Conference Opens with Open House at The Teaching Newspaper

ANNISTON-- We can say with certainty that the crowd has arrived. The First National Conversation on Community Journalism is, in fact, a reality.

The not-so-good digital photo above is our proof that the vision we all had of bringing the brightest minds on community journalism to one place is coming to fruition.

The shot here gives a brief glimpse of the lobby of The Anniston Star, which was transferred into a cocktail lounge tonight. Over the next 24 hours, we'll all talk, break bread, share, brainstorm and do a lot of other things as the mind of community journalism emerges.

Our dean, Cully Clark, Chris Waddle, the conference host, and Josephine Ayers, who did much of the planning for this conference, spoke this evening.

This was a first opportunity for most of those here to see the place that later this year becomes The Teaching Newspaper. Where will the teaching take place? How is the newsroom set up for this? A lot of those questions were answered with the "show-and-tell" that I saw going on this evening.

Much, much more tomorrow morning as everything shifts to the former Fort McClellan, where the Zannie Theatre is all decked out and ready for this major event.

It will be an exciting day.