Panelists will examine all aspects of news coverage of the death of Samuel DuBose, a unarmed black motorist who was shot to death by University of Cincinnati police officer Ray Tensing on July 19 after being stopped for driving a car without a front license plate.

Panelists will include attorneys for both the DuBose and Tensing families, Cincinnati City Manager Harry Black, Julie Wilson of the Hamilton County Prosecutor’s Office, Cincinnati Human Relations Commission Executive Director Ericka King-Betts, and representatives from several Cincinnati media outlets.

The event will be sponsored by the Greater Cincinnati Pro Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists, the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center, the Jewish Community Relations Council, The Center for Holocaust and Humanity Education, and the Cincinnati Human Relations Commission.

The discussion will run 7:30 to 9 p.m. at the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center, 50 East Freedom Way, in downtown Cincinnati.

“This is a critical discussion that hasn’t had a public forum, until now,” said Hagit Limor, former Society of Professional Journalists national president and panel moderator. “We look forward to providing everyone the opportunity to be part of this community.”

RSVPs are requested by Oct. 6 at freedomcenter.org/wordsandimages.

Journalists interested in covering the panel may contact Jackie Congedo, Cincinnati SPJ, at jackie.congedo@gmail.com or the National Underground Railroad Freedom Center, jglavic@nurfc.org, (513) 333-7511.

Row 1: Sue Porter, vice president at the Scripps Howard Foundation in Cincinnati, took home SPJ’s highest honor, the prestigious Wells Key Award. Former SPJ President Hagit Limor, right in photo, serves on the SDX board with Porter. The Columbus Dispatch and Student Press Law Center won the Eugene Pulliam First Amendment Award for their work on campus crime coverage.

Row 2: Ohio University SPJ chapter adviser Nerissa Young won recognition as the David L. Eshelman Outstanding Campus Adviser, while OU senior Kate Hiller won election as one of two student representatives to the SPJ National Board. Cincinnati chapter president Tom McKee of WCPO-TV, with wife Claudia, was honored as one of two pro members of the year.

Row 3: Miami of Ohio students Brett Milam, Alyssa Sato and Ariel Wiley traveled to Orlando with me to up their SPJ cred. Otterbein 360 and adviser Hillary Warren won an SPJ Sunshine Award for their successful battle to open police records at their central Ohio campus.

Row 4 and 5: My four panels — Suicide & Sources; Covering Ferguson & Baltimore; A Rape on Campus; and Covering Cuba — drew respectable crowds despite heavy competition. Happy to see University of Cincinnati prof, SPJ adviser and fellow Cuba traveler Jenny Wohlfarth (center in final photo) at the Cuba session.

Note: Other Region 4 winners included the Cleveland chapter, recognized with a Circle of Excellence Award for its communication outreach, and the OU chapter, recognized as Region 4 student chapter of the year.

Black Lives Matter doesn’t matter this much.

At Wesleyan University in Middletown, Connecticut, the private liberal arts school is in the middle of a very public controversy.

Last week, the student newspaper ran a column called Why Black Lives Matter Isn’t What You Think. Written by staff writer Bryan Stascavage, it opined…

It boils down to this for me: If vilification and denigration of the police force continues to be a significant portion of Black Lives Matter’s message, then I will not support the movement, I cannot support the movement. And many Americans feel the same. I should repeat, I do support many of the efforts by the more moderate activists.

Stascavage ended with…

At some point Black Lives Matter is going to be confronted with an uncomfortable question, if they haven’t already begun asking it: Is this all worth it? Is it worth another riot that destroys a downtown district? Another death, another massacre? At what point will Black Lives Matter go back to the drawing table and rethink how they are approaching the problem?

In the days since, Wesleyan activists with Black Lives Matter have done a lot more than write a letter to the editor. The Boston Globe has reported, “Wesleyan students want to shut down their own newspaper for its Black Lives Matter coverage.”

The Chronicle of Higher Education added that slightly less reactionary students are demanding, “space on the newspaper’s front page should be devoted to submissions from minority voices.”

That led Argus editors to post a staff editorial apologizing for “our carelessness in fact-checking. The op-ed cites inaccurate statistics and twists facts.” However, they didn’t list those stats and facts. They also apologized “for the distress the piece caused the student body.”

This entire mess distresses Frank LoMonte. He’s executive director of the Student Press Law Center.

“It’s totally legitimate for them to protest the paper if they feel ill-served,” LoMonte says of the Black Lives Matter students. “But it goes too far to insist that every issue set aside front-page space for a minority-perspective or to threaten the paper’s funding.”

LoMonte continues….

Obviously, a private college isn’t legally obliged to continue funding the paper, but it would set a terribly intimidating precedent if making readers mad resulted in being de-funded. Would the readers really be better served by no newspaper at all? Obviously not. If the dissenters want to come up with a better newspaper, great, they can apply for funding and compete in the marketplace.

LoMonte’s days are spent defending student journalists from censorious administrators. In this twisted case, he’s defending students from students – and he has Wesleyan administrators on his side.

“Debates can raise intense emotions, but that doesn’t mean that we should demand ideological conformity because people are made uncomfortable,” wrote Wesleyan president Michael Roth. “We certainly have no right to harass people because we don’t like their views. Censorship diminishes true diversity of thinking.”

Attention Wesleyan Black Lives Matter: You know you’ve lost your campus’s hearts and minds when frequent enemies are aligned against you. Even worse, you know you’re toast when Gawker makes fun of you with “lmao.”

As an SPJ national director, I’ve emailed the shell-shocked Argus editors, offering to help them any way I can. But since everyone is piling on the student protesters, I want to make them this public offer…

If Wesleyan’s Black Lives Matter will stop trying to shut down their student newspaper, I’ll help them start their own. 

As LoMonte says, media can “compete in the marketplace.” I’ll help raise money for web and print publishing, and I’ll  assist with all the boring logistics so the students who hate The Argus can create a media outlet they like.

This isn’t a shtick, ploy, scheme, or bluff. The last time I offered to help students start their own publication, they raised more than $5,000. I truly believe anyone who commits an act of journalism not only informs their readers but also themselves. That’s my only greedy self-interest.

So all it takes is this: Any of 147 students who signed the Wesleyan petition complaining The Argus “neglects to provide a safe space for the voices of students of color,” I’ll help you create that safe space. But you have to maintain it. I hope that matters enough for you to email me.

Here are five highlights from a regional perspective, starting with one I am super proud of.

1) San Diego SPJ was named this year’s national Society of Professional Journalists’ large pro chapter of the year. It’s the highest honor a chapter can achieve and a testament to our San Diego board’s dedication and the San Diego membership’s encouragement. In its announcement, national SPJ explained that it honored us for “commitment to SPJ’s mission and exceptional chapter programming.”

The full statement read: “The SPJ San Diego Pro chapter is recognized for its hard work in recruiting and retaining members. It also partnered with the San Diego Diplomacy Council which allowed the chapter to have more diverse programming. San Diego Pro held a successful Awards Contest Banquet this past year with more than 120 journalists in attendance. Some of the programs for 2014 included a resume workshop, mixers with five other journalism clubs and a cryptography party. It also held programs such as ‘Witness to Wildfires: Looking Through a Rear-View Mirror’ and ‘Stop and I’ll shoot: The prevalence of police body cameras,’ with professionals in the community to provide better understanding of key issues and learn how to better report them.”

(Yes, the banquet reference was to last year’s. And yes, the president did make a joke about this year’s during her presentation….)

The chapter of the year honor is a remarkable achievement for a group of hard-working, forward-thinking, passionate journalists. Be proud, San Diego.

2) NorCal was singled out for its First Amendment and Freedom of Information efforts. Upholding those two things is a huge part of our mission, and NorCal deserves a ton of credit for being recognized as a Circle of Excellence award winner. Please join me in congratulating board president Lila LaHood and all of her outstanding colleagues in the Bay Area.

3) Cal State University-Northridge has been awarded the outstanding campus chapter award for Region 11 this year. Congratulations to that chapter and all the great work it is doing.

4) I was re-elected to the national board of SPJ, where I serve as Region 11 director, working to celebrate, improve and protect professional and student journalists in Arizona, California, Hawaii and Nevada. It’s a two-year term, so I’ll be in office when the national SPJ conference is in New Orleans in 2016 and in Anaheim, closer to home, in 2017. In that time, I’ll also oversee regional SPJ conferences in Phoenix in 2016 and in San Diego in 2017. The new SPJ national board will be led by President Paul Fletcher, President-Elect (and San Diegan!) Lynn Walsh and Secretary-Treasurer Rebecca Baker. Thank you very much to all who helped elect me. I appreciate the support and look forward to helping across the region.
5) Among the dozen or so resolutions the national membership passed in its closing business session today was one I wrote on behalf of San Diego and Region 11 on police body-worn camera footage. I’m proud to say that the measure passed unanimously. There were some minor edits made on the floor, so what you’ll read below is not the official version but it’s close to — if not exactly how — the final one will read. This is an issue I and the San Diego board care deeply about — see Exhibit A and Exhibit B — so I’m grateful to have the support of the region, board and now national membership and am stoked this will be a priority nationally.

Thanks for all your support, Region 11. Onward to another great year. Let’s do good work!

Cheers,
Matt

Resolution No. 11: Advocating for the release of police body-worn camera footage

Submitted by: Matthew T. Hall, Region 11 director

WHEREAS, police use of force is dominating national headlines after police shootings in Ferguson, Mo.; Los Angeles; Cleveland; San Diego; North Charleston, South Carolina; Cincinnati and elsewhere in just the past 13 months, and;

WHEREAS, police body-worn cameras are increasingly common in law enforcement agencies nationwide, and;

WHEREAS, more and more police departments, including Boston and Baltimore just days ago, have taken steps to implement body-worn camera pilot programs, and;

WHEREAS, many police agencies cite increased accountability, transparency and public trust as reasons to equip officers with body-worn cameras, and;

WHEREAS, police chiefs in major cities such as San Diego and Los Angeles are now saying they would release footage only in rare cases, if at all, and;

WHEREAS, that position by police chiefs doesn’t seem to jibe with the public records law and runs counter to what the public believes body cameras do, which is provide a record of what happened, and;

WHEREAS, legislators in at least 15 states including Arizona and California, have introduced bills to exempt police body-worn camera footage from state public records laws or to limit what the public can access, and;

WHEREAS, some law enforcement agencies plan to release police body-worn camera footage taken in public spaces upon request, and;

WHEREAS, other law enforcement agencies, including the Oakland Police Department, are showing police body-worn camera video to members of the media but not releasing the footage to the public; and

WHEREAS, the freedom of the press is a constitutional right and the public’s right to know is something to be fiercely defended;

THEREFORE, be it resolved, that SPJ, in consultation with other journalism organizations, including NABJ, NAHJ, AAJA, NAJA and NLGJA, shall over the next year develop best practices for how police agencies weigh right-to-know considerations against privacy concerns and draft guidelines for when police should release body-worn camera video to the public.

There are ethics, and there are smithics.

Kevin Smith sits on the board of SPJ’s foundation, called Sigma Delta Chi. Yesterday, he endorsed a candidate for SPJ office.

Smith posted on the Excellence in Journalism convention app…

Rebecca Baker deserves your vote for secretary-treasurer. As past president, board member I know her commitment and visions and I support her leadership of the Society.

Should a director of SPJ’s foundation publicly endorse a candidate? When I said this was “bad form,” Smith replied, “I have every right to endorse my friend for office.”

Not really. Not according to Smith’s boss, SDX chairman Robert Leger.

Leger says in April 2012, a committee “discussed a policy covering SDX Foundation board members’ role during SPJ officer and director elections.” The results? Leger told me…

The committee concluded a policy wasn’t needed and offered the following guidance statement: “Sigma Delta Chi Foundation board members are cautioned against actively participating in SPJ election campaigns.” The minutes indicate the board approved the guideline.

Those minutes don’t indicate if Smith voted against it, but he’s definitely violating it now. Sure, it’s not an ironclad rule. But it’s at least unethical to brazenly flout this guideline.

Thing is, Smith is the previous chairman of SPJ’s Ethics Committee, and he’s a journalism professor. It must be easier to teach ethics than to practice them.

So what happens now? Probably nothing. Smith knows the best defense is to be offensive. When I confronted him on the EIJ app, he publicly accused me of doing the same with Baker’s opponent, Jason Parsley, who hails from my chapter…

Since South Florida endorsed him and your fingerprints are all over that chapter I can’t imagine you weren’t involved in that process…So let’s dispense with the conflicts of interest lecture. You’ve always been good at double standards and bad form.

SPJ Florida’s president and past president corrected Smith – because I had nothing to do with that endorsement. As an SPJ national board member, I’ve been following our own guideline: “Current national SPJ board members should remain neutral in all elections.”

I even interviewed the candidates and wrote equally nice things about Baker and Parsley. (I was less kind to other candidates.)

But I guess I’m just not very good at smithics.

I hope to see everyone in Orlando this weekend, where the weather will be Floridian, the sessions will be phenomenal, the board business will be … board business, and the national board elections will run from Friday at 5 p.m. to Sunday at 2 p.m.

Is my Spidey sense tingling or am I just happy about EIJ?

Yes, I’m running for re-election, so I’d appreciate your vote and will gladly discuss my vision, my work, or anything, really. I look forward to seeing everyone in Orlando.

And I’m kidding about the board business being just board business. It’s important stuff, so if anyone has anything they’d like me to mention or discuss with my board colleagues, please send me an email, ping me on Twitter or look me up on the conference app by searching “EIJ15” in your app store, or following this link on your mobile browser.

Here are some big events to calendar, starting with the three that will close the conference on Sunday, Sept. 20.

Have fun, everyone. Do good work.

WHAT:  SPJ Region 11 meeting (Please join us to plan our coming year, discuss our 2016 regional conference in Phoenix, share great program ideas, air what’s bothering you and meet your colleagues in the region!)

WHEN: 12:30 pm. to 1:30 p.m.

WHERE: Boston

WHAT: SPJ closing business session

WHEN: 3 p.m. to 5 p.m.

WHERE: Grand 6

WHAT: SPJ president’s installation banquet

WHEN: 7:30 p.m. to 10 p.m.

WHERE: Grand 7

Finally here are 3 other big events each day and one on Monday, where you can catch me and which you really shouldn’t miss. Because they’re awesome.

FRIDAY, Sept. 18

WHAT: SPJ board meeting

WHEN: 9 a.m. to noon

WHERE: Boston

WHAT: SPJ opening business session

WHEN: 4 p.m. to 5 p.m.

WHERE: Atlanta

WHAT: Opening night reception

WHEN: 6:30 p.m. to 8 p.m. (with shuttles from 5:30 p.m. to 10 p.m.)

WHERE: B.B. King’s Blues Club, Pointe Orlando

Saturday, Sept. 19

WHAT: WDBJ Shooting: A tragedy unfolds in real time

WHEN: 8 a.m. to 9:15 a.m.

WHERE: Grand 7

WHAT: Branding yourself in a changing journalism landscape

WHEN: 9:30 a.m. to 10:30 a.m

WHERE: Grand 2

WHAT:  15 jaw droppingly cool online tools you will love and use

WHEN: 11 a.m. to noon

WHERE: Grand 2

SUNDAY, Sept. 20

WHAT: Coffee with SPJ leadership

WHEN: 8 a.m. to 9 a.m.

WHERE: Hotel suite 22578

WHAT: SPJ Pro chapter leaders session

WHEN: 10 a.m. to 11 am.

WHERE: Hotel suite 22578

WHAT: Storytelling tools from Google News lab

WHEN: 11 a.m. to noon

WHERE: Grand 4

Monday, Sept. 21

WHAT: SPJ board meeting

WHEN: 9 a.m.

WHERE: Anaheim

In SPJ, every vote really counts.

You can win a national SPJ office by just a handful of the few hundred ballots cast online, because most of SPJ’s 7,200 members don’t vote.

The ones who do must decide by reading vague statements or contacting the candidates themselves. SPJ doesn’t host any debates, online or in person.

So as a public service, I posed three crazy questions to four candidates — the only ones in major contested races. Rebecca Baker and Jason Parsley are running for secretary-treasurer, while Bill McCloskey and Alex Veeneman are running for at-large director.

Skip to their answers by clicking here and avoid my screed below.

I asked the candidates about recent SPJ controversies. Of course, I started these controversies, so I probably care about them more than you do. Still, there’s illumination in their answers that transcend the topics.

For example…

• Incumbents can be more daring than challengers. Baker is a current board member who’s willing to reform SPJ more than Veeneman, who’s running for the first time. In fact, Veeneman’s positions mirror those of incumbent McCloskey, which makes me wonder: Why vote for a new boss if he’ll be the same as the old boss?
• How you say No is revealing. Baker and Parsley answer with scrutiny and nuance, McCloskey and Veeneman not so much. When you say “no,” it helps to offer counterproposals. New ideas excite voters. No ideas excite no one.
• The most intriguing response is the last one. Veeneman doesn’t answer the question. Instead, he attacks the messenger — odd for a journalist. If you’re going to do that, also be a journalist and report. Because I’ve already done exactly what Veeneman asks. I told him as much and offered him a chance to rewrite his answer — because I’m not at all offended. (How hypocritical would that be?) Alas, he never replied.*

Finally, lest anyone accuse me of leveling personal attacks (which seems silly, but an SPJ president once accused me of libeling SPJ)…

I disagree with Bill McCloskey on most major issues facing SPJ, yet he’s one of my favorite fellow board members, and a man I deeply respect.

I mean, who wants to serve on a board of like-minded people? Where’s the fun in that? Plus, I’ve been known to be wrong once or twice. (Well, maybe just once…)

Still, I wish McCloskey (and Veeneman) would show a little more verve in their analysis of SPJ’s condition. Being conservative doesn’t mean being calcified. SPJ is still shedding members at a rate of a couple hundred per year since McCloskey and I first got on the board in 2008. “Stay the course” isn’t working.

Thus endeth the sermon for today. Here are the candidates’ answers, uncut and unedited…

Rebecca Baker (secretary-treasurer) — I’ve been a vocal supporter of the name change since it was first proposed nearly two years ago. I think renaming SPJ is an important step to show that we are truly an inclusive organization for journalists of all stripes and that we hold “professional journalism” at the core of our mission. Other journalism groups, such as RTDNA, have changed their names to reflect the changing landscape of the business, and I believe we should do the same.

As for expanding SPJ from a “trade organization” to an “advocacy group,” I believe SPJ has shown itself to be an advocacy organization in many ways, such as lobbying for a federal shield law and, on a local level, sending letters to state lawmakers opposing open records restrictions and other measures that limit the free flow of information. I think SPJ can be both a trade group for members that offers networking, training, and career advice as well as advocates for the First Amendment and a free press.

Jason Parsley (secretary-treasurer) — I believe in the movement behind the name change and I would vote in favor of it. But I don’t believe that will solve the larger problem, which is SPJ’s culture. SPJ can be an advocacy group without changing its name, while changing the name won’t turn us into an advocacy group. The name change itself is not the solution to the problem. It’s more important to elect new leaders that have different perspectives. If we continue to elect the same people again and again we will get the same results over and over again.

Bill McCloskey (at-large director) — There is no need to rename SPJ. A poll of the members shows there is little interest in such a change. SPJ is an advocacy group. Stepping up our advocacy and making it more effective has been a goal of the current board and we a slowly moving towards meting that goal.

Alex Veeneman (at-large director) — No, SPJ should not be renamed the Society for Professional Journalism. SPJ is already involved in advocacy. Journalism is not a trade. It is a profession (and hopefully a calling). Example.

Rebecca Baker (secretary-treasurer) — I believe the delegate system needs to be revised to reflect the 41 percent of SPJ members who do not belong to a particular chapter. I am a member of an SPJ membership task force that is tackling this very issue. The task force has just received the results of a survey of unaffiliated members about what, if any, changes to the delegate system should be taken and soon will be discussing what actions to take in light of those results. In my view, SPJ can either scrap the entire system and allow the member-elected Board of Directors to make all decisions for the organization, or expand the delegate system so unaffiliated members in each region have representation on the convention floor with chapter delegates. Whether either of these options—or a different one entirely—is chosen, I’m sure there will be an extensive discussion about it on a national level.

Jason Parsley (secretary-treasurer) — Yes and no. I believe all members should have an opportunity to vote on major decisions like the name change and the code of ethics. But I don’t know if every decision needs a full vote. Engaging the average SPJ member can be difficult. For instance in the last election only about 8 percent of members voted. That is an abysmal number. Having said that it is unacceptable that the voting period is only open from Friday to Sunday. SPJ’s leadership must do more to involve its members, including extending the online voting period. I don’t believe this would even be an issue if SPJ leaders listened more to members’ concerns, suggestions, ideas, desires, needs etc. So the larger issue here is electing leaders that will listen with an open mind and take suggestions, even ones they don’t like, into consideration.

Bill McCloskey (at-large director) — No. The delegate system is the only efficient way to have issues thoughtfully considered and arguments made in support and against proposals. Many chapters study the issues before the convention and send their delegates to convention with instructions on how to vote.

Alex Veeneman (at-large director) — While I believe it would be a good thing for everyone to be involved and to vote, it is not realistic. Just as in any electoral process, only a minority of members will vote.

Rebecca Baker (secretary-treasurer) — To be honest, I don’t have a particularly strong opinion on this issue. I think SPJ board members have the freedom to recommend committee chairs or voice opposition if a chosen committee chair is unqualified or problematic in some way. However, if there was a strong push from the board to take the reigns on this issue, I would not oppose it.

Jason Parsley (secretary-treasurer) — The president should have the power to appoint them, but they should be confirmed by the full board.

Bill McCloskey (at-large director) — I believe it is a president’s prerogative to select those who will help him or her handle the governance of the Society. The current president decided to ask the board to approve her selections, which it did with no debate.

Alex Veeneman (at-large director) — As a sitting director running unopposed for re-election, if this issue concerns you, why haven’t you addressed the entire Board?

* Veeneman says he did indeed send an updated reply. I didn’t get it, but I believe him. See his comment below.

SPJ announced on July 24 that the Columbus Dispatch and the Student Press Law Center were awarded the Eugene S. Pulliam First Amendment Award for their fight against hidden campus crime rates. The award comes with a $10,000 prize.

The Dispatch and SPLC worked together last year on an investigative series titled “Campus Insecurity,” available here.

“Most campuses are anything but secure. And worse, administrators have cloaked their campus crime rates and poor response to them in secrecy — failing to take some complaints seriously, shunting what should be criminal cases into closed-door campus judicial hearings handled by untrained faculty and students, and refusing public records about the cases or stalling when asked for them,” the authors wrote.

The series revealed flawed and unreliable crime statistics, which misrepresent crime on campuses. In some cases, campus officials failed to even report violent crimes.

The series also exposed lack of transparency on college campuses, especially related to judicial hearings involving crimes.

“Because of all of their hard work, they informed the public of a very serious issue and brought awareness to the importance of accurate crime reporting,” SPJ said in its press release, noting that Dispatch and SPLC staffers had to fight to get public records.

They will honored Sept. 20 at the President’s Installation Banquet during Excellence in Journalism 2015 in Orlando.

Nerissa Young and her SPJ students staged a well-run, high-impact regional conference in Athens, Ohio, in March 2015.

Region 4 continued to wrack up honors this week, as the SPJ national office released news of members who will be honored at EIJ15 in September.

The latest honoree: Nerissa Young, adviser to the SPJ chapter at Ohio University in Athens, as the David L. Eshelman Outstanding Campus Adviser Award recipient.

The award, launched in 1978, is presented annually to a campus adviser who “has made an exceptional contribution to the campus chapter for which he or she serves.”

In her nomination letter, former OU chapter president Kate Hiller said Young is devoted to SPJ and is always available to help her students. For example, she drove six students to Nashville last year for Excellence in Journalism 2014, so they could participate in the annual convention. The Ohio University SPJ chapter holds the title of National Campus Chapter of the Year for 2014.

“Ms. Young is one of the most dedicated professionals I have ever met,” Hiller said. “She works hard every day to make our chapter, the students in her classes and the E.W. Scripps School of Journalism the best it can be. She has been a very involved member of SPJ since 1991, and has led the chapters she has been involved with to win national awards for the organization.”

(Personal note: I’ve known Nerissa a good number of years now. She is endlessly devoted to her students, her institition, SPJ and her family. She is also the ultimate go-to girl. If Nerissa says she’ll get something done, she will — efficiently and expertly. Congrats, friend.)

At Otterbein 360, former editor Anna Schiffbauer and colleagues, working with faculty adviser Hillary Warren, submitted a public records request for police reports of student and non-student criminal cases in 2014. The request was denied on the grounds that “a private university’s police records are not public.” A mandamus action was filed, asking the Ohio Supreme Court to order the release of the documents.

In 2015, the Court ruled that police departments at private universities are public offices and therefore must provide public records.

Hagit Limor, chair of the SPJ Legal Defense Fund (and an investigative TV reporter who also teaches journalism at the University of Cincinnati), said the LDF committee “felt so strongly [about Otterbein 360’s case] we awarded $5,000 toward the legal battle and recommended the Society of Professional Journalists Board of Directors approve an additional $5,000 in LDF funding.”

In a press release from SPJ, Limor said: “Students fight many battles beyond the challenges facing professional journalists but this is one that will benefit all. Private universities now are compelled to provide records previously hidden from public scrutiny. While this case compels the Otterbein University police chief to produce criminal records crucial to student safety, one could see the application of this ruling expanded. The court said it would apply to any entity that exercises a ‘government function.’ ”

Other Sunshine Award winners, all to be recognized at Excellence in Journalism 2015 in Orlando, Fla., Sept. 18-20:

• Ed Timms and Kevin Krause of the Dallas Morning News, for an investigation into the practices of a non-profit created by local governments.
• Brad Heath of USA TODAY’s for his investigation into the almost 200,000 fugitives in the United States who were secretly allowed to “escape justice merely by crossing a state border.”
• Carolyn James — SPJ Freedom of Information chair for New York State and chair of Journalism, Media Studies and Public Relations at Hofstra University — for her open government advocacy and efforts.

Field experience is critical, Tom McKee, a reporter with WCPO-TV in Cincinnati, tells students at the Region 4 conference in Athens, Ohio, in March.

Tom McKee, president of the Cincinnati chapter of SPJ, is one of two winners of the annual Howard S. Dubin Outstanding Pro Member Award for outstanding contributions to their SPJ chapters and regions.

Under McKee’s leadership, the Cincinnati chapter has developed and carried out a variety of programs in addition to continuing its annual sponsorship and selection of members of the Cincinnati Journalism Hall of Fame. The chapter was named the best small pro chapter last year. Long-time Cincinnati SPJers Emil Dansker nominated McKee for the latest honor.

Julie Asher, president of the Washington, D.C., pro chapter, is this year’s other Dubin winner. Asher is national editor at the Catholic News Service, an international daily religion news service for Catholic and other publications around the world.

Asher and McKee will be recognized at Excellence in Journalism 2015 Sept 18-20 in Orlando, Fla.

The Howard Dubin Award is given to no more than two members each year — one from a chapter of 75 or more members and one from less than 75 members. It is named for long-time SPJ member Howard Dubin of the Chicago Headline Club.

Steve York, Kathy Francis and Jim St. Clair were honored for years of service on the SPJ Louisville Pro Board. Photo by Renee Petrina.

The SPJ Louisville Pro Chapter hosted its annual award dinner June 26 at the Bristol in downtown Louisville. Metro Journalism Awards were presented to college students and pros for outstanding work in calendar year 2014.

In addition to giving out awards to winners, the chapter honored several departing board members.

Steve York, Kathy Francis and Jim St. Clair retired from the SPJ Louisville board after years of dedicated service. The chapter asked people who knew them well to toast them and then gave each a small gift engraved with SPJ.

“We really could not have run our chapter over the past few decades without their dedicated service,” said Robyn Davis Sekula, SPJ Louisville Chapter president. “All three have been incredibly dedicated to our chapter and to improving journalism in our community. In particular, we want to honor Jim St. Clair, who has been with our chapter for at least 25 years. We hope that each of them will stay active in our chapter and that we will see them often.”

Thanks to the Detroit SPJ chapter members for judging the entries, as they have done for several years.

SPJ Louisville 2015 CONTEST WINNERS BY CATEGORY

METRO NEWSPAPERS/WIRE SERVICE

BEST NEWS STORY

FIRST PLACE: Claire Galofaro, Courier-Journal. “Alleged cannibal fell through legal cracks” Judges’ comments: Comprehensive, riveting coverage of gruesome murder — really pulled readers into the life of the killer and his victims.

CONTINUING COVERAGE

FIRST PLACE: Laura Ungar, Chris Kenning, Alton Strupp; Courier-Journal. “Heroin, A Rising Scourge” Judges’ comments: These stories bring a heightened awareness to a growing problem that many thought was in the past. This total team effort looks at many of the factors and issues that have been raised by this problem and its effects on the community. The team is to be applauded for this effort.

SECOND PLACE: James Bruggers, Courier-Journal. “The Plight of Trees”

THIRD PLACE: David A. Mann Business First Distillery coverage

ENTERPRISE REPORTING

FIRST PLACE: Joe Sonka, LEO Weekly. “Abandon ship! Kentucky’s underfunded public pension system” Judges’ comments: Joe Sonka’s plunge into the mire that is state pension underfunding rewarded the reader with a lively explanation of a normally dense subject. Kentucky is in trouble, and he was able to lay out the situation with a balance of light writing and gravitas.

SECOND PLACE: Amanda Beam, News and Tribune. “Surviving suicide”

THIRD PLACE: David A. Mann Business First. “Tale of 3 Cities”

BUSINESS REPORTING

FIRST PLACE: James Bruggers, Courier-Journal. JBS Swift plant coverage Judges’ comments: … Mr. Bruggers presents a chilling and compelling portrait of the inner workings of a slaughter house, highlighting both the tensions from within and those with the broader community. Excellent work all around!

SECOND PLACE: Caitlin Bowling, Business First. “Build a better boss,” “Fermenting a new brand,” “Texas Roadhouse”

THIRD PLACE: Grace Schneider, Courier-Journal. A body of work in 2014.

HEALTH CARE REPORTING

FIRST PLACE: David A. Mann, Caitlin Bowling; Business First. “Passing the stress test,” “Hospital Check-up,” “Pediatric Prognosis” Judges’ comments:  Well-written and nicely reported, this collection of stories shows a deep and commanding understanding of the region’s health care providers, the challenges they face and the patients they serve.

MINORITY/WOMEN’S AFFAIRS REPORTING

FIRST PLACE:   April Corbin, LEO Weekly. “Unfair housing,” “The long and short of it,” “An experiment on black women and children” Judges’ comments: Informative. Important.

SECOND PLACE: Caitlin Bowling, Business First. “Lessons in compassion”

THIRD PLACE: Jere Downs, Courier-Journal. “Farm feeds a big need”

FEATURE WRITING

FIRST PLACE: Chris Kenning, Courier-Journal. “Terror and triumph” Judges’ comments: This is a story of survival, forcefully told and described by the writer … a vivid tale…yet, written in such a way to allow a reader to almost feel as if he or she were actually there… Definitely movie material.

SECOND PLACE: Chris Kenning, Courier-Journal. “Shark Tracker”

THIRD PLACE: April Corbin, LEO Weekly. “The mirror has two faces,” “Saying goodbye to NC3,” “Sheltered: Louisville homeless share their stories”

PERSONALITY/PROFILE WRITING

FIRST PLACE: Steve Kaufman, Business First. “Cynthia Torp,” “Rob McKinnon,” “Fred Kellams” Judges’ comments: Well-written, intriguing profiles that provided readers looks into the peoples’ lives as well as their businesses.

SECOND PLACE: David A. Mann, Business First. “Stephen Hanson,” “Neville Blackmore,” “Wayne Estopinal”

THIRD PLACE IS A TIE:

April Corbin, LEO Weekly. “A Key to the past,” “Dancer Conrad De Chabert,” “Breast Cancer Awareness Month” (Voice-Tribune)

Caitlin Bowling, Business First. “Junior Bridgeman,” “Ghislain D’Humieres,” “Ted Longacre”

EDITORIAL WRITING

FIRST PLACE: Shea Van Hoy, News and Tribune. “Jacobi unfit,” “Body cameras,” “Law Change” Judges’ comments: Well-reasoned and written; clearly taking positions on controversial local issues.

COLUMN WRITING

FIRST PLACE: Sara Havens, LEO Weekly. “The Bar Belle” Judges’ comments: This is a laugh-out-loud, funny writer who I would look forward to reading each week.

SECOND PLACE: Al Cross, Courier-Journal. Political columns published in 2014.

THIRD PLACE: David Shabazz, Courier-Journal. “Arguments for accepting the N-word come up short,” “Richard Sherman is not a villain”

SPORTS WRITING

FIRST PLACE: Tim Sullivan, Courier-Journal. “Road to Sochi has price for Kentucky Olympian” Judges’ comments: Tim Sullivan’s story on the reluctant Olympian used a nice literary device throughout without overdoing it, and he did a good job of describing the challenges of bobsledding while profiling the subject. It was a smooth and excellent read.

SECOND PLACE: Business First Staff. “Shoe-ins,” “Charting the course,” “The business of the PGA championship”

THIRD PLACE: Jeff Greer, Courier-Journal. A body of work from 2014.

NEWS PHOTOGRAPHY

FIRST PLACE: Sam Upshaw, Jr., Courier-Journal. “Fancy Farm” Judges’ comments: Nicely framed shot captures the political divide at the event.

FEATURE PHOTOGRAPHY

FIRST PLACE: Tim Harris, Business First. “Pegasus Parade,” “Forecastle,” “Derby Spectator” Judges’ comments: First image captures the spirit of the event.

SPORTS PHOTOGRAPHY

FIRST PLACE: Sam Upshaw, Jr., Courier-Journal. “UK’s Harrison Twins” Judges’ comments: Photo nicely captures the heart-felt emotion of the moment.

SECOND PLACE:   Tim Harris, Business First. “Phil Mickelson,” “Rory McIlroy,” “California Chrome”

REVIEW/ CRITICISM

NO AWARD IN THIS CATEGORY

GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION

FIRST PLACE:   Brooke Timmons, Business First. “How the World Eats” Judges’ comments:  The simple, yet strong use of illustration captures the reader’s eye and draws them into the content without becoming a distraction … In the “Taking the Leap” graphic, the use of simple, clean iconic images was a nice touch.

SECOND PLACE:   Kyle Slagle, Courier-Journal. “Follow the Money”

PAGE DESIGN

FIRST PLACE:   Brooke Timmons, Business First. “Art Meets Architecture” Judges’ comments: The use of breakout information to illustrate the key points in these pages make
them easy to navigate and a pleasure for the reader to do so. Clean typography and smart use of color
result in a sophisticated, clean look.

SECOND PLACE: Kyle Slagle, Courier-Journal. “The Paradox of Suboxone”

NON-DAILY NEWSPAPERS

CONTINUING COVERAGE

FIRST PLACE:   Marnie McAllister, The Record. “School plan” Judges’ comments: These stories have kept the issue of school funding and the recent efforts by the archdiocese to make education affordable on the frontburner. The writer keeps the spotlight on those efforts while alerting community of ways to take advantage of this push.

ENTERPRISE REPORTING

FIRST PLACE: Marnie McAllister, The Record. “Parish takes responsibility” Judges’ comments: Marnie McAllister’s tale of how a parish came to rescue a homeless man, changing the man, and the parish was sweet and interesting.

BUSINESS REPORTING

FIRST PLACE: Wesley Kerrick, The Voice-Tribune. “Keeping Louisville Innovative” Judges’ comments: Wesley Kerrick put together a nice story about how General Electric is trying to innovate in appliances, leveraging local talent by giving them tools and feedback.

MINORITY/ WOMEN’S AFFAIRS REPORTING

FIRST PLACE:   Jessica Able   The Record. “Tek4kids,” “Feeding America,” “Pulsera Project” Judges’ comments:  Lots of good need-to-know information.

FEATURE WRITING

FIRST PLACE: Jessica Able   The Record.   “Teacher donates kidney to wounded soldier,” “Prison ministers to Native Americans,” “Trinity students make tombstones for the indigent” Judges’ comments:  The writer has an uncanny ability to make a reader feel empathy for the subjects and the issues raised in these stories. The stories are touching and well written, and at the same time, present teaching opportunities on the issues addressed.

PERSONALITY/PROFILE

FIRST PLACE: Marnie McAllister, The Record. “Sign language interpreter,” “Organist ready to retire,” “Bridge will be named for Sister of Loretto” Judges’ comments: Heartfelt profiles that show everyday people can have profound impacts on their communities.

SECOND PLACE:   Wesley Kerrick, Voice-Tribune. “The Enduring Power of Faith,” “Turning Passion Into Handcrafted Apparel”   “Nostalgia Lives on at Tickled Pink”

EDITORIAL WRITING

FIRST PLACE:   Marnie McAllister, The Record. “School plan commendable,” “The call to change our lives” Judges’ comments: Well written and clearly reasoned faith-based viewpoints on current issues.

SECOND PLACE:   Jessica Able, The Record. “Leading by example”

COLUMN WRITING

FIRST PLACE:   David Shabazz, The State Journal. “Keep newspapers in the classroom” Judges’ comments: Good conversational style and nice examples to make a valid point.

SPORTS WRITING

FIRST PLACE:   John Herndon, The Anderson News. “Reliving history,” “Thanks Coach Hyatt,” From Huck Finn to Hall of Fame” Judges’ comments: John Herndon’s coverage of Anderson County sports shows the love and deep knowledge that he has of the community. His stories were fun and memorable.

REVIEW/ CRITICISM

NO AWARD PRESENTED IN THIS CATEGORY

MAGAZINES

BUSINESS REPORTING

FIRST PLACE: Mary Chellis Austin, Louisville Magazine. “What’s Mine Is Yours,” “In the Money” Judges’ comments: Mary Chellis Austin took on two interesting slices of life and gave the nuts and bolts of the business behind them. Renting out homes for Derby for stunningly high prices and what happens when you win the lottery. The stories were well written and engaging with fabulous illustrations.

SECOND PLACE: Jenni Laidman, Louisville Magazine. “Risqué Business”

THIRD PLACE: Business First Staff. “CFO of the Year”’

FEATURE WRITING

FIRST PLACE: Dylon Jones, Louisville Magazine. “The Portland Puzzle” Judges’ comments:  An extremely well-written piece that transfers the reader – both literally and visually – through this neighborhood while introducing a wonderful lineup of characters and issues.

