10 Online News Association Panels Relevant to Digital Journalists

The 18th annual Online News Association (ONA) conference is happening this week in Austin, Texas.  The conference has become the must-attend event for digital journalists and storytellers. Full disclosure  — I’m currently VP of the ONA board, running for re-election and I’d really appreciate your support. Keep up with NABJ members attending the conference via the hashtag #NABJAtONA.

It’s well known that attending ONA isn’t cheap. Every year, the conference sells out because people see the value it brings to the table. But one of the many things I love about this particular event is how open and accessible it is.

If you can’t be in Austin, you can still join us — for FREE — thanks to our amazing video, audio and social teams that cover almost every workshop. And we’re also doing, for the first time, we’re also doing the ONA on Air podcast, which will be available on Soundcloud, Google Play, Apple Podcasts and Stitcher.

Look at the “How’s My Story Doing? Custom Analytics and Empowered Local Newsrooms” workshop. The Audio and Screen symbols mean that this particular session will be live streamed and also have audio available. You can also sign up to gets notifications when the live stream and social conversation begin. Not every session will be live streamed, but between that, audio and social, you’ll get access to the majority of our programming. It’s not like being in Austin, but it’s pretty close.

So below are my picks of 10 workshops that can help digital journalists of color remain relevant in their newsrooms.

1. 11th Annual Tech Trends For Journalists (AUDIO & VIDEO): This is THE must-attend session of the convention every year. If you had the chance to see a version of journalist and futurist Amy Webb’s presentation at NABJ’s Philadelphia convention in 2011, then you know what I’m talking about. If not, check out a presentation where Webb will blow your mind via insights into what trends will impact journalism, what tools are on the horizon and how newsrooms can use them, while also avoiding potential disruption.

2. Notes from the Journalism Diaspora (AUDIO & VIDEO): This year’s NABJ Region I conference included a Diversity and Management training program led by former Deputy Regional Director Nicki Mayo. One of the panels, “New management and leadership skills for journalists,” featured Justin Ellis, a journalist who wrote for Neiman Lab and ESPN the magazine. At that time he had taken a job as a researcher on former “Daily Show” correspondent Wyatt Cenac’s new HBO show “Wyatt Cenac’s Problem Areas.” As newsrooms continue to cut editorial jobs, this panel discusses how journalists can develop skills that are useful within and outside of news media.

3. 

   Screenshot of AirTran Airways’ website on Aug. 15, 2000.

   Setting the Record Straight by Going Wayback (AUDIO): If you attended my NABJ Innovation Bubble workshop, “Tools & Apps for Digital Journalists,” you know that one of the tools I highlighted was the Wayback Machine, The Internet Archive, which allows anyone to see archived versions of web pages going back to 1996. Site director Mark Graham will discuss how newsrooms and journalists can use it to build out their archive-sourcing capabilities and leverage the internet’s long memory because it’s true — just because you delete it or archive it doesn’t mean it’s gone forever.

4. Vicarious Trauma Response Planning (AUDIO): We’ve had a year when it comes to covering traumatic events. This is a great panel for newsroom leaders and reporters on how to plan for this coverage and ensure that teams leave room for self-care.

5. Beyond Audiograms: Audience Engagement in Podcasting (AUDIO): It seems like we’re seeing news-related podcasts being released on the regular. But it’s not enough to just throw one out there. In this workshop, panelists will look at things like social metrics, SMS, chatbots and Facebook groups that are portable, scalable concepts that promote products while also fueling storytelling.

6. Alerts, Apps and Algorithms: Loyalty in a Mobile-First World (AUDIO): It seems like new and updated digital tools come out every day. This workshop is designed to help newsrooms building mobile channel strategies, decision makers trying to understand where traffic and loyalty intersect and anyone trying to get a handle on the impact of mobile OS-driven algorithms.

7. Subscriptions, Metrics and the Newsroom: How Journalists are Getting Involved (AUDIO): Online newsrooms have always had a focus on these topics, but legacy newsrooms have been slower to the game. But we know that metrics are driving how stories are written and who stays and goes based on the numbers. This session is for anyone looking to get a handle on how to read conversion metrics.

8.  Ten Secrets of Fast Writing and Powerful Storytelling (AUDIO & VIDEO): As newsroom leaders and editors push to create content to feed the beast, sometimes you can feel like you’re constantly grinding and not telling the stories you want to tell. This workshop helps you balance speed with good storytelling.

9.  Meet Me IRL (AUDIO): Texas Tribune Festival. Slate Day! A Podcast Experience. Washington Post Live. Blavity’s AfroTech. Newsrooms are using these types of events to not only connect with their audiences but to help shore up the bottom line. Check out how they’re doing it and get tips on how your newsroom can map out a strategy to run them successfully.

10.  Beyond Facebook: How to Survive and Thrive After Newsfeed Changes (AUDIO): Facebook, for good or bad, has become an important tool for newsrooms to push out their content. But every time you think you’ve mastered the algorithm, change comes, causing chaos to your feed. This panel will discuss how you can use tools like Reddit, Flipboard and Pocket to keep their audiences and reduce their reliance on things like Facebook and Google.

