SPJ Regional Conference April 6-7 in Chicago

Veteran journalist and association leader Alison Bethel McKenzie moves into the Society of Professional Journalists' executive director role this month with a mission to fight for press freedom and to elevate SPJ's work.

Jonathan Eig took on a legend when he set out to write an autobiography of "The Greatest" man in sports, Muhammad Ali. Through more than 500 interviews, Eig developed a best-selling portrait of a complicated sports figure who changed our culture.

These two prominent journalists will headline the Society of Professional Journalists Region 5 (Illinois, Indiana and Kentucky) conference April 6-7 in Chicago -- and you're invited.

The conference, open to journalists, students and supporters of a free press, will feature more than 15 sessions led by more than 30 journalism professionals and educators on the most important topics in journalism.

Go to https://www.spj5conference.com/ for all the conference and registration details. Discounted early bird registration continues until March 22.

•        Hear the story behind WBEZ's multimedia investigation into gun violence in Chicago, learn the do's and don'ts of podcasting and how to find truth in science.

•        Discover strategies for listening to your community, explore new approaches for building trust and experiment with apps for scraping data.

•        Join in discussions on the way newsrooms should address the Me Too movement, build trust with diverse communities and prepare for the impact of Alexa and other smart speakers.

•        Educators, let's talk about what J-schools should be teaching.

•        Professionals, check out SPJ's new Facebook training program.

•        Students, share your resume with hiring managers and enjoy well-deserved recognition at the Mark of Excellence Awards ceremony.

Plus much more! This is the conference you don't want to miss.

2018 Indiana SPJ College Scholarship Applications are available

We’re excited again this year to award up to $5,000 in scholarships for Indiana collegiate journalism students.

If you know a top Indiana college journalism student, encourage them to apply for one of the chapter’s two $2,500 scholarships that we’ll be announcing at our annual awards banquet on Friday, April 27.

The application deadline is April 6. For full details: http://www.indyprospj.org/scholarships/

"Letting the Sunshine IN" workshop on March 17

Journalists and members of the public are invited to a free daylong Freedom of Information workshop in Indianapolis on March 17.

 “Letting the Sunshine IN: An Open Data and Open Government Workshop,” is open to anyone interested in open government and open data, including journalists, civic activists and neighborhood association members. The Indiana Pro Chapter is co-sponsoring the event along with The Center for International Media Law and Policy Studies at Indiana University and the Indiana Coalition for Open Government.

The workshop will be held during Sunshine Week, an annual national observance that highlights the importance of open government. Sessions will be in the ballroom of University Tower, 911 W. North St., on the IUPUI campus.

Confirmed speakers at the conference include state, regional and national journalists and open government advocates, who will participate in informational sessions about state and national access laws.

The workshop will close with a hands-on session on how to request data and metadata from public agencies. Experts will guide attendees in submitting actual requests to state agencies for information about their data sets.

Workshop co-organizer Gerry Lanosga, an assistant professor at IU’s Media School and a longtime SPJ chapter member, said a workshop goal is to launch an open online catalog of state data sets.

“We know that one of the key barriers to opening public data is lack of knowledge about the range of data that state agencies maintain,” he said. “This effort will go a long way to eliminating the unknowns about state data sets and make it easier for journalists and others in the public to request them.”

The workshop is made possible by a gift from IU journalism alumna Barbara Restle. Although there is no charge to attend the workshop, attendance is limited and advance registration is required. To pre-register, go to http://mediaschool.indiana.edu/letting-the-sunshine-in-registration-form/

The registration deadline is 5 p.m. EDT March 12.

For a full schedule of planned sessions and other details: http://mediaschool.indiana.edu/news/iu-spj-icog-offer-free-daylong-workshop-on-open-data-government/

Best of Indiana entry deadline extended to Feb. 7

We're extending the deadline for entries to the Best of Indiana journalism contest until Wednesday, Feb. 7.

The chapter's contest is open to all professional and students journalists for Indiana work during 2017 in all formats – print, broadcast and online.

We have dozens of categories in reporting, visuals, design, multimedia and books. We’ve streamlined some of the categories and circulation divisions in order to equalize the competition for top awards. We’ve kept the entry fees the same for all categories ($20 for professionals and $15 for students for most entries).

Your contest entries help make the chapter’s college scholarship possible. We awarded $2,500 scholarships last spring to two top Indiana collegiate journalists. We look forward to doing the same during the April 27 awards banquet at the Indianapolis Marriott North. Mark your calendars to celebrate the Best of Indiana!

For all the rules and category descriptions: http://spjcontest.com/pdfs/CallForEntries-SPJ-Indy-Best_of_Indiana_Journalism-2017.pdf

To submit entries by the Feb. 7 deadline: https://awards.indyprospj.org/

Best of Indiana contest open for entries

The Best of Indiana journalism contest is back for a new year. The Indiana Pro Chapter is ready to recognize the state’s top professional and student journalism for 2017 in all formats – print, broadcast and online.

We have dozens of categories in reporting, visuals, design, multimedia and books. We’ve streamlined some of the categories and circulation divisions in order to equalize the competition for top awards. The entry deadline is Feb. 4 – and we’ve kept the entry fees the same for all categories ($20 for professionals and $15 for students for most entries).

Your contest entries help make the chapter’s college scholarship possible. We awarded $2,500 scholarships last spring to two top Indiana collegiate journalists. We look forward to doing the same during the April 27 awards banquet at the Indianapolis Marriott North. Mark your calendars to celebrate the Best of Indiana!

