Professional Development Programs

There's something for everyone in this year's schedule. Check out a list of the many workshops we're offering, and check back frequently for information about sessions, speakers and dates and times.

Thursday, Aug. 27
Times: 1 p.m. | 2:30 p.m. | 4 p.m.
Click to see the lineup for: Thursday | Friday | Saturday

Half-Day Training Workshops Sunday, August 30 | 9 a.m. In addition to regular convention programming, these half day programs are available. Advance registration is required. Limited space available. Follow this link for additional details, including locations, speaker information and bios. — Homesteading in Cyberspace: Staking a Claim and Moving In — Search Engine Optimization and Web Analytics: How to Connect Great Journalism with the Greatest Possible Audience — Beyond the Spreadsheet: How to Look for Trends and Patterns in your Database — Basic Web Video Also on Thursday Journalism Expo 10 a.m.-6 p.m. | Sponsored by Demand Studios What’s not in here? Besides the registration and information desk, you will find the Internet Café, BookMart (where you can find great books on journalism as well books authored by our conference speakers), exhibitors and vendors, a complimentary massage, the Electronic Petting Zoo and the Career Center. Opening Night Reception 7-10 p.m. | $65 Join hundreds of journalists for drinks, cuisine and conversation at the Eiteljorg Museum of American Indians and Western Art, located in downtown Indianapolis, and a short walk from the Westin Hotel. Click here for more details.

1-2:15 p.m.

Newsroom 2.0: Thinking (and working!) Differently for the Web
Part of the New Media Track
Description: This session will briefly go over online news/information consumption, search engine optimization and breaking news on the Web. The majority of the time will focus on tools reporters can use to tell their stories in an interactive way online.
Speaking: Kirsten Miller, interactive manager/senior Web producer, FOX Chicago News
Click for speaker information
Kirsten Miller, web editor, Chicago Sun-Times
Kirsten Miller has been the interactive manager/senior Web producer at Fox Chicago News (WFLD) since May 2009. She oversees the daily content operations of myfoxchicago.com. Previously, Miller was with Chicago Sun-Times' suntimes.com for nearly four years. During that time she climbed the ranks from Web producer to assistant managing editor, interactive. Miller is addicted to Facebook, which has been a gateway drug to her dabbling in Twitter. Before landing at the Sun-Times, Miller was a Web producer intern for cbs2chicago.com and the editor in chief of a now-defunct trade/lifestyle magazine for physicians in Seattle, Wash. Miller holds a Master’s degree in New Media journalism from Northwestern University’s Medill School of Journalism, where she currently teaches multimedia journalism skills to graduate students.



From the Newsroom to the Classroom: What's the Story?
Part of the Career Center Track
Description: As journalism/media programs continue to expand at colleges and universities, talented faculty members are needed, both full and part-time. But today’s college administrators look for more than someone to tell “war stories.” If you want to translate your practical experience to the classroom, you need to know the ins and outs of higher education.
Moderating: Dr. Jan Slater, University of Illinois and vice president, Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communications (AEJMC)
Speaking: Dr. Lillian Lodge Kopenhaver, dean, Florida International University; Dr. Tom Suddes, reporter, Cleveland Plain Dealer and adjunct assistant professor, Ohio University; Dr. Janice Collins, assistant professor, Eastern Illinois University; Mel Coffee, assistant professor, University of Kentucky
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Dr. Jan Slater, University of Illinois and vice president, Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communications (AEJMC)
Dr. Jan Slater is professor of advertising and Head of the Advertising Department at the University of Illinois, Urbana-Champaign. Prior to her appointment at Illinois, Slater was an associate professor and the Associate Director of the E. W. Scripps School of Journalism at Ohio University. Prior to joining the academy, Slater owned and operated an advertising agency in Omaha, Nebraska. She has more than 20 years of experience, and continues to consult for Fortune 500 companies. Slater currently serves as vice-president of the Association in Journalism and Mass Communication and will become president of the organization August 2010.

