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December 2009 meeting was called to order after 7 p.m. at The Orchid, Metuchen. Present: Guy Baehr, Fran Burns, David Levitt, Ron Miskoff, Barbara Reed

1. Fran was thanked for the minutes, and it was decided that minutes would be sent to the website, through Cindy Walker, within two weeks after the meeting, also announcing the next meeting date.
2. Jane Primerano sent a treasurer’s report: We have about $15,000 available.
3. The contest for 2010: Walter O’Brien’s report was circulated. He is ready to send the brochure to Cindy for the website and may have already done so. Walter needs to use the national list fro NJ and needs the online access code to get to it. Guy said he could use Guy’s code, etc. The print version of the brochure is at the printers, and the postal list will go to the mailers Monday. He wants to send an email blast—and
   asks for the best time to do it.
   Discussion occurred about when the optimum times would be. The decision was to send the brochure to printer during Christmas week, at the latest, and mail it out by first week of January, at the latest. An e-mail blast should occur during first week of January, and more as well. Walter will retrieve the excess copies from the printers in Piscataway. Barbara will
   ask Robert Bugai if he will distribute them to newsrooms, as he has done before. Also, all entries for all categories in the contest should go to Marsha Bergman.
   Sue Livio sent her report. She was pleased that the print version is at the printer and the e-mail blast is in the works for the early part of January. Sue asked Keystone (PA) and Connecticut SPJ chapters to swap entries with us next year.
4. Program maybe for first week in March, possibly at Rutgers. Robert Bugai has an excellent person named Heatherington, and we can ask Sree Sreenivasen of Columbia (and Channel 7) to appear also. May mean spending money for the speakers.
5. Party for Guy Baehr on his move to the Dominican Republic will take place, but he prefers an “intimate” kind of party. Venues were discussed. Possibly the Rutgers Club, upstairs, would be appropriate, especially since Guy will be inviting people from Rutgers, possibly to take place during the last week of January. David Levitt was selected as a kind of “This-is your-life” moderator.
6. Possible tribute to Martin O’Shea, who died this week, with FOG members as well. Maybe a March event. Ron Miskoff, president of FOG, told of a special FOG fundraising occasion honoring John Farmer, now dean at Rutgers Law School. We may become involved with that. It is extra-special as his father was with the Star-Ledger. Ron Miskoff thought we should be involved in the O’Shea death announcement by putting a box on our website about it; he will write an appropriate notice for the website. Also, we should be involved in paying for a better-than-normal death notice. Others agreed these actions should occur.
7. Discussion took place about an idea Fran Burns had about checkbook journalism. This was discussed briefly but will be revisited at the next meeting.
8. The Region One conference, to be in NYC in April, was discussed for a long time, and various people had ideas for programs there. Jane Primerano has an idea about covering trauma, and she weighed in via phone. David Levitt thought we should get media analysts such as John Morton and the person heading the Knight News Challenge. Ron Miskoff spoke of “New Media on a Budget “ for the regional. Possible speakers are someone from The Patch (by AOL), new journalism graduates, unconventional graduates doing journalism unconventionally. David Levitt chimed in with “What are the new niches?” Future must show savvy folks, it was agreed. He also spoke of Mark Pitman(?) of Bloomberg, a reporter most responsible for the word “sub-prime” and showing the movie, “American Casino” at the conference with a panel to discuss the movie.

Meeting was adjourned by Acting President Barbara Reed at 9 p.m. Next meeting: Monday, January 18, 6:30, The Orchid.

NEW BRUNSWICK‚ NJ — The past‚ present and future of Journalism in New Jersey came together this past June when the NJ Chapter of the Society for Professional Journalists (NJSPJ) held its annual awards luncheon and celebrated the 50th anniversary of the chapter’s founding.

Held on Saturday‚ June 28 at the University Inn and Conference Center at Rutgers University in New Brunswick‚ the event honored approximately 140 journalists in over 60 award categories covering daily and weekly newspapers‚ radio and television stations‚ magazine‚ newsletters and online publication. To be eligible‚ entries must have been published or broadcast during the calendar year of January 1 to December 31‚ 2008.

