blogging - A public conversation with Rebecca MacKinnon


The former Beijing and Shanghai bureau chief of CNN Rebecca MacKinnon left early this year her job at CNN, joined the Shorenstein Foundation at Harvard University as a fellow and started a new life as a weblogger on North Korea. With the help of diplomats, business people and journalist she developed a style of participatory journalism that developed into an example for the way that the internet might or might not change the face of traditional media and foreign correspondence.

Rebecca will be next week in Shanghai and on Tuesday 22 June she will attend two events of our events. Around nine o’clock a public conversation with Rebecca will start at the third floor of Sasha’s, attended by a diverse audience of foreign correspondents, future Chinese journalists, webloggers and people who are interested in North Korea. The mildly moderated session will cover her experiences with the traditional media, how she thinks the internet and weblogging can contribute – or undermine – foreign correspondence, and on North Korea itself. Can weblogging develop into a credible source of information, a viable financial source of information, or should we forget about that? Should traditional media adopt webloggers, and should webloggers let themselves be adopted?

Drinks are available for 30 Rmb, entrance and finger food will be free. Sasha’s as also free Wifi-access so blogging is possible. Sasha’s can be fond at the corner of Hengshan Road and Dongping Road.

Before that we will have at 7:30 PM a traditional webloggers dinner for all that are interested nearby at a rather affordable price. Place will be announced to those who RSVP as soon as we have an idea about how many people will attend.

Please do RSVP before Monday 21 June noon to participate in this unique event at fons@chinaherald.net
Do tell me which of the two events you want to attend and how many people you want to take along.

Do check my weblog at www.chinaherald.net for more background and pointers for available papers.