The new board of directors for the June 2024-June 2025 chapter year met for its first meeting earlier this month, and now we have a chapter event scheduled for Friday, Oct. 4, in the Cosgrove Lounge at the National Press Club that we want to share with you and invite you to attend. We realize it is short notice and also that it may not be at a time or on a topic that fits your schedule or interests, but we’ll be having more events both virtual and in person on topics of interest and benefit for journalists as the months progress. So keep an eye out for future announcements and emails from the chapter.
We’re still working with the national SPJ organization on updating membership information and trying to merge the latest chapter roster with email addresses with our existing local database, so if you are seeing this email, you were on the current chapter roster as of about Aug. 1 and among the first ones to receive the publicity. As a wider audience is alerted, you likely will receive another announcement with the same or similar information.
If you have ideas or comments, let us hear from you!
In free press solidarity,
DC Pro Chapter SPJ
p.s. While we have your attention, please note some additional information about other happenings!
~~~~~~~~~~~
Reception for Visiting Overseas Journalists
Join the chapter and other journalists Friday, Oct. 4, at 5 p.m. to meet with 10 foreign journalists visiting the United States under the auspices of the World Press Institute. The gathering will be in the Cosgrove Lounge on the 14th floor of the National Press Club in downtown Washington (529 14th Street NW, 20045 near Metro Center station).
The DC chapter will provide some light snacks. Beverages will be available from a server, but you’ll pay for your own order.
The visiting journalists are coming from Brazil, Bulgaria, Finland, India, Italy, Kosovo, Nigeria, Peru, South Africa and Ukraine.
The World Press Institute, founded in 1961, has provided regular opportunities for journalists from around the world to visit the U.S. and compare notes with their American counterparts.
Please sign up for the event here.
********
There is no national convention/journalism conference for SPJ this year (a decision made by the national board as it assesses the future mission of the organization), but there are plans for the next conference to be held in Washington, D.C., again — in 2025. Once again, the DC Pro Chapter is looking forward to planning sessions for it and giving guidance on activities and speakers to the national planning committee. Join one of the chapter’s events this year to meet others in the chapter who are most involved with this, and lend your thoughts or volunteer your time and effort.
No convention, but the national SPJ elections are coming right up!
Watch your email inbox for your ballot to vote on the national board officers and directors. Voting begins Friday, Sept. 27, at 12:01 a.m. EDT and concludes at noon EDT on Monday, Sept. 30.
Here is a link to Election Central on the national SPJ website. It’s full of information about the election and candidates, including a YouTube link to an online forum with many of them in attendance.
PAST EVENTS THAT YOU CAN WATCH NOW
“The Pro-Democracy Newsroom – Covering the Stakes of Elections, Not the Odds”
The DC Pro chapter held an online discussion Aug. 26 on what it means to have a pro-democracy newsroom. The chapter invited U.S. Democracy Day coordinators and journalists Beatrice Forman and Jaisal Noor to explain the concept, why it’s important, and offer real-world tips for reporters and editors.
Their well-organized training, enhanced by a power-point presentation, made clear that a newsroom that is pro-democracy operates out of the assumption that democracy is a fundamental value for governing in this country. It has nothing to do with partisanship, but it offers a foundation for framing coverage that not only better informs citizens but also increases trust and engagement in the news media. To see more and view the session, click here.
This follows an April 8 online program of the DC Pro Chapter, “Covering the 2024 Elections: It’s not the Odds, It’s the Stakes.” You can find info on that and watch it on YouTube here.
“When Journalists are Held Hostage” (A National SPJ International Community webinar)
Journalists Danny Fenster and Alsu Kurmasheva were detained, tried and convicted in Myanmar and Russia, respectively.
They talked about what led to their improper detentions, trials and efforts to free them.
The program was held Sept. 24 at 9 a.m. ET. Moderating the discussion was former national SPJ president and retired Bloomberg editor Steve Geimann, also a DC Pro Chapter member. Watch here.
The National Press Club recently presented a special award to Kurmasheva, who attended an awards event at the Club to receive it and spoke about press freedoms, or the suppression of them, in a global setting.
********
Have an idea of something to post on the SPJ DC Pro Chapter website at spjdc.org? Let us know at spjdcchapter@gmail.com.