Spot News

Vol. 15, No. 8 MAY 2009

A publication of the East Tennessee Chapter
of the Society of Professional Journalists
www.etspj.org
1802 Pinoak Ct.
Knoxville, TN 37923
May 15Golden Press Card Awards
banquet, 5:30 p.m. reception and 6:15
p.m. dinner, The Foundry, Knoxville
June 5-7Ted Scripps Leadership Insti-
tute, Indianapolis
June 8ETSPJ board, 9 a.m., Longs
Drug Store
July 12ETSPJ board retreat, 3-5 p.m.,
Ash house, Knoxville. Orientation and
planning for the new board and the 2009-
10 year.
July 18Front Page Follies, Marriott
Hotel, Knoxville
Aug. 27-29National SPJ Convention,
100th anniversary observance, India-
napolis
Summmer-into-fall kickoffBloopers
Night or Ethics Poker event. Watch for
VSHFLFV
April TBARegion 12 Conference,
Knoxville. Host, ETSPJ.
ETSPJs Golden Press Card
to honor journalistic excellence
SEE FROM THE PRESIDENT, PAGE 2
From the president
BY MIA RHODARMER
ETSPJ
RHODARMER
(Top) Richard Grifths, CNN, ques-
tions paneI members, from Ieft, BiII
Shory, WBIR-TV; GIenn ReynoIds,
instapundit.com; Jack McEIroy, News
SentineI, KnoxviIIe; and MichaeI Grider,
VoIunteertv.com. (MiddIe) LaFoIIette
Press staffers Iisten, from Ieft, Natasha
Lafayette, Susan Sharp, CharIotte Un-
derwood and Jennifer CaIdweII. Behind
at Ieft is Mark Harmon, of the UTJEM,
who aIso is a Knox County commis-
sioner. (Bottom) Grifths, Ieft, and
McElroy talk before the program.
Town Hall Meeting April 30 at Baker Center
MARK YOUR CALENDAR
6 - Spot News
I am writing this as we have
just celebrated Ethics Week
in journalism. In some recent
polls, people rank journalists
right up there with lawyers
when it comes to trust, or
rather a lack of it. So Ethics
Week is a time for journalists
to talk to the public about
how we do our jobs and the ethical dilemmas
we sometimes encounter as we gather and
disseminate information.
In observance of Ethics Week, national SPJ
hosted town hall meetings across the country
to give people an opportunity to talk to
journalists about ethics and credibility and to
make our jobs more transparent to our readers
and viewers.
The East Tennessee chapter was honored
to be one of the 10 chapters to host one of
these town hall meetings on April 30. Richard
Griffths, editorial director for CNN, was the
moderator for the evening and had prepared
several scenarios for our panelists to consider.
The discussion also prompted good questions
from the audience. Thank you to our panelists,
Jack McElroy, Bill Shory, Michael Grider and
Glenn Reynolds, for giving of their time.
While Ethics Week has come and gone for
another year, it is important that we keep the
SPJ Code of Ethics in mind as we do our jobs
throughout the year. I have included the main
points of the ethics code below. The full code
is available on our Web site, www.etspj.org.
Members of the Society of Professional
Journalists believe that public enlightenment
is the forerunner of justice and the foundation
of democracy. The duty of the journalist is
to further those ends by seeking truth and
providing a fair and comprehensive account
of events and issues.
BY JEAN ASH
Winning entrants of 185 stories, photographs,
audio or video entries and Web sites submitted
this year will accept plaques and certifcates
plus congratulations from their peers at the
Golden Press Cards Award Banquet Friday,
May 15, at The Foundry in Knoxville.
Two others will be singled out for special
honors, the Horace V. Wells Jr. Community
Service Award and the Golden Press Card
Award. That best of show honor is selected
from all the Awards of Excellence in all
categories and the winner will also take home
a check fo,r $100.
The entries for work done in 2008 represent
work for 16 different publications, broadcast
stations or Web sites as well as three
individuals. Journalists from the entire East
Tennessee area are represented from Bristol
to Chattanooga to Crossville and points in
between.
The festivities will begin with a reception at
5:30 p.m. and dinner at 6:15, followed by a
presentation by Bob Benz, a newspaperman-
turned-online guru and now chief operating
offcer of Radiant Markets LLC. His topic will
be Shut Down Your Web Sites!
We also will honor the ETSPJ winner
of SPJ`s High School Essay Contest, B.J.
Guerrero, who wrote on the topic, Why free
news media are important. His entry will be
sent on to the national contest, where he could
win the grand prize of a $1,000 scholarship.
Guerrero is a senior at Upperman High
School. Larry W. Van Guilder served as essay
contest chairman for the second year.
Tickets to the awards dinner are $25 at the
door. More details are available at http://etspj.
org/golden-press-card-awards-2/.
The Greater Cincinnati SPJ chapter judged
the Golden Press Card entries. That chapter
will send entries for our chapter to judge later
in the season. If you are able to help judge
that work, please contact GPC Chairman
Elenora E. Edwards at eleedwards@aol.com
to volunteer your assistance. Edwards has
been assisted in the GPC work by Dorothy
Bowles.
ABOUT RESERVATIONS
Make reservations for the dinner
at www.etspj/golden-press-card-
awards-2/. Tickets are $25.
Next big event: Front Page Follies
Front Page Follies, ETSPJ`s summer event,
is beginning to take shape. Honorees have
been notified. The Follies skits spoofing
whats going on around us from the creative
pen of David Lauver, are being polished.
Rehearsal dates have been set.
The auction committee has begun its work
(see story on page 2).
2009 honorees are brothers John M. Jones
Jr., Gregg K. Jones and Alex S. Jones, natives
of Greeneville.
The ETSPJ board will keep the members
informed on the progress of the Follies, and
it seeks their help, since production of the
Follies is complex-and hard work. A
casting call is going out, so anyone who
would like to be considered for participation
in the Follies show should contact Adina
Chumley, archumley@yahoo.com.
There are many ways people can help.