 

 

Do the Hustle Twitter Chat

Dr. Sybril Bennett is chairing this workshop at this year’s NABJ convention in Minneapolis. She held a TweetChat with her panelists to get the conversation started. Click here to see our Storify of the discussion. And join us in Minneapolis for the workshop!

Calendar of Multimedia Training and Events

FEBRUARY

• The 2015 Southeast Journalism Conference will be hosted by Georgia State University at its Student*University Center and the Ramada Plaza Capitol Park Atlanta on Feb. 26-28, 2015. Members and non-members alike are invited to attend this fantastic learning opportunity for journalism students across the southeast.

MARCH

• The Society of Professional Journalists’ Spring Conferences are day-long professional development meetings bringing area journalists, students and journalism educators together in one place to hear from industry experts on topics ranging from improving writing to leveraging technology in today’s new media climate. Networking opportunities at the conferences allow participants to build relationships that can lead to the sharing of the best practices in newsrooms. Enhance yourself and your journalism career by attending a Spring Conference in your area. For more information, click here.

• The National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ) will host the Region III conference March 5-8, 2015, aboard the Carnival cruise line to the Bahamas. This conference will feature diverse programming for freelance and transitioning journalists, public relations practitioners, entrepreneurs and students.
• Join Investigative Reporters and Editors and the National Institute for Computer-Assisted Reporting for its annual conference devoted to computer-assisted reporting in Atlanta March 5-8, 2015. Come and learn about tools you need to dig deeper into stories and give your audience the information they want.
• Join the Online News Association for its first international conference, ONA London: Mobile, March 6, 2015, at Reuters UK headquarters. This one-day event will bring together top minds in the industry to discuss mobile design, content and distribution, providing practical tips and inspiration to rethink how media approaches mobile news.
• Journalists, media and communication professionals and students are invited to participate in the 2015 National Association of Black Journalists Region VI Conference, March 13-14,2015, in Oakland, California. The event – which takes place at the Waterfront Hotel in Oakland’s Jack London Square – will begin with a Friday night mixer reception at Lungamore’s @ Jack London Square followed by a full day of workshops, which will offer information and discussion on the impact and future of technology in the media and communications industries. Saturday’s sessions will end with a dinner/dance open to all participants.
• Bindercon –  Out of the Binders was formed to promote the voices of women and gender non-conforming writers, and the community surrounding the conference is incredibly welcoming and diverse. The symposium will include panels on cultivating your career and improving your craft, but also diversity and intersectionality—topics that usually aren’t covered in a meaningful way at many other events.  The event is March 28-29 in LA and online.

APRIL

• The Center for Journalism Ethics will address ethics in sports journalism at its seventh annual conference, Fair or Foul: Ethics and Sports Journalism, April 10, 2015, at Union South on the University of Wisconsin-Madison campus. The conference will feature Robert Lipsyte, veteran sports journalist, author and current ombudsman for ESPN, as keynote speaker. The program will include panels on privacy, editorial independence in a world of sponsorship and rights fees, representation of minorities, and the bounds of civil discourse in a sporting context.
• Journalists will gather for two days of training sessions, awards ceremonies and networking April 10-11, 2015 for the Midwest Journalism Conference at the Crowne Plaza Minneapolis International Airport Hotel and Suites at 34th Avenue South and American Boulevard in Bloomington, Minnesota. Planning is under way for the 2015 conference and we welcome your suggestions for speakers, sessions and events.
• Society of American Business Editors and Writers Spring Conference – This conference has a lot to offer business reporters with a great list of speakers including Rahm Emanuel.  Writers will learn strategies for evaluating startups and entrepreneurs, covering business in a global economy, and enhancing your reporting with cutting edge technology.  The event is April 23-25 in Chicago.
• Join hundreds of journalism colleagues in California’s Silicon Valley — an intersection of health and technology, and home to Health Journalism 2015. Register to visit area sites during field trips, hear from world-class health experts and journalists during panels, take part in skill-building workshops, and more. The conference will help reporters, editors and producers cover the latest in medical research, health technology, public health issues, the business of health care, health policy matters and journalism. The conference kickoff speaker will be Stanford University physician and bestselling author Abraham Verghese.  The event is April 23-26 in Santa Clara, CA.
• The Missouri School of Journalism and the Reynolds Journalism Institute will host Journalism Interactive,  the conference on journalism education and digital media April 24-25, 2015. The keynote speaker will be Vivian Schiller, who was most recently global chair of news at Twitter. Her address, “Beyond the Buzzwords: What It Means to Be a News Organization in the Digital Age,” will focus on the impact of emerging technologies on both the practice of journalism and the business viability of news media companies.
• American Society of Journalists and Authors Connect For Success is a conference geared more towards freelancers than staff at major publications.  It will be April 30 – May 2 and contains tons of panels and sessions on business management, marketing, and writing and research techniques. And since it’s smack dab in New York City, the conference gets high-profile panelists from just about every beat. ASJA members get access to personal pitch sessions, where you can have speed-dating style meetings with publishers, agents, and even a handful of editors, so this conference is potentially lucrative in addition to being informative. Author Jennifer Boylan is speaking this year.

