So you want to freelance, maybe part time, maybe full time? Maybe you just got laid off and you’re freaking out. Come hear several panels on how to pitch, where to pitch, how much to charge and how to navigate freelance contracts. There will be three 45-minute panels (followed by Q. and A.) and a practice Pitchapalooza. We’ll have more than a dozen panelists on hand throughout the day to discuss the topic, including freelance writers, copy editors, videographers and more. Pre-registration on members.jaws.org is required.
#jaws16freelance
Data mining isn’t just for investigative journalists and long-form projects. In this hands-on workshop, attendees will learn how to find data and research that will support story development and help beat writers on daily stories. MaryJo Webster, adjunct lecturer at the University of Minnesota and computer-assisted reporting editor for the Minneapolis Star Tribune, will talk about public record requests and how to find the data you need, and how best to analyze and interpret it. Pre-registration on members.jaws.org is required.
#jaws16data
The program was established in 2008 with the assistance of an anonymous donor to honor Fran Lewine, a beloved JAWS member and a trailblazer and mentor for women in journalism. As an AP White House reporter, she covered the administrations of six presidents from Eisenhower to Carter. She was a key figure in a historic AP lawsuit winning equal treatment for women. And at the age of 60 she began a new career, joining the then-fledgling CNN TV network, where she worked until her death. The Fran Lewine Interview honors one woman each year who is emblematic of Fran’s tradition of making a place for women in the national journalism world.
#jaws16interview
The presentation will emphasize the critical need to save for retirement (often while juggling the needs of aging parents or college-bound children) and will discuss the unique financial challenges women face.
Some areas of great concern to be covered include Social Security, health care costs, planning for the lower earning spouse, and estate planning (it’s not just for the wealthy). Since the decisions you make now are at the heart of determining your long-term financial security, as well as that of your families, it is Maureen’s goal that this program will inspire you to start planning for your own financial future.
There will be 10-15 minutes at the end of the program for participants to ask questions about any financial topic. In addition, Maureen is attending the entire CAMP weekend and will be available to answer questions outside this presentation as well. Questions may also be submitted to her in advance by emailing her at maureen@maureenfobrien.com.
#jaws16finances
This session is for writers who have a germ of a book idea, or a passion for a subject, or a story they have read or covered that might make a book. It will be led by experts Jane Isay, editor and author of nearly four books; and Gail Ross, agent and JAWS member. They will outline the process in four stages.
#jaws16book
This panel will include discussion of everything from workplace harassment issues to bosses who don't like feedback to what to do when your company says it is downsizing and plans to lay you off. Panelists will include JAWS members with firsthand experience dealing with the vagaries of the modern workplace, as well as an expert on workplace issues and discrimination based on age, race, gender and sexual preference. Panelists will discuss their own experiences and include practical advice on how to navigate workplace challenges, as well as when to stay and fight or cut your losses and move on.
#jaws16workplace
A very interactive talk about taking a very nonlinear path in journalism and in life! A kind of “BackStory” talk about how a girl from a non-college-educated family dropped out of Berkeley to take care of her younger sister, made it through the alternative newsweeklies of the San Francisco Bay Area, got to NYC, went through a divorce, became the first woman editor-in-chief of a national music magazine, got her degrees at 39, has managed to attend, via fellowships, Medill and Stanford, teaches at Newhouse, and now works in multimedia at ESPN (and is married again). Written two books! Too crazy. It’s been super hard, and super fun, and the valleys have been tough from which to rise. But she has done so.
#jaws16undefeated
This panel of veteran political and campaign reporters will discuss what journalists can take away from the historic 2016 elections from the presidential level on down. It's been an unusual — at best — year for reporters on the campaign trail, and the panelists will discuss more than war stories. They'll talk about what this election means for the news industry, for women and for Americans overall.
#jaws16politics
A deep-dive panel focused on the art of building trust with sources distrustful or unfamiliar with the media. This session will be a conversation with New York Times reporter Fernanda Santos, author of a recently released book detailing the devastating loss of 19 highly trained firefighters in the 2013 Yarnell Hill wildfire in Arizona.
#jaws16trust
#jaws16leadership
None of us can do it all and do it WELL, but journalists today have to understand the values of evolving tech tools, when to use them, and when to put them aside. In this lively panel conversation, we'll cover the strengths and drawbacks of using audio, video, photography, social media posts and more in your daily reporting and story production. Hear from seasoned professionals who embrace innovation as well as journalists at the early stages of multimedia careers. We'll talk about building a network of allies, mentors and experts as well as finding the training you need when you need it.
#jaws16multimedia
It seems that in these times, all newsrooms must be prepared to cover high-profile shootings — whether they are in the workplace or at a nightclub, or of African-Americans whose deaths at the hands of police officers are captured via social media. This panel will address questions like: What must journalists keep in mind when such tragedies happen in their communities, or when they are sent in to cover such shootings? How can the "media" as a whole improve its coverage? What are best practices to using user-generated content and social media when such news breaks, and in the days following? What data sets are out there that could provide nuanced context as news develops?
#jaws16tragedies
From Google Trends to News, Docs and more, Google Tools are an essential part of any journalist’s toolkit. This workshop will teach you how to incorporate these tools into your reporting, plus share ways to streamline your workflow.
#jaws16digital
Join us for Appy Hour, where you can grab a drink and hear from a variety of women sharing their favorite apps. Our apps experts will be on hand to demonstrate how they use the apps to make their lives and work easier and more productive. Wander from table to table to learn about as many apps as you'd like.
