening Remarks
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11:00 a.m. – 12:00 p.m. Plenary Session:
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1:00 p.m. – 2:15 p.m. Informal Lunch |
1:00 p.m. – 2:15 p.m. Informal Lunch |
12:00 p.m. – 12:30 p.m. Conclusions and Observations
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2:15 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. Working Groups |
2:15 p.m. – 4:00 p.m. Working Groups |
12:30 p.m. Informal Lunch
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6:30 p.m. – 9:00 p.m. Private Reception at the home of Joan Fabry and Michael Klein |
6:30 p.m. – 8:30 p.m. Private Reception at the Aspen Institute
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Click here to download the 2008 FOCAS agenda.