Mel Coffee, assistant professor, University of Kentucky
Mel Coffee is an assistant professor in the School of Journalism and Telecommunications at the University of Kentucky. Coffee primarily teaches courses in radio and television news reporting and in advanced television news producing. He also developed and oversees the current student newscast in the broadcast journalism sequence. He's an Emmy winner and brings extensive experience to the School: 16 years of professional experience in television news where he's worked as writer, reporter, anchor, producer, executive producer, managing editor and news director in competitive markets such as Denver, Dallas, San Francisco and Philadelphia.

Janice Collins, assistant professor, Eastern Illinois University
Janice Collins received her Ph.D. in March, 2009 from Ohio University. In her 20 years of professional experience in the media, Janice has worked as an anchor, reporter, photographer, editor, visual director, and in various producer positions at top market stations including ESPN and NBC News Channel with NBC president, Steve Capus. She is the recipient of multiple Emmy awards, Associated Press and Best of Gannett awards for her work as a producer, writer, editor and videojournalist. Janice is an assistant professor at Eastern Illinois University in Charleston, Illinois, heading up the broadcast journalism concentration in the school of journalism.

Dr. Lillian Kopenhaver, dean, Florida International University
Lillian Lodge Kopenhaver, Ed.D., dean and professor, is a nationally-known authority and researcher on the First Amendment and the student press. She is past president of the Association for Education in Journalism and Mass Communication, College Media Advisers, and the Student Press Law Center, was awarded the Wells Key, the highest honor of the Society of Professional Journalists, the Gold Key of the Columbia Scholastic Press Association and is author of nearly 100 scholarly articles, monographs and books. The FIU Alumni Association presented her with its highest honor, the Torch Award, as Outstanding Faculty Member in 2000. She was inducted into the National Hall of Fame of both College Media Advisers and the Community College Journalism Association.

Tom Suddes, reporter, Cleveland Plain Dealer and adjunct assistant professor, Ohio University
Tom Suddes is an adjunct assistant professor at the E. W. Scripps School of Journalism at Ohio University. He recently completed his Ph.D. For 18 years, Tom was the chief legislative correspondent for the Cleveland Plain Dealer. He remains on the editorial board of the Plain Dealer. Suddes is heralded as the expert on Ohio politics and writes an op-ed column on the topic for the Plain Dealer, The Columbus Dispatch, Dayton Daily News, and the Springfield News-Sun. He has taught Public Affairs Reporting, Column Writing and Editorial Writing.



The Bright Spot in Traditional Journalism: Community Journalism
Part of the Career Center Track
Description: Circulation and readership data show that while metro newspapers are in serious decline, community papers are holding their own or in some cases even increasing readership — and doing good journalism, too. It’s more difficult to do strong, courageous journalism in smaller markets, but it can be done. There are excellent career opportunities in community journalism, and not just as a steppingstone to reporting jobs at larger papers; the path to management and even ownership can be faster at community papers.
Speaking: Al Cross, director, Institute for Rural Journalism and Community Issues, based at the University of Kentucky; Benjy Hamm, executive editor, Landmark Community Newspapers Inc.; Ryan Craig, editor and publisher, Todd County Standard, Elkton, Ky.; Rama Sobhani, reporter, The Sun-Commercial, Vincennes, Ind.



100 Years of Crime Reporting: From Tabloid Journalism to Online News
In recognition of SPJ’s Centennial Celebration
Description: It’s been nearly 100 years since the world lost Joseph Pulitzer, who helped create the template for modern crime reporting. Would he recognize his creation were he alive today? In the 1890s, competition between the New York newspapers of Pulitzer and William Randolph Hearst conjured up yellow journalism. Today, news from the crime and court beats fill about one-third of a typical U.S. newspaper and nearly half of a local news broadcasts. In the new world of Web sites and 24-hour news cycles, the smart news organizations have people who push the stories fast and fill the gaps later, all while trying to maintain high standards and accuracy. Web sites have boosted demand for news to levels unimaginable 20 years ago. Reporters have to learn new skills while honing their old. The speakers will explain how video, audio, pictures, words and online databases can make your news organization’s Web site relevant to your community.
Moderating: Ted Gest, president, Criminal Justice Journalists
Speaking: Tom Leyden, online editor, IndyStar.com; David Krajicek, crime journalist and author; Vic Ryckaert, public safety reporter, The Indianapolis Star
Click for speaker information
Ted Gest, president, Criminal Justice Journalists
Ted Gest is president of Criminal Justice Journalists, a national organization based in Washington, D.C., and affiliated with the Jerry Lee Center of Criminology at the University of Pennsylvania and the Center on Media, Crime and Justice at John Jay College in New York City. CJJ and the John Jay Center run TheCrimeReport.org , which includes the daily news digest Crime & Justice News. Gest formerly was a reporter and editor at the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and U.S. News & World Report. His book, "Crime & Politics," was published in 2001.