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Meet JAWS members who are authors, chat about their latest books, and buy a book and get it autographed.
"At One Time" by Julia Airey
"Love Her, Love Her Not: The Hillary Paradox" by Joanne Bamberger
"Southern Cross" by Julia Cass
"The Race for Paris" by Meg Waite Clayton
"WAKING UP IN EDEN: In Pursuit of an Impassioned Life" on an Imperiled Island by Lucinda Fleeson
"The Fire Line" by Fernanda Santos
"Chinese Characters" by Angilee Shan
"Thrive! ... Affordably" by Jennifer Streaks
"Better By Mistake: The Unexpected Benefits of Being Wrong" by Alina Tugend
"Escape Points: A Memoir" by Michele Weldon
#jaws16
By nature and often by nurture, men and women see their place in the world very differently. We tend to dwell on our weaknesses while men focus on their strengths. We verbalize our fears, men laud their accomplishments. We work hard and wait to be noticed. Men raise their hands for jobs often before they are ready. While we can’t control how other behave, how can we as women take control of our careers by taking control of our own actions? A talk about perfecting your poker face.
#jaws16career
Enjoy our last breakfast together and participate in the general membership meeting, during which we will report on the organization’s finances as well as summarize our 2016 initiatives and look toward the future. In addition, we will say thank you to the current board members and will vote on the 2016-17 slate of candidates.
#jaws16
Why people don't trust the media and what we can do about it. It’s no secret that trust in the profession of journalism has been abysmally low for decades, according to surveys from Gallup, Pew and more. Research released in April by the American Press Institute shows that just 6 percent of people say they have a “great deal of confidence” in the press. Lack of trust can be devastating to the industry: The best journalism can’t have maximum impact if readers don’t trust it. In this session, we’ll summarize the results of the API report, review some intriguing takeaways from people interviewed for the report, and conclude with participants’ best ideas on how to improve trust in media.
#jaws16press
Imagine being kidnapped in a foreign land in the midst of a civil war. Imagine your car breaking down in a remote forest infamous for rebel attacks. Imagine falling ill with malaria in a war zone without hospitals. Scary things happen when you’re reporting from abroad and even from the relative safety of the U.S. – just look at some of our recent political rallies. Tina Susman and Kim Gamel have been through most of these things and survived, using a few handy tips picked up along the way. With attacks on the media worsening each year, and with more women than ever going into reporting, they’re eager to share their experiences and advice with JAWS members.
#jaws16safety
After the terrorist attacks in Paris last year, the former mayor of Roanoke referenced the Japanese internment while calling for a ban on Syrian refugees. Though he later apologized for that statement, the political rhetoric of the 2016 election has continued to exacerbate Islamophobia. Attacks by people inspired by ISIS have brought additional scrutiny on the Muslim-American community.
#jaws16religion
News media reports do much more than relate events and occurrences: The inclusion or omission of information can also have an impact on the public's exposure to and understanding of such events. So it is with the reporting of intimate partner violence. Media has the power to ignore or include contextual factors, to report incidents as individual or broader events, to include nonfatal as well as fatal incidents, and to include or exclude details and relationship explanations, which all contribute to public understanding. Too often, we report IPV as an isolated incident, and we do not relate it to any trends or commonalities with other violence. We seek quotes from experts who may or may not understand IPV, we get quotes about perpetrator characteristics from friends, coworkers and family members who had no knowledge of or understanding of IPV, and we report reactively rather than proactively.
#jaws16violence
After more than 50 years of closed doors, hostility and innuendo, the Cuban and the United States governments are working to normalize relations — and that means new travel, study, journalistic, trade and shopping opportunities. This panel brings together American journalists who have written about Cuba along with a Cuban journalist who has reported on the developments in the U.S. to talk about how to make the most of the new changes. We’ll talk about exchange programs, story topics and making contacts, politics and cultural trends, especially as related to women, on both sides of the 90-mile divide. If you have been to Cuba, are planning a trip, or just have an interest in international reporting in general, this is the workshop discussion for you.
#jaws16cuba
In many small academic programs, we are required to teach a wide-ranging set of skills, often with minimal budgets for equipment and tech support. Many of us come to the classroom with a professional background that emphasizes print. Or perhaps we have audio experience, or video – but not all three. How do we ensure that our programs stay cutting edge? How do we maintain our own skills as journalism educators? How do we support our students in developing skills for the professional arenas they will enter? Come to this moderated conversation with your questions, challenges and examples of your biggest successes and failures. We will brainstorm, share syllabi, share what worked – and what did not. Leave with some new strategies and tools to try in the classroom.
#jaws16education
Topic tables: Look for posted tables to engage in a discussion on a designated issue. Planned topics are: Diversity Survival (Survival skills for women of color journalists.)
Blog Radio (Who listens to blog radio? Everyone – now how do we make it journalism?)
Neutrality (Can you stand up against injustice in your personal life while maintaining your journalistic neutrality?)
Strategies vs. Ageism (Ageism: The Old Lady Journalist's Guide to Getting/Staying Employed. A strategy session for senior journalists.)
Retiring? (How to retire with grace and guts. Compare notes and give suggestions.)
#jaws16
We’ll bring our programming to a conclusion with lightning talks by five JAWS members talking about what Journalism and Women Symposium means to them.
#jaws16