Featured speakers were Andy Lagomarsino‚ Matt Romanoski‚ Mike Scott‚ Garrett Morrison and Joe Tyrrell‚ five of the founders of the Internet site‚ NewJerseyNewsroom.com.

Guy Baehr‚ past officer of the NJSPJ chapter‚ holds up a copy of Jersey Jottings‚ the chapter’s first newsletter

The Past: Some Things Have Changed; Some Have Stayed the Same

In his welcome presentation‚ Guy Baehr‚ past chapter officer and longtime member‚ noted that 2009 was both the 50^th anniversary of the chapter and the 100^th anniversary of the national organization. Holding up an issue of Jersey Jottings‚ the chapter’s first newsletter (which had been produced on a mimeograph machine)‚ Baehr used the newsletter to illustrate how some things had changed while some had stayed the same.

He said that the organization’s name was originally “Sigma Delta Chi‚” reflecting its roots as a college and professional fraternity‚ originally established by students at DePauw University in Indiana. The current name was not adopted until 1988.

“You’ll also notice that all the members are men‚” Baehr went on. “That’s because it took the national organization until 1969 – 40 years ago – to begin admitting women as members.” It would take another decade for the national organization to elect its first woman president. Dues were also lower back in 1960 — a mere $2 for the local chapter and $5 for the national. And finally‚ there were only 60 members‚ about half of the chapter’s membership in more recent years.

Baehr pointed out members who have gained state or national prominence. Among them were Wilson Barto‚ who went on to serve as editor of both The Trenton Times and The Trentonian; Hugh N. Boyd‚ the publisher of The Home-News in New Brunswick when it was a family-owned newspaper; William Caldwell‚ a columnist for The Record of Hackensack who was the first New Jersey journalist to win a Pulitzer Prize; and Bernard Kilgore‚ then president of The Wall Street Journal and one of the leaders of a successful effort to reorganize the national organization from a fraternity to a professional organization.

“What may not be obvious from the newsletter‚” said Baehr‚ “is that it was published during a pivotal time in SPJ’s history. The conversion from fraternity to professional organization stirred wide interest among journalists and SPJ’s reorganization helped it fill a void in what was becoming a profession rather than a craft or trade.

“One element of that void was the lack of national and grassroots journalism organizations to fight for freedom of the press and freedom of information. Giving that high priority to the sometimes lonely job of defending and expanding the public’s right to a free press is something that’s stayed the same for SPJ since that time‚ both nationally and here in New Jersey.”

L-r: New JerseyNewsroom.com’s Andy Lagomarsino‚ Matt Romanoski‚ Mike Scott‚ Garrett Morrison and Joe Tyrrell.

The Future: Here It Comes‚ Ready Or Not

When 40 staffers from the Newark Star Ledger were let go in January 2009‚ they didn’t get angry — they got going. To the Internet‚ that is‚ and NewJerseyNewsroom.com was born.

Today‚ the staff of the virtual newsroom has more than doubled‚ and while the search for financial backing continues‚ the site’s About Us section declares that “combined‚ our experience adds up to over 1‚000 years... [our] goal is to provide high-quality news for New Jerseyans and not just about New Jerseyans. We will do our best to gather all the stories you want‚ regardless of the original sources. If it is of interest to you‚ we will write it or link to it. We know how to get to the facts‚ get it right‚ and‚ when necessary‚ provide analysis. We will strive to provide unique content and news you can use...”

“We work out of our living rooms to keep costs down‚” explained Garrett Morrison‚ who spent 13 years on the Star-Ledger sports desk. Many of the newsroom writers are currently living on their severance paychecks.

Still‚ Morrison and his colleagues remain hopeful that NewJerseyNewsroom.com will not only survive but flourish. “Yesterday‚” said Matt Romanoski‚ a veteran journalist of 20 years‚ “we had more hits than in our first two weeks — 190‚000 hits‚ up from 40‚000 in the first month.”

Romanoski also described how going online has changed the relationship between reporters and readers. Working for a newspaper‚ he said‚ reporters are often too busy to worry about the public. Online‚ however‚ “You have to get it right the first time. If you screw up out there‚ everyone knows. But if you do something well‚ everyone knows it too.”

