The Daily Plan-it / Dean of Students Blog, Columbia J-school

sree-NA-th sree-knee-VAH-sun was reading the article below and wanted to
remind all graduating students that he needs help with their names. he’s
walking around with a list of pronunciations, and would like you to say your
name for him at least once between now and wednesday. please catch him in
the hallway or stop by his office. meanwhile, he’s glad he’s not at
macalaster college.

Associated Press
May 8, 2008

Commencement readers cram to prep for tongue-twister names
By JUSTIN POPE
AP Education Writer

PHOTO: Jayne Niemi, second from right, registrar at Macalaster College in
St. Paul, Minn., talks with students, from left, Baitnairamdal Otgonshar,
from Mongolia, Nokuthula Sikhethiwe Kitikiti, from Zimbabwe, and Udochukwu
Chinyere Obodo, from Nigeria, at the campus, Tuesday, May 6, 2008. Niemi is
responsible for pronouncing 450 names correctly at commencement ceremonies
on May 17, 2008. (AP Photo/Janet Hostetter)

A week from Saturday, 453 new graduates will cross the commencement stage on
the lawn of Macalester College in St. Paul, Minn. Among them: Nokuthula
Sikhethiwe Kitikiti, Udochukwu Chinyere Obodo, and Baitnairamdal Otgonshar.

Jayne Niemi will be ready.

No-oo-TOOL-a SEE-kay-tee-way Ki-tee-ki-tee. Oo-DO-chu-koo CHIN-yea-ray
Oh-boe-doe. Bat-NAI-ram-dal OT-gone-shar.

Niemi’s job is to read out the graduates’ names without mangling them.

“People invest a lot of time and money and commitment to be here at
Macalester and get this education, and they get one day of celebration in
the end,” says Niemi, a college registrar who will spend several days
studying pronunciation cards submitted by students. “Their families are here
from all over the world. I don’t want to embarrass them or the college.”

Niemi is part of a cadre of deans, professors and even outsourced
professional public speakers that is gearing up to perform one of academia’s
quirkier, and tougher, jobs _ getting every name right, so nobody leaves
campus feeling angry or ungenerous toward his or her alma mater.

Read the rest of the piece.

Speaking of graduation, here’s video from 1979:

From Student Affairs

MARCH 24, 2008: Student Affairs coordinator Yahaira Alonzo (left), receiving Channtal Fleischfresser’s Master’s Project. It’s a new media project (WomenInTransit.com), but her team still needed to submit printouts. PHOTO: Yian Huang

Two Columbia J-schoolers made appearances on tonight’s “Daily Show with Jon Stewart.”

Alex Kingsbury, J2004, U.S. News & World Report associate editor, was the guest on the show, talking about his recent reporting trip to Iraq:

You can read some of his Iraq pieces here: “Putting a Human Face on the American Military Presence in Baghdad” and “Tragically Little Help for Sick and Wounded Civilians in Baghdad”.

Courtney Kealy, J’97, is the Baghdad correspondent for Fox News shown in this segment, “International Man of Misery”:

HELLO, 2009: The international students of the Class of 2008 welcome the new class and offer tips that everyone can use in this video. Take a look and post your comments. Older videos below.

- - -

HELLO, 2008: The international students of the Class of 2007 welcome the new class and offer tips that everyone can use in this video. Take a look and post your comments.

- - -

HELLO, 2007: The international students of the Class of 2006 welcome the new class and offer tips that everyone can use in this video. Take a look and post your comments.

Dear Incoming Students:

In order to have you all get to know each other, here are some fun tools you might want to use. Many thanks to our volunteers who have set these up.

FACEBOOK.COM SITE (different from the “facebook” directory published by the school):
http://columbia.facebook.com/group.php?gid=2422437369

CLASS YAHOOGROUP (mailing list):
Jschool2008: Informal class Yahoogroup.
To sign up, send e-mail to jschool2008-subscribe@yahoogroups.com
Or go to http://groups.yahoo.com/group/jschool2008/ and click on “Join This
Group”

CLASS VIRTUAL MAP:
Sign in to the guest book below, posting your photo and location. If you wish to add a little YouTube video saying hello, please do that, too! In the comments section, tell us your degree program and concentration.

