Following Up After The Matt Davis Interview

by Betsy Richter on March 13, 2010

in Analysis

As I expected, Matt was provocative, passionate, and articulate. But I wasn’t entirely on my game (I blame the rare dose of Sudafed I’d taken to fight off the cold that’s sweeping through the greater PDX metro area) — thus, I didn’t clarify or correct some of Matt’s, um, misperceptions as strongly as I should have during the show itself.

Luckily for me, the host (especially one who also owns & manages her own website) gets the last word here. There’ve also been some post-show developments I’d like to let people know about. So without further ado:

  1. Abraham Hyatt: Yes, the man’s clearly a journalist — as several of you let me know in no uncertain terms after the show (and as was made clear in last week’s show). No, he’s not part of the Oregon News Incubator experiment (more about this in a minute). And no, he’s not going to get drawn into the crosshairs here (or anywhere else, for that matter) defending his honor — he’ll let his actions speak for him instead.
  2. WMTM: While ONI is starting to spread its wings a bit, there are still other efforts going on that got their start at the We Make The Media conference. Ron Buel’s involved in the work being done with the investigative journalism team, and I understand there are other nascent efforts still simmering, even as I write this. I hope to pull in some of those folks for a future show…!
  3. ONI: The Oregon News Incubator (at a temporary placeholder site) was never meant to fill Matt’s perceived void of original, non-profit, investigative local journalism in Portland, nor is it meant to be a news outlet or local wire service itself. Instead, a small team of freelance journalists & media producers wanted to band together to create a newsroom co-working space of their very own — one where they share desks, knowledge, tools, resources and information. ONI and the Portland Sentinel are now engaged in a 30-day pilot program wherein ONI members receive assignments from and produce content for the Sentinel in exchange for the use of office space and equipment. ONI member T.A. Barnhart contributed a piece on the Multnomah County commissioners’ race as part of that arrangement. (Full disclosure: I’m a member/supporter of ONI.)
  4. Digital Journalism 2010: Conference organizer Abraham Hyatt broke this news yesterday on Twitter:


Since I’m still under the influence of one of the worst colds I’ve had in a while (although I’m refraining from the Sudafed this time around), I’m quite sure I’ve missed something. Do let me know where I got it wrong, or where we still might need to clarify, won’t you?

And do come back next week, when I’ll be talking with Aaron Weiss (known to most of us simply as ‘producer Aaron’) about the work he’s done with Live @ 7, how it led to a promotion to Integration Manager for KGW, and what that’ll mean for the station as a whole. Whoops — Aaron’s not able to join us this week after all, stay tuned for an extra-special guest announcement instead…!

Tagged as: Abraham Hyatt, Digital Journalism Camp 2010, Matt Davis, ONI, Oregon News Incubator, Portland Sentinel, T.A. Barnhart, the Sentinel, We Make The Media, WMTM

  • http://jennifer-willis.com/ Jennifer Willis

    Nice job, Betsy — both on the live interview and with this follow-up.

    I think you’ve given a nice description of what ONI is, and what it’s not. This work group grew out of a discussion at WMTM about how independents — freelancers who work for many media clients (newspapers, magazines, websites, etc.) and aren’t on staff anywhere — can easily fall into isolation working from a solo office, and that we definitely miss out on the typical “newsroom” experience of being able to share leads, brainstorm ideas and approaches, share resources and skills and generally benefit from a collaborative environment.

    I will add that ONI is made up of members from a range of backgrounds — those with experience in other industries who are new to journalism and content creation, those who write periodically as a natural extension of their daily work, and those who write full-time (or, in this economic climate, are at least trying to write full-time). Our group is not exclusive to Portland as far as content is concerned: Some of us are covering local and hyper-local issues and stories, while others are contributing nationally and internationally.

    And Betsy, don’t worry about how you described my work. Religion was the beat I covered at the very beginning of my journalism career — for Style Magazine back in Richmond, Virginia. I’m good at human interest — the “lighter side,” as you called it” — and I like drawing attention to people making a difference in the world. It’s what works for me. :)

    I do agree with Matt about the dearth of important Portland coverage. I think it will take more than the efforts of any single group to rectify this, and I applaud those who are willing to stand up and call for the work, and those who step up and do it.

    I think a very real challenge is financial — making sure the people doing the work are fairly compensated, so they don’t end up going hungry or losing their homes in the process. (That problem is more real than many people realize.)

    Local stories were once my bread-and-butter. I wrote a huge amount for The Portland Tribune when they still had a freelance budget — and before they laid off all of my editors.

    Per the trial agreement between ONI and The Sentinel, I’m now working on my first piece for The Sentinel, which should go live this coming week.

    I think that’s plenty out of me for now. Thanks again, Betsy, for starting this radio program, and for your active participation in WMTM and ONI.

    And feel better soon!

  • http://jennifer-willis.com Jennifer Willis

    Nice job, Betsy — both on the live interview and with this follow-up.

    I think you’ve given a nice description of what ONI is, and what it’s not. This work group grew out of a discussion at WMTM about how independents — freelancers who work for many media clients (newspapers, magazines, websites, etc.) and aren’t on staff anywhere — can easily fall into isolation working from a solo office, and that we definitely miss out on the typical “newsroom” experience of being able to share leads, brainstorm ideas and approaches, share resources and skills and generally benefit from a collaborative environment.

    I will add that ONI is made up of members from a range of backgrounds — those with experience in other industries who are new to journalism and content creation, those who write periodically as a natural extension of their daily work, and those who write full-time (or, in this economic climate, are at least trying to write full-time). Our group is not exclusive to Portland as far as content is concerned: Some of us are covering local and hyper-local issues and stories, while others are contributing nationally and internationally.

    And Betsy, don’t worry about how you described my work. Religion was the beat I covered at the very beginning of my journalism career — for Style Magazine back in Richmond, Virginia. I’m good at human interest — the “lighter side,” as you called it” — and I like drawing attention to people making a difference in the world. It’s what works for me. :)

    I do agree with Matt about the dearth of important Portland coverage. I think it will take more than the efforts of any single group to rectify this, and I applaud those who are willing to stand up and call for the work, and those who step up and do it.

    I think a very real challenge is financial — making sure the people doing the work are fairly compensated, so they don’t end up going hungry or losing their homes in the process. (That problem is more real than many people realize.)

    Local stories were once my bread-and-butter. I wrote a huge amount for The Portland Tribune when they still had a freelance budget — and before they laid off all of my editors.

    Per the trial agreement between ONI and The Sentinel, I’m now working on my first piece for The Sentinel, which should go live this coming week.

    I think that’s plenty out of me for now. Thanks again, Betsy, for starting this radio program, and for your active participation in WMTM and ONI.

    And feel better soon!

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