Candidate Statements
2012 DC SPJ Elections
President
Julie Asher
I really believe in SPJ’s mission or I wouldn’t have maintained my membership – -national and local – for 30 years. I have been in the DC chapter for 25-plus years and have been a longtime board member, and currently seeing re-election as president. I also served two two-year terms as regional director for Region 2.
I think SPJ is needed more than ever with so much information out there and online outlets sometimes muddying the waters about what is real journalism. On the local level as president I want to see the chapter do more outreach to the public to help them understand what good solid, ethical journalism is. I also hope to do more to bring the local affiliates of the other journalism organizations out there together with our members, because we can learn from one another and together we can hold informative programs, network and just generally be more collegial.
Vice President
Jenn Rowell
I first got involved with SPJ while a student at Christopher Newport University. I won one of the scholarships from Virginia Pro in 2005 and was then asked to serve on the board.
I remained on the Virginia Pro board until I moved to Alabama in 2007. There I restarted the long-defunct pro chapter and served as president until becoming the Region 3 director in 2009.
I served on the national board as Region 3 director until Feb. 17 when a new director was named.
I also serve on the Generation J committee and serve as a mentor through that committee and also a mentor through SPJ's diversity program.
I started as an intern at the Daily Press in Newport News, then an intern at the Fredericksburg Free Lance-Star before moving to Alabama to work as the military reporter at the Montgomery Advertister. I recently moved back to Virginia and am currently an editor with KMI Media Group in Rockville.
I'm looking forward to getting involved in the DC Pro Chapter; it will be a nice change of pace for me to be part of a well-established chapter.
I love programming and hope to continue providing high quality programs while increasing participation and expanding the topic areas.
Treasurer
Amy Fickling
Are journalists still relevant in a social media world? Yes, we are! In fact, it's possible our traditional role and the SPJ Code of Ethics for journalists have never been more relevant than in the face of a changing universe of information delivery. And the DC chapter, located at the center of the news-making capital of the world, needs to work hard to rally our forces and to remind the public of the service we perform.
I have been active in the Washington, D.C., chapter for a long time and want to continue to serve the organization.
I was chapter president in 1991 and served two terms on the national SPJ board as Region 2 director from 1993 to 1997.
Well before we put Dateline online, I assembled and edited the chapter's newsletter. (This was back in the cut and paste days.)
I worked with the chapter leadership later where I could before returning to the board in 2007, just in time to help the chapter prepare for its role as host of the national SPJ convention.
I am standing for re-election as treasurer to follow up on the chapter’s efforts to modernize our accounting system.
The chapter is active and its engine is oiled and fueled by volunteers, but occasionally, we need to spend money to achieve our goals and present our programs. I am happy to serve as chapter treasurer to facilitate the financial end of our chapter activities. I look forward to continuing in that role so that other officers and members don't have to worry about bills being paid and checks deposited on time.
I have been an active journalist here in Washington since I arrived from my home state of North Carolina in 1984 to pursue a master's degree in journalism and public affairs at American University.
I have worked for the Gazette newspapers in Montgomery County, Md., The Capital newspaper of Annapolis, Telecommunications Reports International Inc. and two years at Knight Ridder/ Tribune Business News — before it was sold to McClatchy.
Corresponding Secretary
Sue Kopen Katcef
I am currently the Bureau Director of Capital News Service Television (CNS-TV) at the Philip Merrill College of Journalism at the University of Maryland in College Park. I have been a full-time instructor with the Merrill College for the past 12 years having come from WBAL Radio in Baltimore where I was a reporter/anchor.
I have been a member of SPJ (then SDX) since 1973, when I was initiated into the organization while a student at the University of Maryland. I have had the pleasure of serving as corresponding secretary for the Washington, D.C. Pro chapter for the past ten years.
In addition, I am also the faculty adviser to the University of Maryland student SPJ chapter.
I have also been involved with SPJ on the national level. I recently served two and half terms on SPJ's national board as a campus as adviser at-large and for two years was on the national Sigma Delta Chi Board.
This year, I am also serving as the President of the Chesapeake Associated Press Broadcasters' Association (comprised of AP affiliated broadcast stations in Maryland, D.C. and Delaware).
Now, more than ever, I think it's important that SPJ be on the forefront of tackling the many challenges facing journalists in our constantly changing profession.
I have had the pleasure of helping to coordinate many of the programs that the DC SPJ Pro Chapter has held on topics ranging from ethics to new media.
I look forward to continuing to serve the chapter and our fellow journalists.
Recording Secretary
Sherell Williams
I never aspired to be a journalist; rather the Society of Professional Journalists’ Code of Ethics inspired me to become one. Back in high school, I thought I would pursue an English major in college.
Writing for me had always been poetry or short stories. Even though I read the newspaper at least once a week, I never really looked at the style of news writing. My curiosity and research eventually lead me to the Society of Professional Journalists and the Code of Ethics. The ideals and values of the profession as outlined in the code give weight to journalism that I didn't feel when writing fiction.
My belief in the SPJ Code of Ethics, my admiration for the journalism profession and desire to become a more active member in the SPJ community are why I’m running for the position of recording secretary with the Washington, D.C. chapter of SPJ.
One of my proudest times came when I helped re-establish the George Mason University chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists. From August 2008 to May 2009, I served as president of the chapter.