Mike Scott‚ another veteran of two decades in the news business‚ agreed. “You know someone is actually reading you and contact between a news gatherer and the reader can only make you better ...We can’t be everything to everybody‚ but the readers are telling us want they want from us.”

“People are giving us angles we never thought of‚” Romanski added.

And who’s in charge? “There is no hierarchy‚” said Romanoski. “Everyone gets a vote.”

“You can write about what you want‚” said Joe Tyrrell‚ who has won awards for his 30 years of investigative‚ environmental and breaking news reporting.

Andy Lagomarsino‚ another newspaper veteran of over three decades‚ said that the website is currently searching for advertising support. There are no plans‚ however‚ to charge for subscription.

And what will happen when the severance money runs out‚ asked an audience member during the Q&A session that followed. Will the NewJerseyNewsroom.com staffers be as committed to their pioneering project?

“I don’t know and I don’t know‚” said Scott with a rueful laugh. “I only know I don’t expect to be doing this for free forever.”

The Present: The Major Award Winners

L-r: Ron Miskoff‚ past NJSPJ officer‚ presents Bill George‚ editor/publisher of the Amboy Beacon with the Stuart and Beverly Awbrey Award for civic journalism.

THE STUART AND BEVERLY AWBREY AWARD

This year’s Stuart and Beverly Awbrey Award for civic journalism went to Editor/publisher Bill George‚ and the Amboy Beacon. The citation reads:

Bill George's detailed coverage of the Vas administration followed the facts and‚ over time‚ began highlighting critical budgetary and other festering problems that emerged during the second decade of Vas's long tenure as mayor. The Beacon served its community well as it continued its critical but fair and factual coverage despite efforts by the administration to curb the paper's independent coverage‚ including pulling the city's legal advertising‚ removing it from its normal press notification list and even timing important announcements for just after the weekly paper had to go to press.

The Beacon's coverage was consistently penetrating and courageous‚ exemplifying the best public service traditions of a free and independent press by providing its community with critically important facts needed to make timely electoral decisions -- all at some cost to the paper's bottom line and even risk to its continued existence.

The Awbrey award is named for the husband and wife team whose decades-long ownership and operation of the Cranford Chronicle made the 100-year old weekly a model for how local newspapers can make a unique contribution to the civic life of a community.

L-r: The Daily Record’s Executive Editor‚ James Flaschsenhaar thanks Ron Miskoff‚ current president of the New Jersey Foundation for Open Government (FOG)‚ and Joe Tyrrell‚ FOG’s first president for the Tim O’ Brien Award.

THE TIM O’ BRIEN AWARD

The 2008 Tim O’ Brien Award for best investigative reporting using the New Jersey Open Public Records Act (OPRA) was presented to The Daily Record’s Executive Editor‚ James Flaschsenhaar.

Colleen O’ Dea‚ Laura Bruno‚ Joe Ugaro and Matt Manochio of The Daily Record of Morris County won the award for “Super Perks: Morris taxpayers foot the bills for school superintendents big benfits‚” a package of articles that led to changes in state regulations requiring greater public disclosure of administrative spending and placing tighter controls on travel stipends and severance benefits for school administrators.

The judges said of the winning entry:

“The Daily Record spent nine months doggedly collecting mounds of records from dozens of school districts to show the outrageous perks enjoyed by school administrators. Information from the documents was then boiled down into an easy-to-read chart and put on the Web for anyone to search for an individual district. The paper also provided a good explanation for the public on how it got the documents‚ including anecdotes of unnecessary reactions by some agencies. Ultimately the work led to change and great public awareness of how tax dollars are spent. Great work!”

L-r: Joshua Riley‚ Asbury Park Press; Timothy J. Carroll‚ Hudson Reporter; Tricia Tirella‚ Hudson Reporter; John Soltes‚ The Leader; Michele Donohue‚ The Non-Profit Times. Not pictured: Heather Appel‚ Herald News.

THE WILSON BARTO AWARDS

The Wilson Barto Awards for first-year journalists is names for the NJSPJ’s first chapter president. As a long-time editor working for newspapers in Pennsylvania and New Jersey‚ including The Trentonian and The Trenton Times‚ Barto took a special interest in nurturing new members of his staff.