(As you can see, I posted two photos for me. One for my DOS job and one for where I am right now, in Kerala, India - that’s a sign on a beach here… it’s for the “White House Ayurvedic Beach Resort”)

More than 150 students, faculty and staff participated in student Jennifer Redfearn’s “Hat Project” during the two weeks before graduation. Scroll below to see the photos and to see Jennifer’s original e-mail request (the project has since closed).

Date: Mon, 30 Apr 2007 08:43:02 -0400
From: Jennifer Redfearn

Fellow J Schoolers,

As the year comes to an end, I’ve made it a personal mission to photograph
students, faculty, and staff for something called the *Hat Project * (see
FAQs below). It’s been a challenging and inspiring year, and as a
community we’ve experienced some difficult times and an inconceivable
tragedy. This is a way of ending the year on a light note. It’s also a bit
selfish. I’m in awe of the talent and experiences of people that I’ve met
at school. The Hat Project is an opportunity to meet more of you and fully
enjoy the last couple of weeks we have together.

The photos will be uploaded daily on FLICKR. I’ll also make a folder on the
shared drive so that everyone who wants copies can download the photos to a CD.

Check out the HAT PROJECT!
http://www.flickr.com/photos/hatproject/

*FAQS
What was your inspiration for the Hat Project?
*A group of us were having drinks at 1020 (at 10:20) last week, and someone
passed around the hat. Different people tried it on, and we noticed that it had
transformative powers. One moment someone looked like an ordinary jschooler -
then poof! - they shape-shifted into a street dogging journalist from the 1940s
or a writer for the New Yorker.

*How do you know it wasn’t the effect of alcohol?
*That’s a really good question. The following day I started taking more
pictures and noticed that the hat had the same impact. It has the power to draw
people out and allows you to express an extended version of yourself.

*I want to be in the hat project. How do I sign up?
*I prefer to catch people on the fly, engaged in a moment. But if I haven’t
found you by the time classes end, please email me: jtr2113[at]columbia.edu

*Wait! Isn’t that Bill Wheeler’s hat?
*Ah, ha. You’re very observant.

*Are you hiring at the Hat Project?
*Yes, Julie Hartenstein is accepting applications for a 2 week unpaid
internship. You can make me coffee and occasionally write photo captions, I’m
kidding. Yes, if you’re photo savvy, I could use help resizing the images and
uploading them to Flickr.
*
What do you hope will become of the Hat Project?
*It is my dream that someone will be so inspired by the Hat Project that they
will throw a “Wigs and Hats” party where everyone dresses up in outrageous wigs
or hats and dances until the wee hours of the morning. (If I didn’t live in a
studio, I would throw the party).

-Jennifer Redfearn

Ten Month Beatdown, the JSchool intramural football team, has made it to the final round of the playoffs through pure grit and determination.

Come support YOUR team this Sunday at 5 p.m. in Wien Stadium up in Inwood. (215th stop on the 1 line, then up two blocks on the left.) Any questions? E-mail captain Ernest Scheyder (ejs2132) or co-captain Elizabeth McGarr (enm2107).

Take a break from studying and come root for the team players as they go for the championship! See you there!

We have a new way for us to have a giant pool of school photos of all kinds. If you have any photos you’d like to share (fun, serious and anything in between), please follow these instructions.

Create a FREE account at http://www.flickr.com.
Upload some photos, making sure you fill the “tag” field with the following:
“columbiaj2007″ (no quotes) - this is the key to the success of this project… That way, all our pix can be found very quickly.

For the captions, please TRY to use the following format:
KEYWORD IN ALL CAPS WITH A COLON: Followed by some text
eg: RWI: Student on a bus tour in the Bronx
other keywords - INTL, ORIENTATION, PICNIC, etc, etc, etc.

Here’s what we have so far:
http://flickr.com/search/?q=columbiaj2007
or
http://flickr.com/photos/tags/Columbiaj2007/ (click on any photo to see the
captions, even during the slideshow).

Please take a look and try it out…

NOTE: We have 100 photos as of Nov. 7
34 photos as of Oct. 10, 2006

The J-school is co-presenting a major new exhibit at the New-York Historical Society: ““Suspicious Truths: Politics and the Press in American History.” It features exhibits from 19th Century newspapers and a short video produced by Columbia alumni Amy Rubin and Stefan Knerrich. The exhibition continues through Dec. 17 at the New-York Historical Society, 2 West 77th Street, Manhattan; (212) 873-3400; nyhistory.org.

