The show — broadcast live online and at 90.3 FM in Minneapolis and 106.7 FM in St. Paul — will feature:

• AHNDI FRIDELL – Director, KFAI News

• CHARLES HALLMAN – Minnesota Spokesman Recorder

• PAUL DEMKO – Politics Reporter, Minnesota Independent

• CHRISTOF TRAUDES – Staff Reporter, Southwest/Downtown Journal

• CHRIS STELLER – Staff Reporter, Minnesota Independent

• STEVE BRANDT – Staff Reporter, StarTribune City Hall Beat

Steller will also be a guest on KTNF’s “Quick on The UpTake” with Mike McIntee tonight. The radio show airs online and at 950 AM from 5 to 5:30.

According to the Personal Democracy Forum, Technorati — a blog search engine which keeps running measurements of the blogosphere — has switched to a new algorithm that takes a more immediate snapshot of a blog’s authority (authority is “based on a site’s linking behavior, categorization and other associated data over a short, finite period of time”). So, instead of generating its rankings based on six months worth of metrics, as it used to, it’ll look only at the past month — which means rankings in the top 100 can change somewhat radically. On Wednesday, the company’s blog explained:

“With the new algorithm, the resulting Authority will better reflect the fast-changing nature of the blogosphere. Its new inherent volatility will also show which blogs are rising and falling in authority, rewarding authors on posting frequency, context and linking behavior, as well as other data inputs.”

The only other Minnesota blog making the list — dubbed the “definitive Top 100 list of blogs” by the Washington Post –is Powerline, which comes in at number 11, just before FiveThirtyEight.com.

A notable absence from the list: our hugely popular sister site, the Washington Independent, doesn’t make the cut?

That’s because it’s on a separate list of American political news sites — at number one, according to Technorati’s metrics. When news sites and political blogs are ranked together, it appears fourth on the top-100 list. (On this combined list, Powerline is ranked at 13 and MnIndy at 33, as of Saturday.)

There are plenty of reasons why these lists are the way they are: Corporate news sites, in many cases, still resist linking out to other sites, preferring instead to keeping their news as proprietary as possible — which likely hurts them on such rankings. Plus, site owners must “claim” their sites with Technorati to be included.

One local mainstream site making the cut is the Pioneer Press. Although curiously, while their web address appears, the title is listed as… Tom Powers, a sports writer at the paper. That’s marginally better than yesterday, when the St. Paul paper appeared by the name Green Bay Packers.

Technorati’s Top 10 Political News Sites

1. Washington Independent
2. Commentary Magazine
3. TPM LiveWire
4. Raw Story
5. Reason
6. The Hill
7. WhiteHouse.gov
8. CNN
9. Washington Monthly’s Political Animal
10. The New Ledger

Technorati’s Top 10 Political Blogs

1. Huffington Post
2. Think Progress
3. CNN Political Ticker
4. National Review’s The Corner
5. Salon: Glenn Greenwald
6. The Plum Line
7. Newsbusters
8. Daily Kos
9. Politico: Glenn Thrush
10. Gateway Pundit

The night, part of the Weisman’s recurring WAM Chatter program, is presented in conjunction with its exhibition Au Courant: Robert Rauschenberg’s Currents, on view through October 4.

The letter (PDF) cites a December 2008 Minnesota Independent report about a Department of Justice earmark secured by former Rep. Jim Ramstad in support of MNTC’s Know the Truth program, an educational program held in schools and churches featuring program graduates.

“[B]ecause the Know the Truth program is a recruiting tool for MNTC’s thoroughly religious drug treatment program, the DOJ is supporting an inherently religious activity,” the group’s letter said. It also noted that MNTC only hires Christian staff for the program.

MNTC received $235,000 this year for the program at the request of Ramstad and Sen. Amy Klobuchar and is one of nine programs targeted by the Americans United complaint.

“In providing these grants, the U.S. Department of Justice is unconstitutionally aiding religion,” the Rev. Barry W. Lynn, Americans United’s executive director, said in a statement. “There’s no reason why organizations that evangelize or that discriminate in hiring on religious grounds should ever receive a penny from the government, let alone millions of dollars.”

Listen to Steller on the June 10 show.

Listen to the June 18 show.

A list of MnIndy’s eight awards, with judges’ notes:

First place awards

Best single news story — Independent Web site:

“Convention cash: The biggest loophole in American politics,” Paul Demko

This story stood out in a field crowded with good work because of the enterprising approach taken by the reporters. They didn’t take no for an answer and called the businesses that refused to report their donations, getting great — and contradictory — quotes that added to the outrage factor. A great example of  watchdog journalism.

Best use of multimedia — Independent Web site:

RNC Multimedia, Newsroom

MinnesotaIndependent.com did the best job of using multimedia tools to capture the RNC: Twitter for news of the moment, photos, video and text greater storytelling context and depth. But no one in this category has truly harnessed the potential power of multimedia storytelling.

