Knight Ridder CEO P. Anthony Ridder and New York Times publisher Arthur Sulzberger, Jr. featured at Asian American Journalists Association national convention August 13-16

Convention offers unique professional development for all journalists and opportunity for media and community to engage in dialogue on issues

SAN DIEGO, Calif. -- New York Times publisher Arthur Sulzberger, Jr., Knight Ridder CEO P. Anthony Ridder, Los Angeles Times president and publisher John Puerner and CBS Television chairman, CEO and president Leslie Moonves are some of the media industry leaders participating in the 16th annual national convention of the Asian American Journalists Association (AAJA), to be held August 13-16 at the Sheraton San Diego Hotel and Marina.

AAJA, the nations largest professional organization for Asian and Pacific Islander American journalists, emphasizes that its convention is not just for journalists of color, but open to all professionals and journalism students interested in learning from the industrys top leaders and experts through media training institutes, interactive plenary sessions, workshops, a job fair and more.

One of the most fundamental parts of our annual convention is to learn from one another and return to our newsrooms with new knowledge and skills," said Mae Cheng, a Newsday staff writer, and national president of AAJA. There will be panels never offered before at an AAJA convention, many of which will be geared toward mid-career journalists looking for new challenges in the industry or wanting to learn about the latest technology that will assist them in their jobs."

We will also forge a partnership with the Asian and Pacific Islander American communities," continued Cheng, inviting them to join us in a town hall discussion on violence and examining its root causes in the community and explore how we, as journalists, cover the topic."

Media Training Institutes

The Poynter Institute for Media Studies, Radio & Television News Directors Foundation (RTNDF), The Washington Post and The New York Times will present half-day and all-day seminars and training sessions on such topics as Great Storytelling," Tough Calls on Deadline -- The Ethics Workshop," Crafting the Story: How to Give Wings to Your Writing" and How Editing Changed My Life."

Panels and Workshops

Attendees will benefit from a wide range of panels and workshops including topics on non-linear editing, online media, career development, newsroom ethics, international news reporting and writing for Hollywood from journalists and executives of The Wall Street Journal, The Washington Post, Fortune Magazine, Reuters, CNN, ABC, CBS, NBC, ESPN, People Magazine, Yahoo! and others.

A key plenary session at the convention will be on Diversity: Politically Correct or Jeopardizing Good Journalism?" The Aug. 14 session will explore the questions of whether or not diversity has led to biased news coverage; if the continuing media crusade for diversity has made journalism weaker, particularly on complex stories involving race, gay rights, feminism, affirmative action and immigration; or if added diversity in newsrooms has improved coverage and led to a better understanding of the complex issues in the media and in the community. Moderated by AAJAs Mae Cheng, the panelists will include Knight Ridders P. Anthony Ridder, author William McGowan, KNBC president and general manager and NBC/Telemundo Los Angeles regional general manager Paula Madison, and The Oregonian executive editor Peter Bhatia, who is also president of the American Society of Newspaper Editors.

Other session topics include the impact of Asians and Asian Americans in professional sports, the coverage and media portrayal of crime and violence, breaking the minority female career barrier, and race and religion in wartime America.

Job Fair and Professional Critique Sessions

More than 100 exhibitors and recruiters are expected to participate in the conventions job fair, featuring media companies from across the country. Professional journalists will also conduct one-on-one critique sessions for print and broadcast journalists and students during fair.

Community Town Hall Meeting

On Thursday, August 14, from 6-8 p.m., the public is invited to participate in Blood, guns & drugs: Whose problem is it?" -- a town hall meeting on violence, its root causes in the community and how journalists cover the topic. In addition to an in-depth discussion on the existence of crime and violence in our communities, participants will examine how the media fare in covering, or not covering, the issue and challenging journalists to report on violence as a health problem, one that is preventable through a well-informed citizenry.

CNN medical correspondent Dr. Sanjay Gupta will moderate a panel that includes: Lori Dorfman, DrPH, director of the Berkeley Media Studies Group and editor of a book, Reporting on Violence: New Ideas for Television, Print and Web"; California Peace Prize awardee Wayne Sakamoto, coordinator of the San Diego County Office of Education Safe Schools Unit; Vivian Lin, San Diego journalist and founder of 180 Enterprises, The Teen Media Network; Justin Lin, director of the critically-acclaimed film Better Luck Tomorrow," which tackles the subject of violence; Tom Kim, police reporter for the Sarasota Herald-Tribune; Billy Chen, survivor advocate for Community United Against Violence; and Stephen Magagnini, senior writer, ethnic affairs at The Sacramento Bee, and winner of the 2001 ASNE diversity writing award.

The convention is organized by AAJAs San Diego chapter and co-chaired by Darlynne Reyes, news director and main anchor of CNN Local Headline news in San Diego, and Michael James Rocha, features design editor of The San Diego Union-Tribune.

The Los Angeles Times Puerner and David C. Copley, publisher of The San Diego Union-Tribune co-chair the honorary convention committee, which includes: N. Christian Anderson III, publisher and CEO, The Orange County Register; Suzanne Black, news director, KSWB Channel 5/69; Darrell Brown, general manager, KGTV Channel 10; Stan Chu, owner, OHungrys; Fred DAmbrosi, news director, KFMB Channel 8; Greg Dawson, news director, KNSD Channel 7/39; Richard Doutre Jones, general manager; XETV Channel 6; Al Pando, news director, XETV Channel 6; Robert Ramsey, general manager, KSWB Channel 5/69; Phyllis Schwartz, general manager, KNSD Channel 7/39; Mike Stutz, news director, KGTV Channel 10; Ed Trimble, general manager, KFMB Channel 8; Gus Whitcomb; manager director, strategic communications, American Airlines; and Karin E. Winner, editor, The San Diego Union-Tribune.

The convention is supported by: (Platinum Sponsors) The San Diego Union-Tribune, American Airlines, Los Angeles Times, Time Inc./CNN/People/Southern Progress/Time Warner Cable/America Online; (Gold Sponsors) ChevronTexaco, General Motors, Bloomberg; (Silver Sponsors) Belo, Knight Ridder, CBS News/Viacom Television Stations and Infinity Broadcasting, NBC and KNSD, Sea World, Hearst Newspapers, Gannett Foundation, State Farm, DaimlerChrysler, Bob's On The Bay; (Bronze Sponsors) National Public Radio, The New York Times, Toyota, The Star Ledger, San Jose Mercury News, Verizon; (Diamond Sponsors) Coca-Cola North America, The Washington Post, Reuters, The McClatchy Company, Orange County Register, Old Town Trolley Tours of San Diego, ABC News, KGTV/McGraw-Hill Broadcasting, KSWB, Scripps Howard Foundation, Newsday; (Emerald Sponsors) Simon Wong Engineering, The San Diego Foundation's Hom Family Fund; (Jade Sponsors) Korean American Association of San Diego, Union of Pan Asian Communities and KFMB Channel 8.

More convention details and online registration are available at www.aaja.org, or by calling the AAJA national office at (415) 346-2051. Participants registering by June 27 will save $50 off convention fees.

About AAJA
The Asian American Journalists Association is a national, non-profit educational association based in San Francisco that has 1,700 members. It was founded to encourage young Asian Pacific Americans to enter the ranks of journalism, to work for fair and accurate coverage of Asian Pacific Americans, to increase the number of Asian Pacific Americans and news managers in the industry. For more information, visit www.aaja.org.

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