For all the rules and category descriptions: http://spjcontest.com/pdfs/CallForEntries-SPJ-Indy-Best_of_Indiana_Journalism-2017.pdf

To submit entries by the Feb. 4 deadline: https://awards.indyprospj.org/

Gov. Eric Holcomb vetoes House Bill 1523

Today Indiana Gov. Eric Holcomb vetoed House Bill 1523, which would have let state and local government agencies charge up to $20 per hour to fulfill requests for public records that take more than two hours to find.

The Indiana Pro Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists had opposed the bill.

Read Holcomb's veto letter here: https://www.documentcloud.org/documents/3677103-Veto-Letter-1523.html.

Best in Indiana Contest Winners

An Associated Press reporter, an Indianapolis Star team and a Purdue University student are the top winners in the chapter’s 2016 Best in Indiana contest.

Associated Press Statehouse reporter Brian Slodysko was selected as the Indiana Journalist of the Year for work including investigations into state payments to one of then-Gov. Mike Pence’s top aides during the presidential campaign and the misuse of campaign money by Republican U.S. Senate candidate Marlin Stutzman.

Mark Alesia, Tim Evans and Marisa Kwiatkowski of The Indianapolis Star won the Story of the Year award for their investigation into failures by Indianapolis-based USA Gymnastics over many years to alert law enforcement about alleged sexual abuse by coaches.

Charlotte Tuggle from Purdue University was named Student Journalist of the Year in recognition of her work at public radio station WBAA.

Congratulations to all the winners from across the state for their outstanding broadcast, print and online journalism. You can download the complete list of winners here and share it.

Proceeds from the Best in Indiana contest help fund the chapter’s college scholarship program. The two winners of $2,500 scholarships for the 2017-18 school year are Kaitlyn Kendall from the University of Indianapolis and Sarah Bahr of IUPUI.

The awards were presented April 21 during the chapter’s annual awards banquet.

Statement on House Bill 1523

The Indiana Professional Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists calls upon state lawmakers to reject House Bill 1523, a bill that would let state and local government agencies charge up to $20 per hour to fulfill requests for public records that take more than two hours to find.
 
This legislation goes against the idea that government is supposed to serve the people, would undermine government transparency and could easily be abused to hide public records from the public view. 
 
It is not hard to imagine local governments exploiting such a law to make it cost-prohibitive for journalists and concerned citizens to find out what their elected representatives are doing, and how their tax dollars are being put to use. Some citizens may not be able to afford such search fees and could be denied access to government records that are supposed to be available to all.
 
Government employees could deliberately drag their feet on such requests, racking up exorbitant charges to produce records the taxpaying public already paid for in the first place, either to shut down requests or deter them in the future.
 
If anything, the state legislature should be working to make public records more accessible, and available to anyone online. Local officials should not be given the tool of search fees to hide documents that belong to the public and should be open to the scrutiny of all taxpayers and voters.
 
The bill defeats the entire purpose of Indiana’s public access laws, and should be defeated. It has the potential to be an obstacle to the reporting of a free press and an impediment to finding out the truth that could shroud government doings in secrecy. This legislation is simply not in keeping with the values of Hoosiers or an open, democratic society. 
 
If government agencies are actually struggling with the burden of providing the public with public records, it should be addressed in another way — perhaps by automatically publishing everything on the government agency’s website so journalists and citizens can execute such searches themselves, freeing up government workers for whatever other tasks.
 

Statement on public records case

The Indiana Professional Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists urges the Indiana Supreme Court to stand on the side of the taxpaying public and government transparency, the essential and irreplaceable lubricant that keeps the motor of democracy running.

The Chapter asks the Indiana Supreme Court to review records and information related to a 2014 lawsuit against an executive order on immigration that former Gov. Mike Pence's office withheld from Indianapolis attorney William Groth, and order the disclosure of any public documents that were improperly redacted or refused.

The Indiana Pro Chapter resolutely believes government records should generally be made accessible to the public, and no compelling reason for withholding them was presented in this case.

The public interest is clear.

The Board of Directors of the Indiana Pro Chapter of SPJ is concerned about access to all public records, including those that elucidate why public officials elected by the residents of Indiana would choose to spend tax dollars on a lawsuit against the federal government, a matter that is plainly and self-evidently in the public interest.

A ruling against the “disinfectant” of public access would deprive the public of information they deserve and are entitled to, and embolden elected officials to try to withhold more from the public view. In an era where more individuals embrace transparency on social media, it is inconceivable the government they elect and that is supposed to serve them would be permitted to skulk into a murky darkness that shields them from accountability and goes against the grain of our entire system of governance.

The press and public should be able to see documents that clarify why their elected representatives pursue courses of action, including litigation that transfers tax dollars from public coffers to lawyers' private bank accounts.

Election and Campaign contest category added

At popular request, we’re taking the unusual step of adding a special category to honor top journalism covering Indiana’s tumultuous 2016 political season. The new Election and Campaign Coverage category is meant to recognize outstanding political campaign and Election Day-related reporting.

The new category has been added to all divisions of the Best of Indiana Journalism Contest -- so coverage in broadcast, print and online formats by both professionals and students can be entered. We continue to have our Government and Politics category that recognizes coverage of the functions of our government institutions and political figures.

We hope this new category will capture some of the election drama Hoosiers saw over the past year.

Download the contest details now at this link: http://bit.ly/2id8DZV

 Submitting is easy. Most entries can be submitted in just a few minutes on our contest site: https://awards.indyprospj.org/

Enter Now. The contest deadline is Friday, February 3.