Calling All Student Journalists!

Written by Elizabeth Alpern

Thursday, 20 March 2008

Presented by New Voices Magazine and the Jewish Student Press Service, the conference features workshops and panels on campus media, war reporting, and Jewish ideas. It will be held at the Bronfman Center in Manhattan.

The conference opens with an evening event on May 28th and closes with a tour of the New York Times building on the afternoon May 30th.

Confirmed speakers include Jay Michaelson, columnist for the Forward and founding editor of Zeek, NYU journalism professor and former Newsday reporter Mohamad Bazzi, Larry Cohler-Esses of the Jewish Week, Susan Weidman Schneider, editor-in-chief of Lilith, and more.

Past presenters have included Ethan Bronner and Clyde Haberman of The New York Times and Nathan Glazer of Harvard University.

Registration fee is $60, which includes all meals and conference materials. Convenient lodging available at a discounted rate. Some scholarships available. For more information or to register, contact This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it or call 212 675 1168. Registration deadline is May 1st.

37th Annual Jewish Student Journalism Conference Schedule**
May 28-30

Wednesday, May 28

7:00 Blacks, Jews and the Post-Racial Candidate*

Barack Obama's candidacy has drawn criticism from certain segments of the Jewish community. In this panel, three leading journalists discuss this phenomenon and what it says about the state of the relationship between African Americans and Jews.
Panelists: Ari Berman (The Nation), Ta-Nehisi Coates (Village Voice and The Atlantic Monthly) and Sam Freedman (Professor of Journalism, Columbia University and New York Times columnist).

*Event will be held at the Center for Jewish History. Open to public. Dessert reception to follow.

Buy tickets now by clicking here .

$10, general admission. $5, students and CJH members. FREE, conference participants.

Thursday, May 29

9:00 Breakfast

9:30 Defining Jewish Culture

What is Jewish culture? Who defines it and how? We talk with editors at the forefront of these questions and explore their decision-making processes.

Panelists: Joanna Smith Rafkoff (Editor, Nextbook) and Gabriel Sanders (Associate Editor and former contributor to the Arts and Culture Section).

11:15 The New Jewish Media on their Audience

In the post-ideological, post-denominational era, how does the new Jewish media conceive

of its readers? What can we make of the trend towards niche Jewish publications? Is there a future

for the Jewish communal newspaper?
Panelists: Jay Michaelson (Founding editor, Zeek, columnist, The Forward),

Roger Bennett Publisher, Guilt and Pleasure), Izzy Grinspan (Managing Editor, Jewcy) and Sarah Chandler (Jewschool).

12:45-1:45 Networking Lunch

2:00-3:00 Skills Session

Getting Paid: How To Start Freelancing.
Daniela Gerson (Former Editor, New Voices, has written for the Sun, WNYC, and others.)
Investigative Journalism on a Shoestring Budget
Larry Cohler-Esses (Editor-at-large, The Jewish Week)

3:15-4:45 Conflict Reporting

War reporters on journalism in the combat zone.
Panelists: Pulitzer Prize-winner Josh Friedman (Professor, Columbia University),

Mohamad Bazzi (Professor, NYU Journalism School, formerly of Newsday), and Jessie Graham (BBC/PRI's The World, formerly of WNYC and The New York Post).

6:30            Dinner and Evening Event
                    TBA

Friday- May 30

8:30-9:30    Breakfast

9:30-11:00   How to Start Your Own Publication

Think all the magazines on your campus are lame? Start your own. These people know how.
Panelists: Daniel Sieradski (Founder, Jewschool.com, Director of Digital Media, Jewish Telegraphic Agency), Dylan Greif (The Public Journal), Susan Weidman Schneider (Founder, Lilith).

11:15-12:30 Skills Session

How to Conduct an Interview
Esther Kaplan, The Nation Institute and WBAI’S Beyond the Pale.
Writing on Culture
Lawrence Levi, Nextbook Senior Editor.

12:30-1:30 Lunch with JSPS Staff and Closing Activities

2:00 Newsroom Tours

The Nation and The New York Times

**This Conference was made possible by a generous grant from the Charles and Lynn Schusterman Family Foundation.

Frequently Asked Questions:

Where is the conference being held?
Most of the conference will take place at the Bronfman Center for Jewish Life on East 10th St. in New York City. The opening event on Wednesday evening will be held elsewhere.
If I’m coming from out of town, where will I stay?
We have reserved beds in a very nice hostel (Jazz on the Town) near the Bronfman Center. The cost is approximately $35 a night and you must pay us in advance for the bed. Please direct any questions any non-financially related questions about hostel accommodations to the hostel staff.
Will the food be kosher?
Yes. All food served at the conference will be strictly kosher.
I observe Shabbat and am concerned about the conference ending on Friday. What should I do?
The conference will be over no later than 3 PM on Friday May 30. As it is summer and Shabbat begins quite late, this gives participants several hours to return to nearby cities. For those of you who will not be able to make it home before sundown, we will not be organizing any Shabbat activities but will be happy to direct you to local synagogues, Hillels and Chabad houses where we are sure you will be welcome. You may also book another night in the hostel for yourself (for which you will pay the hostel directly).
How much does the conference cost?
The cost is $60, which includes all meals and conference materials.
Is this fee refundable if I decide not to come?
No, sorry. This check is non-refundable.
Are there scholarships available?
We have made the conference fees as low as possible in hopes that money will not be an object preventing anyone from coming to the conference. At the moment, we cannot offer scholarships, but are working to obtain funding for this purpose. We ask that before you request funds from us, you ask your local Hillel and/or Journalism department for scholarship money. For students living out of town, we do hope to be able to offer travel reimbursements but once again we ask that you first approach local sources.
When is the registration deadline?
You must register by May 1 to secure a place at the conference. If it is after May 1st and you still wish to attend but have not registered, please email us and we will see if we still have space.

I have more questions. Who should I ask?

Email Elizabeth Alpern at This e-mail address is being protected from spam bots, you need JavaScript enabled to view it

Comments

Add New

Student

David A. Huggins (129.98.214.xxx) 2008-03-24 21:14:17

Student from Yeshiva University.

Preston M. Neal (128.226.47.xxx) 2008-04-01 11:20:04

I am the Jewish Campus Service Corps Fellow for Hillel at Binghamton, and am looking to break into Jewish journalism and writing.

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