SPJ DePaul partnered with three other university student organizations to host a panel discussion entitled “Who’s News? Achieving Diversity in Media Coverage and the Newsroom” on Feb. 17.

The forum, moderated by Karen Kring of the Association for Women Journalists Chicago, involved six panelists and drew a crowd of more than 40 people. The Korean Student Organization, Act Out and the Inter-Tribal Student Organization co-sponsored the event, which was live-Tweeted using the #SPJchat and fielded questions from a social media audience.

Coverage of the event: The Red Line Project. (Link to http://www.redlineproject.org/fullertondiversity.php)

Submitted  Mike Reilley, SPJ DePaul Chapter Adviser

Moderator Karen Kring of the Association for Women Journalists moderates the panel discussion. (Photo by Katie Karpowicz)

Registration is now OPEN for the SPJ Regions 4-5 Spring Conference, April 1-2, 2011, at the METS Center in Northern Kentucky.

Early bird registration is among the least expensive in the country for SPJ regional conferences, with a lineup of rock-star speakers designed to inspire and teach. You can find a link to registration here: http://spj2011.eventbrite.com. Registration is $50 for student SPJ members, and $70 for SPJ pro members. This early bird price is only good through March 4 – so grab your seat fast. You can also find a link to the conference hotel on that same page.

 You can find a lengthy description of the conference on the Event Brite site, which will be updated as we continue to line up speakers. We’re excited to announce our keynote speaker, Jonathan Katz, AP International Desk reporter, who will discuss his work in Haiti during the earthquake and subsequent humanitarian crisis.

Students will receive their Mark of Excellence Awards at the conference, which covers seven states: Indiana, Illinois, Kentucky, Ohio, Michigan, Western Pennsylvania and West Virginia. We’ll also provide an opportunity for student members to get their work critiqued during the afternoon of Saturday, April 2.