Here’s an excerpt from the NYT review at http://www.nytimes.com/2006/09/20/arts/design/20yell.html

“Presenting the news objectively,” reads the introductory text, “was often only an occasional and tangential goal.” The show (and brief video commentary from Nicholas Lemann, the dean of Columbia’s journalism school) argues that complaints about newspapers have often been the same as they are now, and — just as often — both justified and unjustified.

Dear Colleagues:

* The Palestinian journos told us yesterday they are NOT coming today to the J-school; they have cut their tour short. So no post-picnic event. We will, of course, have plenty of other speakers, foreign and domestic, speak to us in the months ahead. But I’d like to alert you to the arrival, on Tuesday, Oct. 10 from 12:30-1:30 pm, of journalists from the two
biggest Swedish newspapers. Watch for info.

* The picnic, from 1-5 pm, is still on (follows Prof. Span’s 11:30 am-1 pm feature writing lecture). You will be able to purchase a boxed lunch and soda for $5 (normal price is $13; 150 lunches for sale) if you wish. You are welcome to bring your own food, blankets, Frisbees, etc. If it doesn’t rain, the really nice lawn that is fenced off in front of the school will be ours
for the afternoon. If it rains, we will be on the floor in the World Room on the third floor (no Frisbees there!)…

* Details coming shortly of a post-picnic Happy Hour at The Underground Lounge, 955 West End Ave (SW Corner of B’way and 107th).

The Daily Plan-It is proud to announce round two of our occasional create-your-own caption contest. Below is a photo taken in August 2005. To enter the contest, write a creative caption in the comment field below (instructions below). The contest runs until the next photo goes up. There will be a prize for the best caption, as judged by the DOS Office. Multiple entries from individual students, faculty, adjuncts, staff and alumni ARE allowed, but we reserve the right to reject entries that are truly tasteless (and we have seen some that fit the bill). Meanwhile, see the winners of Caption Contest #1, starring Dean Klatell.

Photo by Rebecca Castillo, MS 2006.

The entries so far:

• Marisa Taylor: Whenever Khody Akhavi and Abe Lebovic were meeting new women during the August session, they made sure to mention their newly formed hip-hop group, LL Cool J, which stood for “ladies love cool journalists.”
• Lawrence Lanahan: “One, two, three, four, I declare a thumb war.”
• Abe Lebovic:
  1. “I write for the New Yorker, and my friend writes for the Atlantic Monthly.”
  2. “We are new to this school. Can you tell us how to get to your dorm room?”
  3. “Oh, come on. You never heard of the the “Flying Duo” of Cirque De Soleil?”
  4. “We both think your eyes are beautiful.”
• Antonio Neves: “He’s not letting go of your hand until you apply to the M.A. program.”
• Eric Jaffe: “No way. We’re ‘print’ too.”
• David Ressell: “Congratulations, you are winner of the last Caption contest, your prize…. a brand new J-school student! Now get me some damn pie!”
• Badru Mulumba: “You plus him make a perfect…ugh, ugh…a perfect…ugh… reporting pair!”
• Ed Krayewski:
  “I’m a student here, and so is he. We just started, but in ten short months we’ll be done. Then we’ll be reporters. And the best part is a degree from Columbia will get you ANY job you want. Reporters make dough, too, and girls love dough. We’re gonna be raking in the ladies better than the entire student body at the Law School and the Business School combined. Oh yeah, and I heard RW1 is a pushover. Want a drink?”

Two ways to enter:
a. If you haven’t registered on this site earlier, follow these instructions to post a comment - in this case, your caption entry. If you have already registered, just go ahead and log in.
1. To register for this blog (you only have to do this once for all future comments), go to http://deanstudents.blogsome.com/wp-register.php (once you are registered - includes a password being sent to you via e-mail), go to step 2.
2. Click on the “Comments” at the bottom of this post and fill in your FULL NAME - first and last - and e-mail address (just fill it in once, typing in just “N/A” in the URL section if you don’t have a site.
Your caption WILL NOT show up there immediately, but will be there when we approve the comment within a few hours.

OR

b. E-mail your caption to dos@jrn.columbia.edu (subject = caption contest #2) - and we will add it here.