MAY

• Muse & the Marketplace – This three-day literary conference helps writers find that elusive balance between artistic excellence and working for money. Authors delve into the craft of writing, while agents, publicists, and editors talk business. May 1-3 in Boston, MA.
• North American Travel Journalist Association Conference and Marketplace – hosts professional development seminars in the morning and a marketplace to meet with exhibitors and hear their destination promotion spiels. In the afternoons, you’ll be drinking cocktails, taking tours, and catching dinner, and listening to an evening keynote speakers.  May 4-9 in Puerto Vallarta, Mexico.
• Travel Classics East – Dates: May 28–31, Tarrytown, NY. This conference is open to writers who have published three or more major magazine articles within the last year and a half. Like the NATJA conference, it includes meals as well as pre- and post-conference media tours. You’ll also get to sit in on presentations by top magazine editors and book agents and consult with them one-on-one.

JUNE

 

• 2015 Investigative Reporters and Editors Conference is on June 4–7 in Philadelphia, PA. This conference provides guidance on locating documents, accessing public records, finding stories, and managing investigations. Although the schedule hasn’t been posted, the conference promises to cover a wide variety of beats, including public safety, health care, government, military, business, education, and the environment.

 

• Outdoor Writers Association of California Spring Conference is June 15–16 in Big Bear Lake, CA.   If you like to work hard and play hard, this conference will give you a chance to get some fishing and off-roading in while working on improving your craft, gathering story ideas, and networking with other outdoor writers.

JULY

• The Mayborn Literary Nonfiction Conference is on July 17–19 in Grapevine, TX. This conference’s theme is “The great divide between the Haves and Have-Nots in American society and the social, economic, racial, cultural and political fissures created by this divide.”  World-renowned storytellers will be speaking in a series of lectures, panels, and one-on-one sessions. Keynote speakers this year include authors Anne Fadiman, Barbara Ehrenreich, and Alex Tizon. If that’s not enough, former New York Times editor-in-chief Jill Abramson is one of 18 featured speakers—with more to be announced.

AUGUST

• The National Association of Black Journalists will hold its 40th Annual Convention and Career Fair August 5-9, 2015, in Minneapolis. Thousands of journalists, media executives, public relations professionals, and students are expected to attend to network, participate in professional development sessions and celebrate excellence in journalism. See a list of workshops here.
• The Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication will hold its annual conference August 5-9, 2015, in San Francisco.
• Join more than 900 journalists, news executives, media researchers and community leaders at the 25th Annual Asian American Journalists Association National Convention at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in San Francisco, August 12-15, 2015.

SEPTEMBER

• Join more than 350 journalists, news executives, communications professionals and educators to celebrate the 25th year of National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association’s Coming Home National Convention & 11th Annual LGBT Media Summit at the Hyatt Regency Embarcadero in San Francisco, September 3-6, 2015.
• Excellence in Journalism will be held September 18-20, 2015, in Orlando, Florida. The conference is a joint event with the Radio Television Digital News Association, the Society of Professional Journalists and the National Association of Hispanic Journalists.
• Record-breaking numbers of journalists travel to the Online News Association’s annual conference each year to learn about new tools, techniques and technologies, to discuss advancements and challenges in the industry, take advantage of the rare opportunity to network face-to-face, and share best practices with peers from all over the map. Join ONA September 24-26 in Los Angeles.

OCTOBER

• The Global Investigative Journalism Conference is the world’s largest international gathering of investigative reporters. It will hold its next conference in October in Lillehammer, Norway. The conference will be hosted by Association for Critical and Investigative Press (SKUP), Norway’s investigative journalism association.
• Journalism and Women Symposium Conference and Mentoring Project is on Oct 9–11 in Whitefish, MT.  JAWS CAMP has a cozy and comfortable vibe, with conference attendees encouraged to wear jeans and t-shirts. Although the schedule isn’t yet set, past conferences have included panels on new media ethics, intensive training in editing and investigative reporting, documentary film screenings, morning yoga, and cocktail hours.
• ScienceWriters 2015 is on October 9–13 in Cambridge, MA.  This is a joint conference, provided by the National Association of Science Writers and the Council for the Advancement of Science Writing, and it features briefings on scientific research, professional development workshops, lab tours, and science field trips.

So there you have it—conferences as close as your backyard and as far as Puerto Vallarta. Remember to register sooner rather than later, as early bird prices increase, hotel blocks fill up quickly, and limited field trip slots at some conferences disappear.

If you have items you wish to include, please email them to me at benet AT aviationqueen DOT COM. Thanks!!

Calendar of Multimedia Training and Events

FEBRUARY

• The 2015 Southeast Journalism Conference will be hosted by Georgia State University at its Student*University Center and the Ramada Plaza Capitol Park Atlanta on Feb. 26-28, 2015. Members and non-members alike are invited to attend this fantastic learning opportunity for journalism students across the southeast.

