Tuesday, October 23, 2012

Request for project summary/promotion material!

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Beyond the weekly status report, we would like you to put together a one-time only presentation/sum-up of your respective projects. This information will be used by the executive group to to present the course and the project groups on the soon-to-be-created public face of the course - the homepage futureofmedia.se. It can also be interesting for intra-course communication - what do other groups work on, whose work are you close to and should confer with?

Together with the executive group (esp. webmaster Johan L), we would thus like each group to provide:

  • The (new?) name of your group
  • An inspiring question/statement/proposal; "What if...", "In the future,...", "We will...", "Our dream is..."
  • A short summary/pitch (around 40-100 words) about your project. What will you do, what is your big idea, what will you look into, how will you do it? 
  • A picture (width 960 * height 480 pixels) of "something"; a logotype for your project, a photo that tries to capture a feeling etc. (see example below).

You might feel that it is slightly premature to state/pitch what you will do, but the goal is to get a wealth of materials so as to be able to mix and mash something up that can convey a theme and a feeling for promotion/ad/elevator pitch purposes - for example in an attempt to get sponsors to the final presentation!

Each group should "hand in" this material in the form of a blog post on the companion blog. Deadline in Tuesday October 30!

For inspiration, see this TED talk by Simon Sinek, "How great leaders inspire action" about the importance of answering the questions "why", "who" and "how".



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Monday, October 22, 2012

Instructions for the weekly status report!

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Each group should post a weekly status report on the course companion blog. Every course participant has previously gotten an invitation to contribute to the blog, but only around 25% have accepted the invitation and have the right to post stuff there - send me (Daniel) a mail if you want a new invitation and send it from the email address you want the invitation sent to.

Do note that except for the weekly status report, you will in a short while be asked to provide some extra information about your group. This info will be used to present the course and the project groups on the course's soon-to-be-created public face - the homepage futureofmedia.se. More info will follow in a separate blog post soon.


Here are the instructions for the weekly status report.

Deadline: Please submit your weekly status report every Friday starting this coming Friday (Oct 26), e.g. Nov 2, Nov 16, Nov 23, Nov 30. You don't need to provide a status report on Nov 9 (mid-term critique) or on Dec 7 (final presentation).

Content of each weekly report:

  • Group name. You have the option to change your group name right now. If so, please choose a rather "boring" but descriptive name - you can rename your project for the final presentation if you want a more funny, flashy, cryptic or cool name. We have two "hybrid magazines" groups right now - at least one group has to change it's name. 
  • What we have done. What you (your group) have done during the previous week (since the previous weekly report)
  • What we will do. What you will do next (next step(s) in your project)
  • Problems encountered. Either within the group or in relation to you plans and "external" entities. 
  • Changes in the project. "Evolution"/change of direction of your project (optional). If you have altered or changed the direction of your project (compared to the project plan or to previous status report) - please tell us why. Please specify why.
  • Other. Whatever you feel is important or necessary to add to the status report. 
  • Tag each blog post with your group name (or an abbreviation). 
You are welcome to add pictures, drawing, links etc. to your blog posts!


Comment: As stated before, not just the final results, but also the process is important in the course. Please see the weekly status reports not only as us (teachers) examining you (students), but as your opportunity to tell us (and impress us with) what you have lately done in your project group, as well as a backchannel to point out obstacles and problems you have encountered. It is also a good way to improve intra-course communication (between groups) - perhaps some groups partly do the same thing and should get in touch with each other?
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Friday, October 12, 2012

Coordination meeting #1

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We had the first meeting with the coordination group today. Here are those parts of the notes that should be of interest to everyone who takes the course:

- The final presentation will be held at 13-16 on Dec 7 in lecture hall F1 (500 seats!)
- There will be a general rehearsal the day before, Thu Dec 6. I have booked F1 from 13-20
- After the final presentation, I would like you to stay behind for a final summary & wrap-up

- Last year's projects are documented here if you want to have a look at The Future of Radio / Radio of the Future.

- Mid-term critique is scheduled for Nov 9 between 10-17 in lecture hall B1
- If you have any collisions with other courses, I would be very interested in knowing about them (to hopefully persuade other teachers to move stuff away from Nov 9). This is only interesting if not just one, but rather a group of students has this problem. Leave a comment here, or tell your project leader so we can discuss this at the next meeting with the coordination group.

- Next two meetings in the coordination group is Friday Oct 26 and Tuesday November 6 - both times in the seminar room 4523 (house D, 5th floor).

- Each group will write weekly status reports and post them to the companion blog. Deadlines will be on Fridays at 18.00. Since next week is exam week, the first deadlines will be Fri Oct 26, Fri Nov 2, Fri Nov 16 and so on. Remember that it is possible to include links, pictures, photos, movies on the blog! You will get more specific instructions next week (perhaps a template where you can see the categories you should fill out).
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Wednesday, October 10, 2012

Project groups contact info

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If you are unsure about which project group you are in, or who is in your project group (a few persons were missing on Monday), there is now a list in Bilda that you can check it out (/Contents/Project groups). Those who did not attend the seminar (Monday) have hopefully already been contacted by the other group members.

