Reinvention Committee Completes BlogTalkRadio Job Series

By Deirdre M. Childress, VP-Print, NABJ; Entertainment Editor, The Philadelphia Inquirer

The National Association of Black Journalists’ Reinvention Committee  and the Digital Journalism Task Force on Friday hosted the last of three BlogTalkRadio shows designed to help members in different phases in their career make the adjustment if the worst happens – losing your job.

The Friday session — Laid Off, Bought Out & Scared: Managing My Life and Finances — featured past NABJ President Sidmel Estes of BreakThrough Inc. and financial adviser Lee Jenkins,  president and CEO of the Lee Jenkins Financial Group.  The session discussed what you can do now to prepare for the worst, how you adjust to life without the office and offer Budgeting 101 tips.

The other two sessions available for playback include:

• In the Thick of My Career: Searching for the ‘New Me’, was a panel led by Neil Foote of Foote Communications and the University of North Texas, showed mid-career professionals how to revamp their skills and become more tech savvy. Panelists discussed what a journalist in the digital age must do to improve their skills, offered advice on creating a blog or website, outlined how to use the most popular digital media tools and how to use the power of your network and personal relationships.
• The Young & the Restless: Keeping Hope & Journalism Alive featured Jackie Jones of Jones Coaching. It targeted younger/early stage journalists struggling to find their first job or get a new job after getting laid off. Jones spoke with Vanessa C. Deggins, a reporter/ multimedia producer, about being laid off and finding that next opportunity. The session also offered basic tips and tools on networking and job search.

Reinvention 2011 Committee Members

Deirdre M. Childress, NABJ Vice President-Print – dchildress@phillynews.com

Sidmel Estes, Past NABJ President – sid@sidmelestes.com

Neil Foote, Past NABJ Region III Director – neil@neilfoote.com

Jackie Jones, Past Vice President-Print – jjones5647@aol.com

Aprill O. Turner, NABJ Associate Representative – aprilloturner@gmail.com

Benet J. Wilson, co-chair, Digital Journalism Task Force – benet@aviationqueen.com

Upcoming Programning from the NABJ Digital Journalism Task Force

By Benét J. Wilson, DJTF co-chair, Online Managing Editor-Business Aviation, Aviation Week Group

DJTF has a series of programming on its calendar, and we wanted to highlight three events coming up.

First, the NABJ Reinvention Committee and DJTF will host a BlogTalkRadio show, The Young & the Restless: Keeping Hope & Journalism Alive, April 15 at noon EDT. This half-hour workshop, moderated by Jackie Jones of Jones Coaching, targets younger/early stage journalists struggling to find their first job or get a new job after getting laid off. Jones will chat with Vanessa C. Deggins, a reporter/multimedia producer about being laid off and finding that next opportunity. The session will also offer basic tips and tools on networking and job search.

Next up will be DJTF’s rescheduled free webinar, Tapping our Oral Traditions: How To Add A Podcast To Your Print Story, April 19 from noon to 1:00 p.m. EDT.  Join multimedia journalist Vanessa Deggins as she shows how to create a podcast to accompany a print story. She will allow us to listen to some of her work and she’ll answer questions on how you can get started. The NABJDigital blog will also have links to resources Deggins recommends for producing podcasts.

And last, but not least, the Reinvention Committee and DJTF will host a BlogTalkRadio show, In the Thick of My Career: Searching for the ‘New Me, April 29 at noon EDT. Neil Foote of Foote Communications and the University of North Texas, will show mid-career professionals how to revamp their skills and become more tech savvy. Panelists will discuss what a journalist in the digital age must do to improve their skills, offer advice on creating a blog or website, outline how to use the most popular digital media tools and use the power of your network and personal relationships. He’ll also offer tips on how to create a personal business plan as part of launching a start-up company.

I hope you’ll be able to join us for one, two or all three events.  And please let us know if there’s other programming you’d like to see.