Soon after Twitter exploded with updates and speculation on the dual blasts near Boston’s Copley Square, the New York Times op-ed columnist, who was in town to give a lecture at Northeastern University, wrote: “Explosion is a reminder that ATF needs a director. Shame on Senate Republicans for blocking apptment.”

Kristof linked to a Feb. 1 Washington Post story suggesting GOP lawmakers in the U.S. Senate would try to block President Obama’s appointment of B. Todd Jones to head the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco and Firearms.

The criticism came swiftly.

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Voice Media will be able to now operate the papers without backlash from ownership of Backpage.com. Village Voice Media was repeatedly criticized for the site’s alleged ties to ads that have been used to buy and sell underage women for sex. Nicholas Kristof of the New York Times was one of Backpage’s biggest critics, often blasting Village Voice Media for publishing ads that might lead to illegal activities.

The new owners are clearly ready to distance themselves and their papers from Backpage. ”We’re excited to continue to focus on professional, curated, hard-hitting journalism, comprehensive entertainment coverage and a continued push to digital,” Tobias told Ad Age.

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During the protest, a Change.org petition (currently packed with over 220,000 signatures) that calls on the Voice to stop publishing ads on Backpage.com that might lead to child sex trafficking will be delivered.

The cause has been trumpeted by The New York Times columnist Nicholas Kristof in a pair of columns. In addition to Kristof, 19 Senators have already asked the Voice to shutter the adult services section of Backpage.com.

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We were drawn to the conference by special guest speakers Mandy Moore, Wyclef Jean and Edward Norton — all inspiring philanthropists and world travelers — but there were some media personalities there as well. CNT‘s editor-in-chief Klara Glowczewska opened the event by welcoming everyone and served as master of ceremonies throughout. “We’re at the dawn of a new era,” she said “Business will be transformed, and ultimately in the best possible ways.”

New York Times columnist and author Nicholas Kristof moderated the first panel of the day, featuring TOMS Shoes CEO Blake Mycoskie and Rachel Webber, the director of energy initiatives for Rupert Murdoch‘s News Corp. Although News Corp.’s energy initiatives grew out of the desire to streamline their business expenses, they now realize that folding socially conscious initiatives into their business model can improve the brand’s reputation around the world, Webber said.

Later, documentarian Ken Burns previewed his latest project, “The National Parks: America’s Best Idea”. You can check out a clip here.

Then, over lunch we sat at the bloggers’ table with CNT bloggers Julia Bainbridge, Mollie Chen and Wendy Perrin, Jen Leo of The Los Angeles Times and bloggers Todd Lucier, Aimee Barnes and Elliott Ng (who snapped some great photos of the event).

After lunch, Norton spoke to the crowd about his travels and various philanthropic works. He spoke at length about the Maasai Wilderness Conservation Trust in Eastern Africa, where he serves as president of the board. Norton says he primarily helps the trust raise money that is then invested back into conservation, education and health care programs in the Maasai community. Right now, the New York resident is training to run the New York Marathon on November 1 with three Maasai warriors. All the funds raised in support of his run will go back to the Maasai, he said. Come marathon day, we’ll be keeping an eye out for Norton and his Maasai running buddies.

Overall, all the talk about sustainability and conservation and saving the world got us thinking: what can we do to give back? Give us some ideas. What are some ways you give back to the community and help the world at large?

After the jump, more photos of the day’s event

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The couple said they hope the book, which focuses on women’s struggles and survival in developing nations, will foster a social movement for change.

“What we’ve written is a sort of do-it-yourself foreign aid tool kit,” Kristof said. “We hope to inform people, but also really help them figure how they can go about making a difference.”

With that in mind, Kristof and WuDunn offered some tips for writing for social change or trying to get people to care about your issue.

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The Gray Lady is currently offering three of these courses through its Knowledge Network. First announced in late July, the courses will be taught by Nicholas Kristof, who will focus on human rights violations of women in developing countries; Gail Collins, who will speak about the lives and history of American women; and Eric Asimov, who will speak on wines along with two winemakers.

Kristof and Collins’ seminars are online-only, and the price of $185 will get you access to one live, interactive Webcast, three self-paced lessons and a one-week online forum discussion. Asimov’s presentation is slightly different. For $125 you get access to an online seminar with winemakers Cathy Corison and Chris Cree, but New York-area students also have chance to see it live.

As Neiman Lab recently pointed out, this model could lead the way for a membership option the Times said it was considering last month. So we may be seeing more of these down the line.

Kristof’s seminar is the first up, debuting September 15. He will be discussing the topics that stem directly from his upcoming book, “Half the Sky,” which hits shelves September 8.

What do you think? Are these types of seminars something you are interested in? Would you pay to hear Times columnists speak? Will revenue from these sorts of things save journalism?

Related: Would You Buy Wine From The New York Times?

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Kristof and WuDunn are being honored for their extensive work chronicling human rights in Asia, Africa and the developing world, the Dayton Literary Peace Prize committee said in a statement today. The committee highlighted the couple’s work:

Since becoming the first married couple to win a Pulitzer Prize for their coverage of the Tiananmen Square protests for the New York Times, Kristof and WuDunn have collaborated on such influential, milestone books as “China Wakes: The Struggle for the Soul of a Rising Power” and “Thunder from the East: Portrait of a Rising Asia.” In 2006, Kristof received a second Pulitzer Prize for his New York Times op-ed columns on Darfur. Their latest book, “Half the Sky: Turning Oppression into Opportunity for Women Worldwide,” will be released in September 2009.

The committee also announced the finalists for the 2009 Dayton Literary Peace Prizes in fiction and nonfiction. Winners will receive a $10,000 honorarium, while runners-up get $1,000. Among the finalists are Times columnist Thomas Friedman for his book “Hot, Flat and Crowded.”

A full list of the finalists are after the jump

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New York Times: More information about the lengths the Times went to to keep reporter David Rohde‘s kidnapping off the media’s radar: Wikipedia co-founder Jimmy Wales joined in the effort to monitor Rohde’s Wikipedia page and delete any references to the kidnapping.

Folio: Hachette Filipacchi Media is reorganizing its automotive brands, Car and Driver and Road & Track, under the Jumpstart online network purchased in spring 2007. The structure of the new Jumpstart Automotive Group will be similar to the new structure implemented for Hachette’s women’s and shelter titles.

The Press of Atlantic City: Longtime editor Paul Merkoski wrote a good-bye letter to his readers ala David Letterman, listing the “Top 5 Things I’ll Miss Most Starting Next Monday” and “Top 5 Things I’ll Miss Least Starting Next Monday.”

Huffington Post: Disgraced New York governor Eliot Spitzer blogs for The Huffington Post for the first time since 2007. What motivated him to come back to the blogosphere? “The Plight of New York’s Small Business Owners” for the site’s new New York section.

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Thomas Friedman approves

As part of its “journalistic mission to get people talking on campuses,” nytimes.com is set to give free access for its often-ridiculed TimesSelect content to all those with a “.edu” e-mail address. The open access begins March 13. Vivian Schiller, senior vice president and general manager at NYTimes.com: “We wanted to open that up so that college students and professors can have a dialogue.”

The Times also wanted to drum up buzz for its “Win a Trip with Nick” contest, in which op-ed columnist Nicholas Kristof, chooses one college or graduate student and one middle or high school teacher to accompany him on a June trip to Africa.

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