Ask how.
And put the Follies on your calendar-
itll be Saturday, July 18, at the Marriott in
Knoxville. Join us to honor three outstand-
ing journalists, enjoy a smashing show and
enjoy fellowship with other journalists.
PHOTOS BY ELENORA E. EDWARDS
Mia Rhodarmer, president
Jean Ash, rst vice president
and communications coordinator
Elenora E. Edwards, second vice president/
Golden Press Card Awards and Spot News
editor
John Huotari, secretary and immediate past
president
Dorothy Bowles, treasurer and FOI chairman
John Becker, membership chairman
Michael Grider, program chairman
Amanda Womac, diversity chairman and
student liaison
Kristi Nelson Bumpus, ethics chairman
Georgiana Vines, at large; Adina Chumley, ex
ofcio
ETSPJ Ofcers and Board of Directors 2008-09
ETSPJ publishes Spot News in paper
and PDF versions. To subscribe,
one shoul d contact Jean Ash,
communications coordinator, at
jeanash@comcast.net. The PDF
version is available at www.etspj.
org, the chapter Web site.
Letters to the Editor Policy: The board
encourages letters to the editor of
Spot News. Like letters policies at
most newspapers, we ask that letters
be limited to 200 words or less. They
will be subject to editing for space
and content. Send e-mail to ETSPJ.
communications@gmail.com.
Spot News
2008-09 editor
Elenora E. Edwards
eleedwards@aol.com
(865) 457-5459
From the president
FROM PAGE ONE
2 - Spot News Spot News - 5
BY ELENORA E. EDWARDS
You can help make Front Page Follies
a success. Help us round up items for the
auction, the major fund-raising event of
the year.
The Follies, which annually honors one
or more East Tennessee journalists and
Have something to contribute to auction?
provides scholarships for young people
earning journalism degrees, will take place
Saturday, July 18.
Auction chairman Georgiana Vines and
the ETSPJ board ask every ETSPJ member
to contribute one item.
It can be a journalism memento, a col-
lecible, a gift certifcate from your favorite
restaurant, something youve made your-
self, tickets to an event you know you
wont be able to attend. Do you have a
historic or art photo you can part with?
Items large and small, together, will raise
the money ETSPJ needs to support aspir-
ing journalists.
Here are a couple of examples. Last year,
a photo of the signing of the Open Meet-
ings Law in 1974 brought $500. A bowl
made of newspapers brought $50.
We all have contacts we can approach
for free or discounted items, and we all
have attics, or something comparable,
where we might fnd something perfect
for this project.
Jim Crook, retired director of the UT
School of Journalism, is assisting Geor-
giana. Contact her at gvpolitics@hotmail.
com or Jim at jcrook@utk.edu.
The deadline for the June-July issue of Spot
News is June 12.
Conscientious journalists from all media
and specialties strive to serve the public
with thoroughness and honesty. Professional
integrity is the cornerstone of a journalists
credibility. Members of the Society share a
dedication to ethical behavior and adopt this
code to declare the Societys principles and
standards of practice.
Seek Truth and Report It - Journalists should
be honest, fair and courageous in gathering,
reporting and interpreting information.
Minimize Harm - Ethical journalists treat
sources, subjects and colleagues as human
beings deserving of respect.
Act Independently - Journalists should be
free of obligation to any interest other than
the publics right to know.
Be Accountable - Journalists are accountable
to their readers, listeners, viewers and each
other.
ETSPJ President Mia Rhodarmer, left, Communications
Coordinator Jean Ash, center, and Lisa Hood Skinner with a
box of chocolates Lisa delivered to Poker Night on April 17.
Pizza and chocolatewhat a great combination.
Vice President Elenora E. Edwards, left, and President Mia
Rhodarmer with Ethics Poker cards.
To the strains of David Lauvers Texas
Hold Em, a table of ETSPJ members
played Ethics Poker on April 17 at Jean
Ashs house. The purpose was celebrate
SPJs 100th anniversary.
Ethics Poker, created by an SPJ member,
is based on the game Texas Hold Em.
Every card has an excerpt from SPJs
Ethics Code.
The event began with pizza and was
topped off with chocolate from Lisa Hood
Skinner. During the frst several hands, it
appeared that Jean (Shark) would take the
lions share of the pennies from Mia Rho-
darmer (Quiet One) and Elenora Edwards
(Tank), who was heard to murmur, What
ever happened to beginners luck?After
an hour and having translated the journal-
ists objectivity into a bluff, Elenora won
with 109 cents. However, Jean got the
most Ethics Code card matches.
Texas Hold Em, Texas squeeze em,
Tex-excite em, Texas please em.
ETSPJ board members are thinking of
holding another Ethics Poker Night as the
new year begins Aug. 1. Join em.
Poker Nightan ethically good time
JEAN ASH
ELENORA E. EDWARDS
Seven of the 11 ETSPJ board members at the April 29 board meeting at Longs Drug Store: from
left, Amanda Womac, Bob Becker, Dorothy Bowles, Jean Ash, John Huotari, Georgiana Vines and
Mia Rhodarmer.
BY JEAN ASH
Communications coordinator
A new page recently added to
our chapter Web site is entitled,
Congratulations! Its first entry
celebrates awards won by two UT
student publications at the SPJ
Region 12 Conference last month in
Little Rock.
Congratulations! is designed to
inform our membership of honors we
receive, such as new jobs, promotions,
honors, etc. Please dont be shy, and
let us know when good things happen
to you!
Another new page is called, simply,
Jobs. In this economy we would
like to help our membership find
out about openings that might be
suitable for them. In the past few
months we have listed several jobs
on our main calendar page but now
will dedicate a permanent location
for these announcements. As you
know, most jobs are found through
networking, so if you hear about an
opening, please pass it along to us.
A project we hope to implement
for the Web site is a listing of our
chapters past presidents with a short
biography of each. Weve started
a list, but there are some blanks
in it, so any chapter old-timers
with fles in the basement or attic
are encouraged to dig through them
for information, especially about
www.etspj.org has new features
ETSPJs early years. A volunteer to
flesh out thumbnail bios would be
very welcome, too, if anyone would
like to become the chapter historian.
