National convention diary

Local journalists weigh in on national SPJ issues.

SDSPJ board member Jodi Cleesattle speaks on a panel at the national convention.

By Catherine Hockmuth, San Diego Pro Chapter

Freelance journalist 

The San Diego Pro chapter was well represented at this year’s annual Society of Professional Journalists convention in Chicago in late August.  Beyond picking up plaques for the national “Large Chapter of the Year” and a Circle of Excellence award for chapter communications, SD-SPJ members participated in panel discussions and served as delegates.

Andy Crossland, a reporter and anchor with KZSW-TV in Temecula, talked to student journalists about breaking into television news. Jodi Cleesattle, a media lawyer and partner in the firm Ross Dixon Bell, discussed student press freedom.

Delegates to the national convention rejected a proposed bylaw amendment that would allow every member to vote for national officers online.

The amendment was introduced earlier this year by then-president David Carlson to encourage greater participation among members in national issues, particularly members who live in rural areas who can’t frequently meet up with the nearest SPJ chapter. Carlson has since been succeeded by Denver Post reporter Christine Tatum, who was inaugurated as SPJ president at the convention.

Delegates voted to keep the existing system, in which chapters send delegates to the national convention to vote on behalf of the entire chapter. Chapters are given a set number of votes in proportion to their membership. The San Diego Pro Chapter has three votes in national elections.

The San Diego Pro Chapter sent two delegates to the convention, San Diego News Service Editor Leo Laurence and freelance journalist Catherine Hockmuth. The San Diego delegation placed all three of its votes in favor of the bylaw amendment after carefully weighing the pros and cons, and participating in a contentious floor debate with convention delegates. The measure failed by a vote of 70-65.

Opponents of the bylaw amendment said representative democracy works for SPJ because delegates have the opportunity to question candidates in person and debate the issues with members in a way that would not be possible through online voting. The convention of delegates also considered -- but ultimately rejected -- amendments to the bylaw amendment that would require the national organization to employ interactive technologies such as Web-casting during national conventions.

The San Diego delegation voted in favor of the so-called “one-member, one-vote” method because the potential benefits seemed to outweigh the negatives. For example, the delegation was concerned that the average SPJ member is removed from national issues. The new rule could have made the national organization more inclusive and given members who do not live near active chapters, or can’t afford to attend national conventions a means to participate in the issues of the Society. 

Moreover, the amendment could have been a useful tool to build and maintain national memberships.

The election of national officers proved another source of controversy when Clint Brewer was elected president-elect of SPJ in an upset 74-60 victory over secretary-treasurer Bruce Cadwallader. Traditionally, the secretary-treasurer runs unopposed for president-elect. That tradition ended when Brewer, executive editor of The City Paper in Nashville, Tenn., decided to challenge Cadwallader, the courts reporter for The Columbus Dispatch.

Brewer said he intends to expand SPJ’s national influence and membership.

Convention delegates approved by voice vote 22 resolutions, including a resolution calling for a federal shield law. Delegates also approve resolutions in support of freelance journalist Joshua Wolf, who was jailed from Aug. 1 through Sept. 1 for refusing to give federal prosecutors video of an anti-G8 protest in San Francisco, and San Francisco Chronicle reporters Mark Fainaru-Wada and Lance Williams, who obtained secret grand jury testimony about performance-enhancing drugs used by Major League Baseball players.

SPJ’s Legal Defense Fund has been working actively on behalf of Wolf, including negotiating with his attorneys to cap legal fees at $60,000 and approving a donation of $30,000 to help cover Wolf’s legal fees. SPJ raised more than $6,000 during the convention to help Wolf cover his legal and personal expenses.

Other officers elected were Dave Aeikens for secretary-treasurer, Sally Lehrman for director-at-large, Sue Kopen Katcef for campus advisor-at-large, and John Patrick and Erin Smith for campus representatives.