Vol. 1, No. 3 August 2016

Inside this issue:

August 30: New-Media Political Journalists Discuss Presidential Politics

The Media Law Resource Center Institute, the National Press Club and the Society of Professional Journalists D.C. Pro Chapter present

Media Law for Journalists

A Legal Workshop and Editorial Roundtable

Tuesday, Sept. 20, 9:30 a.m. to 6 p.m.

 National Press Club, Washington, D.C.

The Media Law Resource Center Institute will present a one-day workshop aimed at freelancers, bloggers and other independent journalists working without the benefit of a legal department. Leading media attorneys will address libel, privacy, newsgathering and FOIA, copyright, digital law, and other issues. The day will conclude with a roundtable of prominent journalists discussing career paths, story pitches, and the ups and downs of being a journalist in 2016.

Admission is $20 and includes a light breakfast and lunch.

WHO: All content creators welcome! Freelancers, bloggers, reporters, editors in print, digital or video spaces, photographers, documentarians, podcasters.

WHAT: All-day legal workshop with lunch included. Sessions include:

How Journalists Get Into Trouble Newsgathering & FOIA

Your Relationship with Sources and Understanding the Reporters’ Privilege

Copyright & Digital Law

Protecting Yourself: Insurance and Lawyers

Editorial Roundtable with journalists from the Washington Post, USA TODAY, CNN, WJLA-TV and NPR

WHY: To empower you to do your best work without fear of legal consequences.

HOW: Register online for only $20: www.medialaw.org.

* * *

The Media Law Resource Center is a non-profit membership organization for media companies and their lawyers, providing a wide range of information and support on media law and policy issues.

The National Press Club Journalism Institute promotes press freedom worldwide, provides professional development and training services to the journalism community, and scholarships to aspiring journalists.

SPJ leaders meet with Chinese journalists

Contact us with any questions you may have for our Chapter.

DC SPJ Chapter Officials 2016-17

2016 election debate dates

Image: Adobe Stock

SAVE THESE DATES

Since many SPJ members are covering the election and others are watching from the sidelines, don’t forget to mark these dates on your upcoming Fall calendars.  Presidential debates will be held: Monday, Sept. 26; Sunday, Oct. 9; and Wednesday, Oct. 19.  The Vice Presidential debate will air on Tuesday, Oct. 4. If you will be reporting on the election on Nov. 8 or out of town for any reason, check with your location jurisdiction on the rules for obtaining Absentee Ballots.

Homeless News Blitz Makes Case For Solutions Journalism

If what people are searching for on Google is any indication of what they care about, then local journalism recently moved the needle on “homelessness.” A two-week Google Trends snapshot shows that the number of searches about homelessness in the U.S. peaked during a day-long media blitz which was carried out by three D.C. outlets, duplicating the efforts of more than 70 outlets in San Francisco.

Search volume rose significantly two days before the blitz and fell just as far afterward. Both cities’ names were in the top-six related search terms during that time period and the District was a top sub-region where the searches occurred.

This concerted effort by Street Sense (my employer), ThinkProgress and DCist was most visible on social media. For our own part, the June 29 blitz dominated Street Sense’s Twitter impressions for the month.

Twitter analytics for @streetsensedc provided by Eric Falquero. Tall bar indicates tweet impressions for June 29, 2016, the day of #HomelessNewsBlitz.

Anticipating this increased focus on social media, our communications manager pushed the use of infographics in order to communicate key facts cited in our reporting, even if audience members did not click through to an article or video. Afterwards, a local think tank whose data we cited reached out to learn how we generated those visuals. “I told my boss that you were showing our data better than we do.” (The answer, which we gladly shared, is a little tool called Canva.)

In today’s competitive and often fragmented media landscape, I was inspired by this result of less than a month of planning, reacting to the announcement of San Francisco’s effort. D.C. participants shared story ideas, helped connect each other to sources and developed a joint social media strategy. Our collaborative approach eliminated redundancy and prioritized comprehensive understanding for our joint readership above any individual outlet’s portfolio.

Local journalists covered everything from climate change to healthcare and housing; from public-private community development to the availability of tampons; from why some people choose streets over shelters; to how much difference large cash donations actually make. The full day’s clips, including videos, can be found at http://dchomelesscrisis.press.