SECOND PLACE:   Anne Marshall, Louisville Magazine. “Deliver Me”

THIRD PLACE: Arielle Christian, Louisville Magazine. “Where They Don’t Belong”

PERSONALITY/ PROFILE

FIRST PLACE: Jenni Laidman   Louisville Magazine. “He’ll Have Another,” “Made of Honor”, “Counsel for Yesteryear” Judges’ comments: The author’s attention to detail and reporting makes for in-depth, extremely well-written profiles.

SECOND PLACE:   Dylon Jones, Louisville Magazine. “It’s Time for Teddy,” “The End of Striving”

HEALTH CARE REPORTING

FIRST PLACE:   Kane Webb, Louisville Magazine. “A Cut Above” Judges’ comments: Kane Webb’s narrative of a day in the life of a general surgeon gave deep insight   into the profession, and sped the reader through the dizzying work day breezily and with energy. The effort put into the piece is clear.

SECOND PLACE:   Today’s Woman. “Your Heart,” “Breast Cancer supplement”

GOVERNMENT/ POLITICS

FIRST PLACE:   Anne Marshall, Louisville Magazine. “Spectacular Bid?” Judges’ comments: The piece on Allison Lundergan Grimes was well-written and thoroughly reported. Marshall painted a portrait of Grimes on the campaign trail – from a sweaty day at Fancy Farm to a humid visit to the Louisville Zoo… Overall, this was an engaging and interesting piece.

EDUCATION REPORTING

NO AWARD IN THIS CATEGORY

MINORITY/WOMEN’S AFFAIRS

FIRST PLACE: Anne Marshall, Louisville Magazine. “Our Place” Judges’ comments:  Timely. Interesting. Inspiring.

SECOND PLACE: Today’s Woman, “Restoring New Life,” “A Day in Her Shoes”, “Stepping Up Her Game”

THIRD PLACE: Business First Staff. “Business Women First”

SPORTS WRITING

FIRST PLACE: Anne Marshall, Louisville Magazine. “A Knight Every Day” Judges’ comments: Anne Marshall’s profile of Kaelin Rybak, Bellarmine University’s long-time scorekeeper and biggest fan, gave a fabulous portrait of how people come to love something and become part of it.

SERVICE REPORTING

FIRST PLACE: Louisville Magazine. “24-Hour Breakfast,” “Give package,” “Best of Louisville” Judges’ comments:  Louisville Magazine staff did an excellent job with its reports on the region’s philanthropy, its “Best Of” issue and the colorful and appetite-inducing 24 Hours of Breakfast tour of restaurants.

COLUMN WRITING

FIRST PLACE:   Jack Welch, Louisville Magazine. “Just Sayin” (January, May, July) Judges’ comments: Nice conversation on topics of interest to the local community.

REVIEW/ CRITICISM

FIRST PLACE: Mary Chellis Austin, Louisville Magazine. “The Queue for ‘Cue” Judges’ comments:  Juicy, meaty.

PAGE DESIGN

FIRST PLACE:   Today’s Woman design team. “Most Admired Woman; 2014,” “How to Throw a First of Fall Party,” “Toppers” Judges’ comments:  The combination of well-executed typography, with appropriately chosen phrases to display, and excellent portraits make this entry dynamite.

SECOND PLACE: April Allman, Today’s Family. “Summer Drinks,” “Helping My Son Find His Passion,” “Make Caramel Corn for Gifts”

THIRD PLACE: Suki Anderson, Louisville Magazine. “Salvation,” “Race Tracking”, “Centennielle: The Belle turns 100”

HEADLINE WRITING

FIRST PLACE: Louisville Magazine, “Salvation,” “Deliver Me,” “Race Tracking” Judges’ comments: Good coordination with dramatic art.

GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION

FIRST PLACE:   Ron Jasin, Louisville Magazine. Derby illustrations Judges’ comments: The illustration technique is colorful and clean. The color choices are sophisticated and the simple drawing style provide for a quick read. Each image works individually as well as a cohesive set. Nice work.

SECOND PLACE:   Carrie Neumayer, Louisville Magazine. “Sunshine for gray skies,” “High on Hemp,” “Caper Escapade”

COVER DESIGN

FIRST PLACE:   Today’s Woman design team. “The Repurpose Issue,” “The Before and After issue” “Hollywood Luxury in Louisville” Judges’ comments: The repurposing edition was particularly impressive, with a clear concept that was cleanly executed.

SECOND PLACE: Today’s Family design team. Summer 2014, Fall 2014, Winter 2014.

FEATURE PHOTO

FIRST PLACE:   Mickie Winters, Louisville Magazine. “Where They Don’t Belong,” “Salvation,” “Deliver Me” Judges’ comments: The Camp Spider shots gave readers a window into the world of the homeless. The campfire shot and the inside look at a “camper’s” tent were especially good.

SECOND PLACE:   Tim Harris, Business First. Three Portraits (Ankur Gopal, Ruth Brinkley, Vidya Ravichandran)

PHOTO PACKAGE

FIRST PLACE: Chris Witzke, Louisville Magazine. “Get Your Geek On,” “Super Kids,” “The Queue for ‘Cue” Judges’ comments:  These are “geeks”? A good photographer can use skill to dispel stereotypes and this photo collection succeeds in that goal.

SECOND PLACE: Tim Harris, Business First. “Where millennials live”

THIRD PLACE: Melissa Donald, Anita Oldham, Today’s Woman. “Planning a Derby Party”

COLLEGE

NEWS STORY

FIRST PLACE: Aprile Rickert, Indiana University Southeast, The Horizon. “Tales of a lockdown” Judges’ comments:  A great choice to pair a quick, ultra-readable timeline of the lockdown with well-written vignettes about how students and faculty reacted to a very scary situation. This was a much more creative approach than a straight news story about a lockdown.

SECOND PLACE:   Simon Isham, Jacob Abrahamson; University of Louisville, The Louisville Cardinal. “The Grove: Unfinished on move-in day”

THIRD PLACE Aprile Rickert, Indiana University Southeast, The Horizon. “Learning from Lockdowns”

FEATURE STORY

FIRST PLACE: Melissa Spaide, Indiana University Southeast, The Horizon. “A lifelong battle” Judges’ comments: A smoothly written, engaging story. The writer did an excellent job of taking
readers inside one student’s struggle with a debilitating disease.

SECOND PLACE:   Ethan Smith, Indiana University Southeast, The Horizon. “Heroin Abuse in Kentuckiana”

THIRD PLACE: Olivia Krauth, University of Louisville, The Louisville Cardinal. “Her fault?: Rape Culture at U of L”

EDITORIAL/ COLUMN

FIRST PLACE: Jims Porter, Indiana University Southeast, The Horizon. “I was almost one of them” Judges’ comments: By sharing details about his own suicide attempt, the writer powerfully humanizes mental illness while highlighting the need for reforms to our national mental health care system.   The piece is well-written, descriptive and captivating.

SECOND PLACE:   Nick Amon, University of Louisville, The Louisville Cardinal. “Heroin injects itself in the veins of U of L”

THIRD PLACE: Joel Stinnett, Indiana University Southeast, The Horizon. “Tax dollars flood into creationist’s Ark Park”

PAGE DESIGN

FIRST PLACE:   Simon Isham, University of Louisville, The Louisville Cardinal. “Housing Issue” Judges’ comments:  Creative use of “Monopoly” theme to get the point across subtly- with rental prices listed to get the point across not-so-subtly. Well done!

SECOND PLACE:   Simon Isham, University of Louisville, The Louisville Cardinal. “Football Preview”

THIRD PLACE:   Bekah White, Indiana University Southeast, The Horizon. Mental Health cover

GRAPHIC ILLUSTRATION

FIRST PLACE:   Josh Medlock, Bekah White, Indiana University Southeast, The Horizon. “What to do in a lockdown” Judges’ comments:  Informative. Easy to follow. Timely.

SECOND PLACE: Bellarmine University. Staff of The Concord. “Blake Does College: Stress Relief”

THIRD PLACE:   Bekah White, Indiana University Southeast, The Horizon. “War on wheels”

NEWS/FEATURE PHOTO

FIRST PLACE:   Jacob Abrahamson, University of Louisville, The Louisville Cardinal. “The only gun allowed” Judges’ comments:  Attention grabbing. More powerful than words.

SECOND PLACE: Jims Porter, Indiana University Southeast, The Horizon. “Icy campus”

THIRD PLACE:   Shelby Orange, Indiana University Southeast, The Horizon. “Graduation Cap”

SPORTS STORY

FIRST PLACE: Noah Allison, University of Louisville, The Louisville Cardinal. “The All-American man just keeps getting better.” Judges’ comments: An interesting profile of a collegiate athlete who is poised to be a superstar. Strong, catchy writing makes this an enjoyable read.

SECOND PLACE: Mary Kate Hailer, Indiana University Southeast, The Horizon. “Joe Glover: From high school press box to college athletics director”

THIRD PLACE:   Elijah Lossner, Indiana University Southeast, The Horizon. “Hitting the books”

SPORTS PHOTO

FIRST PLACE: Horizon Staff, Indiana University Southeast, The Horizon. “Guts, Glory, Grenadiers” Judges’ comments: Good representation of sporting activities.

SECOND PLACE: Elijah Lossner, Indiana University Southeast, The Horizon. “Strong finish”

THIRD PLACE:   Austin Lassell, University of Louisville, The Louisville Cardinal. “Rozier steals and storms down the court”

BEST WEB SITE

FIRST PLACE: Indiana University Southeast, The Horizon staff. www.iushorizon.com Judges’ comments: The use of a large, dominant photo at the top of the home page is an eye-catching
way to grab readers’ attention. And it sets the site apart from the others. The rest of the site is cleanly organized. Well done!

SECOND PLACE:   University of Louisville, The Louisville Cardinal staff. www.louisvillecardinal.com/

BEST USE OF VIDEO

FIRST PLACE:   Marisa Gartland, Indiana University Southeast. “Local businesses: Adrienne and Company Judges’ comments: Good profile of local business. Great imagery. Engaging interview.

SECOND PLACE:   Marisa Gartland, Indiana University Southeast. “New Albany Local Businesses: Inside Quills Coffee and Toast on Market”

THIRD PLACE:   Laura Hubrich, Indiana University Southeast. “St. James Court Art Show”

ONLINE FEATURE PACKAGE

FIRST PLACE: Adam Taylor, Melissa Spaide, Ashley Sizemore. Indiana University Southeast. “More than just black top” Judges’ comments: Text, mapping, video and photographs are woven together well to tell this story. The writing is pretty good, too.

SECOND PLACE:   Nic Britton, Haley Warwick, Erin Mann. Indiana University Southeast. “Art of Adaptation”

THIRD PLACE: Laura Hubrich, Paige Thompson, Josh Medlock. Indiana University Southeast. “Rising to the top”

ONLINE-AFFILIATED

BEST WEB SITE

FIRST PLACE: WDRB.com. Barry Fulmer, Mike Dever, Travis Kircher, Dalton Main Judges’ comments:  Lots of good, up-to-date content on the site. Easy to navigate.

SECOND PLACE: Staff, Louisville Business First.

THIRD PLACE: Staff, Insider Louisville.

BREAKING NEWS REPORTING

FIRST PLACE: WDRB staff. “Shooting at Fern Creek High School” Judges’ comments:  Good coverage on the site. Nice job updated the video. The timeline was a nice touc

SECOND PLACE: David A. Mann, Business First. “Kindred Plans to Add 500 Jobs”

THIRD PLACE: Jason Riley   WDRB   “Defense attorneys say dozens of DUI cases are in jeopardy”

FEATURE STORY

FIRST PLACE: Devin Katayama, Joseph Lord, Gabe Bullard; WFPL “At Risk; Louisville’s daunting education challenge” Judges’ comments: The quality of entries in this category made it difficult to choose just one winner. Congratulations and thank you for the high standard of journalism, especially in the top three entries. “At Risk” examined a critical issue from many different angles, exploring so many sides of a complex problem faced in many parts of the country.

SECOND PLACE:   Kevin Gibson, Insider Louisville.   “Outside the Abortion Clinic” series

THIRD PLACE:   Jason Riley, WDRB.“Kentucky’s longest-serving inmate has chance for release”

BEST BLOG

FIRST PLACE:   Rick Bozich, WDRB. Judges’ comments: Rick tells compelling stories that go beyond the usual sports audience. He goes beyond sound bites in his blog, giving us a deeper look at some of the sports characters we think we know.

SECOND PLACE: James Bruggers, Courier-Journal. “Watchdog Earth”

THIRD PLACE: Eric Crawford, WDRB. “Remembering U of L’s biggest loss; 105-0 to Murray State,” “Covering the Cardinals in Orlando,” “Some personal thoughts on U-of-L seniors”

BEST SPORTS COVERAGE

FIRST PLACE: Eric Crawford, WDRB. Selected stories. Judges’ comments: Creative, well-written stories taking the reader beyond the basic story.

SECOND PLACE: Rick Bozich, Eric Crawford, WDRB. PGA Coverage

THIRD PLACE:   Rick Bozich, Eric Crawford; WDRB. “Louisville Hires Bobby Petrino”

POLITICAL COMMENTARY

FIRST PLACE:   Joe Dunman, Insider Louisville. “Minimum wage debate,” “Louisville has a race problem,” “During white flight, lack of racial diversity was by design”

SECOND PLACE:   Eric Crawford, WDRB.   “Fern Creek Shooting,” “Game On: What Kind of News Consumer Are You?,” “Veterans Day”

THIRD PLACE: Joe Sonka, Insider Louisville.   “The Red State Wedding; Why McConnell blew out Grimes,” “Obamacare, Grimes and the campaign that wasn’t there”

GOVERNMENT/ POLITICS

FIRST PLACE:   Jason Riley, WDRB.com. “Prosecutor Mistakes” Judges’ comments: Good work laying out the problems and getting perspective from all parties involved.

SECOND PLACE: Chris Otts,   WDRB. “Jefferson County School Board Race”

THIRD PLACE: Joe Sonka, Insider Louisville.   McConnell-Grimes senate race coverage

INVESTIGATIVE REPORTING

FIRST PLACE: Chris Otts, WDRB. “Cheating allegations swirl around Male High School” Judges’ comments:  Using the Freedom of Information Act to get the letter provided great detail on a story that affects so many students.

SECOND PLACE: Marcus Green,   WDRB. “Kentucky Pipeline Blast”

THIRD PLACE:
Joe Sonka, Insider Louisville. “McConnell paid former campaign manager tied to bribery scandal,” Councilman Dan Johnson’s campaign,” “Former aide claims Johnson took hefty loan”

FOOD, ARTS CRITICISM

FIRST PLACE: Kevin Gibson, Insider Louisville. Food Coverage: Holy Smokes, Yelp debate, Lucky’s Market Judges’ comments: Holy smokes! The writer captures the essence of the places he visited, making the reader feel as if he’s there too. Wish we could get some of that barbecue here!

SECOND PLACE: Melissa Chipman,   Insider Louisville. “I am Ali,” “An Honest Man,” “Tribes”

SLIDE SHOW

FIRST PLACE: Tim Harris, Logan Rose; Business First. “Forecastle Festival 2014: day two” Judges’ comments: Phenomenal slide show! Takes us inside the Forecastle experience and makes us feel as if we’re there.

BEST VIDEO

FIRST PLACE: Tim Harris, Business First. “Behind the Scenes with Forty Under 40” Judges’ comments: Nicely shot. Interesting way to showcase the story.

ONLINE NON-AFFILIATED

INVESTIGATIVE REPORTING

FIRST PLACE:   R. G. Dunlop, Erica Peterson; WFPL. “How Politics, Misinformation & Money Fueled a Power Plant in Coal Country” Judges’ comments: A thorough investigation that reveals a very complex process and the ramifications for the area. Nice job following the money trail.

SECOND PLACE:   James McNair, Kentucky Center for Investigative Reporting. “Powerful Nursing Home Owner and a Push for Medical Review Panels”

THIRD PLACE:   Kristina Goetz, Kentucky Center for Investigative Reporting. “Oversight of Indiana Tiger Exhibit Big On Growl, Light on Teeth”

GOVERNMENT/ POLITICS

FIRST PLACE:   James McNair, Kentucky Center for Investigative Reporting. “Kentucky Retirement Systems coverage” Judges’ comments:  Phenomenal in-depth reporting on an issue that will affect so many people. Nice job breaking down the problem and how it impacts retirees.   Congratulations on getting action from the pension board and legislation that could, if passed, make the system more transparent!

SECOND PLACE: R. G. Dunlop, Kentucky Center for Investigative Reporting. “How a Congressman, His Wife and a Lobbyist mixed Politics, Personal Finances”

THIRD PLACE: James McNair, Kentucky Center for Investigative Reporting. Kentucky Community and Technical College System

RADIO

GENERAL NEWS REPORTING

FIRST PLACE: Devin Katayama, WFPL. “Fern Creek High School Recreates ‘War of the Worlds’” Judges’ comments: Good production values.   Fun piece about the intersection of history, radio and American culture.

SECOND PLACE:   Erica Peterson, WFPL. “Louisville is Recycling Fewer Batteries”

THIRD PLACE: Devin Katayama, WFPL. “Bus Duty Helps Teacher Connect With New Students”

BUSINESS REPORTING

FIRST PLACE: James McNair, WFPL. “When it comes to investments, Kentucky keeps pension holders in the dark” Judges’ comments: Strong reporting, a solid audio interview and an impressive multimedia presentation present a compelling business story.

INVESTIGATIVE REPORTING

FIRST PLACE: Kristina Goetz, Kentucky Center for Investigative Reporting. “Oversight of Indiana tiger exhibit,” “The troubling record of a southern Indiana” wildlife refuge” Judges’ comments: Frightening account of an unregulated tiger exhibit. Reporter exposes a dangerous situation that needs to be fixed soon. This is what journalism is supposed to do.

SECOND PLACE: James McNair, WFPL. “Sewage Spills and Stench Plague Mobile Home Park”

THIRD PLACE: Zoe Schaver, Kentucky Center for Investigative Reporting. “A Look at Jefferson County’s Worst-Rated Judge”

FEATURE REPORTING

FIRST PLACE: Devin Katayama, WFPL. “At Risk; Louisville’s daunting education challenge” Judges’ comments:  In-depth analysis of an important topic. Compelling interview subjects. Great storytelling. The hands-down winner.

SECOND PLACE: Gabe Bullard, WFPL. “Barista competitions”

THIRD PLACE: Rick Howlett, WFPL. “Heroin Addiction”

GOVT/ POLITICS

FIRST PLACE:   R. G. Dunlop, Kentucky Center for Investigative Reporting. “The Congressman and the Lobbyist” Judges’ comments:  This story does what journalism should: shining a light on government officials gone wrong.

HEALTH CARE REPORTING

FIRST PLACE:   Ja’Nel Johnson, WFPL. “Kentucky Nurse Practitioners” Judges’ comments:  Solid reporting on interesting topics in the health field.

MINORITY/ WOMEN’S AFFAIRS

FIRST PLACE: Rick Howlett, WFPL. “Remembering the Wades, the Bradens and the struggle for racial integration in Louisville” Judges’ comments: Riveting story of a quiet chapter of the struggle for civil rights. Great storytelling.

SECOND PLACE: Devin Katayama, WFPL. “Transgender Student Rights”

SERIES REPORTING

FIRST PLACE: Devin Katayama, Laura Ellis, Kaila Story. WFPL Transgender Student Series Judges’ comments: Impressive collection of stories about the challenges of transgender students. The staff should be praised for the level of research that must have gone into putting this series together.

SPORTS REPORTING

FIRST PLACE:   Rick Howlett, WFPL. “Petrino Introduced as Cards Coach” Judges’ comments:  Good solid reporting on a sports story that was top of mind for many Louisville residents.

SECOND PLACE: Jacob Ryan, WFPL. “Louisville’s Special Olympic Flag Football Team”

TELEVISON

GENERAL NEWS REPORTING

FIRST PLACE:   Gilbert Corsey, Dominik Fuhrmann, Matt English, WDRB TV. “Prison’s Youngest Victims” Judges’ comments: Nakiya’s story is compelling. Her dad’s reaction was an excellent addition to the story. Highlighting the camp provided hope. The video and writing did justice to a complex issue.

SECOND PLACE: Emily Mieure, Chris Monroe, WDRB TV. “Writings on the Wall”

THIRD PLACE: John Boel   WAVE TV. “Bogus Beggar Strikes Again”

SPOT NEWS REPORTING

FIRST PLACE: WLKY News Staff. Fern Creek High School Shooting Judges’ comments: On the air quickly after the shooting with good pictures and good perspective.

SECOND PLACE:   WDRB TV Staff. “Fern Creek High School Shooting”

THIRD PLACE:   WAVE TV Staff. Fern Creek High School Shooting”

INVESTIGATIVE REPORTING

FIRST PLACE: Valerie Chinn, Beth Peak, WDRB TV. “Southeast Bullitt Fire Department” Judges’ comments: Great work! This report just kept revealing layer after layer of trouble with the fire department. Nice use of graphics and video to explain what the heck is going on and how it affects residents. Excellent job pushing the fire chief for answers despite the hostile responses you were getting from him.

SECOND PLACE: John Boel, George Cronen   WAVE TV “No Soup for You”

THIRD PLACE: Jason Riley, Lindsay Allen, Beth Peak, WDRB TV “Jail deaths could have been prevented”

BUSINESS REPORTING

FIRST PLACE: Chris Sutter, Kyle Lizenby, WDRB TV. “Beer in Louisville” Judges’ comments: Wonderful work weaving together the past and the present through the words and pictures. The video was amazing. Great pictures that really helped tell the story.

SECOND PLACE:   Chris Sutter, Kyle Lizenby   WDRB TV   “Charlestown Ammo Plant”

HEALTH CARE REPORTING

FIRST PLACE: Gilbert Corsey, Sarah Haeberle. WDRB TV. “The Vow” Judges’ comments: Beautifully shot and written.

SECOND PLACE:   Chris Sutter, Kyle Lizenby   WDRB TV “Medical Helicopter”

THIRD PLACE:   Kelly Davis, Jeff Gordon   WDRB TV. “Cotton Ball Diet”

FEATURE REPORTING

FIRST PLACE: Gilbert Corsey, Matt English, WDRB TV. “Superstar to Servant” Judges’ comments: An interesting story about an interesting character! Nice scene-setter at the beginning of the story, the powerful voice from inside the church over the wide shot of the exterior. Nice transition from his present life to the past.

SECOND PLACE: Chris Sutter, Kyle Lizenby, WDRB TV. “How to Pronounce Louisville”

THIRD PLACE: Steve Burgin, Paul Ahmann, WLKY TV. “The Necklace”

GOVERNMENT/ POLITICS

FIRST PLACE:   John Boel, Jeff Knight. WAVE TV. “Political Fowl Play” Judges’ comments: Excellent approach to the story. Nice use of the undercover video and sound at the meeting.

SECOND PLACE: Lawrence Smith, WDRB TV. Political coverage.

THIRD PLACE: Jennifer Keeney, Cara Catlett, Barry Fulmer, WDRB Staff. “Election 2014”

MINORITY/ WOMEN’S AFFAIRS

FIRST PLACE:   Tamara Evans, Lee Atherton; WDRB TV. “Domestic Violence, Getting Help” Judges’ comments: A thorough look at an issue that affects thousands of women. Good use of the 911 calls and great choices in who to talk to for the story. Outlines the problem and offers some hope for change.

SERIES REPORTING

FIRST PLACE:   Gilbert Corsey, Neil Johnson; WDRB TV. “From the Schoolhouse to the Jailhouse” Judges’ comments: Layered reporting exposing a systemic issue and some of the solutions that are being tried. Giving voice to the two young women in your stories added perspective that’s not usually seen.

SECOND PLACE:   Steve Burgin, Paul Ahmann; WLKY TV.   “KY Anonymous”

THIRD PLACE: Jennifer Atherton, Jeremy Kappell, Vincent Vermeulen; WDRB TV. “Tornado Outbreak”

SPORTS REPORTING

FIRST PLACE:   Rick Van Hoose, Scott Eckhardt; WLKY TV. “Dwight Gahm” Judges’ comments:  Beautifully shot, written and edited. A fascinating story.

SECOND PLACE: Rick Bozich, WDRB TV. “The Manuel Forrest Story”

THIRD PLACE: Eric Crawford, WDRB TV. “New Ali documentary brings back his old voice”

EDITORIAL

FIRST PLACE:   Bill Lamb, WDRB TV. Point of View: “Speech is free; forums aren’t”

FEATURE PHOTOGRAPHY

FIRST PLACE:   Kyle Lizenby, WDRB TV. Judges’ comments: Creative techniques really make for some memorable moments in these stories.

SECOND PLACE: Dominik Fuhrmann, WDRB TV

THIRD PLACE: Doug Druschke, WAVE TV “Classroom on the ball”

SPORTS PHOTOGRAPHY

FIRST PLACE: Doug Druschke, WAVE TV. “Ironman 2014” Judges’ comments: Thanks for taking us inside the Iron Man. It’s probably the closest we’ll ever get!

SECOND PLACE: Steve Andress, WDRB TV. “Louisville’s Batman”

BEST NEWSCAST

FIRST PLACE: WLKY TV News at 6. Josh Abelove, Vicki Dortch, Rick Van Hoose. Judges’ comments: Special open conveyed the urgency and desperation of parents after the Fern Creek shooting. Within just five hours from the time of the incident, this news team put together a newscast and stories that clearly conveyed what happened and captured the emotion of the day. Really loved the boxes showing the earlier video and the reporter. It helped give the viewer an idea of what was coming up next.

SECOND PLACE:   Aaron Ellis, Jennifer Nickels, Zak Owens; WAVE TV. “WAVE 3 News @ 11”

THIRD PLACE: Jennifer Nickels, Zak Owens,

SPJ leaders from around Region 1 shared their remembrances of Phil over the weekend. If you would like to add your own thoughts, send them to rbaker@spj.org and we’ll add them here ….

SPJ is a big outfit with thousands of great members who are dedicated to advancing and protecting journalism day in and day out. But sometimes there are parts of the country where this work falls mainly on the shoulders of a few very dedicated individuals. Such was the case in Philadelphia, where for many years Phil Beck was the person who kept the flame burning for SPJ. I know that in the end, the chapter was deactivated because it could not meet the minimum standards SPJ sets for programing and annual reports. But having worked personally with Phil on several projects, I admired his dedication to SPJ.In particular, I remember his invaluable help in going to bat for a Temple University photojournalism student who ran afoul of the Philadelphia police for simply taking pictures while on assignment. Phil was a good guy. I will miss him.

—John Ensslin, former national SPJ president, New Jersey Pro

I first met Phil through SPJ. I can’t remember precisely where or when, but it was surely with a smile and wonderful conversation. Through the years we’d see each other and catch up at Regions or National, and always with a warm hug and as though it hadn’t been a year since we last saw each other. Conversation with Phil ranged from journalism to travel to family. He was an intense listener and offered guidance so easily. More recently we have only kept in touch via Facebook, but he was always there with comforting words or encouragement or just something to make me chuckle. When I heard of his passing it was like a punch to the gut. To not be able to hear his laugh, see his smile, or listen to his stories again leaves an empty feeling in my heart. Phil was one of those people you are so glad to have in your life and his absence will be felt deeply.

—Kara Matuszewski Sassone,  New England Pro

I remember when he needed help with the Philadelphia conference, and me and Carl worked to put it together. He was so genuinely appreciative and kind. He greeted us both with smiles and hugs, and you could tell he just seems so happy for us to be there. He was truly genuine in his appreciation.

—Dominick Miserandino, Press Club of Long Island

To say someone’s smile lights up a room is the ultimate cliche, but Phil Beck’s smile did just that. I remember him walking into the hotel at Ted Scripps Leadership Institute in Indianapolis and grabbing me in his great bear hug, lifting me off the ground. We had a blast at Scripps, convincing the hotel bartender that he couldn’t make mint juleps because we weren’t in Kentucky, he had to make Whiskey Rebellions; posing for pictures getting carded at the duck pin bowling alley, trying to teach Midwesterners how to properly sing “Sweet Caroline” and, oh, by the way, learning how to make our chapters better. On that trip, he almost, almost, convinced me that birds make good pets. Phil from Philly was a lot of fun, but he was also a serious, dedicated journalist. And, he loved SPJ the way we all do. He pretty much singlehandedly arranged a regional conference at Temple and, if he was sometimes reluctant to accept help, well, nobody knew what Philadelphia needed quite so well. My heart is aching today for I have lost a dear friend. And so has SPJ.

—Jane Primerano, New Jersey Pro

I will miss his smile, his motorcycle and his passion for the truth… Especially in journalism.

—Pat Trotsky, Keystone Pro

My favorite memory of Phil was at the 2010 national conference in Las Vegas, my first conference as Deadline Club president. Phil was the only person who would accompany me to Downtown Las Vegas, or Old Vegas, for the tacky (yet wonderful) Fremont Street Experience. Phil, who was roughly the size of a grizzly bear, protected me from getting harassed from street-corner proselytizers, alleyway hustlers, run-of-the-mill drunks and any variety of crooks and con men. Along the way, we cracked so many jokes that my sides literally hurt with laughter afterward. Phil not only was a good journalist and a good friend, he was a Good Man (™, ®, etc). The world is a lesser place without him.

—Rebecca Baker, Region 1 Director, New York Deadline Club

Gideon Grudo and Tyler Krome are cheap journalists.

Grudo wrote the open-source story reddit revolts below, with Krome assisting. They want you to reprint, revise, repurpose, or rewrite it – without their consent.

Why give away their work? Says Grudo, a former SPJ national board member…

reddit is home to hundreds of millions of people who are interacting with media, posting about it, and commenting on it. Here’s a direct line to your readers. Almost 600 subreddits were created yesterday. That’s the kind of community engagement I deem coverage-worthy.

Grudo believes mainstream media need to cover reddit no differently than they would cover cops and city commissions. (He also believes in lower-casing the name, which annoys the hell out of me. But he’s just following what reddit does to its own name.)

Over the July Fourth weekend, reddit had its own fireworks. Thousands of reddit users exploded in protest when the social media network’s leadership fired one of its most popular employees.

Since reddit has 164 million users, the story was covered by mainstream media unaccustomed to dealing with the mysterious website – where not only are the users anonymous, so are the “mods” who oversee reddit’s forums and the “admins” who oversee the mods.

Just before the holiday, reddit headquarters – an equally shrouded group – fired a woman named Victoria Taylor without warning or comment. Taylor was popular among mods as reddit’s communications director, so in protest, thousands of them intentionally turned off their forums.

Here’s how The New York Times led its story…

Hundreds of sections of reddit, the popular online message board, were unavailable Friday in what appeared to be a protest by many of the site’s moderators after the abrupt dismissal of a high-ranking company employee.

But The Times never spoke with reddit leaders, admins, or mods. CNN sought comment from reddit leaders and got as far as, “A spokeswoman from Reddit explained in an email to CNN…”

A day later, TIME got what appeared to be an emailed apology from reddit’s CEO (“I want to apologize to our community for yesterday”) but no chance to interview her.

From USA Today to The Huffington Post to the Los Angeles Times to The Daily Beast, mainstream media quoted directly from reddit postings, whether from anonymous users or from reddit leaders themselves. Alas, no media outlet I perused actually interviewed anyone.

But Grudo and Krome did. Just in their spare time.

Devin Desjarlais worked twice with Victoria Taylor.

Taylor’s job was to host celebrities on reddit’s wildly popular “ask me anything” series. When Breaking Bad actor Aaron Paul did an AMA, he worked closely with two women: Taylor and Dejarlais, a social media director who worked with Paul.

“She was always thinking one step ahead,” Desjarlais told Grudo. Her reaction to the firing…

“Oh man, redditors are not going to like this,” followed by “I wonder why?”

Taylor was “on top of her game and had a very good understanding of what needed to be done to facilitate the conversation,” Desjarlais says. “Working with her made the AMA process far smoother than it would have been because she had the understanding and the ability to move roadblocks like no one else could.”

Desjarlais concludes: “She had her hand in every corner of reddit and, from the looks of things, was very busy and involved from the ground, up. It seems like she had a system – and it’ll take a while for someone to pick that up.”

Grudo and Krome also spoke to reddit mods – on voice calls as well as by email. They went old school to report on the new school. Below is their behind-the-scenes look at how mods conduct their business, and why they revolted over July Fourth weekend…

reddit revolts

By Gideon Grudo, with help from Tyler Krome

tl;dr

reddit’s complicated.

We interviewed several mods, some on the record and some off, to get an idea of how this site works. Through the interviews, screenshots of private messages, and some number crunching, we figured out some cool—and really uncool—stuff. For example, we rounded out what it would cost to run a subreddit if reddit paid its mods. For another example, we found that subreddits can get filled with sexist and ugly chatter with little to no oversight.

The blackout didn’t happen because one person got fired. It happened because mods were sick of being ignored. All of that could very likely change, but the folks we talked to aren’t getting excited yet.

ps: As we were putting final touches on this story, reddit came out with a new subreddit to support mods, the lack of which is covered extensively in the story below. We’re all looking forward to how that’s going to work and affect reddit’s universe. But it’s too early to tell if it’ll fix all of the issues we’ve found through our reporting.

Alex Baldwin stayed cool as Reddit burned down around him.

Baldwin (not Adam, not Alec, but Alex) is the leader of a small subreddit called Kotaku In Action (KiA).

He and a dozen other mods didn’t veil their subreddit in support of the blackout—they chose instead to keep the conversation going.

“We talked about the possibility of KiA going down, but seeing as lots of people were already discussing the blackout,” he said, “we decided to remain open so they could talk about it, and so we could document the events.

Baldwin isn’t sad it happened. It just might save KiA—which serves largely as a platform for those intimate with the GamerGate movement—from the wrath of reddit.

“I was glad to hear that the issues KiA was having with the admins weren’t because we were being singled out or anything,” Baldwin told us. “It was long overdue, and it certainly got the attention it was seeking.”

While reddit is still figuring out how to clean up the mess it made last week, it might eventually get back to cleaning house, too. It started with making mincemeat of five subreddits early last month, sparking Baldwin’s fear of a shutdown.

The Washington Post explains the early June bans…

The site permanently removed the forums Wednesday afternoon for harassing specific, named individuals, a spokesperson said. Of the five, two were dedicated to fat-shaming, one to transphobia, one to racism and one to harassing members of a progressive video game site.

reddit allegedly pulled the trigger on those subreddits with no notice or advance warning. That’s going to be different now, the 23-year-old University of North Carolina student said.

“reddit has more important things to worry about at the moment,” Baldwin said. “But I don’t think that’s really impacted any decision on whether or not KiA will be banned. If anything, it’s probably made sure that we’ll be informed before we get the axe.”

The relationship between KiA’s mods and reddit may be strained, but the relationship itself is hard to define. Why are mods like Baldwin afraid of a shutdown, and why were so many other mods so angry last week?

Surely, it goes deeper than the sacking of one employee.

Before you enforce rules, you need to write them.

Baldwin’s fears of losing KiA are magnified by the scariest thing of all: Ignorance. There is no log of clear and concise rules to show mods how to moderate.

For example: Do public social media pages constitute personal information (it’s against the rules to post those in comments)?

“A lot of times we’re just taking shots in the dark,” Baldwin said. “Recently, we had to delete a link to someone’s LinkedIn page because we considered it personal information. But we don’t know where the line needs to be drawn. Better to be safe than sorry.”

Outside of the folks working out of reddit’s California headquarters, no one really knows these things.

From his first days on the job, Baldwin—and every single mod on reddit—never received any training or hard guidance from the headquarters of the social web giant in any permanent sense. There’s no infrastructure for that kind of communication.

No one was listening. And if someone was, you never really knew if you were going to get a reply. Imagine emailing Comcast with a question about your service. Would you expect a reply?

Baldwin believes the blackout might change all that, but he ain’t holding his breath.

“I’m hopeful that something good is going to come out of this,” Baldwin said. “At the same time, I’m not entirely trusting of the admin team. I’ve seen a lot of talk but not a whole lot of action. To me, it seems like the things they were saying were just to get the major subreddits back online and I’m not totally sure they’re going to stick to their word.”

When the site turns black, it ain’t green.

Each new blacked out subreddit came with yet another affirmation for Baldwin and his crew: They aren’t alone. The site-wide meltdown didn’t materialize out of thin air—the sparks of revolution rarely do.

The revolt—taken together with its desire to go legit and start making some real cash—doesn’t bode well for reddit.

Forbes explains it well…

The fundamental problem reddit has is that its community has constantly been at war with ways management has tried to monetize the site. You would imagine that a site with 7 billion monthly page views might be rolling in dough, but due to reddit’s incredibly limited monetization strategies, they’ve never really been a profitable business.

We wanted to figure out what the blackout cost reddit. Here’s what we found…

Three-hundred and sixty-three subreddits participated in the blackout. That amounts to 153,329,940 subscribers losing access to their subreddit of choice.

We scoured a few posts, like this one, to come up with this data. For every subscriber, a subreddit gets an average of 0.5 page views per day. You can see the ratio of page views to subscribers for any subreddit (along with other interesting traffic statistics) like this.

Reddit makes a lot of money off its ads. One particular kind are “self-serve” ads, sold by pageviews: For between $1.50 and $5.00, your ad will be seen 1000 times on reddit.

So what did the blackout cost reddit? Our conservative estimate, based on the available numbers, is that it cost them $137,996 per day in lost self-serve ads alone. This doesn’t include its revenue from larger, commercial advertising campaigns or user donations flooded out by the shutdowns.

Pretty pennies force reaction. reddit has been able to assuage most of the mods enough to bring back subreddits from the dark beyond, but issues remain unresolved.

Before we get to the issues, let’s introduce the main players: the mods and the admins.

Mods are people like you and me.

Baldwin—who goes by TheHat2 on the site—and a dozen other people moderate what happens on KiA.

This comprises a myriad of responsibilities from deleting stuff on the site like harassing comments or spam posts to banning repeat violators to electing new users into the moderating ranks—it’s a lot of work.

He and his colleagues are called mods, and everything they do, they do for free.

Mods are the backbone of reddit.

They hold it all up. And they do it for the most part without any assistance from the headquarters of reddit, which offers no training or guidance to moderators. In fact, communications between mods and the people who work for wages at reddit to deal specifically with the site—these are the admins—are very strained and limited (more on that later).

Without these people who voluntarily and regularly complete “humble duties within a particular community,” according to reddit’s page about moderation (which the various mods we spoke to said they had never heard of), the place would become “one monolithic overall community.”