David Krajicek, crime journalist and author
David J. Krajicek is a crime journalist and author. He covered crime for newspapers in Omaha and Iowa and was police bureau chief of the New York Daily News. A former Columbia University journalism professor, the native Nebraskan now works as a writer based in the Catskill Mountains and on the Gulf Coast. He writes The Justice Story, a venerable weekly true crime feature, for the Daily News, was a special correspondent for Court TV’s Crime Library and was the Crime Beat media columnist for APBNews.com. He is the author of a nonfiction book, Scooped! Media Miss Real Story on Crime While Chasing Sex, Sleaze and Celebrities, as well as a crime novella, Sutphin Blvd. Krajicek, who directed a journalism project in Prague during the 1990s, is cofounder of Criminal Justice Journalists and co-editor of Crime & Justice News. His work has appeared in dozens of publications, including the New York Times, Newsday, the Village Voice and the Guardian. He appears frequently on television as a true crime expert. His recent appearances included “The Today Show,” Dominick Dunne’s “Power, Privilege and Justice” and “The Saturday Night Solution” (both on Court TV/TruTV), and TV Land Network’s “TV Myths and Legends.” He wrote the content for the Poynter Institute’s online News University course on crime reporting, as well as the crime reporting chapter and resource guides for the CJJ online journalism primer. Krajicek has spoken about crime and journalism at Poynter, John Jay College of Criminal Justice, the Police Executive Research Forum, the American Society of Criminologists, the Newseum, RTNDA and the American Press Institute, among other places. He holds degrees from the University of Nebraska at Omaha and Columbia.

Tom Leyden, online editor, IndyStar.com
Tom Leyden is an online editor at IndyStar.com. As the first one in the newsroom each morning, Leyden turns on the lights, starts the coffee and looks for the first police story of the day. He spent more than 25 years as a local news editor for The Indianapolis Star before moving to digital news in 2000. He had been a police reporter in Indianapolis and Chicago. His experience ranges from covering gangland slayings to developing a mug shot database.

Vic Ryckaert, public safety reporter, The Indianapolis Star
Vic Ryckaert is a public safety reporter at the Indianapolis Star. He's been covering cops, courts and crime for the paper and the Website, IndyStar.com, since 1997. Vic has developed a knack for reporting stories and getting them on the Web fast. He takes pictures, shoots video and writes stories for breaking news events. A native of Chicago, Vic has a bachelor's degree from the University of Illinois, a master's from the University of Illinois--Springfield, and has been a journalist for more than 14 years.



How to Be a Healthy Skeptic Covering Health News
Description: Almost every day news stories tout new research on new health care treatments, tests, products and procedures. But few of these stories take a skeptical look at the claims being made. This workshop will give journalists of any experience level, beginner or advanced, ten tangible tips to think about to become smarter, healthy skeptics in covering health care news. We’ll review the work of a Web site, HealthNewsReview.org, that grades U.S. health news coverage every day, posting the grades online and sending journalists emails to help them improve. Those attending will come away with new ideas about how to approach health news in a different way that will be more helpful to news consumers.
Speaking: Gary Schwitzer, associate professor, University of Minnesota; publisher, HealthNewsReview.org



2:30-3:45 p.m.