Its important we try to complete our
records before institutional memory
is lost. (Wed really like to have old
Follies invitations or Spot News
editions before 1999, too.)
Finally, heres an invitation to all our
members who have blogs or Web sites
of their own. Our Links area already
lists some of these and wed be happy
to add yours as well. Take a look at the
ETSPJ Member Web Sites directory
to see what your colleagues are up to
and let us list yours too.
Please take a minute and check out
www.etspj.org! In addition to our
Calendar listings of upcoming events
and summaries of past programs and
activities and word about the Front
Page Follies and Golden Press Card
Award program, there is a lot of
useful information at your fngertips,
including board members contact info,
the SPJ Code of Ethics, information
about membership, and issues of Spot
News going back a decade.
Please send any information for the
Web site to me at jeanash@comcast.
net or the official chapter e-mail
address: etspj.communications@
gmail.com. And if you have further
suggestions for improving our online
presence, please let me know.
BY JEAN ASH
A hundred thousand blogs are being
started every day, and most are being read
only by the blogger and his mother.
So says Sree Sreenivasen, professor and
dean of students at Columbia University
Graduate School of Journalism, who adds
that some, like East Tennessees own
Instapundit, attract tens (if not hundreds)
of thousands of readers a day. Thats a
lot of eyeballs, which Sree says is the
currency of blogging.
Figuring out blogs and whatevers next
Session at SPJ convention September 2008
So, how do you create a blog that falls
comfortably between the two extremes?
Sree says you need to fnd a niche, an
angle. A catchy tag line, what it is youre
selling with original reporting, an
original point of view. Moreover, you
dont need millions of eyeballs, just the
right ones, a subset of those addicted to
the Web, he says.
Then, drive the eyeballs toward you with
a lot of posts. His mantra is content
SEE BLOGS, PAGE 3
NICK FRANTZ, SHOPPER-NEWS
The tools of Ethics Pokerthe cards and
pennies for the pot.
3 - Spot News Spot News -4
Blogs
FROM PAGE 2
content, content. Your posts dont need
to be long but they do need to be frequent.
Check out Instapundit.com to see the
master at work with rat-a-tat-tat posts.
Sree notes that the technology of blogs
today is easy; the hard part is fnding
something to say.
The best way to build a blog, according
to Sree, is to post as much as humanly
possible without losing your day job.
That could be something like 10 posts
a week, if theyre good. He cited one
blogger as spending two hours on a
Sunday afternoon writing several posts
and postdating them so that they
appear on the blog throughout the week,
making it seem like the author is posting
all the time. Otherwise, he recommends
dedicating at least 5-15 minutes a day on
your blog.
Material could come from outtakes
from interviews, color that won`t ft into
your regular writing, interesting things
you see elsewhere on the Net. Also,
make the blogs of others work for you.
Participate in other blogs by commenting
or posting something intriguing that will
make readers click back to your blog to
see what else you have to say. When you
make a particularly good entry, e-mail a
note to all your friends and/or post it on
your Facebook or Twitter account.
Your blog can be part of your rsum
for a traditional job, too. Publishers,
acquisition editors and the like read
blogs and get an idea of a persons value
from his or her blog. Srees bottom line,
particularly valuable in these times of
economic crisis, is that the more you can
do for yourself via a blog, the more you
can withstand layoffs and show you have
additional value by having developed a
fan base. He says this is of particular
value to television journalists.
If you have a few hoursmake that a
virtual lifetimecheck out Srees Web
site, http://sreetips.com/blogs.html.
There you will fnd more tips from this
workshop, some of Srees own blogs,
plus links to blogs of all types that he
recommends: conservative, liberal, those
by journalists, about journalists, business,
entertainment, travel, photography,
video, tech, the list is nearly endless.
One blog in particular that he feels every
journalist should check every day is that
of Romanesko, now at Poynter.org.
Hello, all local chapter presidents and board members, national membership
committee members, and others:
Last month, in response to a request I sent out, some of you sent me feedback on
membership dues waivers or discounts for laid-off journalists. I was able to share
some of the highlights of your comments at the April 18 national SPJ board meeting
in Greencastle, Ind., and I want to thank you for your input.
As you may know by now, the national SPJ board voted to offer a six-month
membership extension to journalists who are already SPJ members and have lost
their jobs. The six-month extensions will be digital only, meaning the members will
get Quill online. SPJ is asking anyone who qualifes for the waiver to volunteer fve
hours of their time to the Society to participate in such activities as judging contests or
helping with chapter activities. More information is available on the SPJ Web site.
The membership extension policy is good for one year, meaning the board will
review it again next spring.
For those of you who are interested, I am forwarding you the copy of the report
that SPJ President Dave Aeikens sent out regarding the April 18 board meeting. It is
included below.
Let me know if you are interested in reading all the comments submitted to me about
the membership dues waiver/discount, and I will forward those e-mails to you.
Thank you,
John Huotari
SPJ Membership Committee Chairman
(865) 220-5533

Greetings,
Here is a short recap of the SPJ board action from Saturday, April 18. Please feel
free to share this at what spring conferences remain and with your chapters leaders
and members.
Budget
The board approved a budget that spends about $1.6 million and projects a $30,000
surplus at the end of the year. We have added categories to the Mark of Excellence
Awards in hopes of adding entries. Quill magazine will be printed six times instead
of nine, saving about $40,000.
We also are going to replace the roof at the headquarters in Indianapolis, sharing
the cost with the SDX Foundation. Revenue projections are based on membership
levels of 8,200. We are at 8,500 this week. Membership is about 32 percent of our
revenue.
New chapters
The board admitted fve new chapters to the Society. This is very exciting. Please
welcome Angelo State, Butler University, Harding University, Northern Kentucky
University and Western Michigan University campus chapters.
