2000 Improving Public Dialogue Implementation Report

8/2/2019 2000 Improving Public Dialogue Implementation Report

1/14

JACKSONVILLE COMMUNITY COUNCIL INC.2434 Atlantic Boulevard, Suite 100

Jacksonville, Florida 32207(904) 396-3052 Fax (904) 398-1469

E-Mail [email protected]

IMPROVING PUBLIC DIALOGUE STUDYIMPLEMENTATION TASK FORCEFINAL IMPLEMENTATION REPORT

to theJCCI Board of Directors

January 21, 2000,The study was released in June 1997, and the implementation process began in August.

Elaine Reynolds was the initial chair of the implementation task force. She had served on thestudy committee and on its management team. Several months into the implementationprocess, Elaine accepted a position on the JCCI staff, making her ineligible to continue on theimplementation task force. She was never officially replaced as chair. David Swain providedstaff support throughout the implementation process.Early in the implementation process, the task-force members divided into three subgroups,each of which focused its attention on different recommendations. These subgroups are asfollows: Government Subgroup, chaired by Vera Davis Media Subgroup, cochaired by Lisa Braren and Agnes Capps Community Subgroup, chaired by Kathy WhitsonLate in the implementation process, members of the three subgroups reconvened as a singletask force to draw together the lines of the implementation effort and to complete unfinishedbusiness.A total of 18 volunteers served on the task force and on one of its subgroups. Differentcombinations of task-force members met a total of SO times in task-force meetings, subgroupmeetings, and visits with decision makers concerning specific recommendations.The following sections report on progress- made toward implementation of eachrecommendation. At least some of the progress reported can be attributed directly to the taskforce's implementation efforts. This report organizes the recommendations by their

1
mailto:[email protected]:[email protected]


2/14

implementation subgroups, rather than in the order in which they appear in the study reportSince each is numbered, the recommendations can be related back to their initial order in thestudy report.

2


3/14

Government Subgroup1. Mayor John Delaney should continue his practice of convening frequent town

meetings to engage citizens in al/ parts of Jacksonville in public dialogues aboutimportant community issues. FutureMayorsshould continue this practice.

Subgroup members met with Mayor Delaney early in the implementation process. He assuredthe task-force members that he intended to continue his practice of convening periodic townmeetings, and he has done so. Since Mayor Delaney was reelected in 1999, implementationby future mayorswill have to wait several years.IAssessment fully implemented

2. Those Jacksonville City Council members not already doing so should promotepublic dialogue by convening open forums, at least every two months, on publicissues of importance to their constituents.

The task force engaged in two rounds of communication with City Council membersconcerning this recommendation, one before t~e 1999 election and another after the new CityCouncil was in office. Because of the large turnover in council membership, the second roundof contacts was important In each case, task-force members shared the study report andinformation about this recommendation with the council members and their aides and sought apersonal meeting with each council member. Most council members met with JCCI volunteersand supported the concept of district-level forums. The at-large members were less likely toconvene forums themselves. Some district council members shared with task-force memberstheir approaches and methods of conducting public forums. After the first round of contacts,task-force members compiled a report of these contacts, also including examples of theapproaches and methods council members reported they were using successfully. The taskforce's purpose was to help all council members understand the kinds of forums theircolleagues were conducting and to offer information that could encourage others to emulatesome of the best practices being used.Although most council members were supportive, a few ignored JCCl's attempts to contact andmeet with them. JCCI received information that some of the "new" council members havebegun to tr y different kinds of public-forum practices as a result of input from JCCI and fromsome of their council colleagues.IAssessment partially implemented I

3


4/14

4. The City of Jacksonville should annually convene a communitywide public forum,modeled after the Neighborhood Summit, which each year should focus publicattention and dialogue on a public issue of particular timeliness and importance.Such issues might relate to major segments of the local population, such as youth orsenior citizens, or they might bring diverse segments of the community together,such as cultural awareness or racial harmony.

