June 24

• Opening Thoughts on the Study of Community Information Needs in a Democracy
• Memorandum on Commission Research Plan
• Introductory Remarks by Peter Shane

The Commission’s inaugural meeting will be devoted to four key themes that Commissioners have identified as important to our overall inquiry: democracy, economics, human behavior, and technology. (Journalism will be a focus of the August 9 meeting in Aspen.) No one panel can exhaust any of these topics, but the presentations have been chosen to help the Commission set a direction for further research and discussion.

In the morning, Bryan Alexander, director of research for the National Institute for Technology and Liberal Education will lead off with a “big picture” presentation on the ways in which new technologies are transforming and will continue to transform the processes of communication and information flow in local communities. He will be followed by Michael Wood-Lewis, co-founder of Front Porch Forum, an online neighborhood networking initiative that exemplifies one way in which local communities are already deploying new technologies to build social capital and improve information flow.

Over lunch, Vincent Price, Steven H. Chaffee Professor of Communication and Political Science and Associate Provost at the University of Pennsylvania, will discuss the ways in which the transformation of our media landscape is affecting different aspects of the ways in which communities at all levels engage the processes of democratic decision making.

The first afternoon panel is intended to help surface key issues with regard to the economics of information flow: Why are traditional media suffering economically? Can the free market successfully support multiple outlets of quality news and information in most markets? What media business models are going to be attractive to investors over the next five years. Panelists are Barbara Cohen, president of Kannon Consulting, and Jeffrey Stevenson, Managing Partner and Co-Chief Executive Officer of the private equity firm, Veronis Suhler Stevenson.

The final panel will focus on “Connecting People With Information” from two complementary perspectives. Jon Wilkins of McKinsey & Co. will first discuss his research on how people consume media. He will be followed by Beverley Wheeler, executive director of the District of Columbia State Board of Education and past director of Neighborhood Action under former D.C. Mayor Anthony Williams. Ms. Wheeler will discuss the D.C. government’s strategies for engaging the public in District budgeting issues, on a neighborhood-by-neighborhood basis, focusing on what it took to connect citizens to “information flow” in this significant area.

All speakers have been assigned specific time limits in order to preserve time for discussion within the Commission and between the Commission and the presenters throughout the day. It is anticipated that the various speakers’ perspectives and expertise will help the Commission shape a fruitful agenda for continued research and deliberation.