Relief for laid-off journalists
The board approved a six-month extension for existing members who have lost
their jobs. The offer is good for the next year. This will help journalists who have
been laid off to maintain their SPJ memberships while they transition to their next
job. Quill will be sent digitally to members who apply for this option. Look for more
details in the coming weeks.
2010 convention
We are going to Las Vegas. We had a successful convention there in 2005, and we
plan to return in 2010. The convention will probably take place in early October.
The board also considered New Orleans. Hotel rates are expected to be under $150 a
night. The conference was originally scheduled for New York in 2010, but the board
rescinded that when it became clear travel and hotel costs would be too expensive
for members.
From SPJ membership
chairman, SPJ president
SEE MEMBERSHIP CHAIRMAN, PAGE 4
Membership chairman
FROM PAGE 3
(See photos on page 6)
BY JEAN ASH
Dozens of members of the public attended
the SPJ Media Ethics and Credibility Town
Hall April 30 at the Howard Baker Jr.
Center for Public Policy in Knoxville.
The East Tennessee Chapter is honored
to have been one of 10 chapters across
the country selected to hold the town hall
meeting during Ethics Week. Moderator
Richard Griffths of CNN led the session
by asking the panel of news managers
and a nationally-known blogger some
pointed questions involving various ethical
scenarios.
Panelists included Bill Shory, news
director at WBIR-TV; Jack McElroy,
editor of the News Sentinel, Knoxville;
Michael Grider of VolunteerTV.com; and
Glenn Reynolds, a UT law professor who
also writes Instapundit.com.
The ethics scenarios asked the journalists
and online writers what they would do
upon getting Twitter tips about a reported
airplane crash and an assertion that the
former Microsoft chief had severe thumb
injuries from using a Blackberry. Panelists
noted that Twitter, a social networking
tool virtually unknown a year ago, is now
being used by most news organizations as
a source of tips to be checked out as well as
a notifcation system to build brand loyalty
among viewers/readers.
The most spirited response by the panel as
well as audience questions and comments
came concerning comments left by the
public on online news Web sites. Some
felt there should be no prior restraint
by the media managers, that damaging
comments should be removed as soon as
noticed, and that the media are moving
more into a role of discussion manager.
Others felt comments should be screened
and more effort by the media should go to
their traditional products than to assume
everyone is using the Internet and social
networking tools.
Panelists and audience alike seemed to
agree that citizen journalists can be every
bit as credible and reliable as journalists
with a capital J, but that until ones
track record is proven its risky to rely on
their reports without further verifcation.
Reynolds told a story about a tip he
received but did not use because he didnt
know the authenticity of the tipster. A week
later the story was front page news in the
New York Times. It was noted that there
are no tests or criteria for someone to work
as a journalist and that the line between
news reporting and opinion/analysis has
been fading.
Another point that came up is that
bloggers or citizen journalists are not
likely to replace the traditional medias
role as watchdog with deep pockets who
can spend a week to pursue involved
stories, although Reynolds pointed out
that if bloggers are obsessive or consider
a certain beat their hobby, they can do
deeper digging than many traditional
media outlets in the current economy.
SPJs large and diverse membership
consistently identifes ethics as one of the
organizations most important missions.
The SPJ Code of Ethics, frst adopted in
1926, is an industry standard. One element
of the code is to invite dialogue with the
public over journalistic conduct. Copies
of the SPJ Ethics code were distributed to
the audience and a framed copy presented
to Griffths at the end of the evening. Many
thanks to ETSPJ president Mia Rhodarmer
and program chairman Michael Grider
for making the arrangements and also to
VP Elenora Edwards for bringing a wide
variety of refreshments for the attendees.
(The Code of Ethics can be found at www.
etspj.org.)
Turnout good for SPJ Media, Credibility Town Hall Meeting
2011 convention
SPJ plans to pursue the concept of
a joint convention with the Radio
Television News Directors Association
in 2011. Both organizations have a
goal of creating a giant professional
development conference that might some
day include additional partners. The
partnership provides the opportunity for
more participants, better room and meal
rates. It also ends the need to compete for
speakers, fundraising and attendance with
another large organization.
It is important to note that both
organizations will keep any traditions
they have in this new setup. We would
still have the Presidents Installation
Dinner, the LDF auction and the Mark
of Excellence Awards. Our business
meetings would still be conducted.
The board rescinded its plan to have the
convention in San Francisco in 2011 so it
could work on a location that is suitable
for both SPJ and RTNDA.
Fairness Doctrine
The board took a position in opposition
to the Fairness Doctrine. No bill exists, but
there has been discussion. The organization
opposes government intervention in
speech and journalism ethics. A number
of people have been contacting us asking
what our position is on this issue. We will
post a statement on the Web site next week.
The Fairness Doctrine was originally put
in place in 1949 and required anyone with
a broadcasting license to provide both
sides of any controversial issue. The FCC
repealed it in 1987.
We believe that the Fairness Doctrine is
an attempt to regulate speech.
Branding statement
The Public Outreach Committee was
asked to recommend a branding statement
that can be used as a slogan internally and
externally. The board approved the slogan,
Fighting for your right to know, one story
at a time.
This will complement and not replace the
Improving and Protecting Journalism
that is now being used. It will start gradually
making its way onto our promotional
materials during the next few weeks.
Chapter reports
A recommendation to put before the
delegates a plan to remove from the
bylaws the annual report requirement
was rejected. The regional directors are
working on improving the current system
to rate student and campus chapters.
Shield law
SPJ has scheduled July 13-15 as its
annual trip to Washington, D.C. to talk
to Congress about issues important to
journalists. More information will come
out later on how board members and
committee leaders can take part if they
are interested.
Improved digital communications
The Di gi t al Medi a Commi t t ee
recommended SPJ improve its blog
system, engage more in social networking
opportunities and put all digital tools in
one place on the web site. All of these
things are in the process of happening in
the next year.
Strategic plan
The board is still committed to the
strategic plan approved in 2007. It met
for about an hour Saturday to talk about
the nest steps in meeting the goals of the
plan.
