Tag Archives: initiative

Investigative journalism initiative announced last week, initial focus this week

Tutwiler photoAlabama Media Group, producers of The Birmingham News and AL.com, and the Center for Investigative Reporting (CIR) announced a collaborative initiative, the Alabama Investigative Journalism Lab, last week. The lab is set to focus on journalism rich in digital storytelling and audience engagement based on the blog post and press release on CIR’s website on February 27.

CIR executive director Robert J. Rosenthal will serve as senior adviser for three months. A post describing the partnership on AL.com last week says the former award-winning reporter and editor will also serve as a contributor to a new fellowship established in the lab.

Among the first topics the lab will be focusing its attention, you ask? Prisons. The topic is not one the news organization has necessarily ignored; it all but predicted a lawsuit or investigation in a January 2012 editorial. AL.com has also been working on a series of pieces looking at the effects of the Affordable Care Act on the state of Alabama.

It will be interesting to see the types of collaborative efforts the new partnership will forge here in central Alabama. Two possible local partners that stand out are WIAT (CBS42) and WBRC (Fox 6) due to reports filed by Kaitlin McCulley and Beth Shelburne (respectively) in 2012 when the Equal Justice Initiative filed a complaint with the U.S. Department of Justice about the the Julia Tutwiler Prison for Women. The subsequent investigation led to a damning report from the federal agency and the national publications like The New York Times asking if it’s enough to finally lead to change for the state system.

WIAT uploaded McCulley’s three-part series from 2012 to YouTube in January. Shelburne’s November 2012 follow-up to her original piece from that May is available on the station’s website, as is a follow-up post from last spring. The Justice for the Women of Tutwiler Prison fan page on Facebook shows some other potential partners for at least a portion of this new effort.

The new initiative is well underway, as this piece filed by Stan Diel today demonstrates. They are using the hashtag #alprisons to make it easier to follow via social networks.

Area taxis become latest tool in efforts to fight crime

T.O.P. in BaltimoreThe next time you see one of the city’s Yellow Cabs rolling through Birmingham city streets, realize they might be doing a little more than just heading to their next fare. They’re probably helping keep your neighborhood safe.

The Birmingham News reported early Monday morning about the new Taxis on Patrol initiative underway courtesy of the city’s police department and Yellow Cab of Birmingham. It’s not the first civic-minded initiative undertaken by the company as it’s also coordinated a Safe Ride Home initiative popular during the holiday season in recent years.

A similar project started in Baltimore, MD in the 1970s. Recent success in Denver, CO has resulted in an increased amount of adoption across the country, including communities like Broward County, FL; Nassau County, NYSavannah, GA; and Toledo, OH.

While our local effort is based on the Citizens on Patrol initiative, the recent announcement could also be seen as part of a larger effort underway by the Taxicab, Limousine & Paratransit Foundation (TLPF) to see a broader adoption of the Transportation On Patrol (TOP) educational program nationwide – one that’s been underway since last April.

Photo: Yellow Cab with T.O.P. badge in Baltimore, MD, April 2012.

United Way launches new online initiative

iamunited.org screenshotThe United Way of Central Alabama has launched a new online initiative inspired by the national organization’s long-running “Live United” campaign.

The new “I am United” website presents a new way for the UWCA to “promote opportunity and engagement among those who want to help” while leveraging Facebook accounts.

Visitors must log in using their Facebook account to fully engage with the site, allowing them to potentially cross-post ways they’re engaging in the community, earn badges to let others know about their level of participation and learn about volunteer opportunities via an events calendar. You’ll also be able to nominate “champions.”

It does not replace the organization’s official website, which currently reminds us that they reached their 2010 goal by raising more than $37.2 million. The organization has also re-branded their YouTube and Twitter profile accordingly.

StoryCorps comes to Birmingham in 2011

Story Corps. Omar Omar/Flickr.Yesterday the Birmingham Business Alliance announced via their newsletter that StoryCorps was setting up shop in Birmingham, AL in the near future. The organization’s website currently says that their mobile tour stop will take place from January 6 – 29, though specific details about the location are currently not available.

People interested in participating in the long-running project will be able to make reservations on December 23 at 10 a.m. CT with additional slots becoming available on January 7.

The non-profit organization has been around since 2003 and according to their website, they’ll be partnering with WBHM during their stay in the Magic City. This will be their second stop in the coming weeks in Alabama; they will be in Montgomery starting this Thursday through December 11 as part of their StoryCorps Griot Initiative.

If neither of those dates work for you, this would be a good time to remember that this year’s National Day of Listening is November 26.

Photo: Story Corps. Omar Omar/Flickr.