UPDATE: The winners of our exciting prizes, in a tie:

Photo by Rebecca Castillo, MS 2006.
The Daily Plan-It is proud to announce our occasional create-your-own caption contest.
To enter the contest, write a creative caption in the comment field below (instructions below). The contest runs until the next photo goes up. There will be a prize for the best caption, as judged by the DOS Office. Multiple entries from individual students, faculty, adjuncts, staff and alumni ARE allowed.

THE ENTRIES SO FAR:

1. Nina Gregory: “Every time the cow moos, a Knight Ridder paper gets sold to Big Tobacco. Don’t make me moo the cow.”
   [EDITOR’S NOTE FOR THOSE NOT PRESENT THAT NIGHT: In the gentleman’s hand is a novelty item that produces a “mooooo” sound.]
2. Dikla Kadosh: “These objects are symbols of my former lives as a championship cheerleader from Texas and sacred cow from Delhi. As a result of my good karma, I am now your dean.”
3. Domenico Montanaro: “The future of TV Journalism is here in my hand and behind me: Cow sounds… and cheerleading. It’s a revolution.”
4. Austin Fido: “Behold: the soul of a student who DIDN’T apply for the MA program.”
5. David Ressel: “After 14 years of sobriety, I make this champagne toast!”
6. Francesco Radicati: “For a good time, make it Suntory time.”
7. Ed Krayewski: “Who am I and what am I doing here?”

Two ways to enter:
a. If you haven’t registered on this site earlier, follow these instructions to post a comment - in this case, your caption entry. If you have already registered, just go ahead and log in.
1. To register for this blog (you only have to do this once for all future comments), go to http://deanstudents.blogsome.com/wp-register.php (once you are registered - includes a password being sent to you via e-mail), go to step 2.
2. Click on the “Comments” at the bottom of this post and fill in your FULL NAME - first and last - and e-mail address (just fill it in once, typing in just “N/A” in the URL section if you don’t have a site.
Your caption WILL NOT show up there immediately, but will be there when we approve the comment within a few hours.

OR

b. E-mail your caption to dos@jrn.columbia.edu (subject = caption contest #1) - and we will add it here.

Q: What are the rules about serving alcohol at student sponsored events?

A: An extensive explanation can be found in FACETS at http://www.columbia.edu/cu/facets/appendix.pdf

Here are the basics:

For questions regarding specific events, please send an email to dos@jrn.columbia.edu.

Two items below from the duPont Center on the seventh floor.

1. Volunteer request.
2. Winners Circle invitation.

To: All Journalism School Students
From: Jonnet Abeles & Mary Kay Duffy, duPont Center
Date: December 23, 2005

Re: duPont Events, January 18 and 19, 2006

The Alfred I. duPont-Columbia University Awards will be presented on Wednesday
evening, January 18, 2006, in Low Library in a ceremony hosted by Bob
Schieffer. Michel Martin of ABC News, Dean Nick Lemann and Columbia President
Lee Bollinger will join Schieffer in presenting the awards to 13 outstanding
television and radio programs. At the ceremony, we will be shooting final
scenes for our PBS documentary, Telling the Truth: The Best in Broadcast
Journalism, produced by FRONTLINE Producer Martin Smith.

The duPont Awards are the broadcast equivalent of the Pulitzer Prizes, and this
event is a gathering of the clan of the television and radio news industry. We
will need 25 students to volunteer to help us at the duPont events, and the
first 10 volunteers will be able to attend part of the reception. All
volunteers will be able to attend the ceremony. Please email
dupontawards@jrn.columbia.edu to volunteer.

In addition to the awards ceremony on January 18, we will hold our annual
Winners. Circle discussion for students on Thursday morning, January 19, from
10:00am to 1:00pm in the Lecture Hall of the Journalism School. We will show
excerpts and discuss three of the winning programs with the reporters,
producers, and editors who made them. The lineup for these three discussions is
attached.

Broadcast students are required to attend the Winners. Circle, which will be
moderated by members of the faculty and the duPont Jury. All other students
and faculty members are welcome to join us if their workshops are not scheduled
at that time. The Winners. Circle is a wonderful opportunity to learn about
what makes great broadcast journalism at a local tv station, on public radio
and in a large-scale documentary for PBS.

Read about the 13 duPont Award winners at www.dupont.org.

