posted by Michael Chihak
We have been planning the first Arizona Week program for a good while, lining up interviews, journalistic expertise and a myriad other details. From Day 1, the program's topic was signed and sealed as the state budget crisis.
That's a no brainer, because with the program debuting Jan. 14, we knew we would have a week's worth of developments, starting on Monday with Gov. Jan Brewer's State of the State speech and the convening of the Legislature. Later in the week -- perhaps Wednesday or Thursday -- the governor would release her budget proposal, including plans for dealing with $2.25 billion in deficits spread over the next 18 months.
Lo and behold, the governor's office has announced that the budget proposal will be released on Friday, Jan. 14, the day of our first program. To have that kind of news for our debut program seems kismet, and we plan to make the most of it.
Look for in-depth reporting on the budget, followed by reactions of legislative leaders and finally the analysis of knowledgeable journalists.
It ought to be an auspicious start to Arizona Week.
Arizona Legislature
State-of-the-State-speech,
January 5th 2011 at 13:26 —
c (0) —
K
f
g
k
posted by Michael Chihak
Each Friday night edition of Arizona Week will conclude with the reading of selected comments from viewers. We will air what you have to say that is relevant to the topic at hand.
Comments will be taken from among those we receive over the course of the week between editions. We want criticism as well as compliments, and we will plan to proportion what we air based on overall numbers. For example, if a given program or topic receives six comments, with four critical and two complimentary, we likely will air two critical comments and one complimentary.
Like the letters to the editor section of newspaper editorial pages, our airing of viewer comments will serve as an added forum for discussion of the important topics we plan to cover. And, at times, the comments may become fodder for conversation in this blog.
Keep your comments on topic, and make them civil and suitable for television. Please sign your name, although not doing so won't necessarily preclude the airing of a relevant comment.
E-mail comments to me at mchihak@azpm.org or go to www.azpm.org and click "about" in the gray bar, then click "contact."
Letters-to-the-editor
viewer-comments,
January 4th 2011 at 12:00 —
c (0) —
K
f
g
k
posted by Michael Chihak
Arizona Public Media Director of News and Information Peter Michaels will head to Phoenix with me on Tuesday, as we lay groundwork for the debut of Arizona Week, now just 11 days away.
Peter and I will meet with journalists at the Arizona Republic and at the Arizona Capitol Times to discuss their participation in AZ Week's reporters' segment, which we plan as the way to end the program.
We have secured Luige del Puerto of the Capitol Times for the first program; he covers the state Senate. We hope to have word by Tuesday afternoon on an Arizona Republic journalist to appear with Luige.
As part of the overall mission to bring depth to issues affecting all of Arizona, we will include journalists from throughout the state on the program. The trip to Phoenix on Tuesday is the first outreach in that effort.
Eventually, we plan to have knowledgeable journalists from Flagstaff, Yuma, Kingman and Eastern Arizona as well as from the Phoenix and Tucson metropolitan areas available for commentary and analysis on the program.
Arizona Capitol Times
Arizona Republic
Eastern Arizona
Luige del Puerto,
January 3rd 2011 at 13:07 —
c (0) —
K
f
g
k
