Goodbye Indy
Sorry about the lack of entries for Saturday. It was the final chance to make those last workshops, make those final connections for future deals, and squeeze in a final party.
It was also a time to say goodbye once again to former colleagues, old friends and new.
The final party was hosted by the Las Vegas chapter.....id say more but what happens in Vegas......
With luck.....i'll be blogging again from Vegas next year. Until then I look forward to seeing you at September's PABJ General Meeting. We could use your help as we go for "Chapter of the year" once more.
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Pabj loses to houston abj
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Tabj wins student chap of year
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DEVELOPING STORY
PABJ & TABJ both up for Student & Professional Chapters of the year......were awaiting the announcement
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Live from the NABJ Hall of Fame Dinner
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Everyone's looking during the fair......
Getting the Job Done
Everyone stopped into the Job Fair today.....the other big point of the convention......finding those opps. that take you to the next step
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Nagin Speaks
NOLA Mayor C.Ray Nagin addressed the session:
"if Katrina had happened in Orange County, CA or South Beach, Miami....there would have been a different response"
"the media at the beginning did a really good job.....then it got really competitive....then it dived into some "creative journalism"......thats where the facts got lost"
"we are struggling [in NOLA] because we are not getting the resources down to the people, and no one is writing about that"
"we [in NOLA] need the resources....everyone else just get out of the way [of the rebuilding effort]"
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The Katrina Panel
Surviving the storm
Lee: "my paper evacuated without me....I stayed at [NOLA] City Hall which gave me easy access to the 9th ward in the aftermath"
Williams: "our transmitter was knocked off during the storm......no broacast coverage forced us to build a regional network of cable and other stations retransmitting us around the region.....no one left in NOLA had power or cable, so we better served by reporting to those who evacuated"
Mack: "it was clear to us in Houston that we would be a second home for those who needed immediate housing"
Dade: " we wanted to set the tone for what would come next......we wanted to find a clear picture of the redevelopment"
"as national media fatigue [of Katrina] set in, the sales pitch to editors became harder.....I had to tell them it's not over just because the water's gone"
Malveaux:[with the President at his ranch in Crawford, TX during the storm]"we kept asking administration officials if there would be a schedule change or would we still travel to LA....there was an obvious disconnect"
Monroe" growing up on the MS Coast watching hurricanes you know which ones don't feel right, this was one of them".
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Katrina: Truth or Consequences
Today's plenary session discussed the Hurricane Katrina disaster. Moderator Michelle Norris of NPR & ABC News set the terms for the discussion right away by saying we need to find out if we really told the "true" story of what happened during the crisis.....and were we as black journalists especially, as fair & balanced in covering the story as possible.
Panelists for today's discussion:
Trymaine Lee, NOLA Times-Picayune
Kristin Mack, Houston Chronicle
Corey Dade, Wall Street Journal
Suzanne Malveaux, CNN
Bryan Monroe, NABJ President
All of the panelists covered the event....highlights of the discussion follow.
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Ray Nagin addresses the NABJ Conv....a complete wrap soon
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A gloomy Friday morning greets us. Today we'll visit the Career Fair & Hall of Fame Banquet
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Highlight for me....a nightclub with a full bed (the metal plate in the middle is for placing your drinks)
Heaven and a Bed
Last nights plans for me included heading to a local spot called "BBQ Heaven" and then an early retirement to my "heavenly bed"
The fun of the night got the better of me instead, and I headed out to the Downtown party scene. All over the place....on every corner, in every club were finely dressed black journalists. "Naptown" is no slouch either.....there are lots of exciting clubs, bars, & restaurants in downtown indy. This is aided by the downtown being bordered on both sides by the basketball & football arenas.
An Indy native stopped with me on a corner last night said "Downtown Indy has not been this HOT on a Thursday night in a long time".
No problem Indy native. We were happy to oblige.
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One of the cool things about the convention....a newscast produced by students....showing in convention hotel rooms now....and for you at nabjconvention.org
Lost and Found
After a long, long day I could not wait to finally reach my "Westin Heavenly Bed".....there was only one catch....I lost my hotel key!
That meant a return to the hotel front desk....where I ran into NBA Star Doug Christie and (of course) his wife. They would not let me get a pic.....but there's another chance. The Christies' are special guests at an upcoming BET session/party where they will promote their new reality show.
Lot's O Hot parties planned for late tonite.......including the 6th Annual "Renegade Party" at SubTerra Lounge.....but I won't make them.....my plans later involve a visit to Heaven.....more details on that later.
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PABJ President Keith Herbert takes a moment for the blog.....Hello Philly!
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PABJ Member Pharoh Cranston enjoys the conference....
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PABJ Member and Indy Native Sia Nyorkor
WORKSHOPS
Today is more about WORKSHOPS. Everyone is heading into sessions that we hope will give us that particular edge....."how to build that resume tape", "how to get plugged in", and "how to score that big interview" are on the agenda for folks who are on-air.
I'm about the management side of things......"So who wants to be a News Director" is my choice.
Thursday is the designated night for media parties....so folks will party later.....but the ties stay on for business first.
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Not a great pic.....but this is live from the leadership discussion
More from "Who's In Charge"
Loddie Shepard, Dem. Nat'l Comm.