Telling the Truth: The Best in Broadcast Journalism will air on PBS stations
nationwide beginning January 24. It will air in the New York area on
Thirteen/WNET on Thursday, January 26, at 10:00pm ET. Check local listings
elsewhere.

o o o o o

You are invited to attend

THE DUPONT WINNERS. CIRCLE

A Discussion of Three Award-Winning Programs
With the reporters, producers and editors who created them.

Thursday, January 19, 2006
10 A.M. . 1 P.M.

Lecture Hall, Room 301
Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism
116th Street and Broadway

WFTS-TV, Tampa
Crosstown Expressway Investigation
10 A.M. . 11 A.M.

Mike Mason, Reporter
Adam Wische, Executive Producer
Bill Carey, VP & General Manager

North Carolina Public Radio-WUNC, Chapel Hill
North Carolina Voices: Understanding Poverty
11 A.M. . 12 P.M.
Emily Hanford, Senior Editor & Producer
Leoneda Inge, Producer
Joan Siefert Rose, General Manager

FRONTLINE: The Secret History of the Credit Card
(a co-production with The New York Times)
12 P.M. . 1 P.M.
Lowell Bergman, Correspondent
David Rummel, Producer
Lawrie Mifflin, J.74, Executive Producer for
The New York Times

Here’s the information from Professor Weiner on his wonderful book
club, which will meet the first Monday of every month, beginning
February 6. The group will meet in room 601C from 11:00-1:00. All you
have to do to participate is read the book(s) and show up.

“We’ll meet at the J School one morning a month. Columbia will
provide box dinners and (for students) free books, too. The main idea
is to give people at the J School an excuse to read. Our first four
months’ of readings will be Saturday, by Ian McKewan; Radical
Evolution, by Joel Garreau, and Elementary Particles, by Michel
Houellebecq; Mountains Beyond Mountains, by Tracy Kidder; and
possibly The Lost Painting, by Jonathan Harr. All students are
welcome, in or out of the J School; so are teachers and friends.”

Subject: Lucille’s Ball Photos available for purchase

The event is now in the history books and the photos are now available
for purchase.

The address is: www.islandphoto.com

Go to “View Your Photos” and click on “Special Events”

The password is “lucille”

The photos will be available until Dec. 22nd.

Any questions, please contact Megan Chan, meganhchan@aol.com.

From: SPJ President, Rebecca Castillo.

You are invited to the Annual Graduate School of Journalism Holiday Party
(named for Lucille, Joseph Pulitzer’s daughter).

Graduate School of Journalism and the Columbia chapter of the Society
Professional Journalists invite you to join the faculty, staff and students
of the School in a celebration of the Holidays on Thursday, December 15, at
Faculty House, 400 W. 117th St., (right next to the President’s house,
behind the law school.)

6 pm - 6:30 pm: Mingling

6:30 - 7:45pm: The Annual J-School Follies & Variety Show (including
faculty-skewering skits)

8:00pm - midnight: Party begins.

- Spouses and significant others are welcome

- No RSVP required, just show up.

- Attire: Reporter semi-formal meaning: ties and jackets - and pants! - for
men; cocktail dresses or something similar for women).

All general questions about the event please email ColumbiaSPJ@gmail.com

“Lucille’s Ball,” the Student Holiday Party named for Joseph Pulitzer’s daughter, is Thursday night, Dec. 15. Details to come.

Q: How can I find out about volunteer opportunities for Thanksgiving weekend?

A: Columbia’s Community Impact runs a food pantry and soup kitchen. You can find out more from Caty Saintil at x46310. You can also call 864-6100.

Here are some others:
http://www.volunteernyc.org/org/opp/10206148.html
http://www.bowery.org/features/thanks_volunteer.htm

A note from Brandon Keim, M.A. 2006 and M.S. 2005, brandon[at]earthlab.net

Hello out there,

Last week there was some emailing among 2005 alumni about Bob Woodward’s recent misconduct.? Afterwards it seemed we needed a place to talk shop without adding to
everyone’s unsolicited email flood, so I set up a list for us. Everyone, of course, is invited. To join, go to http://groups.google.com/group/CSofJ

and sign up. Then feel free to post whatever interests you — questions, observations, good journalism, dilemmas — and hopefully some wisdom will come out of this.

