Lambeth Conference coverage plan set by Episcopal Life Online
Episcopal News Service. July 8, 2008 [070808-04]
Comprehensive written and multimedia coverage of the 2008 Lambeth Conference and Spouses Conference will be provided by Episcopal Life Online throughout the July 16-August 3 gatherings in Canterbury, England.
As more than 650 Anglican Communion bishops travel to southeast England for the once-a-decade conference, Episcopal Life Online will offer daily written coverage, video reports and image galleries to emphasize the theme, "Equipping bishops for mission," and highlight some of the international partnerships throughout the 38 Anglican provinces.
In-depth coverage of the Spouses Conference, which will run concurrently with the Lambeth Conference, will also be offered throughout.
While many of the official sessions will be closed to the media and general public, a series of interviews with bishops and their spouses will explore the conference's daily themes, including Anglican identity, gender violence, human sexuality issues, environmental concerns, ecumenical and interfaith relations, the Anglican Covenant, Listening Process, and mission and evangelism.
Official media briefings and reports of special events -- including the July 20 Opening Eucharist and the July 24 walk of bishops for the Millennium Development Goals in London -- will be posted to Episcopal Life Online as on-demand video streams.
An initiative of the Episcopal Church's public affairs office, daily accounts of the activities of the Lambeth Conference, penned by different bishops, will be released each conference day. These bishops will also serve as official media briefers. In addition to Episcopal Life Online, the daily accounts will be available on EpiScope and NewsLine.
A team of bishops will serve as Blogging Bishops, which will be available on The Lambeth Journal. The bishops will include Sean Rowe of Northwestern Pennsylvania (lead blogger); Laura Ahrens, suffragan of Connecticut; Marc Andrus of California; Larry Benfield of Arkansas; Sergio Carranza, assistant of Los Angeles; Neff Powell of Southwestern Virginia; Bavi Edna "Nedi" Rivera, suffragan of Olympia; and Jean Zache Duracin of Haiti.
Meanwhile, the September issue of Episcopal Life's monthly newspaper will carry conference wrap-up news, features and analysis, while August editions of the Episcopal Life Weekly bulletin inserts will continue to address conference-related themes.
All coverage is provided through Episcopal Life Media, the integrated system of online, print and video resources serving Episcopalians and the wider public.