3 - Spot News Spot News -4
Blogs
FROM PAGE 2
content, content. Your posts dont need
to be long but they do need to be frequent.
Check out Instapundit.com to see the
master at work with rat-a-tat-tat posts.
Sree notes that the technology of blogs
today is easy; the hard part is fnding
something to say.
The best way to build a blog, according
to Sree, is to post as much as humanly
possible without losing your day job.
That could be something like 10 posts
a week, if theyre good. He cited one
blogger as spending two hours on a
Sunday afternoon writing several posts
and postdating them so that they
appear on the blog throughout the week,
making it seem like the author is posting
all the time. Otherwise, he recommends
dedicating at least 5-15 minutes a day on
your blog.
Material could come from outtakes
from interviews, color that won`t ft into
your regular writing, interesting things
you see elsewhere on the Net. Also,
make the blogs of others work for you.
Participate in other blogs by commenting
or posting something intriguing that will
make readers click back to your blog to
see what else you have to say. When you
make a particularly good entry, e-mail a
note to all your friends and/or post it on
your Facebook or Twitter account.
Your blog can be part of your rsum
for a traditional job, too. Publishers,
acquisition editors and the like read
blogs and get an idea of a persons value
from his or her blog. Srees bottom line,
particularly valuable in these times of
economic crisis, is that the more you can
do for yourself via a blog, the more you
can withstand layoffs and show you have
additional value by having developed a
fan base. He says this is of particular
value to television journalists.
If you have a few hoursmake that a
virtual lifetimecheck out Srees Web
site, http://sreetips.com/blogs.html.
There you will fnd more tips from this
workshop, some of Srees own blogs,
plus links to blogs of all types that he
recommends: conservative, liberal, those
by journalists, about journalists, business,
entertainment, travel, photography,
video, tech, the list is nearly endless.
One blog in particular that he feels every
journalist should check every day is that
of Romanesko, now at Poynter.org.
Hello, all local chapter presidents and board members, national membership
committee members, and others:
Last month, in response to a request I sent out, some of you sent me feedback on
membership dues waivers or discounts for laid-off journalists. I was able to share
some of the highlights of your comments at the April 18 national SPJ board meeting
in Greencastle, Ind., and I want to thank you for your input.
As you may know by now, the national SPJ board voted to offer a six-month
membership extension to journalists who are already SPJ members and have lost
their jobs. The six-month extensions will be digital only, meaning the members will
get Quill online. SPJ is asking anyone who qualifes for the waiver to volunteer fve
hours of their time to the Society to participate in such activities as judging contests or
helping with chapter activities. More information is available on the SPJ Web site.
The membership extension policy is good for one year, meaning the board will
review it again next spring.
For those of you who are interested, I am forwarding you the copy of the report
that SPJ President Dave Aeikens sent out regarding the April 18 board meeting. It is
included below.
Let me know if you are interested in reading all the comments submitted to me about
the membership dues waiver/discount, and I will forward those e-mails to you.
Thank you,
John Huotari
SPJ Membership Committee Chairman
(865) 220-5533

Greetings,
Here is a short recap of the SPJ board action from Saturday, April 18. Please feel
free to share this at what spring conferences remain and with your chapters leaders
and members.
Budget
The board approved a budget that spends about $1.6 million and projects a $30,000
surplus at the end of the year. We have added categories to the Mark of Excellence
Awards in hopes of adding entries. Quill magazine will be printed six times instead
of nine, saving about $40,000.
We also are going to replace the roof at the headquarters in Indianapolis, sharing
the cost with the SDX Foundation. Revenue projections are based on membership
levels of 8,200. We are at 8,500 this week. Membership is about 32 percent of our
revenue.
New chapters
The board admitted fve new chapters to the Society. This is very exciting. Please
welcome Angelo State, Butler University, Harding University, Northern Kentucky
University and Western Michigan University campus chapters.
Relief for laid-off journalists
The board approved a six-month extension for existing members who have lost
their jobs. The offer is good for the next year. This will help journalists who have
been laid off to maintain their SPJ memberships while they transition to their next
job. Quill will be sent digitally to members who apply for this option. Look for more
details in the coming weeks.
2010 convention
We are going to Las Vegas. We had a successful convention there in 2005, and we
plan to return in 2010. The convention will probably take place in early October.
The board also considered New Orleans. Hotel rates are expected to be under $150 a
night. The conference was originally scheduled for New York in 2010, but the board
rescinded that when it became clear travel and hotel costs would be too expensive
for members.
From SPJ membership
chairman, SPJ president
SEE MEMBERSHIP CHAIRMAN, PAGE 4
Membership chairman
FROM PAGE 3
(See photos on page 6)
BY JEAN ASH
Dozens of members of the public attended
the SPJ Media Ethics and Credibility Town
Hall April 30 at the Howard Baker Jr.
Center for Public Policy in Knoxville.
The East Tennessee Chapter is honored
to have been one of 10 chapters across
the country selected to hold the town hall
meeting during Ethics Week. Moderator
Richard Griffths of CNN led the session
by asking the panel of news managers
and a nationally-known blogger some
pointed questions involving various ethical
scenarios.
Panelists included Bill Shory, news
director at WBIR-TV; Jack McElroy,
editor of the News Sentinel, Knoxville;
Michael Grider of VolunteerTV.com; and
Glenn Reynolds, a UT law professor who
also writes Instapundit.com.
The ethics scenarios asked the journalists
and online writers what they would do
upon getting Twitter tips about a reported
airplane crash and an assertion that the
former Microsoft chief had severe thumb
injuries from using a Blackberry. Panelists
noted that Twitter, a social networking
tool virtually unknown a year ago, is now
being used by most news organizations as
a source of tips to be checked out as well as
a notifcation system to build brand loyalty
among viewers/readers.
The most spirited response by the panel as
well as audience questions and comments
came concerning comments left by the
public on online news Web sites. Some
felt there should be no prior restraint
by the media managers, that damaging
comments should be removed as soon as
noticed, and that the media are moving
more into a role of discussion manager.
