The National Conference for Media Reform is holding its annual conference in Minneapolis June 6-8, 2008.

Some big shots from all backgrounds — journalism, activism, politics and government – will all be in town to speak on the issues of media reform for this conference, and the best news is that registration is open to the public. Here’s a sampling of the biggest of the big names: Bill Moyers, Arianna Huffington, Naomi Klein, Amy Goodman, Naomi Klein, Juan Gonzalez, Van Jones, Lawrence Lessig, Sen. Byron Dorgan, Dan Rather and FCC Commissioners Michael Copps and Jonathan Adelstein.

In my opinion, this conference is critically more important than the (also upcoming) RNC in terms of scope and impact. Here’s a quote from Amy Goodman regarding the conference:

Yes, we need to criticize the corporate media, but we also need to keep building independent media that informs, enlightens and empowers. We cannot simply wait around for more hard-hitting, investigative journalism and more diverse, independent media.

Panels and Workshops will cover topics like Media Policy in a New Congress and Administration; Lobbying for Low Power FM Radio; Newspapers: Not Dead Yet (Or Are They?); Blogs and Beyond: We Crashed the Gate, Now What?; The State of the Black Press in African American Communities; and GLBT Issues in the Media. Full list here ^[1].

More info and registration ($195) details here ^[2].

UPDATE:
Timed and located to coincide with the NCMR is A PASSION FOR PLACE, New Pamphleteers/New Reporters: Convening Entrepreneurs Who Combine Journalism, Democracy, Place and Blogs ^[3] at the Minnesota Journalism Center ^[4] at the Univ. of Minnesota. This conference is targeted at active citizen journalists and placebloggers interested in sharing best practices. Registration for this conference ($139) here ^[5].