Special thanks for the contributions of these D.C. journalists and communicators: Katlyn Alapati, Evan Brown, Rachel Cain, CJ Ciaramella, Bryce Covert, Khyeria Fergusson, Victoria Fleischer, Alejandro Devila Fragoso, Rachel Kurzius, Phoebe Gavin, Jeff Gray, Jacqueline Groskaufmanis, Ryan Koronowski, Bowe Partin, Alan Pyke, Mark Rose, Rachel Sadon, Justin Salhani, Christinia Sturdivant, Kim Szarmach, Carimah Townes, Lauren C. Williams, Alex Zielinski

The solutions-based focus of our coverage was key.

A national surge in homelessness in the early 1980s elicited public outrage and prominent coverage of homelessness in the media. That coverage waned and plateaued as this domestic crisis persisted and generations of Americans began to grow up seeing homelessness regularly.

Simultaneously, the majority of stories being told shifted focus from that of systemic root causes of homelessness to the experience and often blaming of individuals, according to a 2004 study. [Media and Professional Interest in Homelessness over 30 Years (1974–2003), by Philip O. Buck, Paul A. Toro and Melanie A. Ramos] This deviation in coverage undermines recognition of the need for institutional and societal change in order to end homelessness, alleged a 2009 article published in the Communications Review Journal. [Network News Construction of Homelessness: 1980–1993, by Todd G. Shields]

“Solutions” or “constructive” journalism has become a growing trend in recent years. Training institutes for this style of reporting demand rock-solid ethical journalism that “empowers audiences and presents a fuller picture of the truth” (Constructive Journalism Project) …”without fluff, advocacy, or PR” (Solutions Journalism Network). Investigating solutions to difficult social problems advances the public service of the Fourth Estate. Furthermore, it is what readers want.

The Freedom Forum’s Free Press/Fair Press Project documented this hunger for more “positive news” after surveying journalists, ordinary citizens and community leaders such as elected officials and business executives. What they found was a perceived “negative bias” in the press, which undermines readers’ trust and interest.

Eighty-five percent of the public believes that “newspapers frequently over-dramatize some news stories just to sell more papers,” according to a 1999 American Society of News Editors credibility study that is heavily cited in the subsequent Free Press/Fair Press best practices handbook.

The path around this perception is deeper reporting that puts your main subject in context — that includes where solutions are piloted, proven, possible or needed.

“Digging investigative work is one of journalism’s proudest genres. But presenting an accurate picture means showing the courage and joy and victory that surrounds us, too,” former Washington Post Ombudsman Geneva Overholser told the Free Press/Fair Press Project. “Avoid framing everything as conflict, letting ‘wedge’ issues drive the report. Emphasize substance over process. Don’t exaggerate problems and pathologies. Behave as a citizen and a journalist: report, write and edit as if you care about where you live.”

The number of local accountability reporters is shrinking, as discussed at our chapter’s May panel on local journalism and more recently on John Oliver’s Last Week Tonight. That makes this level of reporting all the more necessary to empower an informed and engaged American public.

Street Sense and the other 111 member publications of the International Network of Street Newspapers (~40 in the U.S.) are solutions-focused on homelessness year-round. With the high bar set by San Francisco and an excellent start in D.C., I’m confident that mainstream media can do the same.

Seek solutions and report them.

–Eric Falquero

Photo credit: Ann Augherton

SPJ DC Watched the Loooong Nats v. Reds Game

This story was previously published here.

A group of about a dozen Society of Professional Journalists Washington, D.C., Pro Chapter members and their friends and families attended the July 1 Washington Nationals v. Cincinnati Reds baseball game at Nationals Park. The lengthy game was low scoring and filled with errors, yet attendees had a good time.

Sitting next to the press box in the penultimate and third-to-last rows, the SPJ contingent mostly missed the drenching that delayed the game by almost an hour. Thanks to the stadium’s protective cover over our section, the SPJ fans would have been mostly protected in case of rain. That is according to Nats season ticket holder Bill McCloskey, an SPJ national director and former SPJ D.C. president. (He also works with the author of this post.) The chapter thanks Bill for organizing this event.

The game started late and ended late, too. It was low scoring — no runs for a few innings, then for a few innings more, there was only one run per team, then eventually there were two runs, and for multiple innings, there were no further runs. In total, the match went 14 innings. So long, in fact, that a second seventh-inning stretch occurred between the top and the bottom of what was to be the last inning.

