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“CASTING
A NEW NET”
EXECUTIVE SUMMARY OF THE CONFERENCE
Denver, Colorado
March 20-21, 2002
Organized
by the Provincial Leadership Council of the Episcopal Church with the National
Church communication office
Brought together web & communication administrators of all the Dioceses
to :
- Clarify roles of key decision makers in diocesan web ministries
- Identify new potentials for web ministry
- Focus on target audience
- Explore issues related to news and issue communication on diocesan web
sites
- Strengthen the common communication ministry of participants
- Presentations
and discussion with
Pew Internet & American Life Project
- Identifying characteristics of web users, surfers on religious
sites-- specifically habits of Episcopalians.
National Church Communications office.
Discussed
the National Church's strategy for web communications
GraceCom - Rick Johnson - Grace Cathedral, San Francisco
--------Video
presentation on the web ministry (available for use by us)
Dioceses of UTAH, CHICAGO, BETHLEHEM, OHIO
Presentation & Discussion
of how & why of site design, contents, etc.
Jon
Davidson and Jim Bemis attended representing the Diocese
of Nevada - Jim because he designed and maintained our Diocesan
Web site, and Jon because of the leadership role as Web Team
Leader for St. Paul's, Sparks
Some of Jon's impressions:
- All
of us are either developing a Communication strategy including
web communications, or attempting to convince our Diocese that
this task is needed.
- Several
dioceses are making effective use of electronic communication
-- others have some effective elements and a few are just beginning.
- Clearly,
we are in a new world of information flow where old media and
old structures do not work at all or work in different ways
than they used to.
- We
in Nevada are not alone in having isolated congregations separated
by considerable travel time. This is a characteristic of Western
dioceses (Province 8). Others in our province are prepared
and eager to share their experiences with each other. We have
put in place channels through which this can take place.
- Resources
abound but strategic use of these resources needs to be developed.
- Integration
between various levels of web communication is nearly
non existent. Needs to be defined and coordinated. (Eg:
National web site, diocesan web sites, parish web sites,
special ministries web sites.)
- Print
and electronic publications MAY have very different roles and
need to be administered in very different ways. There is presently
a great deal of duplication between diocesan newspapers, diocesan
web sites and bishop's newsletters.
- Lastly,
there are skilled persons in the most unexpected places, who
may have an exciting ministry which only needs to be identified
and enabled:
-----------eg: Richard Peete in Diocese of Chicago
-----------3 professional web designers on St. Paul's Sparks Web Team
I
AM RETURNING:
------------Excited about
the possibilities for effective 2-way communication with –00000000individual
church members that never existed
before.
----------- Confident that the skills are out there in our Diocese waiting
to be enabled.
----------- Encouraged by the degree of cooperation
and sharing that we now have in 000000000place within the Province.
We
only have to know where we want to go!
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Quotable Comments - (heard at the web conference):
The more information people have, the better
We need good sound theological reflection from both clergy and lay
people on events both secular and religious.
The Web enables (but does not require!) virtual
elimination of gate keepers.
When communication breaks down between people, God no longer resides
there.
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