Mods ensure that subreddits stay in focus, acording to reddit:

As an example, imagine a /r/swimming and a /r/scuba. People can read about one topic or the other (or subscribe to both). But since scuba divers like to swim, a casual user might start submitting swimming links on /r/scuba. And these stories will probably get upvoted, especially by people who see the links on the reddit front page and don’t look closely at where they’re posted. If left alone, /r/scuba will just become another /r/swimming and there won’t be a place to go to find an uncluttered listing of scuba news.

The fix is for the /r/scuba moderators to remove the offtopic links, and ideally to teach the submitters about the more appropriate/r/swimming subreddit.

The moderation page doesn’t mention what’s left of reddit without these volunteers. For one thing, there’d be a fair level of chaos. So said KiA mod Daniel Sollie Hansen—redditor AntithesisD—a soon-to-be computer science master’s student from Norway.

“The community as a whole can’t really define what is harassment or what is personal information,” Hansen said, citing as examples some of the red flags mods find in comments and take action on. “As a moderator, you answer to the community,” he added. “It’s a question of accountability.”

So if the mods are accountable to the community, who’s accountable to the mods?

Admins are people like you and me.

The admins that run around reddit doing whatever it is they’re doing are all profiled on the company’s team page, complete with an alien avatar and favorite subreddits.

It kinda looks like a high school yearbook page.

Here’s the gist about the team:

reddit has 66 current and 38 former employees listed. These include everyone from CEO Ellen Pao to an “anti-evil engineer,” so we gotta assume not everyone on the list is running around the site interacting with mods or with the community.

Although the company is based in San Francisco, only 76 percent of its staff currently live there, based on our calculations. The rest live around the country, and a few abroad: There’s an admin in Ireland and another in Australia.

Recent hires appear to be focused on modernizing and monetizing the company (no surprise there): Three new mobile developers got picked up in the last year, along with a new VP of sales who joined the team in January.

While the company as a whole is fairly diverse, the specific teams in the company are a little more segregated: 88 percent of its technical staff, for example, is male, and every community manager but one is white. Two of the avatars are wearing fedoras (there’s a subreddit for those, but it’s currently blacked out).

We could go on, but it’s better to do that later with more input from reddit (what do you say, folks?)

What we do know is that admins tagged as community managers are definitely admins who talk to mods. There are six of those.

Six people. For all of reddit.

Mods say the admins neglect them. Here’s what that looks like.

Mods have cited throughout the blackout that admins’ neglect of them is one of their top concerns.

We asked the mods at KiA for examples. They had several.

On May 1, 2015, Baldwin reached out to admins about a sensitive issue.

He was concerned that some pro-GamerGate comments on KiA were inaccurate and potentially highly insensitive.

“We’re wondering if ‘deadnaming’ (using the pre-transition name of a trans person) counts as personal information, despite that name not being confirmed as theirs),” he wrote, adding that there’s no evidence of a transition, either. “We’d like your take on it, so we can dictate sub policy appropriately.”

Pretty serious stuff.

He immediately got a reply from u/LordVinyl to say the admins would look into the matter. (Lord’s blurb description on reddit’s team page is “I respect music copyrights because one cannot pirate vinyl – /r/VinylMasterRace – You may address me as Lord.” His favorite subreddits are /r/vinyl, /r/mancave, and /r/atheism.)

Then nothing happened. No response. For days. Then weeks. Then months.

Baldwin followed up on June 27. He’s yet to get a response.

Other attempts to get help from the admins might not even get this much of a reaction.

A post sent out in late June has received no reply at all. And this one asks for help so the mods can “keep any instances of harassment and abuse out of r/kotakuinaction.”

One of the promises to come out of the revolt is a singular contact for mods seeking help from admins. This person (krispykrackers) has supposedly been vested with the responsibility of listening to and responding to mod concerns and questions.

“It took something like this to spur them to action,” Baldwin said. “That it had to come this really shows how out of touch the admin are with the mod community.”

We don’t know what kind of training the admins get—or whether it matters.

We know mods don’t get training. But we weren’t sure about the admins.

When Baldwin turned to admin to get help, he didn’t know to whom he was turning.

His question about trans sensitivity, the one that got ignored, was answered by someone whose favorite subreddits had nothing to do with LGBT-related issues. If you’re looking for someone to consult you about how to treat trans issues in a public forum, then someone who publicly cites /r/mancave as one of three favorite places on the site might not be the smartest choice.

Or maybe Lord is an expert on these matters (we reached out to him to find out about his expertise but haven’t received a reply yet). There’s no way to know. When mods send a message to the admins, it goes to a general inbox where anyone might pick it up and deal with it.

How do they parse out those responsibilities? How should they?

“I think whichever admin handles concerns regarding reddit policy should know all the do’s and don’ts well enough to make the right calls when questions come up,” Baldwin said. “So, they should know site policy, what’s fair game and what isn’t, to the point where it can be uniformly applied and so that there are no contradictions on how it’s enforced.”

Is that even possible, though? Policy that transcends cultural divides sounds complicated and confusing. Is it on reddit’s shoulders to invent it?

Baldwin thinks it is. Slowly, he explained, as specific concerns get addressed, their resolutions can be used to mete out the new ones. You know, kinda like the justice system’s use of case law.

“They’d have to make some kind of guideline, like, ‘what absolutely is not allowed on reddit.’ For other items that may be more open to interpretation, it should be noted once a decision is made, not unlike setting a legal precedent,” he said. “As long as no wires get crossed along the way, and mods don’t have to work in uncertainty, it should be fine.”

But let’s not get tangled in speculation. Here’s what’s obvious…

Some mods think admins should be trained to deal with policy.

The mods don’t parse out anything you throw at them.

You the reddit user send them a message, it drops into a general inbox (it’s called modmail and we’ll get to it later), one of them picks it up and runs with it. You hope the mod you get is the best mod for the job.

And there’s no way for mods to know the same thing about the admins when they reach out for help. But it’d sure be nice, Baldwin said.

“Yeah, I’d absolutely be okay with admins having set roles, or at least all of the ones that handle community concerns to be versed in those sorts of things,” he said. “What I want is for all their decisions to be uniformly applied. No miscommunications, no double standards, just the same policy across the board, fairly applied to everyone.”

So here’s the common denominator: No one knows if they’re talking to the right person. And it’s not explained on the site (at least not where it can be easily found).

Oh, yeah, by the way: Not even the cofounder of the website knows how to talk to his people.

If you want a new A/C unit in your office, make sure the boss sweats.

The directionless messaging doesn’t just frustrate the mods.

When the revolt was in full swing and Alexis Ohanian (reddit’s cofounder, aka kn0thing) wanted to have a chat with all the mods, his options were limited. There’s no infrastructure for him to speak directly with all of them.

There are a few subreddits that mods attend regularly, but they’re relatively small. There’s /r/modclub with less than 3,500 subscribers and also /r/modhelp with just under 7,000. Is that enough? We couldn’t find stats on how many moderators exist, but we can say this: There are over 671,000 subreddits and each one needs at least one mod to operate.

To be fair, many of these could be empty and inactive and probably are. Many mods operate in more than one subreddit, too. One  mod we spoke with operates in four active subreddits and several inactive ones.

So what did Ohanian choose? He chose /r/modtalk. That’s not linked because you may as well not click it. It’s an invitation-only subreddit, private and from what we’ve been told by several mods: cliquey.

Here’s what Ohanian posted in this behind-closed-doors subreddit (it may have appeared elsewhere. CNN quoted from it, for example:

Here’s the top voted comment in this thread:

And here’s the second top voted comment:

ICYMI: “By making us have to go out and find your announcements,” /u/hedgefundaspirations said, “you’re ensuring that we’ll miss a lot of them, especially people that aren’t subscribed here or in defaultmods.”

So to simplify it all, reddit’s cofounder had to use a locked and private subreddit to inform mods that he and his team are here to fix the problem of communicating with only a small number of mods.

Okay.

Admins come, they see, they tell you to delete content.

Baldwin, Hansen, the rest of the KiA mods, and mods of other subreddits we’ve spoken to, sometimes get told by admin to cut something out.

On Jan. 2, 2015, the admin /u/ocrasorm contacted the mods at KiA to tell them to remove a post that he said broke the rules, kinda.

The mods were confused. What does “we do not like the idea of” mean, anyway?

The post in question was a call to arms for people to contact various companies and implore them not to advertise on Gawker’s website, citing unethical journalistic behavior. This is normal practice for many activist subreddits and it’s called email campaigning. One of the mods points back to the battle that many sites, including Google, waged against SOPA and reddit’s part in it.

Soon the back-and-forth changes. Ocrasorm changes his mind, retreats, and said his “wires were crossed.” The post is okay, he said, but only with certain types of contact information (general inboxes, like contactus@company.com as opposed to personal ones, like spokesperson@company.com).

But what are the rules? Ocrasorm never made mention of any. Are they arbitrary? Are they hard? Can he link to them?

In a long Q&A comment that Ohanian posted over the weekend to answer a slew of questions in one place, he answered one about KiA specifically and the Ocrasorm confusion:

The question about KiA: Speaking of /r/kotakuinaction, why are they disallowed from organizing email campaigns to corporations? (Famously, being told that posting a PR person’s company contact info at Volkswagen is not allowed) – and what rule of reddit does this violate?

Ohanian: We definitely need to re-think this rule. Adding to the list. Organizing an email campaign to target a PR person’s public corporate email seems like it should be reasonable. There are a few of rules we need to clarify.

Clarify is a good word. Let’s talk about clear rules.

On reddit, you can break the rules without knowing what they are and get banned for it.

What are the site rules? These might be them, buried at the bottom of the site and titled reddiquette (get it?), which is as much a guide for regular users as it is for moderators. A search inside of reddit.com for “how to moderate a subreddit” yields little.

After sifting through the backend of KiA and some of the interactions between admin and moderators (before the #redditrevolt, even), one thing is clear: Nothing is clear in the world of reddit moderation.

How does a mod operate when he doesn’t have a clear set of guidelines?

“We’ll just err on the side of caution,” Baldwin said.  “We’re too frightened it’ll come back to bite us even if we turned to the admins.”

Hansen finds that mods just use their heads to get through most situations, like which posts to mark as spam or which to delete or which to deem so outrageous the poster needs to be banned. The recipe is vague.

“A little bit reddiquette, a little bit moddiquette, and a lot of common sense,” he said.

Baldwin offers: “Don’t be a jerk is the guiding principle for a lot of our rules.”

We already know that admins show up and tell mods to remove posts sometimes, regardless of jerkiness.

We already know that reddit shows up without notice and bans subreddits which, as disgusting as they were, weren’t told which rules they broke.

We already know what happens when you run around chopping off heads without justifying your actions: Things get dark very quickly.

Baldwin and Hansen are pretty sure KiA is doing the right thing. And to reddit, it’s certainly the right price.

They feel they’ve obeyed the “informal” moddiquette offered up by the admins.

They respond to complaints. They attend to reports of misbehavior. They say they’re squeaky clean.

But what is their job exactly? We mined the backend of their subreddit KiA and figured out a little bit of what it takes to keep a subreddit with almost 50,000 subscribers running.

In an average day, the 13 human mods of /r/kotakuinaction perform 360 moderation actions, and compose over 800 words of messages to users, not including the times they run around the subreddit itself, post within comment threads, and fiddle with the programming and design of the subreddit.

“Human mods” because the subreddit, like many, uses a bot called Automoderator—computer code that filters and flags content that is in blatant violation of the subreddit’s rules. It performs an average of 102 actions every day by itself.

Some of the actions can be completed very quickly—e.g., verifying that a flagged comment doesn’t contain a prohibited link, or marking an obviously spammy comment as spam. But actions also include things like editing the subreddit’s wiki page, or taking the time to determine whether or not a user deserves to be banned. We can’t know how long the mods deliberate philosophically over what to do in specific situations. Our numbers are based solely on the time it takes to complete the action itself.

If the moderators are experienced and quick, these actions might take around 15 seconds apiece, on average. Combined with a generous writing pace of 19 words per minute, this means that every day, two hours and 12 minutes go into making a subreddit work, or 71 minutes per week, per mod. If reddit paid its mods $9/hour, the minimum wage in its home state of California, they would owe the mods of KIA $7,227 every year for their work. But if you’re thinking of the federal minimum wage of $7.25/hour, those savings drop to $5,822.

Doesn’t sound like too much, right? It isn’t. But let’s step out of the forest. KiA is one of over 671,000 subreddits. And we know that lots of those are inactive. Here’s a more modest estimate of active mods:

There are three subreddits where mods hang out: /r/modhelp, /r/modclub, and r/modtalk (the invite-only one). Modhelp has 7,012 subscribers, modclub has 3,450 subscribers, and modtalk has 1,100 subscribers on the dot, according to a mod we spoke to.

We average those to get 3,854 mods. This isn’t accurate (for many reasons), but it lets us come up with an idea of what mods save reddit.

So, 3,854 mods multiplied by $7.25/hour gives us 27,941.5/hour.

Per year, that’s $1,714,490. That’s a lot of money reddit’s saving on the backs of people who can’t even get help figuring out if letting a LinkedIn account link stay online will cost them their subreddit.

So why do it?

“It’s nice to have this feeling that you are helping people,” Hansen said. “You’re kind of a mix of a guardian and a servant.”

Hansen became a mod after responding to a sticky post on KiA asking for mod applicants a few months ago. The post asked those applying to jot down their timezone.

“I’m GMT+1 (Norway), and I tend to always have reddit on in the background when I’m on the computer,” he wrote in his application, adding “(which tends to be fairly often).”

Whoa. Timezones?

Even mods have to sleep sometimes.

KiA mods, you see, were looking for new colleagues who’d be awake while they were snoozing. Someone had to take the midnight shift and watch over the users during twilight hours. Without finding international help, the subreddit would be helpless for as long as it took the mods to get their beauty sleep.

He got the job, partly due to that important GMT+1: “If you’re still interested, respond to this,” the job acceptance post read.

Hansen replied quickly, “Holy mother … I would be honored!”

Mods have to find their own way to deal with a subreddit that never sleeps on a site that never sleeps.

Admins sure did. Remember that conversation KiA had with Ocrasorm? The one about email campaigning? That admin is in Ireland, one of two outside the US.

Ireland’s GMT+0, in case you were wondering.

Looking onto redditor pastures…

It’s hard to see where reddit is going next. Is it going to redesign its site in some frenzied attempt to legitimize it and lose its entire userbase like Digg did? Is it going to clamp down and shut down tons of subreddits and clean up its act?

Probably not.

“I think there’s a small chance that Ellen Pao will be losing her jobs and that several admins’ heads will roll,” Hansen said. He may be right. The petition to kick her out is almost at 200,000 as I write this sentence. Her public apology on reddit July 6 didn’t meet the kindest responses.

“As for KiA, I think we’ll just keep doing what we’re doing,” Hansen said.

Baldwin is careful and hesitant to trust the admin.

“Until we’re stopped, anyway,” he said in reference to Hansen’s prediction. “I think we’re gong to see an exodus of sorts. I can’t imagine that people will stick around reddit after something like this. And I feel like some screw up is just around the corner.”

Maybe it is.

“reddit’s greatest strength is its community,” Baldwin said. “Once you don’t have that, everything else falls in on itself.”

Email Gideon Grudo at ggrudo@gmail.com.

Now, the campus chapters. There are details I picked out from the eight campus chapter reports turned in this year.

Elon University: The chapter participated in the “Race and the Modern Newsroom” program with the North Carolina Pro chapter, talking about race relations and diversity. It worked with the North Carolina Sunshine Center on a discussion of open records requests and laws. Other programs were with the author of a book about SEAL Team 6, a former Associated Press who was featured in the book “Boys on the Bus,” and a panel knowledgeable about freelancing.

George Mason University: This chapter went dormant several years ago, but a core group has done a great job of reviving it. Its programs included a session on digitizing a resume, two separate media panel discussions, a talk by a former USA Today editor, and a tour of the NBC station in D.C. Its idea of fundraising with a contest to guess how many jelly beans was different. I liked the idea of creating a 30-second video to promote the journalism program and the SPJ chapter, a supplement to several recruiting efforts it had.

Georgetown University: The chapter, only four years old, has grown strong. It hosted and did most of the work on the 2014 Region 2 conference and is the host chapter for a journalism job fair with five other organizations, including the Washington, D.C., Pro SPJ chapter. Other activities were a “Powerful Women in the Media” program that built off the Netflix series “House of Cards” and volunteer work with the Washington Association of Black Journalists’ annual Urban Journalism Workshop for high school students. An FOI program had a clever addition: an FOI quiz for anyone on campus who was interested.

 High Point University: The First Amendment Free Food Festival — a fun, thought-provoking event that has been held on numerous campuses — drew the biggest crowd of any High Point U. chapter program did this year. Students get a free meal in exchange for giving up their First Amendment rights. In other programs, a TV investigative reporter talked about trying to get information that other people are trying to hide, Time Warner Cable staff showed their 24/7/365 news operation, and a newspaper publisher and reporter led a discussion on the use of anonymous sources.

Salisbury University: The chapter has been so successful in raising money, it sent 12 students to the 2014 Region 2 conference at Georgetown University. Working with local restaurants that donate 10 to 20 percent of sales during a certain period, the chapter raises $120 to $200 at a time. The money also supports workshops the chapter has done on video journalism, photojournalism, interviewing and other topics. The chapter also raised $300 for the American Cancer Society through Relay for Life.

 University of Maryland: The list of activities on the annual report was long. The chapter is good at outreach, through a fall “welcome back barbecue” for the journalism school and exam goodie baskets, which are a fundraiser, too. The chapter — which hosted the 2015 Region 2 conference — is the only one in the region with programs in FOI (a Region 2 conference session), ethics (a session on the First Amendment and free speech), diversity (a talk by the Washington Post’s first black female reporter) and service (two blood drives). There was a debate watching party, a resume workshop and some journalism field trips, too.

Virginia Commonwealth University: VCU’s chapter organized a panel discussion on diversity in the media, helped organize a ceremony to celebrate the changing of the journalism school’s name and hosted a “journalism and a movie” evening. The chapter was part of several broader programs, such as a student organization fair and a media center mixer. The most unusual activity (and probably the most fun) was a “Battle of the Masses” dodgeball competition with other mass communications groups.

Western Carolina University: Chapter members opened their workshops to the entire communications department, including one on building a multimedia portfolio and another (that was held three times) on verification on social media. On the social front, the chapter jointly held a Christmas social with two other groups and organized a bowling night. To celebrate Constitution Day in September, chapter members created a Free Speech Wall on campus. The chapter raised about $120 through a bake sale.

I found these reports enlightening and inspiring. A great deal of work and thought went into creating many worthwhile professional development and social events, including several things that I never would have thought of. Well done, Region 2.

In that vein, we continue the annual tradition of sharing intriguing nuggets from the annual reports SPJ chapters are required to file. It started with last year’s pro and campus chapter reports.

There are six SPJ professional chapters in Region 2. Here are highlights of what they did in the past journo-fiscal year.

Washington, D.C., Pro (my home chapter): Two of the more unusual programs this year were about net neutrality and obituary writing. For the second year, the chapter was a co-sponsor of a successful job fair held at Georgetown University (210 job seekers, 19 recruiters). It’s a good example of journalism organizations working together. The other co-sponsors are the National Association of Hispanic Journalists, the Asian American Journalists Association, the National Lesbian & Gay Journalists Association and the Washington Association of Black Journalists. When the chapter did a direct-mail campaign to retain people with expiring memberships, 10 to 12 percent responded with renewal checks.

Virginia Pro: The chapter was instrumental in College Media Day, which also was held for the second time. For $10, students hear from pros on topics such as jobs and internships, covering campus crime, drones, FOI, interviewing and much more. There’s also a Virginia Pro tradition of honoring George Mason, who wrote Virginia’s Declaration of Rights, the forerunner of the Bill of Rights. The chapter lays a wreath at the Mason Memorial in D.C., reads the Declaration of Rights and visits his home, which is now a museum.

Delaware Pro: Just like the D.C. effort, Delaware Pro contacts people to let them know their membership is expiring. It’s important to hold onto the existing members as you also try to attract new one. There was a “tweet up” and holiday happy hour, in which journos and Delaware PR people had some face-to-face time. The chapter was the first organization in the state to organize a debate for the Democratic candidates for state treasurer. The chapter has a mentoring program in which journalism students can connect with a pro.

Maryland Pro: The chapter’s leaders did a lot of the planning work for this year’s regional conference at the University of Maryland, College Park. One of the programs this year, through a collaboration with the Maryland-Delaware-DC Press Association, was a lively panel discussion in Annapolis on social media. The chapter built a new website. It had the most detailed financial records accompanying its annual report, with dozens of pages of bank statements, receipts and membership dues payments.

Charlotte Pro: By the numbers, this was the most active chapter in Region 2, listing 12 programs on its annual report. Of course, quality matters, too; there was good stuff on the list. Professional development programs included effective videography, skillful interviewing and social media for reporting, podcasting and coverage of religion. Programs looked ahead and back at significant events. Journalism movie night – “Absence of Malice,” with an ethics discussion – was a good idea. This year, the chapter started a contest for journalism excellence.

North Carolina Pro: The chapter was right up there with the Charlotte Pro chapter in terms of activity; it had 11 programs listed on its report. It touched on an SPJ core value with a program on race relations coverage and diversity in the newsroom. The chapter scored points for creativity for some of its other activities, including a Thanksgiving social (guests shared what journalistic things they were thankful for) and two community service programs – answering phones at a telethon and volunteering at the Duke University campus farm.

To all: Keep up the good work. Your time and efforts are much appreciated.

Guest post by Region 3 Director Michael Koretzky

Call it a full court press.

Note: This post appeared originally on the Society of Professional Journalists’ Region 3 Blog.

A dozen students in a small Iowa town have sued their whiny college for censoring the campus newspaper and firing their adviser.

But they’re not waiting around for a judge to rule – the wheels of justice grind exceedingly slow, and these (mostly) women want to burn rubber.

So they’re starting their own newspaper.

And you can help.

Meet these pleasant people.

Two words you rarely see together are polite journalist, but that describes the entire staff of The Calumet, the student-run newspaper at tiny Muscatine Community College. (Enrollment: under 2,000.)

They’ve never ambush-interviewed anyone, asked leading questions, been passive-aggressive, or stretched the truth to make their stories sexier.

No, they just wrote mostly nice and innocuous stories that still got them in serious trouble. Why? No one knows, but it’s both funny and sad.

Here’s an example from editor Mary Mason (top left)…

A building had 13-15 door handles that weren’t working, and students wondered why. So we wrote a story explaining the handles cost several hundred dollars each to fix, and that they had to be specially ordered. The administration felt the story was negative.

It gets stupider…

Meet a silly censor.

This is Rick Boyer, MCC’s chairman of the math and science department.

A few months ago, The Calumet listed all the faculty who had won grants – not what you’d call hard-hitting investigative reporting. But Boyer sure took it that way.

The harmless and even boring story (which you can read here) ran with smiling photos of the winners, which the school made readily available.

The next day, Boyer called the newsroom and, according to the students’ lawsuit…

Call it a full court press.

A dozen students in a small Iowa town have sued their whiny college for censoring the campus newspaper and firing their adviser.

But they’re not waiting around for a judge to rule – the wheels of justice grind exceedingly slow, and these (mostly) women want to burn rubber.

So they’re starting their own newspaper.

And you can help.

Meet these pleasant people.

Two words you rarely see together are polite journalist, but that describes the entire staff of The Calumet, the student-run newspaper at tiny Muscatine Community College. (Enrollment: under 2,000.)

They’ve never ambush-interviewed anyone, asked leading questions, been passive-aggressive, or stretched the truth to make their stories sexier.

No, they just wrote mostly nice and innocuous stories that still got them in serious trouble. Why? No one knows, but it’s both funny and sad.

Here’s an example from editor Mary Mason (top left)…

A building had 13-15 door handles that weren’t working, and students wondered why. So we wrote a story explaining the handles cost several hundred dollars each to fix, and that they had to be specially ordered. The administration felt the story was negative.

It gets stupider…

Meet a silly censor.

This is Rick Boyer, MCC’s chairman of the math and science department.

A few months ago, The Calumet listed all the faculty who had won grants – not what you’d call hard-hitting investigative reporting. But Boyer sure took it that way.

The harmless and even boring story (which you can read here) ran with smiling photos of the winners, which the school made readily available.

The next day, Boyer called the newsroom and, according to the students’ lawsuit…

Daily Print and Online Newspapers – Small, Staff of 15 or Less

General Excellence – Online

1st place
Staff
Great Northwest Wine

2nd place
Staff
GeekWire

3rd place
Staff
The Seattle Globalist

Arts & Lifestyles

1st place
“Meditation Behind Bars”
Martha Kang, Paula Wissel, Justin Steyer
KPLU

2nd place
“Dragulation!”
Rebecca Sedlak
The Daily Astorian

3rd place
“Improv 101: Lessons in Comedy, Life and Letting Go”
John Stang
Crosscut.com

Business Reporting

1st place
“Final Harvest for Paul Champoux”
Andy Perdue
Great Northwest Wine

2nd place
“Gold Mine’s Pending Closure Brings Blues to Republic”
John Stang
Crosscut.com

3rd place
“Gates Foundation Resists Pressure to Pull Private Prison Investment”
Lael Henterly
The Seattle Globalist

Comprehensive Coverage

1st place
“Stolen Wages”
Allegra Abramo, Lael Henterly and Jason Alcorn
InvestigateWest

2nd place
“Coverage of the Northwest Detention Center”
Lael Henterly
The Seattle Globalist

3rd place
“Morgan Middle School”
Lauren Takores
Ellensburg Daily Record

Crime and Justice Reporting

1st place
“Why Does the Seattle Police Department Push Protests Up Capitol Hill?”
Justin Carder
CapitolHillSeattle.com

2nd place
“Jail Struggled to House Mentally Ill”
Chelsea Gorrow
The Daily Astorian

3rd place
“Night Out at Seattle’s Most Dangerous Club Casts Doubt on Cops Claims”
Forrest Baum
The Seattle Globalist

Editorial & Commentary

1st place
Knute Berger
Crosscut.com

2nd place
Sarah Stuteville
The Seattle Globalist

3rd place
“The Dogtag Chronicles”
Peter Sessum
MODE Magazine

Environment & Science Reporting

1st place
“Smoke and Numbers: Do Green Claims for Burning Wood Add Up?”
Robert McClure
InvestigateWest

2nd place
“Investigating Forest Herbicide Draft”
Anthony Schick and Amelia Templeton
Oregon Public Broadcasting

3rd place
“Politics and Science of Water Quality”
Robert McClure and Kim Drury
InvestigateWest

General Column

1st place
Sarah Stuteville
The Seattle Globalist

2nd place
Reagan Jackson
The Seattle Globalist

3rd place
“Impressions”
Nancy McCarthy
The Daily Astorian

Government & Politics Reporting

1st place
“Seattle City Light Worker Who Blew Whistle on Whiskey Gifts Loses Out”
Levi Pulkkinen
Seattlepi.com

2nd place
“Commission Takes One of Its Own to Task”
Kyle Spurr
The Daily Astorian

3rd place
“Seattle Politics”
Ben Anderstone
Crosscut.com

Health Reporting

1st place
“Crimes of Compassion: Seattle’s Humanitarian Drug Traffickers”
Jessica Partnow
The Seattle Globalist

2nd place
“Neglected Brain”
Stacy Solie
Crosscut.com

3rd place
“Wanted: Sexual Assault Nurses, Now”
Chelsea Gorrow
The Daily Astorian

Investigative Reporting

1st place
“Wanted: Sexual Assault Nurses, Now”
Chelsea Gorrow
The Daily Astorian

2nd place
“Stolen Wages”
Allegra Abramo, Lael Henterly and Jason Alcorn
InvestigateWest

3rd place
“BioPharma/DoD Fraud, Waste and Abuse: The PermaDerm Scandal”
Sandy Frost
NewsVine

Long Feature Story

1st place
“Crimes of Compassion: Seattle’s Humanitarian Drug Traffickers”
Sarah Stuteville and Jessica Partnow
The Seattle Globalist

2nd place
“Randy Dunn Brings Maverick Style from Napa to Walla Walla”
Eric Degerman
Great Northwest Wine

3rd place
“Meditation Behind Bars”
Martha Kang
KPLU

Personalities Reporting

1st place
“Small Town Mayor”
Mary Bruno
Crosscut.com

2nd place
“Profile of Ernie Kent”
Bill Morlin
Cougfan.com LLC

3rd place
“Seattle Genius”
David Kroman
Crosscut.com

Short Feature Story

1st place
“Let’s Go, Lucy! Pit Bull Rides Shotgun on Mom’s Motorcycle”
Karen Ducey
Animal News Northwest

2nd place
“How to Tell if Your Senator Wrote His Own Wikipedia Entry”
John Stang
Crosscut.com

3rd place
“Man Down on His Luck Keeps His Chin Up”
Chelsea Gorrow
The Daily Astorian

Social Issues Reporting

1st place
“Northwest Families Open Their Homes to Unaccompanied Immigrant Kids”
Anna Goren
The Seattle Globalist

2nd place
“Impact Series”
Taylor Soper, Monica Guzman and Todd Bishop
GeekWire

3rd place
“As the Central District Blanches, a House Speaks”
Casey Jaywork
Capitolhillseattle.com

Sports Column

1st place
Art Thiel
Crosscut.com

2nd place
Paul Sorensen
Cougfan.com LLC

3rd place
Greg Witter
Cougfan.com LLC

Sports Feature Story
1st place
“From Chelan to the Show”
Danny Schmidt
Ellensburg Daily Record

2nd place
“Fair Play”
Patrick Webb
The Daily Astorian

3rd place
“Ernie Kent, hard work and feeling home at WSU”
Evan Baron
Cougfan.com LLC

Sports Reporting

1st place
“Pete Carroll”
Art Thiel
Crosscut.com

2nd place
Chris Chancellor
Cougfan.com LLC

3rd place
Howie Stalwick
Cougfan.com LLC

Spot News Reporting

1st place
“2 dead, 4 Injured in School Shooting in Marysville”
Lynsi Burton, Levi Pulkkinen, Vanessa Ho and Scott Sunde
Seattlepi.com

2nd place
“Darrington Firefighters: ‘Our Task is to Find That Miracle’”
Lynsi Burton
Seattlepi.com

3rd place
“Bothell Family Searches for a Home While Regaining Mobility…”
Deanna Isaacs
Bothell/Kenmore Reporter

Daily Print and Online Newspapers – Medium, Staff of 16 to 50

General Excellence – Online

1st place
Staff
The Daily Herald

2nd place
Staff
Bozeman Daily Chronicle

3rd place
Staff
Mail Tribune

General Excellence – Print

1st place
Staff
Fairbanks Daily News-Miner

2nd place
Staff
Bozeman Daily Chronicle

3rd place
Staff
The Daily Herald

Arts & Lifestyles

1st place
“The Many Faces of Steve Marlo”
Andrea Brown
The Daily Herald

2nd place
“Imaginative Ears: Creative Sound Effects Bring Radio Plays to Life at Verge Theater”
Rachel Hergett
Bozeman Daily Chronicle

3rd place
“Agatha Christie’s ‘Mousetrap’”
Gary Black
Fairbanks Daily News-Miner

Business Column

1st place
Aaron Corvin
The Columbian

2nd place
Gordon Oliver
The Columbian

3rd place
Mai Hoang
Yakima Herald-Republic

Business Reporting

1st place
“The New Brew Crew”
Tad Sooter
Kitsap Sun

2nd place
“Cannabis Country”
John Rosman and Amelia Templeton
Oregon Public Broadcasting

3rd place
“Second Thoughts on 3 Oil Terminals”
Aaron Corvin
The Columbian

Comprehensive Coverage

1st place
“In Crisis: Idaho’s Fragmented Mental Health System”
Audrey Dutton and Emilie Ritter Saunders
Idaho Statesman

2nd place
“Firestorm – Carlton Complex Fire”
K.C. Mehaffey
Wenatchee World

3rd place
“Behaving Badly”
Jeff Graham
Kitsap Sun

Crime & Justice Reporting

1st place
“Grieving Mom Fights for Changes to Utah Justice”
Emily Gillespie
The Columbian

2nd place
“Legal Labyrinth…”
Paris Achen
The Columbian

3rd place
“Policing Probable Cause”
Ali Tadayon
Post Register

Editorial & Commentary

1st place
Greg Jayne
The Columbian

2nd place
Neal Pattison
The Daily Herald

3rd place
Jon Bauer
The Daily Herald

Environment & Science Reporting

1st place
“Wild Horses in Crisis”
Vince Patton and Jason Bernert
Oregon Public Broadcasting

2nd place
“Tackling the Great Walls…”
Christine Pratt
Wenatchee World

3rd place
“Wildfire Prevention – the Case for Logging”
Kate Prengaman
Yakima Herald-Republic

General Column

1st place
Ryan Pfiel
Mail Tribune

2nd place
Andrea Brown
The Herald

3rd place
Lucy Luginbull
Tri-City Herald

Government & Politics

1st place
“Spent Grain”
Andrew Clevenger
The Bulletin

2nd place
“NLRB vs. Noel Canning”
Mai Hoang
Yakima Herald-Republic

3rd place
“The Political Rise and Fall of Ben Shoval”
Mai Hoang
Yakima Herald-Republic

Health Reporting

1st place
“In Crisis: Idaho’s Fragmented Mental Health System”
Audrey Dutton and Emilie Ritter Saunders
Idaho Statesman

2nd place
“Rapid Growth in Air Ambulance Industry Raises Safety Concerns”
Markian Hawryluk
The Bulletin

3rd place
“The Risks of Home Birth”
Markian Hawryluk
The Bulletin

Investigative Reporting

1st place
“Too Risky to Transplant”
Markian Hawryluk
The Bulletin

2nd place
“Rail Workers Raise Doubts about Safety Culture as Oil Trains Roll On”
Anthony Schick and Ashley Ahearn
EarthFix

3rd place
“Evidence Refutes Claim about Chopper Availability after MP Shootings”
Scott North and Rikki King
The Daily Herald

Long Feature Story

1st place
“The Rising”
Eric Stevick, Rikki King and Scott North
The Daily Herald

2nd place
“Local Vets Share Stories of Survival”
Tom Vogt
The Columbian

3rd place
“Life on the PCT”
Jane Gargas
Yakima Herald-Republic

Personalities Reporting

1st place
“Herrera Beutler Charts Her Own Course”
Lauren Dake
The Columbian

2nd place
“Humoody’s Way”
Amy Nile
The Daily Herald

3rd place
“Still Standing”
Sara Schilling
Tri-City Herald

Print Headlines

1st place
Merridee Hanson
The Columbian

2nd place
Herron Miller
Kitsap Sun

3rd place
Bill Epperheimer
Yakima Herald-Republic

Print Page Design

1st place
Staff
Bozeman Daily Chronicle

2nd place
Kate Mayer
The Daily Herald

3rd place
Jessica Randklev
The News Tribune

Short Feature Story

1st place
“Ready to Stretch Their Wings”
Jane Gargas
Yakima Herald-Republic

2nd place
“Volcano’s Glacier Caves Explored”
Tom Vogt
The Columbian

3rd place
“Battle Buddies”
Sarah Grothjan
The Daily News

Social Issues Reporting

1st place
“Class of 2025”
Amanda Peacher, Rob Manning, Michael Clapp and Eve Epstein
Oregon Public Broadcasting

2nd place
“Inside the Box”
Staff
EarthFix

3rd place
“Project 99…”
Eric Stevick
The Daily Herald

Sports Column

1st place
Rob Thornberry
Post Register

2nd place
Tim Trower
Mail Tribune

3rd place
John Boyle
The Daily Herald

Sports Feature Story

1st place
“Without Stars: The Story Behind SK’s 1994 Title”
Jeff Graham
Kitsap Sun

2nd place
“Burgeoning Team Joins Cancer Fight”
Paul Valencia
The Columbian

3rd place
“Winning Isn’t Everything”
Aaron Swaney
“The Daily Herald”

Sports Reporting

1st place
“Going or Gold”
Jon Maletz
Bozeman Daily Chronicle

2nd place
“Porter’s Prayer Clinches win”
Alex Field
Walla Walla Union-Bulletin

3rd place
“Tackling Concussions”
Trevor Pyle
Skagit Valley Herald

Spot News Reporting

1st place
“Marysville Pilchuck High School Shooting”
Staff
The Daily Herald

2nd place
“The Oso Mudslide”
Staff
The Daily Herald

3rd place
“1,000 Evacuated After Blast”
Kristi Pihl and Tyler Richardson
Tri-City Herald

Daily Print and Online Newspapers – Large, Staff of 50 or More

Arts & Lifestyles

1st place
“Tempest Storm”
Doug Perry
The Oregonian

2nd place
“Piccolo Player”
David Stabler
The Oregonian

3rd place
“Mushroom Mission”
Adriana Janovich
The Spokesman-Review

Business Reporting

1st place
“Satya Nadella, Microsoft’s New CEO”
Janet Tu
The Seattle Times

2nd place
“The Agriculture of Pot”
Jordan Schrader and Anna King
The News Tribune & Northwest News Network

3rd place
“Student Debt Stymies Careers”
Jeff Manning
The Oregonian

Comprehensive Coverage

1st place
“State of Intoxications: Fetal Alcohol Syndrome in Alaska”
Kyle Hopkins and Marc Lester
Anchorage Daily News

2nd place
“Gulches of Tacoma”
Rosemary Ponnekanti
The News Tribune

3rd place
“State Falls Down on Escalator Inspections, Regulations”
Melissa Santos
The News Tribune

Crime and Justice Reporting

1st place
“The Killer with Two Faces”
Adam Ashton
The News Tribune

2nd place
“Gentler Justice”
Kyle Hopkins and Marc Lester
Anchorage Daily News

3rd place
“Faces of Meth: 10 Years Later”
Kasia Hall
The Oregonian

Editorial & Commentary

1st place
Erik Lukens
The Oregonian

2nd place
Mark Hester
The Oregonian

3rd place
Len Reed
The Oregonian

Environment & Science Reporting

1st place
“Oil Trains in Oregon”
Rob Davis
The Oregonian

2nd place
“Coal Quandary”
Becky Kramer
The Spokesman-Review

3rd place
“Losing Paradise”
Robert Carson, Dean Koepfler and Jessica Randklev
The News Tribune

Government & Politics Reporting

1st place
“Addicted to Failure”
Les Zaitz
The Oregonian

2nd place
“How $15 Minimum Wage Deal Came Together in Seattle”
Lynn Thompson
The Seattle Times