When task-force members met with Mayor Delaney, he took the position that he was fuJlyimplementing this recommendation. He pointed to several summits he had convened,including those on economic development, neighborhoods, and international trade. The studycommittee had been aware of these and sought to transcend them with this recommendation.In practice, a number of the mayor's summits had not been open dialogues because they wereattended by invitation only. The annual Neighborhood Summit, while open to the public,initially focused on sharing information about how neighborhood. groups can interact moreeffectively with City Hal! concerning public-services concerns, rather than exploringcommunitywide issues in depth with open dialogue. The task-force members wereunsuccessful in obtaining a commitment from the Mayor for action on this recommendation,beyond what hewas already doing.During the same period, City officials were expanding other ways of communicating withcitizens about public issues. In particular, the City expanded its use of cable TV public-accesschannels to offer several public-affairs talk shows. While not offering direct opportunities forpublic dialogue, these did bring into people's homes discussions about important local issues.In general, the City appeared to be seeking to implement, in limited ways, the intent of thisrecommendation, if not its specific approach.IAssessment partially implemented

5. The City of Jacksonville should create a computerized network of kiosks similar tothe existing .ICity Hall in the MaW',located at multiple, convenient sites throughouteach of the city's planning districts. The kiosks should provide extensiveinformation about local government, public meetings, neighborhood meetings, andother similar information. The kiosks should a/so allow and encourage interactivedialogue among citizens and between citizens andpublic officials on issues of publicinterest and concern.

At the time of the study, Jacksonville's "City Hall in the Mall" consisted of a single computerterminal at an information booth at the Regency Square Mall. The booth was-and is still-staffed during mall hours. The terminal connected to the City's web site and allowed users tosend e-mail messages to certain public officials, including the Mayor and members of the CityCouncil. Since users had no return e-mail address, City officials were not able to communicateback to users electronically, so no vehicle existed to encourage direct dialogue.Task-force members learned, when they met with City Officials, that plans existed to expandthe concept to additional shopping-mall sites and that a limited budget was the majorconstraint. Near the end of the implementation period, the City had plans in the budget toopen a second site, at Gateway Mall. Two other kinds of improvements were also made. Asecond terminal was added to the site at Regency for use by the vision-impaired, and

4


5/14

extensive work was done to improve and expand the offerings on the City web site. Theemphasis on this site continued to be on sharing City information with citizens rather than onengaging them in public dialogue. City officials made explicitly clear to task-force membersthat they would not develop a vehicle for open dialogue among citizens.During the same period, the Jacksonville Public Library was also expanding the availability ofcomputer terminals in all branch libraries. These terminals are available (with time constraints)to all at no cost, and they connect not only to the City's web site but also to the entire Internet.IAssessment partially implemented

6. The City of Jacksonville should take the lead in establishing a public-privatepartnership charged to encourage and support the effort already underway todevelop, deploy, and operate a computerized Jacksonville Community Accessnetwork (JaxCAN)on the Internet JaxCAN should become the primary web site forinformation about community services, organizations, and events in Jacksonville andNortheast Florida, as well as a prime site for public dialogue about local publicissues. JaxCAN shouid become accessible through public-access terminalsthroughout the area and should be linked with other websites, especially that of theCity of Jacksonville.

When asked by task-terce members, City officials declined to make any commitment tosupport JaxCAN, citing concerns of liability and a policy against City sponsorship ofuncontrolled dialogue among citizens. Without the kind of public support "freenets" incommunities such as Gainesville and Tallahassee were able to obtain, JaxCAN remainedlargely a volunteer effort unable to attract sufficient resources to establish an effective Internetpresence.Meanwhile, a number of public and private web sites (especially those operated by the City ofJacksonville, The Florida Times-Union, and WJXT Channel 4) expanded rapidly to offer largequantities of information of local interest. In limited ways, these sites have also encouragedelectronic feedback and public input-precursors of real public dialogue. Although these sitesand other local sites now offer much of what a "freenef' can offer, they still lack the specificniche service that makes a "freenet" unique-the capacity to accommodate open electronicdialogue among citizens. Task-force members were not any more successful than JaxCANitself in attracting substantial interest and support for a real "freenet" in Jacksonville.

IAssessment not implemented I

5


6/14

7. Local governmental bodies should actively encourage citizen attendance andparticipation in public meetings by: widely publicizing meeting agendas well in advance; ensuring that meeting agendas clearly and simply explain what issue will be

discussed and what actions will be taken; scheduling meetings during hours that are convenient for the public to attend.

especially the working public; and providing ample opportunity during meetings for public dialogue.