The post-game fireworks were canceled because of the lateness. According to a Washington Post story about the game, D.C. law forbids fireworks displays from starting after 10:45 p.m. on any night, to preserve neighbors’ peace during hours typically reserved for slumber or at least quiet.

In other game news, George Washington’s likeness won the on-field race between five ex-presidents. During most innings, at least one umpire decision was contested, leading to a pause in play while impartial referees reviewed the game video.

Other attendees included: past SPJ D.C. President Julie Asher, who was succeeded last month by Kathy Burns; longtime SPJ members like past SPJ D.C. President Ann Augherton and husband Chris Gunty; past SPJ D.C. President Mary Crowley; SPJ national Campus Chapter Affairs Vice President Sue Kopen Katcef; longtime member Ira Allen and his family; Charles Pekow; and the author of this post, the vice president of SPJ D.C.

Thanks to McCloskey, these trips to see the Nats have been an almost annual affair. Stay tuned to the SPJ DC website for information on future chapter outings, whether to see the Nats play or otherwise.

Thanks also to Ann Augherton for taking these photos.

After 14 innings, the final score was 3-2, Nationals over Reds.

–Jonathan Make

Photo credit (above): Ann Augherton

Photo credit: Julie Asher

Plan to attend chapter’s annual summer picnic on Saturday, Oct. 1

Summer got away from us so we are trying something different for our annual chapter picnic! We’re making it a fall event and make plans now to come.

It will be Saturday, Oct. 1, from 1 p.m. to 4 p.m. at the National Zoo, 3001 Connecticut Ave. NW. The Woodley Park metro stop is a couple blocks away; and parking is available at lots in and around the Zoo. Please look at the website for more information on parking, https://nationalzoo.si.edu/.

Here is a map of the zoo: http://nationalzoo.si.edu/Visit/mapofzoo.pdf.

Here’s an FAQ page: https://nationalzoo.si.edu/Visit/tips-for-visiting-zoo.cfm

We’ll provide more details in our next picnic notice on what picnic spot at the Zoo where we will gather. PLEASE RSVP to this email address: spjdcchapter@gmail.com. AND include your cellphone number – so we can send a text to confirm our picnic location. 

Both SPJ-DC Chapter members and their guests are invited. Plan to bring a dish to share – it’s potluck. The chapter will provide soft drinks. When you respond, please indicate what you plan to bring, as that will help with logistics (we may need to reshuffle the mix of sides and sweets).

Julie Asher

Immediate Past President

Book By SPJ National Staffer On People and Politics Out In Oct.

I was catching up with a member of the SPJ national staff – Web Administrator Billy O’Keefe – who had just wrapped up the !zowie! ka-pow! audiovisual presentation accompanying the 2016 SDX Awards ceremony during a dinner in the National Press Club ballroom June 24. I used to edit his freelance contributions to a weekly package of features geared toward millennials that I coordinated when working for the now-defunct McClatchy-Tribune News Service here in Washington. He invited me to check back on his website (billyok.com) for updated activities, and modestly mentioned his newest venture, a forthcoming book for which he’s also done the boffo illustrations.

And suddenly, we were talking politics! Which is exactly right in this case.

Coming out in October, Billy’s book, “These Are My Friends on Politics,” is tagged a “children’s book for adults (who occasionally behave like kids).” It sounds like a great concept, riffing on that public service announcement many older chapter members will be familiar with: “This is your brain. … This is your brain on drugs.” I am looking forward to seeing the new book for several reasons that don’t necessarily relate to politics. Check out the Billy-designed website FriendsonPolitics.com for some insight on how he got from concept to book publisher.

He writes on the site: “It happens, every day, often without warning. Normal grown adults — completely capable ones who do things like work in an office, pay bills on time and help their children with their homework — engage in a discussion, often by accident, about politics.

“At least, it starts as a discussion. More often than anyone cares to admit, it descends into an argument, a blowout and eventually a volleyball match of personal attacks and insults these bill-paying, job-working, homework-helping, ostensibly fully together adults didn’t even know they had in them.”

Chapter members who are deeply involved in covering the current presidential campaign know that politics is not a laughing matter – until it is. This book might be the levity needed to get through to November.

–Amy Fickling

CALENDAR for UPCOMING EVENTS
(see stories in newsletter for further details)