3rd place
“Shifting Priorities”
Nicholas Deshais
The Spokesman-Review

Health Reporting

1st place
“Nowhere to Turn”
Brian M. Rosenthal
The Seattle Times

2nd place
“State of Intoxication”
Kyle Hopkins and Marc Lester
Anchorage Daily News

3rd place
“How Denmark Solved Its Salmonella Problem”
Lynne Terry
The Oregonian

Investigative Reporting

1st place
“Loaded with Lead…”
James Neff, Christine Willmsen, Lewis Kamb and Justin Mayo
The Seattle Times

2nd place
“Nowhere to Turn”
Brian M. Rosenthal
The Seattle Times

3rd place
“Brenda Tracy’s Story”
John Canzano
The Oregonian

Long Feature Story

1st place
“Inside Harborview…”
Tyrone Beason
The Seattle Times

2nd place
“Spawning Hope”
Becky Kramer
The Spokesman-Review

3rd place
“Mount Rainier”
Sandi Doughton
The Seattle Times

Personalities Reporting

1st place
“Football, Faith and a Way Out”
Casey Parks
The Oregonian

2nd place
“Owner of Seattle’s Totokaelo…”
Tricia Romano
The Seattle Times

3rd place
“Power Meals: Seahawks Chef Plays Key Role in Team’s Success”
Tan Vinh
The Seattle Times

Print Headlines

1st place
Steve Collier
The Register-Guard

2nd place
Jacob Arnold
The Oregonian

3rd place
Bill Kossen
The Seattle Times

Print Page Design

1st place
Shawn Barkdull
The Oregonian

2nd place
Geoff Pinnock
The Spokesman-Review

3rd place
Nancy Burke
The Oregonian

Short Feature Story

1st place
“Passing Down Pierogi”
Adriana Janovich
The Spokesman-Review

2nd place
“The Last Moments of Jennifer Moreno, an Army Nurse Killed in Afghanistan”
Adam Ashton
The News Tribune

3rd place
“For Searchers, Tears Flow as Dig Finds Only Reminders of Life”
Erik Lacitis
The Seattle Times

Social Issues Reporting

1st place
“Fixing Foster Care: a Special Report”
Jody Lawrence-Turner
The Spokesman-Review

2nd place
“No Funding Available”
Brian M. Rosenthal
The Seattle Times

3rd place
“Trapped in Limbo”
Sean Robinson
The News Tribune

Sports Column

1st place
John Canzano
The Oregonian

2nd place
Jason Quick
The Oregonian

3rd place
Jack Broom
The Seattle Times

Sports Feature Story

1st place
“Steve Gordon…”
Geoff Baker
The Seattle Times

2nd place
“Danny Shelton Stands at the Head of the Class”
Christian Caple
The News Tribune

3rd place
Jason Quick
The Oregonian

Sports Reporting

1st place
“Brenda Tracy’s story”
John Canzano
The Oregonian

2nd place
“Soccer Team Owner Accused of Sexual Assault, Harassment”
Geoff Baker
The Seattle Times

3rd place
“Chris Peterson Profile”
Christian Caple
The News Tribune

Spot News Reporting

1st place
“Popular Student’s Deadly Attack Stuns School, Community”
Staff
The Seattle Times

2nd place
“Washed Away: the Oso, Washington Mudslide”
Staff
The Seattle Times

3rd place
“SPU Shootings”
Staff
The Seattle Times

Visuals

Best Photo Portfolio

1st place
Eric Engman
Fairbanks Daily News-Miner

2nd place
Meegan Reid
Kitsap Sun

3rd place
Joe Kline
The Bulletin

Feature Photography

1st place
“The Hug”
Johnny Nguyen
The Oregonian

2nd place
“Snow”
Andy Tullis
The Bulletin

3rd place
Colin Mulvany
The Spokesman-Review

Graphics & Illustrations

1st place
Jessica Randklev
The News Tribune

2nd place
Stephen Templeton
Post Register

3rd place
Marsha Matta
The Columbian

News Photography

1st place
“Pulled from the River”
Kaitlyn Bernauer
Yakima Herald-Republic

2nd place
“Marysville Pilchuck School Shooting”
Joshua Trujillo
Seattle P-I

3rd place
“Scaring off the Crows”
Mason Trinca
Yakima Herald-Republic

Online Feature Video (non-TV)

1st place
“Ms. Jordan’s ‘Believe’ Program”
Quinn Brown
The Daily Herald

2nd place
“50 Years of Mustang”
Chris Pietsch
The Register-Guard

3rd place
“Skid Row”
Valerie Vozza
Marguerite Casey Foundation (Equal Voice News)

Online News Video (non-TV)

1st place
“The Rising”
Mark Mulligan, Annie Mulligan and Genna Martin
The Daily Herald

2nd place
“Crude Connection: from North Dakota to the Northwest”
Zachary Kaufman
The Columbian

3rd place
“The Deception Complex Fire”
Chris Pietch
The Register-Guard

Photo Gallery/Essay/Slideshow

1st place
“Hmong Family”
Mike Kane
Marguerite Casey Foundation (Equal Voice News)

2nd place
“SeaBride 2014”
Sophie Pangrazzi, Hilary Folks and Ali Brownrigg
Seattle Magazine

3rd place
“Viewfinder: Middle East Deployment”
Anthony Bolante
Puget Sound Business Journal

Pictorial Photography

1st place
Art Wolfe
Alaska Airlines Magazine

2nd place
“From Hiroshima to Hope”
Lindsey Wasson
The Seattle Times

3rd place
“Blue Pool”
Joe Kline
The Bulletin

Portrait Photography

1st place
“An Honor Deserved”
Dan Bates
The Daily Herald

2nd place
“Football Portrait”
James Woodcock
Billings Gazette

3rd place
“Still Be Beautiful”
Bob Pennell
Mail Tribune

Sports Photography

1st place
“Chainbreaker Crash”
Joe Kline
The Bulletin

2nd place
“Bad Bounce”
Bob Zellar
Billings Gazette

3rd place
“Muddy Celebration”
Steven Lane
The Columbian

Magazines

General Excellence

1st place
Staff
Portland Monthly Magazine

2nd place
Staff
Seattle Met

3rd place
Stagg
Northwest Leaf

Arts & Entertainment Reporting

1st place
“Teenage Drama”
Scott Driscoll
Horizon Edition Magazine

2nd place
“Puzzle Creators”
Ted Fry
Horizon Edition Magazine

3rd place
“Arts & Entertainment”
Brangien Davis and Jake Uitti
Seattle Magazine

Business & Consumer Affairs Reporting

1st place
“Defensive Play…”
Peter Barnes
Oregon Business

2nd place
“The Roots of Downtown”
Jake Bullinger
425 Business

3rd place
“Market Makers”
Carol Tice
Alaska Airlines Magazine

Cover Design

1st place
Daniel Berman
Northwest Leaf

2nd place
Jane Sherman
Seattle Met

3rd place
Craig Lancaster
Montana Quarterly

Editorial & Commentary

1st place
“Star Blight”
Maria Dolan
Seattle Magazine

2nd place
“What It Feels Like To Be Wrongly Accused”
Amanda Knox
Seattle Met

3rd place
“Broverwhelmed”
Kathryn Robinson
Seattle Met

Environment & Science Reporting

1st place
“A Harvest of Ashes”
David Laskin
Seattle Met

2nd place
“The Big One”
Randy Gragg
Portland Monthly Magazine

3rd place
“Sustaining Sustainability”
Eric Gold
Alaska Airlines Magazine

Food & Drink

1st place
“Best Restaurants 2014”
Karen Brooks
Portland Monthly Magazine

2nd place
“Café Mabel’s”
Scott McMillion
Montana Quarterly

3rd place
“Flavor the Food Lover’s Guide”
Alicia McMillion and Kathryn Robinson
Seattle Met

General Reporting

1st place
“Collapse”
Brooke Jarvis
Seattle Met

2nd place
“The Lost Album”
Aaron Scott
Portland Monthly Magazine

3rd place
“No Child Not Dancing”
Alan Kesselheim
Montana Quarterly

Government & Politics Reporting

1st place
“Space Invaders”
Steve Hansen
Seattle Magazine

2nd place
“What Do We Want? $15…”
Josh Feit
Seattle Met

3rd place
“Defensive Play…”
Peter Barnes
Oregon Business

Headlines

1st place
Staff
Seattle Magazine

2nd place
Staff
Alaska Airlines Magazine

3rd place
Ethan Chung, Lauren Foster and Lisa Patterson
425 Magazine

Leisure & Lifestyle Reporting

1st place
“Girls with Guns”
Alan Kesselheim
Montana Quarterly

2nd place
“The Essential Guide to Mt. St. Helens”
Rachel Ritchie
Portland Monthly Magazine

3rd place
“This Is What Happens to Your Bike After It Gets Stolen”
Casey Jaywork
Seattle Met

Magazine Departments

1st place
“Spotlight”
Brangien Davis
Seattle Magazine

2nd place
Matthew Halverson
Seattle Met

3rd place
Staff
Northwest Leaf

Personal Service Reporting

1st place
“This Must Be The Place”
Matthew Halverson
Seattle Met

2nd place
“To Jail or Not to Jail”
Paul Haeder
Spokane Living Magazine

3rd place
“Digital Fitness”
Michelle Martin
Horizon Edition Magazine

Personalities Reporting

1st place
“Tom Douglas”
Eric Lucas
Alaska Airlines Magazine

2nd place
“We Will Come Back for You”
Deanna Duff
Columns Magazine

3rd place
“Death Becomes Her”
Nancy Rommelman
Portland Monthly Magazine

Science & Health Reporting

1st place
“How Long is Long Enough?”
Leslie Saucedo
Arches

2nd place
“The Trouble with Shaken Baby Syndrome”
James Gardner
Seattle Met

3rd place
“Breaking the Code”
Caitlin Baggott
Portland Monthly Magazine

Social Issues Reporting

1st place
“V is for Victory”
Randy Gragg
Portland Monthly Magazine

2nd place
“This is What Happens to Your Bike after it’s Stolen”
Casey Jaywork
Seattle Met

3rd place
“Changes in the Central District Affect the African-American community”
Naomi Ishisaka
Seattle Magazine

Sports Reporting

1st place
“Seahawks! The Ultimate 12th Man Guide”
Staff
Seattle Met

2nd place
“An Ambition Like No Other”
Matthew Halverson
Seattle Met

3rd place
“Higher Education”
Steve Kelley
Cascade Golfer

Travel Reporting

1st place
“The Essential Guide to Mount St. Helens”
Rachel Ritchie
Portland Monthly Magazine

2nd place
“Globe-trotting on a Shoestring Budget”
James McIntosh and Taryanne Mingione
425 Magazine

Weeklies

General Excellence

1st place
Staff
Portland Business Journal

2nd place
Staff
Northwest Asian Weekly

3rd place
Staff
Clackamas Review

Arts & Lifestyles Reporting

1st place
“’Yellowface’ Mikado Controversy”
Zachariah Bryan
Northwest Asian Weekly

2nd place
“It’s All About Bruce”
Jason Cruz
Northwest Asian Weekly

3rd place
“Rising Star on the Flying Trapeze”
Laura Ohata
Northwest Asian Weekly

Business Reporting

1st place
“Taking its Toll: Get Ready to Pay to Drive”
Marc Stiles
Puget Sound Business Journal

2nd place
“Tiny Houses”
Mason Walker
Portland Business Journal

3rd place
“IPOverrated”
Malia Spencer
Portland Business Journal

Crime & Justice Reporting

1st place
“Drugs, Bunkers, Gun Range, Arsenal…”
Matt Phelps and TJ Martinell
Kirkland Reporter

2nd place
“Former Child Prodigy Attempts Suicide After First-degree Murder Verdict”
Jason Cruz
Northwest Asian Weekly

3rd place
“Heroin: Use Impacts More Than Just the User”
Melanie Russell
Snohomish County Tribune

Editorial & Commentary

1st place
“Ask, Don’t Tell Us Who We Are”
Tiffany Ran
Northwest Asian Weekly

2nd place
“At Large in Ballard”
Peggy Sturdivant
Writer at Large

3rd place
“When It Comes to Schools, You Can’t Beat a School Office Manager”
Heija Nunn
Reporter Newspapers

Environment & Science Reporting

1st place
“Heated Exchange”
Marc Stiles
Puget Sound Business Journal

2nd place
“Northern Exposure: Seattle Mainstay Foss Heads for the Arctic”
Steve Wilhelm
Puget Sound Business Journal

3rd place
“Superfund Slowdown”
Andy Giegerich
Portland Business Journal

Government & Politics Reporting

1st place
“U-turn for the U District”
Marc Stiles
Puget Sound Business Journal

2nd place
“Preventable?”
Raymond Rendleman
Clackamas Review

3rd place
“Taxes Could Fund $25M for North Clackamas Parks”
Raymond Rendleman
Clackamas Review

Health Reporting

1st place
“Foot Soldiers of Health Care”
Elizabeth Hayes
Portland Business Journal

2nd place
“Incredible Ordeal”
Ellen Spitaleri
Clackamas Review

3rd place
“Seattle Area Universities Dump Insurance Plans”
Annie Zak
Puget Sound Business Journal

Investigative Reporting

1st place
“Nike – Model Citizen”
Matthew Kish
Portland Business Journal

2nd place
“Public University Database”
Matthew Kish
Portland Business Journal

3rd place
“Drugs, Bunkers, Gun Range, Arsenal…”
Matt Phelps and TJ Martinell
Kirkland Reporter

Personalities Reporting

1st place
“Greg Johnson: The Sleepless Visionary”
Marc Stiles
Puget Sound Business Journal

2nd place
“Owner’s Love Keeps Pike Place News Standing”
Steve Wilhelm
Puget Sound Business Journal

3rd place
“Dealing with Death and Harassment”
Zachariah Bryan
Northwest Asian Weekly

Social Issues Reporting

1st place
“Biking with the Mormons”
Eric Mandel
Maple Valley Reporter

2nd place
“Chasing the LGBT Dollar”
Rachel Lerman
Puget Sound Business Journal

3rd place
“Meet the New Neighbors: Nicklesville Homeless Camp”
Laura Ohata
Northwest Asian Weekly

Alternative Weeklies

Arts & Lifestyles Reporting

1st place
“Where’s Ed Comet?”
Kelton Sears
Seattle Weekly

2nd place
“The Art of Black History”
Alex Cipolle
Eugene Weekly

3rd place
“Silver Linings Playbook”
Alex Cipolle
Eugene Weekly

Business Reporting

1st place
“Wipeout!”
Cambria Roth and Brent Walth
Willamette Week

2nd place
“Drive”
Aaron Mesh
Willamette Week

3rd place
“The Perks, Pitfalls, and Paradoxes of Amazon Publishing”
Nina Shapiro
Seattle Weekly

Crime & Justice Reporting

1st place
“Holding Three Simultaneous Death Penalty Trials…”
Lael Henterly
The Stranger

2nd place
“The Secret of Yummy Garden”
Nigel Jaquiss
Willamette Week

3rd place
“The Three-headed Monster”
David Holthouse
Anchorage Press

Environment & Science Reporting

1st place
“Splice of Life”
Elizabeth Moore
Willamette Week

2nd place
“River Be Damned”
Ted Taylor
Eugene Weekly

3rd place
“Toxic Soup”
Camilla Mortenson
Eugene Weekly

Government & Political Reporting

1st place
“Talkin’ Bull”
Aaron Mesh
Willamette Week

2nd place
“Razed and Confused”
Aaron Mesh
Willamette Week

3rd place
“Drive”
Aaron Mesh
Willamette Week

Health Reporting

1st place
“Splice of Life”
Elizabeth Moore
Willamette Week

2nd place
“Can’t Do It Alone”
Jessica Mayrer
Missoula Independent

3rd place
“Sex Positive”
Amy Schnieder
Eugene Weekly

Investigative Reporting

1st place
“First Lady Inc.”
Nigel Jaquiss
Willamette Week

2nd place
“Rape U”
Camilla Mortenson
Eugene Weekly

3rd place
“Commander Untouchable”
David Holthouse
Anchorage Press

Personalities Reporting

1st place
“Breaking Bread”
Aaron Mesh
Willamette Week

2nd place
“Driving Her Loco”
Aaron Mesh
Willamette Week

3rd place
“Under the Halo”
Erika Fredrickson
Missoula Independent

Social Issues Reporting

1st place
“Forgive You, Father”
Jimmy Tobias
Missoula Independent

2nd place
“Homeless and Hiding in Suburbia”
Matt Driscoll
Seattle Weekly

3rd place
“The Broken Heart of Chinatown”
Ellis Conklin
Seattle Weekly

Nondaily Newspapers

General Excellence

1st place
Staff
The Chronicle

2nd place
Staff
Puget Sound Business Journal

3rd place
Staff
EO Media Group: Seaside Signal, Cannon Beach Gazette

Art Reporting & Criticism

1st place
“The Economics Behind the Curtains”
Jim Davis
The Herald Business Journal

2nd place
“Banging the Drum for Local Music”
Quinn Brown
The Daily Herald

3rd place
“Songs of Love and Stolen Beauty”
Erick Bengel
EO Media Group: Seaside Signal, Cannon Beach Gazette

Business Reporting

1st place
“Life or Death for South Shore Mall”
Steven Friederich
The Vidette

2nd place
“Ethel Farmers Bet Business on Pot”
Dameon Pesanti
The Chronicle

3rd place
“Questions Emerge about the Herald Property Deal”
Jim Davis
The Herald Business Journal

Editorial & Commentary

1st place
“Search for CEO Should Restart”
Roger Harnack
The Omak-Okanogan County Chronicle

2nd place
“Let Not This Devastating Act Divide Us”
Steve Bagwell
McMinnville News-Register

3rd place
“Arbitration Reversals Eroding Accountability”
Steve Bagwell
McMinnville News-Register

Environment & Science Reporting

1st place
“Toxic Soldiers”
Emily Green
Street Roots

2nd place
“Second Spring”
Ann McCreary
Methow Valley News

3rd place
“Local Sea Stars are in Distress”
Kit Harma and Edith Walden
The Guemes Tide

General Column

1st place
Raj Jayadev
Marguerite Casey Foundation (Equal Voice News)

2nd place
Steven Friederich
The Vidette

3rd place
Eric Mandel
Maple Valley Reporter

General News Coverage

1st place
“A Centralia Officer’s Use of Force”
Stephanie Schendel
The Chronicle

2nd place
“Crumbling Trailer Courts”
Natalie St. John
Chinook Observer

3rd place
“When the Safety Net Breaks”
Jake Thomas
Street Roots

Government & Politics Reporting

1st place
“A Bumpy Ride”
Aaron Burkhalter
Real Change

2nd place
“15 Next”
Aaron Burkhalter
Real Change

3rd place
“Siglet Urges Widdop’s Resignation; Gearhart Mayor Refuses to Step Down”
Nancy McCarthy
EO Media Group: Seaside Signal, Cannon Beach Gazette

Headlines

1st place
Rachael Winter
McMinnville News-Register

2nd place
Karl Klooster
McMinnville News-Register

3rd place
Staff
Marguerite Casey Foundation (Equal Voice News)

Health Reporting

1st place
“Toxic Soldiers”
Emily Green
Street Roots

2nd place
“Ghosts of Agent Orange”
Emily Green
Street Roots

3rd place
“Doctor Answers Call to Battle Ebola”
Dameon Pesanti
The Chronicle

Lifestyles Reporting

1st place
“Making Move to Retirement Community: Give Elders Respect, Time”
Ed Langlois
Catholic Sentinel

2nd place
“Cannon Beach Puttz Raises $5,200 for Art”
Erick Bengel
EO Media Group: Seaside Signal, Cannon Beach Gazette

3rd place
“China Wall Gets a Facelift”
Dee Camp
The Omak-Okanogan County Chronicle

Page Design

1st place
“Real Change Pages”
Jon Williams
Real Change

2nd place
David Hayes
The Issaquah Press

3rd place
Roger Harnack, Al Camp and Dee Camp
The Omak-Okanogan County Chronicle

Personalities Reporting

1st place
“The Final Flight”
Starla Pointer
McMinnville News-Register

2nd place
“Second Chance at a Political First”
Nancy Townsley
Forest Grove News-Times and Hillsboro Tribune

3rd place
“Life in Pictures”
Starla Pointer
McMinnville News-Register

Social Issues Reporting

1st place
“Lewis County High in Sex Offender Concentration”
Kaylee Osowski, Justyna Tomtas, Dameon Pesanti and Christopher Brewer
The Chronicle

2nd place
“Trouble Finds Tourists”
Natalie St. John and Damian Mulinix
The Chinook Observer

3rd place
“In Border Disaster, Advocates Seek Names of the Dead”
Staff
Marguerite Casey Foundation (Equal Voice News)

Sports Reporting

1st place
“Olympic Heights”
Mike Maltais
Methow Valley News

2nd place
“Football Back at George Fox”
Robert Husseman
McMinnville News-Register

3rd place
“Debate Rages after Rochester Boy’s 194 Pitches”
Aaron VanTuyl
The Chronicle

Spot News Reporting

1st place
“Feds Serve Warrant on Local Payee”
Jake Thomas
Street Roots

2nd place
“Couple Weaves Drug-laced Tale of Child’s Death”
Kaylee Osowski
The Chronicle

3rd place
“This is Hell”
Staff
The Omak-Okanogan County Chronicle

Radio

Feature News Reporting

1st place
“What’s at the Bottom of Lake Washington?”
Sarah Waller and Jim Gates
KUOW-FM Seattle

2nd place
“Emergency Operator 911 Sixth Sense”
Lucrezia Cuen Paxson
NWPR

3rd place
“Touched by Fire: Stories from the Oregon Gulch”
Liam Moriarty
Jefferson Public Radio

General News Reporting

1st place
“Idaho Town that Waited 5 years for Sgt. Bergdahl Defends its Support”
Jessica Robinson
Northwest News Network

2nd place
“With Second Dam Nearly Gone, New Era Blossoming on the Elwha River”
Bellamy Pailthorp
KPLU

3rd place
“Seattle Catholic Students Form Underground Clubs for LGBTQ Youth”
Katherine Sims, Rachel Lam, Nina Tran and Jenny Asarnow
KUOW-FM Seattle

Investigative Reporting

1st place
“Who’s Buying the Washington State Senate?”
John Ryan and Carol Smith
KUOW-FM Seattle

2nd place
“Rail Workers Raise Doubts about Safety Culture as Oil Trains Roll On”
Ashley Ahearn and Anthony Schick
EarthFix

3rd place
“Washington State GOP donates $89k to Clark County Candidate”
Conrad Wilson, Anthony Schick and Eve Epstein
Oregon Public Broadcasting

News Series

1st place
“Two Indias, Near and Far”
Liz Jones and Carol Smith
KUOW-FM Seattle

2nd place
“No Time for Play”
Ann Dornfield and Carol Smith
KUOW-FM Seattle

3rd place
“Seattle Nurse Risks Everything to Smuggle AIDS Drugs”
Jessica Partnow and Carol Smith
KUOW-FM Seattle

Special Report

1st place
“Breathing Poison”
Jeff Pohjola, Ed Dawson and Dennis Shannon
NewsRadio 610 KONA

2nd place
“McCleary: the Politics of Education”
Jeff Pohjola
NewsRadio 610 KONA

3rd place
“An Autistic Teen’s Guide to Impersonating Michael Jackson”
Meghan O’Kelley, Lila Kitaeff and Carol Smith
KUOW-FM Seattle

Sports Reporting

1st place
“Horseback Heroine”
Anna King
Northwest News Network

2nd place
“Baseball Jerseys Reveal Unusual Alliance Between Team and Tribe”
Jessica Robinson
Northwest News Network

3rd place
“British Kayakers take on Aleutian Chain”
Lauren Rosenthal
KUCB-FM

Spot News Reporting

1st place
“Oso Mudslide Witness”
Phyllis Fletcher and Carol Smith
KUOW-FM Seattle

2nd place
“Ferguson Protests in Seattle”
Liz Jones and Carol Smith
KUOW-FM Seattle

3rd place
“Seattle Pacific University Responds to Campus Shooting”
Carolyn Adolph and Carol Smith
KUOW-FM Seattle

Television, Small, Markets 121 to 210

Feature News Reporting

1st place
“At a Loss for Herds”
Kuba Wuls and Garrett Turner
KTUU-TV

2nd place
“NW Stories – Sheriff Gill Gilbertson”
Sutton Raphael
OR Media, University of School of Journalism and Communication

3rd place
“The Healing House”
Dan Carpenter
KTUU-TV

General News Reporting

1st place
“The Road to King Cove”
Kuba Wuls and Blake Essig
KTUU-TV

2nd place
“Alaska State Troopers Killed”
Dan Carpenter
KTUU-TV

3rd place
“Drug Problem at Skate Park”
Frances Watson
Sinclair Broadcast Group

Investigative Reporting

1st place
“Worker Sick from Nuclear Waste Spill”
Jane Sander
KNDU

2nd place
“Sick Nuclear Waste Worker Compensation”
Jane Sander
KNDU

3rd place
“Fire Remains Unsolved”
Gina Lazara
Sinclair Broadcast Group

Live Breaking News Coverage

1st place
“Funny River Wildfire”
Kuba Wuls, Lacie Grosvold, Adam Pinsker and Ray Schultz
KTUU-TV

2nd place
“Launch Fire Evacuation”
Rob Scott
KDRV

Sports Reporting

1st place
“Saints Fan ‘Behind Enemy Lines’”
Kevin Uretsky and Mark Harper
KAPP/KVEW TV

2nd place
“College Guard Dribbles Through Loss”
Derek Opina
ABC/FOX Montana

3rd place
“Quarterback Faces Life-changing Injury”
Davis Wahlman
Sinclair Broadcast Group

Video Photography (Feature or News)

1st place
Kuba Wuls
KTUU-TV

2nd place
“The Healing House”
Dan Carpenter
KTUU-TV

3rd place
“Finding Forget-me-nots”
Dan Carpenter
KTUU-TV

Television, Large Markets, 1 to 120

General News Reporting

1st place
“The Secret Olympic Attraction”
Chris Daniels and Jeff Christian
KING TV

2nd place
“Sage Grouse”
Vince Patton, Todd Sonflieth, Lisa Suinn Kallem and Michael Bendixen
Oregon Public Broadcasting

3rd place
“The Anarchists of Home”
Tom Layson
KBTC

Special Report/Documentary

1st place
“Mustangs of Oregon”
Staff
Oregon Public Broadcasting

2nd place
“Luther Cressman, Quest for First People”
Kami Horton, Lisa Kallem and Greg Bond
Oregon Public Broadcasting

3rd place
“State of Jefferson”
Kami Horton, Lisa Kallem and Greg Bond
Oregon Public Broadcasting

Despite positive, but hedged, assessments we heard the last several months, we found out today that the whole operation had been coughing up money for years.

The CEO left seven weeks ago, and was never replaced. That was one more big clue that we were in jeopardy, which was easy to sense anyway.

In an all-hands-on-deck meeting on Friday morning, a top executive from the home office delivered the fatal swing of the hatchet.

Meetings like this, with an executive no one ever sees or hears about otherwise, are never to deliver good news, so we knew. It’s never: Congratulations, team, on this year’s editorial contest prizes. Or: Advertising revenue has gushed like an oil geyser, and we’re spreading the wealth. We’d have even settled for hearing that a hiring freeze has been lifted.

“Limped along” doesn’t describe how The Gazette survived the last few years. I think of the knight with hacked-off limbs claiming “it’s just a flesh wound” in “Monty Python and the Holy Grail.”

Reporter positions were sliced. The web desk was condensed. A cartoonist and highly read columnist — the last one left — were axed as our freelance budgets were gutted. A top editor was sent home after finding out his position was eliminated. A photographer was reassigned to practical oblivion. Coverage of an adjoining county was zapped; the office found out as the last issue was printed.

By the end, to cover a county of more than 1 million people, we were down to three regional reporters (for crime, the county, and education) and one beat reporter for each of our five editions — except for one edition with 1.5 reporters and one edition with no reporter for months, thanks to that hiring freeze.

Editors picked up tasks from another unfilled newsroom position — hours of compiling calendar listings and police logs, taking over the Scout tour. Three photographers documented dozens of graduations, but couldn’t get to them all. Some weeks, the layout/copy desk was down to two people to put out five editions one day and two the next.

The biggest shame was the death by neglect of one of Maryland’s best newspapers, a separate publication out of a portion of our newsroom.

For a while, that publication, The Gazette of Politics & Business, covered state government in Annapolis better and smarter than the higher-profile Washington Post and Baltimore Sun. News scoops and an edgy reporters’ notebook column, written by knowledgeable, hustling, plugged-in reporters, made the paper a must-read every Friday.

Then came retrenchment and retreat. Three reporter positions dropped to two, then one. The State House post was eliminated altogether.

The Friday paper stuck around in ghost form. It had no reporters left to gather original news, so stories from the Montgomery Gazette papers on Wednesday were repackaged simply as a vehicle to publish pages of legal ads each week. It was unclear if anyone noticed.

The end for the faux Friday paper — rebranded as Business Gazette — didn’t come soon enough. The sadness was entirely for what once was.

In recent days, no one was surprised if Doomsday was about to come around the corner. Still, there was hope, always hope.

We received an email directive Thursday morning to report to a meeting on Friday. A few people tried to pump employees on the business side for details, but got nowhere. Our photo editor, setting up a sound system in the conference room, noticed a banner newly hung on the wall behind the lectern. It said “Gazette Newspapers — If it’s important to you, it’s important to us.”

Aha. Maybe we’ll be OK. Who would have an upbeat slogan as a backdrop to announce deflating news? We thought we had sleuthed something comforting — until we found out that another employee had found the banner and hung it up on her own.

With the room packed Friday morning, the executive apologized for leaving our newspaper in limbo for several weeks after our CEO left for another job. During (and before) that time, he said, local and corporate officials were doing their best to figure out which pieces of our multi-part company could be successfully marketed, and to whom.

First, he announced that three papers in Southern Maryland and a set of 12 military publications had been sold to a media organization with other papers in Maryland.

A sister paper in Fairfax County, Va., was being acquired by a second media company.

And the Gazette newspapers in Montgomery County (population 1 million) and Prince George’s County (population 900,000) in Maryland…

Will be closed. This week.

Sixty-nine people will be out of a job.

A human resources official who spoke next acknowledged that many of us might be too numb to absorb his presentation on transition details. He laid out what euphemists might call “separation agreements” that, as far as these things go, sound pretty good.

A roomful of newspeople rallied to ask pretty good, pointed questions, such as: Why would Amazon billionaire Jeff Bezos even buy The Gazette if he has shown no interest in community news? Stories about him pouring millions of dollars into The Washington Post’s newsroom have been constant, while The Gazette, which needed help, has been unaffected.

In that 2013 sale, the Post got “financial runway,” as Bezos likes to say. The Gazette got frustrating silence.

The numbers never worked, the executive told us newly laid-off staffers. The Gazette had been losing money for years. No matter the scenario, no one wanted to buy the papers, he said.

We were told that there was an 11:30 a.m. embargo on the news, so the executive could drive to Fairfax and give a talk there. Even though the Post and other publications already had written stories about the closure and sent links on Twitter while the meeting was underway, we were prevented from breaking our own sad news.

The Post later reported that former Gazette owner Davis Kennedy said he made an offer through a broker to buy the paper, but one of our colleagues familiar with attempts to sell The Gazette said the paper didn’t get such an offer. Staffers were left to wonder if an actual rescue attempt was ignored.

By then, our focus was on gathering our stuff and our emotions as we went through the mechanical processes of shutting down a newsroom. Reporters scrambled to gather clips ahead of a 2 p.m. lockout on their computers. A skeleton crew for the final issues did legwork for their final stories, but needed some decompression time before they felt up to writing them.

We laughed about press packets coming in from the American Accordionists’ Association on the day The Gazette folded.

I thought about how jarring it was to pull a plug on decades of being a community source of opinion and news large and small — the freshly shot graduation photos that might not get printed, letters to the editor that were close to publication after rounds of fact-checks and edits but won’t get there.

Shortly after the end was announced, I took a call from a mother who has wept each time she has called me the last few weeks, still grieving the sudden loss of her teenage son a decade ago. She wondered if the photos she submitted from a lacrosse game in his memory would get in this week’s edition. The shutdown of the paper gave her a new reason to be upset.

The community has lost a source of valuable dissemination of life’s bits and pieces — calendar listings, business briefs, people features, oodles of sports news and photos — as well as watchdog coverage of government and the school system, and an editorial voice.

Before I left the newsroom on Friday, I learned what a reporter staying on for the makeshift last edition was working on — a story about the death of 92-year-old Earle Hightower, who founded The Gazette in 1959.

Hightower died four days before his newspaper did. One of his relatives said it’s better that he’ll never know.

Emily Bloch was just plagiarized. So why is she smiling?

Because the 21-year-old college editor proved a local reporter copied her story, proved he had done the same to others, and stood up to the publisher who vaguely threatened to sue her.

That all happened last week. By Friday afternoon, the plagiarizing reporter was suspended and the publisher had announced an internal investigation.

Not bad for a week’s work.

Here’s what happened, and what we can learn from it…

Bloch is the newly elected editor of the student newspaper at Florida Atlantic University, and not long after she reported about a police investigation into a student rape off campus, she discovered The Boca Raton Tribune had done the same – lifting entire paragraphs from her story.

Her faculty adviser emailed the Tribune, politely asking for elaboration. No reply. A few days later, Bloch called but couldn’t get past the receptionist.

So being a journalist, Bloch investigated her plagiarist and – to no one’s surprise – learned he had done it before. His targets included not just a major regional daily but national sites like Wired and The Daily Beast.

Bloch wrote a column on the University Press website that began like this…

At FAU, if I get caught plagiarizing a paper, I’ll get an F. It would go on my transcript and on a repeat offense, I could get expelled. But if I do it at The Boca Raton Tribune, I’ll get a paycheck.

Ouch.

Bloch promoted her column on social media, and Poynter staff writer Ben Mullin tweeted it, as did best-selling author Jeff Pearlman to his 49,000 followers. A local website called Rise Miami News covered the story, quoting Bloch: “Copying and pasting whole paragraphs from my story is pretty ballsy.”

Not surprisingly, within hours of Bloch’s column going live, the publisher called her — to demand the story be spiked. She didn’t back down. The publisher called the newspaper’s faculty adviser and mentioned calling a lawyer. He didn’t back down.

By the time I spoke with the publisher Friday afternoon — because SPJ Florida and Region 3 like to spend money on lawyers defending journalists — he realized his threats weren’t budging his targets. So he announced the reporter was suspended and he was investigating.

“She brought up very good points,” the publisher told Rise Miami News. “We want to teach young people good journalism, and this is not the right way.”

Bloch did it the right way. Journalism can not only comfort the afflicted and afflict the comfortable, it can punish a plagiarizer.

KyCIR also won a second place award for Radio Investigative Reporting along with WFPL, Louisville’s NPR News Station, for a joint reporting project on a tiger exhibit in southern Indiana, “Oversight of Indiana Tiger Exhibit Big on Growl, Light on Teeth” by Kristina Goetz and Erin Keane. http://kycir.org/2014/11/12/oversight-of-indiana-tiger-exhibit-big-on-growl-light-on-teeth/

WFPL won another second place award for Radio Documentaries for the “At Risk” series by Devin Katayama. http://wfpl.org/bryan-risk/

The Green Eyeshade contest is open to journalists in 11 southeastern states: Alabama, Arkansas, Florida, Georgia, Kentucky, Louisiana, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, Tennessee and West Virginia.

The Green Eyeshade contest is hosted by “southerners” through SPJ. For more information see http://www.greeneyeshade.org/

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Students submitted entries in six areas: Newspapers, Magazines, Arts/Graphics, Radio, Television and Online.

Winners and finalists from Region 5 are:

General News Reporting, Large School Division. National Finalist: “When students die,” by Megan Jula, Indiana University.

Feature Writing, Large School Division. National Finalist: “Homeless or Not, he’s got the month of May,” by Elizabeth Greiwe, Loyola University of Chicago.

Sports Writing, Large School Division. National Finalist: “Northwestern’s LBGT athletes struggle to find their voices amid a lacking support system,” by Tyler Pager, Northwestern University.

General Column Writing, Small School Division. National Winner: “Marriage: Statehouse vs. steeples,” Jims Porter, Indiana University Southeast.

Best All-Around Non-Daily Student Newspaper. National Winner: The Loyola Phoenix, Loyola University.

Non-Fiction Magazine Article. National Finalist: “Dear Dolly,” by Jenna Fagan, Indiana University.

Sports Photography, Large School Division. National Winner: “Rozier steals and storms,” by Austin Lassell, University of Louisville.

Radio In-Depth Reporting. National Finalist: “Marijuana Birds-I-View,” by Tyler Bachman, Emily Pomorski and the QZND News Team, Illinois State University.

Television General News Reporting. National Finalist: “’Shake and Bake’ Changing the Face of the Local Meth Industry,” by Omar Jimenez, Northwestern University.

Television Feature Reporting. National Finalist: “GDD Wine Class,” by Nicole Suarez, DePaul University.

Television Sports Photography. National Finalist: “Warren East Practice,” by Daniel Blommel, Western Kentucky University.

Best All-Around Television Newscast. National Finalist: Northwestern News Report, Northwestern University.

Online News Reporting. National Finalist: “The Kenny ‘Zulu’ Whitmore Case,” by staff, Northwestern University.

Online Feature Reporting. National Finalist: “Dad’s bucket,” by Charles Scudder, Anna Teeter and Missy Wilson,  Indiana University.

Online Sports Reporting.  National Finalist: “For the love of baseball,” by Steven Goldstein, Northwestern  University.

For a look at all the winning photography and links to all winners, go to https://www.spj.org/moe14.asp

The list, released this week, includes:

• Breaking News Photography (small papers), finalist —  Silent witness, Karleigh Santry, Slippery Rock University.
• General News Photography (large papers), winner — Grand Haven community holds candlelight vigil for Trevor Howard,  Julie Angell, Michigan State University.
• Best Student Magazine, finalist — Backdrop magazine, Ohio University.
• Best All-Around Daily Student Newspaper, winner — The State News, Michigan State University.
• Best Digital-Only Student Publication, finalist — West Virginia Uncovered, Reed College of Media, West Virginia University.
• Online Opinion & Commentary, finalist — TV columns, Meryl Gottlieb, Ohio University.
• Radio News Reporting, winner — Greenworks employes ex-cons, Reem Nasr, University of Michigan.
• Television Breaking News Reporting, finalist — CMU protests Ferguson decision, Clayton Cummins, Central Michigan University.
• Television News and Feature Photography, finalist — There’s something happening here, Daniel Hamburg, Michigan State University.