Task-force members focused their implementation efforts conceming this recommendation onthe City Council. Especially during their second round of meetings with council members, task-force members sought support for the action items listed in this recommendation. In general,those with whom JCCI volunteers met were supportive of the value of increasing publicdialogue in public meetings. Yet few specific suggestions were made for actions that thecouncil members could or would take to help enhance the practice of this value in theirmeetings. Most did concur that their meetings should be held in the late aftemoons andevenings so that working constituents would be able to attend. Council members pointed outthat the agendas of City Council meetings are available in advance on the City's web site.They remain unavailable throughout the community on paper. Nor were suggestions made onhow the written agenda could bemade more understandable for the general citizenry.During this period, the City Council devoted some attention to rethinking its procedures.However, more attention was paid to efficiency improvements than to enhancing opportunitiesfor public dialogue. Two changes reflect sensitivity to citizen involvement-moving the Councilmeeting starting time from 7:30 to 6:00 p.m. (so the meetings would not end so late at night)and allowing one half-hour of citizen comments near the beginning of the meeting (in additionto the citizen comment time already designated at the end of the meeting).Overall, while council members expressed generalized support for the recommendation, theymade no major changes in City Council procedures that would have helped to implement therecommendation. Nor did any other local public body make changes that would significantlyhave enhanced the practice of public dialogue during its meetings.IAssessment partially implemented I

6


7/14

8. Local public officials should alter the typical format of public hearings to provideample opportunity for interactive public dialogue.

This recommendation is logically seen as another action item under the previousrecommendation. The task force's implementation efforts were similar as those for theprevious recommendation, and the results were similar. No support was found for an effortspecifically to change the format of public hearings to open them up to a more open style ofpublic dialogue.IAssessment not implemented I

9. TheCity of Jacksonville should take more aggressiveaction to disseminate specific.practical information about how to communicate effectively with elected officials andthose who deliver public services. This information should be distributed widely tothe public, using al/ available channels of communication, including the City Hall inthe Mall kiosks.

Without much urging from task-terce members, the City has made substantial progress on thisrecommendation and appears committed to continuing its progress-in two ways especially.First, the City's web site has been expanded and improved substantially in the last few years,and enhancements continue to be made. The contents on the site provide much valuableinformation both about public services and about how citizens can work effectively with CityHall and its departments. Second, the City's new Neighborhood Department has made greatstrides to bring information to people at the grassroots, both through direct contact with citizensand neighborhood associations and through publication of a high-quality, award-winningNeighborhoods magazine. Other vehicles for sharing public information mentioned above-the City Hall in the Mall, computer terminals in public libraries, and City-sponsored cable-TVtalk shows-are also contributing toward implementation of this recommendation.IAssessment fully implemented

12.The City of Jacksonville should initiate a public-private partnership with MediaOneand local corporations to finance, develop, and operate a local, public-access,public-affairs and public-dialogue channel on cable television, with professionalmanagementand production.

Task-force members were unable to elicit any interest in this recommendation. The Cityregulates MediaOne through its cable-TV contract. However, City officials were unwilling toconsider negotiating for a new channel, as envisioned in this recommendation, in the nextcontract. The City, the Sheriff's Office, and other organizations bring some public-affairsprogramming to the local public via the existing public-access channels, but this was the casebefore the JCCI study, so the task force did not consider that it contributes to implementing therecommendation.

IAssessment not implemented

7


8/14

Media Subgroup10.Local commercial broadcast and print media should more actively engage in publicjournalism; including town-meeting programs that explore important communityissues through public dialogue and the equivalent in theprint media.

Task-force members contacted all major local media organizations (newspaper, radio, and TV)concerning this and the other recommendations directed toward the media. In general, task-force members found little support for this recommendation. For some media organizations,the term "public journalism" is a red flag with negative connotations totally unintended by therecommendation.Disregarding the terminology, task-force members found a willingness, on the part of TheFlorida Times-Union, to consider new and more effective ways of reporting local news,including ways that would engage readers more directly in the stories. As task-force membersmonitored daily papers over the implementation period, they agreed that, from a public-dialogue perspective, some improvements were evident in the paper's coverage of local news.They were also somewhat encouraged by the editor's plans for further improvement, eventhough these do not promise to implement public journalism per se.Similar movement toward improvement was" not found in regard to radio and TV newscoverage and public-affairs programs. Monitoring revealed no substantial improvements informat or programming, from a public-dialogue perspective, nor did task-terce members findthe broadcast media organizations very open to trying new ways and potential improvements.