Best use of video — Independent Web site:

“The F30 Pedal Cloud brings people-powered protest to the RNC,” Paul Schmelzer

Good use of angles, cuts, music and interviews turned what could have been a dull feature into a treat.

Best independent news blog — Independent Web site:

“The Monitor blog,” Newsroom

The Monitor does all the things a good blog should: Showcases the authority of its writers; aggregates the best of the Web; integrates video, photos and Twitter feeds; interacts with readers, and updates throughout the day. I don’t need to go anywhere because you bring it all to me.

Second place awards

Best single news story — Independent Web site:

“Are jihadist groups luring Minnesota Somalis back to fight?,” Abdi Aynte

Best Web site — Independent Web site:

Newsroom Staff (First place went to the Twin Cities Daily Planet.)

Third Place

Best continuing coverage — Independent Web site:

“Nasser Kazeminy/Norm Coleman lawsuits,” Steve Perry

Best single news story — Independent Web site:

“Minneapolis parks’ Red Bull and Pepsi dealings put Coke contract at risk,” Chris Steller

Here’s the full winners list.

Nicky Dieter, Flickr

For decades, political campaign advertising had more in common with Menards than Milton Glaser: campaign graphic designers — whose job was to sell candidates often through an expected visual language of flag-toned stars and/or bars — took the back seat, while the well-funded media buyers got the front. Then came Barack Obama. His campaign, lead by design director Scott Thomas, enlisted designer Sol Sender to both create a memorable, appealing identity and advance the lessons of Howard Dean’s web-savvy “netroots” surge of 2004.

We all know what happened next. Obama’s “O” logo became ubiquitous, embraced and modified by supporters so it appeared everywhere: carved into Halloween pumpkins, spray-painted on city concrete, plastered on cars, t-shirts and mugs, reprinted on one of American history’s most recognized political posters, and interpreted by DIYers on murals, baked goods, light-up bike spokes and beyond.

"Change" by Patrick T. Power

Next Tuesday, May 12, Thomas and Sender will be speaking at Minneapolis’ Walker Art Center on the development of the Obama campaign in a panel called, “Designing Obama” — and Minnesota Independent editor Paul Schmelzer will be moderating the discussion. He’ll begin the evening by putting the campaign into historical context (how it differs from more traditional patriotic-themed campaigns by candidates like Bush, Gore and Clinton and from Obama’s 2008 challenger, Republican John McCain, whose design motif is reminiscent of a luxury car ad) and geographical context (how it played in the land of Jesse “the Body” ads and Paul Wellstone’s still omipresent green bumperstickers), before highlighting examples of creative re-use of the “O” logo.

In preparation, what would you like to ask Sender and Thomas? Got a critique or kudos for the campaign? Leave your thoughts in comments.

Tickets can be purchased here, or watch the event’s webcast live at the Walker Channel.

Earlier: Design with a big O: On developing Obama’s campaign identity

A list of winners and categories:

Newsroom Staff
Minnesota Independent
Independent Web site    16A: Best Web site [Online - News Web Sites]

Paul Demko
Minnesota Independent
Independent Web site    16B: Best single news story [Online - News Web Sites]

Abdi Aynte
Minnesota Independent
Independent Web site    16B: Best single news story [Online - News Web Sites]

Chris Steller
Minnesota Independent
Independent Web site    16B: Best single news story [Online - News Web Sites]

Steve Perry
Minnesota Independent
Independent Web site    16C: Best continuing coverage [Online - News Web Sites]

Paul Schmelzer
Minnesota Independent
Independent Web site    16F: Best use of video [Online - News Web Sites]

Newsroom Staff
Minnesota Independent
Independent Web site    16E: Best use of multimedia [Online - News Web Sites]

Newsroom Staff
Minnesota Independent
Independent Web site    16H: Best independent news blog [Online - News Web Sites]

In 2007, MnIndy (then Minnesota Monitor) became the first online-only news operation in Minnesota history to win a Page One. At last year’s banquet, the site won three honors, including a first place for best single news story by an independent site. This year, more than 420 entries were received.

Abdi Aynte

Now calling Washington, D.C., home, former Minnesota Independent reporter Abdi Aynte returns to the Twin Cities today to discuss the nuances of covering the local Somali community. A Washington correspondent for the BBC World Service, he’ll discuss how a community that may seem homogeneous to outsiders is truly diverse, highlighting how clan rivalries, ethnic and class differences can affect perspectives. As a senior fellow and founding reporter at MnIndy (then Minnesota Monitor), Aynte covered Keith Ellison’s congressional campaign and the controversy over Muslim cab drivers who opposed transporting passengers who carried alcohol from the airport, among many other topics. In December, he reported on area Somali youth who’ve returned home to fight in the ongoing war with Ethiopia, a topic he’ll continue to cover for the BBC and MnIndy. Join him for a “Somalia 101″ coffee  hour today at 3:30 at Bedlam Theater in Minneapolis. Hosted by the Twin Cities Media Alliance, the event will be followed by a happy hour at Bedlam for staff, contributors and supporters of its flagship news operation, the Twin Cities Daily Planet.