This year’s winners are:

DAILY NEWSPAPERS

• First Place: Heather Appel‚ Herald News; “Waiting to get a green card.” “Reining in Jersey's drug reps.” “Without tickets‚ they relied on faith.'”
• Second Place: Joshua Riley‚ Asbury Park Press; “Diploma Mill” stories.

WEEKLY NEWSPAPERS

• First Place: Timothy J. Carroll of the Hudson Reporter for “What happened to those election investigations.”
• Second Place: Tricia Tirella of the Hudson Reporter for “Hudson County built out.”
• Third Place: John Soltes of The Leader for “The railroad to nowhere.

MAGAZINE

• First Place: Michele Donohue‚ The NonProfit Times; “Complaints Filed Against Grant Institute.”

For the rest of this year’s winners in daily and weekly newspaper‚ design‚ photography‚ broadcast‚ magazine‚ newsletter and online categories‚ click here.

DO YOU HAVE ANY? AND IF YOU DO‚ WOULD YOU LIKE TO SHARE THEM?

This year‚ 2009‚ marks the 50^th anniversary of the New Jersey Chapter of the Society for Professional Journalists (NJSPJ).

To celebrate‚ we’re creating a new section for this webpage to look back at the last 50 years of New Jersey media.

So‚ if you

• Worked for the old Newark Evening News‚ the Elizabeth Daily Journal‚ the Paterson News‚ or the Perth Amboy Evening News;
• Remember when The Home News and The News Tribune were two separate newspapers;
• Have seen journalism in New Jersey go from hot type to hot links‚

we’d like to hear from you!

Send your reminiscences‚ anecdotes‚ funny stories‚ photographs — anything you might like to share with your fellow journalists — to awnsik@yahoo.com.

Any queries or comments may also be address to C.W. Walker at the same email address.

We need volunteers to help run our yearly journalism contest‚ as well as plan our 50^th anniversary. Both are extremely exciting events that we’ve already started organizing‚ but your expertise can make it even better. Whether you have a lot of time or just a little‚ we will find an important role for you.

Interested? Got ideas?

Contact Barbara Reed at breed@rutgers.edu.

After hearing that media employees in Cedar Rapids‚ Iowa City‚ Vinton and Waterloo‚ Iowa‚ were facing significant damage to their own homes while continuing to provide top-level reporting of the devastating floods in that state‚ members of the Valley of the Sun (Phoenix) pro chapter board voted to donate $500 to a fund created to assist these journalists.

"We’re inviting other SPJ chapters and individual SPJ members to also contribute to the Iowa Media Employees Disaster Relief
Fund‚" said Valley of the Sun Chapter Immediate Past President Mark Scarp. "These journalists are out there doing a tough job‚ many knowing that they themselves have no home to go home to."

Want to help out? Donate online or send tax-deductible checks to: Iowa Media Employees Disaster Relief Fund‚ c/o Iowa Newspaper Foundation‚ 319 E. Fifth St.‚ Des Moines‚ IA 50309.

Need some guidance? Not sure if you should stay or if you should go? Want to help aspiring journalists get their start?

The Society of Professional Journalists’ Mentor Match-Up program is here to help.

SPJ’s Mentor Match-up aims to promote great journalism by introducing journalists of different experience levels and similar interests. Participating journalists are encouraged to communicate by e-mail‚ phone and occasional personal visits. SPJ helps make a match but leaves it to program participants to decide the nature and frequency of their communications.

The program is open only to SPJ members. Journalists wanting to serve as mentors must have more than five years of professional experience. Journalists who want mentoring must have less than five years of experience.

Sounds like something you’re interested in?

Log on to www.spj.org/mentor.asp for more information

PLEASE PASS ON AND POST IN NEWSROOMS!

As part of its long support for freedom of information in New Jersey‚ the New Jersey Chapter of SPJ has since 2002 distributed more than 1‚000 wallet cards providing useful summaries of the main provisions of the state’s two main laws concerning open records and open meetings.

The cards – one covering the Open Public Records Act (“OPRA”) and one covering the Open Public Meetings Act (“The Sunshine Law’) – are provided free as a handy reference for journalists‚ public officials and the public.