MediaStyle is an energetic start-up communications company specializing in content creation, communications training and has recently opened a multimedia studio in downtown Ottawa. We work  with progressive organizations, NGOs and non-profits.

We are looking for a full time communicator to start in early September.

This person will be part producer, writer, researcher and teacher. The ideal candidate will have excellent written and oral communications skills, be able to edit video, understand the value of great sound and be willing to learn in a fast-paced small firm. MediaStyle is a creative workplace. Our newest hire will understand the power of the social web and be able to demonstrate their successful personal use of them.

MediaStyle’s ideal Ottawa-based communicator will have:

• a post secondary education in a communications related field
• one to three years of related communications work experience
• strong writing and editing skills
• ability to shoot and edit video
• confident communications and presenting skills
• experience working to tight deadlines
• ability to work in French (considered an asset)
• demonstrated understanding of progressive issues

Salary: $32,000 – $35,000

Please submit a letter to ian [at] mediastyle.ca describing why you would like to work at MediaStyle; along with any requisite links of work, profiles, materials or other information you think will help us make our decision. A note: We’re less interested in what your resume looks like and more focused on what you have created. We’ll be interviewing in the first week of September. Only qualified applicants will be contacted. Questions can be sent to ian [at] mediastyle.ca

Applications are due no later than Friday, August 27th at 5pm (EST)

I’m really excited about an event tonight at the Code Factory (the co-working space where our office is located). MediaStyle is hiring a summer student for two-days a week this summer.

Our growing content strategy and communications training firm is looking for a goal-oriented student for a part-time summer placement in one of Ottawa’s most unique offices.

Our ideal candidate would be:

• Eager to learn about communications, traditional and online
• Completing a degree in communications, public relations, marketing, business, or related field
• Have experience with all online social platforms
• A blogger, tweeter or Google master
• Have an understanding of basic communications principles
• Available to work 15 hours a week (two week days)
• Able to understand Macs and basic office software

The event is tonight! To sign up or More information and to sign up here.

Awesome event tonight. I’ll be in touch with a few of the students to schedule more conversations. The Code Factory is hosting the next Students & Start Ups in the Fall. I’ll keep you posted.

MediaStyle is on the road in Toronto next week to present a media skills training workshop at MaRS.

It will be a hybrid class, teaching participants how to use both traditional earned media tactics and how to use new media to tell stories that matter to people.

I’m presenting this session with Jaime Woo, a creative consultant in Toronto specializing in social media. I can’t think of any one better to help guide people through the amazing ways you can use video, blend text with audio, and present it in intuitive and meaningful ways online. Jaime is fresh off leading a core conversation at SXSWi and is fluent in all video gaming systems–expect an energetic talk.

Our half-day (evening 6pm-10pm) Media Skill Training teaches:

• Major media terminology so you can speak the media’s language
• Tactics for incorporating earned-media into daily business routines
• Interview skills including techniques and templates for creating your media message
• Prep skills for media interviews in TV, print, radio, online, or social media
• Online communications and how to work with your collaborators online and through social media
• Content creation for sites like Facebook, Twitter, Odeo, and YouTube to supplement your strategy and messaging

Tickets can be purchased here.

This workshop is the most hands-on, interactive and cost-effective way to ensure your team understands the fundamentals of media relations. Created for progressive organizations and groups – this training provides real-world tools for action. Only 15 spots are available, it takes place at the Code Factory, downtown Ottawa on January 27th at 9:30 am – 1pm.

Our half-day Progressive Media Skill Training teaches:

• Major media terminology so you can speak the media’s language
• Tactics for incorporating earned-media into daily business routines
• Interview skills including techniques and templates for creating your media message
• Prep skills for media interviews in TV, print, radio or online
• Online communications and how to work with your collaborators online and through social media
• Learn measurement and its importance to public relations and media skills development.

Participants will leave the training with planning templates, strategies and tactics to pitch your ideas to the media.

Please note: this session is for unions, progressive non-profifts and New Democrat MP/MPP staff

Journalists across Canada celebrated the unanimous Supreme Court of Canada ruling granting a new defence for libel – “Responsible Journalism” or “Responsible Communications.”

It’s obvious why established news organizations – with legal teams, corporate support and money – would find this ruling immediately useful – but, I think many Canadian bloggers and communications advisors were left scratching their heads as to what it meant for them.

As one lawyer for the Ottawa Citizen said, “It will be interesting to see how these communications advisers now are going to advise their clients. I don’t think you can say ‘no comment’ anymore.”

Hopefully this post helps sort through some of the implications for bloggers and communicators.

This new defence protects publishers from judgment if they have reasonably attempted to secure the information and facts needed prior to publication of the story – and still end up making a mistake that results in legal action.

In other words – more simply – if a reporter does her homework (due diligence) and makes every effort to “get it right” – but still ends up making a mistake that she get sued for – this defence will protect the reporter (and publisher) from losing in court.