SPJ posted the full list of winners on Monday.

Here is a recap of the April 18 national SPJ board meeting in Indianapolis. Not everyone has the time or patience to watch an hours-long meeting by livestream, but several of these topics will interest SPJ members.

Everything we discussed and voted on is part of a board packet with greater details on most topics.

1 – SPJ President Dana Neuts gave a report (p. 2 in the packet) on some of the things that have happened during her time in office or that are in the works. It’s worth a read. For example: the number of public statements SPJ has issued since improving its communications process, the number of communities (like chapters, but related to common interests) SPJ now has, translations of the new SPJ Code of Ethics into other languages and specific efforts to focus on diversity.

2 – An update on what SPJ is doing to improve its technology. It’s spelled out in a memo from the fall (p. 17) and an update memo from April (p. 58).

3 – SPJ is doing pretty well financially (an explanation by Executive Director Joe Skeel, with specifics, is on p. 21). The board unanimously approved a $1.18 million spending plan for fiscal year 2016 — up 9.7 percent from the current year. Revenue is expected to be $1.21 million, up 2 percent from the current year.

4 – Four new chapters were chartered (p. 36): American University in Bulgaria, University of Massachusetts, Nova Southeastern and California State Polytechnic University. That’s right – there is now an SPJ chapter in Bulgaria.  It joins two other SPJ international chapters — one in Qatar and one in the United Arab Emirates. There is also one virtual chapter – at Ashford University.

5 – The ballot is filling up for SPJ national offices. As it stands now, there will be a contested election for secretary-treasurer (p. 37), which is usually a stepping stone toward becoming president. [I plan to run again for Region 2 director. Anyone else who would like to run for this or any other office should email Sonny Albarado at salbarado@spj.org.]

6 – If you’re interested in a brief status report from the Sigma Delta Chi Foundation board: p. 38.

7 – For a status report from SPJ staff at headquarters: p. 40. Some highlights: SPJ is hiring new employees as we are hired to help run other journalism organizations (p. 42); SPJ has developed a good relationship with Google for training activities (p. 45); there will be more training to help delegates understand what happens at the national convention (p. 50).

8 – Why is SPJ’s national convention almost always in September? Executive Director Joe Skeel has laid out the various factors (p. 51). It’s hard to balance the competing interests, such as school calendars and the season for the best hotel rates. Skeel noted that certain cities fill the criteria we want (appeal, food options, geography, meeting space, airport proximity) much better than others. The board agreed to have HQ staff investigate options with higher room rates (i.e., $225 instead of $175). That might add places such as New York City back into the mix, adding benefits that could outweigh costs. Stay tuned.

9 – The staff looked into the idea of extending the postgraduate discount membership rate ($37.50 instead of $75 a year) from three years to four years (p. 54). There was no strong feeling either way, so the board left it alone.

10 – Speaking of communications… When should SPJ speak (p. 59)? Should we issue statements about the deaths of journalists? If they’re prominent? If they’re killed while working? Should we comment on acts of terrorism involving journalists or newsrooms? This was a lengthy, lively debate, but there were no clear answers. My suggestion was for us to start with one question: When can we make a difference? At other times, we can be part of the discussion through social media, which might serve the same purpose.

11 – And speaking of statements… SPJ’s First Amendment advocacy usually is limited to matters of a free press and sometimes free speech. But we ended up weighing in on a freedom of religion issue, with a statement, when Indiana passed its Religious Freedom Restoration Act. In this case, SPJ spoke as an Indiana entity and employer, stating our opposition to discrimination. (Read President Dana Neuts’ very transparent blog post about the internal SPJ debate and dissent.) This sparked more board discussion about when we should speak, and, in particular, how we should handle a comparable situation that might lie ahead. Louisiana has its own Religious Freedom Restoration Act in the works. This could become an SPJ matter again because our 2016 national convention will be in New Orleans. Also, the national board might meet there in the spring before the convention. Moving the convention could put SPJ out hundreds of thousands of dollars, which would hurt the organization greatly. But we are thinking of moving the board meeting, and telling leaders in Louisiana what we would do and why. Again, stay tuned.

12 – 41 percent of SPJ members have no representation in votes taken at the national convention. That’s because they don’t belong to chapters, which send delegates to vote on matters such as the SPJ Code of Ethics update last year or bylaws changes, or the occasional other weighty topic, such as whether to stop giving a Helen Thomas Lifetime Achievement Award. In 2012, the system changed to allow all SPJ members to vote on elections for national officers, but the system has not changed on business items – which are difficult to put out to vote in advance, since they are often amended on the floor. Anyway, a committee (including me) is going to look at how to address the imbalance (p. 62). Feedback on this thorny issue is welcome.

13 – The national board agreed to add $30,000 into a new advocacy (“Legal Offense”) fund (p. 69).

14 – As mentioned above, a new policy says that convention delegates will get more training. It also sets guidelines for transparency in convention business and election. For example, vote totals must be given after a vote, which didn’t always happen (p. 75).

15 – Another contentious topic was whether to change the procedure for selecting the Wells Memorial Key, SPJ’s highest honor. A committee recommended giving the full 23-member national board the final say, but past winners and some other opponents objected. A compromise is that it will become a function of the Executive Committee (with seven members), rather than just the officers (five people). Also, the full board will get the list of nominees to review each year, as well as a running list of 10 years’ worth of nominations. Part of the debate was about how to broaden the pool of nominations and honor diversity. The full board will decide the winners of other SPJ awards. (p. 76)

That’s not a full account of the meeting, but it’s pretty close. Also check out President Neuts’ more timely and concise recap.

Meet the best college journalists in the South.

They’re the 2014 winners of the College Top 10, a unique journalism contest run by SPJ’s Green Eyeshade Awards – itself a unique contest.

For more than 60 years, the Green Eyeshades has recognized the best pro media work in the southern United States. It’s one of the oldest regional journalism contests in the nation.

Instead of simply rewarding one good story on one particular topic, the Green Eyeshades sought the best students who were consistently good at one thing. They had to submit multiple pieces on a single subject.

Alas, this year’s entries were terrible, except for a handful. Below are those few.

The judges didn’t declare winners in half the categories: design, movies, music, science, and sports. Why? Because nearly all the entries were solid and safe and just good enough. And that’s not what this contest is about – nor is “solid and safe” how you pursue a fulfilling career. Unless, of course, you want to work for 40 years to be “just good enough.”

Here are the winners who rebelled to excel…

Best Student Government reporter: Dylan Bouscher

Judging comment: This was tough: Reward one of the reporters who quite capably and incrementally covered SGA but never took a risk? Or recognize the only reporter who shot for the moon and hit the target, albeit with a glancing blow? Dylan Bouscher was the only entrant to feature video, which is novel because SGA is not a beat that lends itself to alluring B roll. The results were as good as one could reasonably expect. As for content, Bouscher tried mightily to explain complex topics, not always successfully. But he’s a reacher, and he’ll eventually eclipse his peers who are too timid to fail – and thus will never learn and excel.

Boucher’s comment: Growing up, I hated being told no. Once I started covering Florida Atlantic University’s Student Government and administration, that changed. Being told no to interview and records requests, from students and administrators whose paychecks I helped fund, only unleashed my passion and curiosity for watchdog reporting further. But my best stories didn’t result from hostility. They came from leveling with people: students and classmates trusting me to be human about the corruption and mismanagement. Doing that made working for the student newspaper by far the most fun and enlightening aspect of my college experience.

Best photographer: Max Jackson

Judging comment: I judged this category last year and had the same problems this year: Great photogs who shoot the same darn thing everyday. Attention next year’s applicants: Take a hint from Jackson. He sent in a perfectly passable (no pun intended) pic of a quarterback looking downfield, but he also submitted a moving portrait of a dwarf at a medical marijuana debate – not your typical assignment. His third photo was the opposite – the school’s mascot with a bunch of kids. That’s usually a shoot and scoot, but Jackson captures a great moment, and his technical skills are beyond dispute.

Jackson’s comment: One of the most rewarding aspects of photography is that ability to capture a moment in time that will never occur quite the same way again, which I think many photographers would agree with. Each time I pick up my camera there is no certainty of what I will capture, whether it is the winning touchdown, or getting the perfect golden hour.  On the other side of that, is the knowledge that you need to “nail this shot” because there are no reshoots in live action photography. This passion I have developed, almost an addiction, has and continues to take me places that I never could have imagined the first time I held a DSLR.

Best feature writer: Hannah Jeffrey

Judging comment: A surprisingly strong category – and from what I hear from other judges, the only one. The winner in this close race was Jeffrey, and not for any major philosophical reason like the other category judges have remarked. It’s simply that Jeffrey did the best across the board: She found fascinating people, got them to talk like normal people, and wrote about them for all people. It’s also interesting how she keeps her articles short and punchy, using subheads to great effect and generally eschewing the feature writer’s penchant for look-at-me composition and length. A humble feature writer!

Jeffrey’s comment: I’d argue features are the most satisfying yet most difficult kind of stories to write. Your reporting has to be thorough and extensive or else you won’t get the whole story — the feature interviews I’ve done that stick out have lasted a a few hours, at least. But features are all about picking out the good stuff, giving some color and making people care. You could hear a story, think “that’s a great story” and move on. But if it’s a really great story, it deserves details and attention.

Best administration reporter: Roberto Roldan

Judging comment: A disappointing category doesn’t mean the winner is disappointing. Roldan is unafraid to take on administrators, whether it’s questioning how they hide tuition hikes or hide expenditures behind “direct support organizations.” Roldan does a yeoman’s job explaining complex topics without oversimplifying or sensationalizing. Other entries in this category tackled big and important topics, but they failed in the execution: lacking clear narratives with impenetrable background. It’s not the reporting that’s so hard in government reporting, it’s the explanation – the why should I care? Roldan simply answers that question better than his peers.

Roldan’s comment: As journalists we talk a lot about holding those in power accountable, but a lot of times we relegate our time to stories that are safe, don’t piss people off and are quick turn around for the 24/7 news cycle. Most of my stories that dealt with issues of transparency and accountability in student government and university offices fell on deaf ears (so it goes), but one or two stories caused administrators to make measurable changes toward increased transparency — the ultimate reward for good journalism.

Best columnist: Cassidy Alexander

Judging comment: Too many columnists are timid, both in topic and tone. Alexander is willing to mock a city council president (for his objection to a nude picture in a contemporary art museum) and riffing of her school’s attempt to create traditions. (“The university seems to have missed a very important point – a tradition is not something you can just compose into a list and announce at a party.”) She’s also willing to build from there, adding creative thinking to breezy writing.

Alexander’s comment: I see columns as opportunities to interpret the news for an audience that doesn’t always have the time or the background knowledge to do it for themselves. Bad things happen every day when people don’t understand what’s going on. It’s my responsibility to my audience to make things as clear as possible for them, no matter how daunting the topic is. When I’m mad about something and my writing makes someone else angry too, I’ve done my job. That’s what change happens.

Think you can do better? Enter the College Top 10 next year and prove it. Questions? Email me.

That fellowship is becoming a reality thanks to a generous grant from the Sigma Delta Chi Foundation.

I am thrilled to announce the SPJ Region 7 Fellowship will launch in summer 2016.

Fellowship recipients will help with the daily journalism tasks of two nonprofit news organizations (either the Iowa Center for Public Affairs Journalism, based at the University of Iowa in Iowa City, Iowa, or Omaha Public Radio, based in Omaha, Nebraska). They will also work on larger capstone projects to be published at his/her host news organization’s discretion.

After the fellowship’s summer portion has ended, recipients will present sessions at the most convenient SPJ spring regional conference in 2017.

Thanks to a grant from the Sigma Delta Chi Foundation, the fellowships will include a stipend of $1,333.33 per month and funds for recipients to use for travel to present SPJ Spring regional conference sessions.

Our selection committee, composed of SPJ professionals from across the country, will choose two fellows who live in Region 7 or are students at/recent graduates of a university within the region. We’ll place one fellow at each organization for three months — beginning in mid-May 2016.

Fellows will meet weekly to discuss their capstone progress. These meetings will also serve as a brown-bag discussion series with journalism professionals to discuss the state of media, answer questions about the news business and more.

The organizing committee established four criteria for eligibility…

• Fellows must be enrolled in or have graduated from an accredited university within Region 7 (Missouri, Iowa, Nebraska and Kansas) or be resident of a state within the region studying or have graduated from an accredited university outside Region 7.
• Students who have earned or are earning undergraduate degrees AND graduate degrees will be considered.
• Fellows must be members of the Society of Professional Journalists and in good standing with the organization. Applicants’ SPJ membership numbers from the national office will be required on the application form.
• Fellow applicants who have graduated from their institution will be considered up to 18 months after commencement.

Applications and additional details will become available in the fall. Look for more information soon! Until then, feel free to email me any questions you have about the fellowship.

This fellowship would not be possible without the support of the Sigma Delta Chi Foundation. Visit SPJ.org to learn more about how you can support the foundation.

First, we held a successful regional conference at Hofstra University. Hats off to the Press Club of Long Island and its conference committee for all of their hard work.

We announced the Mark of Excellence Awards winners and celebrated the best in collegiate journalism in Region 1.

We were represented at the SPJ national board meeting in Indianapolis and at the SDX Foundation board meeting by Region 1 Director Rebecca Baker.

We started planning for JournCamp, a day-long journalism training seminar in Midtown Manhattan on Saturday, June 13.

We marked our calendars for Excellence in Journalism 2015 in Orlando, Florida.

And finally, we learned that we are #1. At just over 1,300 members, Region 1 is the largest region in SPJ. Nearly 1 out of 6 SPJ members lives in the Northeast U.S., which as we know, has more major media outlets than any other part of the country.

Let’s get together in NYC this June and/or in Orlando this September and toast to our success!

This past weekend was our regional conference and the national board meeting. Most of you headed to San Francisco for a super weekend of programs and networking and that amazing San Francisco food. I went to Indianapolis for the full-day board meeting and a lot of Starbucks. Sad face emoji. I wish I could have been in both places at once. Below are some of the highlights from both events, and here again are all the winners from the Region 11 Mark of Excellence college journalism awards.

First, a HUGE thank you to SPJ NorCal for putting on such an amazing conference, to the San Francisco Chronicle’s Audrey Cooper and KQED’s Holly Kernan for a terrific keynote conversation and to all the panelists and attendees for creating such energy in each session. And a HUGE thank you to SPJ President Dana Neuts and the national board for a thoughtful day of deliberation and progress in the name of journalism. And for drinks after.

Here are a few scenes from the regional conference, courtesy of Twitter.

No wait. That last one’s not right…

Now here are eight things you should know.

1) Our regional leaders’ meeting in San Francisco had representation from San Diego, San Francisco, Los Angeles, Phoenix, Las Vegas and the Sacramento State student chapter. Part of the discussion was that San Quentin (!) wants to start a chapter. This prompted some jokes about lifetime SPJ membership and the Society of Prison Journalists, but all kidding aside, I was happy to hear the prisoners are occupying their time by exploring our industry. More info on that as it develops.

2) There is interest in a regular presidents’ conference call or better yet Skype conversation. I’ll try to start that in May. Our likely first order of business will be discussing how and when SPJ chooses annual convention cities. Our lineup the next three years is Orlando for EIJ15, New Orleans for EIJ16 and Anaheim for EIJ17. Future sites have yet to be chosen but the board directed staff in Indianapolis this weekend to broaden its search criteria to include host cities with hotel room rates of up to $250 or $260 a night and to continue moving the convention around the country. The thought behind the increased room rates is that bigger cities, even at greater costs, might attract more convention-goers and a wider, more electric mix of panelists. The board stressed that since a third of our national conference attendees are students, there must be an effort to control costs and pick dates that work best for students (i.e. not summer or early September.) Because of TV sweeps months, Jewish holidays and factors such as the timing of  regional conferences and chapter awards banquets, our national conventions will likely continue to be held in mid- to late September, but staff is exploring options there, too. I’d like to hear from each chapter — and unaffiliated Region 11 members — about preferences for convention cities, room rates, times and more. So let’s discuss that in our first president’s conversation. SPJ staff expects to make a recommendation for EIJ2018 prior to our convention in Orlando in September so I figured it’s best not to wait to discuss it. [Another great idea: Register for that convention now! It takes place Sept. 18-20. And it’s going to be awesome.]

3) Speaking of unaffiliated members, the board directed SPJ president-elect Paul Fletcher to explore how to give the 41 percent of our members nationally who are not in chapters a stronger voice at the annual convention and throughout the year. (Coincidentally, Region 11 also breaks down 59 percent chapter members and 41 percent unaffiliated members.) Fletcher is forming a task force and will examine a range of options on how to address this issue. Speaking of chapters, please join me in welcoming Region 11’s newest: the student chapter at California State Polytechnic University, which the SPJ board added this weekend.

4)  Looking ahead, the Valley of the Sun chapter in Phoenix is already planning NEXT YEAR’S regional conference. The board has dates picked out (April 1-2, 2016), a likely venue (the Heard Museum, on light rail with its own stop from the airport and plenty of hotels within walking/rail distance!) and half the programming plotted out already. Nice work, Phoenix! Looking further ahead, Las Vegas is the likely location for the 2017 regional conference and San Diego is gearing up to host the 2018 gathering. Great planning, everyone. You have your work cut out for you to top the excellent effort that San Francisco put into planning and throwing such a great party.

5) The names of some candidates for the next SPJ board cycle were announced in Indianapolis. New candidates have until about a week before EIJ15 to announce their candidacy. So far, there are only two contested elections (secretary-treasurer and at-large director). Yes, I intend on running again, but I encourage anyone interested in being a candidate to contact Sonny Albarado, past president of SPJ and this year’s nominations chair, or click here for more info.

6) Chapter grants, which SPJ has doled out in the past (in our region, for instance, to Phoenix and Hawaii), are changing. The good news is the regional directors have $1,000 for chapter grants (so if you have a great program you believe would benefit from a cash infusion, please email me the details and your pitch). But the bad news is that conventional chapter grants were removed from the FY2016 budget because of staff concerns they were difficult to manage and too few chapters made requests. I tried to get the regional directors to advocate for retaining them at a regional directors meeting Saturday, but the suggestion didn’t catch on because other directors figured we should see how requests (and awards) go for the pot of money we control. So apply today!

7) SPJ updated and expanded its job bank! Good luck finding work, if you’re looking!

8) For more about the national board meeting, please read SPJ President Dana Neuts’ thorough recap. Of note in Dana’s post is this section about our 2016 national convention destination:

The board discussed how to handle the proposed Marriage & Conscience Act now in committee in Louisiana. The board will send a letter to the Louisiana legislature citing its concern about the bill which addresses religious and moral beliefs, unlike other religious freedom legislation being considered in other states. Our hope is that the bill will be defeated. If not, SPJ will have to reconsider hosting its 2016 spring board meeting, and SPJ and its partner RTDNA will have to discuss the implications for EIJ16, both scheduled for New Orleans next year. President-elect Paul Fletcher and secretary-treasurer Lynn Walsh will work on the letter to the legislature and share it with the board for input by the end of this month. We will also share it with RTDNA, and they will vote on whether or not they wish to sign the letter as well.

Board member Bill McCloskey noted at the national board meeting that the Louisiana Legislature’s final day of the session is in June so we’ll know before too long the bill’s fate.

That’s a wrap. Go out and do good work.

Each year, the MOE Awards honor the best of collegiate journalism around the country and in Region 11, from Arizona, California, Nevada and Hawaii.

Honorees received their award certificates on Saturday morning at the Region 11 Spring Conference in San Francisco. I’m in Indianapolis for Saturday’s national SPJ board meeting (and will report back to you soon on both it and our spring conference) so I missed the MOE ceremony. But I asked the emcee to read the following remarks on my behalf:

I’m sorry I couldn’t be here to congratulate each and every one of you in person, so please accept my deep appreciation not only for joining SPJ this weekend to celebrate all this excellent reporting but also for jumping into journalism in the first place, for joining what David Carr, our great media critic and champion, called our “grand, grand caper.”

This weekend is a celebration FOR journalists, but also OF journalists, of those at this conference and those who cannot be. Think of The New York Times’ David Carr and other journalists we lost this year. Think of The Washington Post’s Jason Rezaian, jailed in Tehran since July, and other reporters held against their will. Think of those on foreign soil and those reporting for duty in Arizona, Nevada, California and Hawaii.

“Being a journalist, I never feel bad talking to journalism students because it’s a grand, grand caper,” Carr’s quote goes. “You get to leave, go talk to strangers, ask them anything, come back, type up their stories, edit the tape. That’s not gonna retire your loans as quickly as it should, and it’s not going to turn you into a person who’s worried about what kind of car they should buy, but that’s kind of as it should be. I mean, it beats working.”

Carr’s right, of course. It does. So have fun this weekend. Celebrate your good work, then go do more of it. Congratulations, one and all.

The first-place winners named in San Francisco will move on to the national MOE competition among the 12 SPJ regions. National winners will be notified in the late spring and will be recognized at Excellence in Journalism 2015 (EIJ15) in Orlando, Florida, Sept. 18 to 20. (Yes, you can register now for that conference.)

Entries were judged by professionals with at least three years of journalism experience.

Please direct any MOE Awards questions to Awards Coordinator Abbi Martzall: awards@spj.org, and 317-920-4791.

Note: The following list reflects the spelling and titles submitted in the award-entry process.

Art / Graphics

Breaking News Photography (Large) 10,000+ Students

Winner: Stenner street standoff – by Morgan Butler, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo

Finalist: UC students protest tuition increase – by Stephen De Ropp, University of California, Santa Cruz

Finalist: Businesses, community members respond to passage of religious service refusal bill – by Connor Radnovich, ASU Walter Cronkite School of Journalism

Breaking News Photography (Small) 1-9,999 Students

Winner: Students protest police brutality – by Max Westerman, Santa Clara University

Finalist: Clay promises consistent policy enforcement – by Jeremy Bloom, Occidental College

Editorial Cartooning

Winner: Distrust among faculty and administration deepens – by Anthony Mata, City College of San Francisco

Finalist: Really metro, Not again; Smokers light up off campus; Dream weaver – by Jose Tobar, Los Angeles City College

Feature Photography (Large) 10,000+ Students

Winner: Wake of the storm – by Neil Bedi, UCLA

Finalist: Camp Texas – by Jim Tuttle, ASU Walter Cronkite School of Journalism

Finalist: A story of ALS – by Connor Radnovich, ASU Walter Cronkite School of Journalism

General News Photography (Large) 10,000+ Students

Winner: Church members pray for Liberia’s healing from Ebola – by Jessica Wardarski, ASU Walter Cronkite School of Journalism

Finalist: Test of strength – by Brandon Choe, UCLA

General News Photography (Small) 1-9,999 Students

Winner: Obama declares part of San Gabriel Mountains a national monument – by Helen Arase, University of La Verne

Finalist: Dalai Lama Makes Historical Appearance – by Malu Veltze, Santa Clara University

Photo Illustration (Large) 10,000+ Students

Winner: Net neutrality – by Megan Heddinger, Joseph Pack, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo

Finalist: Breaking the silence – by Julien Brundrett, Erin Ng, Tim Bradbury, UCLA

Photo Illustration (Small) 1-9,999 Students

Winner: ASU State Press – Photo Illustration – by Alexis Macklin, Arizona State University

Finalist: Santa Clara will clear the air – by Malu Veltze; Vishakha Joshi, Santa Clara University

Sports Photography (Large) 10,000+ Students

Winner: Shaquielle McKissic’s double-double powers ASU men’s basketball past Pepperdine – by Ben Moffat, ASU Walter Cronkite School of Journalism

Finalist: Cold Water Classic – by Stephen De Ropp, University of California, Santa Cruz

Finalist: Sacked for Territorial Cup – by Rebecca Sasnett, University of Arizona

Sports Photography (Small) 1-9,999 Students

Winner: Leopards lose third straight game – by Helen Arase, University of La Verne

Magazines

Best Student Magazine

Winner: Brink – by Alana Levinson, Erica Hellerstein, and Carly Nairn, University of California at Berkeley

Finalist: TUSK Magazine – by Arnold Holland / Jeff Brody, CSU Fullerton

Finalist: The Osprey – by The Osprey, Humboldt State University

Non-Fiction Magazine Article

Winner: Fever of unknown origin – by Brittany Patterson, University of California at Berkeley

Finalist: The Call of the wild – by Carly Nairn, University of California at Berkeley

Finalist: Chosen – by Erica Hellerstein, University of California at Berkeley

Newspapers

Best All-Around Daily Student Newspaper

Winner: March 3, Oct. 9, Dec. 5 issues – by Daily Bruin staff, UCLA

Finalist: Daily Titan – by Staff, Cal State Fullerton

Finalist: The Daily Californian – by Staff, University of California, Berkeley

Best All-Around Non Daily Student Newspaper

Winner: Three Occidental Weekly issues – by Staff, Occidental College

Finalist: The Lumberjack – by The Lumberjack, Humboldt State University

Finalist: City on a Hill Press – by City on a Hill Press staff, University of California, Santa Cruz

Breaking News Reporting (Large) 10,000+ Students

Winner: Wildcat clash with police officers – by Staff of The Daily Wildcat, University of Arizona

Finalist: Black Student Union members encounter racism – by JoshuOne Barnes, Santa Rosa Junior College

Finalist: UC Regents Committee approves tuition increase – by Samantha Hamilton, Pamela Avila, Susana Alvarez, University of California, Santa Cruz

Breaking News Reporting (Small) 1-9,999 Students

Winner: Allies, trustees clash over college policy – by Juliet Suess, Occidental College

Finalist: Race too close to call – by Collin Baker, Santa Clara University

Editorial Writing

Winner: Students deserve a voice – by Nathan Quast, Santa Rosa Junior College

Finalist: ASU State Press – Editorial Writing – by State Press Editorial Board, Arizona State University

Finalist: Daily Bruin editorial board – by Daily Bruin editorial board, UCLA

Feature Writing (Large) 10,000+ Students

Winner: UCLA, student groups combat sexual assault – by Kate Parkinson-Morgan, UCLA

Finalist: Coming up for air – by Elizabeth Case, UCLA

Finalist: Beyond stereotypes: Homeless yet hopeful in Sonoma County – by Julie Lee, Nate Voge, Jeanine Flaton-Buckley and Estefany Gonzales, Santa Rosa Junior College

Feature Writing (Small) 1-9,999 Students

Winner: Demystifying disabilities – by Mariela Patron, University of La Verne

Finalist: Eating disorders: It’s more than just the food – by Katie Callahan, Point Loma Nazarene University

Finalist: ‘A Midsummer Night’s Dream’ opens in Warehouse Theater – by Maureen Wolff, Azusa Pacific University

General Column Writing (Large) 10,000+ Students

Winner: Americans influenced more by YA; #getoverit; Ruined by emails – by Trey Ross, University of Arizona

Finalist: Conflict of interest, academic freedom and culture of litigation – by Eitan Arom, UCLA

Finalist: Know justice, Know peace – by Salina Nasir, Cal Poly Pomona

General Column Writing (Small) 1-9,999 Students

Winner: Back to Black – by Marissa Black, Azusa Pacific University

Finalist: No rest; Hero; Halo – by Will Westwater, Occidental College

General News Reporting (Large) 10,000+ Students

Winner: Facing a waning future – by Virgie Hoban, University of California, Berkeley

Finalist: Research keys on building stockpiles of organs – by Patrick O’Connor, University of Arizona School of Journalism

Finalist: Students seek clarity, closure in student-professor relationship investigations – by Nicholas Palomino Mendoza, ASU Walter Cronkite School of Journalism

General News Reporting (Small) 1-9,999 Students

Winner: Looking mental illness straight in the eye – by Katie Callahan, Point Loma Nazarene University

Finalist: Housing law faces student opposition – by Mallory Miller, Santa Clara University

Finalist: Adjunct faculty unionization coverage – by Mariela Patron, Kristina Bugante, University of La Verne

In-Depth Reporting (Large) 10,000+ Students

Winner: Wake of the storm – by Katie Shepherd, UCLA

Finalist: Love thy sister – by Sara Grossman, University of California, Berkeley

Finalist: Central American minors pushed north by poverty, violence, hopes for refuge – by Emilie Eaton, ASU Walter Cronkite School of Journalism

In-Depth Reporting (Small) 1-9,999 Students

Winner: The courage to heal – by Katie Madden, University of La Verne

Sports Column Writing

Winner: Bo knows – by Kevin Bowman, UCLA

Finalist: NFL’s moral battle; NCAA; NBA’s gamble – by Joe Siegal, Occidental College

Finalist: Anaheim a cursed city ; Wildcats scratch and claw ; Arizona’s win over Oregon – by James Kelley, university of arizona

Sports Writing (Large) 10,000+ Students

Winner: Phoenix-area golf courses continue to struggle – by Kristen Hwang, ASU Walter Cronkite School of Journalism

Finalist: Athletic trainer finds lifelong friend and “Coach” at UCLA – by Andrew Erickson, UCLA

Finalist: Coaches and companions – by Aubrey Yeo, UCLA

Sports Writing (Small) 1-9,999 Students

Winner: Hoops program continues run of mediocrity – by Brendan Weber, Santa Clara University

Finalist: McFeely journeys from Ireland to Eagle Rock – by Margaret Su, Occidental College

Finalist: Constructing a program from the ground up – by Katie Richcreek, Azusa Pacific University

Online

Best Affiliated Web Site

Winner: MustangNews.net – by Mustang News, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo

Finalist: Lomabeat.com excels in student-generated content – by Loma Beat staff, The Point staff, Point Loma Nazarene University

Finalist: Spectrum – by Daily Bruin Photo staff, UCLA

Best Digital-Only Student Publication

Winner: The State Press – Best Digital-Only Publication – by Danielle Grobmeier, Julia Shumway, Sean Logan, Arizona State University

Finalist: Gun Wars – by News21 staff, ASU Walter Cronkite School of Journalism

Finalist: Scientific Tucsonan – by Scientific Tucsonan, University of Arizona School of Journalism

Best Independent Online Student Publication

Winner: The Downtown Devil – by Downtown Devil staff, ASU Walter Cronkite School of Journalism

Finalist: Intersections South LA – by Intersections South LA, University of Southern California

Best Use of Multimedia

Winner: Coming up for air – by Elizabeth Case, Lexy Atmore, Ryan Hansberry, Connie Chiou, UCLA

Finalist: Gun wars – by News21 staff, ASU Walter Cronkite School of Journalism

Finalist: Leimert Park’s Third Renaissance – by Intersections South LA, University of Southern California

Online Feature Reporting

Winner: A way of Life – by Laura Sposato and Yihyun Jeong, Arizona State University

Finalist: Midwives combine tradition and science to curb maternal deaths in Chiapas – by Lauren Loftus and Alex Lancial, ASU Walter Cronkite School of Journalism

Finalist: Stories heard around the world – by Bianca Broszus, UCLA

Online In-Depth Reporting

Winner: Arizona’s water future – by Cronkite News, ASU Walter Cronkite School of Journalism

Finalist: Downwind – by Jessica Boehm, Arizona State University

Finalist: Women emerge as a forceful voice in the business of defending firearms – by Lauren Loftus & Natalie Krebs , ASU Walter Cronkite School of Journalism

Online News Reporting

Winner: Rare illness in California afflicts children with Polio-like symptoms – by Jake Nicol Sally Schilling, Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism

Finalist: Department of Defense military gear in Arizona – by Emilie Eaton, Camaron Stevenson, , ASU Walter Cronkite School of Journalism

Finalist: Crisis in El Bordo: Record number of deportations contribute to homeless influx in Tijuana Canal – by Cyrus Saatsaz, San Diego State University

View/Edit Results & Comments

Online Opinion & Commentary

Winner: From the Editor’s Desk – by Francesca Bessey, Will Federman, University of Southern California

Finalist: Theatrical and film commentary – by David Dixon, San Diego State Universtiy

Finalist: The Curtain Critic – by Molly Bilker, Julie Akerly, Faith Miller, ASU Walter Cronkite School of Journalism

Online Sports Reporting

Winner: Lost in the lights – by Jacob Lauing, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo

Finalist: Team manager series – by Daily Bruin staff, UCLA

Finalist: Landon’s last stand: The Final Home Game – by Paolo Uggetti, University of Southern California

Radio Broadcast

Best All-Around Radio Newscast

Winner: ARN Live Show – November 5, 2014 – by Carrie Poppy, Camile Requiestas, Victor Figueroa, Andy Vasoyan, University of Southern California

Finalist: Long Story Short – by Jonaki Mehta, Chirag Govardhan, UCLA

Finalist: The Evening Update – by KCSN News Staff, California State University-Northridge

Radio Feature

Winner: Me, my dad and Marvin Gaye – by Sarah Zahedi, University of Southern California

Finalist: Carl the bartender keeps Santa Monica laughing – by Victor Figueroa, University of Southern California

Finalist: Divided love: a nanny’s story – by Bryony Inge, University of Southern California

Radio In-Depth Reporting

Winner: Bad apps target smartphone users – by Peter Haden, Arizona State University

Finalist: Hash tag yes all women – by Daniel Max, California State University-Northridge

Finalist: College graduate career options – by Samantha Benitz, California State University-Northridge

Radio News Reporting

Winner: LAFD aims to recruit more women firefighters – by Sarah Zahedi, University of Southern California

Finalist: Young musicians prepare for ‘World Series of High School Bands’ – by Mariana Dale, University of Arizona School of Journalism

Finalist: The high cost of inmate phone calls – by Sukey Lewis, University of California Berkeley

Radio Sports Reporting

Winner: Race fans flock for the ‘Almost-Crashes’ – by Peter Haden, Arizona State University

Finalist: How draft insurance is changing college football – by Matt Levin, University of Southern California

Finalist: Coaches’ friendship transcends the playing field – by Rebecca Rankin, UCLA

Television Broadcast

Best All-Around Television Newscast

Winner: Cronkite News – by Kelsey Tardio, Brittany Ducksworth, ASU Walter Cronkite School of Journalism

Finalist: Valley View News – by Valley View News, California State University, Northridge

Finalist: ATVN Broadcast – by Faith Miller, Hannah Button, Christina Schoellkopf and Andrea Edoria, University of Southern California

Television Breaking News Reporting

Winner: Record rainfall in the desert – by Megan Thompson, ASU Walter Cronkite School of Journalism

Finalist: Secret Service director gets grilled – by Brittany Bade, ASU Walter Cronkite School of Journalism

Finalist: Same-sex marriage now legal in Arizona – by Mackenzie Scott , ASU Walter Cronkite School of Journalism

Television Feature Reporting

Winner: Broadway blues – by Rachel Witte, UC Berkeley

Finalist: Harrison McIntosh – by Christian Reina, Scott Feuerhelm, Armando Tapia, University of La Verne

Finalist: Armless athlete rides in El Tour de Tucson – by Megan Guthrie, ASU Walter Cronkite School of Journalism

Television General News Reporting

Winner: Mesa Police Body Camera – by Tara Molina, Arizona State University

Finalist: Airport pollution – by Hector Mejia, California State University, Northridge

Finalist: Investigation: Prescription pills can be gateway drug to heroin addiction – by Vivian Padilla, ASU Walter Cronkite School of Journalism

Television In-Depth Reporting

Winner: Arizona’s water future – by Vondalynn Dias, ASU Walter Cronkite School of Journalism

Finalist: Depression: The hidden struggle – by Jetske Wauran, University of La Verne

Finalist: Maxlove – by Eldrin Masangkay, Francesca Manto, UCLA

Television News and Feature Photography

Winner: Depression: The hidden struggle – by Jetske Wauran, University of La Verne

Finalist: Backyard Bike Shop- by Shayne Dwyer, Arizona State University

Finalist: Local dairy takes a page from the past for future products – by Megan Thompson, ASU Walter Cronkite School of Journalism

Television Sports Photography

Winner: The greener golf ball – by Kari Osep, ASU Walter Cronkite School of Journalism

Finalist: Witt twins – by Robby Baker, ASU Walter Cronkite School of Journalism

Television Sports Reporting

Winner: Concussions: It’s a girl thing, too – by Kari Osep, ASU Walter Cronkite School of Journalism

Finalist: Cal Poly pitcher’s love of the outdoors goes beyond the diamond – by Lisa Diaz, Cal Poly San Luis Obispo

Finalist: Phoenix sports Mecca – by Arianna Grainey, Arizona State University

1 – There will be five Ted Scripps Leadership Institute sessions in SPJ’s next fiscal year (p. 24). The places and dates haven’t been announced yet, other than: Region 10 in July, Region 5 in August and Region 6 in November.

2 – SPJ expects to have a $1.2 million budget for the coming year (p. 25).

3 – There are four new chapters seeking to be chartered, including American University in Bulgaria (p. 36). Only one chapter is being considered for inactivation (the number might grow when this year’s annual reports come in – or don’t come in).

4 – At least 14 people have committed to run for positions on the national board – including two for secretary/treasurer (p. 37). A few others who are considering running are named here, too. [Editor’s note: I am planning to run for re-election as Region 2 director. If anyone who would like to run for that or any other national SPJ position, contact Nominations Committee Chairman Sonny Albarado at salbarado@spj.org.]

5 – The Sigma Delta Chi Foundation had $12.3 million in holdings as of Jan. 31, 2015 (p. 38). Also, SPJ and SDX are working on a transition of a new division of duties and responsibilities.

6 – Did you know SPJ is helping to manage other journalism associations? Read the list. (p. 42) SPJ Executive Director Joe Skeel says this “further cement[s] SPJ’s role in the journalism landscape: to be the ‘umbrella’ organization that helps other groups better reach their mission.”

7 – SPJ and other journalism organizations are talking about ways to make it easy for people to join multiple groups at once (p. 43).

8 – The next SPJ JournCamp – a day of professional training – will be June 13 in New York City (p. 45). Other cities being considered: San Francisco, Seattle, Denver, Houston or Dallas, New Orleans and Boston.

9 – “Since September, SPJ has distributed 48 news releases and statements…. The topics that have garnered the most traditional and social media attention are SPJ’s statement on the Charlie Hebdo attack; our statement and other Tweets regarding the FOI Improvement Act; our statement regarding the Columbia Journalism Review’s Rolling Stone report; and our statements regarding Indiana Gov. Mike Pence’s attempt at creating a state-run news service.” (p. 46)

10 – For the first time, SPJ collaborated with several other journalism organizations in judging SPJ’s New America Award. Our partners included: the Asian American Journalists Association, Radio Television Digital News Association, the National Association of Black Journalists, the Native American Journalists Association and National Association of Hispanic Journalists (p. 48).

