July 17th, 2012
First Amendment conference helps students prepare for media careers
By SPJ
Aspiring young journalists will meet with judges, media and government officials to learn about their futures as fourth-estate watchdogs.
Fifty-one journalists, one from each state and the District of Columbia, were selected to attend the Al Neuharth Free Spirit and Journalism Conference, July 14 to 19, at the Newseum, the The Wall Street Journal reported.
In addition to a $1,000 scholarship, they will tour the nation’s capitol and learn at the feet of professionals. The conference is aimed giving the keen young minds the resources and impetus to pursue media careers.
Events include:
- Learning about the First Amendment, the three branches of the government and how journalists cover them
- Visiting the White House
- Visiting USA Today
Presenters include:
- U.S. Legislators
- Media professionals from print and broadcast outlets
- White House Deputy Press Secretary Jamie Smith
The Freedom Forum is the head of this scholarship opportunity. They recruited the help of the Journalism Education Association, media outlets and high school journalism teachers to spread the word to students.
Whitney is the summer Pulliam/Killgore intern with the Society of Professional Journalists. She recently graduated from Brigham Young University after studying journalism. Connect with her via email – wevans@hq.spj.org – or on twitter – @whitevs7
*Know something about Freedom of Information that you think we should cover in a blog post? We want to hear from you! Send information to wevans@HQ.SPJ.org. It may be featured in a future post.
Tags: Al Neuharth, Freedom Forum, Journalism Education Association