Others felt comments should be screened
and more effort by the media should go to
their traditional products than to assume
everyone is using the Internet and social
networking tools.
Panelists and audience alike seemed to
agree that citizen journalists can be every
bit as credible and reliable as journalists
with a capital J, but that until ones
track record is proven its risky to rely on
their reports without further verifcation.
Reynolds told a story about a tip he
received but did not use because he didnt
know the authenticity of the tipster. A week
later the story was front page news in the
New York Times. It was noted that there
are no tests or criteria for someone to work
as a journalist and that the line between
news reporting and opinion/analysis has
been fading.
Another point that came up is that
bloggers or citizen journalists are not
likely to replace the traditional medias
role as watchdog with deep pockets who
can spend a week to pursue involved
stories, although Reynolds pointed out
that if bloggers are obsessive or consider
a certain beat their hobby, they can do
deeper digging than many traditional
media outlets in the current economy.
SPJs large and diverse membership
consistently identifes ethics as one of the
organizations most important missions.
The SPJ Code of Ethics, frst adopted in
1926, is an industry standard. One element
of the code is to invite dialogue with the
public over journalistic conduct. Copies
of the SPJ Ethics code were distributed to
the audience and a framed copy presented
to Griffths at the end of the evening. Many
thanks to ETSPJ president Mia Rhodarmer
and program chairman Michael Grider
for making the arrangements and also to
VP Elenora Edwards for bringing a wide
variety of refreshments for the attendees.
(The Code of Ethics can be found at www.
etspj.org.)
Turnout good for SPJ Media, Credibility Town Hall Meeting
2011 convention
SPJ plans to pursue the concept of
a joint convention with the Radio
Television News Directors Association
in 2011. Both organizations have a
goal of creating a giant professional
development conference that might some
day include additional partners. The
partnership provides the opportunity for
more participants, better room and meal
rates. It also ends the need to compete for
speakers, fundraising and attendance with
another large organization.
It is important to note that both
organizations will keep any traditions
they have in this new setup. We would
still have the Presidents Installation
Dinner, the LDF auction and the Mark
of Excellence Awards. Our business
meetings would still be conducted.
The board rescinded its plan to have the
convention in San Francisco in 2011 so it
could work on a location that is suitable
for both SPJ and RTNDA.
Fairness Doctrine
The board took a position in opposition
to the Fairness Doctrine. No bill exists, but
there has been discussion. The organization
opposes government intervention in
speech and journalism ethics. A number
of people have been contacting us asking
what our position is on this issue. We will
post a statement on the Web site next week.
The Fairness Doctrine was originally put
in place in 1949 and required anyone with
a broadcasting license to provide both
sides of any controversial issue. The FCC
repealed it in 1987.
We believe that the Fairness Doctrine is
an attempt to regulate speech.
Branding statement
The Public Outreach Committee was
asked to recommend a branding statement
that can be used as a slogan internally and
externally. The board approved the slogan,
Fighting for your right to know, one story
at a time.
This will complement and not replace the
Improving and Protecting Journalism
that is now being used. It will start gradually
making its way onto our promotional
materials during the next few weeks.
Chapter reports
A recommendation to put before the
delegates a plan to remove from the
bylaws the annual report requirement
was rejected. The regional directors are
working on improving the current system
to rate student and campus chapters.
Shield law
SPJ has scheduled July 13-15 as its
annual trip to Washington, D.C. to talk
to Congress about issues important to
journalists. More information will come
out later on how board members and
committee leaders can take part if they
are interested.
Improved digital communications
The Di gi t al Medi a Commi t t ee
recommended SPJ improve its blog
system, engage more in social networking
opportunities and put all digital tools in
one place on the web site. All of these
things are in the process of happening in
the next year.
Strategic plan
The board is still committed to the
strategic plan approved in 2007. It met
for about an hour Saturday to talk about
the nest steps in meeting the goals of the
plan.
Mia Rhodarmer, president
Jean Ash, rst vice president
and communications coordinator
Elenora E. Edwards, second vice president/
Golden Press Card Awards and Spot News
editor
John Huotari, secretary and immediate past
president
Dorothy Bowles, treasurer and FOI chairman
John Becker, membership chairman
Michael Grider, program chairman
Amanda Womac, diversity chairman and
student liaison
Kristi Nelson Bumpus, ethics chairman
Georgiana Vines, at large; Adina Chumley, ex
ofcio
ETSPJ Ofcers and Board of Directors 2008-09
ETSPJ publishes Spot News in paper
and PDF versions. To subscribe,
one shoul d contact Jean Ash,
communications coordinator, at
jeanash@comcast.net. The PDF
version is available at www.etspj.
org, the chapter Web site.
Letters to the Editor Policy: The board
encourages letters to the editor of
Spot News. Like letters policies at
most newspapers, we ask that letters
be limited to 200 words or less. They
will be subject to editing for space
and content. Send e-mail to ETSPJ.
communications@gmail.com.
Spot News
2008-09 editor
Elenora E. Edwards
eleedwards@aol.com
(865) 457-5459
From the president
FROM PAGE ONE
2 - Spot News Spot News - 5
BY ELENORA E. EDWARDS
You can help make Front Page Follies
a success. Help us round up items for the
auction, the major fund-raising event of
the year.
The Follies, which annually honors one
or more East Tennessee journalists and
Have something to contribute to auction?
provides scholarships for young people
earning journalism degrees, will take place
Saturday, July 18.
Auction chairman Georgiana Vines and
the ETSPJ board ask every ETSPJ member
to contribute one item.
It can be a journalism memento, a col-
lecible, a gift certifcate from your favorite
restaurant, something youve made your-
self, tickets to an event you know you
wont be able to attend. Do you have a
historic or art photo you can part with?
Items large and small, together, will raise
the money ETSPJ needs to support aspir-
ing journalists.
Here are a couple of examples. Last year,
a photo of the signing of the Open Meet-
ings Law in 1974 brought $500. A bowl
made of newspapers brought $50.
