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What's new at the Norman Lear Center
 Two things happened recently that remind me why I love working at the Lear Center. First a local TV reporter called to say his station had assigned him to cover City Hall; he thought our Lear Center report on how little coverage Los Angeles TV news gives to civic life was the reason why. Then the programming director of another broadcaster got in touch; his station wants to improve how it serves Southern California, and he's using that report to get the lay of the land. We want our work to have an impact. It's great when we hear that it does. Here's an update on what we've been up to lately.
Martin Kaplan
Director, The Norman Lear Center
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It Takes Three to Tango
2010 Everett M. Rogers Award
Using entertainment for social change poses a big challenge for science, policy and practice, says Martine Bouman, director of Center Media & Health in the Netherlands. Scriptwriters like to tell a good story; subject matter experts are keen on conveying accurate facts; behavioral scientists want to contribute to social change. Each of them have their own professional skills, dreams and ambitions. How can we create a chemistry that is fun and effective for all of them? What are the scenic routes and pitfalls on this journey?
At a special colloquium at USC Annenberg, the first woman to win the Rogers Award shared her research and experience in entertainment education collaboration and illustrated it with examples from Dutch soap operas and dramatic series.
Watch video of the colloquium and download the full press release.
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The Business & Culture of Social Media
 Lear Center deputy director Johanna Blakley explored how social media has forever altered the media landscape, and how the media business must adapt to identify new audiences, as part of Social Media Week, sponsored by the USC Institute for Multimedia Literacy.
At the end of October, in Barcelona, Spain, she will join experts from around the world to speak about copyright and creativity at the Free Culture Forum.
Download The Business & Culture of Social Media.
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The Digital Disruption of Newspapers
 First the boundary between news and entertainment got blurred. Now the newspaper industry is suffering from the collapse of the advertising market, the consumer expectation that online news is free, and the prevalence of search - rather than brand - as a route to information. The consequences have been declining circulation, accompanied by cutbacks of reporters and news bureaus, as well as mergers and bankruptcies.
This is one of three seminars on "Entertainment in a Digital Context" that Marty Kaplan conducted at the Internet Interdisciplinary Institute of the Open University of Catalonia, in Barcelona.
Watch video here.
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2010 Sentinel for Health Awards
The Lear Center's Hollywood, Health & Society program honored exemplary portrayals of health issues in scripted television content at the Writers Guild of America West.
The Lifetime drama Army Wives won first place in the Primetime Drama category for a diabetes storyline. Other winners include Sesame Street, Private Practice, El Cartel 2 and Law & Order: SVU.
See a full list of winners here and watch video of the awards here.
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Upcoming Events
 Popular Music Project: Raymond Roker Former DJ and URB magazine co-founder Raymond Roker is actively imagining new avenues for digital media, music and social networking to commingle in creative ways. The Lear Center's Pop Music Project will host a presentation by Roker about his work and the challenges and promises of the new media landscape.
Oct. 7, 7:00 pm.
USC Annenberg
Room 207
More information
 Why Me? A Visions & Voices Event
Joe Saltzman will screen the first TV documentary on breast cancer, an hour-long program called Why Me? The award-winning program has been credited with saving thousands of lives. A panel of communication experts will discuss how the program paved the way for contemporary approaches to documentary making.
Oct. 21, 6:30 pm Annenberg Auditorium
More information
The NEW New MediaMarty Kaplan joins industry speakers at this exploration of the impact of new media on traditional entertainment; the role of social media in the marketing and distribution of content; and the evolving ways in which entertainment is made, defined and consumed. October 30,
8:30 am - 2:00 pmLuxe Hotel Sunset Blvd.More information
Follow Us:
To RSVP for Lear Center events please email enter@usc.edu
For more information about the projects and events of the USC Annenberg Norman Lear Center, please visit us at learcenter.org. |
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