Dean Sree asked me how this is different from TheTenMonthBeat… TheTenMonthBeat is more an event & logistics source — it’s not a place where someone would go and say, “Did you hear about what Bob Woodward did?? What do you think?” or “I was reading this article and trying to figure out how they sourced this part — little help?” or
“I’ve got this source who wants to be identified as such and such — what should I do?” and then have some community discussion about it. Hopefully the seed will sprout into a network whose dialogue helps us be better journalists.

From Lane Johnson, J2004, photo[at]laglj.com.

Hi, howdy and what’s up. My name is Lane Johnson. I’m a recent alumnus –
’04 – of the school and more recently a photo adjunct. I’m writing because I would like to photograph you reporting. No, it’s not an incestuous news story
but rather a promotional endeavor for the school; the administration would
like to present a more visual image (read hip) of the school to prospective
students. My present charge is to photograph you – working, reporting,
interviewing. The images need to be self-contained and, well, cool. I’m
looking for lots of color and commotion—cops, fires, any wacky spot news,
festivals, big demonstrations, prominent faces, the whole gamut really. If
you’re reporting a story that lends itself to this project (or just want the
attention) please call me: 917.327.2722. You can email as well,
photo@laglj.com, but I think phone calls will move the project along quicker.

I’m setting aside Thursdays-Sundays until semester’s end to work on this and
am even hoping to begin tomorrow, Friday. The weeks will slip by I’m sure,
especially with the holiday next week, so please call me asap with ideas. I’m
open to all queries. I’m hoping to capture both broadcast and non, and while
the administration suggested I focus on RW1 I’m looking forward to hearing
about any and all stories where you’re out and about rocking in the field. But
call too if you’re interviewing a famous face (or at least has a prominent look
– politicians, doctors). Just call. Thanks.

The images will be used in the sundry promotional publications the school
puts out.

Sincerely,
Lane Johnson, photographer
http://www.laglj.com
917.327.2722

The New York Times invites J-school students and faculty to…

What’s the Future of the Supreme Court?,
presented as a part of TimesTalks, the New York Times Speaker Series

Tuesday, November 15
6:30 - 8 p.m.
The Kaye Playhouse, Hunter College
68th Street and Lexington Avenue

Participants:
Martin Garbus, trial lawyer and partner, Davis & Gilbert
Suzanne Goldberg, associate professor and director, Women’s Rights
Litigation Clinic, Rutgers Law School
Anthony Lewis, former New York Times columnist and Pulitzer Prize-winning
journalist
Thomas Merrill, Charles Keller Beekman Professor of Law, Columbia Law
School

Moderator: Linda Greenhouse, Supreme Court correspondent, The New York Times

We hope you will be able to join us at Hunter College for this important
and timely discussion.

Advance RSVPs are strictly required for this complimentary invitation.

Kindly respond no later than Monday, November 14 to Jennifer Pauly via
e-mail to paulyj [at] nytimes.com. Please identify yourself as a Columbia Journalism School student or faculty member and provide your name so that we can add you to our guest list.

Please consider joining Professor Jonathan Weiner, the Pulitzer Prize
winning science journalist, for a lively series of brown-bag lunches to
discuss non-fiction literature. These discussions are open to all students,
whether or not you have a strong interest in reporting on science or the
environment. M.S. students are especially welcome - here’s a chance to read,
think, talk - and not have to write anything about it!

The reading group will meet November 10 in room 709 and December 1 in room
204, both meetings scheduled 12:30-2:00. We anticipate continuing the
reading group next term.

-30-

UPDATE (10/21/05 at 7 p.m.): These five tickets are gone, but we are keeping a waiting list.

First five students to write to sree@sree.net with “Corprate crimes panel” in the subject line can have these tix. First come, first served. Only those who make the cut will be contacted.