11 – There will be a stronger effort this year to train delegates to the national convention, so they’re familiar with procedures and protocol (p. 50).

12 – Why is the national convention in September every year? It’s complicated – but not mandatory (p. 51).

13 – The post-graduate membership rate is available for three years. There is talk of extending it to four (p. 54).

14 – SPJ now has five communities, which are groups related by a common thread, other than geography (p. 56).

15 – When should SPJ issue a statement about the death of a journalist? (p. 59)

16 – About 41 percent of SPJ’s members do not belong to a chapter (including 38 percent in Region 2), which means they aren’t represented by a delegate on business matters at the national convention. A group is going to look at ways of giving that 41 percent representation. Again, it’s complex and there are no easy answers (p. 62).

17 – The pro/student membership breakdown for Region 2 is 597 pro (78 percent) and 172 student (22 percent). The largest chapter in the region is Washington, D.C., Pro, with 146 members (p. 67).

18 – The method for deciding on SPJ awards (Distinguished Teaching, Ethics, Fellows of the Society, and others) might change this year (p. 76).

19 – The SPJ Awards and Honors Committee studied whether any SDX awards given to NBC Nightly News with Brian Williams should be revoked, in light of his six-month suspension (p. 103)

20 – The SPJ Diversity Committee is working on a way to pay tribute to former SPJ President Reggie Stuart through a minority management training program (p. 111).

21 – The SPJ Ethics Committee and the International Community have worked together to translate the new SPJ Code of Ethics into several foreign languages (p. 112).

22 – Since November, the SPJ Legal Defense Fund Committee has considered six cases of legal action, but didn’t award any grants (p. 121).

23 – The SPJ Student Community is gathering information and feedback about internships, which are becoming rarer because of concerns about labor law (p. 123).

In a statement sent to SPJ, the student members said:

As student-members of the Board of Directors of the North Wind at
Northern Michigan University, we feel the need to share our collective
view of the current controversy.

The Board:
The North Wind Board of Directors is a student-led board.  As students
we volunteer our time and serve as the board chair, vice-chair,
secretary, parliamentarian, and board member. We are joined by a faculty
member, a community member, a journalistic advisor and a financial
adviser from the administration. We are not an advisory board. Our role
is to publish and distribute the North Wind. Our decisions and votes
matter.

We strongly affirm the Bylaws of the North Wind Board of Directors: “The
Board recognizes the prerogatives of the editor in regard to the design
and content of the newspaper and the selection of editorial staff, the
Board shall ensure that the newspaper provides adequately for timely and
accurate coverage of campus issues, problems, events and activities.”

The Controversy:
We are not looking for validation. We are comfortable with our votes and
are exercising our rights and responsibilities as board members. We care
about the future of the North Wind on behalf of the student body and see
these tough decisions as important to successfully move forward.

Did we vote against having the journalistic advisor continue? Yes, four
of five students on the board did so. Since the vote, two professional
organizations have demanded that we change our vote. Our vote was made
after studying the issues, weighing the options, and making our own
decisions.

Were our votes the result of outside influence? Yes. The actions, input,
reactions, professional demeanor, and communication of all involved
during our board service influenced our votes. Additionally, we have
been influenced by watching campus interactions and listening to the
student body. We receive input, but we make our own decisions.

Did an administrator influence our vote? No. Each of us made up our own
minds. We are independent thinkers. We take issue with how our fellow
student board member and the North Wind have characterized us as easily
influenced, poorly informed, and impressionable. Anyone who knows us
will find it difficult to agree with such statements.

Did we meet with Dr. Niehiesel in January? Yes. These meetings have been
mischaracterized by a fellow student board member, the North Wind staff,
and the journalistic advisor. We were given a copy of the bylaws, with
some members receiving them for the first time, and we discussed our
role as board members. We were not told how to vote on the FOIA request
(the meetings happened prior to the FOIA vote ever being on an agenda)
nor were we told to support or not to support the journalistic advisor.

Has the board tried to curtail, limit, or impede any writer or editor on
any story? No. The editorial staff of the North Wind cannot point to any
example. Being repeatedly accused of violating the rights of the
editorial staff does not make it true.
Were they told not to write about Starbucks? No. Were they told not to
write about Board of Trustee travel? No. Were they told to not write
story after story and editorial after editorial about FOIA struggles
with the administration? No.

Did we vote to not pay a FOIA fee? Yes, but only after a board
discussion about a lack of funds to fix our delivery van AND the
editorial staff stated that they could collect enough donations to cover
the charge.

Our Desire:
The board will work to strengthen the North Wind to be a product that is
not only a watchdog, but also represents the students. We want to give
the North Wind back to the students.  The North Wind should be a
platform for students and student issues. We are interested in and
dedicated to accuracy, fairness, facts and honesty in all operations of
the North Wind.

Everyone on the board has the right to speak their mind and make
decisions for themselves. Additionally, we have the right to agree or
disagree. Ultimately we must all work together for the success of the
North Wind.

In closing, rest assured that the North Wind will live on. We will
interview new candidates for the editor-in-chief. We will consider the
next recommendation from the English department for the journalistic
adviser. We will propose, review, and vote on new bylaws. And of course,
the North Wind editorial staff will continue to write whatever they
want.

Respectfully,
Aubrey Kall, Chair
Eric Laksonen, Vice Chair
Troy Morris, Parliamentarian
Pearl Gaidelis, board member

In a related development, the editorial board of The Miami Student at Miami University today published an editorial related to the North Wind case. And, yes, several members of the board are my students.

The following statement was sent to SPJ, reacting to its statement of last week on the case:

As student-members of the Board of Directors of the North Wind at

Northern Michigan University, we feel the need to share our collective
view of the current controversy.

The Board:
The North Wind Board of Directors is a student-led board.  As students
we volunteer our time and serve as the board chair, vice-chair,
secretary, parliamentarian, and board member. We are joined by a faculty
member, a community member, a journalistic advisor and a financial
adviser from the administration. We are not an advisory board. Our role
is to publish and distribute the North Wind. Our decisions and votes
matter.

We strongly affirm the Bylaws of the North Wind Board of Directors: “The
Board recognizes the prerogatives of the editor in regard to the design
and content of the newspaper and the selection of editorial staff, the
Board shall ensure that the newspaper provides adequately for timely and
accurate coverage of campus issues, problems, events and activities.”

The Controversy:
We are not looking for validation. We are comfortable with our votes and
are exercising our rights and responsibilities as board members. We care
about the future of the North Wind on behalf of the student body and see
these tough decisions as important to successfully move forward.

Did we vote against having the journalistic advisor continue? Yes, four
of five students on the board did so. Since the vote, two professional
organizations have demanded that we change our vote. Our vote was made
after studying the issues, weighing the options, and making our own
decisions.

Were our votes the result of outside influence? Yes. The actions, input,
reactions, professional demeanor, and communication of all involved
during our board service influenced our votes. Additionally, we have
been influenced by watching campus interactions and listening to the
student body. We receive input, but we make our own decisions.

Did an administrator influence our vote? No. Each of us made up our own
minds. We are independent thinkers. We take issue with how our fellow
student board member and the North Wind have characterized us as easily
influenced, poorly informed, and impressionable. Anyone who knows us
will find it difficult to agree with such statements.

Did we meet with Dr. Niehiesel in January? Yes. These meetings have been
mischaracterized by a fellow student board member, the North Wind staff,
and the journalistic advisor. We were given a copy of the bylaws, with
some members receiving them for the first time, and we discussed our
role as board members. We were not told how to vote on the FOIA request
(the meetings happened prior to the FOIA vote ever being on an agenda)
nor were we told to support or not to support the journalistic advisor.

Has the board tried to curtail, limit, or impede any writer or editor on
any story? No. The editorial staff of the North Wind cannot point to any
example. Being repeatedly accused of violating the rights of the
editorial staff does not make it true.
Were they told not to write about Starbucks? No. Were they told not to
write about Board of Trustee travel? No. Were they told to not write
story after story and editorial after editorial about FOIA struggles
with the administration? No.

Did we vote to not pay a FOIA fee? Yes, but only after a board
discussion about a lack of funds to fix our delivery van AND the
editorial staff stated that they could collect enough donations to cover
the charge.

Our Desire:
The board will work to strengthen the North Wind to be a product that is
not only a watchdog, but also represents the students. We want to give
the North Wind back to the students.  The North Wind should be a
platform for students and student issues. We are interested in and
dedicated to accuracy, fairness, facts and honesty in all operations of
the North Wind.

Everyone on the board has the right to speak their mind and make
decisions for themselves. Additionally, we have the right to agree or
disagree. Ultimately we must all work together for the success of the
North Wind.

In closing, rest assured that the North Wind will live on. We will
interview new candidates for the editor-in-chief. We will consider the
next recommendation from the English department for the journalistic
adviser. We will propose, review, and vote on new bylaws. And of course,
the North Wind editorial staff will continue to write whatever they
want.

Respectfully,
Aubrey Kall, Chair
Eric Laksonen, Vice Chair
Troy Morris, Parliamentarian
Pearl Gaidelis, board member

Separately, The Miami Student, the twice-daily paper at my university. today published an editorial on the North Wind situation. And yes, several members of the Student editorial board are my students.

To purchase tickets, go to: http://spjcontest.com.

Tuesday, April 14, – tomorrow – is the application deadline for the chapter’s college scholarship program, which is funded by proceeds from the contest. Make sure those top-notch college journalists you know are aware of the details. Here’s where they go to apply: http://indyprospj.org/?page_id=310

SUNSHINE WEEK PROGRAM: The full video from the chapter’s recent Sunshine Week program is now online. Links have been posted from the chapter’s Twitter and Facebook accounts, so feel free to share those posts to help spread the word (@IndyProSPJ on Twitter and Indiana Professional Chapter of SPJ on Facebook). WTHR-TV recorded the program for online use. The Indianapolis cable access channel staff also recorded the program, and it has been aired at least a couple dozen times over the past two weeks.

The link to the program is: https://www.youtube.com/channel/UCeHNy_LhWa7bDTg444EQiLA

-Award-winning journalist Kathryn Foxhall speaking on “New American Censorship: Mandates that Reporters Be Monitored by Public Information Offices” 11 a.m. to noon, April 14.

-Region 5 Director Deborah Givens participating on a panel titled “A Freedom Worth Dying for? Religious Satire and the Value of Free Speech” 3:30 to 4:45 p.m. April 16.

-The always popular “No Free Lunch: Eat Free or Live Free” event April 16 from 11 a.m. to 1 p.m.

For a full schedule of events see the poster below. For more information contact Givens or SPJ EKU adviser Ginny Whitehouse at ginny.whitehouse.eku.edu.

First Amd Week Poster 2015

Region 5 includes Illinois, Indiana and Kentucky.

Honorees received award certificates. First-place winners will move on to the national MOE competition among category winners from the 12 SPJ regions. National winners will be notified in the late spring and will be recognized at Excellence in Journalism 2015 (EIJ15) conference in Orlando, Florida, Sept. 18 to 20.

Entries are judged by professionals with at least three years of journalism experience. School divisions are based on student enrollment, which includes both graduate and undergraduate enrollment: Large schools have at least 10,000 students and small schools have 9,999 or fewer students. Congratulations to the finalists and winners.

ART/GRAPHICS

Breaking News Photography (Large) 10,000+ Students

Winner: First moments of freedom – by Annabel Edwards, The Medill Justice Project, Northwestern University

Finalist: Football tames tigers – by Kameron Casey, University of Indianapolis

Finalist: Bruce Rauner claims victory in Illinois – by Grant Myatt, DePaul University

Breaking News Photography (Small) 1-9,999 Students

Winner: ‘Cosmos’ scientist speaks at UIndy – by Ben Zefeng Zhang, University of Indianapolis

Editorial Cartooning

Winner: “Dirty laundry”; “Ebola”; “The Shopping dead” – by Audrey Meyer, Butler University

Feature Photography (Large) 10,000+ Students

Winner: ROTC members participate, reflect on field experience training – by Lionel Lim, Indiana University

Feature Photography (Small) 1-9,999 Students

Winner: Holiday Gala – by Zach Taylor, DePauw University

Photo Illustration (Large) 10,000+ Students

Winner: Best burgers of Muncie – by Max Catterson, Ball State University

Photo Illustration (Small) 1-9,999 Students

Winner: Fountain Square feature page – by Jake Fritz, Stephanie Kirkling, Kyle Weidner, James Figy and Kameron Casey, University of Indianapolis

Sports Photography (Large) 10,000+ Students

Winner: Rozier steals and storms – by Austin Lassell, University of Louisville

Sports Photography (Small) 1-9,999 Students

Winner: Sam Caravana women’s swimming – by Sam Caravana, DePauw University

MAGAZINES

Best Student Magazine

Winner: 812: The Magazine of Southern Indiana, Summer/Fall 2014 – by 812 Staff, Indiana University

Finalist: Ball Bearings Magazine, Volume 6, Issue 1 – by Ball Bearings Staff, Ball State University

Finalist: North by Northwestern Fall 2014 Issue – by North by Northwestern magazine staff, Northwestern University

Non-Fiction Magazine Article

Winner: Dear Dolly – by Jenna Fagan, Indiana University

Finalist: Corn-fed comedy – by Sarah Whaley and Madison Borgmann, Indiana University

Finalist: After the industry – by Trent Scroggins, Tyler Payne, Ball State University

NEWSPAPERS

Best All-Around Daily Student Newspaper

Winner: The Daily Northwestern – by staff, Northwestern University

Finalist: The Ball State Daily News – by The Ball State Daily News, Ball State University

Finalist: Indiana Daily Student – by Staff, Indiana University

Best All-Around Non Daily Student Newspaper

Winner: The Loyola Phoenix – by Esther Castillejo (Editor), Loyola University Chicago

Finalist: The Echo – by The Echo, Taylor University

Finalist: The DePaulia – by The DePaulia, DePaul University

Breaking News Reporting (Large) 10,000+ Students

Winner: Indianapolis man saves children from drowning – by Megan Jula, Indiana University

Finalist: Student describes experience on Purdue’s campus during shooting – by Emma Kate Fittes, Ball State University

Breaking News Reporting (Small) 1-9,999 Students

Winner: Northwestern to halt mediation plans in Ludlow suit – by Jeanne Kuang, Northwestern University

Finalist: Senior Hall broken into, Public Safety responded – by Nicole DeCriscio, Leann Burke, DePauw University

Finalist: Former Butler student killed by ISIS – by Ben Sieck and Mallory Duncan, Butler University

Editorial Writing

Winner: Our View: Daily News Editorials – by The Ball State Daily News Editorial Board, Ball State University

Finalist: Daily Illini Editorials – by Daily Illini Editorial Board, University of Illinois

Finalist: Editorials from Thorobred News – by Alexis Meza, Madalyn Holt, Traci Thomas, Ben Schroeder, Kentucky State University

Feature Writing (Large) 10,000+ Students

Winner: Homeless or not, he’s got the month of May – by Elizabeth Greiwe, Loyola University Chicago

Finalist: Liquor store Frank – by Christopher Stephens, Ball State University

Finalist: The disappeared – by Michael Majchrowicz, Indiana University

Feature Writing (Small) 1-9,999 Students

Winner: The Unspoken series – by Kari Travis, Taylor University

Finalist: Trip tours the nation – by Katie Goodrich, Butler University

Finalist: Former player Smith diagnosed with cancer – by Matthew VanTryon, Butler University

General Column Writing (Small) 1-9,999 Students

Winner: Jims Porter Columns – by Jims Porter, Indiana University Southeast

Finalist: “Diversity is not a number”; “Students should pursue their passions”; “No pay? Then don’t intern” – by Julian Wyllie, Butler University

Finalist: The bigger picture – by Abigail Pollock, Taylor University

General News Reporting (Large) 10,000+ Students

Winner: When students die – by Megan Jula, Indiana University

Finalist: Pension Typo – by Johnathan Hettinger, writer, University of Illinois

Finalist: All that glitters is not gold – by Victoria Lentz, Northern Kentucky University

General News Reporting (Small) 1-9,999 Students

Winner: Former Butler student held captive by ISIS – by Marais Jacon-Duffy and Cassie Eberle, Butler University

Finalist: Mihirtej Boddupalli package – by Paige Leskin; Rebecca Savransky, Tyler Pager; Ally Mutnick, Northwestern University

Finalist: Former DePauw University psychology professor Akshat Vyas – by Dana Ferguson Abby Margulis, DePauw University

In-Depth Reporting (Large) 10,000+ Students

Winner: Sexual assault at IU – by Investigations Staff, Indiana University

Finalist: Crime on campus – by Esther Castillejo Jordan Berger, Loyola University Chicago

Finalist: In Focus: Northwestern community evaluates culture, resources for transgender students – by Tyler Pager, Northwestern University

In-Depth Reporting (Small) 1-9,999 Students

Winner: Kentuckiana faces rising problem of drug abuse and addiction – by Ethan Smith, Indiana University Southeast

Finalist: Two student veterans share PTSD struggles – by Ethan Smith, Indiana University Southeast

Finalist: Former players allege verbal abuse, mistreatment – by Matthew VanTryon, Butler University

Sports Column Writing

Winner: Full-Court Press – by Dakota Crawford, Ball State University

Finalist: Sports column writing – by Scott Mitchell, University of Indianapolis

Sports Writing (Large) 10,000+ Students

Winner: Northwestern’s LGBT athletes struggle to find their voices amid a lacking support system – by Tyler Pager, Northwestern University

Finalist: The art of falling – by Michael Majchrowicz, Indiana University

Finalist: KeyArena turns a bigger profit than it ever did with the Sonics – by Ashley Scoby, University of Kentucky

Sports Writing (Small) 1-9,999 Students

Winner: 54 to boot – by Benjamin Schroeder, Kentucky State University

Finalist: Olympian to Trojan – by Chris Yingling, Taylor University

Finalist: Shooting for glory – by Chris Yingling, Taylor University

ONLINE

Best Affiliated Web Site

Winner: LoyolaPhoenix.com – by Esther Castillejo (Editor-in-Chief), Loyola University Chicago

Finalist: The Daily Illini – by Johnathan Hettinger, Editor in Chief, University of Illinois

Finalist: idsnews.com – by Staff, Indiana University

Best Digital-Only Student Publication

Winner: The Red Line Project – by Staff, DePaul Univeristy

Finalist: The Quad – by Omar Jimenez, Nick Petro, Max Hogan, Jack Mordell, Austin Hunter, Northwestern University

Best Independent Online Student Publication

Winner: The Quad – by Omar Jimenez, Nick Petro, Jack Mordell, Max Hogan, Austin Hunter, Northwestern University

Finalist: The Medill Justice Project – by Staff, Northwestern University

Finalist: Data/Chicago – by Staff, DePaul Univeristy

Best Use of Multimedia

Winner: World Cup 2014 Preview – by Cody Voga, David Gubala, Andrew Rodriguez, Juan Latapi and Matt Anderson, DePaul Univeristy

Finalist: Mayberry on mushrooms – by Kreable Young, Cameron Love, Western Kentucky University

Finalist: How do stories bring us together: The ASR Templeton K-6 Project – by American Student Radio, Indiana University Media School

Online Feature Reporting

Winner: Dad’s bucket – by Charles Scudder, Anna Teeter, Missy Wilson, Indiana University

Finalist: Who are the ‘satanists’ designing an Idol for the Oklahoma Capitol? – by Gideon Resnick , Northwestern University

Finalist: The new drag queens of Boystown – by Brianna Kelly, DePaul Univeristy

Online In-Depth Reporting

Winner: Harsh treatment – by Staff, Medill Watchdog, Northwestern University/Medill

Finalist: Boot camp – by Tanner Cole, Western Kentucky University

Finalist: Gameday – by Daniel Hersh, Jasper Scherer, Northwestern University

Online News Reporting

Winner: The Kenny “Zulu” Whitmore case – by Staff, The Medill Justice Project, Northwestern University

Finalist: Wrongful convictions – by Staff, The Medill Justice Project, Northwestern University

Finalist: When students die – by Megan Jula, Glory Sheeley, Mary Shown, Indiana University

Online Sports Reporting

Winner: For the love of baseball – by Steven Goldstein, Northwestern University

Finalist: Chicago sidelines – by Staff, DePaul Univeristy

Finalist: World Cup 2014 Preview – by Cody Voga, David Gubala, Andrew Rodriguez, Juan Latapi and Matt Anderson, DePaul University

RADIO BROADCAST

Best All-Around Radio Newscast

Winner: Melissa Williams’ Newscast – by Melissa Williams, Illinois State University

Finalist: Haddy Badjie WWHR – by Haddy Badjie, Western Kentucky University

Finalist: WLUW Lunchtime News, March 18, 2014 – by Tony Buitrago, Stephanie Buffamonte, Joe Flaherty, Liz Greiwe, Loyola University Chicago

Radio Feature

Winner: Farmer Chris Vosters finds comfort in selling kettle corn – by Kale Wilk, Indiana University Media School

Finalist: Women spin a common thread from the inside, out – by Anu Kumar, Indiana University Media School

Finalist: Fairy art – by Haddy Badjie, Western Kentucky University

Radio In-Depth Reporting

Winner: Marijuana birds-I-view – by Tyler Bachman, Emily Pomorski, WZND News Team, Illinois State University

Radio News Reporting

Winner: Ferguson’s faithful fighters – by Haddy Badjie, Western Kentucky University

Finalist: No room to run: Sidewalk complaints – by Hillary Lindwall, Northwestern University

Radio Sports Reporting

Winner: WLUW reporting on the championship Ramblers – by Joe Flaherty, Loyola University Chicago

Finalist: Illini football teammates and friends – by Torrence Sorrell, University of Illinois

TELEVISION BROADCAST

Best All-Around Television Newscast

Winner: Northwestern News Report: Election show 2014 – by Sharon Yoo Catherine Reid, Northwestern University, Medill

Finalist: Good Day DePaul – by Daniel Kummerer Delaney Lux, DePaul University

Finalist: WKU News Channel 12: 11-18-2014 – by Brandi Ratterman, Western Kentucky University

Television Feature Reporting

Winner: GDD Wine Class – by Nicole Suarez, DePaul University

Finalist: GDD animal spa – by Sade Carpenter, DePaul University

Finalist: NU voters package – by Jesse Kirsch, Northwestern University

Television General News Reporting

Winner: ‘Shake and bake’ changing the face of the local meth industry – by Omar Jimenez, Northwestern University

Finalist: GDD heroin – by Nicole Suarez, DePaul University

Finalist: The mega-university that could have been – by Theodore Tae, Northwestern University

Television In-Depth Reporting

Winner: Towing investigation – by Cory McCauley, Western Kentucky University

Finalist: GDD sexual assault – by Maggie Gallagher, DePaul University

Television News and Feature Photography

Winner: Corvette museum sinkhole – by Daniel Blommel, Western Kentucky University

Television Sports Photography

Winner: Warren East practice – by Daniel Blommel, Western Kentucky University

Television Sports Reporting

Winner: Hardee overcomes loss of mom – by Chad Boxenbaum, University of Illinois

Finalist: GDD Brittany Hrynko – by Camille Padilla, DePaul University

Journalists from across the region traveled to Omaha March 27-28 for the 2015 Society of Professional Journalists Region 7 Spring Conference.

The Society of Professional Journalists Region 7 2015 Spring Conference came to a close Saturday at the University of Nebraska at Omaha.

Journalists from Missouri, Iowa, Kansas and Nebraska made the trek to Omaha for a weekend of professional development. Organizers held conference sessions about social media, digital, work/family balance and more.

Journalists Mariah Stewart, John Beaudoin, Chase Snider and Ashley Jost discussed their coverage of the protests and police action in Ferguson, Mo. during the SPJ Region 7 conference’s keynote presentation.

Rob McLean, region 7 director for SPJ, said those who attended the conference had an opportunity to network with colleagues and get a leg-up on their next job hunt.

“One of the best parts about being an SPJ member is the opportunity to make new journalism connections and friends,” McLean said. “As the industry continues to change, those connections can be invaluable when journalists are looking for their next gig.”

The event ended with the regional Mark of Excellence Awards Saturday afternoon, where SPJ recognized the best journalism at the collegiate level within the region.

Journalists enjoy conversation at the SPJ Region 7 Spring Conference meet-and-greet March 27.

Journalists enjoy conversation at the SPJ Region 7 Spring Conference meet-and-greet March 27.

Journalists enjoy conversation at the SPJ Region 7 Spring Conference meet-and-greet March 27.

Marjorie Sturgeon and Jonathan Garcia served on a panel, moderated by Sherrie Wilson (right), about digital in the newsroom.

Host Louisville Pro Chapter members have planned a full day of sessions Saturday.

Training will cover all aspects of journalism from young pros discussing the challenges of their first jobs to a First Amendment update to multimedia projects to narrative writing to diversity in newsrooms.

You’ll find terrific opportunities for networking with pros and students alike from Chicago, Indianapolis, Cincinnati, Louisville and points beyond. No matter what you want to do – from crowd-funding a book project to hiring the next great reporter to learning more about media law – you can do it with us.

The conference will take place in the heart of booming downtown Louisville, just a few blocks away from nightlife and fun for conference attendees.

An opening reception is set for Friday night and SPJ’s National President Dana Neuts will present the Mark of Excellence Awards following Saturday’s luncheon.

Conference dates: March 27-28

Location: Galt House, Louisville, Ky.

Who: Students (high school and college), educators, pros, retired folks who still want to know about the craft of journalism – all are welcome.

Be there, learn lots, do great work.

The registration site also offers the option to join SPJ national at the same time as registering – and at a significant cost savings in comparison to attending as a non-member.

To make reservations, call the Galt House at 800-The-Galt (800-843-4258) or 502-589-5200.  The Galt House is located on the Ohio River at 140 North Fourth St., Louisville KY 40202.

For more information contact Louisville Pro Chapter President Robyn Sekula at robynds@live.com or Region 5 Director Deborah Givens at deborah.givens@eku.edu.

Registration is now open for the Region 1 Society of Professional Journalists Conference at Hofstra University on April 17-18.

The two-day extravaganza will kick off with panel discussions and sessions followed by an opening-night reception at 5:30 p.m. at the top of the Hofstra Library.

The conference will continue all day Saturday with a continental breakfast, morning and afternoon panels and resume critiques.

Lance Ulanoff, a Hofstra alumnus and the editor-at-large at Mashable, will be the keynote speaker at the Saturday lunch. The lunch will also feature a Region One Fund auction and a presentation of SPJ’s Mark of Excellence student journalism awards.

Act now for early bird ticket prices

–Student SPJ member, early bird, $50

-Pro SPJ member, early bird, $65

-Student non-member, early bird, $75

-Pro non-member, early bird, $95

Here’s a look at the SPJ R1C schedule:

FRIDAY, APRIL 17

-11:30 a.m. Registration opens

-12:30 p.m.-5:30 p.m. Resume, clip and tape critiquing

-12:30-2 p.m. Panel 1: How to get a job / Panel 2: FOIL

-2-2:30 p.m. Coffee Break

-2:30-3:45 p.m. Panel 1: Book publishing / Panel 2: Speciality Reporting

-4-5:15 p.m. Panel 1: Personal Branding / Panel 2: Media rights and legal issues

-5:30-8:30 p.m. Opening Reception

SATURDAY, APRIL 18

-8-9 a.m. Breakfast, chapter and regional leader meeting

-9 a.m.-12 p.m. Resume, clip and tape critiquing

-9-10:15 a.m. Panel 1: Photography / Panel 2: Freelancing

-10:30-11:45 a.m. Panel 1: Social Media / Panel 2: Sports Broadcasting

-12-2 p.m. Lunch with auction, keynote and Mark of Excellence Awards

-2 p.m. to closing Resume, clip and tape critiquing

-2:15-3:30 p.m. Panel 1: SEO / Panel 2: Narrative Storytelling

For hotel options, directions and other information, please visit SPJR1C.org or PCLI.org.

Questions? Please email PressClubofL@gmail.com.

We decided last night to extend the deadline for early-bird registration until March 30.

But why delay? Register today.

Click here to book your tickets for our spring conference and our Mark of Excellence breakfast.

Two other reasons to sign up now: Space is limited and our programming is phenomenal.

We’ll be updating our list of programs all week and should have it finalized soon, so please keep checking back.

Massachusetts’ public records law, already considered one of the weakest in the nation, has taken another hit.

A series of rulings by Massachusetts Secretary of State William F. Galvin has given police greater power to withhold and censor arrest records—including those of officers themselves.

On Friday, The Boston Globe ran an editorial blasting Galvin for his actions. A day later, Galvin publicly pledged to push for a ballot referendum in November 2016 that would punish government agencies who ignore the state’s public records laws.

Other news outlets, including the Boston Herald, have joined the cry for much needed open records reform in the state.

SPJ is proud to stand with them, especially during Sunshine Week. This is the letter we sent to Galvin today (UPDATED with minor corrections):

March 17, 2015

William Francis Galvin
Secretary of the Commonwealth of Massachusetts
McCormack Building
One Ashburton Place
Boston, MA 02108

Secretary Galvin:

State and national leaders of the Society of Professional Journalists, which represent about 7,500 journalists nationwide, stand with the Boston Globe, the Boston Herald, the Patriot Ledger and other news outlets in condemnation of your recent rulings on the state’s public records law.

These rulings give Massachusetts police departments new discretion to withhold public records that are deemed covered by Criminal Offender Record Information (CORI) and impede the taxpaying public’s ability to hold law enforcement officials to the standards to which they expect them to perform. The rulings are also redundant and unnecessary since there are already laws in place protecting the privacy of police personnel.

We believe these rulings severely damage the public’s ability to gain access and insight to information to which it is legally entitled. At a time when the public is demanding more transparency from law enforcement agencies, we see this as a significant step backward. It’s a disservice to the citizens of the Massachusetts and an insult to the spirit of open government.

We applaud your attempt to reform the Commonwealth’s public records law by proposing a November 2016 ballot initiative increasing penalties for agencies that ignore the rules. But citizens should not have to wait 20 months to vote for easier access to, what is in truth, their property.

In the name of transparency and good government practices in the Commonwealth of Massachusetts, we respectfully request you to withdraw the recent rulings and publicly support legislation filed by Rep. Peter Kocot of Northampton and Sen. Jason Lewis of Winchester that would greatly improve the public records law.

With its proud history of championing freedom and liberty, Massachusetts should be a leader in government openness, not secrecy.

Sincerely,

Danielle McLean
President, SPJ New England Professional Chapter

Rebecca Baker
SPJ Region 1 Director

Our SPJ western region spring conference will start exactly five weeks from today, and I’m proud to announce that our first day of programming is set — and stellar.

That first day on April 17 will feature a trio of intensive, hands-on, half-day workshops — on data mining, data security and data visualization — that are just the first of many reasons to register for the conference today.

First-class first-day instructors include Associated Press data journalist Serdar Tumgoren and Center for Investigative Reporting senior editor for data journalism Jennifer LaFleur,  who will show you how to dig into everything from tweets to census data and campaign finance records at our data mining session; Cyrus Farivar, senior business editor at Ars Technica, who will guide you through safe and confidential data storage at our data security session, and Silk‘s Alex Salkever and Tableau‘s Jewel Loree, who will teach you how to analyze and embed data sets into your work in eye-popping ways at our data visualization session.

Learn more at our conference website. Check back for updates on our second day of programming and information about a tour of Twitter HQ we’re setting up for Friday morning before the half-day workshops.

It’s sure to be a weekend of inspiring panels and incredible networking.

Register now to get the early-bird discount.

And be sure to buy a ticket to our Mark of Excellence awards breakfast scheduled for Saturday, April 18, when we will recognize dozens of students from more than 15 colleges in SPJ’s region 11.

Hope you come to San Francisco in April to hang out with the cool cats.

New England chapter president Danielle McLean and Region 1 Director Rebecca Baker sent a letter (expertly written by Danielle) Tuesday, March 10, to New Hampshire legislators urging them to vote no on HB 646, a bill that would allow government agencies to charge an upfront fee to access many public documents.

UPDATE 3/12: The House has tabled the bill indefinitely. We will keep an eye on the situation in case the legislation is reintroduced.

The issue has been covered by the New Hampshire media. Trent Spiner, the executive editor of the New Hampshire Union Leader and president of the New Hampshire Press Association, has been at the forefront in trying to stop this bill. “Imagine an agency telling you it’ll take 100 hours to produce documents—which isn’t out of the question for a complex request—and that they want the money up front,” he wrote in an email.

Here is the text of the amendment that received a 14-4 “Ought to Pass”  recommendation by the state House Judiciary Committee:

Amend RSA 91-A:4, IV as inserted by section 1 of the bill by replacing it with the following:

Early bird registration has been extended until Friday, Feb. 27, for the Region 5 Society of Professional Journalists Conference set for Friday and Saturday, March 27 and 28, at the Galt House in Louisville.

Another important date to remember is Feb. 25 when the block of rooms set aside at the conference rate at the Galt House will be released. Rooms may still be available after that date at higher rates, and other hotels are located near the Galt House in the downtown area.

Early birds will save on the conference and luncheon. Rates for early bird registration are:

• SPJ Pro Member: $110
• SPJ Student Member: $75
• Non-Member Pro: $155
• Non-Member Student: $125

The registration site ( https://spjregion5.eventbrite.com ) also offers the option to pay national dues at the same time as registering – and at a significant cost saving in comparison to attending as a non-member.

To make reservations, call the Galt House at 800-The-Galt (800-843-4258) or 502-589-5200.  Special room rates are reserved under name “Society of Prof Journalists” at $145 single, $155 double, $165 triple and $175 quad. The Galt House is located on the Ohio River at 140 North Fourth St., Louisville KY 40202.

For more information contact Louisville Pro Chapter President Robyn Sekula at robynds@live.com or Region 5 Director Deborah Givens at deborah.givens@eku.edu and follow the Region 5 Blog at http://blogs.spjnetwork.org/region5/.

We have a venue for it now, the historic Hotel Whitcomb on Market Street in San Francisco near Twitter HQ (and its well-known wall) …

… and very close to other cool stuff.

Our keynote conversation will feature two Bay Area media leaders: The San Francisco Chronicle’s new editor-in-chief, Audrey Cooper — the youngest woman to lead a major U.S. newspaper — and Holly Kernan, executive editor for news at KQED, a dynamic television, radio and digital public media outlet.

If that’s not enough for you to stop reading this blog post and lock in our early-bird discount and register right now, read on for more details.

On April 17, we’ll offer intensive hands-on workshops on data security,  building your brand and data visualization at the Impact Hub.

On April 18, we’ll feature a full day of programming at the Hotel Whitcomb, where media professionals will share expertise on innovative publishing platforms, new funding models, hot trends in podcasting, science reporting, making the most of online video, mastering data visualization and more.

Our early-bird discount ends March 17 so don’t delay. (Second chance: Register here.)

Conference-goers can also take advantage of a discounted room rate of $159 a night to stay in the Whitcomb Hotel. Book your room reservation online or by phone at (415) 626-8000. You must say that you are attending the Society of Professional Journalists’ conference to receive the conference room rate.

Check back here and on the conference website for more information. A full schedule of workshops and programming will be posted soon.

See you in San Francisco.

Our losses seem almost unbearable. Truth, a touch more elusive.

Laurie Becklund. Bob Simon. David Carr. Alison Gordon. Stan Chambers. R.I.P., all.

Our first cruel blow came Sunday when former San Diego Tribune and Los Angeles Times border reporter Laurie Becklund died at her home of metastatic breast cancer. She was 66 and “born a reporter,” journalist Barbara Kantrowitz told the Times.

From the Times’ tribute: “Toward the end of her life, Becklund was still reporting, according to Kantrowitz, untangling the politics of breast cancer. ‘She wanted to find out why so much attention was paid to early detection and not to metastatic cancer,’ Kantrowitz said.”

Then Tuesday, within about an hour, a quick succession of stunning revelations: Jon Stewart was leaving The Daily Show, on his own terms, but still; Brian Williams was leaving NBC Nightly News, on a six-month suspension for embellishing an Iraq War anecdote, and CBS 8 sports director Kyle Kraska was shot 10 times — 10! — outside his San Diego home in a dispute with his painter and rushed to the hospital, where he remains in critical but stable condition. Each of those were stories that alone could occupy our conversations for a week. But not this week.

Because Wednesday, suddenly, 60 Minutes standout Bob Simon was dead in a car crash in New York. It was unfathomable. He was 73 and had won 27 Emmys, believed, as CBS reported, to be the most ever earned for a field reporter; he’d also won four Peabody Awards in a five-decade career.

Thursday was no less terrible: David Carr, just 58, The New York Times’ marvelous media critic and champion, collapsed in his newsroom and died. Grieving, we learned, too, that Alison Gordon, the first full-time female beat reporter in Major League Baseball, was dead at 72. Yahoo Sports recalled that her initial Baseball Writers Association of America membership card “infamously referred to her as Mr. Alison Gordon, because they’d never had a woman in the association.”

Her death brought sorrow because she was a standard-bearer, but Carr’s collapse is just heart-breaking because he was for many the heart of the industry. A gruff, no-holds-barred giant of journalism, he once told the graduates of UC Berkeley: “Being a journalist, I never feel bad talking to journalism students because it’s a grand, grand caper. You get to leave, go talk to strangers, ask them anything, come back, type up their stories, edit the tape. That’s not gonna retire your loans as quickly as it should, and it’s not going to turn you into a person who’s worried about what kind of car they should buy, but that’s kind of as it should be. I mean, it beats working.”

Twitter, as the Washington Post put it, howled with pain Thursday night, when the co-editor-in-chief of Variety wrote this:

David Carr, Bob Simon, Jon Stewart, Brian Williams. Has there ever been a sadder week in journalism?

— Andrew Wallenstein (@awallenstein) February 13, 2015

The question certainly seemed hyphothetical.

And that was before Friday, when maybe we all thought we’d wake up, catch our breath and stagger into the weekend with the sort of bad news — someone else’s — that we typically deliver, but no.

Friday, we learned that KTLA newsman Stan Chambers was dead at 91. Over the course of 63 years — 63! — with the station, he reported more than 22,000 stories. Twenty-two thousand.

Some of those stories were sad, like the one we’re telling now. It’s just part of the job. We get that. Always has been. But this week, mourning these losses, we grieve for our own and thank them for their service and send them on their way and remember why we do the work we do. Why we try.

So thank you for your service, everyone. Now and always, caper on.

