Society of Professional Journalists
Improving and protecting journalism since 1909

A full day of training, lunch, and a chance to meet fellow journalists and connect with knowledgeable trainers. Check. All for $35.

South Florida journalists, you're invited to attend SPJ's JournCamp Saturday, Nov. 8 at Florida International University's Biscayne Bay Campus. Get training on mobile video, turning your beat into a book, emerging trends in video, and working with data online. Did we mention it's only $35?

Find more details — including scheduled sessions and speaker bios — here.

Journcamp Recaps:
— Nashville, January 2014
— Minneapolis, November 2013
— Washington, D.C., June 2013
— Chicago, January 2012

Sigma Delta Chi Awards: The Sigma Delta Chi Awards are among the premiere prizes in the profession and recognize achievement in all forms of journalism. Entries due Feb. 6, 2015.

Mark of Excellence Awards: The Mark of Excellence Awards honors the best in collegiate journalism. The annual competition offers categories in newspapers, magazines, photography, radio, television and online journalism. Entries due Jan. 23, 2015.

New America Award: SPJ's New America Award honors public service journalism that explores and exposes an issue of importance to immigrant or ethnic communities in the United States. Entries due Feb. 13, 2015.

National High School Essay Contest: SPJ wants to increase high school students’ knowledge and understanding of the importance of independent media to our lives. The top three national winners receive scholarship awards. Postmark deadline: Feb. 28, 2015.

Want to learn more about SPJ's awards? See a complete list here.

First Draft Blog: Latest Entry

Hi Everyone! If you didn’t already know or had met me at EIJ14, my name is Claudia Amezcua the current SPJ Generation J Chair for almost a year now.  Since returning from Nashville to Los Angeles, i’ve spent some time enjoying the summer weather in the fall and countless hours in traffic letting everything the Gen J Committee aim to accomplish next year into perspective. Our goals: We want to broaden the reach of our committee to include journalists of all career levels. >Continue reading SPJ Generation J: Our Next Chapter

More from First Draft:
– SPJ Generation J: Our Next Chapter
– Check your ego at the door
– A Newscast Producer’s Playlist
– Why Twitter should be a non-negotiable for journalists
– #ILoveMyJob, Even if ‘Journalist’ Isn’t In the Title

Journalists traditionally think of enterprise as a long Sunday story in the newspaper or a special report for TV (particularly during sweeps). Increasingly, we need to think digital-first in our planning of enterprise stories: What are the right tools and the right time for telling your big stories? All reporters, editors, managers, news directors and everything in between will benefit from hearing how to shape thinking toward a digital-first approach.

Watch now: Flash | HTML5

This webinar is available to all SPJ members at any time and is included, along with our collection of On Demand training sessions, as part of your SPJ membership.

(Not a member? Why not? Become one here!)

The September/October 2014 issue of Quill is now online. Stories include:

– From the President
– Ultimate Risk: Remembering James Foley and Steven Sotloff
– Female on the Front Lines
– Always Question a FERPA Exemption
– Ten with Jason Leopold
– Member Profile: April Dudash
– Chapter News
– Freelance Toolbox
– Ethics Toolbox
– Narrative Writing Toolbox

To see all stories, follow this link.

The Leading Edge Blog: Latest Entry

Status is important – don’t lose it! It’s that time of year – holiday bustle, good food and great friends, just like the ones at the IRS. They’ve asked that our chapters file their annual Form 990′s by Dec. 15. That’s a little over a month away, so mark your calendars or, better yet, just get it over with. Those chapters whose annual gross receipts are normally $50,000 or less can electronically submit Form 990-N, also known as the e-Postcard. It’s quick and painless and you’ll want to do it ASAP. >Continue reading Taxes, major awards, the Post Office and a makeover … SPJ style

More from The Leading Edge:
– Taxes, major awards, the Post Office and a makeover … SPJ style
– Congrats & Annual Reports!
– Round 3 of Chapter Grants: More money!
– More money for chapters
– A new round of Chapter Grants dishes out more cash

Classrooms & Newsrooms Blog: Latest Entry

In a recent Huffington Post blog titled “Communication Studies Rise to Relevance,” a representative of the National Communication Association took a dim view of journalism education in America. Part of his quotation is excerpted below: “It used to be that if you wanted to be a journalist you would go and take a journalism class and get an MA in Journalism. I think there is a stronger sense that students with Journalism degrees might be more poorly trained in the end than a Communication Degree or a Communication Degree with a Minor in Economics which prepares you to nicely operate as a journalist.” That’s the kind of language that might raise the hackles of some journalism educators. >Continue reading Some Advice to Ignore

More from Classrooms & Newsrooms:
– Some Advice to Ignore
– Executive Summary: “Still Captive? History, Law and the Teaching of High School Journalism”
– China’s News Broadcaster and a Thesis
– Journalism Education Committee Minutes of 8/16/11
– SPJ Campus Affairs Representatives Make Visit to Webster University

Founded in 1909, the Society of Professional Journalists is the nation’s most broad-based journalism organization, dedicated to encouraging the free practice of journalism and stimulating high standards of ethical behavior.

It also has a rich history, which you can explore in detail with this pair of interactive timelines compiled by SPJ member Jennifer Peebles.

— Historic Moments: A timeline of SPJ’s development
— SPJ Presidents: An interactive timeline
— Chester C. Wells: His True Life Story

Learn the ins and outs of better photography with this seven-part series. On Demand sessions are available to all SPJ members at any time and are included as part of your SPJ membership.

– Part 1: 5 Tips for Better Photos
– Part 2: Understanding Exposure
– Part 3: Understanding Color and White Balance
– Part 4: Focus Control
– Part 5: Your Camera’s Metering System
– Part 6: Understanding Flash
– Part 7: Shutter Release Modes

Follow this link to see all available sessions, which touch on data visualization, video editing, social media tools, Freedom of Information Act assistance, freelancing and more.

This free site from the Society of Professional Journalists contains thousands of links helpful for reporters, editors, educators or anyone else doing research.

Edited by former Los Angeles Times reporter and DePaul instructor Mike Reilley, the site is organized by beats and industry topics such as Public Records, Crime, Legal Issues, Science, Environment, Journalism Jobs, Sports and more.

The Toolbox is updated twice weekly and several times a day during prominent global breaking news events.

The SPJ Code of Ethics is a statement of abiding principles supported by additional explanations and position papers that address changing journalistic practices. It is not a set of rules, rather a guide that encourages all who engage in journalism to take responsibility for the information they provide, regardless of medium. The code should be read as a whole; individual principles should not be taken out of context. It is not, nor can it be under the First Amendment, legally enforceable.

The newest revision of the SPJ Code of Ethics — approved at EIJ14 at 4:49 p.m. on September 6 — is now available to download as a flyer, poster and two-sided bookmark.

Related:
– Revised Ethics Code: Complete text
– In review: The Ethics Code Revision Project