Tag Archives: new media

Announcing the Living Docs Project with Mozilla

Posted on by

ITVS and Mozilla have launched the Living Docs Project, a collaboration that supports independent producers to develop interactive documentaries.   

The ‘web documentary’ genre has matured and evolved greatly in recent years, thanks in large part to technological advances that empower creators with more robust production and storytelling tools (see examples here and here). This got the folks at ITVS and Mozilla’s Popcorn Project talking about how they could work together to explore the space between traditional documentary and the social web. 

Mozilla’s Popcorn project is an innovation lab that brings together filmmakers and developers to re-imagine and create interactive cinema online. The  innovation team develops demos and productions that spin off into software projects like Popcorn.js, a JavaScript library for HTML5 video. Mozilla’s commitment to building open web tools is an ideal compliment to ITVS’s ability to convene talented filmmakers and give them the opportunity to use the latest technology.
Continue reading →

What Does Public Media’s Future Look Like?

Posted on by

Co-managing Director of Public Media Company (PMC) Ken Ikeda talks about the “race to reengage future audiences,” and its effect on public media.

As part of BTB’s ongoing mission to curate news and opinions on public media, we have called upon key players to share their take on the evolving environment. Over the next several weeks, BTB will be rolling out their thoughts and ideas, adding to the conversation on public media’s role now and in the years to come.
Continue reading →

On Social Media, Quality Trumps Quantity

Posted on by

Managing Editor of Independent Lens Brooke Shelby Biggs explains how to measure and maintain quality followers on social media.

When you’re just starting out in social media, your focus is going to be on garnering as many fans on Facebook and followers on Twitter as you can. There are tried-and-true ways of accomplishing this, the most effective being (assuming you have a small marketing budget) using Facebook advertising, openly asking fans to share your posts, retweeting others and asking them to retweet you, and holding contests.
Continue reading →

Introducing ITVS’s 2011 Digital Survey

Posted on by

By Matthew Meschery

The following is an excerpt from the executive summary of the 2011 ITVS Digital Survey. The findings, which are available for download below, offer new trends on the digital media environment with a particular focus on independent producers.

Who put the audience in charge? Technology, demographic shifts, and a globalized economy have all shaped a 21st century media ecosystem where power has shifted away from traditional broadcasters and gatekeepers. It’s a shift that’s revolutionized where, how, and why people use media. And content makers and distributors are playing catch-up, trying to figure out ways to reach viewers, make money, and break through the deafening noise of the marketplace.
Continue reading →

Use Geo-Targeting Early and Often

Posted on by

Managing Editor of Independent Lens Brooke Shelby Biggs offers advice on how to geo-target relevant information to your Facebook community.

If your film is screening in Chicago, how much sense does it make to just post that fact on your film’s Facebook fan page, where most of your fans are probably not from Chicago? Not much, for a couple of reasons.

First, as we know from a previous Being Social column, only about 25 percent of your fans will see any given post. That means only 25 percent of your fans in Chicago are likely to see your announcement. That’s not effective, and it looks pretty ham-fisted to your fans who live nowhere near Chicago.
Continue reading →

From “Television’s Independent Voice” to “Public Media’s”

Posted on by

By Sally Jo Fifer

ITVS President & CEO Sally Jo Fifer explains why the times call for a new tagline.


Since 1991, the work and mission of ITVS has been reflected in our simple tagline: “Television’s Independent Voice.”  Twenty years later, after careful consideration, we have made a small but important change, becoming “Public Media’s Independent Voice.”

The most obvious reason for this change is that what we once called television now intermingles and crossbreeds with video media on countless devices: desktops, laptops, tablets, smart phones, gaming consoles.  The most important reason, however, has less to do with the devices than with a moment of truth for public media in the brave new 21st century world.
Continue reading →

Producer Tips on How to Start a Podcast

Posted on by

ITVS’ Steve Goldbloom shares his notes from a podcasting workshop held on Sunday at the National Conference for Media Reform in Boston.


After listening to passionate seminars on the future of Public Media, net-neutrality, and the new rules of journalism — it was nice to finally get a chance to play in the sandbox.

That is NCRM’s Media and Technology Sandbox, which have been running at various times throughout the three-day conference. Sunday’s workshop offered a crash course on assembling a podcast and was led by Free Press’ Stevie Converse, co-host of the weekly podcast Media Minutes.
Continue reading →