The state of the society: SPJ President John Ensslin speaks in Charlottte

John Ensslin, national president of the Society of Professional Journalists, spoke on the state of the society during a visit to Charlotte on Jan. 27. The organization’s national board held its winter meeting in Charlotte.

Ensslin’s speech emphasizes the strengths of the society: continuity, ethics, Quill magazine and support tools for individual journalists facing challenges while doing their jobs.

Ensslin and SPJ have been champions for journalists arrested while covering Occupy Wall Street protests. Ensslin has written thoughtful editorials and promises future support, and the society’s Legal Defense Fund provides legal assistance to individual journalists.

Ensslin, who was in Denver during the Democratic National Convention of 2008, also spoke to the challenges and fun ahead for the Charlotte chapter as the convention comes to Charlotte in September.

(Video from Rhiannon Bowman, text here from Andria Krewson.)

A letter to Steve Kerrigan

The Charlotte chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists sent the following letter to Steve Kerrigan, CEO of the Democratic National Convention Committee, on Jan. 24, 2011:

Stephen Kerrigan
400 South Tryon Street
Suite 500
Charlotte, NC 28202

Dear Mr. Kerrigan,

The Greater Charlotte Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists is concerned about the off-the-record portion of the media tour January 17 of venues for the Democratic National Convention.

Media representatives were told the restriction is standard procedure, and several were approached directly and asked to stop posting information to Twitter. One journalist who asked questions about the restriction was told he could leave if he didn’t accept the restriction.

While we understand the concerns for security and the preliminary nature of the logistical information, journalism and in fact our society are based on relationships of mutual trust and respect. Logistical emails, notices and parts of tours that require off-the-record restrictions violate that trust, treating journalists as passive recipients and not as partners in providing information in a civic society.

Further, research shows that the 2008 convention in Denver either had no such restrictions on the press or those restrictions were routinely violated without consequence. The actions by current DNCC communications professionals have resulted in online headlines such as, “Reporter blows the lid off DNC secret media meeting.” DNCC members have said they want an open and inclusive convention; restrictions that legitimately prompt adjectives like “secret” work directly against your purposes.

In addition, a DNCC communications professional implied in a conversation with one Charlotte media representative that journalists “in smaller markets” don’t fully understand the nature of large events or the importance of “off the record” information. That disparaging comment about Charlotte journalists is off base. The communications professional was talking with a journalist with many years in the New York media market. Further, one of the strongest voices pushing against the off-the-record tour restriction has served as an embedded journalist in Iraq.

The dust-up also prompted the headline, “Some Charlotte media not ready for the convention stage,” at one national blog as well. It’s not our role to compare credentials of journalists and DNCC communications professionals, but Charlotte has seasoned, professional journalists who deserve respect and mutual trust from the DNCC. We’d like to find ways to further positive relationships.

The Greater Charlotte Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists urges the DNCC to keep communication channels with local reporters as open and respectful as possible, and our chapter is inviting you attend one of our twice-a-month meeting for a discussion about such terms as “off the record” and other aspects of the approaching convention.

Thank you for your time, and we look forward to seeing you at one of our meetings.

Our president, Frank Barrows, will be glad to work with you to confirm a date.

Sincerely,

Greater Charlotte Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists

Contact: Frank Barrows, 704 576-3485, fcbarrows@aol.com.

Charlotte’s impending media circus: Insight from Iowa

Journalists work in the Google media filing center in Des Moines, Iowa. Photo by Kelsey Kremer, Iowa State Daily.

By Andria Krewson

At the Iowa caucuses, the Des Moines visitors’ bureau set up a media center that included television backdrops, wi-fi, snacks, coffee and Google goodies.

Workstations cost $400 each for established media organizations and $200 each for blogging stations, according to Erika Fry at Columbia Journalism Review. Not all traditional media or bloggers plunked down the money, Fry wrote, and political parties provided other media access points.

Watching the political hot spots can help Charlotte media folk know what to expect during the Democratic National Convention in Charlotte in September 2012. The S.C. primary still lies ahead, but plans are starting to gel in Charlotte, and the PPL group has been working on access to free space for media, especially independent media. Charlotte’s expecting up to 15,000 journalists for the convention.

DNC organizers are making their pitches for institutional sponsorships in Washington, D.C., now.

The details from Politico:

The top fundraising package is appropriately named “Presidential” for those who raise $1 million. In return, the convention promises a premier uptown hotel room, platinum credential package, platinum events package, concierge services and priority access for rental facilities. It also earns the fundraiser two tickets for the “First in Flight Series,” a number of pre-convention events based in North Carolina with elected officials, political vets and others and four VIP tickets to the “Dialogue Series.”

The first media walk-through of the convention site in Charlotte is Jan. 18.

For a deeper sense of the Iowa scene, take a look at the Google Media Center in Des Moines, through the eyes of Business Insider, Iowa State Daily and Google. See and hear the media circus in a video from Lynn Sweet of the Chicago Sun Times.