I Assessment not implemented I

11.The local public TV and radio stations should seek city and foundation financialsupport for major expansion of their public-dialogue programming.

WJCT (Channel 7 and Stereo 90) has been using JCCI information, especially the Quality ofLife Indicators, to guide its decision making on public-affairs programming. That programminghas remained relatively limited, however, and task-force members did not find WJCT officialswilling to consider a major new effort, supported by newly raised financial resources, to expandsuch programming.Late during the implementation period, Stereo 90 made an abrupt change in its programmingmix, shifting from a daytime predominance of classical music to a format dominated by talkshows, some of which include SOO-number call-in opportunities. This format has increasedlocal opportunities to listen to dialogue about public issues. However, most of theprogramming is nationally syndicated, so the issues are not specific to Jacksonville, and theopportunity to engage directly in the dialogue is very limited. The exception is a locallyproduced talk show that airs on weekday mornings, not a high-priority time for public dialogue.


8


9/14

13. The Florida Times-Union should substantially expand the Metro Section to includesubstantive, in-depth news coverage about neighborhood-level issues and activities,since both of these are of interest to readers in al/ neighborhoods. Articles on thesesubjects should include information on how citizens can get involved in the issuescovered and speak out on them.

This recommendation resulted from a finding in the study that coverage of neighborhood-levelissues was fragmented in the various Community Sections of TheFlorida TimesUnion. Theidea behind the recommendation is that neighborhood news is valuable for all readers. Task-force members found that the Times-Unioneditor agrees about the importance of in-depthcoverage of neighborhood issues-but with reservations. From his perspective, substantiallyexpanding the Metro Section is not the best way to accommodate such coverage. The Times-Union remains committed to its separate Community Sections but appears to be open toreconsideration in the future, since the value of the Community Sections is assessed on anongoing basis.The editor fully agreed with the recommendation that articles should include information, whereappropriate, about how citizens can get involved and speak out on issues. He stated that hewould actively implement this recommendation and appreciated its being suggested.IAssessment partially implemented

14. The Florida Times-Union should stimulate public dialogue by printing in each SundayInsight Section substantial amounts of the dialogue generated on its web site, withoffers to print further reader comments on the same issues. TheTimes-Union shouldmake a concerted effort to develop and expand the synergy between print andelectronic communications for public-dialogue purposes.

Task-force members found that the editor understands that the communications medium of thedaily paper is rapidly being transformed from reliance on printed paper toward becoming amultimedia collage of communications. He therefore supports this recommendation inconcept, though he feels that the Editorial/Op-Ed page is a better place to implement it thanthe Sunday Insight Section. The Times-Unionalready maintains an extensive web site, whichoccasionally provides opportunities for user feedback and dialogue in ways that interact withmaterial published in the newspaper. To date, the degree of synergy accomplished betweenprinted and electronic communications has fallen short of fulfilling the potential envisioned inthe recommendation.

I Assessment partially implemented

9


10/14

15.Thelocal print and broadcast mediashould takemore timely and effective actions toeducate new reporters about the history. politics, economy. and social issues ofJacksonville, as well as the realities of community decision making. They shouldtake full advantage of existing sources of knowledge about the community andshould provide sufficient time for reporters to become adequately knowledgeable.

