Part 1 of Society of Professional Journalists convention (Washington D.C.)
Discussing Watergate 35 years later, Bob Bradlee, Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein present at the convention in D.C.
Citizen journalism is in. Blogging is in. Technology is definitely in when it comes to journalism. These and other trends I learned at the Society of Professional Journalists” Convention in Washington D.C. Hundreds of journalists used their reporters’ notebooks for a different cause- to record information at various classes from Oct. 4-7, 2007. This experience not only allowed our chapter to learn about how to get a job or how to report on various issues, but also allowed us to meet professionals in the field and realize that SPJ is so much bigger than just our group at Mizzou.
Among the classes that I went to which included a forum on climate change, how to take great photos, how to write interesting feature stories, my favorite sessions were the “super sessions” led by heavyweight journalists. One of these was by Ken Paulson, editor of USA Today, who led a class titled “From Superman to Subpoenas” that traced the cause of the “toxic” environment for journalists today as well as advice on how to unite a voice on 1st amendment issues to serve the American people. Editor Len Downie was also there to discuss the changing face and Internet presence of The Washington Post.
A big topic for this year’s conference was the federal shield law that is being debated in the Senate as well as the House and if it is necessary. Of course a majority of the crowd was definitely for the federal shield law. One forum brought in someone from the other side, which led to some heated discussion. One interesting fact was that Hurst had received 80 subpoenas last year alone. It definitely showed the trend of the government wanting the information that journalists have and the role of journalists to protect their sources.
The most attended session was with Bob Woodward and Carl Bernstein discussing Watergate 35 years later. With them was Ben Bradlee (editor of The Washington Post at the time) as well as Scott Armstrong from the Senate Watergate Investigating Committee, Alicia Shepard (author of Woodward and Bernstein: Life in the Shadow of Watergate) and Daniel Shore from the dinosaur days of CBS moderated by Bob Schieffer of CBS. What a powerhouse! I felt so honored to even be in the same room as them. When they all took the stage, many rushed to take photos proving that celebrity journalism is indeed a reality. Hearing the stories around Watergate was amazing because that case broke the idea of regularity in government and brought the importance of the watchdog role of journalism to light.
Taking a call (or picking up a prestigious phone) at the National Press Club, I was among greatness with the photos on the wall.