We all have contacts we can approach
for free or discounted items, and we all
have attics, or something comparable,
where we might fnd something perfect
for this project.
Jim Crook, retired director of the UT
School of Journalism, is assisting Geor-
giana. Contact her at gvpolitics@hotmail.
com or Jim at jcrook@utk.edu.
The deadline for the June-July issue of Spot
News is June 12.
Conscientious journalists from all media
and specialties strive to serve the public
with thoroughness and honesty. Professional
integrity is the cornerstone of a journalists
credibility. Members of the Society share a
dedication to ethical behavior and adopt this
code to declare the Societys principles and
standards of practice.
Seek Truth and Report It - Journalists should
be honest, fair and courageous in gathering,
reporting and interpreting information.
Minimize Harm - Ethical journalists treat
sources, subjects and colleagues as human
beings deserving of respect.
Act Independently - Journalists should be
free of obligation to any interest other than
the publics right to know.
Be Accountable - Journalists are accountable
to their readers, listeners, viewers and each
other.
ETSPJ President Mia Rhodarmer, left, Communications
Coordinator Jean Ash, center, and Lisa Hood Skinner with a
box of chocolates Lisa delivered to Poker Night on April 17.
Pizza and chocolatewhat a great combination.
Vice President Elenora E. Edwards, left, and President Mia
Rhodarmer with Ethics Poker cards.
To the strains of David Lauvers Texas
Hold Em, a table of ETSPJ members
played Ethics Poker on April 17 at Jean
Ashs house. The purpose was celebrate
SPJs 100th anniversary.
Ethics Poker, created by an SPJ member,
is based on the game Texas Hold Em.
Every card has an excerpt from SPJs
Ethics Code.
The event began with pizza and was
topped off with chocolate from Lisa Hood
Skinner. During the frst several hands, it
appeared that Jean (Shark) would take the
lions share of the pennies from Mia Rho-
darmer (Quiet One) and Elenora Edwards
(Tank), who was heard to murmur, What
ever happened to beginners luck?After
an hour and having translated the journal-
ists objectivity into a bluff, Elenora won
with 109 cents. However, Jean got the
most Ethics Code card matches.
Texas Hold Em, Texas squeeze em,
Tex-excite em, Texas please em.
ETSPJ board members are thinking of
holding another Ethics Poker Night as the
new year begins Aug. 1. Join em.
Poker Nightan ethically good time
JEAN ASH
ELENORA E. EDWARDS
Seven of the 11 ETSPJ board members at the April 29 board meeting at Longs Drug Store: from
left, Amanda Womac, Bob Becker, Dorothy Bowles, Jean Ash, John Huotari, Georgiana Vines and
Mia Rhodarmer.
BY JEAN ASH
Communications coordinator
A new page recently added to
our chapter Web site is entitled,
Congratulations! Its first entry
celebrates awards won by two UT
student publications at the SPJ
Region 12 Conference last month in
Little Rock.
Congratulations! is designed to
inform our membership of honors we
receive, such as new jobs, promotions,
honors, etc. Please dont be shy, and
let us know when good things happen
to you!
Another new page is called, simply,
Jobs. In this economy we would
like to help our membership find
out about openings that might be
suitable for them. In the past few
months we have listed several jobs
on our main calendar page but now
will dedicate a permanent location
for these announcements. As you
know, most jobs are found through
networking, so if you hear about an
opening, please pass it along to us.
A project we hope to implement
for the Web site is a listing of our
chapters past presidents with a short
biography of each. Weve started
a list, but there are some blanks
in it, so any chapter old-timers
with fles in the basement or attic
are encouraged to dig through them
for information, especially about
www.etspj.org has new features
ETSPJs early years. A volunteer to
flesh out thumbnail bios would be
very welcome, too, if anyone would
like to become the chapter historian.
Its important we try to complete our
records before institutional memory
is lost. (Wed really like to have old
Follies invitations or Spot News
editions before 1999, too.)
Finally, heres an invitation to all our
members who have blogs or Web sites
of their own. Our Links area already
lists some of these and wed be happy
to add yours as well. Take a look at the
ETSPJ Member Web Sites directory
to see what your colleagues are up to
and let us list yours too.
Please take a minute and check out
www.etspj.org! In addition to our
Calendar listings of upcoming events
and summaries of past programs and
activities and word about the Front
Page Follies and Golden Press Card
Award program, there is a lot of
useful information at your fngertips,
including board members contact info,
the SPJ Code of Ethics, information
about membership, and issues of Spot
News going back a decade.
Please send any information for the
Web site to me at jeanash@comcast.
net or the official chapter e-mail
address: etspj.communications@
gmail.com. And if you have further
suggestions for improving our online
presence, please let me know.
BY JEAN ASH
A hundred thousand blogs are being
started every day, and most are being read
only by the blogger and his mother.
So says Sree Sreenivasen, professor and
dean of students at Columbia University
Graduate School of Journalism, who adds
that some, like East Tennessees own
Instapundit, attract tens (if not hundreds)
of thousands of readers a day. Thats a
lot of eyeballs, which Sree says is the
currency of blogging.
Figuring out blogs and whatevers next
Session at SPJ convention September 2008
So, how do you create a blog that falls
comfortably between the two extremes?
Sree says you need to fnd a niche, an
angle. A catchy tag line, what it is youre
selling with original reporting, an
original point of view. Moreover, you
dont need millions of eyeballs, just the
right ones, a subset of those addicted to
the Web, he says.
Then, drive the eyeballs toward you with
a lot of posts. His mantra is content
SEE BLOGS, PAGE 3
NICK FRANTZ, SHOPPER-NEWS
The tools of Ethics Pokerthe cards and
pennies for the pot.
