TECHNICITY TIMES: L.A.S FIRST E-MAIL PUBLICATION ON THE DIGITAL DIVIDE DEBUTS.

Technicity Times, L.A.s first rich media, email-based newsletter to cover the digital divide and community technology news, launched amid much excitement this month.

Contact: Barry Tavlin
(310) 392-9266
btavlin@technicitytimes.com            

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

TECHNICITY TIMES: L.A.S FIRST E-MAIL PUBLICATION ON THE DIGITAL DIVIDE DEBUTS.

LOS ANGELES -- November 11, 2002 -- Technicity Times, L.A.s first rich media, email-based newsletter to cover the digital divide and community technology news, launched amid much excitement this month. In just the week prior to its debut, subscribers, who had previewed the first issue, opted-in from locations as diverse as Arlington, Virginia, The Philippines and Hungary.

The newsletter focuses on news and human-interest features about community-based centers, organizations, and individuals using technology to bridge the gap in access for people of all ethnicities, ages, disabilities, education levels, incomes and regions, and highlights how technology is being used to improve the quality of others lives. The premiere issue can be viewed at http://www.technicitytimes.com/Nov02.

"Theres a tremendous amount of work being done in the tech trenches and in the community centers and in various forms of advocacy," said Barry Tavlin, Technicity Times editor. "And really, there was no way to get any glimpse of that, or any sense of it. And there really wasnt a way for people to either have visibility into it or to debate and exchange and sort of showcase what they were doing."

The newsletter grew out of the work of Community Technology Organizing Consortium (CTOC), a voluntary group of individuals and organizations working to achieve digital inclusion. The publication, which has been in the planning stages since early this year, was created completely by the volunteer efforts of CTOC members, the contributions of Civic Resource Group, which sponsored the hosting, web design and programming, and Ablenet Solutions, which provided the publishing forum software. In addition, the graphic design and corporate identity development was created by Chris Keefe, a member of the Los Angeles Creative Club and one of 30 creatives in their Co-op, whose purpose is to do great work for great causes.

"Some people might ask, 'Why did we make such a graphically rich html newsletter? Why didnt we just do a little email? And there actually are plenty of email lists that already exist," Tavlin said. "And I guess what we wanted to do was communicate the richness, and the depth, and in all the graphic and technical glory, what people are doing and give it the kind of treatment it deserves through all the technology tools that we have at our disposal."

"I brought my laptop to work at this small café Id never been before, in the Hispanic quarter near Silverlake," said Leslie Goodbar, Technicity Times editor. "And these two little girls, probably not much older than four or five, walked right up to me and my computer, intently watching everything I was doing. So, I let them play with my mouse a little, you know, to try it out. I dont think they had ever seen or used a computer before. Their mother came over and said not to touch it or bother me. But I told her it was okay. Thats the whole point behind Technicity Times."

"Its a way to reach out to new people to expose the opportunities that community-based technology can provide," Tavlin said.

To subscribe, send an e-mail to join-technicity_times@technicitytimes.net. For a text-only version of Technicity Times, email join-text_technicity_times@technicitytimes.net.

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