Today I had a really interesting lunch conversation with Hanna Stjärne, who is with Sveriges Radio (SR, Swedish Public radio) and currently investigates their future (press information in Swedish).

Hanna Stjärne has been with SR for many years, working as head of P1 (talk radio, oriented towards societal issues and public affairs), Program director, Manager of domestic news for ”Ekot”, Foreign correspondent, and more (my interpretations of her assignments).

She called me about this lunch last Friday, and initially asked me for ”three broad trends underlying media development” (if I understood her right ;) Without too much consideration I suggested:

  1. A post textual revolution (everyone can produce, distribute, and share multi modal content).
  2. Open Crowdsourcing (everyone create openly and in collaboration)
  3. Institutional reformations (our old insitutions must be re-considered and we should form new institutions fit for the future, not the past).

Least to say I view the first two as more or less commonly understood, and the third being increasingly recognized. Those of you who know me might guess that I personally focus the insitition ”School”.

As a background I shared some of my thougts in a presentation for a group of SR people (including Hanna) back in 2004 (slides as pdf). In my view what I said then still holds, but more. Before, and since, I have at times attempted a kind of Don Quijotesce fight to debate ”Public Service”. An institution that in my view needs elaborate reconsideration too.

Anyway, we talked about big and small issues, with an emphasis on the former in, a kind of philosophical fashion. Matters we discussed included emotions versus rational thinking, acgricultural and industrial revolutions, the roles of money and commercialism, enterprises encompassing the whole value chaing versus free lance work forces, power, nations and alternative ”we’s” (compare Paul Romer and charter cities).

I adviced her to report in a multi modal (audio and more) form, thus not only deliver a traditional written report. Hanna made some notes on paper, I did this post ;) Another idea I suggested was to map the social graph outlining ”thinkers” like me. (See Robin Teigland explain why and how). And of course said that everything a public service organization produce should be open source, e.g. using a Creative Commons license.

Afterwards Hanna Stjärne asked me for names of other interesting people she should talk to. I promised to come back on that one. But a few persons that immediately sprung to mind were:

Who else do we know (about)?

Also, I am curious what Hanna (and you) think about the format of WNYC Radiolab, in my view a really inspiring series of (pod)radio shows about science.