MARCH

• The Society of Professional Journalists’ Spring Conferences are day-long professional development meetings bringing area journalists, students and journalism educators together in one place to hear from industry experts on topics ranging from improving writing to leveraging technology in today’s new media climate. Networking opportunities at the conferences allow participants to build relationships that can lead to the sharing of the best practices in newsrooms. Enhance yourself and your journalism career by attending a Spring Conference in your area. For more information, click here.
• The National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ) will host the Region III conference March 5-8, 2015, aboard the Carnival cruise line to the Bahamas. This conference will feature diverse programming for freelance and transitioning journalists, public relations practitioners, entrepreneurs and students.
• Join Investigative Reporters and Editors and the National Institute for Computer-Assisted Reporting for its annual conference devoted to computer-assisted reporting in Atlanta March 5-8, 2015. Come and learn about tools you need to dig deeper into stories and give your audience the information they want.
• Join the Online News Association for its first international conference, ONA London: Mobile, March 6, 2015, at Reuters UK headquarters. This one-day event will bring together top minds in the industry to discuss mobile design, content and distribution, providing practical tips and inspiration to rethink how media approaches mobile news.
• Journalists, media and communication professionals and students are invited to participate in the 2015 National Association of Black Journalists Region VI Conference, March 13-14,2015, in Oakland, California. The event – which takes place at the Waterfront Hotel in Oakland’s Jack London Square – will begin with a Friday night mixer reception at Lungamore’s @ Jack London Square followed by a full day of workshops, which will offer information and discussion on the impact and future of technology in the media and communications industries. Saturday’s sessions will end with a dinner/dance open to all participants.

APRIL

• The Center for Journalism Ethics will address ethics in sports journalism at its seventh annual conference, Fair or Foul: Ethics and Sports Journalism, April 10, 2015, at Union South on the University of Wisconsin-Madison campus. The conference will feature Robert Lipsyte, veteran sports journalist, author and current ombudsman for ESPN, as keynote speaker. The program will include panels on privacy, editorial independence in a world of sponsorship and rights fees, representation of minorities, and the bounds of civil discourse in a sporting context.
• Journalists will gather for two days of training sessions, awards ceremonies and networking April 10-11, 2015 for the Midwest Journalism Conference at the Crowne Plaza Minneapolis International Airport Hotel and Suites at 34th Avenue South and American Boulevard in Bloomington, Minnesota. Planning is under way for the 2015 conference and we welcome your suggestions for speakers, sessions and events.
• Join hundreds of journalism colleagues in California’s Silicon Valley — an intersection of health and technology, and home to Health Journalism 2015. Register to visit area sites during field trips, hear from world-class health experts and journalists during panels, take part in skill-building workshops, and more. The conference will help reporters, editors and producers cover the latest in medical research, health technology, public health issues, the business of health care, health policy matters and journalism. The conference kickoff speaker will be Stanford University physician and bestselling author Abraham Verghese.
• The Missouri School of Journalism and the Reynolds Journalism Institute will host Journalism Interactive,  the conference on journalism education and digital media April 24-25, 2015. The keynote speaker will be Vivian Schiller, who was most recently global chair of news at Twitter. Her address, “Beyond the Buzzwords: What It Means to Be a News Organization in the Digital Age,” will focus on the impact of emerging technologies on both the practice of journalism and the business viability of news media companies.

AUGUST

• The National Association of Black Journalists will hold its 40th Annual Convention and Career Fair August 5-9, 2015, in Minneapolis. Thousands of journalists, media executives, public relations professionals, and students are expected to attend to network, participate in professional development sessions and celebrate excellence in journalism. See a list of workshops here.
• The Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication will hold its annual conference August 5-9, 2015, in San Francisco.
• Join more than 900 journalists, news executives, media researchers and community leaders at the 25th Annual Asian American Journalists Association National Convention at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in San Francisco, August 12-15, 2015.

 

SEPTEMBER

• Join more than 350 journalists, news executives, communications professionals and educators to celebrate the 25th year of National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association’s Coming Home National Convention & 11th Annual LGBT Media Summit at the Hyatt Regency Embarcadero in San Francisco, September 3-6, 2015.
• Excellence in Journalism will be held September 18-20, 2015, in Orlando, Florida. The conference is a joint event with the Radio Television Digital News Association, the Society of Professional Journalists and the National Association of Hispanic Journalists.
• Record-breaking numbers of journalists travel to the Online News Association’s annual conference each year to learn about new tools, techniques and technologies, to discuss advancements and challenges in the industry, take advantage of the rare opportunity to network face-to-face, and share best practices with peers from all over the map. Join ONA September 24-26 in Los Angeles.

OCTOBER

• The Global Investigative Journalism Conference is the world’s largest international gathering of investigative reporters. It will hold its next conference in October in Lillehammer, Norway. The conference will be hosted by Association for Critical and Investigative Press (SKUP), Norway’s investigative journalism association.

If you have items you wish to include, please email them to me at benet AT aviationqueen DOT COM. Thanks!!

Calendar of Multimedia Training and Events

FEBRUARY

• The 2015 Southeast Journalism Conference will be hosted by Georgia State University at its Student*University Center and the Ramada Plaza Capitol Park Atlanta on Feb. 26-28, 2015. Members and non-members alike are invited to attend this fantastic learning opportunity for journalism students across the southeast.