All the News That's Fit to Link: The Value and Practice of Link Journalism
Part of the New Media Track
Description: Newsrooms are expanding their core editorial mission of original reporting to include helping readers find the most important, relevant, and interesting news and information on the web — even if they didn't report it themselves. In contrast to links chosen by algorithms, journalists at news organizations such as The Chicago Tribune, The Washington Post, The Dallas Morning News, and The Knoxville News Sentinel are using their editorial judgment to curate the web and help readers find valuable content. This new practice of "link journalism" is becoming an integral part of journalism on the Web. News sites have also found that link journalism increases traffic and engagement.
Moderating: Scott Karp, CEO, Publish2 and editor, Publishing 2.0 blog
Speaking: Bill Adee, editor, Digital Media, Chicago Tribune; Jack Lail, news director of innovation, Knoxville News Sentinel; Eric Umansky, senior writer, ProPublica
Click for speaker information
Scott Karp, CEO, Publish2 and editor, Publishing 2.0 blog
Scott Karp is the co-founder and CEO of Publish2, a platform for collaborative journalism. He is also the editor of Publishing 2.0, a widely-read and respected blog that takes an incisive look at how technology is transforming media. Folio: magazine named Scott one of the 40 most influential people in publishing for 2007. Scott was previously the Director of Digital Strategy for Atlantic Media, publisher of The Atlantic.

Bill Adee, editor, Digital Media, Chicago Tribune
Bill Adee is editor/digital media for the Chicago Tribune. Before that, he was sports editor at the Chicago Tribune and the Chicago Sun-Times.

Jack Lail, news director of innovation, Knoxville News Sentinel
Jack Lail is Director of News Innovation for The Knoxville News Sentinel, whose primary sites are knoxnews.com and GoVolsXtra.com. Due to his knack for hiring extremely talented people, the News Sentinel's sites have won numerous national and regional awards and are considered among the more innovative newspaper-run Web sites. He is a board member of the Associated Press Managing Editors (APME) and a member of the Society of Professional Journalists Digital Media Committee. He writes a personal blog at jacklail.com.

Eric Umansky, senior writer, ProPublica
Eric Umansky is a senior editor at ProPublica. He wrote Slate’s “Today’s Papers” feature from 2001 through 2006. He then received a Gordon Grey fellowship from Columbia University’s Graduate School of Journalism. Earlier in his career, Umansky was a senior associate editor of Brill’s Content magazine, and the editor of MotherJones.com.



Reporting on Immigration
Description: Elizabeth Lorente's 2004 award-winning series, "Diverse and Divided," for The (N.J.) Bergen Record examined America's changing demographics that included thousands of new immigrants. Subsequent coverage and reporting, such as The New York Times' recent "Remade in America" series, continues to investigate the obstacles and experiences many new immigrants face. This workshop will explore how journalists overcome barriers such as language, culture and stereotypes when covering and writing about immigrant communities. It will also stress the skills journalists must master to report fairly and accurately on these "new" communities.
Speaking: TBA



On Deadline: The Craft and the Skill of Journalistic Writing
Description: Good, solid, balanced reporting is, and must be, the number one goal of any responsible news organization. But if it doesn’t communicate with its audience, good reporting doesn’t do much good. Much of the careless, lifeless writing that plagues much journalistic writing comes from the angst that accompanies heavy deadlines. It doesn’t have to be that way. In print or on the Web, the trick is to save time by creating a dialogue with the reader.
Speaking: Robert Knight, author, The Journalistic Writer: Building the Skill, Honing the Craft



The Business End of Freelancing
Part of the Career Center Track
Description: With the journalism community in a state of flux, the timing is right for freelancing. Acquire the information and skills you need to turn your passion for journalism into a full-time freelance career. Learn how to establish your business, where to look for work and how to market yourself.
Speaking: Dana Neuts, Freelancer



Weird Careers in Journalism
Part of the Career Center Track
Description: If you’re about to graduate or recently have, a future in the journalism world looks bleak. But YOUR future is bright. There are good jobs for young journalists in places you might not think to look. Learn how to apply for them and how to separate yourself from all the other applicants. Michael Koretzky is a former hiring editor at a Top 50 newspaper, national website, and international magazine. For the past decade, he's also run a weekly media job list for one of the nation’s largest media markets. Learn all the lessons he had to learn the hard way.
Speaking: Michael Koretzky, adviser, Florida Atlantic University
Click for speaker information
Michael Koretzky, adviser, Florida Atlantic University
Michael Koretzky was expelled from Boca Raton Academy in 1981, suspended from the University of Florida journalism school in 1989, fired from the South Florida Sun-Sentinel in 1997, and brought up on charges of "malfeasance" and "misfeasance" at Florida Atlantic University in 2005. He currently advises the FAU student newspaper and freelances, including a weekly copyediting gig for the supermarket tabloids Globe and Examiner. He's also been a volunteer copyeditor for The Homeless Voice, the nation's second-largest homeless newspaper, which he edits from home.