Columbia Business School Alumni Club of New York
in cooperation with SAJA
presents
A Panel Discussion on:
“Challenges faced by Media in covering White-Collar Crime and Impact
of Corporate Scandals on American Economy”
Panelists
Bethany McLean, FORTUNE
Charles Gasparino, NEWSWEEK
Liz Claman, CNBC
Chris Byron, NEW YORK POST
Nelson Boxer, ALSTON & BIRD
Moderator: Sanjay Sanghoee - author of MERGER, a Financial
Thriller - http://www.merger-novel.com

Wed, October 26, 2005
6:30 - 9:30 PM
VENUE: The Warwick Hotel New York, 65 West 54th Street (on Ave. of
the Americas)
COST: SAJA Members: $15 (special rate - must register with Sanjay directly)
Columbia Alumni Club Members: $25
Non-Members: $35

NOTE: 20 FREE PASSES AVAILABLE FOR WORKING PRESS ONLY

FOR MORE INFORMATION/TO REGISTER, PLEASE CONTACT SANJAY AT
SANJAY9000@YAHOO.COM

Limited passes available for this. Let Dean Sreenivasan know if you’d like to attend ASAP. E-mail sree@sree.net, subject line = “Reuters event.” Only those who make the cut will be informed.

Reuters and VNU invite you to join a panel of experts to discuss the state of relations between celebrities and the media, and explore the impact this is having on the nation’s news agenda.

Thursday October 20th 2005
6.00pm - 8.30pm
(panel discussion to commence at 6.15pm)
The Reuters Building,
3 Times Square, 30th Floor, New York NY 10036

STRICTLY INVITATION ONLY

The event is the third in this year’s series of Reuters Newsmakers events held in its US headquarters in 3 Times Square.
The Issues

* Has the relationship soured and who is to blame?
* When is a celebrity’s private life a matter of public interest?
* Who is really feeding off whom?
* Do celebrities deserve to have their privacy protected or does their courting of the media for publicity make them fair game?
* Is the coverage of personalities driven by news values or dollars?

The Panel
Paul Holmes Moderator, Global Editor, General and Political News, Reuters
Janice Min Editor, US Weekly
Jessica Coen Editor, Gawker
Anne Thompson Deputy Film Editor, The Hollywood Reporter
Michael Wolff Columnist, Vanity Fair
Ken Sunshine Ken Sunshine Consultants, Celebrity Publicist
More panelists to be confirmed.

Reuters Newsmaker Events offer us an opportunity to share our position at the heart of the news industry with you. We would be delighted if you could join us for this event.

Places are limited.

10/13/2005 UPDATE: I got a fresh batch of tickets this morning. E-mail me as per below if you’d like to claim one.

10/6/2005 UPDATE: The tickets below have already been claimed. We are going to give one ticket away, by lottery, at the BBLWD.

Original post:

We have a handful of tickets to the following event. If you are interested in one of these tickets, please e-mail your name, e-mail address and (cell)phone in a message to sree@sree.net with the following subject line = “Cronkite event” (no quotes). Messages are sorted automagically, so be sure to follow the instructions. First come, first served. Only those who make the cut will hear back from me.

Please sign up only if you can attend the morning session AND the lunch. And please sign up only if you are sure you can attend. Here’s the official description…

We are pleased to inform you that Walter Cronkite, this country’s most respected journalist, will be the recipient of the Lifetime Achievement Award given by the Freedom Broadcasting Foundation. We would like to extend an offer of complimentary tickets for you and 5 of your students to attend this significant event.
This award will be presented at a luncheon in mid-town at noon on Thurs., October 20th. Preceding the luncheon will be a panel discussion with distinguished leaders of the U.S. international broadcasting community, focusing on the critical importance of a free press in the post-communist world. The panel discussion will begin at 10:30 AM, followed by the lunch and presentation ceremonies at noon. The session will end promptly at 2:00 PM.

Please watch for an announcement tomorrow in your e-mail inbox from Irena Stern in the alumni office for free tickets being set aside for students for the J-school’s special screening of “Good Night and Good Luck” at Miller Theater and the discussion starring George Clooney and Dean Lemann.

As you know, we have several breakfast and evening sessions for students to interact with Deans Lemann, Klatell and the other deans. We have had requests for lunch-time events, so Deans Sreenivasan and Huff are hosting the first of a series of brown-bag lunches.

Brown-bag Lunch with the Deans
Wed, Oct. 5, 2005
12:30-1:30
Room 601B - no RSVP required.
Brown-bag lunch means you are welcome to bring your own lunch; chips, cookies and soda will be served.
All are welcome. Apologies for the short notice, but there will be other versions of these, the breakfasts and the evening events.

No specific agenda: Just come and chat; we will take questions and look at what’s ahead.

Don’t forget next week’s Nick@Night!