'eCitizenship' conference next week at Wayne State

Associated Press

Detroit -- A national "eCitizenship" conference on the role of online social media and democracy is coming to Michigan, hosted by Wayne State University.

The conference is next Thursday and Friday in Detroit and focuses on whether social media networks such as Twitter and Facebook can help students be better citizens.

The keynote speaker is Jose Antonio Vargas, technology and innovations editor for the Huffington Post. He talks at 7 p.m. Thursday.

The conference marks the start of a three-year project called "eCitizenship: New Tools, New Strategies, New Spaces." Backers include the American Association of State Colleges and Universities, The New York Times and Wayne State's Center for the Study of Citizenship.