Journalism News and Events

September 22, 2007 | The National Writers Union and City College of San Francisco present Reese Erlich,award-winning journalist/author, discussing

The Iran Agenda: The Real Story of U.S. Policy and the Middle East Crisis

Saturday, September 22, 2007, from 2:30 to 4:30 p.m.
Auditorium (Room 109), CCSF Mission Campus
1125 Valencia St. (at 24th), San Francisco
Admission is free.

Award-winning journalist/author Reese Erlich talks about U.S. policy toward Iran and what’s behind the Bush administration drive to widen its war in the Middle East. Erlich is the co-author with Norman Solomon of Target Iraq: What the News Media Didn’t Tell You, which was a best-seller in 2003.

Veteran journalist Adam Hochschild says, “Reese Erlich is both a shrewd analyst of how the mainstream media misleads us and an old-fashioned shoe leather reporter who has repeatedly explored firsthand some of the most combustible corners of the world. It’s a rare combination, and makes him a valuable guide to the country now in the gunsights of Washington’s hawks.” Copies of The Iran Agenda will be available at the September 22 event.

Sponsored by the National Writers Union’s Bay Area Chapter and the CCSF Department of Journalism. For more information on the book, see www.p3books.com/books/theiranagenda.html. For more information on the event, see
www.unionwriters.org or phone 510-868-4537.

The steering committee of chapter 3 has been discussing the issue of the recent Oakland City tax impacting its members and other creative workers. Members in other cities it the bay area may soon be affected as well. Chair Jack Rasmus has been meeting and discussing with Oakland groups and the Alameda city council on possible protest actions to try and reverse the tax on writers who file ‘home office’ deductions on their income tax. The steering committee will send a survey to all chapter 3 members to solicit their views and opinions on what course of action the union might take to protest the tax. Check out the minutes of the steering committee for more detail. Look for an email survey from the union soon and respond with your opinion and input.

International Federation of Journalists

17/12/2004

The International Federation of Journalists today confirmed that 2004 has turned into the worst year on record for the killing of journalists and media staff as two new violent deaths were recorded in Africa and Asia, bringing the death toll to 120 in the year so far.

In Colombo, Sri Lanka, Lal Jayasundara, a 20-year-old photojournalist for the Wijeya newspaper group, was one of two people killed six days ago by a bomb in an attack on an entertainment spectacular. The show had been opposed by Sinhala Buddhist extremist groups who launched a protest over the show taking place on the first anniversary of the death of popular Buddhist preacher Soma Thero.

And today came the news that Deida Hydara, the AFP correspondent in the Gambian capital Banjul was shot and killed shortly after dropping off colleagues from the newspaper The Point, of which he was co-editor. He was shot in the head. Demba Ali Diao, the head of the IFJ-affiliated Gambia Press Union said Hydara was very critical of the government and opposed repressive laws. The IFJ is calling for a full investigation into his death.

“These killings are the latest senseless deaths in a year of unprecedented horror for journalism,” said IFJ General Secretary Aidan White. “Our figures show that this is the worst single year on record.”

He said that of particular concern were the spate of deaths in the Philippines where 12 journalists have been killed and in the Middle East, including Iraq where 53 deaths were recorded.

“Many of these deaths could not have been avoided, but targeted killings as we have witnessed in the Philippines, Iraq and now in the Gambia must be properly and publicly investigated and the killers brought to justice,” said White.

For further information please contact +32 2 235 22 07
The IFJ represents over 500,000 journalists in more than 110 countries
www.ifj.org

YOU’RE INVITED TO THE ASJA 2004 HOLIDAY PARTY!

Looking for a chance to meet leading Bay Area journalists? Come to the holiday party of the Northern California chapter of the American Society of Journalists and Authors. Eat, drink and share hot tips and hilarious anecdotes of the writing life.

WHERE: The home of Elizabeth Pomada and Michael Larsen, 1029 Jones Street, San Francisco.
(There’s free, easy parking on Pine Street at 5:45.)
WHEN: 6 p.m., December 14
WHAT TO BRING: A new or used gift-wrapped book for our exchange (bring one, take one), and a dish to share.
RSVP: to Elizabeth at larsenpoma@aol.com and let her know what kind of dish you’re bringing.

“Resisting Government Secrecy in a Time of Terrorism” is a First Amendment conference presented by the California First Amendment Coalition (CFAC) and the UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism.

Keynote address will be by Pulitzer Prize-winning investigative reporter SEYMOUR HERSH.

Dates and Location: Friday and Saturday, October 8 and 9, UC Berkeley Graduate School of Journalism, Northgate Hall.

Join journalistic, legal and national-security experts leading lively panel discussions on, among other topics:

• news coverage of the Iraq war;
• subpoenas of reporters;
• information controls under the Patriot Act, Homeland Security Act and other federal laws;
• the civil liberties/national security trade-off in the U.S. Supreme Court;
• access to courts and state agencies;
• international press freedom (or lack thereof); and
• FOI at the state and local levels.

For the full program, visit the CFAC website.

If you can attend only one conference on public policy this year, this should top your list.

The City of Oakland has a new regressive tax that applies to anyone who claims a home office deduction on their state tax forms—it does not matter whether you make any profit whatsoever. Oakland wants you to pay for a city business license.

August 7, 2004 | Local chapter 3 of the Writers Union will be sponsoring a joint workshop on copyright with the Independent Press Association (IPA) of San Francisco on August 7, 2004.

July 10, 2004 | On Saturday July 10 National Writers Union grievance contract officer, Todd Pitock, will speak on behalf of the Writers Union at the Society of Professional Journalists’ event for writers of diversity held in Oakland at the Asian Cultural Center.

The State of the News Media 2004 is an inaugural effort to provide a comprehensive look each year at the state of American journalism.