The Future of the Forum: Internet Communities and the Public Interest December 5, 2009

UC Berkeley Announces Day of Dialogue with Social Media Pioneers

Public forums are evolving rapidly, producing dramatic changes in politics and social behavior. How will innovations such as Facebook, Twitter, and Google Wave expand participatory democracy and enhance public interest nationally and internationally? As a public research university with a history of activism, UC Berkeley will host a day of panels and opportunities for discussion about the future of the forum.

Among the invited speakers are:

Jimmy Wales, Founder of Wikipedia
Jim Buckmaster, CEO of craigslist
Dick Costolo, COO of Twitter
Hubert Dreyfus, Professor of Philosophy and author of "What Computers Still Can't Do"
Mitchel Kapor, Co-founder of Electronic Frontier Foundation
Howard Rheingold, Critic and Writer
Judith Donath, Fellow, Harvard Berkman Center
Seth Goldstein, Co-Founder and CEO of SocialMedia Networks
Reid Hoffman, Founder of Linkedin.com
Jane McGonigal, Director of Game Research & Development at Institute for the Future
Kristen Whissel, Professor of Film Studies, author of "Picturing American Modernity"
Laura Sydell, Arts & Technology Correspondent for the NPR
Marc Davis, Senior Researcher, Yahoo!

As a public university that has itself served as a medium for the emergence of new forms of public activism, UC Berkeley is an appropriate setting for industry leaders, scholars, and students to join in a conversation on new media and the public interest.

Followed by free UC Regents' Lecture with Jimmy Wales, Founder of Wikipedia, at 150 Stanley Hall, UC Berkeley, 7:30pm - 9:00pm.

Official Website: http://bcnm.berkeley.edu/fotf