BlogHer Conference 2006 Day Two Schedule

Saturday July 29th, 2006
Click on each session title to read more about the session and its speakers

Time

Sessions
7:00-7:45

Free Morning Yoga session with BlogHer Mollie Guillemette
7:30-8:30

Breakfast/Networking/Registration
8:30-9:00

Welcome Session:

9:00-10:00

Opening Discussion: How are your blogs changing your world?
Sponsored by Windows Live Spaces
10:00-11:00

Blog Crushes: Caffeine and Birds of a Feather out by the pool, including a BOF for bloggers interested in joining the BlogHer Advertising Network, led by Lisa Stone.
Healthy break sponsored by Weight Watchers Online

Note: From 10AM-11AM GM will be offering test drives of current and future model cars in the Mediterranean Ballroom parking lot, including sports cars, hybrids, and the "car of the future" a Hydrogen Fuel Cell vehicle.
11:00-12:30 Session #1

MommyBlogging is a Radical Act:

Last year Alice Bradley brought the house down declaring MommyBlogging a "radical act." Now, Marrit Ingman asks Alice, along with Tracey from Sweetney and Mir from Woulda Coulda Shoulda exactly what that means. Far from receding, this issue continues to resonate on- and off-line. Can you say "MommyWars"? Well, plenty of moms wish you wouldn't!
Sponsored by OurStory

Is the Next Martha Stewart a Blogger?:

Food and craft blogs have huge followings and opportunity. What, if anything, should they do with it? Maggie Mason sits down with Pim Techamuanvivit (Chez Pim), Gayla Trail, Marnie MacLean and Andrea Scher each of whom have used or are trying to use blogs to help their commercial ventures, from professional writing to selling their handiwork.

Identity...and Obligations:

Do you control which parts of your identity are exposed? Do you feel an obligation to represent for your gender, race or culture? Do you feel you're not allowed to comment on issues facing a group to which you don't belong? Maria Niles moderates a discussion with Karen Walrond, Dawn Rouse, Marisa Treviño and Carmen Van Kerckhove on how we slice and dice our identity.

Room of Your Owns

1. Get Deeply Geeky: BlogHers want to talk technology and gender. Is the web itself a feminine construct? How about open source? Join Laura Scott, mir verburg, Nancy White & futurist Melanie Swan to discuss.

2. EduBlogging: Barbara Ganley from Middlebury College, Laura Blankenship from Bryn Mawr and Barbara Sawhill from Oberlin will discuss using blogging in the classroom & to raise academic profiles.
12:30-1:30

Lunch: Networking by the Pool
Sponsored by General Motors
1:30-3:00
Session #2

Outreach Blogging is not for the faint-hearted:

The debate: Life savers? Or Enablers? There's no doubt the online world can provide tremendous support, but can a blogger get in over her head?danah boyd will discuss with bloggers tackling the most sensitive subjects, such as anorexia, addiction and mental illness. Join Leah Peterson, Jenn Satterwhite, Denise Tanton and an anonymous blogger for a conversation you won't forget.

From Here to Autonomy:

Blogger as entrepreneur...fact or fiction? What does it take to leverage blogging to make a living? Heather Armstrong, Arieanna Foley and Jennifer James know from experience. They've each become blogpreneurs in different ways: superstar blogger using an ad-based model; professional blogger who writes for more blogs than most of us read; subject-matter expert blogger with writing, editing and speaking gigs around her subject. Rachelle Bowden grills them on best practices and pitfalls.

Community Assistance:

BlogHers are cutting through the red tape and doing it for themselves, delivering tangible aid to communities in need, locally and around the world. Many blogs focus on raising awareness, but sometimes they actually raise money, become a hub for victim assistance or even put those who want to help directly in touch with those who need the help. Betty Sullivan, whose Betty's List has been assisting the San Francisco LGBT community for years, talk to Sara Ford, Grace Davis and Dina Mehta about why and how they did it. Learn how you can too.

Room of Your Owns

1. Business Blog Case Studies: Yvonne DiVita, Susan Getgood & Toby Bloomberg lead a rap session with you, the BlogHers, about what worked (and what didn't) when implementing blogs for business.

2. Let's Talk About Sex: Join Susie Bright, Melissa Gira, Logan Levkoff, Halley Suitt, and other blogging woman who prove: when it comes to talking sex online, women don't just like to watch!
Sponsored by Elexa by Trojan
3:00-3:30

BREAK
3:30-5:00
Session #3

Next Level Naked:

Staying naked as your body (of work) changes. How do you give your audience what they don't want? How do you blog under the weight of reader expectations? Sometimes bloggers face this when they experience blogger burn-out. Sometimes they face this when they enter the blogosphere with good or bad baggage by their side. This year Jory Des Jardins gets Naked with bloggers who have faced these situations, like Lauren Bruce, Maryam Scoble, Kirsten Osolind and Mecca Ibrahim (aka Annie Mole.)

Is Your Blog a Gallery or a Canvas?:

An artist (Elizabeth Perry), photographer (Ms. Jen) and writer (Eden Kennedy) explore art on blogs and blogs as art. Some bloggers are putting their best stuff online...for free. Others are exposing their works in progress. Are blogs a means to an end, or the end itself? And how do you decide what the right approach is for you?

Political Blogging:

Same shit, different day? What did political blogs accomplish in 2004, besides bringing down Dan Rather and selling tickets to Farenheit 911? Will poli-blogs and hyper-local citizen journalism sites really make a difference in 2006 and 2008? Are bloggers better off trying to influence their own communities or sway the masses? Lisa Williams talks with Jarah Euston, Kety Esquivel, Courtney Hollands, Lindsay Beyerstein and Ann Althouse...bloggers representing all types of blogs, and with a range of opinions on what they expect to achieve with those blogs.

Room of Your Owns

1. Group Blogging: Mandy Moore from the KnittingBloggers community, Iris Rodriguez & Veronica Hernandez from Smashcast and Sarah Gilbert & Asha Dornfest from Portland Urban Mamas are among those who have dealt with the practical & inspirational realities of building online blog communities.

2. Transforming Your Life. Yes, with blogging: Nina Smith, Deni Bonet and Cathy Kirkman each have very different stories about how they used blogging to make radical changes that transformed their lives. A lot of other BlogHers do too. Get inspired. Get an idea.
5:00-5:15

BREAK
5:15-6:30

Closing Keynote - Creating Your Platform: Chris Nolan leads a discussion with four powerhouse women: Hurricane Katrina Direct Relief founder and professional blogger Grace Davis, Huffington Post founder and author Arianna Huffington, WashingtonPost.com/Newsweek Interactive CEO and Publisher Caroline Little and SixApart founder and President Mena Trott. These women have used the web to create and control their agenda...and give a voice to others. Whether your agenda is transforming your life, your business or the world, this closing session should send you back to your lives (or on to the cocktail party) inspired, energized and ready to make things happen!
Sponsored by Johnson's
6:30-9:00

Cocktail Party, Sponsored by Yahoo!, with activities including the BlogHer Conference Swap Meet and a 7:00PM preview showing of the new documentary The Motherhood Manifesto, produced by MomsRising.org.