Members present (15): Jan Larsen (president), , Kim Kubiak (first
v.p.), Pam Lannom (2nd v.p.), Owen Phelps, Greg Rivara, John Etheredge,
Jim Killam (communications coordinator), Randy Swikle, Jim Slonoff (treasurer),
Richard Parmater, Wally Haas, Roger Ruthhart, Joe Corrado, Colin O'Donnell,
Rick Nagel.
Staff present: Dana Ditrichs-Kunkel.
Members absent (6): Lois Self (exec. secretary), Lonny Cain (past president), Cheryl Wormley, Tom Martin, Ray Karges, Jeannine Otto.
Larsen called the meeting to order at 10:20 a.m., following 9 a.m. meetings of the program, education and membership committees.
Treasurer's report: Slonoff reported a checking account balance of $729.95 after all fall-conference expenses have been paid. Dues payments of $2,120 will be deposited next week, bringing the balance to a healthy $2,849.95. The board approved the report (Haas motion, Lannom second).
Executive secretary's report: Dana Ditrichs-Kunkel reported for Dr. Lois Self, who was out of town due to a death in her family. The NIU department of communication has been successful in three of four faculty searches, with the opening remaining in photojournalism/graphics. Chicago Tribune news photographer John Kringas is teaching the advanced photojournalism course this spring. NIU's annual Journalism Banquet is Friday, April 12.
Program committee report: Lannom said plans for the April 26 spring
conference ("Cops, Courts and the Community") are on track. Elmhurst
Police Chief John Millner has had to cancel as a speaker, but he will be
replaced on the panel by Burr Ridge Chief Herbert Timm. None of the speakers
are charging NINA for their time. The event will be held at Oak Trust Credit
Union in Oakbrook Terrace.
Fall conference plans are under way for Friday, Oct. 25. The committee hopes
to invite gubernatorial candidates Jim Ryan and Rod Blagojevich to NIU,
and possibly invite Tribune columnist John Kass as a lunchtime keynote speaker
to talk about covering politics. Ruthhart advised the committee to maintain
control of the candidates' portion of the program, rather than let the campaigns
dictate the event. Haas observed that Blagojevich was not good about working
with downstate press during the primary.
Membership committee report: Kubiak said a list of targeted newspapers
has been developed. The committee also wants to send letters to current
member papers, asking editors to encourage their free-lancers to join NINA.
Killam will draft the letter and forward it to the committee.
Parmater suggested that the next newsletter include a promotion for NINA's
Web-based job listings, as a potential point of attraction for free-lancers.
There also was discussion of exactly what a $20 individual membership fee
buys someone. Slonoff mentioned the idea of offering a 50-percent discount
on the person's first workshop or conference, but in the end the consensus
was to simply offer member rates to the conferences - which are one-half
the nonmember rates.
Education committee report: Haas said the committee is planning
two workshops for this year: 1) A session on math and database journalism,
probably the week of June 25 at NIU. Details TBA. 2) A workshop for high-school
newspaper advisers, from 5 to 9 p.m. Sept. 18 at the Joliet Herald News.
Topics will include digital photography, page design, ethics and Internet
use. Dinner will be included.
Etheredge said judging for NINA's annual high-school scholarships will begin
at 8:30 a.m. Thursday, April 11, at the Northern Star. 28 students have
applied. Anyone interested in helping judge entries should contact Etheredge
at (630) 554-8573.
An idea was suggested for Killam to do a newsletter story on past scholarship
winners and where they are now.
Communications coordinator's report: Killam said the deadline
for summer newsletter copy will be Wednesday, May 15. The newsletter then
would be published in late may, to promote the June workshop and to announce
the scholarship winners.
The NINA Web site has a new address: http://www.northernstar.info/nina.
The old address still works, but the Northern Star is migrating to a new
server.
President's report: Larsen said all material had been covered earlier in the meeting.
Old business: None.
New business: None.
Meeting adjourned at 11:10 a.m., with most members staying later for shop talk.
Shop talk:
Rivara: Mark Sweetwood has been named general manager of the Kane County
Chronicle; Northwest Herald named as one of Editor & Publisher's "10
Who Do It Right."
Swikle: Illinois Press Foundation is developing programs to promote
the First Amendment in high schools. Newspaper censorship case at Huntley
High School, where principal confiscated issues of a paper with "too
much negative coverage." He defended the action as "administrative
discretion," not censorship. Professional media coverage has had a
large impact on the case.
Etheredge: Ledger Sentinel is looking for a sports editor.
Killam: Northern Star won first place in general excellence from
Illinois College Press Association; and first place for Best College Newspaper
Online Service from Editor & Publisher.
Parmater: Candidate for superintendent of High School District 230
(Sandburg, Stagg and Andrew high schools) proposed a "no bad news for
30 days" school-newspapers rule if hired, to improve public perception
of asbestos problem and other issues.
Nagel: Beacon News' sister paper, the Herald News, is doing innovative
work in entertainment section design.
O'Donnell: Dan Baumann retiring as Daily Herald publisher next week;
Doug Ray taking over.
Ruthhart: Russian journalists spending three weeks in Illinois; will
visit Argus and Dispatch. The papers have just finished a comics survey.
Roger's willing to share results with anyone interested.
Phelps: Catholic Church has dealt with many reporters recently because
of national sex-abuse news. Overall, he said he has found the coverage to
be fair and balanced.
Kubiak: New contact e-mail is kkubiak@tbcnet.com. Kim is no longer
with the Sycamore News.
Haas: A letter defending Catholic priests accused of sexual abuse
has raised controversy in the community.
Slonoff and Lannom: The Doings has implemented small ads on page
1, with mixed reaction.
Corrado: Sun has initiated monthly brown-bag workshops for staff.
Larsen: An appeal to the community for a panel of 20 editorial writers
attracted 190 entries, many of them outstanding. The Herald News has redesigned
its back page and page 2, and no longer shares those pages with Aurora.
New features and entertainment products, too.
Shop talk finished about noon. Board members Larsen, Parmater, Nagel, Ruthhart and O'Donnell stayed into the afternoon to help the NIU journalism program with a professional-assessment exercise.
Next NINA board meeting and committee meetings: Friday, Aug. 9, Campus Life Building, Room 100.
Minutes submitted by Jim Killam, communications coordinator, 4-8-02.