While at the Mason, my editorial duties included significant work at two publications. I began as a staff writer for Broadside, the student newspaper. I was soon promoted to Assistant Style Editor, then Style Editor and finally Managing Editor.
While juggling those duties, I also served as Donations Coordinator for the first Washington Journalism and Media Conference held at George Mason University. In addition to contacting and collecting donations for the conference from organizations such as UPI and Society for News Design, I organized all games and activities to engage the students during Student Media Day.
In my current role as editor of Annandale Patch I spend my days and nights covering the Annandale, VA neighborhood, while managing a team of freelancers who help me cover the community.
In addition to taking photos and videos during my assignments, I also produce much of the content that goes on the site including breaking news. I manage and monitor all social media for the site, including our Facebook and Twitter accounts.
I welcome the challenge of joining those who came before me in setting the standards for our industry. I hope that I can lend my ideas to and learn from those who are trying to figure out where we will be going in the future.
Board of Directors
Two-Year Term
Robert Becker
I have been the chapter's FOI chair since about 1992, am the D.C.Sunshine Chair, and have served on SPJ's National FOI Committee. I also represent the chapter on the board of the D.C. Open Government Coalition.
I provide advice and information on access to journalists and others in the D.C. metropolitan area. Most recently, I have been working with D.C. Councilmember Muriel Bowser (Ward 4), who introduced a bill in March to overhaul D.C.'s antiquated, ineffective open meetings law.
In 2000, I worked with the City Council Judiciary Committee on amendments to the D.C. open records law.
I have assisted students at a Montgomery County high school who, as part of their course work, aired controversial programs on the school board's cable channel and actively opposed proposed restrictions on public access to federal court case files over the Internet.
I would like to continue to expand the chapter's role in protecting the media's right to gather and disseminate news and to gain greater visibility for the D.C. Pro chapter on these issues.
I have worked with the National FOI Chairman to develop a program to train journalists, news managers and media outlet owners on the importance of defending public access to government information in the face of claims that individuals have the right to control information about them, even when disclosure of that information would benefit the public.
Bill McCloskey
Bill McCloskey is a past president of the D.C. Pro chapter, was SPJ’s Region 2 director, currently serves as an at-large director on the chapter and national boards, and is a former chairman and is a member of SPJ's national Bylaws Committee.
He has twice been recognized with SPJ’s “President’s Award” for distinguished service to the Society and in 2008, was awarded SPJ’s most prestigious award for service – the Wells Key.
Until his retirement in April 2007, McCloskey was for 20 years the Washington, D.C., -based director of media relations for BellSouth Corporation.
Before coming to BellSouth in 1987, he worked for 11 years with The Associated Press in Washington, first as assistant managing editor for its 1,100 station radio network and for the final two years as telecommunications reporter, covering the Federal Communications Commission, telephone and broadcast companies and legislation affecting communications issues on Capitol Hill.
He was assigned to cover the national political conventions in 1976, 1980 and 1984, participating in the logistical arrangements for each. From 1988 to 2004, he organized the BellSouth media hospitality lounges at the party nominating conventions.
He has also represented the corporation at international telecommunications conferences in Geneva and Rio de Janeiro.
McCloskey's professional career started in 1961, when, as a high school junior, he took a summer newsroom job at Metromedia's WIP Radio in Philadelphia. He remained with Metromedia in Philadelphia until he was drafted into the Army upon graduation from Villanova University in 1966.
The Army assigned him to the information office of the 1st Signal Brigade in Vietnam, where he wrote press releases about the Army's telephone system.
Following his tour of duty, he was assigned by Metromedia to set up a news department for WASH FM in Washington. From 1968 until 1975, he worked as news director, network correspondent and TV news producer and writer for Metromedia in Washington. During his tenure, he and his colleagues shared several major national broadcasting awards.
Away from the office, McCloskey has been the president and treasurer of the Little Falls Swimming Club in his Bethesda, Md., neighborhood and was chairman of his local Boy Scout troop committee.
He is a member of the Radio Television Digital News Association, where he served on the organization's "Task Force 2000" and on the advisory board of the Radio-Television Digital News Foundation "News in the Future Project." He has chaired the RTDNA Foundation’s annual fundraising dinner. The D.C chapter of RTDNA has honored him with the Peter Hackes award for service and the national organization named him winner of the Rob Downey award for service.
One-Year Term
Haley Crum
I am an engagement producer for The Washington Post, where I nurture the Post's online communities by building interactive elements, fueling crowd sourcing efforts, blogging, maintaining the main social media feeds, and working with editors and producers to improve the quality of user content in print and online. Before arriving at the Post I reported on issues that affect military service members and their families at Military Officers Association of America as the organization's first multimedia producer. My work includes reporting on the 2008 presidential election with MTV News as a member of the Choose or Lose Street Team '08, interning with Smithsonian Magazine and reporting for The Oxford Eagle in Oxford, Miss., where I grew up. I am a graduate of the University of Mississippi with degrees in journalism and English.
Journalism is rapidly changing, for those who consume it and for those who create it. By serving on the board of SPJ-DC, I hope to not only stay on the forefront of the journalism industry, but find new ways to help others in the profession to as well. Perhaps more importantly, SPJ's mission of protecting the rights of journalists is crucial, so I hope to play an active role in making sure journalists in our area are free to do their jobs without constraints.