MARCH

• The Society of Professional Journalists’ Spring Conferences are day-long professional development meetings bringing area journalists, students and journalism educators together in one place to hear from industry experts on topics ranging from improving writing to leveraging technology in today’s new media climate. Networking opportunities at the conferences allow participants to build relationships that can lead to the sharing of the best practices in newsrooms. Enhance yourself and your journalism career by attending a Spring Conference in your area. For more information, click here.
• The National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ) will host the Region III conference March 5-8, 2015, aboard the Carnival cruise line to the Bahamas. This conference will feature diverse programming for freelance and transitioning journalists, public relations practitioners, entrepreneurs and students.
• Join Investigative Reporters and Editors and the National Institute for Computer-Assisted Reporting for its annual conference devoted to computer-assisted reporting in Atlanta March 5-8, 2015. Come and learn about tools you need to dig deeper into stories and give your audience the information they want.
• Join the Online News Association for its first international conference, ONA London: Mobile, March 6, 2015, at Reuters UK headquarters. This one-day event will bring together top minds in the industry to discuss mobile design, content and distribution, providing practical tips and inspiration to rethink how media approaches mobile news.
• Journalists, media and communication professionals and students are invited to participate in the 2015 National Association of Black Journalists Region VI Conference, March 13-14,2015, in Oakland, California. The event – which takes place at the Waterfront Hotel in Oakland’s Jack London Square – will begin with a Friday night mixer reception at Lungamore’s @ Jack London Square followed by a full day of workshops, which will offer information and discussion on the impact and future of technology in the media and communications industries. Saturday’s sessions will end with a dinner/dance open to all participants.

 

APRIL

• The Center for Journalism Ethics will address ethics in sports journalism at its seventh annual conference, Fair or Foul: Ethics and Sports Journalism, April 10, 2015, at Union South on the University of Wisconsin-Madison campus. The conference will feature Robert Lipsyte, veteran sports journalist, author and current ombudsman for ESPN, as keynote speaker. The program will include panels on privacy, editorial independence in a world of sponsorship and rights fees, representation of minorities, and the bounds of civil discourse in a sporting context.
• Journalists will gather for two days of training sessions, awards ceremonies and networking April 10-11, 2015 for the Midwest Journalism Conference at the Crowne Plaza Minneapolis International Airport Hotel and Suites at 34th Avenue South and American Boulevard in Bloomington, Minnesota. Planning is under way for the 2015 conference and we welcome your suggestions for speakers, sessions and events.
• Join hundreds of journalism colleagues in California’s Silicon Valley — an intersection of health and technology, and home to Health Journalism 2015. Register to visit area sites during field trips, hear from world-class health experts and journalists during panels, take part in skill-building workshops, and more. The conference will help reporters, editors and producers cover the latest in medical research, health technology, public health issues, the business of health care, health policy matters and journalism. The conference kickoff speaker will be Stanford University physician and bestselling author Abraham Verghese.
• The Missouri School of Journalism and the Reynolds Journalism Institute will host Journalism Interactive,  the conference on journalism education and digital media April 24-25, 2015. The keynote speaker will be Vivian Schiller, who was most recently global chair of news at Twitter. Her address, “Beyond the Buzzwords: What It Means to Be a News Organization in the Digital Age,” will focus on the impact of emerging technologies on both the practice of journalism and the business viability of news media companies.

AUGUST

• The National Association of Black Journalists will hold its 40th Annual Convention and Career Fair August 5-9, 2015, in Minneapolis. Thousands of journalists, media executives, public relations professionals, and students are expected to attend to network, participate in professional development sessions and celebrate excellence in journalism. See a list of workshops here.
• The Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication will hold its annual conference August 5-9, 2015, in San Francisco.
• Join more than 900 journalists, news executives, media researchers and community leaders at the 25th Annual Asian American Journalists Association National Convention at the Hyatt Regency Hotel in San Francisco, August 12-15, 2015.

 

SEPTEMBER

• Join more than 350 journalists, news executives, communications professionals and educators to celebrate the 25th year of National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association’s Coming Home National Convention & 11th Annual LGBT Media Summit at the Hyatt Regency Embarcadero in San Francisco, September 3-6, 2015.
• Excellence in Journalism will be held September 18-20, 2015, in Orlando, Florida. The conference is a joint event with the Radio Television Digital News Association, the Society of Professional Journalists and the National Association of Hispanic Journalists.
• Record-breaking numbers of journalists travel to the Online News Association’s annual conference each year to learn about new tools, techniques and technologies, to discuss advancements and challenges in the industry, take advantage of the rare opportunity to network face-to-face, and share best practices with peers from all over the map. Join ONA September 24-26 in Los Angeles.

OCTOBER

• The Global Investigative Journalism Conference is the world’s largest international gathering of investigative reporters. It will hold its next conference in October in Lillehammer, Norway. The conference will be hosted by Association for Critical and Investigative Press (SKUP), Norway’s investigative journalism association.