America's Insatiable Appetite for Sports, and the New Media Careers it's Creating
Description: At a time when much of the news industry is contracting, the number of sports information outlets is exploding, and so, too, are job opportunities in this new media paradigm. Why? Advertisers are following readers and viewers to these increasingly popular sports news outlets. Despite the economic downturn, there are projections that online sports advertising will double in the five-year period ending in 2012. The 10 largest sports blogs now collectively bring in tens of millions of dollars in revenue annually. Sports leagues and teams are bolstering their own Web sites to draw viewers and advertisers away from mainstream media, and to better control the flow of information to the public. And, entire cable networks are being created to cover individual sports teams, conferences and regions. The session will cover who's creating this burgeoning sports information business, the jobs it's spawning, and the new kind of journalism it's producing.
Speaking: Tim Franklin, director, National Sports Journalism Center and Louis A. Weil, Jr. Endowed Chair, Indiana University School of Journalism



4-5 p.m.

Managing Multimedia
Part of the New Media Track
Description: Journalists are out of their comfort zone. Photojournalists are learning video, reporters are learning basic photojournalism and audio. Some are eager to learn new tricks and some are not. What can we learn from the multimedia innovators in newsrooms? How is training managed? How are expenses controlled? Do subscribers really care?
Speaking: James W. Brown, executive associate dean, Indiana University; Mike Fender, director of photojournalism, The Indianapolis Star; Megan O'Bryan, reporter, Brown County (Ind.) Democrat; Danese Kenon, photojournalist, The Indianapolis Star
Click for speaker information
James W. Brown, executive associate dean, Indiana University
Jim Brown is executive associate dean of the IU School of Journalism at IUPUI. His book, “Long Journey Home: Oral Histories of Contemporary Delaware Indians,” won 2008 first place for nonfiction books from the Indiana Society of Professional Journalists. In the 1990s he held some of the first conferences on computer-assisted reporting. In 2006, he received the Hoosier State Press Award for Distinguished Service. In April 2009, he was inducted into the Indiana Journalism Hall of Fame.

Mike Fender, director of photojournalism, The Indianapolis Star
Mike Fender is the Director of Photography at the Indianapolis Star. He has worked in Indianapolis for 20 years in photo management, but still considers himself a photographer. He has also worked at newspapers in San Bernardino (Ca.) and in Xenia and Dayton (Oh.). His first job was as a staff writer for the Xenia Daily Gazette.

At the Star he supervises a staff of 20 multimedia journalists producing still, video and audio for the newspaper and online. As a photographer he has been honored as the NPPA regional photographer of the year and is a six-time Indiana POY.

Fender grew up in Ohio, but lives in Knightstown, a small town outside Indianapolis. Knightstown was used as one of the filming locations for the movie “Hoosiers” and Fender coaches’ youth basketball in the historic gym used as the home of the Hickory Huskers. He also runs a soccer program for youth in the town.



Ethics and Professionalism in 1908 (Then and Now)
In recognition of SPJ’s Centennial Celebration
Description: As we celebrate 100 years of SPJ, take a look back in history. What were journalistic standards during the time that SPJ was founded? In 1908, journalism schools began to be developed. By educating future reporters and editors, updating labor practices, and formalizing ethics, the profession was creating standards. We'll hear from a journalism historian and discuss how this history applies to media today.
Speaking: Betty Winfield, Distinguished Curators' Professor, University of Missouri
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Betty Winfield, Distinguished Curators' Professor, University of Missouri
Betty Houchin Winfield, PhD, teaches and researches political communication and mass media history at the Missouri School of Journalism, where she has been on the faculty since 1990. She comes to SPJ for this convention as a member of the American Journalism Historians Association, which honored her with its inaugural teaching excellence award last year. Winfield’s most recent book is “Journalism, 1908: Birth of a Profession.” She has published three other books, along with many book chapters and journal articles. Her current research explores how journalists use history in their stories.



