Subject: Press at AIW6

From: "Charles H. Brotman (919-254-7204)" <[email-masked]>
Date: Thu, 29 Sep 94 11:03:21 EDT

Thanks to those of you who responded on the mail exploder or directly
to me.  Let me tell you what I learned from your feedback.

1) There seems to be a continued strong opinion among
   almost all of you that the press should
   not be included in the working sessions of the AIW.

2) Most of you who replied indicated that you thought the
   idea of having the press at Wednesday morning's plenary
   sessions was a good idea.  I assume that those of you
   who did not answer agree or do not care.

3) A few of you are still reticent about allowing the press into
   the AIW, at all.  Of those, all but one expressed that it would be
   acceptable under controlled conditions, ie. a special session
   especially for the press.

Here is what I propose, to address the concerns some of you
have expressed:

1) We continue with our standing rule of no press in
   the working sessions.

2) We allow the press into the AIW6 Wednesday morning
   plenary sessions only.  This need not set a precedent, but
   can be considered an experiment.  Based on the results
   of this experience, we can decide, prior to AIW7,
   whether we wish to allow this again.

3) The Wednesday plenaries would constitute the "special press session"
   for AIW6.  We agree, during this time, to limit
   our questions to address the content of the presentation.
   If desired, we can schedule follow-on "closed door" sessions
   to allow us to more openly discuss issues among ourselves,
   without press involvement.  The objective being to keep
   controversy open and frank without concern about press
   quotes.

Certainly, there is some risk involved in inviting the press to the
AIW.  And, while they are here there may be some self-imposed
inhibitions.  However, as long as we limit their access to the opening
plenaries, I believe that the opportunities for good media coverage of
the AIW and APPN far outweigh these concerns.  And, as I read your
responses, most of you agree.

Does this proposal satisfy the outstanding concerns?

Regards,
Chuck Brotman
AIW Chair

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From: David Bryant/HQ/3Com <[email-masked]>
Date: 29 Sep 94 9:09:48 EDT

Chuck - I think your proposal sounds like a reasonable compromise.  I certainly 
agree that everyone's been working hard and we should do what we can to promote 
the success of our activities in the press.   I think the value of additional 
press coverage outweighs the risks we've identified and your compromise ensures 
those risks are minimized. 

David Bryant
3Com Corp
408 764-5272