Midtown Trembles

During the Republican National Convention, the Grassroots Media Coalition plans to open a large 5,000 square-foot newsroom to give independent journalists, filmmakers and photographers a central place from which to cover the convention.

After weeks of negotiations, the GMC, which includes the New York City Independent Media Center and Paper Tiger Television, was scheduled to sign a month-long lease for a media space with a prominent non-profit organization located in the heart of midtown. Minutes before a meeting to sign the lease, a representative of the non-profit suddenly announced the deal was off. The Executive Director cited new concerns about security.

Police have been in regular contact with many buildings in the city ahead of the Republican National Convention, especially those near Madison Square Garden and other protest locations. That plus their "surges" and recent warnings about terrorist threats seem to have created a climate of fear, misrust and confusion throughout midtown Manhattan.

And with the Convention less than four weeks away, the Grassroots Media Coalition must start a new search for an appropriate media center. If you can help, you should contact the GMC. Please also consider donating money to help support independent coverage of the RNC.

Aside from the space, plans for media production are moving ahead at full steam. The Indypendent has announced plans to distribute over 400,000 newspapers this month. Blacked-out Media will produce one hour of live television for six days throughout the convention. And the Sound Coalition will have a 24-hour webstream. Hundreds of independent journalists are coming from around the country to participate.