Plugging On Regardless: The Digital Media Meal

With everything that's been going down in the newspaper business lately, it's kind of hard to drum up enthusiasm for pushing back the boundaries of digital journalism. The industry has plenty of talented people who understand the need to keep the craft evolving and have the ideas to help make it happen, but in an environment where senior managers seem to be more concerned with spouting buzzwords & standing still than actually doing something, sometimes it feels like there's little point in trying to do anything at all.

But journalism is dying on its feet, and we have to do something to keep the old flame burning.

To this end, I'm proposing we all do something constructive this summer and get together in Glasgow for the Digital Media Meal - an evening of food, drink and discussion. A platform for encouragement and debate, it would be a chance to chew over everything from what to do with multimedia journalism to XML standards for news bulletins and press releases. Who knows? It might even be fun...

Leave a comment below to indicate interest and if enough of you are up for it, I'll propose a date and venue & we'll take it from there

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Digital Scotland Debate: Next event on the starting blocks

The Sunday Herald's events team finally succeeded in nailing me to a chair for long enough this week to get the ball rolling on the next stage of our campaign to create a national technology strategy for Scotland.

The first event revealed broad agreement that any such strategy should be broken down into three distinct areas: Innovation, Infrastructure & Education. In light of this the next debate - scheduled for April 24 at Glasgow's Lighthouse - will focus on the category of innovation.

It's a broad title, and one that could encompass anything: Encouraging innovation amongst entrepreneurs, fostering technical invention, marketing Caledonia as a top rank location for business & investment or simply coming up with innovative ways to implement, nurture and sustain such strategies.

To avoid turning our campaign into yet another pointless talking shop, the plan for this round of events is to invite both an expert panel and audience members to submit proposals for inclusion in our putative strategy document. On the day itself, we'll debate as many of these as time allows.

Using transcripts of the debate, I will then attempt to lace together a draft strategy paper. This will be presented online for a period of consultation and wiki-style peer review which, though fraught with possible complications, should produce something approaching a representative document.

The jury's out on what to do after that and I'm open to suggestions, but when all three events have been completed we should have a trio of documents drawn from the best minds in the business and, hopefully, some form of popular technology mandate for putting them in front of the Scottish Government.

That's the plan so far, but I'm calling upon the entire geek diaspora to pitch in and tell me where I'm going wrong or what could be done better. Although ambitious, I believe this is a campaign that could ultimately actually achieve something, but only if we work together.

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Campaign for a national technology strategy underway

The Shaping Scotland's Digital Future campaign got off to an excellent start this week with a lively debate at Glasgow's Royal Concert Hall. Video highlights of the debate are available via the Sunday Herald. Presented with the perspectives of the heavyweight panel, a 120-strong audience appeared to broadly accept our call for the creation of a far-reaching national digital strategy for Scotland. The tone was informal but distinctly businesslike, and it quickly became clear that my concerns over Caledonia's lack of future planning are shared by many in the great geek diaspora. I'll be publishing transcripts and proposals for further events shortly, but the discussions ultimately identified three critical areas to be addressed by our proposed digital blueprint: Education, Innovation and Infrastructure. I'll publish my proposals for separate symposiums on each of these in the new year, but please do let me know if you've got any ideas or suggestions as to how we should move matters forward. Printer Friendly Read/Add Comment (13)

Plan Now, Prosper Later

Some of Scotland's most senior business figures have warned that the country must plan for the future or risk economic obliteration in the face of intensifying foreign competition.

"In terms of technology infrastructure Scotland is beginning to slip behind some of its competitors and the government must take a long term approach to combat this slide. We must have a national framework to guide development of a globally competitive ICT industry by nurturing local enterprises for expansion and growth abroad," said Polly Purvis, chief executive of the technology industry body ScotlandIS.

"This is not something we can leave to chance. If we find ourselves without the technical capacity we need in the future then we won't be able to compete and the consequences could be dire."

On the eve of a major debate aimed at tackling the issue, Scotland's major technology players have joined up to call for the establishment of a national digital strategy capable of delivering a 21st Century infrastructure upon which they believe the country's economic future depends.

Purvis, Microsoft Scotland director Raymond O'Hare, BT Scotland's Brendan Dick, economist Neil MacCallum, Graham Technology's Steven Thurlow, Cisco chief Gordon Thomson and digital media mogul Steve Leach have identified the country's lack of long-term planning as a critical strategic flaw.

