Reporting on Growth and Open Space
The Citistates Group
The Citistates Group is led by America's only journalist team focused first and foremost on metropolitan regions and how they position themselves to cope with the demanding economic, environmental, and social challenges of the 21st century. Neal Peirce and Curtis Johnson have written Citistates Reports on strategic issue sets facing 24 metropolitan regions, published by over 50 newspapers in the last 20 years.
Neal Peirce, nationally syndicated columnist and chairman of the Citistates
Group, is a foremost writer, among American journalists, on metropolitan regions —
their political and economic dynamics, their emerging national and global roles.
Curtis Johnson is one of those rare writers who’s spent time on the front lines
of government and education. Today he is president of the Citistates Group while
continuing as an active journalist, commentator and conference moderator.
The Citistates Group is returning to the Charlotte region to launch the development of the 2008 Citistates Report and engage local journalists in the process. The 2008 Citistates Report on the Charlotte Bi-State Region examines the region’s growth and the challenges and opportunities it presents. As with the 1995 Peirce Report, the 2008 Report will be published as a multi-part series released simultaneously by all news organizations desiring to participate, making this a major regional media event.
Journalists' Roundtable
New to the Reporting on Growth and Open Space Program in 2008 are Journalists’ Roundtable discussions and luncheons with co-authors of the 1995 Peirce Report on the Charlotte region, nationally-syndicated columnist Neal Peirce and his co-principal at the Citistates Group, Curtis Johnson.
Roundtable Events
Spring 2008 Journalists' Roundtable
The Spring Journalists’ Roundtables provided an opportunity for the region’s journalists to engage with the Citistates Group as they begin developing the 2008 Citistates Report. Journalists participating in the Roundtable discussions heard how the 2008 Citistates Report would be developed and had a chance to provide critical input on local issues and events related to the region’s growth. The Journalists’ Roundtable Luncheons provided an opportunity not only to learn more about the upcoming Citistates Report, but also to interact with these highly-regarded journalists and discuss their experiences in covering growth-related issues around the United States. Participants were invited to establish collegial working relationships with the Citistates team by reviewing first drafts of the Citistates Report and receiving ideas for local stories and opinion pieces on related topics leading up to the Report’s release.
Fall/Winter 2008-2009 Journalists' Roundtable
A Fall/Winter Journalists’ Roundtable will focus on “cutting room floor – lessons from the 2008 Citistates Report”. The Citistates Group will share with journalists story ideas that didn’t make it into the final report, and practical lessons learned in their first re-visiting of a former Citistates Report region. Watch this space for announcement of the date, location, and registration information, or click notify me to be added to the program’s email list.
View or listen to interviews with regional and national experts on selected
topics and explore their interconnections with issues of growth and open
space. Interviews run 15- 20 minutes and are conducted
by UNC Charlotte faculty member Cheryl Spainhour, who teaches journalism
in the Communication Studies department. Production development is provided
by UNC Charlotte Urban Institute’s
Matthew Clontz.
Interviews Page.
The Resource Manual puts at journalists’ fingertips a wealth of information
for generating story ideas and researching stories on growth, open space,
and related issues. Organized by the nine topics, the Resource Manual includes
contact information and website links for organizations actively working
in each topic area. Bibliographies provide quick reference to prominent
journals, books, or articles in each field. National awards programs and
annual conferences may yield “best practices” examples or experts who can
provide context and comments for a story. Also found in the Resource Manual
is a section on the 2006 Regional Opinion Survey commissioned as part of
the Reporting on Growth and Open Space program.
Resources Page.
An important aspect of the Knight Foundation grant that has made this program
possible is evaluating the program based on journalists’ feedback. Please
let us know what you think of the program, the Resource Manual, interviews,
roundtables, and seminar materials by clicking here.
Feedback Page.
