August Update: Meet the new editorial team, classes and more

In last month’s update, we introduced you to the Daily Planet’s new editor, Kristoffer Tigue, and a couple of months ago we introduced our new community engagement editor, Cirien Saadeh. This month, I’d like you to meet the rest of the editorial team that is working with Kristoffer: Paige Elliott, Luce Guillen-Givens, and Morgan Halaska. Luce and Morgan have been working with us for several years now behind the scenes, as editorial assistants, but we’re asking them to take on more responsibility, and want to give them more recognition for the work they do.

Paige Elliott is a multimedia storyteller and reporter born and raised in south Minneapolis. Paige obtained a Bachelor’s of Arts Degree in Communications from the University of Minnesota’s I.D.I.M. program, and recently expanded her communications skills through Takoda Institute’s Public Relations program. Paige began her work with the Planet through the 2013 Media Skills Fellowship and has continued working as a freelance reporter covering events, feature profiles, seasonal and weekend roundups, election coverage, and assisting in social media engagement. Paige is excited to be a member of TC Daily Planet’s new Editorial Team, and looks forward to her expanded role in assisting with visual storytelling on the Daily Planet.

Luce Guillen-Givins has lived in the Twin Cities since 2002, and has worked as an editorial assistant for the Daily Planet since 2010. When she’s not working for the Daily Planet, she’s a very engaged political activist. Luce has taken on a variety of tasks for the Daily Planet, most notably combing through media partners’ content gathering stories to repost to our site – a role that we are asking her to expand.

Scroll down to read our staff reports, and a list of upcoming classes. The summer is usually a slow time for classes, but this month’s listings are bolstered with class offerings from our friends at the Twin Cities Photo Group and the Saint Paul Neighborhood Network.

And please remember: your support of the Twin Cities Media Alliance makes all of this work possible.  To donate, visit our secure online donation page, or send a check to TCMA, 2600 E. Franklin #2, Minneapolis MN 55406.

Thanks,

Jeremy Iggers, executive director

Staff reports: 

Editor Kristoffer Tigue reports:

What a weird July. The weather was cool and the news was hot. We had several very impressive stories break this last month, including St. Thomas voting against unionizing their adjunct professors, the death of a beloved Somali singer and a beloved community leader, an incredibly sad blog pleading for change to come to the 19 bus route in Minneapolis after a fatal shooting occurred in front of his house, an incredibly beautiful collection of Minneapolis’ outdoor murals, a South Minneapolis home becoming a major part of national history, a smart analysis of a city-wide trend after a St. Paul school closed their music program, and even a heated protest that resulted in several arrests at senator Franken’s campaign office. We’d like to welcome all the new contributors we met this month and we look forward to many more in the coming months, especially as the news cycle begins to pick up. We’ve held off on our Newsroom Cafes this month, as I settle into my new position and re-organize our plans, but expect some big announcements over the next few weeks. And if August and September are half as lively as our strange July, expect some great new stories from us.

Program manager for Training and Engagement Bruce Johansen reports: 

August marks the kickoff of a six-month media & communications training program that TCMA is organizing for a small cohort ofPhillips Family Foundation grantees. This program is designed to show grantees how to use various communications tools to better tell their stories, raise awareness for stronger results, and engage stakeholders. Also in August, we’ll be providing a day-long, customized workshop on messaging for Praxis International, a nonprofit research and training organization that works toward the elimination of violence in the lives of women and children, and continuing our work with the Midwest Independent Booksellers Association. If you’re interested in photography and videography, take note that our class listings now include workshops and classes offered by Saint Paul Neighborhood Network (SPNN) and the Twin Cities Photography Group. Of special note this month: Practical Journalism, an SPNN workshop presented by award-winning photojournalist Luis Iglesias. Things are a bit quiet at the libraries in August (that changes big time in September!), however, TC Media Alliance instructor Zan Tomko is offering a class on taking great photos with point-and-shoot and smartphone cameras at R.H. Stafford Library in Woodbury. Finally, we have lots of exciting classes in the works for fall, including a series around the theme of “lifting your voice: the power to tell your story on your own terms.” Lissa Jones, Wing Young Huie, Kyle Tran Myhre (Guante), Nancy Musinguzi, and TC Daily Planet editor Kristoffer Tigue are among those planning to take part. And after a brief hiatus, our Newsroom Cafes and Social Media Clinics will be returning, with some intriguing changes. Stay tuned for details!

Community engagement editor Cirien Saadeh reports: 

July was an incredibly exciting month for the TCDP and August is shaping up to be the same! We spent much of July welcoming new editor Kristoffer into our ranks, whilst also planning a new college

outreach program and internship program and other new programming, at the same time as we move into our new office. We’re working around the clock and well on our way to making these new plans a reality and we are even more excited to be sharing them with our community members in the coming weeks.

Classes: