Overview
In collaboration with FRONTLINE, the PBS documentary series produced at GBH in Boston, the MIT Center for Constructive Communication (CCC) has been exploring how small group facilitated conversations with youth (16-24) can lead to informative documentary journalism that the next generation of news consumers actively seeks out. We were curious to know: How do short-form documentary videos on timely topics influence the civic engagement, political awareness, and social participation of young audiences? To what extent do facilitated small-group dialogues around FRONTLINE documentaries increase empathy, respect, and understanding among participants with differing perspectives on polarized issues? What is the long-term impact of ongoing facilitated dialogues on young participants’ attitudes toward civic discourse and their ability to engage in constructive communication across ideological divides?
“This pilot project with FRONTLINE has been an exciting opportunity to explore the transformative potential of peer-to-peer small group conversations. By engaging young people in thoughtful, facilitated dialogue around pressing social issues, we are not only deepening their connection to the stories that shape our world but also pioneering new ways for media organizations to become more responsive to the communities they serve,” says Dimitra Dimitrakopoulou, head of translational research and principal investigator for this project. “At CCC, we believe that this kind of engagement is key in fostering civic discourse and a sense of joy when meaningfully connecting through dialogue.
Here is a presentation that details of the outcomes from the FRONTLINE x CCC Pilot.
News
FRONTLINE Engages the Next Generation of Storytellers
Now, two years into the Youth Civic Voices Initiative, a collaborative fellowship with MIT’s Center for Constructive Communication (CCC) and the non-profit Cortico, FRONTLINE is breaking new ground at the intersection of journalistic storytelling, AI learning, and civic dialogue.
Reimagining Civil Discourse for the Next Generation
Summer fellowship program engages Boston youth in dialogue through journalistic storytelling, emerging technologies, and public conversations
This past summer, the MIT Center for Constructive Communication, its closely affiliated non profit, Cortico, and GBH’s FRONTLINE hosted 11 Boston students, ages 16 -21 as FRONTLINE fellows for a six-week paid fellowship at MIT’s Media Lab.
CCC and FRONTLINE launched a listening experiment to build a social dialogue network with youth
Over 40 young people participated in a social listening experiment exploring how personal experiences build bridges to better understanding current events and creating more impactful journalism for the next generation.
In collaboration with FRONTLINE, the PBS documentary series produced at GBH in Boston, the MIT Center for Constructive Communication (CCC) has been exploring how small group facilitated conversations with youth (16-24) can lead to informative documentary journalism that the next generation of news consumers actively seeks out. We were curious to know: How do short-form documentary videos
PBS’s FRONTLINE, Cortico, and CCC to engage youth in new Youth Civic Voices initiative
A new collaboration with the MIT Center for Constructive Communication empowers young people to shape the future of journalism and civic dialogue through AI and storytelling.
FRONTLINE, the acclaimed PBS documentary series produced at GBH in Boston, has announced the launch of a two-phase Youth Civic Voices Initiative designed to engage young people in civic dialogue through journalistic storytelling, emerging technologies, and public conversation.
GBH’s Raney Aronson-Rath Joins MIT Center for Constructive Communication
as Journalist-in-Residence
Raney Aronson-Rath, editor-in-chief and executive producer of FRONTLINE, the award-winning PBS investigative documentary series housed at GBH in Boston, has been named journalist-in-residence at MIT’s Center for Constructive Communication (CCC). The Institute-wide interdisciplinary center based at the MIT Media Lab designs tools, methods, and systems that connect rather than divide people across political, social, and cultural boundaries.