Some media organizations expressed interest in this recommendation, while others did notconsider it an important concern. Most said they would consider sending reporters to aninformational workshop if it were available and if scheduling could be managed. None offeredto take the lead to convene such a workshop. One media organization, a relatively new TVstation in the local market, had a formal process underway of inviting individual leaders to thestation to meet with the news staff, as a means of upgrading the knowledge of the entiregroup. Other media organizations appear to rely on informal mentoring of newly arrivedreporters by "old-timers" who have greater local experience and knowledge.In search of a potential sponsor for a workshop or series of workshops, task-terce membersapproached both Leadership Jacksonville and the Jacksonville Chamber of Commerce.Precedent for L J sponsorship comes from Detroit, where the alumni of LJ's sister leadership-development program organize and sponsor workshops for not only new reporters but alsonewly arrived people (and potential leaders) in business and other occupations. InJacksonville, L J was not interested in replicating Detriot's effort. The Chamber's volunteerCommunity Education Committee made suggestions that the Chamber consider such aproject. However, after discussion, the Chamber declined formally to organize or sponsor aworkshop or workshop series, stating that they would continue, like other local organizations,to provide information informally ona demand-responsive, case-by-case basis.IAssessment not implemented I16.Each of the major local print and broadcast media organizations should regularly

convene an advisory panel of citizens, solicit their views on issues of publiccommunication and dialogue. andpay attention to their suggestions.

The Florida Times-Union had a citizens advisory board for several years but disbanded it sometime before JeCI's study began. As a "public" media organization, WJCT also has a citizensadvisory council. None of the other local media organizations has such an advisory body, andnone expressed interest in creating one, including the Times-Union. The local TV stationsjointly use an "ascertainment" process as a sounding board to determine listener interests.Task-force members sought to observe an ascertainment meeting but were told these are notopen to the public. In practice, the ascertainment process appears to function more as amarketing-research tool than as a vehicle for citizen advisory input on issues of publiccommunication and dialogue.


10


11/14

17.Print and broadcast journalists should organize an active local chapter of the Societyof Professional Journalists to provide a local vehicle for discussion amongpractitioners about issues of journalistic responsibility, standards, and ethics.

Task-force members heard, both first-hand and second-hand, that several local journalistsmight be interested in setting up a local organization of professional journalists. Bob Snell,editor of Folio Week ly , agreed to take the lead in organizing a local SPJ chapter. Rather thancalling together some colleagues to develop a jOint effort, he chose to begin by creating anofficial affiliate of SPJ in Jacksonville. This process turned out to be cumbersome and remainsincomplete. Because setting up a local SPJ chapter is not a top priority among any localjournalists, the process of establishing a chapter is moving slowly and mayor may not come tofruition.I Assessment partially implemented18. The Chamber of Commerce should take the initiative. in partnership with local print

and broadcast media, to establish an independent news council in Jacksonville,modeled after the Minnesota News Council in the Twin Cities. Its purpose should beto provide a public forum to which local citizens can bring complaints about medianews coverage and through which matters concerning standards and ethics in thenewsmedia can be discussed and resolved publicly.

Task-force members found that all local media organizations feel threatened by and thereforeoppose this recommendation. The media organizations contacted also objected strongly tohaving the Chamber take the lead toward implementing it since they see the businesscommunity as a natural adversary in, rather than a neutral convener of, such a council. For itspart, the Chamber expressed no interest in taking the lead. Task-force members concludedearly in their efforts that this recommendation was "dead on arrival."


11


12/14

Community Subgroup3. Thecity's six CPACsshouldjointly sponsor public forums several times eachyear to

provide periodic opportunities for open. cross-town. grassroots public dialogueabout specific issues of communitywide interest and concern. The JacksonvillePlanning and Development Department should provide the staffing and supportnecessary to conduct these forums. and the Neighborhood Office should facilitatecommunications among the CPACs and with neighborhood groups regarding theseforums and for other purposes.

During the implementation period, the CPACs continued to evolve, in terms of their scope offunctions and kinds of activities. Task-force contacts with CPAC chairs led to anunderstanding that the CPACs were not likely to evolve toward sponsoring forums, and thisunderstanding has been bome out in practice. In addition, when approached by task-tercemembers, neither the Planning and Development Department nor the Neighborhood Office(now the Neighborhood Department) expressed an interest in playing a staffing role forpossible CPAC forums. Apart from its occasional summits (see Recommendation #4), the Cityhas not responded to the concept of this recommendation through any vehicles other than theCPACs. The task force did not pursue this recommendation further. .

IAssessment not implemented I19.Local institutions of higher educetion, with support from the city1s Neighborhood

Office. should develop and offer noncredit workshops or seminars on how to engageeffectively in public communications and dialogue. using FCCJ's existingcommunity-leadership seminar as a model. Special efforts should be made to enrollCPACmembersand grassroots leaders in these workshops.