Here is Carr’s commencement speech to the University of California, Berkeley, in 2014 when he spoke of this grand, grand caper, and of us.

Have questions? Click here to email the contest team.

Thank you and good luck!

Our venue remains in flux because the site we had chosen came back to us with a contract total higher than we expected, so we are pursuing a range of options and will pick a site very soon and share it with you.

As for the MOE Awards, judges have begun their work and expect winners will be announced next month.

We will post more information when we have it on our conference website and the website of our hosts, SPJ NorCal. We will have discounts for early-bird registration, students and SPJ members.

Thanks for your patience as we wrap up our planning. Looking forward to having a big group in April. Any questions, please email me at matthew.hall@utsandiego.com with the subject line “Region 11 conference.”

We’ve made some significant changes to the contest this year, including:

• We no longer have a separate “Online” category because the Internet has become an integral part of what we all do. Daily print and online media is now judged together in a merged category called “Daily Print and Online.”

• We have combined all photos, cartoons, graphics and videos (except television) in a “Visuals” category.

• Television is still divided by market size, but print entries are  now divided by newsroom size into three groups: small (staff of 15 or fewer), medium (between 16 and 50) and large staff (51 or more).

You can learn more about the contest and submit your entries online here.

Have questions? Contact Pia Hallenberg, Regional Director, via email here.

We look forward to receiving your entries!

Image via Jimmy Emerson, DVM/Flickr

By Lauren Whan

Each month, Lauren Whan, Region 7 assistant for campus affairs, will take a look at a university chapter from across the region.

MANHATTAN, Kan. — Near the heart of the Midwest there is a university that has one official color: royal purple.

Kansas State University in Manhattan, Kansas, displays a wide variety of school spirit and importance of student progression. Among Division I sports, clubs and other organizations, the Society of Professional Journalists has found a home among the student culture.

Kansas State has 12 SPJ members, which is higher than the previous year. The chapter successfully reopened in 2013 and has been slowly growing during the past year.

The Kansas State SPJ chapter has held different workshops to train students on important software such as Adobe Premier and Adobe Photoshop. Chapter President Morgan Huelsman said the group also held an open event in the spring for journalism students to visit with professionals where they could show their resumes and portfolios while getting one-on-one experience with potential employers.

During the fall of 2014, the chapter held an event featuring Jeffrey Townsend — a designer who works in Hollywood. The event had personal sessions with different organizations on campus as well as some journalism classes.

“We then featured him as a lecture speaker for the entire campus,” Huelsman said. “For this upcoming spring, we are planning on creating at least four more workshops featuring different softwares. We are also heavily helping with a Networking Night for the entire K-State journalism school to have an opportunity to meet employers for internships and job opportunities.”

Huelsman has been president of K-State’s chapter since May. She is graduating in the spring of 2015 with a Bachelor of Arts in Journalism and Mass Communications, while also earning a minor in leadership studies. She is graduating a year ahead of schedule, she said, as this is her last but third year as a wildcat.

“My two main goals are to move to Nashville and work for Country Music Television as an entertainment reporter. My other goal is to work for a large-market television station as a traveling reporter.” Huelsman said.

She joined SPJ to gain more knowledge about journalism — specifically the legal aspects of being a reporter. She also joined to make more connections and network with her peers and potential employers.

“I, alongside some of the other SPJ members, really enjoyed having an opportunity to attend the Fort Riley’s live-firing exercise where we watched soldiers execute practice missions with weapons, military vehicles and live ammunition. We watched what they would be doing during combat,” Huelsman said.

Morgan said the most rewarding thing for her is to see within her organization is that they are always working as a team from scratch.

“We started this organization back up again and every single member has contributed different things to be able to get us to where we are right now,” she said.

Although the chapter is fairly new, Morgan said helping each other and allowing for there to be room for improvement has really made a difference in the chapter’s learning experience together.

As a memo on the project described, SPJ’s technology has three parts – an in-house database (called iMIS), a hosting provider and a website.

The database and the website were launched at around the same time in the mid-1990s and were not integrated.

“Because our database wasn’t set up correctly in the first place, upgrades and web integration proved more difficult,” the memo from HQ says. “Over the years, those upgrades and integrations have led to a tangled web that complicate[s] day to day operations.”

One specific example is registrations for SPJ’s national conference, which have to be entered manually.

The project that the national board approved will create “one cohesive platform for almost everything we do,” the memo says.

This will lead to enhanced features on the website and more efficient, improved use of the database (this is boiling down the explanation greatly).

The project will happen in three parts. The first part will take four to six weeks. The second part will take six to nine weeks. If all goes according to plan, the improved member website will be available in late 2015.

This was the second time the national board has met by Skype. The meeting lasted about 13 minutes.

Sixteen of the 23 members of the national board participated in the call.

The vote in favor of the project and expenditure was 13-0. Those voting in favor were: me, Paul Fletcher, Lynn Walsh, Sue Kopen Katcef, Bill McCloskey, Alex Tarquinio, Jordan Gass-Poore’, Brett Hall, Becky Tallent, Michael Koretzky, Joseph Radske, Rob McLean, and Tom Johnson.

Mike Reilley and Patricia Gallagher Newberry were on the call, but didn’t vote. As president, Dana Neuts also didn’t vote. The president typically votes only to break a tie.

• Learfield Communications is looking for an experienced reporter/anchor for Missourinet — a statewide radio network based in Jefferson City, Missouri. Candidates must have a broadcasting background. To apply, contact Ashley Byrd, fellow SPJ member and chief of news services for Learfield News, at abyrd@learfield.com or 573-556-1208.
• KCCI, the Des Moines CBS affiliate, is looking for a weekend morning anchor/reporter. Click here for more.
• The Waynesville Daily Guide, in Waynesville, Missouri, is looking for a managing editor. Click here for more.
• Enterprise Publishing, in Blair, Nebraska, is looking to build its design team. Click here for more.

Check back next week for a new list of journalism jobs from around the Society of Professional Journalists’ Region 7!

This older gentleman? A teenager is wiser than he is.

Ed Meadows is president of Pensacola State College in the Florida Panhandle. He made the most headlines of his long career just last week, when he told the 18-year-old Spenser Garber, co-editor of the PSC student newspaper, three silly things…

1. Garber shouldn’t cover the school’s contract negotiations with faculty. That will only “distract students from their studies.”

2. If faculty leaders update Garber on their negotiations, everyone is violating the law. Besides, Meadows said, “What benefit would it be for students to know?”

3. It’s impossible for Garber to write a balanced story on faculty negotiations – because Meadows refuses to speak to the newspaper. “Good journalism requires two sides to every story and, unfortunately, I can’t give you the other side,” Meadows says. Therefore, nothing should be written at all.

The story quickly bled beyond the Panhandle’s borders.

It traveled at the speed of sound from a higher-education website (Gag Order in Sunshine State) to a campus watchdog group (Fla. college censors student reporters, tells them to stick to ‘basketball games’) to a student legal center (Fla. community college president discredits student newspaper’s reporting, gags faculty) to a student rights group (Pensacola State Official Offers Embarrassingly Bad Justifications for Censorship of Student Media).

But Garber has grown increasingly uncomfortable with the coverage’s hyperbole, which peaked when Gawker got involved (Florida College President Is Either a Thug or a Moron).

When I spoke with Garber last week, two things impressed me…

1. He’s not easily intimidated. At 18, he’s more fearless than many older college journalists I’ve known. In (too) many cases, students crumple at the first sign of conflict, trading defense of the First Amendment for some vague sense of self-preservation – which, of course, is exactly the opposite way to achieve that goal. So Garber says he’ll keep covering the stories his readers want to know about.

2. He’s not easily excitable. Garber is adamant that he’s not out for blood. He doesn’t want Meadows fired over this. Meadows is wrong, he says, but no one has threatened to shut down the paper or prevent him from writing what he wants. Garber struck me as the most mature person in this dust-up: He’s disappointed in Meadows but not angry at him, and he’s calmly trying to add some nuance in an echo chamber of online hyperbole.

I asked Garber, What would you want to tell journalists about what’s happened? Below is his open letter he wrote over the weekend.

Journalists of the United States…

The past few weeks have been stressful to say the least. By trying to do my job as a journalist, national news sites like Gawker and Inside Higher Ed have picked up a story that isn’t really true.

On October 31st, a letter was sent to the Faculty Association of Pensacola State College. That letter was CC’d to the Corsair in an e-mail. In this e-mail, sent by lawyer Mike Mattimore, two laws were outlined stating that no college organization shall exploit students for personal gain. One specific law, Florida Statute Section 447.501(2)(f), had been ruled unconstitutional a while back.

Here’s where the misunderstanding started. I kept trying to tell the administration that the original information I obtained about a PSCFA straw poll was not from a PSCFA member. It wasn’t even a person that works at the college. They insisted that I had to get the information from a PSCFA member, even if it didn’t come from one that told me (these meetings are open meetings, anyone could have seen the straw poll vote).

After the letter was sent, things got blown out of proportion fairly quickly. Some people interpreted the letter as a restriction of the Corsair’s freedom of the press. That isn’t true. The letter was outlining the legality of the PSCFA talking to the paper, which puts the fault on the PSCFA, not the Corsair. Since the college’s realization of the unconstitutionality of Florida Statute Section 447.501(2)(f), they have changed their stance on the PSCFA’s ability to talk to the Corsair.

It is unnecessary to interview President Meadows about the “gag order” sent to the PSCFA, as it is a moot point. It is unnecessary to interview me about the Corsair’s restriction of freedom of the press, as it is nonexistent. There is no real news in a story about the faculty and administration negotiating a contract. If you want an update on the story, there will be a Board of Trustees meeting on November 18. Afterwards, there will most likely be a story uploaded to the Corsair’s web site.

Best Wishes,

Spenser Garber
Co-Editor at Pensacola State College

• The Mt. Pleasant News in Mt. Pleasant, Iowa, is looking for a reporter. Click here for more information.
• The Des Moines Register is looking for an education reporter. Click here for more information.
• The North Platte Telegraph in North Platte, Nebraska, is searching for a copy editor. Click here for more information.
• The American Society of News Editors, based in Columbia, Missouri, is searching for an executive director. Click here for more information.

Check back next week for a new list of journalism jobs from around the Society of Professional Journalists’ Region 7!

Yes, I’m talking to you.

All of you can now submit entries for SPJ’s annual Sigma Delta Chi Awards and Mark of Excellence Awards honoring the best professional and collegiate journalism of the 2014 calendar year. Students can enter the Mark of Excellence Awards through Jan. 23, and professionals have until Feb. 6 to enter the Sigma Delta Chi Awards.

If you already know the drill, here’s your entry form for both contests.

If you don’t, read on and …

SPJ’s annual Mark of Excellence Awards honor the best student journalism of 2014 for print, radio, TV and digital platforms, whether you belong to a Region 11 campus chapter or not. First-place regional winners will be showcased at our regional spring conference in the Bay Area (date TBD) in 2015 and then compete at the national level.

Because it may help, here are last year’s Region 11 winners, the 2012 Region 11 winners and the 2011 Region 11 winners, and here are some of the rules from SPJ’s website:

The contest is open to anyone enrolled in a college or university in the U.S. studying for an academic degree in 2014. International SPJ student members may also enter. Students who have had full-time, professional journalism experience, outside of internships, are not eligible. Entries must have been published or broadcast during the 2014 calendar year.

SPJ’s annual Sigma Delta Chi Awards honor the best professional journalism in categories covering print, radio, television, newsletters, art/graphics, online and research. The contest is open to any U.S. media outlet. SPJ’s website has a page with rules, hints, entry requirements and more. Here are last year’s winners if you want to take a look.

Questions? Contact Awards Coordinator Abbi Martzall via email or by phone 317/927-8000, ext. 210. Or leave a comment below.

The opinions expressed below (and above) are not necessarily those of the management of this blog.

Then again, they aren’t necessarily the opposite, either.

The man expressing those opinions is David Schick, a college journalist I’ve written about a few times before.

He’s a little nuts, I won’t lie. But I’ve always said this about mentoring students:

It’s easier to dull a sharp knife than sharpen a dull knife.

In other words: The biggest asshole on campus can mellow into an adult who keeps an edge, but how many college cowards grow up to take the right risks?

So I like the guy. Here’s Schick’s latest shtick, in his own words. Make of it what you will…

Last month was Free Speech Week. And when it comes to the First Amendment, I’m more than an advocate – I’m a fanatic.

To celebrate, I decided that I wanted to pay tribute to a couple of my favorite cases regarding free speech. One day last week, I wore my old Army battle dress uniform and made some minor alterations to the back. I spelled out “Fuck The Draft” in duct tape on the back.

I wore this around #UGA‘s campus all day to kick off #FreeSpeechWeek. #FreedomSpeaks #CohenHomage pic.twitter.com/lmjb9m63bd

— David Schick (@davidcschick) October 20, 2014

The reactions were mixed. Some people just scoffed at the profanity, others asked me why I was wearing it—the real reason why I wore it, to educate people on the famous U.S. Supreme Court Case, Cohen v. California—and one of the Communications Law professors at my school laughed and actually took a picture with his phone.

In my first class, a philosophy course, one student told me that I could be tried under the Sedition Act and sent to jail for wearing it. You know, the Sedition Act that was passed in 1918 and repealed in 1920? That one.

Reason 1 for #FreeSpeechWeek: because some people believe you can be thrown in jail for speech unfavorable to the government #freedomspeaks

— David Schick (@davidcschick) October 20, 2014

On another day I paid homage to the late George Carlin and his Seven Dirty Words. In sharpie marker, I wrote out, “Shit, Piss, Fuck, Cunt, Cocksucker, Motherfucker, Tits,” on my journalism schools’ t-shirt they hand out to new students.

Remember the Communications Law professor who laughed before? Well, now I was “over the top.” I shook my head. Where did he draw that line? I wondered. Clearly “fuck” was okay in reference to a notable Supreme Court Case, but the addition of the other six “dirty words” in reference to a comedy sketch was no longer celebrating the First Amendment.

I carried on because “over the top” is how I am about the First Amendment. For me, there’s really no room for saying that one set of speech is okay but another is not.

And it may be cliché, but to correctly quote Evelyn Beatrice Hall (often attributed to Voltaire), even if “I disapprove of what you say, but I will defend to the death your right to say it.”

Photo courtesy of Christina Turner

By Lauren Whan

Each month, Lauren Whan, Region 7 assistant for campus affairs, will take a look at a university chapter from across the region.

COLUMBIA, Mo. — One of the largest journalism schools in the Midwest is the University of Missouri, otherwise known as “Mizzou.” With many successful journalists graduating from the university, it has become a popular place for aspiring reporters.

Mizzou started a Society of Professional Journalists chapter in 2000, and has slowly but surely built a large membership.

Chapter President Christina Turner said the Mizzou chapter has 24 official undergraduate members, 10 of whom are new to the organization. She said the chapter also has several graduate students attend meetings and support events. The chapter also has about two-dozen undergrad students who are not official card-carrying members of the national organization, Turner said.

Turner said she is hopeful they will recruit more members throughout the semester.

During the fall semester, the chapter held two get-to-know-you SPJ events.

• A free speech event, where people could write whatever they wanted on a big poster board around campus to celebrate First Amendment rights
• A profit-share event with a Yogoluv establishment downtown.

The Mizzou chapter now plans to hold an event in November where journalism employers can tell students what they’re looking for in future interns or new hires after graduation. This event will include a speed-dating component, where students can spend five minutes with each person from each organization discussing their specific interests.

Turner said she is also working on getting the event catered by a restaurant.

For the spring, the chapter is working on bringing in guest speakers from out-of-town to discuss emerging issues within the journalism school, documentary journalism and multimedia journalism.

“More and more, every emphasis area within the journalism school is multimedia, so we want to bring in professionals who use all these different platforms and skills to show that it is necessary to get a job in journalism these days.” Turner said.

Turner said Mizzou is launching a documentary journalism emphasis area in 2015, and the SPJ chapter is working on bringing in documentary filmmakers to discuss how documentary film and journalism intersect.

Photo courtesy of Christina Turner

Turner said she has been president of the Mizzou chapter since January 2014 and will transition out of presidency in January 2015. Her future career plans are to work in television news after she graduates in May 2015.

“At this point, there are opportunities both behind and in front of the camera throughout the country and in Europe, so the specifics of what I will do and where I’ll end up are wide-open,” Turner said.

Turner joined SPJ because it seemed like a good way to meet journalism professionals and learn what the media business was really like. Her favorite moments of being a member of SPJ have been the Excellence in Journalism conferences in Anaheim and Nashville, as well as the Ted Scripps Leadership Institute in Kansas City, Missouri.

As for advice on how to improve student interest, Turner believes the regional conferences haven’t been as well-advertised to student chapters in the past.

“Making sure every student chapter is aware of the conference would help. On our chapter end, we’ll be working on getting as much of that funded by the university as possible,” Turner said.

The sponsorship would help get more SPJ members interested and able to attend the conference.

To keep up with what’s happening at the University of Missouri, follow Christina on Twitter at @CSTurner1 and visit Mizzou SPJ’s website.

Manhattan, Kansas, was the last place I expected to find a Terracotta Warrior. But sure enough, one of the sculptures was behind a glass case at Kansas State University.

I made the trek down to KSU last week to kick off a series of pizza visits at universities within Region 7. For all the journalism student groups that will have me, I’ll bring a few pizzas and chat about the awesomeness that is SPJ.

KSU has a fantastic chapter, filled with brilliant young journalists who seem anxious to begin their careers. I hit on three key points that I hope every college journalist in the region knows.

• The Mark of Excellence Awards submission season begins Nov. 3! The Mark of Excellence Awards is SPJ’s college journalism awards. We recognize the best of the best in the region, as well as nationally. If you’re a journalism student or know journalism students, please encourage them to submit their best work from the past year.
• The SPJ Region 7 Conference is set for March 27-28 in Omaha, Nebraska. This conference is a great opportunity for professionals and students alike to network, hone their craft and explore a great town. Be sure to save the date!
• Now is the time to start applying for summer internships! Newsrooms are already beginning to think about who they will bring into the fold. Want to have your resume stand out, send it to me! I’m more than happy to take a look at any journalism student’s resume and cover letter.

KSU’s SPJ chapter isn’t the only student group with whom I will visit this year. Here’s a schedule of where you can catch me in the coming months.

• Nov. 3: Creighton University (Omaha, Nebraska), meeting with staffers at The Creightonian
• Nov. 17: Drake University (Des Moines, Iowa), meeting with Drake’s SPJ chapter
• November (TBA): University of Nebraska – Lincoln (Lincoln, Nebraska), meeting with students in the College of Journalism and Mass Communication

Do you know of a student journalism group that would like me to visit, pizzas in tow? Send me a note! I’ll do everything I can to make it happen.

• News Press and Gazette, Co., in St. Joseph, Missouri, is looking for a multimedia reporter. Click here for more information.
• The Des Moines Register in Des Moines, Iowa, is looking for an education reporter. Click here for more information.
• KMBZ 98.1 FM in Kansas City, Missouri, is looking for an executive producer. Click here for more information.
• The Northeast Nebraska News Company is looking for an editor. Click here for more information.

Check back next week for a new list of journalism jobs from around the Society of Professional Journalists’ Region 7!

• The Le Mars Daily Sentinel in Le Mars, Iowa, is searching for a news reporter. Click here for more information.
• KSDK, the NBC affiliate in St. Louis, is looking for an investigative producer. Click here for more information.
• The Manhattan Mercury in Manhattan, Kansas, is looking for a law and order reporter. Click here for more information.
• The Sidney Sun Telegraph in Sidney, Nebraska, is looking for a community journalist. Click here for more information.

Check back next week for a new list of journalism jobs from around the Society of Professional Journalists’ Region 7!

What’s the opposite of a restraining order? And can I get one against Tom Owens?

Owens is the county commission candidate in rural Georgia who got a restraining order against a freelance journalist. That was two weeks ago. Last week, justice prevailed and the restraining order was lifted.

There are certainly bigger crimes against journalism than the one Owens perpetrated against a writer named George Chidi. But few are as curious and even fewer are as devious.

I had one lengthy phone call with Owens on Oct. 9, during which he professed more than once, “I love the media! And the media loves me!” He said I could contact him anytime, and if he wasn’t campaigning or dead, he’d call me back right away.

Since then, he’s lost not one but two court hearings in as many days. After repeated calls and emails, he finally got back to me once over the weekend. Despite more emails and voice mails, he never replied.

What a shame. I really wanted to talk to him because I’ve learned he’s a crazy genius who stumbled upon the perfect crime.

Owens told me he “feared for his life” because George Chidi “acted like he had mad cow disease” whenever they met. 

So Owens sought what’s officially called a temporary protection order. A judge granted it – as well she should have, Chidi admits.

“She did what she was supposed to do, and that’s the problem,” Chidi says. “All the biases in the law are toward granting a TPO, as it should be. Because if you don’t, you end up with women getting beaten and killed.”

No one anticipated a candidate would seek a restraining order to get a reporter off his back. Owens did, and because a judge is supposed to err on the side of the accuser, he had a week free of Chidi’s searing questions about his past.

“Problem is, there’s no punishment on the back end for people misusing the law, especially when the purpose is violating the First Amendment,” Chidi says. “And there’s no mechanism in the law to prevent this from happening again.”

In 90 minutes, everything Owens accomplished for a week was undone.

First came a magistrate’s hearing on Tuesday. Owens and his team defended their restraining order by seeking a stalking charge against Chidi. Their evidence was this anti-climactic video, which Owens told me all about but refused to show me because he wanted the magistrate to see it first…

“The magistrate saw the video, and then his demeanor changed fundamentally,” Chidi says. “The magistrate said, ‘What is this? Did you really think this supports a stalking charge?” And [Owens] kept saying, ‘He made me feel afraid, he’s devious.’ The hearing was over in 30 minutes.”

The next day, a judge wanted to know why the restraining order should stay in place since the stalking charge was denied. An hour later, it was unofficially lifted.

“I’m totally off the hook,” Chidi says, “but we’re still waiting on the formal ruling – which I’m sure will be Get the fuck out of here in Latin.”

So did Owens get away with one? Chidi thinks more than just journalists are irked about his abuse of the legal system.

“I don’t think he’s fully understood the damage he’s done to himself,” Chidi says. “He may not have the competence necessary to understand how incompetent he is.”

SPJ Georgia president Sharon Dunten was at the second hearing and was equally stunned.

“It was one of the most bizarre hearings I have ever witnessed,” she told me. “Owens didn’t have counsel. He attempted to represent himself. The judge basically had to do everything for him, including questioning his witnesses. I think she wanted to make sure everything was neat and tidy so the possibility of an appeal would be out of the question.”

Dunten added: “When I arrived outside the courtroom, an odd man was speaking to someone about how George was gay, the N word, and a Muslim lover. He later was one of Owens’ witnesses.”

That afternoon, Dunten’s board of directors heard her report and issued this statement…

SPJ Georgia is pleased that Georgia journalist George Chidi is free to work as a journalist again. Minutes after leaving the courtroom, Chidi settled into a corner booth of a local Decatur pub and opened up his laptop to start writing professionally again.

Thanks goes to the legal team of attorney Tom Clyde, board member of the Georgia First Amendment Foundation, and Executive Director Hollie Manheimer for fighting the final step of releasing this outrageous restraining order against Chidi. Clyde is an attorney for Kilpatrick Stockton LLC of Georgia.

Thank you also goes to SPJ national for their prompt response for a journalist who was clearly facing a violation of the First Amendment.

So what happens now? Chidi is finishing his book on civic engagement in Georgia, which is why he was pursuing interviews with Owens in the first place.

“I think this will be its own chapter,” Chidi says.

My past posts showing proposed changes to the code, draft by draft, line by line, and my thoughts on them, might have been too busy and overwhelming for the average person. For example, this.

Some people followed along intently with as much wonkiness as I had, but at this year’s convention in Nashville, more people wanted something more boiled down and digestible.

With that in mind, here are several of the most noticeable differences in the new version:

• The preamble was reworked, but the different wording doesn’t have any substantially different ideas.

• In a few places, “journalists” has been replaced by “journalism.” Presumably, the idea is to include anyone who practices journalism — which is more important than trying to define journalists.

• A new line: (Each line in the code is prefaced with “Journalists should”) “Take responsibility for their work.” You could call this “the anti-Judith Miller” line. Miller, formerly of The New York Times, once said: “W.M.D. – I got it totally wrong. The analysts, the experts and the journalists who covered them – we were all wrong. If your sources are wrong, you are wrong. I did the best job that I could.”

• A new line: “Remember that neither speed nor format excuses inaccuracy.” This is worth emphasizing and absorbing. Too often, I’ve heard, “It’s no big deal. It’s for the web. We’ll fix it later.”

• An enhanced standard, added: “Reserve anonymity for sources who may face danger, retribution or other harm, and have information that cannot be obtained elsewhere. Explain why anonymity was granted.” This is a commonly used test for granting anonymity, but is frequently ignored in Washington, D.C., where anonymity is an overused crutch. [Note: Steve Buttry argues, correctly, that sources are “confidential,” not “anonymous,” when we know their names but shield their identities.]

• Examples deleted: “Avoid stereotyping. Journalists should examine the ways their values and experiences may shape their reporting.” The code used to say “Avoid stereotyping by race, gender, age, religion, ethnicity, geography, sexual orientation, disability, physical appearance or social status.” The argument for the cut was: Why the need for examples? And what if something is left out? I think the examples spark an inner review that can be illuminating. Prompts help us see stereotyping we didn’t realize we were doing.

• A watering down: The old code said: “Distinguish between advocacy and news reporting. Analysis and commentary should be labeled and not misrepresent fact or content.” The new code says: “Label advocacy and commentary.” The new, weaker language is hazier and less meaningful.

• A simple, concise, powerful addition: “Never plagiarize” is now followed by “Always attribute.”

• A smart addition: “Recognize that legal access to information differs from an ethical justification to publish or broadcast.”

• An even smarter addition: “Consider the long-term implications of the extended reach and permanence of publication. Provide updated and more complete information as appropriate.” Many newspapers print lists of arrests, and don’t have initiative, time or staff to follow up on adjudications. In the age of the Internet search engine, this presents a huge ethical problem.

• An excellent, more forceful rewording: Old – “avoid bidding for news.” New – “do not pay for access to news.” TV networks run roughshod over ethics by paying sources, then rationalizing it as “licensing fees” – which, coincidentally, always come with exclusive interviews. Under the old wording, this was acceptable, as long there was no competitor trying to pay that same source.

• An expanded heading, recognizing an important concept: Old – “Be Accountable.” New – “Be Accountable and Transparent.”

• Stronger language on corrections: From “Admit mistakes and correct them promptly” to “Acknowledge mistakes and correct them promptly and prominently. Explain corrections and clarifications carefully and clearly.” A cryptic correction buried in the back of the paper isn’t enough.

***

What’s not in the new code:

• Linking: It’s something I hadn’t thought about until I read Buttry’s convincing argument. He writes: “It’s the best way to attribute in digital content. It provides depth and context. A culture of linking is a strong measure to help prevent plagiarism and fabrication.” In Nashville, the arguments against linking were peculiar. One journalist talked about working in a dangerous setting, where she could be punished for showing where she got information. Others balked at forcing journalists to link. Actually, no one would be forced to do anything – the code is almost entirely “Journalists should…” Add “whenever possible or practical,” if tempering it makes you more comfortable.

• Suicide coverage. The Ethics Committee proposed: “Be cautious about reporting suicides that do not involve a public person or a public place.” I spoke out strongly against this reference when I read it. First, it singles out suicide, rather than calling for care in reporting on any death. Second, the subtext is that suicide remains a taboo topic to be avoided whenever possible. This is an outdated way of thinking, perpetuating the myth of stigma attached to suicide. Actually, suicide is a serious mental health problem that should be covered as much as possible, remaining sensitive while covering a person’s life and death. Finally, there was an unintended meaning as it was written: Private suicides require caution, but public suicides do not. The SPJ national board agreed it should be removed. After further objections in Nashville, it was cut before the code reached delegates for a final vote.

• Anonymous online comments: This is a particular peeve of mine, and I figured that, as part of the code update, it was worth trying to get SPJ to be a leader in ethical thinking. Anonymous online comments too often are corrosive and harmful to an atmosphere of thoughtful, civil debate. They turn the ethics of responsible comment (letters to the editor are edited in advance for libel; identities are almost always required and confirmed) on their head. So, I proposed adding: “Encourage a civil exchange of public opinions. Recognize the potential harm of allowing anonymous online comments.” There was some support within the national board and even more in Nashville, but unresolvable dissent on what to target and how to say it. I didn’t pursue the matter further before convention delegates, which might have prolonged debate. Maybe I’ll try again in the future.

***

Epilogue: It was particularly interesting to look back on the start and end of the code update process. A year ago (and even before that), some people clamored that the code – last updated in 1996 – was woefully out of date, largely because it didn’t address the new phenomenon of social media.

I was skeptical at the time about the need for any update, but especially one based on that reasoning. I thought the code’s principles of ethical decision-making work fine on any platform. Information’s distribution channels didn’t matter; the ethics that went into gathering, compiling and presenting the information did.

Still, the code update process moved ahead.

But, go figure. There’s one more thing missing from the new code: Any reference to social media.

I’m terribly sorry that it’s taken so long to get here and I know I’ve upset people with the unreasonably long wait for these results. Please allow me to explain a few things:

The man in my life was diagnosed with prostate cancer very soon after we launched the contest. What was supposed to have been a quick outpatient surgery turned into a five-day hospital stay and an excruciatingly complicated and long recovery process that featured me as the full-time caregiver.

The cancer diagnosis unfortunately coincided with my first term as contest manager as well as the retirement of our trusted contest coordinator. This proved a disastrous trinity and exposed a flaw in our contest system: we don’t have a backup plan – there was nobody I could hand the reins to.

I am sure some of you question my commitment to the contest and to SPJ, and there may not be much I can do about that, except to tell you that I spent hundreds of hours trying to pull this off and I’m truly sorry I’ve let you down.

I couldn’t have finished the job without the help of SPJ President Dana Neuts and exceptional HQ chapter coordinator Tara Puckey.

And guys, when your doctor says it’s time to check your PSA just do it – a cancer diagnosis is tough enough to deal when it doesn’t surprise you. Pia 

 WEEKLY WINNERS: 

D4 – Alternative Weeklies (10,000+ circ.) – Government and Political Reporting

First Place – Evolution of Food – Lisa Waananen & Deanna Pan, Pacific Northwest Inlander

Second Place – Goofus and Gallant Go To City Hall – Aaron Mesh, Willamette Week

Third Place – Ire of the Tiger: the Legacy of Wayne Morse – Camilla Mortensen, Eugene Weekly

D5 – Alternative Weeklies (10,000+ circ.) – Environment and Science Reporting

First Place – Climate is the Disaster – Camilla Mortensen, Eugene Weekly

Second Place – Silence of the Hives – Deanna Pan, Pacific Northwest Inlander

Third Place – The GMO Apple the Industry Hates – Nina Shapiro, Seattle Weekly

D7 – Alternative Weeklies (10,000+ circ.) – Social Issues Reporting

First Place – The Cake Wars – Martin Cizmar, Willamette Week

Second Place – The Real World Portland – Pete Cottell, Willamette Week

Third Place – Down to the bones – Jessica Mayrer, Missoula Independent

D9 – Alternative Weeklies (10,000+ circ.) – Arts Reporting

First Place – Last of the Sad Bastards – Matthew Singer, Willamette Week

Second Place – In Search of the Mystics – Kelton Sears, Seattle Weekly

Third Place – What’s so funny about the 1491s? – Jamie Rogers, Missoula Independent

D10 – Alternative Weeklies (10,000+ circ.) – Lifestyles Reporting

First Place – Killing Me Softly – Matthew Korfhage, Willamette Week

Second Place – Shoot to thrill – Erika Fredrickson, Missoula Independent

Third Place – How We Got Here – Lisa Waananen, Pacific Northwest Inlander

D11 – Alternative Weeklies (10,000+ circ.) – Personalities Reporting

First Place – The Gasman’s New Game – Matt Driscoll, Seattle Weekly

Second Place – More than just the money – Jason Cruz, Northwest Asian Weekly

Third Place – Freedom From the Line – Dameon Pesanti, Missoula Independent

D12 – Alternative Weeklies (10,000+ circ.) – Critiques & Reviews

First Place – The Wristbandification of Classical Music – Gavin Borchert, Seattle Weekly

Second Place – Hangover Mad Libs – Matthew Singer, Willamette Week

Third Place – Visual Arts: Buster Simpson at the Frye – Brian Miller, Seattle Weekly

To register for the training, go to: http://training. sunlightfoundation.com/events/ follow-midterm-money-trail- real-time/.

Foxhall was the driving force behind a coalition of journalism groups, led by SPJ, joining to speak out against a pervasive problem: federal agencies’ public information officers who hamper or thwart journalists from getting information of public interest and value.

During the closing dinner at the convention, Foxhall gave a short, punchy acceptance speech promoting freedom of access to information. One of my tablemates — a former SPJ president — liked the speech as much as I did and said SPJ ought to make it available on the web.

Foxhall provided me a written copy a few days later. Here it is.

—-

Thank you, wonderful journalists.
If my work can somehow serve as a rallying point on this thing, I will take it and run with it.
But in reality, nothing would have happened without a number of strong SPJ people.
— Sonny Albarado who put it in a presidential column;
— Dave Cuillier who made it a major SPJ theme;
— Linda Petersen, former FOI chair, whose ferocious anger on the local level serves as a model;
— And Carolyn Carlson whose surveys have been foundational.
So thank you all.

Most of the restrictions in public and private entities that prohibit staff and reporters from talking without notifying the authorities  – “going through the press office”— are new, historically, and they are radical.
We are moving toward something like the Soviet Union through cultural diffusion. Diffusion of the idea that silencing or controlling most people is appropriate.
It’s a huge ethical issue for journalism.
What is the quality of reporting done under guard at the behest of the powerful?  Are we, journalists, putting up with it? Or colluding with it?
We go through PIOs and talk to people and get stories that are interesting, accurate, possibly ahead of the pack.
The problem is that a staff person in the agency could blow our story out of the water, if they could talk freely. Or point to 10 bigger stories.
And we just never know it.
Millions of people can’t talk to us. How is it even responsible to assume we are making up for that with hard work and skills?
Some of the missed perspectives cause ongoing public misunderstanding.
Some are tragic.
No one will do anything about it if we don’t.
We need sustained determination from you all to re-create the culture where such restraints are unthinkable.
Thank you.

The Reporters Committee is about to start suing people to help journalists

Katie Townsend joins the organization as its first litigation director

By Jonathan Peters

Fair warning, all ye who interfere with newsgathering: The Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press is getting ready to sue you.

The organization has hired its first litigation director, Katie Townsend, to bring lawsuits around the country in cases that affect access to information for the press and public.

Although the RCFP has provided legal assistance to journalists for nearly 45 years—developing media law guides, filing amicus briefs, issuing statements, answering questions, making referrals to outside counsel—not since the 1980s has the RCFP itself been active as a litigant. It is re-entering that arena now to help fill a void created as news outlets, strapped for resources, have retreated from some legal battles.

“It’s in our blood,” said Bruce Brown, the group’s executive director. “This type of work is part of our history and mission, and now we’re doing all we can to enhance it—to use our expertise to ensure that journalists can gather and report the news without interference.”

The new position was created by rededicating funds that once supported a freedom of information director, who left the RCFP in 2013. To make the most of its resources, the organization will use several models to manage its litigation: handling cases in-house from start to finish; coordinating cases and dividing the labor with partners, such as law firms, law school clinics, or groups like the ACLU; and referring cases to outside counsel, the group’s favored approach for the past 25 years.

Townsend, the new litigation director, will be the quarterback, identifying potential cases, deciding how to bring them, and seeing them through to resolution. She joins the RCFP from the firm Gibson, Dunn and Crutcher, where she was an associate working on issues ranging from access to records and proceedings to prior restraints, for clients in both traditional and digital media.

“I couldn’t be more excited,” Townsend said. “We’re going to work hard to establish good precedents for journalists and the public at large—being both cautious and ambitious in the cases we bring, to build on the work we did a few decades ago.”

That work includes two cases decided by the US Supreme Court. In a 1989 case, the court held that the FBI had justifiably refused, under a Freedom of Information Act exemption, to disclose arrest-record compilations for a living person. And in a 1980 ruling, the justices found that records from Henry Kissinger’s time as Secretary of State and National Security Advisor were properly withheld under the Freedom of Information Act.

Neither case went the RCFP’s way, obviously, but they were part of an important string of cases in the 1970s and 1980s asserting and testing the rights of journalists and the public to monitor government activities. And going forward, that’s where the RCFP plans to focus its energy and resources: access and freedom of information issues.

As plaintiff, litigating is a luxury

It’s a timely focus. Hard data are tough to come by, but at least three surveys over the last five years have shown a perceived drop in the number of lawsuits initiated by the press to enforce state and federal access laws and freedom of information laws.

In other words, it appears that bringing a case as a plaintiff—as opposed to defending one by necessity as a defendant—is a luxury many news organizations increasingly can’t afford.

“The big idea for all of us at the Reporters Committee is to help the industry by litigating cases that media organizations would bring if they had more resources,” Brown said. “It’s a pragmatic response to what we know is happening in the industry.”

He said the RCFP would do both trial and appellate work, and that Townsend will consult news organizations and media lawyers to identify cases in which there’s something more at stake than the immediate outcome—something presenting, as Brown put it, “potential long-term benefits for journalists.”

Indeed, the RCFP has already initiated litigation in one such case, along with other media and transparency groups. Represented by pro bono counsel, the group last week asked a federal appeals court to unseal documents filed as part of a lawsuit to halt the “John Doe” investigation of alleged misconduct by Wisconsin Gov. Scott Walker’s campaign.

“That case is perfect for us,” Brown said. “At issue is the right to observe the courts, and the significance of that issue plainly goes beyond the direct participants in the case.”

It takes a village…

– See more at: http://www.cjr.org/united_states_project/reporters_committee_for_freedom_of_press_hires_new_litigation_director.php#sthash.Hi59O3Er.dpuf

“Our International Committee has been fairly dormant the last couple of years. It hasn’t been disbanded, so to speak, but nothing is really happening. We have an inactive blog, a Twitter account and some other tools that aren’t really being utilized. There has not been a significant amount of interest in our recent history — until now. After reading my diversity post yesterday, a member of the St. Louis chapter urged me to devote some SPJ resources to addressing international journalism issues. He’s willing to chair the committee and he’s already got a list of ideas…but he’ll need a team to help. I heard from one or two others at EIJ that they would like to be involved too.