Now, as noted Canadian legal academic Michael Geist says on his blog (emphasis mine):

“In a big win for new media and bloggers, it concludes that the defence applies broadly… This is crucial decision for all publishers both big and small. It represents a major win for freedom of expression in Canada and should remove some of the libel chill that arises far too frequently.”

What kind of due diligence would you have to put in to avail yourself of this defence ? Well, helpfully the court lays it all out.

A. The publication is on a matter of public interest

and:

B.  The publisher was diligent in trying to verify the allegation, having regard to:

(a)   the seriousness of the allegation;

(b)   the public importance of the matter;

(c)   the urgency of the matter;

(d)   the status and reliability of the source;

(e)   whether the plaintiff’s side of the story was sought and accurately reported;

(f)    whether the inclusion of the defamatory statement was justifiable;

(g)   whether the defamatory statement’s public interest lay in the fact that it was made rather than its truth (“reportage”); and

(h)   any other relevant circumstances.

Here are a few possible implications in relations to blogging:

1. Freedom of Speech could be bolstered online; many cease and desist letters are combatted daily using “fair use” doctrine in the US; I can see how bloggers (with access to legal help) could push back against libel chill in the same way traditional media will now be able to – the path will be blazed by the traditional media; but expect bloggers to point to precedent once it’s established
2. Bloggers may move forward with more provocative or investigative work; knowing that they have less to fear if they make an error and they are sued for it; a defence exists to defend against judgment
3. Bloggers could feel more emboldened with Supreme Court protection to phone up a subject of a controversial story and ask them to confirm or deny facts;

The bottom line for bloggers seems to be “Blog Responsibly”. The Supremes’ new libel defence says if you make a small mistake – it’s OK – just as long as you really were being responsible and the matter is in the public interest.

In my estimation, much more immediate than implications for bloggers is what this ruling means for public relations firms, political communications advisors and lawyers advising clients in media situations.

Canadian Press reported Ottawa Citizen lawyer Richard Dearden as saying the ruling will increase journalist standards because “you have to be responsible.”

“You can’t phone at midnight and the presses are going to roll two minutes later and (say) well, we couldn’t reach that person. That won’t be responsible. But if you’ve given them fair opportunity to respond and they choose not to, that’s up to them, you’ve done your job.”

The bottom line for public relations professionals seems to be: have another lawyer or two on standby. You may need their advice soon.

Read the full ruling here.

A few quick party tips from our home to yours this holiday:

• Outsource the cookies! Local bakeries make wonderful treats. We made the cupcakes at home and all of the buffet food – so to make things a bit easier we had the Golden Baguette on Bank Street take some of the load.
• Groovy Linens in Ottawa provided a visual punch with their signature crush fabric linens.
• A Christmas Smoked Ham made the buffet easier to prepare; the large roast only needs a few hours to heat up in the oven and feeds over 100 people (give them small buns and lots of mustards)

Doubled donations

Special thanks to Jaimie Woo who came in from Toronto and Ming Wu for his wonderful photos (featured above). Also, thank you to our guests for helping out the Food Bank with their generosity. Let’s do it again in 2010! This year MediaStyle more than doubled its donations to the Food Bank with a whopping 157 pounds of food and other household items.

Happy Holidays from Ian and Shawn

The Canadian Blog Awards are back with this year with a single transferable vote-a-thon. Here are the first of my picks and some predictions:

Apartment 613: I love a great success story. This crew of writers, artists, volunteer photographers and good people produce a daily blog, sponsor community events with their time and effort, have presented a clean and simple interface with damn good use of visuals. All round expect Apartment 613 to be the go-to blog for another very different eye on events in Ottawa. The team is nominated under New Blog category and Group Blog categories.

Pundit’s Guide: It’s not just a blog; it’s also a web application. Think about it. The massive database is lovingly tended and meticulously cared for and you don’t have to think about it. Instead you just see an interface for the political statistic hound. Political professionals rely on it. What used to take some people days can now be done in moments. This amazing work is nominated in the best Political Blog category.

Antonia’s Broadsides: I’m constantly amazed at the fierce skills of this longtime provocateur at the Toronto Star. Her former perch as media critic affords readers with an understanding of how far she is willing to take a theme, idea or battle. Unlike far too many columnists, Antonia seems to actually care about the issues she takes on. Broadsides is nominated in the Political Blog category.

Miss Vicky’s Offhand Remarks: Simultaneously this amazing webspace is a hyper local blog a venue for a neigbourhood to gather and the authors personal blog. The comment section are filled with thoughtful ideas, reader submit information to Vicky and her personality shines through the entire thing – even when the disposition is less than sunny (which, praise be someone out there tells it like it is and speaks truth to power: the good, bad and ugly!) Vicky is nominated in the Personal blog category.

