Meeting notes: access, credentials, conflict resolution and student journalists during the Democratic National Convention

Barack Obama campaigns in uptown Charlotte on Sept. 21, 2008, after the Democratic National Convention in Denver. Image by James Willamor.

Here is a summary of a meeting that Frank Barrows, Grant Baldwin, Susan Stabley and Stuart Watson had with Kristie Greco, communications director of the Democratic National Convention Committee, on April 30. Grant Baldwin,a freelance Charlotte photographer, took the notes for Charlotte Society of Professional Journalists.

Access

Uptown will be “open for business.” Any specifics on the established perimeter defining areas that are public and areas that will require one or tiers of credentialing by the DNC will be outlined in the upcoming Transportation And Security Plan. There is no set date as to when that plan will be made available. It is still being formulated.
It is the DNC’s goal to have a minimal impact on the daily life uptown
however, the execution of that lies in the hands of CMPD and the Secret Service.

Conflict resolution

Resources for resolving conflicts concerning access during the DNC include Kim McMillan, head of public relations for the DNC; she was named specifically as a point of contact for access related issues during the DNC along with Kristie Greco herself.
Aside from printed materials that will be available at a later date, the communications office and media logistics office are resources as well.
There will be press information booths set up that can also assist at each facility.
We suggested establishing a hotline number that journalists could call for quick resolution of conflicts that arose around access issues; Greco was noncommittal about that idea.

The next walkthrough

The June 5 spring media logistics walkthrough will also provide more information concerning access issues as well as be more in depth than the winter walkthrough as more details will have been fleshed out since the winter walkthrough. Greco cited that the pamphlets given out then will be the best place to look for whom to go to to sort out access issues that arise.

Credentialing

Greco also noted news organizations should be managing credentials and that the individuals doing so in those organizations would be a frontline from which to seek help.

Student SPJ involvement

Greco requested that a list of student SPJ members that had applied for credentials be sent to her. She seemed to imply that if SPJ set up programs for students to interface with the DNC that she would look into helping those programs.

More on credentialing

There will be multiple levels of credentialing. Some are not fleshed out and even when they have been the information outlining all types of credentials and their associated parameters may not be made publicly available for security reasons.

Barack Obama campaigns in uptown Charlotte on Sept. 21, 2008, after the Democratic National Convention in Denver. Image by James Willamor.

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.)

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.

The long view: The Democratic National Convention in Charlotte in 2012

By Andria Krewson

Organizing the Charlotte chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists began before word came about the Democratic National Convention in Charlotte in 2012.

But word of the convention gave us focus. We strongly believe that professional, local journalists have an important role to play leading up to the convention, and a local chapter of the society can help greatly. Yes, we want to throw a party, but we hope our work will go beyond that.

This video from Bob Morgan of the Charlotte Chamber notes that 15,000 journalists are expected, and the Chamber wants to help them tell Charlotte’s story. So do we.

Stay tuned, and get involved now.

Bylaws voting opens Monday, and then come elections

Voting on the chapter bylaws for the Greater Charlotte chapter opens Monday. We’re using SurveyMonkey for online voting, and we’re asking members to validate their vote by including their name and email in their votes. The vote is a simple up or down, with room for comments.

(If you’re comfortable with the bylaws and want to go ahead and vote, go here. It’s not pretty, but it’s free.)

Only steering committee members will have access to your vote on the bylaws. Those same bylaws stipulate that voting for officers will be conducted by secret ballot. We’re working on a technical way for that to be done online before officers’ elections are held. Voting on officers also can be done by snail mail, the bylaws say, and we’ll make sure we make provisions for people who feel more comfortable with that method.

Members should also be receiving an email blast with specifics; if you’re not receiving that email, and your national dues are paid up, please let us know by emailing CharlotteSPJ@gmail.com.

We’ve spelled out the election process with a calendar as well in the email, and duplicated it here.

Questions? Let us know. The next meeting is scheduled for 6 p.m. April 7 at Sir Edmund Halley’s at the Park Road Shopping Center. People usually stick around at those Thursday meetings until at least 9 p.m.

Calendar

By March 28: Opening of voting on bylaws.

By April 4: Closing of voting on bylaws.

By April 8: The Nominating Committee shall forward to the Steering Committee a slate of qualified candidates for president, vice president, secretary and treasurer for consideration by chapter officers. Required by bylaws to be 45 days before voting opens.

April 7: Charlotte SPJ night meeting at Sir Edmond Halley’s at the Park Road Shopping Center.

April 8-9: SPJ Region 2 Spring Conference in Norfolk, Va.,

By April 15: Candidates must provide qualifications and biographies provided to the steering committee: one or two paragraphs maximum; links to longer biographies online are permissible.

April 16: Charlotte SPJ brunch meeting at Soul Gastrolounge, 1500 1/2 Central Ave., in Plaza-Midwood.

By April 22: Candidates’ names chosen by the nominating committee will be published. Required by bylaws to be 30 days before voting opens.

May 5: Charlotte SPJ night meeting at Sir Edmond Halley’s at the Park Road Shopping Center.

By May 9: Deadline for nominations to the steering committee or nominating committee for alternative candidates, nominated by any member in good standing, for folks not included in the original proposed slate. Required by proposed bylaws to be 14 days before voting opens.

By May 13: Publishing of any alternative candidates’ names, if they are in good standing. Required by proposed bylaws to be 10 days before voting opens.

May 21: Charlotte SPJ brunch meeting at Soul Gastrolounge, 1500 1/2 Central Ave., in Plaza-Midwood.

By May 23: Voting opens for two business weeks.

June 2: Charlotte SPJ night meeting at Sir Edmond Halley’s at the Park Road Shopping Center.

By June 6: Voting closes. A committee is appointed to count ballots. That committee reports back to the steering committee, which announces results, before the end of June. Required by proposed bylaws.

Sunshine Day celebrates N.C. public records law

Sunshine on Stonyman Mountain. Photo by Sarah Acuff

Thursday, March 17, is Sunshine Day in North Carolina, sharing awareness of the state’s public records law.

Here’s the public records law.

Here are details about the open meetings law, from the North Carolina Open Government Coalition.

The open government coalition is hosting an event in Salisbury to mark the day. Cost is $30 and includes lunch.

Background from recent cases that will likely come up:
Eight media outlets sue UNC for records related to football players.
“Why we are suing UNC,” from The Daily Tar Heel independent student newspaper.
Cornelius and Davidson snub Observer e-mail request.
Background on Observer e-mail request from WFAE.
Newsroom Law Blog on e-mail database request.
Changes to personnel file rules.