I will update that list with info about who the project leaders are as soon as I get your project plans. That way you can get hold of each other if the need arises later.
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Monday, October 8, 2012

Meetings with project groups Thu-Fri Oct 11-12

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All groups booked meetings (30 minutes) with Daniel and Leif on Thursday or Friday this week. We will primarily discuss your 2-3 pages long Project plans (please use the template in Bilda).

Do note that each groups must appoint a project leader (and a back-up). We have scheduled our first lunch meeting with the coordination group (Daniel, Leif, executive group + 12 project leaders) this coming Friday (Oct 12). Bring your own lunch and please show up in seminar room 1537 (house E floor 5) between 12-13 on Friday!

In fact, I wrote a blog post about what should happen in your projects this week already last week. Do read it now as a reminder!


Here is the schedule:

Thu Oct 11 - seminar room 1625 (house E top floor)
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08.30 Hybrid magazines
09.00 Future of journalism
09.30 Future of collecting
10.00 Future of magazine distribution
10.30 Spotify
11.00 Upping the revenue



Fri Oct 12 - seminar room 1635 (house E top floor)
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09.00 Usability issues
09.30 Audience of one
10.00 Senses
11.00 Hybrid magazines
15.00 Social recommendations
15.30 Dynamic ads
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Guest lecture 18 - Oct 10 (10-12) - Skagermark & Gylje


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Time and place: Wednesday October 10 at 10-12 in lecture hall K2.

Title: "Swimming against the tide? Glossy magazines in a digital world"
Guest lecturer: Pia Skagermark, Foreign Editor at Dagens Nyheter

Talk: Media consumption habits have changed - but have people changes? Or do they still want well-written stories, in-depth and investigative journalism? When publishers all over the world are mourning the decline in print publishing, we launch a glossy magazine with content that reflects one of Dagens Nyheters' core strengths: foreign journalism

About: Pia Skagermark is Foreign Editor at Dagens Nyheter, Sweden's largest morning newspaper with a daily circulation of some 380 000 copies. Pia is a journalist since 25 years and she was awarded "Stora Journalistpriset" [The Great Journalist Award] for investigative journalism in 1997. She is former Managing Editor at DN, is married to journalist Peter, 56 and has children Karl, 21, Alice, 15 and Viggo, 9.


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Title: "Visual journalism in a digital age"
Guest lecturer: Magnus Gylje, Editor K magazine, Svenska Dagbladet

Talk: Digital platforms create unique opportunities for visual storytelling and in-depth journalism. I will talk about the creation and production of Svenska Dagbladet's Ipad magazine SvD Insikt, awarded best tablet experience by the Society for News Design alongside The Guardian and National Geographic. I will also tell you why we decided to quit publishing Insikt in September this year, after having published 12 issues as well as the key learnings from working with tablets and what I think the future holds for visual journalism.

About: Magnus Gylje is the editor of K magazine, the weekend culture magazine of Swedish morning newspaper Svenska Dagbladet. He was also the editor of the Ipad magazine SvD Insikt. Magnus has worked in journalism for 15 years, focusing on culture, but also covering foreign and domestic affairs. He holds a masters degree in Psychology from Uppsala University and Edinburgh University. He lives in Stockholm with his family.

Preparations: Ipad owners can buy a digital issue of SvD Insikt. Number 7 is recommended. Non-Ipad owners: pick up a copy of K magazine - published together with Svenska Dagbladet every Friday, Saturday and Sunday.
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Guest Lecture 17 - Oct 10 (8-10) - Milad Hossainzadeh


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Time and place: Wednesday October 10 at 8-10 in lecture hall K2.

Title: "Thinking inside the box from outside!"
Guest lecturer: Milad Hossainzadeh, Ba(h) Dip.M.Arch

Talk: What happens to an idea when approached from different angles and different cultural views? Is there a limit on how radical an idea can be? What then are the social, cultural, behavioral, economical, political, technical and ecological consequences?

This lecture will explore how lateral thinking can highlight the exception in an idea, and expand our perception of bringing playfulness into a concept. In order to push forward, we will expose the consequences and create temporary realities where we allow for a critical discussion to take place.

About: Milad Hossainzadeh is a young architect and entrepreneur who was born in Iran. He grew up in Sweden and has lived in London where he graduated from UCL The Bartlett School of Architecture. He is currently based in Stockholm, working at the leading Scandinavian architectural firm White. He shares his time as a member of Urban Land Institute and the recent startup of BLINK - a transnational think tank for responsive ideas of changes in lifestyles, cities, cultures and economies.
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