2003 AASFE Conference: St. Petersburg
Feature editors from around the country gathered Wednesday, Sept.
17, through Saturday, Sept. 20, for AASFE's 57th annual convention at
the Don CeSar Beach & Spa, located right on the beach in St. Pete
Beach, Fla.
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Aly Colon of The Poynter Institute says reporters shouldn't assume they
know the story before they go out on the assignment. Journalists miss
the real story 'because they think they know what people will say or
do. The story's always richer "when we are willing to probe a little
more, when we are willing to go beyond the surface and listen to what
is being told to us and the story we have not heard before."
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Sometimes he's a reviewer and previewer. Sometimes he's a beat reporter
or consumer writer or profiler. In "The Craft of Arts Criticism," a
seminar at AASFE's 57th annual convention in St. Petersburg, Fla., Roy
Peter Clark of The Poynter Institute discussed how journalists can
switch between roles, writing in a more interesting, more egalitarian
and more authoritative voice.
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Kelly McBride of the Poynter Institute says reporters should resist
temptation to eat the promotional cheesecake or keep the latest CD or
novel because taking any freebie is an ethical dilemma for journalists.
Some AASFE editors think she sets the bar unreasonably high, arguing
journalists aren't swayed by a free donut or two.
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Talked-about topics help newspapers stay relevant. Executing these
topical stories was the debate at the 57th Annual AASFE convention.
Packages focusing on war, 9-11, natural disasters, circuses, the Super
Bowl, and strippers were celebrated over two days during the
conference’s “Show and Tell,” a presentation of AASFE members’ best
work since the last convention.
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A quiz: Two plays are opening. "Mamma I Don't Want to Sing in No Beauty
Shop" and "Grease." "Mamma'' is in a community theater, but will be a
big hit among African-Americans -- a large portion of your town's
population. "Grease" has been booked at the Mac Daddy Boffo Performing
Arts Megaplex for a year. You have one theater critic. Which to cover?
And how to cover it?
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For years, “Get them while they’re young” has been a rallying cry for
those fighting to preserve a popular practice. But before outfits like
the Manatee Messenger came along, fighting to save the newspaper
industry meant getting ‘em only as young as their late teens to mid-
20s. The Messenger is getting them even younger. The staff of the
Messenger is composed of 10- and 11-year-old students in the Center for
Communication and Mass Media at Melrose Elementary School in St.
Petersburg, Fla.
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Dorothy Parvaz turned her back for an instant, only to discover a
signature below hers - someone else was coveting the shimmery eye
shadow and body glitter. Oh, this meant war. And so began one of
several battles Sept. 19 as journalists brought their competitive
nature to the silent auction at the annual meeting of the American
Association of Sunday and Feature editors. The event raised a record
$8,300 to sponsor next year's fellows.
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Capturing telling details -- such as a detective's deep teeth marks on
his glasses -- made mystery writer Michael Connelly appreciate his
early years as a crime reporter for papers such as The Sun-Sentinel in
South Florida and The Los Angeles Times.
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Author Scott Turow spoke Sept. 18 at the 57th annual convention about
his latest work, the nonfiction Ultimate Punishment. The book, which is
short compared with his previous novels, is a treatise on the death
penalty in the United States and why, ultimately, Turow doesn’t believe
in it.
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Poynter Institute President Karen Dunlap kicked off the 57th annual
convention of the American Association of Sunday and Features Editors
in St. Petersburg, Fla., by noting that only three-quarters of the way
through 2003, journalism has spawned enough intrigue and scandal to
keep J-school ethics classes yakking for years. From photo
manipulations to Jayson Blair, these episodes should not keep
journalists from being inspired about their craft, she said.
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Al Tompkins of the Poynter Institute tells journalists to wake up and
discover the Internet, a fabulous tool for finding everything from
public records to active hate groups in the United States.
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While this may sound like an oxymoron, Roy Peter Clark of the Poynter
Institute gave editors great tips on reaching out to reporters to
achieve a more collaborative process.
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Chip Scanlan of the Poynter Institute shares his secrets on how to turn
a news article in to a story that will leave readers hungry for more.
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