“If you, your colleagues, students or chapter members have an interest in international journalism, please let me know or share this email with them. Thank you!

Contact Dana at    spj@virtuallyyourz.com

-tom johnson

It was mostly true, but not entirely.

The post was meant to highlight the last round of changes by the SPJ Ethics Committee to the proposed code of ethics. The post was based on a marked-up version that was distributed and posted on Aug. 28.

However, I noticed that some small changes were made, but weren’t marked up on that version.

In addition, the committee, for the first time, has shared two passages that have fairly significant changes — the code’s preamble and a disclaimer that was created about four years ago.

The easiest way way for me to show all of the proposed changes, to all parts of the code, was to update a previous critique that I did on Aug. 20. I updated it today (Sept. 1).

Hopefully, that’s it for proposed changes. Now, it’s up to delegates at the convention to make further edits.

The board voted 11-4, with one abstention, to endorse the draft, after agreeing that a newly added reference to coverage of suicide should be stricken.

The board also directed the Ethics Committee to go back over its latest draft and clean it up, eliminating typos and changing passive constructions to active.

On Aug. 28, the board got a copy of that reworked draft. A copy also was posted on the Ethics Committee’s blog.

However, unlike the document distributed to the national board on Thursday afternoon, the version posted on the blog doesn’t indicate what final changes were made.

The marked-up versions of each draft have made it much easier to follow what changes were made.

Since only a handful of passages were changed in this final editing process, I’ll paste them here, highlighting the changes that were made since the committee’s third draft was released. (On the other hand, some people might prefer seeing and absorbing the clean version.)

Here are the final edits (bold indicates additions, strike-through indicates deletions):

Under “Seek Truth and Report It”

• Question sources’ motives before promising anonymity, reserving it for those who may face danger, retribution or other harm.  Do not grant aAnonymity should not be granted merely as license to criticize. Pursue alternative sources before granting anonymity. Explain why anonymity was granted.

• Avoid undercover or other surreptitious reporting methods unless except when traditional, open methods will not yield information vital to the public.

• Provide access to source material when it is relevant and appropriate.

• Boldly tell the story of the diversity and magnitude of the human experience. Seek sources whose voices we are seldom heard.

• Never deliberately distort facts or context, including visual news content.  Clearly label illustrations and re-enactments.

Under “Minimize Harm”

• Consider the implications of identifying juvenile suspects, victims of sex crimes, and criminal suspects before they face are legal chargesd.  Balance a suspect’s right to a fair trial with the public’s right to know. be informed.

Under “Be Accountable and Transparent”

• Acknowledge mistakes and correct them promptly and prominently.  Explain Ccorrections and clarifications should be explained carefully and thoroughly.

For the first time in any of the Ethics Committee’s four drafts, a disclaimer has been added:

The SPJ Code of Ethics is a living document, a statement of principles supported by additional explanations and position papers (at spj.org) that address changing journalistic practices. It is not a set of rules, rather a guide that encourages all who engage in journalism to take responsibility for the information they provide, regardless of medium. The code should be read as a whole; individual principles should not be taken out of context. It is not, nor can it be under the First Amendment, legally enforceable.

This doesn’t exactly qualify as a minor edit for typos or verb construction, but it is not entirely new. It takes pieces of the current disclaimer:

The SPJ Code of Ethics is voluntarily embraced by thousands of journalists, regardless of place or platform, and is widely used in newsrooms and classrooms as a guide for ethical behavior. The code is intended not as a set of “rules” but as a resource for ethical decision-making. It is not — nor can it be under the First Amendment — legally enforceable.

About four years ago, the Ethics Committee wrote the current disclaimer to address frequent, inappropriate attempts, particularly by lawyers, to frame the code as “law” or “rules” that journalists had to follow. That distorts the code’s actual purpose, as a set of guidelines and considerations for journalists before they make decisions. I’ve seen the disclaimer cited many times; I think it has been effective.

On Thursday, when I saw the new version of the disclaimer added to the committee’s final draft, without any references to the current disclaimer, I asked that it be given the markup treatment like everything above it. I hope that’s done before delegates review it in Nashville next week.

Remember that everything in the final draft is subject to change at the convention, under scrutiny of the delegates (of which I am one). Here are suggestions I recently made for further edits.

Over the past year, Region 1 Grants were awarded to The College at Brockport to produce a Western New York Media Conference and to the Keystone Pro chapter to purchase the documentary “A Fragile Trust” for screening events with local college chapters.

The deadlines for quarterly funding are as follows: Nov. 21, 2014; Feb. 21, 2015; May 21, 2015; Aug. 21, 2015

Simply cut/paste the following application into an email or Word file and send it to:

Region 1 Director Rebecca Baker: rebecca.baker.ny@gmail.com

Region 1 Treasurer Bill Bleyer: billbleyer@gmail.com

REGION 1 CHAPTER GRANT APPLICATION
Chapter Name:
Name:
Address:
City/State/Zip:
Telephone:
E-mail:
—————
Program name:

Please describe your program and include any objectives you would like your program to accomplish:

Approx. Date program will take place:

How will this program benefit your chapter’s members and the journalism community as a whole?

What format will your program follow?

Who will be invited to speak at and/or present the program?

Requested grant amount: $

Preliminary budget: $

Reasons why your chapter cannot fund this event without grant funds:
—————-

The biggest issue was that some of our contest categories didn’t migrate to the judging round as they should have. We became aware of this a week prior to the awards being announced. We immediately sent the categories out to judges, but it was too late to get them done in time.

In hindsight, I should have handled this with a public announcement as soon as we found out, but I was more focused on getting things done. I am sincerely sorry for the inconvenience and hurt feelings the missing categories caused Saturday evening, and I ask you to please be understanding.

The missing categories are being judged and results will be announced here and directly to the winners as soon as we have them. Please know that we are working hard on solving the issues we had this year and will do our best to not repeat them.

Awards distribution: Our Region 10 is geographically huge with a limited number of chapters. This year, there were award banquets in Seattle and Portland. All awards for members of those two chapters (as well as freelancers and news outlets obviously located in those areas) were shipped to banquet organizers.

Everything else is arriving here in Spokane, from where it will be mailed to winners in Montana, Alaska, Idaho and Eastern and Southern Washington.

Awards will be mailed to the address we have in the online system. If you are a freelancer and submitted your own work, the award will come directly to you. If a media outlet submitted your work on behalf of you, then the award will be mailed to that media outlet.

Thank you for your ongoing support of SPJ and Region 10.

PS. Our contest requires three or more entries in a category for it to be judged – we had nearly 30 categories without enough entries. If your category was canceled for lack of entries, then you will get your money back.

2013spjresults

No excuses. I’m here and ready to make a difference. First on my agenda is to see all of you at the Midwest Journalism Conference. Make plans to join us on March 28-29 in Bloomington, MN.

Here’s the link:
www.midwestjournalism.com

Some of the highlights will be a discussion on updating the SPJ Code of Ethics. I’m not saying they will be changed, we want to know from all of you if you think they should be updated.
If I don’t catch up with you in Minnesota, please take a moment and let us know what you’re thinking.
You can contact me at:
jradske@wkow.com

I hope you’re all well. I’ll be back sooner than later to discuss the issues important to all of us in Region 6.

You can always find me at:
jradske@wkow,com
or give me a call at:
262-366-1259

This year’s event, organized by the New England Pro Chapter of SPJ, will bring together professional and student journalists from Maine to Pennsylvania for two days of professional development and networking from April 25-26 at Boston University. It is guaranteed to be exciting and informative event — not to mention an investment in your career.

The theme of this year’s conference is “Byte Back! Doing Great Journalism in the Digital Age” and will include programs on investigative reporting, cross-disciplinary journalism, ethics, high-tech newsgathering, personal branding, legal issues for journalists and much, much more.

An opening night reception will be held at The Castle, a gorgeous Tudor Revival mansion on the BU campus, where legendary broadcast journalist Carole Simpson will share her thoughts on the present and future states of journalism.

On Saturday, we’ll take a break from programming to have a delicious lunch in BU’s elegant Trustee Ballroom, where we’ll honor the best collegiate journalism in the region at the annual Mark of Excellence Awards ceremony.

Getting to Boston is easy. In addition to Amtrak, Megabus.com is offering free rides from their locations to Boston for those coming from long distances. There are also discounted rates at several local hotels.

We’re expecting a sold-out event, so reserve your place before they’re all out! For details on the SPJ Region 1 Spring Conference and to register, visit spjr1c.org.

The categories and entry prices are the same as last year. The deadline is February 19 – please meet the deadline. Please.
Some of you have a three-day weekend coming up and the stuff you are submitting was already published – please don’t procrastinate.

We have a new contest coordinator. Her name is Lorna Walsh and she is a communications professional here in Spokane. She was one of a handful of people who were interested in the job, and we are looking forward to working with her.
For now, your best contact for contest questions is Regional Director Pia Hallenberg – reach her at piah@spokesman.com

We received more than 2,000 entries last year and are excited to see what you will be sending us this year. Remember, only entries published and broadcast in 2013 are eligible.

The deadline this year is Feb. 19 at noon, PST. The website should be up and running by the weekend – I need to work out a few kinks, but we are almost there. This, of course, doesn’t mean that you can’t start getting your ducks in a row.

As you consider which stories and pictures to submit this year and reflect on what it means to you to participate and perhaps win something, please consider giving back to SPJ by volunteering to judge some of the entries we will be receiving in the judge swap.

Email Regional Director Pia Hallenberg at piah@spokesman.com to volunteer.

The results will be released on May 17 – and here’s some good news for those on the east side of Region 10: there will be an awards banquet in Spokane this year. It will be on May 24 and I really hope you will come and join us. Stay tuned for details.

Michael Koretzsky, Region 3 director, offered a resolution calling for SPJ to change its name to the Society for Professional Journalism. The delegates rejected the resolution, but directed the national board to take up the issue and come back with a recommendation the following year.

Koretzsky outlines his reasons here. In a nutshell, changing the name would allow people who are not journalists to join SPJ and give it additional clout. It also reflects the arguments we’re making for the shield law, that it is journalism that should be defined, and not journalists.

But there are also reasons to keep the current name. First, it’s expensive to change a name, especially when you have letterhead, banners and signs with the society’s name on it It may also confuse people as to what SPJ stands for.

I volunteered to serve on the task force that will look into the name issue, as I think it is a discussion worth happening. But I want to ask you what you think. Should SPJ change its name? You can either post below, or email me.

Right now, we’re working out the programming details. If you have any suggestions let me know, or email Sheryl Worsley, Utah Headliners’ president, with your suggestions.

I’ll keep you posted as the conference develops.

I would invite all Region 1 members to weigh in on this issue.

In the past, that would have meant bringing in your own portable photocopier or one of those 110 spy cameras like they show in old movies on late-night TV. But today, with high-resolution digital cameras, cellphone cameras and tablet computers, it’s really easy.

So easy that Durango, Colo., wants to outlaw it.

The Durango Herald reports the city is going to vote on an ordinance Tuesday to bar records requesters from taking pictures of the documents they are seeking. City Clerk Amy Philips said the practice is costing the city money, in that the staff takes time to assemble “the records and let people come in and observe the records and tag which ones they want copies of, but we’re finding out now that people are able to come in with a phone and just (photograph) the copies.

“Then we don’t retrieve the money we spent.”

Along with banning photography, the city is planning to charge people $30 an hour for records requests to cover staff time spent filling the request on top of the 25-cent fee for copies.

The Durango City Council will vote on the proposal at the June 17 meeting.

We saw a similar argument in Utah, when that state’s legislature pushed through a bill gutting the state’s Government Records Access and Management Act. One of the changes it proposed was to add overhead costs — employee benefits, building utilities, rent, etc. — to the fees charged for records.

There are a couple problems with calls to “recoup” fees for public documents.

The fees charged for copying usually go well above and beyond the actual costs. When adding the costs of paper, toner and depreciation on the photocopier, the actual cost is about 1.5 cents per copy, which explains how copy centers can charge 7 cents a copy and stay in business.

I’ve personally seen a 911 dispatch center in Utah charge $20 for a recording of an emergency call on a compact disc. Depending on where you shop, a CD can cost about 25 cents a copy, and if Apple can get away with selling songs for 99 cents, a $1.25 would be a reasonable cost.

As far as the employees’ time, filling a records request, especially if it is a request that benefits the public, is just part of their job, which the public is already paying for through their taxes. Essentially, a records requester is being asked to pay twice for the same employee.

High fees can be used as a tool to deny access, especially for people of modest means.

A real-life example of this happened when the Utah Democratic Party sought records and correspondence releated to the Republican-dominated Legislature’s redistricting efforts. The Legislature charged them almost $15,000 for three boxes.

Officials only backed down when media outlets asked for the records.

A records fee could be justified in cases where a business is making the request solely for self-interest. But bureaucrats shouldn’t use public records as a revenue stream.

CLASSIFICATION D: Circulation Less than 10,000

Info Graphic

Third Place: Chad Collins and Molly Armbrister, “Inside the Max,” Northern Colorado Business Report

Second Place: Mike Reid, “Market Snapshot,” Colorado Springs Business Journal

First Place: Mike Reid, “Memorial: the constant topic and blockbuster deal that shaped 2012,” Colorado Springs Business Journal

Single Page Design

Third Place: Robert L. Ortiz, “Thunderstorms jump page,” The Southern Ute Drum

Second Place: Chad Collins, “2012 Energy Book,” Northern Colorado Business Report

First Place: Mike Reid, “More retail steps up to fill Tejon vacancies,” Colorado Springs Business Journal

Feature Page Design

Second Place: Robert L. Ortiz, “Tribal Fair,” The Southern Ute Drum

First Place: Mike Reid, “People who shaped the year,” Colorado Springs Business Journal

Front Page Design

Third Place: Mike Reid, Colorado Springs Business Journal

Second Place: Travis Kelly, Four Corners Free Press

First Place: Travis Kelly, Four Corners Free Press

Headline Writing:

First Place: Ace Stryker, “Bluegrass grows in Ignacio sun/Bearly hanging on/Glomerulonephritis,” The Southern Ute Drum

Special Section

Second place: Staff, “Discoveries 2012: Universities, Labs and the Economy,” Northern Colorado Business Report

First Place: Rowdy Tompkins, Rob Larimer, “Engage Colorado Springs,” Colorado Business Journal

Sports Photography

Third Place: Jeremy Wade Shockley, “Tri-Ute athletes face off in Towaoc,”The Southern Ute Drum

Second Place: Jeremy Wade Shockley, Christopher R. Rizzo, “Youth bull riding finals come to Ignacio,” The Southern Ute Drum

First Place: Jeremy Wade Shockley, “Dancers welcome top cyclists,” The Southern Ute Drum

Feature Photography

Third Place: Christopher R. Rizzo, “Youth workers clock out as summer’s end nears,” The Southern Ute Drum

Second Place: Robert L. Ortiz, “Cabin fever takes hold in Ignacio,” The Southern Ute Drum

First Place: Randy Siner, “Joe Badal,” New Mexico Business Weekly

News Photography

Second Place: Jeremy Wade Shockley, “20th Ignacio Bike Week kicks into gear,” The Southern Ute Drum

First Place: Jeremy Wade Shockley, “Hozhoni Days Powwow rocks the Fort,” The Southern Ute Drum

Spot News Photography

Third Place: Robert L. Ortiz, “Walking together,” The Southern Ute Drum

Second Place: Jeremy Wade Shockley, “Southern Ute Tribe rings in spring with traditional Bear Dance,” The Southern Ute Drum

First Place: Robert L. Ortiz, “Thunderstorms prompt worries of new fire starts,” The Southern Ute Drum

Blog

First Place: John Hazlehurst, Colorado Springs Business Journal

Health: Enterprise Reporting

First Place: Amy Gillentine, “Mental Illness: It’s the elephant in our room,” Colorado Springs Business Journal

Health: General Reporting

Second Place: Sonja Horoshko, “Living with poison,” Four Corners Free Press

First Place: Amy Gillentine, “Mental health task forces to address gaps in care,” Colorado Springs Business Journal

Environment: Enterprise Reporting

First Place: Jim Mimiaga, “Ute tribe challenges uranium-mill license renewal,” Four Corners Free Press

Environment: General Reporting

Third Place: Gail Binkly, “A balancing act for Sand Canyon,” Four Corners Free Press

Second Place: Anne Minard, “A bird on the brink,” Four Corners Free Press

First Place: Amanda Miller, “Green building LEEDs way to a sustainable future,” Colorado Springs Business Journal

Legal: Enterprise Reporting

Second Place: Amanda Miller, “Burglary? Investors seize houses before they officially own them,” Colorado Springs Business Journal

First Place: Amy Gillentine, “Religious lawsuits fill court dockets,” Colorado Springs Business Journal

Legal: General Reporting

Third Place: Ace Stryker, “Fiscal limbo,” The Southern Ute Drum

Second Place: Jim Mimiaga, “Reefer gladness,” Four Corners Free Press

First Place: Gail Binkly, “A taxing situation,” Four Corners Free Press

Politics: Enterprise Reporting

First Place: Ace Stryker, “Mr. Olguin goes to Washington,” The Southern Ute Drum

Politics: General Reporting

Second Place: Gail Binkly, “All Republican, all the time,” Four Corners Free Press

First Place: Sonja Horoshko, “A dispute over representation,” Four Corners Free Press

Agriculture: Enterprise Reporting

First Place: Amy Gillentine, “Industrial hemp could jump-start economy,” Colorado Springs Business Journal

Agriculture: General Reporting

First Place: Anne Minard, “Oil-seed crops take root in the region,” Four Corners Free Press

Education: Enterprise Reporting

First Place: Monica Mendoza, “UCCS: Driving the region’s economic growth,” Colorado Springs Business Journal

Education: General Reporting

Third Place: Gail Binkly, “Far-reaching teaching,” Four Corners Free Press

Second Place: Jeremy Wade Shockley, “’Secret Garden’ teaches kids about health, stewardship,” The Southern Ute Drum

First Place: Deb Hurley Brobst, “A Strong Soul,” Evergreen Newspapers

A&E: Enterprise Reporting

First Place: Sonja Horoshko, “An identity crisis for the cultural center?,” Four Corners Free Press

A&E: General Reporting

Third Place: Sonja Horoshko, “Native filmmakers share the spotlight,” Four Corners Free Press

Second Place: Gail Binkly, “Part Libertarian, part granola-cruncher, Fayhee offers a distinct perspective,” Four Corners Free Press

First Place: Monica Mendoza, “Forbes gives nod to remake of Jay-Z, Beatles‚ mash-up,” Colorado Springs Business Journal

Business: Enterprise Reporting

Third Place: Amy Gillentine, “Mayor Bach sets aggressive jobs goal, but is it possible?” Colorado Springs Business Journal

Second Place: Monica Mendoza, “City of Fountain pitching itself to national retailers,” Colorado Springs Business Journal

First Place: Steve Lynn, “Abound Solar plagued by defective panels,” Northern Colorado Business Report

Business: General Reporting

Third Place: Monica Mendoza, “Women’s Chamber plots new strategy,” Colorado Springs Business Journal

Second Place: Steve Lynn, “Refugees place big burden on schools,”Northern Colorado Business Report

First Place: Amy Gillentine and John Hazlehurst, “Marijuana: Economic stimulant, or just a can of worms,” Colorado Springs Business Journal

Sports: General Reporting

First Place: Christopher R. Rizzo, “Sun Ute lifeguard laces up for international championships,” The Southern Ute Drum

Personal or Humor Column

Third Place: Suzanne Strazza, Four Corners Free Press

Second Place: John Hopkins, Four Corners Free Press

First Place: David Fryxell, Desert Exposure

News Column

Third Place: Gail Binkly, Four Corners Free Press

Second Place: Katharhynn Heidelberg, Four Corners Free Press

First Place: Allen Greenberg, Northern Colorado Business Report

Editorials

Third Place: David Fryxell, Desert Exposure

Second Place: Ralph Routon, Colorado Springs Business Journal

First Place: Gail Binkly, Four Corners Free Press

News Feature

Third Place: Amanda Miller, “Developers opting not to build apartments downtown,” Colorado Springs Business Journal

Second Place: Deb Hurley Brobst, “A Century of Fortitude,” Evergreen Newspapers

First Place: Deb Hurley Brobst, “When all winds become ill winds,”Evergreen Newspapers

Investigative/Enterprise Reporting

First Place: Dennis Domrzalski and Steve Ginsberg, “Labs in the balance,”

New Mexico Business Weekly

General Reporting: Series or Package

Third Place: Monica Mendoza and Amanda Miller, “The business of aging,” Colorado Springs Business Journal

Second Place: Jeremy Wade Shockley and Ace Stryker, “Southern Ute wildlife series,” The Southern Ute Drum

First Place: Ace Stryker, “Utes bless Christmas tree destined for U.S. Capitol/Tribal members tour Meeker historical sites,”The Southern Ute Drum

Breaking News

Second Place: Ace Stryker, “It’s official: Chimney Rock a national monument,” The Southern Ute Drum

First Place: Megan Kamerick, “Sony Pictures Imageworks to leave New Mexico,” New Mexico Business Weekly

General Reporting: Single Story

Third Place: Ace Stryker, “Pair of Christmas trees blessed by Ute elders arrives in D.C.,” The Southern Ute Drum

Second Place: Sonja Horoshko, “A firestorm over water,” Four Corners Free Press

First Place: Jeremy Wade Shockley, “Traditions live on in Buffalo Harvest,”The Southern Ute Drum

Public Service

First Place: Amy Gillentine and John Hazlehurst, “City hasn’t learned from long-ago wildfires,”Colorado Springs Business Journal

CLASSIFICATION: RADIO

Enterprise Reporting

Third Place: Storee Powell, “Women’s Education,”Utah Public Radio

Second Place:Grace Hood, “Overworked and Underpaid? Teacher Staffing at Colorado Virtual Academy,”KUNC

First Place: Grace Hood, “With District Changes Looming, Colorado’s Largest Online School Considers Split,” KUNC

Feature Reporting

Third Place: Grace Hood, “A Day in the Life of a Wildfire Evacuee,” KUNC

Second Place: Megan Kamerick, “ISEA artists explore intersections of nature and technology,” KUNM

First Place: Nathan Heffel, “El Sistema: Transforming Youth Through Classical Music,”KUNC

Multimedia Story

First Place: KUNC News Staff, “Nano Beer Series,” KUNC

General Website Excellence

First Place: KUNC

Political Reporting

First Place: Storee Powell, “Democratic Congressional Candidates Debate this Week: Get to Know Them Before the Primary,” Utah Public Radio

A&E Reporting

First Place: Storee Powell, “Introducing the Logan Film Festival,” Utah Public Radio

News Feature

First Place: Storee Powell, “From New York to Utah: An Eyewitness Account of Hurricane Sandy,” Utah Public Radio

News Reporting

Third Place: Storee Powell, “Analyzing Women Voters: How They’ll Vote and Why,” Utah Public Radio

Second Place: Nathan Heffel, “The High Park Fire Base Camp: A Respite From The Blaze,”KUNC

First Place: Grace Hood and Nathan Heffel, “High Park Fire Displaces People, Animals,” KUNC

Public Service

Second Place: Storee Powell, “Concerns Raised for Seniors Over Voter ID Laws,” Utah Public Radio

First Place: Storee Powell, April Ashland, Kerry Bringhurst and Ryan Cunningham, “Mental Illness Awareness,” Utah Public Radio

General Broadcast Excellence

First Place: Megan Kamerick, “Public Square: Bullying,” KNME

CLASSIFICATION: TV

Feature Reporting

First Place: Ben Winslow, “Brigham Young’s Secret Wife?”KSTU FOX 13

News Reporting

First Place: Ben Winslow and Paul Sanchez, “Steven Powell Guilty,” KSTU FOX 13

Enterprise Reporting

Third Place: Keli Rabon and Jason Foster, “Moving Mess,” KMGH 7 News

Second Place: Gadi Schwartz, Peter St. Cyr and Laurie Passman, “4 On Your Side: Campaign workers caught offering alcohol to voters” KOB TV

First Place: Keli Rabon and Jason Foster, “Testing the System: Justice for Rape Victims,” KMGH 7 News

CLASSIFICATION C: Circulation between 10,001-29,999

Info Graphic

Third Place: Luis Uribe, “Denver Home Market,” Denver Business Journal

Second Place: Boots Gifford, “Regulatory Reform Progress,”Denver Business Journal

First Place: Kiah Staley, “Beer cruise,”Wyoming Tribune Eagle

Agriculture: Enterprise

First Place: Joel Dyer, “Monsanto’s point of no return,”Boulder Weekly

Agriculture: General Reporting

Third Place: Pamela Hasterok, “Shares of LOVE Small-scale farms supply healthy, organic produce,”Durango Herald

Second Place: Elizabeth Miller, “Sprayed trespass,”Boulder Weekly

First Place: Cathy Proctor, “Coming up dry: Companies adjust as drought boosts food prices / Lack of water ripples through economy,”Denver Business Journal

Single Page Design

Third Place: Boots Gifford, “Single page 9-28-12,”Denver Business Journal

Second Place: Boots Gifford, “Single page 3-2-12,”Denver Business Journal

First Place: Angela St. Clair, “Jake Byrd presents,”Wyoming Tribune Eagle

Front Page Design

Third Place: Cynthia Miller, “Slices of History”Santa Fe New Mexican – 2

Second Place: Kristina Dunham, “Red-letter moment,”Santa Fe New Mexican – 2

First Place: Brian Barker, “Obama,” Santa Fe New Mexican – 2

Headline Writing

Second Place: Bruce Goldberg, Denver Business Journal

First Place: Dave Shelles, Spencer Elliott, Wyoming Tribune Eagle

News Column

Third Place: Joel Dyer, “Is City Council above the law?” Boulder Weekly

Second Place: Neil Westergaard, “Gaylord’s proposal wasn’t right from the start,” Denver Business Journal

First Place: Jefferson Dodge, “Papers, please: An attempt to infiltrate a closed meeting of a Boulder County board” Boulder Weekly

Feature Page Design

Third Place: Carlos Lopez, “Taste,” Santa Fe New Mexican – 2

Second Place: Carlos Lopez, “Turn up the steam,” Santa Fe New Mexican – 2

First Place: Angela St. Clair, “The monster in us,”Wyoming Tribune Eagle

Special Section

Third Place: Staff, “Forty under 40,”Denver Business Journal

Second Place: Staff, “Power Book,” Denver Business Journal

First Place: Staff, “Outstanding Women in Business,” Denver Business Journal

Sports: Enterprise Reporting

Second Place: Alex Riley, “South bound for success,”Wyoming Tribune Eagle

First Place: David Accomazzo, Jefferson Dodge, “Colorado football players collected scholarship money despite legal troubles,”Boulder Weekly

Sports Photography

Third Place: James Brosher, “East beats the clock,”Wyoming Tribune Eagle

Second Place: Steve Lewis, “STATE WRESTLING CHAMPIONSHIPS,” Durango Herald

First Place: Michael Smith, “Lassoed by the lens,”Wyoming Tribune Eagle

Feature Photography

Third Place: Kathleen Lavine, “Jetlinx,”Denver Business Journal

Second Place: Miranda Grubbs, “You know what you’re doing, right?”Wyoming Tribune Eagle

First Place: Jane Phillips, “Cozy Coats for Kids,”Santa Fe New Mexican – 2

News Photography

Third Place: Jane Phillips, “Slow Burn”Santa Fe New Mexican – 2

Second Place: Jane Phillips, “Best from behind the lens,”Santa Fe New Mexican – 2

First Place: Michael Smith, “Defender of democracy,”Wyoming Tribune Eagle

Spot News Photography

Third Place: Jerry McBride, “Search on for shooter,” Durango Herald

Second Place: Jane Phillips, “2 Killed ‘execution style’ in Rio Arriba,” Santa Fe New Mexican – 2

First Place: Jane Phillips, “Smoky Skyline,” Santa Fe New Mexican – 2

Multimedia Story

Second Place: Staff, “Forty under 40 multimedia,” Denver Business Journal

First Place: Staff, “Outstanding Women in Business multimedia,” Denver Business Journal

Mobile Applications

First Place: Staff, “Outstanding Women in Business multimedia,” Denver Business Journal

Blog

Second Place:Neil Westergaard, Denver Business Journal

First Place: Mark Harden, Denver Business Journal

General Website Excellence

Third Place: Staff, “WyoSports,” Wyoming Tribune Eagle

Second Place: Staff, Durango Herald

First Place: Staff, Denver Business Journal

Health: Enterprise Reporting

Second Place: Ed Sealover, “Proposed trauma center changes spark worry,” Denver Business Journal

First Place: Deborah Busemeyer, “A cannabis catch 22,”Santa Fe New Mexican – 2

Health: General Reporting

Third Place: Bruce Krasnow, “Doctor’s dismissal leaves questions,”Santa Fe New Mexican – 2

Second Place: Hadley Vandiver, “Penny wise,” Boulder Weekly

First Place: Ed Sealover, Keeley Blakely, Allison Sylte, “Health Care Quarterly: Looking toward the future,”Denver Business Journal

Environment: Enterprise Reporting

Third Place: Cathy Proctor, Kathleen Lavine, “College student’s filing blocks Gates’ demolition,” Denver Business Journal

Second Place: Elizabeth Miller, “A road too far,”Boulder Weekly

First Place: Joel Dyer, ”Fracking lessons,” Boulder Weekly

Environment: General Reporting

Third Place: Cathy Proctor, “Initiatives worry water world,”Denver Business Journal

Second Place: Elizabeth Miller, “Blue Colorado,” Boulder Weekly

First Place: Joel Dyer, Jefferson Dodge, “Waste injection wells: The Earth’s invisible dump,”Boulder Weekly

Science: Enterprise Reporting

First Place: Greg Avery, “Why Accelr8 left Colo. for new Tucson home,”Denver Business Journal

Science: General Reporting

Second Place: Paul Weideman, “Disgruntled Ancestors: Scott G. Ortman on the conflicts that drive migration” Santa Fe New Mexican – 1

First Place: Greg Avery, “Ball picked for first private deep space project,”Denver Business Journal

Legal: General Reporting

Third Place: Steve Weishampel, “Boxed in: Resident says he turned to shipping containers after pressure,” Boulder Weekly

Second Place: Jefferson Dodge, “Trampled anti-war veteran gets his day in court,” Boulder Weekly

First Place: David Accomazzo, “A tale of two predators,” Boulder Weekly

Politics: Enterprise Reporting

Third Place: Jefferson Dodge, “Heavy hitter to fight Longmont fracking ban,”Boulder Weekly

Second Place: Jefferson Dodge, “Can your vote be traced?,”Boulder Weekly

First Place: Jefferson Dodge, Joel Dyer, “Unzipped,” Boulder Weekly

Politics: General Reporting

Second Place: Trevor Brown, “Hunting RINOs,” Wyoming Tribune Eagle

First Place: Staff, “Election 2012: What happens next?” Denver Business Journal

Education: Enterprise Reporting

Second Place: Robert Nott, “When you are hungry and you are tired, how can you learn?”Santa Fe New Mexican – 2

First Place: Jefferson Dodge, “Fracking and academic freedom,”Boulder Weekly

Education: General Reporting

Third Place: Bruce Goldberg, “Tomorrow’s workforce STEMs from today’s young students,” Denver Business Journal

Second Place: Aerin Curtis, “We have a bullying problem,”Wyoming Tribune Eagle

First Place: Chase Olivarius-McAllister, “DHS aims to work some magic,” Durango Herald

A&E Enterprise Reporting

Third Place: David Accomazzo, “In the heart of Cirque du Soleil,”Boulder Weekly

Second Place: Joel Dyer, “Pilgrims of the stage,” Boulder Weekly

First Place: Elizabeth Miller, “The reintroduction of Clyfford Still,” Boulder Weekly

A&E Criticism

Third Place: Elizabeth Miller, “Written with a needle,” Boulder Weekly

Second Place: Elizabeth Miller, “Of adverbs and experimentation,” Boulder Weekly

First Place: Adele Oliveira, “Faith in Love: Paloma at Teatro Paraguas,”

Santa Fe New Mexican – 2

A&E Single Story

Third Place: Paul Weideman, “First Faces: Native American portraits at the New Mexico History Museum,” Santa Fe New Mexican – 1

Second Place: Josh Rhoten, “Jake Byrd presents,” Wyoming Tribune Eagle

First Place: Adele Oliveira, “A Wild Domesticity: Randall Davey and the Audubon Center,” Santa Fe New Mexican – 2

Business: Enterprise Reporting

Third Place: Ed Sealover, “Pinnacol’s pricey push / Insurer paid Huggins’ salary as chairman,”Denver Business Journal

Second Place: Heather Draper, “The New Janus: CEO of battle-hardened money manager plots comeback,” Denver Business Journal

First Place: Emery Cowan, “SUDS & CRAFTS As appreciation for microbrews grows, makers rewarded for exploring and pushing boundaries,”Durango Herald

Business: General Reporting

Third Place: Bruce Krasnow, “Charter school bonds: A day of reckoning,” Santa Fe New Mexican – 2

Second Place: Heather Draper, Dennis Huspeni, “With Amendment 64 law, what’s next for Colorado?,” Denver Business Journal

First Place: Ed Sealover, “Behind United’s Tokyo deal,” Denver Business Journal

Sports: Columns

Third Place: Dale Shrull, Cortez Journal

Second Place: Alex Riley, Wyoming Tribune Eagle

First Place: Robert Gagliardi, Wyoming Tribune Eagle

Sports: General Reporting

Third Place: Jayme Moye, “New Heights” Women’s Adventure Magazine

Second Place: Elizabeth Miller, “One stage to rule them all,” Boulder Weekly

First Place: Josh Rhoten, “A big night at Big Country,” Wyoming Tribune Eagle

Editorials

First Place: Reed Eckhardt, Wyoming Tribune Eagle

Personal or Humor Column

Third Place: Neil Westergaard, Denver Business Journal

Second Place: John Peel, Durango Herald

First Place: Dale Shrull, Cortez Journal

Public Service

Third Place: Joel Dyer, Jefferson Dodge, Elizabeth Miller, “The Ghosts of Valmont Butte series,” Boulder Weekly

Second Place: Emery Cowan, “A HISTORIC PROMISE,” Durango Herald

First Place: Heather Draper, “Denver Public Schools bonds,” Denver Business Journal

News Feature

Third Place: Julie Ann Grimm, “Chief at Crossroads,” Santa Fe New Mexican – 2

Second Place: Elizabeth Miller, “Chasing the White Horse,” Boulder Weekly

First Place: Joel Dyer, “Motive behind the madness in Sikh shooting,” Boulder Weekly

Investigative/Enterprise Reporting

Third Place: James Chilton, “Secret agenda at city hall?” Wyoming Tribune Eagle

Second Place: Joe Hanel, “The state’s No. 1 dangerous pass is … Herald looks at snow, accidents, switchbacks to make determination,” Durango Herald

First Place: Julie Ann Grimm , Geoff Grammer, “Small Change Hustle,” Santa Fe New Mexican – 2

General Reporting- Series or Package

Third Place: Jefferson Dodge, Don Tartaglione, Michael Callahan, Travis Mannon, “Crews continue battling Flagstaff Fire outside of Boulder,” Boulder Weekly

Second Place: Dale Rodebaugh, Jordyn Dahl, “Missionary Ridge 10 Years later 39 DAYS OF DESTRUCTION,” Durango Herald

First Place: Staff, “The changing face of patriotism,” Boulder Weekly

Breaking News Story

Third Place: Shane Benjamin, “Family of 3 survives explosion,”Durango Herald

Second Place: Heather Draper, “Michael Van Gilder steps down as brokerage CEO amid trading probe,” Denver Business Journal

First Place: Becky Orr, Trevor Brown, Josh Mitchell, “American Eagle leaving,” Wyoming Tribune Eagle

News Reporting- Single Story

Third Place: Josh Rhoten, “Homeless in the Capital City,” Wyoming Tribune Eagle

Second Place: Nico Roesler, “Jury watches interview with man charged in child‚Äôs death,” Santa Fe New Mexican – 2

First Place: Ed Sealover, “Bidding on this state contract may cost your company 7 iPads,” Denver Business Journal

CLASSIFICATION B: Circulation between 30,000-74,999

Single Page Design

Third Place: Joshua Joye, “We Can be Queereos, Just For One Day,” SLUG Magazine

Second Place: Joshua Joye, “Ross Imburgia,” SLUG Magazine

First Place: Joshua Joye, “INVDRS,” SLUG Magazine

Feature Page Design

Third Place: Joshua Joye, “Super Top Secret,” SLUG Magazine

Second Place: Joshua Joye, “Torche,” SLUG Magazine

First Place: Joshua Joye, “Handcrafted Hacking,” SLUG Magazine

Front Page Design

Third Place: Robin Banks, “April 2012 – Record Store Day,” SLUG Magazine

Second Place: Joshua Joye, “November 2012 – A Place To Bury Strangers,” SLUG Magazine

First Place: Sean Hennefer, “June 2012 – Torche,” SLUG Magazine

Sports Photography

Third Place: Andy Wright, “Parker Duke,” SLUG Magazine

Second Place: Weston Colton, “Devin York,” SLUG Magazine

First Place: Lindsay Pierce, “Rocky Mountain Scottish Athletes practice,” YourHub Arvada

Feature Photography

Third Place: Seth A. McConnell, “Franktown students ride horses to school,”YourHub Douglas County

Second Place: Lindsay Pierce, “Preparing Hercules, a 290-pound pig, for JeffCo Fair,”YourHub Arvada

First Place: Seth A. McConnell, “Colorado Vintage Base Ball Association,” YourHub Douglas County

News Photography

Third Place: Seth A. McConnell, “Westernaires Practice,” YourHub Golden

Second Place: Lindsay Pierce, “Aurora Police program steps up DUI enforcement efforts,” YourHub Aurora

First Place: Seth A. McConnell, “Northern Arapaho Tribe at Arapahoe High School,” YourHub Arapahoe County

Mobile Application

First Place: Staff, SLUG Magazine iPhone App

Blog

Second Place: Gavin Sheehan, “Gavin’s Underground,” Salt Lake City Weekly

First Place: Colin Wolf, “The Secret Handshake,” Salt Lake City Weekly

Multimedia Story

Third Place: Candida Duran, “Summer of Death – Roughside 3,” SLUG Magazine

Second Place: Staff, “African-American infants die twice as often,” Colorado Public News

First Place: Matt Pothier, “Joshua James Album Release,” SLUG Magazine

General Website Excellence