Task-force members met with continuing-education officials at all the major local institutions ofhigher education. None of the institutions was already offering workshops or seminarsspecifically on public communication and dialogue. Some interest was expressed indeveloping a curriculum for such opportunities, if a substantial demand were identified.However, none of the institutions was willing to take the initiative to develop a curriculum untilthe demand was visibly demonstrated. While the study revealed the need for workshops, thetask force could not demonstrate an active demand, nor did It have the marketIng resources toelicit such a demand. The task force took no further action on this recommendation.


12


13/14

20.Civic, community, and neighborhood organizations should actively seekto keep theirmembers and constituents informed about important public issues and shouldencourage them to become directly engaged in public dialogue. Individual citizensshould also assume personal responsibility for keeping informed and engaged inpublic dialogue.

Given the broad range of "targets" for this recommendation, task-force members had to selecta manageable strategy for implementation. It chose to focus its efforts through JCCI's booth atthe City's annual Neighborhood Summit. Public dialogue was showcased by JCCI at both the1998 and 1999 Neighborhood Summits. Without the resources for a full-scale marketingcampaign, this remained the extent of the task force's efforts on this recommendation.I Assessment partially implemented21.Associations of public-relations professionals in Jacksonville should encourage their

members to provide pro-bono services to local nonproti: and grassrootsorganizations, so that they can improve the effectiveness of their publiccommunications.

With encouragement and assistance from task-terce members, the local chapter of the FloridaPublic Relations Association (FPRA) sponsorea an evening event at Jacksonville University, in1998, that provided workshops and information for local nonprofit organizations on how theycan improve their public communication skills and capabilities. The event was repeated, inmodified form,in 1999, and the Association appears to intend to sponsor a similar eventannually.IAssessment fully implemented22. The Jacksonville Community Council Inc. should actively search for and offer new

ways for citizens to engage in public dialogue about important community issues.JCCI should convene these opportunities for public dialogue in locations throughoutJacksonville and should make concerted efforts to attract broadly diverse groups oflocal citizens.

JCCI began implementation of this recommendation, at the luncheon during which this studywas released in June 1997, by conducting a dialogue at each table about a recommendation inthe study. JCCI also responded with quarterly Five O'clock Forums on "hot" community issues.During 1999, JeCr further responded through five issue-oriented public forums sponsored byJCCI Forward as part of its research preparation for the Forum for the Future. Concertedefforts were made for all of these forums to attract a broadly diverse group of participants.However, JCCI has held aJiof its forums in the JCC[ conference room, choosing not to takethese forums to other locations throughout the community.

IAssessment partially implemented

13


14/14

Overall assessment and recommendation to theJCCI Board of DirectorsTask-force members are gratified with the degree of progress achieved as a result of thisstudy. However, they are frustrated that more progress has not been made on some of therecommendations. This was not an easy study for which to advocate for implementation.Important and powerful entities in the community, especially local govemment and the media,operate by established procedures for public communication. As pointed out in the study,these are not in all cases designed to encourage public dialogue. Although most of the peoplewith whom the task force met during the implementation process voiced generalized supportfor public dialogue, many believed that their currently used procedures for publiccommunication adequately allow for such dialogue. The study's recommendations reveal thatthe study committee did not concur in this belief.As recognized in the study, the supply of opportunities for public dialogue may not growsubstantially until a demand for such opportunities is clearly and visibly demonstrated. One ofthe study's recommendations calls for action by local organizations and individuals to increasedemand. However, most of the recommendations call on local institutions to take action aimedat increasing the supply. The demand-side recommendation was too generally directed to beimplementable in concrete fashion. On the supply side, task-force members achieved somenotable successes but also experienced some disappointments.At this point, the task-force members believe that they have accomplished as much as can beexpected for a JCCI implementation effort. The members have invested a great deal ofcommitment and effort, and most intend to continue their personal involvement on issues ofpublic dialogue. In this sense, at least, the implementation effort will continue. However, thetask force recommends that the formal JCCI implementation process be concluded atthis time.

2000 Improving Public Dialogue Implementation Report

Documents

Transcript of 2000 Improving Public Dialogue Implementation Report