"bottom line.....Cynthia McKinney's district changed......people have become more educated and well off.....they wanted someone who could better represent their district. That race was about solid community issues....the media chose to focus on other issues"
More from "Who's Leading"
Rev. Al Sharpton
"Racism still exists......black leaders are held to a different standard....."
"people act like it's fun to go on shows with people who want to tear your heart like like Bill O'Reilly and Sean Hannity"
"what standard are [black leaders] being held to?......Bill Clinton is hailed as a "black leader".......what standard did he reach that Jesse Jackson did not?"
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Who's in Charge?
Lively discussion abound at today's W.E.B DuBois Lecture. The topic for 2006.....Who is leading black america?
Rev. Al Sharpton will address the group soon.....but here are highlights from the pre-discussion led by CNN'S WH Corresp. Suzanne Malveaux.
Michelle Lowery, Detroit Free Press
"we spend too much time asking who's in charge.....instead of actually being in charge......we need to listen more to those who are already standing up"
Rod Snow, Newark Star Ledger
"black leaders currently are the ones who tend to get the most press ....not the ones who are currently doing the most work.....there is no one person who can solve all of our problems"
Farai Chideya, NPR
"Barack Obama,[Newark,NJ Mayor]Cory Booker,Harold Ford.... on the short list to be the next future black president"
Michelle Lowery, Detroit Free Press
"current black leaders lose credibility because they tend only to protest......not be proactive about our community problems"
Farai Chideya, NPR
"[Hurricane] Katrina was an example of that. Black leadership came to the forefront after the disaster.....but where were they before [the hurricane] letting the levees get into the bad shape they were in"
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Ready to go
Today is all about getting reacquainted.......people can't stop chatting even as the bus boards for the motor speedway.
Getting Re-Acquainted
So far it's been a fast paced first day. My main wish right about now is to get a chance to know the bed in my hotel room.....but there's still SOOOO much more to do.
PABJ President Keith Herbert wants to convene a group of us from Philly later tonite......and right now I'm on my way to the opening night party hosted at the Indy Motor Speedway.
There's not much news convention wise to report now.....there were a few workshops and a speech by the Female President of Liberia....but for most of us it's kind of hard to make it to the events when the halls along the way are filled with past co-workers, long lost best friends, and people who you were sure left the business. Today is definately all about getting re-acquainted.
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PABJ'er at convention
PABJ Member & Phila Tribune reporter Sharyn Flanagan at the registration desk
Our own Mr. Moore
Acel Moore on convention day 1
Welcome
Welcome to Indy
Flying with Celebrities
Just arrived here in Indy....on an almost celebrity packed flight. Kemberly Richardson of WABC TV fame was on board complete with an entourage.
Top man on the plane was NBC Today Show anchor LESTER HOLT....telling everyone that he needed to make the 10EDT flight....so he introduced the top half of the 0830 show....then hustled to La6uardia. I guess that means Al Roker won't be coming early.
Speaking of LaGuardia.....the airport featured various news programming on the monitors at the airport. Here at the Indy Airport.....they are showing Jerry Springer.
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I should mention that there is an official NABJ blog......but only mine is from the PHILLY perspective. Click the link to check out the official blog if you need even more convention coverage.
Goodbye Philly
6ood Bye for now Philly......(city skyline as seen from the AMTRAK bridge near the Zoo.....my favorite view of the city)
What is INDY?
Only a little more than 643 road miles from Philadelphia, what can we expect to see and do in INDY, and are there any Philadelphia connections?
Other than PABJ Membership Comm. Chair
Sia Nyorkor being from the county seat of Marion County, IN....there are no obvious Philly-Indy connections, except for the fact that the Philadelphia Eagles will play their Thanksgiving Week game against the Indy Colts on November 26. Apparently it's set to be a hot game because the cheapest tickets
go for $100.00. For those who are not Football Fans....It's not immediately clear what there is to see and do in Indy. PABJ will hold an event at the world-famous
Indianapolis Motor Speedway I'll be on my own to explore the Indy Art Museum and the Indy Zoo (or maybe not).
Apparently, we've just missed
GENCON 2006, which is billed as the world's largest role-playing game. Over the last weekend more than 30,000 Dungeons & Dragons and Star Wars Fans were in town for a real-life game. Wow! Maybe we'll run into a few of the stragglers who can show us around. In the meantime I'll just hope that my room at the Westin still exists......
READERS....Feel free to use the comments section to suggest places to visit....AND any great places to eat.
We're Going to INDY
We're going to INDY!!!......well, some of us at least. I'm Manny McDonnell-Smith, a relatively new, but hard working member of the Philadelphia Association of Black Journalists. For the next 5 days, i'll be heading to NABJ's 31st Annual Convention & Career Fair.
More than 3,000 minority journalists will descend upon the Indiana Convention Center, some headed to workshops, others for the job fair, and many for the parties.
I'll try to keep a PHILLY perspective on this years convention, especially for those of us who will not be attending personally. Hopefully this trendy new wireless device that of mine that promises to let me shoot photos and e-mail on the go works......the better it does, the better the blog will be.
See you from INDY!
Manny McDonnell-Smith blogs for the Philadelphia Association of Black Journalists at the 2006 NABJ convention, Aug. 16-20.