Burned Out, Laid Off or Bought Out?
Part of the Career Center Track
Description: What's a journalist supposed to do when his/her company downsizes, especially mid-career writers, editors and broadcasters who thought their golden parachute was waiting 30 years down the road. Find out how to handle the new job search, a possible change in careers and the stress of being laid off in this tough economic climate.
Moderating: Bruce Cadwallader, staff reporter, Columbus (Ohio) Dispatch
Speaking: Isha Cogborn, life coach, Epiphany Institute; Holly Fisher, former research editor, SC Biz News LLC and freelance writer and editor; Mark Scarp, former editorial writer and columnist, East Valley Tribune, Phoenix and adjunct professor, Arizona State University
Click for speaker information
Bruce Cadwallader, staff reporter, Columbus (Ohio) Dispatch
Bruce Cadwallader, 48, is a criminal justice reporter at The Columbus Dispatch, central Ohio’s metropolitan daily newspaper.

Cadwallader was hired in August 1985, as a police reporter and spent more than 12 years covering the Columbus Division of Police and Fire, the Franklin County Sheriff’s Office, Ohio Highway Patrol and 16 suburban departments.

In March 1994, Cadwallader moved to the court beat, responsible for daily coverage of the Franklin County Common Pleas Court, Court of Appeals and Probate Court — 26 judges in all. During that five-year period, Cadwallader covered major felony trials and trends in the criminal justice system. He returned to cover courts in March 2004. He is currently the sole court reporter on that beat.

From 1999 to 2000, Cadwallader was assigned to county government stories and local politics for two years before moving back to the city desk to develop enterprise stories in the criminal justice system.

He is one of the senior reporters on the Dispatch City Desk.

While at The Dispatch, Cadwallader has won numerous writing awards for breaking news and public service reporting from The Associated Press Society of Ohio, the Cleveland Press Club and the Society of Professional Journalists (SPJ). He received a 1997 Columbus Bar Association award for media coverage of the law.

In addition to his reporting duties, Cadwallader has served as president of the Central Ohio SPJ chapter from 1994 to 1995 and has held the positions of board member, secretary and vice president. He also served on two national committees before being elected to the National Board of SPJ in 2001. He completed two terms on the national board as a regional director. In October 2005, Cadwallader was elected SPJ Secretary-Treasurer of the national organization and unsuccessfully ran for President-elect of the Society in 2007 in Washington, D.C.

His is former chairman of the national membership committee and twice chairman of the Legal Defense Fund, a resource for journalists in search of freedom of information.

Before The Dispatch, Cadwallader worked on several beats at The Lima News in Lima, Ohio, between 1983 and 1985. He is a 1983 graduate of Ohio University’s school of journalism.

Cadwallader is married with three children and currently resides with his wife, Nancy, in Canal Winchester, Ohio in Franklin County.

Holly Fisher, former research editor, SC Biz News LLC and freelance writer and editor
Holly Fisher is a freelance writer and editor in the Charleston, S.C., area. Her clients include Step Ahead, where she works directly with clients on traditional public relations projects and assists with public relations strategy, writing, media outreach and coordination, and Trident Health System, where she produces health care publications and marketing materials. She also writes for the Green Office Blog and freelances for such publications Charleston Style + Design and Lowcountry Parent.

Fisher most recently was the research editor for SC Biz News LLC, publisher of the Charleston Regional Business Journal, Columbia Regional Business Report, GSA Business, SCBIZ magazine and other business news publications. She also served as special projects editor and electronic media editor for the company. She also has worked for newspapers in Indiana, Texas and South Carolina.

Fisher is a former Region 3 director and board member for the Society of Professional Journalists and a former board member of the Sigma Delta Chi Foundation. Fisher also has served as an adjunct professor at the College of Charleston. She is a member of the Center for Women in Charleston and the Charleston Young Professionals.

She has a bachelor’s degree in journalism from Ohio University and a Master of Mass Communication from the University of South Carolina. She lives in Mount Pleasant with her husband, daughter and two Labrador retrievers.