I also love a lot of the New Democratic bloggers listed in the political category:

Accidental Deliberations; for the support of the community

Blogging a Dead Horse; for the machine like regularity of useful info

Buck Dog Politics; for solid commentary and a reason to keep coming back

Devin Jonston has the full list of New Democratic bloggers nominated. As an aside,  I’ll be ranking his blog at the top of the political heap – it’s always an honest, straight up assessment of the days politics. Written out of Manitoba, Devin won’t echo the “inside the Queensway” mentality. I look to this law student as part of the future of politics in Canada. Mark my word: he will be elected and do good things. (Cam Holstrom at Peterborough Politics  is also nominated; but I’m hoping to write up a full post about him. Oddly, his blog is down right now. Know anything folks?)

While I’m busy predicting the future: Look to Ottawa Tonite to enter the group blog race next year; I’d be shocked if Joe Boughner wasn’t winning awards next year – his writing is strong, great reputation in the digital space and his new job with Non Linear Creations will provide much profile. He calls them like he sees them – with more patience and prudence than I can sometimes muster. I admire him for this.

Also, I think the Blog Award themselves may see some new categories added to reflect the changing face of online communications. Here are leading contenders:

Edu-blogs (education at all ages); Parenting Blogs (which is an off shoot of “Family”), Mobile space/ micro-blogs (both on the rise as platforms for lucid and narrative work) and lastly Hyperlocal blogs (also on the rise; featuring smaller audiences and more niche content; they are home to motivated people-powered-networks who care about the online space created).

And a final note; as we wrap up our first year of blogging I’m proud that MediaStyle.ca was nominated for two awards – in the Political Blog award and in the Professional Life Blog – if you’re so inclined you can vote by clicking on the category links above.

Huge thanks to Jonathan Taillefer for these photos.

He was responsible for the lighting production of the event and was kind enough to share these amazing shots of the event. If your booking an event; he is a great guy to have around. Reach him via his website at www.jonathantaillefer.com

A week away from the blog is forever in online time. But, it was with good reason, so I hope you’ll forgive me. MediaStyle recently wrapped up our largest sponsorship and event to-date: Planned Parenthood Ottawa’s Magic Boxes. It was a glitzy gala for the 45th anniversary of Ottawa’s best pro-choice sexual health organization.  We are proud to have helped raise over $10,000. I worked closely with the Planned Parenthood Ottawa staff for over three months and sourced materials from over twenty vendors to create a total transformation of the Cube Gallery. Over the holidays, we’ll be creating a full case study and showing readers (and other Planned Parenthood chapters) how to create similar events.

Here is how Ottawa Citizen reporter Caroline Philips saw it in her Around Town column:

Do You Believe in Magic?

It was a night to step right up, ladies and gentlemen, and feast your eyes on the most amazing of entertainment, leaving one and all amazed by the fire spinning and hoop dancing, not to mention the sexy circus cabaret girls seen sashaying through Cube Gallery at Planned Parenthood Ottawa’s Magic Boxes bash.

The circus-themed 45th-anniversary party was brilliantly executed by organizer and sponsor Ian Capstick of MediaStyle, from the handy-dandy serviette-skirted server to the time-lapse Ferris wheel photo footage.

The evening featured 45 wooden boxes, decorated by artists and celebrities, for guests to bid on. There were boxes from Cathy Jones, Dr. Henry Morgentaler, and Rick Mercer. Capstick had bumped into Mercer on the ferry to the Toronto Island airport and got him to commit to doing a box. It came with tickets to see the Rick Mercer Report season finale, plus return flight and accommodations.

Gallery owner and artist Don Monet painted a “Round Lake Cubed” box. CPAC host Catherine Clark, who was event patron with her mom, women’s health advocate Maureen McTeer, spruced up a box with her three-year-old daughter, Alexandra. “I turned my head for 30 seconds and when I looked back, there was glitter glue everywhere,” Clark chuckled.

Also seen were Planned Parenthood’s executive director, Jeanette Doucet, board president MaryAnn Notarianni, and emcee or “ringmaster” Kimothy Walker with a riding whip. The evening raised roughly $11,000. (Photos here)

Here is a bit more on how Ignite got started:

Started by Brady Forrest, Technology Evangelist for O’Reilly Media, and Bre Pettis of Etsy.com, formerly of MAKE Magazine, Ignite was inspired by Pecha Kucha Nights, where speakers are given 20 slides, each shown for 20 seconds, giving each speaker 6 minutes and 40 seconds of fame. The first Ignite took place in Seattle in 2006, and since then the event has become an international phenomenon, with gatherings in Helsinki, Finland; Paris, France; New York, New York; and many other locations.

Ignite has two parts: the Ignite contest, where people make things, and Ignite talks, where presenters get 20 slides and five minutes to make their point. You can opt to only have talks, but the contest is fun and can serve as a great warm-up for the talks.

We’ve got an amazing group of speakers ready to kick off Ignite talk (perhaps we can add the contest in future months) the list should be announced on Monday. But, feel free to reserve your spot early.