__Local journalism is in a state of crisis, according to an in-depth report released by the Federal Communications Commission this summer. With newspaper resources in decline and online media struggling to to fill the void in accountability reporting, where can people turn to get quality coverage of civic affairs? And what could be done to make sure citizens are able to get the local news they need?

_Panelists:
Barbara Cochran, Curtis B. Hurley chair in public affairs journalism at the Missouri School of Journalism and former president of the Radio Television Digital News Association
Renee Graham, public communications officer for the City of Columbia
Amy McCombs, Lee Hills chair in free press studies at the Missouri School of Journalism

In the early 1950s, cancerous cells were taken from a tumor that killed a young black woman and became the first human cells to be successfully kept alive and replicated outside the human body. That cell line, known as HeLa, went on to become one of the most important ingredients in medical research, leading to several important breakthroughs -- and generating large profits for biomedical companies. But the woman and her descendants had no idea any of this was happening.
The details of this true story are chronicled in this year's One Read book, "The Immortal Life of Henrietta Lacks." Our discussion focuses on the medical issues raised in the story, in particular how race, medicine, civil rights history and bioethics all come together in the book and in our world today.
For more information about this year's One Read events, click here.

Panelists:
Doyne McKenzie, collections manager, Daniel Boone Regional Library
Traci Wilson-Kleekamp, director of diversity and outreach initiatives, MU School of Medicine

With Juan Williams-gate, the controversial resignation of NPR’s president, and legislators threatening to pull funding from the Corporation for Public Broadcasting, the heat has been on for public media. The question is: Can public media survive? We tackle the question head on, with help from our panelists and input from the live audience, including representatives from Columbia's other public media outlets, KOPN/89.5 FM and CAT-TV.

Panelists:
Barbara Cochran, Curtis B. Hurley Chair in Public Affairs Journalism at the MU School of Journalism
Tim Eby, General Manager, St. Louis Public Radio
Frank Morris, News Director, KCUR Kansas City and Harvest Public Media

A panel of local and state journalists recap the biggest stories of 2010 and explain how those events might shape mid-Missouri in the year ahead.

Panelists:
Marshall Griffin, statehouse reporter for St. Louis Public Radio
Janese Silvey, higher education reporter at the Columbia Daily Tribune
Scott Swafford, senior city editor at the Columbia Missourian and associate professor at the Missouri School of Journalism