Currently, ScotlandIS estimates there are 70,000 Scottish ICT jobs contributing £4bn a year to the economy.

"Across the globe, small countries are realising that technology represents a major opportunity, and they're prepared to invest in far-sighted strategies to create business, government and public cultures geared up to grab that chance. Scotland must either follow suit or prepare to suffer the consequences," said Leach, CEO of digital marketing specialists Bigmouthmedia.

MacCallum, head of policy and strategy at the Scottish Chambers of Commerce, said: "Globalisation is not going to go away. We need to improve competitiveness and efficiency on a national scale, and that will not be achievable unless the very best systems are not in place and ready to go."

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Blog officially launched

After much messing about, I've finally and somewhat belatedly launched my personal website.

Over the years a lot of people have told me that someone who's spent the past couple of decades banging on about the implications of the internet age really ought to have his own web presence. They argued that refusing to do so was enormously contradictory, and ultimately I had to agree.

So I've built a site, loaded up a small selection of past articles and started a blog. Over the next year I plan to use the site as a testing ground for a variety of journalism and technology experiments and a discussion platform for some of my theories on journalism 2.0.

From where I'm sitting now this all seems easily achievable, but given the realities of newspaper life I'm equally prepared for the execution of my grand schemes to go badly wrong.

Please do pop in now and then to see how the project is getting along. Even if you're disappointed by what you find, you can always use the site's contact page to express your contempt ...

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Digital Scotland Debate: First event fixed

The effort to draft a far-reaching blueprint for Scotland's approach to the digital age has stepped up a gear.

The response has been extremely encouraging. Thanks to the efforts of Clare Walshe and Christine Crawford from the Sunday Herald's events team, Microsoft have agreed to sponsor the inaugural public debate, which will be held on Wednesday December 12th in Glasgow's Royal Concert Hall from 9.00am to 11.30am.

I've meanwhile assembled a panel of Scotland's top technology players to get things rolling. Headlining on the day will be Raymond O'Hare (Regional Director, Microsoft Scotland); Gordon Thomson (Director of Scotland & Ireland, Cisco Systems); Steve Leach (Founder & CEO of Bigmouthmedia); Polly Purvis (Executive Director, ScotlandIS); Brendan Dick (Director, BT Scotland); Steven Thurlow (Technical Director, Graham Technology) and Neil MacCallum (Head of Policy and Strategy, Scottish Chambers of Commerce).

A senior representative from the Scottish Government will also be participating and I'll confirm their identity very soon. Google have also done their best to contribute. Unfortunately a combination of factors means they won't have someone on the panel first time round, but their support and encouragement for the project has been most welcome.

All and all it should amount to a very interesting start to the campaign, so please come along and participate in the first of what will become a major series of discussions and conferences.

To book your free ticket, call 0141 302 7407

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Where now? A national digital strategy for Scotland

Globalisation, the information economy, a digital future - these are the buzzwords of our age.

Now that the world has caught up with the web, there's broad acceptance that technology will play an increasingly crucial role in our social, economic and civil lives. That's great, but what does it all mean and what will be required to make it work?

It seems clear to me that if Scotland is to harvest the benefits of the digital age, it needs a clear understanding of the resources, skills and infrastructure this will require in both the short and long-term futures. At present our development is ad-hoc, depending largely on the private sector to provide direction, and while this approach has served us fairly well so far, it will not suffice forever.

The country needs a digital blueprint - a clear, considered and far-reaching national strategy designed to deliver the tools that a 21st Century Scotland will require if it is to prosper and thrive. I've talked to many of the country's major players about this and so far, they all agree.

To make it happen, however, somebody needs to take the first step.

With that in mind, I have decided to launch a campaign dedicated to seeing such a strategy become a reality. In collaboration with senior industry figures and the Sunday Herald, the plan is to hold a series of debates and roundtable events designed to harvest the experience and talents of experts throughout the country, drawing upon their considerable knowledge in an effort to get the ball rolling.

Ambitious? Yes, but not impossible. It will take much time and effort, but if sucessful this planned series of events could lead to the creation of a draft national strategy capable of ensuring Scotland's place in an uncertain future.

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