FALL 2014
        
Marty Kaplan Norman Lear Center
Even if I didn't know and love him, I'd be telling everyone about Norman Lear's new - and first - book, Even This I Get to Experience. A hilarious, moving and beautifully written memoir.  Eager to hear what you think!  
Understanding Web Metrics and "Engaged Minutes"
The Media Impact Project released a Web Metrics Guide - the first in a series - to help journalists and media organizations understand what digital measurement tools can tell them. MIP also hosted an online discussion with industry and academic experts about using an "engaged minutes" metric; kicked off by ProPublica president Richard Tofel, it prompted responses from Upworthy, Chartbeat, The Financial Times and others. Also: The New York Times featured Participant Media's Impact Index, which MIP has consulted on.
 
Hollywood, Health & Society
If we keep burning fossil fuels at the current rate, by 2036 the consequences could be irreversible, says scientist Michael E. Mann.  The people who'd pay the price for that are featured in this new short video made and just released by Hollywood, Health & Society on the eve of the UN Summit on Climate Change.   

HH&S produced two panels about changes in access to health care and their depictions in entertainment: in New York, co-sponsored by the Writers Guild of America, East, and in L.A., in partnership with the WGA, West. Creators from top TV shows were joined by health experts and everyday people who told stories about health care crises in their lives. 

 

Watch panel highlights here.
Eleven finalists have been chosen for the 2014 Sentinel Awards, showcasing topics such as substance abuse, Asperger's syndrome, HIV/AIDS and climate change. Now in its 15th year, the Sentinel Awards recognize exemplary television storylines that inform, educate and motivate viewers to make choices for healthier and safer lives.
Engaging Audiences & Measuring Impact 
Johanna Blakley traveled to India to discuss the social impact of social media there, and she gave a keynote on The Art & Science of Engagement at Toronto's HotDocs film festival, revealing the results of a Lear Center study of Waiting for "Superman." She also spoke about media choices at Drexel University. Back in LA, Blakley moderated a panel with leaders from MOCA, the Hammer and the Music Center on how they use (or don't use) data to engage audiences. She also discussed Netflix on NPR's On the Media and the TED Radio Hour featured her fashion and copyright research. 
Cronkite Award: Call For Entries
Entries are now being accepted for the 2015 Walter Cronkite Award For Excellence in Television Political Journalism. The award encourages and showcases substantive and innovative coverage that informs viewers about their electoral choices. It recognizes television journalism that helps viewers understand who the candidates are; what the issues and ballot propositions are; how electoral choices will affect their lives; how to assess campaign information, including advertising; and how to register, vote and make their own voices heard.
In the fifth edition of The Image of the Journalist in Popular Culture Journal, authors explore the depiction of journalists in movies and novels and on radio, television and the stage. A broad range of scholarship offers concepts, connections, and critiques - good, bad, and ugly - of journalists' roles as professionals and how they are perceived by the public.
Josh Kun
Next year, the Library Foundation of Los Angeles will celebrate the rich - and untold - history of restaurants and food in the City of Angels with "To Live and Dine in L.A.," an exciting new project led by Popular Music Project director Josh Kun. The project succeeds his recent "Songs in the Key of L.A." partnership with the L.A. Public Library. 

With a new film curriculum and a revamped website, the Norman Lear Center's Journeys in Film project continues to combine the power of moving and provocative films with the highest quality standards-based lesson plans to engage middle- and high-school students with stories from around the world. 

Upcoming Events
October 30, 2014
USC Annenberg Hall
What are the implications for journalism and democracy if citizens don't have timely, accurate information? Answers from Charles Lewis, called by the Encyclopedia of Journalism "one of the 30 most notable investigative reporters in the U.S. since World War I."  

Event Open To Public.
October 17, 2014
University of Pennsylvania
Scientists must be storytellers. Marty Kaplan tells why and how at the third Sackler colloquium on the science of science communication, sponsored by the National Academy of Sciences and the Annenberg Public Policy Center.

Invitation Only. 
September 19, 2014
Writers Guild East, NYC
If climate change is such serious business, why do comedians seem to address it better - and more often - than films, dramatic series and the nightly news? The challenges of communicating climate change will be addressed by a panel of writers, producers, humorists and experts. 

Invitation Only. 
West Hollywood, CA
Johanna Blakley joins artists, critics and curators in investigating the power of experimental art installations to remake the spatial and social realities of modernist house museums. Blakley will be on a panel addressing the role of social practice in animating house museums.

Event Open To Public.
The Norman Lear Center is a nonpartisan research and public policy center that studies the social, political, economic and cultural impact of entertainment on the world. The Lear Center translates its findings into action through testimony, journalism, strategic research and innovative public outreach campaigns. On campus, from its base in the USC Annenberg School for Communication and Journalism, the Lear Center builds bridges between schools and disciplines whose faculty study aspects of entertainment, media and culture. Beyond campus, it bridges the gap between the entertainment industry and academia, and between them and the public. Join Our Mailing List
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