By Betsy Russell The Idaho Press Club’s annual excellence in journalism contest is now open for entries. Be sure to submit your best work from 2018 — you deserve the recognition! We have updated and revised our rules, divisions and categories this year, to ensure we’re keeping up with our fast-changing industry. There are quite a few changes! Among them: We’ll have a new PHOTO division, separate from the various publication divisions, taking in all still photography categories. It also includes a few new ones: Photo package … [Read more...]

By Joan Cartan-Hansen Run. Hide. Fight.  That should be your mantra if you ever find yourself in an active shooter situation.  That’s the advice from Gary Oster, a retired Boise police officer and now a trainer specializing in business planning for active shooter incidents.  The Idaho State Broadcasters invited Oster to speak to journalists across the state. Oster says most incidents are over before the police can arrive, so it is up to each individual to be prepared. He suggests:

• Practice “situational awareness,” pay … [Read more...]

By Tom Michael On Friday October 26, Boise State University hosted a public conversation with Arthur Sulzberger, Jr., the former publisher of The New York Times. The event was held at the Taco Bell Arena, where he was interviewed on stage by former Boise State University president Bob Kustra. Sulzberger is part of the family that has run the "paper of record" for more than a century. He led the Times for 25 years until he retired in 2016, handing the reins to his son, A.G. Sulzberger. The public discussion in Boise was breezy and … [Read more...]

By Joan Cartan-Hansen Need money for that professional training? Have a great idea for a story and no funds to get it to print or on the air? The Idaho Press Club can help. The Don Watkins Mid-Career Scholarship awards $500 for any Idaho Press Club member to use for any training or project that will improve the working press in Idaho. This could include going to a conference you have wanted to attend or funding toward travel on that enterprise story you have been working on for months. The only catch: You must share what you … [Read more...]

New faces in your newsroom or communication department? Let everyone know. Send your Media Moves to: email@idahopressclub.org IDAHO EDUCATION NEWS Idaho Education News' multimedia specialist Andrew Reed has accepted a position with EdSource in Oakland, Calif. He will work with EdNews through the first part of January and begin his new position in … [Read more...]

By Katie Terhune It's easy to feel like we are all doing more with less these days – but don't despair! The Southwest Chapter of the Idaho Press Club is here to help. This year's Fall Conference will showcase some awesome local and national journalists to talk about some of their best recent reporting and share their tips for how to take your own work to the next level. Les Zaitz, of the Malheur Enterprise and newly-launched Salem Reporter, and Charlie Ornstein, senior editor at ProPublica, will headline the conference. They … [Read more...]

President’s column By Betsy Russell It’s really quite heartening that with a significant case pending involving press freedom in Idaho, the Verity case that’s before the Idaho Supreme Court, not only Idaho news media organizations but major news media organizations across the country all signed on to an amicus, or “friend of the court,” brief, arguing against recognizing libel by implication in Idaho. We have all long known that truth is a defense against libel, and we certainly hope our laws in Idaho continue to recognize … [Read more...]

Watchdog workshop By Holly Beech Editor’s Note: Holly Beech won an Idaho Press Club Don Watkins Mid-Career Scholarship to attend an IRE watchdog workshop in Portland in April. This is her article on what she learned there. You, too, can apply for an Idaho Press Club scholarship; the deadline is Feb. 15. See our website, www.idahopressclub.org, for details. Jason Leopold is involved in dozens of lawsuits against the government challenging public record … [Read more...]