If you have items you wish to include, please email them to me at benet AT aviationqueen DOT COM. Thanks!!

 

Calendar of Multimedia Training and Events

FEBRUARY

• The 2015 Southeast Journalism Conference will be hosted by Georgia State University at its Student*University Center and the Ramada Plaza Capitol Park Atlanta on Feb. 26-28, 2015. Members and non-members alike are invited to attend this fantastic learning opportunity for journalism students across the southeast.

MARCH

• The Society of Professional Journalists’ Spring Conferences are day-long professional development meetings bringing area journalists, students and journalism educators together in one place to hear from industry experts on topics ranging from improving writing to leveraging technology in today’s new media climate. Networking opportunities at the conferences allow participants to build relationships that can lead to the sharing of the best practices in newsrooms. Enhance yourself and your journalism career by attending a Spring Conference in your area. For more information, click here.
• The National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ) will host the Region III conference March 5-8, 2015, aboard the Carnival cruise line to the Bahamas. This conference will feature diverse programming for freelance and transitioning journalists, public relations practitioners, entrepreneurs and students.
• Join Investigative Reporters and Editors and the National Institute for Computer-Assisted Reporting for its annual conference devoted to computer-assisted reporting in Atlanta March 5-8, 2015. Come and learn about tools you need to dig deeper into stories and give your audience the information they want.
• Journalists, media and communication professionals and students are invited to participate in the 2015 National Association of Black Journalists Region VI Conference, March 13-14,2015, in Oakland, California. The event – which takes place at the Waterfront Hotel in Oakland’s Jack London Square – will begin with a Friday night mixer reception at Lungamore’s @ Jack London Square followed by a full day of workshops, which will offer information and discussion on the impact and future of technology in the media and communications industries. Saturday’s sessions will end with a dinner/dance open to all participants.

 

APRIL

• The Center for Journalism Ethics will address ethics in sports journalism at its seventh annual conference, Fair or Foul: Ethics and Sports Journalism, April 10, 2015, at Union South on the University of Wisconsin-Madison campus. The conference will feature Robert Lipsyte, veteran sports journalist, author and current ombudsman for ESPN, as keynote speaker. The program will include panels on privacy, editorial independence in a world of sponsorship and rights fees, representation of minorities, and the bounds of civil discourse in a sporting context.
• Journalists will gather for two days of training sessions, awards ceremonies and networking April 10-11, 2015 for the Midwest Journalism Conference at the Crowne Plaza Minneapolis International Airport Hotel and Suites at 34th Avenue South and American Boulevard in Bloomington, Minnesota. Planning is under way for the 2015 conference and we welcome your suggestions for speakers, sessions and events.
• Join hundreds of journalism colleagues in California’s Silicon Valley — an intersection of health and technology, and home to Health Journalism 2015. Register to visit area sites during field trips, hear from world-class health experts and journalists during panels, take part in skill-building workshops, and more. The conference will help reporters, editors and producers cover the latest in medical research, health technology, public health issues, the business of health care, health policy matters and journalism. The conference kickoff speaker will be Stanford University physician and bestselling author Abraham Verghese.
• The Missouri School of Journalism and the Reynolds Journalism Institute will host Journalism Interactive,  the conference on journalism education and digital media April 24-25, 2015. The keynote speaker will be Vivian Schiller, who was most recently global chair of news at Twitter. Her address, “Beyond the Buzzwords: What It Means to Be a News Organization in the Digital Age,” will focus on the impact of emerging technologies on both the practice of journalism and the business viability of news media companies.

 

OCTOBER

• The Global Investigative Journalism Conference is the world’s largest international gathering of investigative reporters. It will hold its next conference in October in Lillehammer, Norway. The conference will be hosted by Association for Critical and Investigative Press (SKUP), Norway’s investigative journalism association.

 

If you have items you wish to include, please email them to me at benet AT aviationqueen DOT COM. Thanks!!

 

Happy New Year! Start Here To Jumpstart Your Career in 2015

It’s 2015, and yes, we’re all making our New Year’s resolutions. One of yours should be to step up your digital journalism skills to keep you relevant in your current newsroom or help you become a star in a new one.

To that end, NABJ’s Digital Journalism Task Force and the Diverse Social Media Editors and Digital Journalists Facebook group will host a free series of webinars — New Year, New You, Part 2 — in January, all designed to boost your digital skills in 2015. Click here to see what we did in 2014.

First up, on Tuesday, Jan. 6, 2015, at 8:30 p.m. ET, is “Tech & Tools Journalists Can Use,” a free hour-long webinar where panelist will share and demonstrate their favorite tools, websites, apps and technology that help them do their jobs smarter and better. We’ll leave time for questions after the presentation, which will be recorded. Our media partner for this event is AllDigitocracy.org.

Watch this space for other webinars we’ll be holding this month to boost your skills.  And if there are webinars you want to see, let us know.  Here’s to a great 2015!

Calendar of Multimedia Training and Events

We’re back! Here’s a quick list of events through the end of the year.  We’ll have a bigger calendar next week. Meanwhile, if you have items you wish to include, please email them to me at benet AT aviationqueen DOT COM. Thanks!!

