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[RRE]BBC Online promotes online communities
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Date: Thu, 17 Jun 1999 09:11:10 +0000
From: David Wilcox
One of the (few, many?) good things we have in the UK is the BBC - and they are now getting seriously interested in online communites... with a public service rather than commercial intent.
Howard Rheingold is speaking in London today at a BBC Online Communities Day conference for people in the online industry, and community networkers, to explore ways forward - see http://www.partnerships.org.uk/bol for press release, speeches and links.
As part of the follow on from the conference we will be exploring with the BBC how local community networking projects might be featured on BBC Online, and the possibilities of a BBC-linked support programme - see statement below.
It is early days at present - and the main focus of the conference is on virtual communities - but I think the BBC interest should be very encouraging for UK local projects.
I'm in the US at present, and will be attending the AFCN/CTCNet conference in Chicago at the end of the week. I hope we can develop some ideas for experience exchange, and maybe 'real' exchange visits. Some people may remember ideas for an International Association for Community Networking developed at Taos in 1996. That sparked national associations... maybe it is time to revisit the international idea with a less formal network of networkers and mix of online and face to face meetings. See Howard's speech at the above site for a 'call to action'.
Regards David
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Statement from BBC Online and Partnerships Online
Virtual communities linked to 'real' neighbourhoods throughout the UK may soon have a unique window to the world through plans being developed with the BBC.
Already hundreds of UK towns and villages have created Web pages, discussion forums and other features to provide information about local activities - but there is no one place that they can be found, or any major source of help for new online community builders. There are many more virtual communities in the US and around the world.
BBC Online has now invited Partnerships Online and other UK pioneers to develop plans under which the best examples of local Web pages, discussion forums and other initiatives are featured on a new online communities Webguide.
Other ideas which could be explored (with BBC Education, for example) might include a linked 'toolkit' of practical help for people setting up new communities which could be part of a television series. The Department of Trade and Industry has provided initial support to Partnerships Online to develop toolkit content.
A series on 'Growing Virtual Communities' could - for example - encourage groups throughout the UK to get together and get themselves online. The expanding Community Hub would promote the use of the Internet.... get the nation online... and so stimulate the growth of virtual communities linked to real communities.
On June 17 BBC Online is hosting a major conference on online communities, addressed by US Internet guru Howard Rheingold. At the same time David Wilcox, of Partnerships Online, is in the US speaking at the annual conference for those involved there in community networking. He will invite US networkers to join a transnational initiative to share US and European experience.
Lizzie Jackson of BBC Online said: "For more than 75 years the BBC has provided a unique public service on television and radio. Now it is bringing those same values to the Internet, with a wide range of quality content for UK Internet users."
Partnerships Online was founded a over a year ago to provide practical help to organisations and local communities seeking to use the Internet for public benefit. It is also working with the Government- funded Community Development Foundation on The Community Channel, an experiment in linking Civil Servants and other policy makers with local groups. The Channel is supported by the Active Communities Unit of the Home Office.
David Wilcox
-~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ David Wilcox, david@communities.org.uk. +44 (0) 1273 677377 Partnerships Online http://www.partnerships.org.uk The Community Channel http://www.communitychannel.org.uk. ~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~~ ```
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