Mark Scarp, former editorial writer and columnist, East Valley Tribune, Phoenix and adjunct professor, Arizona State University
Before being laid off in January, Mark Scarp spent nearly 20 years as a journalist at the East Valley Tribune in suburban Phoenix and its precursor, the Scottsdale Progress, the last nine of which as editorial writer and columnist. Today he teaches mass communications law, media ethics and news reporting and writing as an adjunct professor at Arizona State University's Walter Cronkite School of Journalism and Mass Communication while he continues his search for full-time employment.

Honored twice as regional director of the year (1997-98 and 2000-01), Mark Scarp served six years from 1997-2003 on SPJ's national board of directors representing Region 11 (Arizona, California, Hawaii, Nevada and the Pacific Islands). Mark was also president of the Valley of the Sun (Phoenix) pro chapter from 1992-94 and from 2003-06 and chair of the national Membership committee from 2003-06. He is now a member of SPJ's Public Outreach Committee. After serving from 2000-05 as president of the First Amendment Coalition of Arizona, Mark is serving as the coalition's treasurer in 2009.



Journalism 3.0
Part of the New Media Track
Description: Social networks, live streaming, geospatial Web technologies, semantic search engines — these once obscure terms, have now become front and center applications for many of today's innovative journalists. With the introduction of new needs and demands around converging newsrooms, so has the flood of new gizmos and buzz word, but who can keep up!? And which technologies are simply “flavor of the month” and which possess true staying power? Is now the time to turn in the traditional reporter's notebook for a shiny, new digital “doodad”? Well, not exactly, but now is the time to embrace emerging technologies and broaden your toolbox in ways our industry forefathers could have never imagined. Are you effectively using social networks such as Twitter and Facebook to develop and enhance your reporting? Are you taking advantage of the inexpensive/free Webstream systems that will seamlessly deliver your reports along with audience interaction from your cell phone or laptop? With the advent of next-generation search engines, are you still using Google when time to embark on your story research-voyages? The tenants of traditional journalism remain alive and well, but with recent breakthroughs in internet-research applications and other web technologies, newsgathering and story production has never been more exciting.
Speaking: Victor Hernandez, Director of Coverage, CNN
Click for speaker information
Victor Hernandez, Director of Coverage, CNN
Victor Hernandez is a broadcast news executive with CNN Atlanta who helps to lead a massive army of journalists in constant pursuits of upholding the company’s long history of journalistic integrity, engaging the network’s audience and most importantly — developing strong individuals into strong leaders.

Prior to accepting a news management position with CNN at their global headquarters in Atlanta in 2003, Victor helped to lead newsrooms at local NBC television stations in Fresno and San Diego, California. As one of only two persons with the title and responsibilities of ‘Director of Coverage’ at the “Most Trusted Name in News”, Victor is charged with the oversight of CNN Domestic Newsgathering which includes a 50-person assignment desk, 10 U.S. bureaus and more than 900 television and newspaper affiliate partnerships.

Whether it’s overseeing the ‘big picture’ breaking news coverage demands and expectations from company headquarters or commanding troops on the ground from such noteworthy events as the historical 2008 Presidential election, unraveling complexities of the economic collapse or planning and execution of intense coverage from epic disasters such as hurricanes, floods and wildfires — Victor’s core leadership beliefs have always been encased in leading with vision and respect.

His work with new media, emerging technologies and convergence is amongst the most innovative and cutting edge at CNN. Victor is viewed as an organization leader in the areas of new media, social networking and multimedia journalism. He has spent the past year building and leading the CNN All Platform Journalism initiative, which is designed to ensure the global news organization remains at the forefront of exciting and evolving storytelling opportunities.

Victor is actively involved with Journalism curriculums at the Poynter Institute of Media Studies; first as a Poynter student within its Leadership classrooms and now most recently as a visiting faculty member for Leadership for New Managers 2007 and an Ethics Fellow for 2008-2009.

Victor is originally from California’s bountiful Central Valley, where he attended California State University, Fresno. He is a member of the National Association of Hispanic Journalists, Investigative Reporters and Editors and Society of Professional Journalists. Victor is married to Shannon Gonzales, also from the Fresno area. The two live in suburban Atlanta with their three children.

Click to see the lineup for: Thursday | Friday | Saturday

2009 SPJ Convention
August 27-30, 2009
Indianapolis

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