DECEMBER

• The Tow Center for Digital Journalism and the Information Society Project of Yale Law School have partnered to present this series of 5 lectures as part of the larger Journalism After Snowden project this Fall. Journalism After Snowden: Finding and Protecting Intelligence Sources After Snowden, a lecture with James Bamford on Tuesday, December 2, 2014, 12:00 pm – 1:30 pm. The lecture will be held at Yale Law School – 127 Wall Street, New Haven, Connecticut,  Room 122. An RSVP Required via Eventbrite. Whistleblowers are very rare, and it is even more rare when one comes knocking on your door as Edward Snowden did with Glenn Greenwald and Laura Poitras.  Instead, journalists covering national security and intelligence need to develop sources from scratch.  And once developed, they need to be protected.  In his talk James Bamford will discuss some ways to develop sources and also ways to protect them.  He will also talk about Edward Snowden and his thoughts on sources and whistleblowers.  Bamford spent three days with him in Moscow last summer for a cover story in Wired magazine.
• The Tow Center for Digital Journalism and the Information Society Project of Yale Law School have partnered to present this series of 5 lectures as part of the larger Journalism After Snowden project this Fall. Journalism After Snowden – In Defense of Leaks, a lecture with Jill Abramson on Wednesday, December 3, 2014, from 12:00 pm – 1:30 pm in Pulitzer Hall – 3rd Floor World Room. RSVP Required via Eventbrite. Jill Abramson is a journalist who spent the last 17 years in the most senior editorial positions at The New York Times, where she was the first woman to serve as Washington Bureau Chief, Managing Editor and Executive Editor. Before joining the Times, she spent nine years at The Wall Street Journal as the Deputy Washington Bureau Chief and an investigative reporter covering money and politics. She is currently a lecturer with the department of English at Harvard University.
• The Tow Center for Digital Journalism presents Tow Tea: Understanding the Role of Algorithms and Data at BuzzFeed on Thursday, Dec. 4, 2014, from 4:00 pm – 6:00 pm at the Brown Institute for Media Innovation. RSVP encouraged via Eventbrite. Ky Harlin, Director of Data Science for Buzzfeed will join us along with an editor and reporter from Buzzfeed. Together, they will help us understand the relationship between content and data—How does Buzzfeed predict whether a story will go viral?  What is shareability?  Do reporters and editors at Buzzfeed make editorial decisions based on input from data scientists who track traffic and social networks?  What is the day-to-day workflow like at Buzzfeed and how are methods employed different than those used in traditional newsroom settings? For questions about this event, please contact Smitha Khorana, Tow Center DMA, at sk3808@columbia.edu.
• The National Association of Black Journalists’ Digital Journalism Task Force and the Diverse Social Media Editors & Digital Journalists group present “The Road To Social Media Success,” a FREE webinar with Huffington Post Columnist Sean Gardner. Gardner will offer tips on how to step up your social media game. The webinar will be held on Thursday, December 11, 2014, at 8:00 p.m. EST. Register today!

MARCH

• The National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ) will host the Region III conference March 5-8, 2015, aboard the Carnival cruise line to the Bahamas. This conference will feature diverse programming for freelance and transitioning journalists, public relations practitioners, entrepreneurs and students.  A $100 per person deposit deadline is Monday, December 15, 2014; the final balance is due by Sunday, January 4, 2015.
• Journalists, media and communication professionals and students are invited to participate in the 2015 National Association of Black Journalists Region VI Conference, March 13-14,2015, in Oakland, California. The event – which takes place at the Waterfront Hotel in Oakland’s Jack London Square – will begin with a Friday night mixer reception at Lungamore’s @ Jack London Square followed by a full day of workshops, which will offer information and discussion on the impact and future of technology in the media and communications industries. Saturday’s sessions will end with a dinner/dance open to all participants.

 

10 Workshop Ideas For #NABJ40 In Minneapolis

The call to submit workshop proposals and speakers for the 2015 NABJ Annual Convention and Career Fair in Minneapolis has been opened.  Tracks for workshops are:  Engage, Immerse, Specialize, Inform, Learn and Know.

According to the NABJ website, proposals will be reviewed based on the following criteria:

• Is the topic innovative and relevant?

• Is the session well-organized and designed to meet the needs of this particular audience?

• Are the session objectives and “takeaways” for participants clearly explained in the proposal?

Seeing this, I came up with 10 workshop ideas I hope members will submit to the Program Committee.  Remember — you can’t complain about programming if you don’t submit anything. The deadline is Sunday, Nov. 16.  Good luck!

1. Media Ethics in a Web 3.0 World
2. Adding a Dash of Data to your Journalism
3. How To Make Your Web Stories Clickalicious
4. monetizing My Blog
5. Becoming a WordPress Rock Star
6. How Crowd-sourcing Can Be am Effective News Gathering Tool
7. How to break into INSERT BEAT HERE
8. How to Develop Effective Multiplatform Stories
9. Multimedia training for seasoned journalists
10. How to Survive and Thrive as a Freelance Journalist

Benét J. Wilson is the vice president of education for the NABJ Digital Journalism Task Force and served as NABJ Program Committee chair in 2012 and 2013.  She also serves on the board of the Online News Association.  She is  the social media/eNewsletters editor for the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association and  a freelance aviation journalist and blogger.

