Digital Future of Public Media: Recent and Upcoming Events

On the third annual "Earth Day for the Internet", communities across the country are holding events to learn about and advocate for that marvel of modern infrastructure, the Internet. In the nation's capital, advocates, experts and government representatives will honor OneWebDay, September 22, with a tribute to the Internet's role in politics and the politics of the Internet.

Organizers in DC are embracing OneWebDay 2008's theme of participation in democracy. They launched an e-Democracy time capsule on August 22, 2008 and… more

In its recent report, Rising Above the Gathering Storm, the National Academies concluded what many have long feared to be true -- that the nation's outdated K-12 educational system is inadequately preparing America's youth for the jobs and global competition of the 21st Century. One of the most promising ways to remedy this is by investing in the research and development of advanced learning technologies, a.k.a. “Serious Games.” To commemorate House Innovation Week, the New America Foundation and Digital Promise,… more

In its recent report, Rising Above the Gathering Storm, the National Academies concluded what many have long feared to be true — that the nation's outdated K-12 educational system is inadequately preparing America's youth for the jobs and global competition of the 21st Century. One of the most promising ways to remedy this is by investing in the research and development of advanced learning technologies, a.k.a. “Serious Games.” We all know of the power of video games to captivate and… more

As the era of broadcasting as a primarily scheduled and one-way service fades to black, public broadcasting both here and abroad will need to transform itself to keep pace with commercial media. As the public becomes accustomed to consuming video anytime and anyplace -- including in bite-size segments on mobile wireless devices 24/7 -- traditional broadcasting will be eclipsed by a wide variety of new digital media formats and distribution platforms.

Our distinguished panel will offer… more

Business, philanthropic, education and public broadcasting leaders from across the country gather in Washington, DC today for the Digital Future Initiative (DFI) Summit, an invitation-only event where participants will explore the future of America’s public service media.

The Summit features the release of the final report of the bipartisan DFI panel and the launch of working groups to implement key DFI recommendations to develop, fund and launch major new initiatives addressing… more

Please join the New America Foundation and Digital Promise for an invitation only Congressional Breakfast Briefing to mark the release of two new education papers on America's stagnant educational productivity and the role e-learning R&D could play to increase it. Learn why e-learning R&D is prone to market failure and why it makes sense to fund e-learning R&D the way NSF funds scientific research and NIH funds health research.

This is the second public meeting of the Digital Future Initiative, a distinguished panel whose mission is to develop a vision for the digital future of public broadcasting. At this conference, the nation's most innovative local public stations present their visions for the greatly enhanced programming and community services made possible by digital technologies. This forum previews visions for digital learning services, civic engagement and broad-based community partnerships, as well as the public debate over how to adequately fund America's… more

As commercial stations prepare to leverage the enormous potential of digital broadcasting, it remains unclear whether America's non-commercial broadcasters will have the resources to keep pace -- and to deliver the enhanced community services that digital multi-casting and interactive programming make possible. The presidents of the principal public broadcasting entities will articulate their vision for America's DTV future -- and announce the launch of an Enhanced Funding Initiative to propose a plan for a sustainable source of funding for… more

Because the airwaves are owned equally by all Americans, revenue from spectrum auctions and fees could be earmarked for reinvestment in new public assets for the digital era-including quality children's programming, educational innovation, digitizing our cultural inheritance, and expanded civic discourse. A spectrum trust could help to fulfill the public interest obligations of broadcasters and other commercial spectrum users. One such proposal, the Digital Opportunity Investment Trust (DOIT), follows in the footsteps of such historic reinvestments as the… more