Spot News
Vol. 15, No. 8 MAY 2009
A publication of the East Tennessee Chapter
of the Society of Professional Journalists
www.etspj.org
1802 Pinoak Ct.
Knoxville, TN 37923
May 15Golden Press Card Awards
banquet, 5:30 p.m. reception and 6:15
p.m. dinner, The Foundry, Knoxville
June 5-7Ted Scripps Leadership Insti-
tute, Indianapolis
June 8ETSPJ board, 9 a.m., Longs
Drug Store
July 12ETSPJ board retreat, 3-5 p.m.,
Ash house, Knoxville. Orientation and
planning for the new board and the 2009-
10 year.
July 18Front Page Follies, Marriott
Hotel, Knoxville
Aug. 27-29National SPJ Convention,
100th anniversary observance, India-
napolis
Summmer-into-fall kickoffBloopers
Night or Ethics Poker event. Watch for
VSHFLFV
April TBARegion 12 Conference,
Knoxville. Host, ETSPJ.
ETSPJs Golden Press Card
to honor journalistic excellence
SEE FROM THE PRESIDENT, PAGE 2
From the president
BY MIA RHODARMER
ETSPJ
RHODARMER
(Top) Richard Grifths, CNN, ques-
tions paneI members, from Ieft, BiII
Shory, WBIR-TV; GIenn ReynoIds,
instapundit.com; Jack McEIroy, News
SentineI, KnoxviIIe; and MichaeI Grider,
VoIunteertv.com. (MiddIe) LaFoIIette
Press staffers Iisten, from Ieft, Natasha
Lafayette, Susan Sharp, CharIotte Un-
derwood and Jennifer CaIdweII. Behind
at Ieft is Mark Harmon, of the UTJEM,
who aIso is a Knox County commis-
sioner. (Bottom) Grifths, Ieft, and
McElroy talk before the program.
Town Hall Meeting April 30 at Baker Center
MARK YOUR CALENDAR
6 - Spot News
I am writing this as we have
just celebrated Ethics Week
in journalism. In some recent
polls, people rank journalists
right up there with lawyers
when it comes to trust, or
rather a lack of it. So Ethics
Week is a time for journalists
to talk to the public about
how we do our jobs and the ethical dilemmas
we sometimes encounter as we gather and
disseminate information.
In observance of Ethics Week, national SPJ
hosted town hall meetings across the country
to give people an opportunity to talk to
journalists about ethics and credibility and to
make our jobs more transparent to our readers
and viewers.
The East Tennessee chapter was honored
to be one of the 10 chapters to host one of
these town hall meetings on April 30. Richard
Griffths, editorial director for CNN, was the
moderator for the evening and had prepared
several scenarios for our panelists to consider.
The discussion also prompted good questions
from the audience. Thank you to our panelists,
Jack McElroy, Bill Shory, Michael Grider and
Glenn Reynolds, for giving of their time.
While Ethics Week has come and gone for
another year, it is important that we keep the
SPJ Code of Ethics in mind as we do our jobs
throughout the year. I have included the main
points of the ethics code below. The full code
is available on our Web site, www.etspj.org.
Members of the Society of Professional
Journalists believe that public enlightenment
is the forerunner of justice and the foundation
of democracy. The duty of the journalist is
to further those ends by seeking truth and
providing a fair and comprehensive account
of events and issues.
BY JEAN ASH
Winning entrants of 185 stories, photographs,
audio or video entries and Web sites submitted
this year will accept plaques and certifcates
plus congratulations from their peers at the
Golden Press Cards Award Banquet Friday,
May 15, at The Foundry in Knoxville.
Two others will be singled out for special
honors, the Horace V. Wells Jr. Community
Service Award and the Golden Press Card
Award. That best of show honor is selected
from all the Awards of Excellence in all
categories and the winner will also take home
a check fo,r $100.
The entries for work done in 2008 represent
work for 16 different publications, broadcast
stations or Web sites as well as three
individuals. Journalists from the entire East
Tennessee area are represented from Bristol
to Chattanooga to Crossville and points in
between.
The festivities will begin with a reception at
5:30 p.m. and dinner at 6:15, followed by a
presentation by Bob Benz, a newspaperman-
turned-online guru and now chief operating
offcer of Radiant Markets LLC. His topic will
be Shut Down Your Web Sites!
We also will honor the ETSPJ winner
of SPJ`s High School Essay Contest, B.J.
Guerrero, who wrote on the topic, Why free
news media are important. His entry will be
sent on to the national contest, where he could
win the grand prize of a $1,000 scholarship.
Guerrero is a senior at Upperman High
School. Larry W. Van Guilder served as essay
contest chairman for the second year.
Tickets to the awards dinner are $25 at the
door. More details are available at http://etspj.
org/golden-press-card-awards-2/.
The Greater Cincinnati SPJ chapter judged
the Golden Press Card entries. That chapter
will send entries for our chapter to judge later
in the season. If you are able to help judge
that work, please contact GPC Chairman
Elenora E. Edwards at eleedwards@aol.com
to volunteer your assistance. Edwards has
been assisted in the GPC work by Dorothy
Bowles.
ABOUT RESERVATIONS
Make reservations for the dinner
at www.etspj/golden-press-card-
awards-2/. Tickets are $25.
Next big event: Front Page Follies
Front Page Follies, ETSPJ`s summer event,
is beginning to take shape. Honorees have
been notified. The Follies skits spoofing
whats going on around us from the creative
pen of David Lauver, are being polished.
Rehearsal dates have been set.
The auction committee has begun its work
(see story on page 2).
2009 honorees are brothers John M. Jones
Jr., Gregg K. Jones and Alex S. Jones, natives
of Greeneville.
The ETSPJ board will keep the members
informed on the progress of the Follies, and
it seeks their help, since production of the
Follies is complex-and hard work. A
casting call is going out, so anyone who
would like to be considered for participation
in the Follies show should contact Adina
Chumley, archumley@yahoo.com.
There are many ways people can help.
Ask how.
And put the Follies on your calendar-
itll be Saturday, July 18, at the Marriott in
Knoxville. Join us to honor three outstand-
ing journalists, enjoy a smashing show and
enjoy fellowship with other journalists.
PHOTOS BY ELENORA E. EDWARDS