DJTF Partners With Knight Foundation On JournoPreneur Panel In Boston

 

The Digital Journalism Task Force will be out front at the NABJ convention in Boston next month. We are very proud to have a special workshop, “JournoPreneurs: What It Takes To Build A Media Company,” that is being sponsored by the  John S. and James L. Knight Foundation.

Tracie Powell

DJTF Co-char Tracie Powell, owner of the All Digitocracy blog, said that with all the upheaval in the industry,more and more journalists of color are choosing to produce and distribute their own content instead of begging for jobs. “Whether we are doing it intentionally or not, we’re creating and launching our own media ventures or trying to, but we’re doing so on a prayer and a string,” she said. “We haven’t the faintest clue about business plans, market studies or venture capitalism. We are already entrepreneurial, but do we know how to take that next step and truly become entrepreneurs?”

Powell feels that journalists need to know how to apply their unique skills to being an entrepreneur. “As journalists the skills we have are necessary in the startup world. We are articulate and determined. Our ability to clearly communicate ideas to others, especially those unfamiliar with a given issue, can translate into success explaining and generating excitement from venture capitalists. Finally, we have the tenacity to pursue a challenging story; that same tenacity can be used to aggressively seek funding and gain users.”

“What we need is to better understand the difference between building a personal brand versus building a media company, and we need to know how to take an idea from concept to launch. That’s what this workshop is all about,” she said.

The workshop will start by helping attendees figure out if they really want to start their own businesses, said Powell. “If the answer is yes, then we will have the opportunity to talk face-to-face with media entrepreneurs who are already doing this,” she said. “Those of us who are really ready to make the leap will not only learn from the panelists’ expertise at the convention, we will leave with the workings of a business plan in hand and a possible mentor.”

So many journalists of color have been laid off and downsized, people with real talent, knowledge and skills that are of benefit to the industry and to their communities, said Powell. “That should not and cannot go to waste. We have journalism skills that we can apply to being entrepreneurs, heck, many of us are already doing it and don’t even know it. So why not?” she asked. “What else are you doing besides begging for a limited number of newsroom jobs, working for somebody else when you really want to work for yourself?”

There are whole communities that are consistently ignored by mainstream newsrooms, Powell observed. “Launching our own media companies — whether it be developing mobile news apps, websites or innovative tools that connect communities with the information they need to strengthen our democracy — is one way we get to do the important work that we crave and that our communities need,” she said. “This is especially true as many of us find ourselves displaced and unemployed.”

Powell called the speakers for JournoPreneurs her personal dream panel. The panel consists of entrepreneurs at varying stages in the launch process, which will make this even more interesting and beneficial to those in attendance. “I thought of everybody that I would want to meet and learn from, then I invited them to Boston,” she said. “Of course, the Knight Foundation stepped in and offered to help make connections with some of the panelists and they also gave the task force some money to help turn the dream panel into a reality. That was a real plus.”

“We wouldn’t be here without them. I wouldn’t be here without them. I’m really looking forward to this being the start of something truly special in terms of nurturing our members and equipping them with the tools to become digital media entrepreneurs,” Powell said about the Knight Foundation. “I’m serious about this being a long-term project and a long-term relationship, not just some one-off chance encounter at the convention, and I believe Knight is too.”

Powell hopes that attendees will walk away from the workshop with a business plan and a mentor. “We’re looking to identify promising ventures by a handful of journalists and hope to bring those media entrepreneurs back together in the next couple of months at a entrepreneurial media institute, or at the very least, enable them to meet personally with their mentors,” she said. “That part is still a work in progress, but it will all start at the convention in Boston.”

The workshop is on Thursday, July 31 from 2:15 p.m. – 3:45 p.m.

JournoPreneurs: What It Takes To Build A Media Company

When it comes to digital media innovation, journalists of color are largely missing from the landscape. Earlier this year, the American Society of News Editors surveyed 68 online news organizations about the percentage of journalists of color inside their newsrooms and found that 43 sites didn’t have any person of color on staff. Meanwhile, more journalists, including journalists of color, are creating their own media companies or hyperlocal sites. JournoPreneurs: How To Build Your Own Media Company will provide hands-on experience with drafting business plans, filing articles of incorporation, advice on how to access funding and build teams as well as concrete steps on how to launch a media company and what happens after the launch. #nabj

Panelists:

Michael Bolden, Knight Foundation

Ezra Klein, Co-Founder, Vox Media

Carlos Watson, Founder, Ozy.com

Kelly Virella, Founder, Dominion of New York and The Urban Thinker

Benét J. Wilson is the vice president of education for the NABJ Digital Journalism Task Force.  She also serves on the board of the Online News Association.  She is  the social media/eNewsletters editor for the Aircraft Owners and Pilots Association and  a freelance aviation journalist and blogger.