The conference, at the Planet Hollywood Resort & Casino, is a can’t-miss blend of training sessions, speakers and networking opportunities. We have numerous programs in store that can benefit all journalists. Topics range from social media and the future of journalism to public records requests and producing engaging Web video.

The best part is the affordable, budget-conscious price for early registration*:

SPJ Professional Member: $185
Professional Non-Member: $285
SPJ Student/Post-Grad Member: $135
Student/Post-Grad Non-Member: $185
Adviser/Retired: $135

*Early registration prices are only available until Sept. 8!

Of course, Las Vegas isn’t just a great place to learn – it’s an ideal location for entertainment, fun and outdoor recreation in the surrounding area. See some suggestions here.

[NOT A MEMBER OF SPJ? CLICK HERE FOR RATES AND TO SEE WHAT SPJ CAN DO FOR YOU.]

Learn more about the event at the SPJ Convention website. If you have any questions, please contact communications coordinator Karen Grabowski at 317-927-8000 ext. 215 or kgrabowski@spj.org. And be sure to follow the latest developments with the SPJ Convention blog.

In the continually shifting media landscape – and particularly in today’s brutal economy – more and more reporters and editors are finding themselves forced to contemplate or confront an unplanned and often unwanted change of career from professional journalism. Their skill set equips them for a variety of communications, research, political and advocacy work, but they may well be wondering how to retain and integrate into a post-journalism career the traditional SPJ values and ethics of openness and transparency, honesty and accuracy, accountability and responsibility that have been the foundation of modern professional journalism.

The Greater Los Angeles Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists invites the public to join in dialogue with a distinguished panel of former journalists to address these issues:

Aaron Curtiss – member of Sitrick and Company strategic communications firm, former Los Angeles Times staff writer, editor, advertising manager, online-transition leader
Laureen Lazarovici – Senior Communications Consultant with the Kaiser Permanente Labor-Management Partnership, former staff writer for Los Angeles Weekly, communications staff member for the AFL-CIO in Washington, DC, and United Nurses Association of California
Allan Parachini – Public Information Officer, Los Angeles Superior Court; former Los Angeles Times staff writer; Director Of Public Affairs, ACLU-Southern California; Vice President For Communications for California Community Foundation
Ted Rohrlich – researcher/investigator for Service Employees International Union Local 721, former staff writer and investigative reporter for the Los Angeles Times

WHAT: Panel Discussion: “Journalism Ethics in a Post-Journalism World: How to Regain Your
Career Without Losing Your Soul”

WHEN: 7:30 p.m., Wednesday, April 29, 2009

WHERE: Bradbury Room, Omni Hotel, 251 S. Olive St., Los Angeles
Directions:

http://www.omnihotels.com/FindAHotel/LosAngelesCaliforniaPlaza/MapAndDirections.aspx

COST: FREE! Light refreshments will be served.

RSVP: Seating is limited, so please let us know whether you’re coming by Monday, April 24. E-mail to SPJLosAngeles@gmail.com or call (323) 259-3350.

PARKING: $12 valet available (east, enter on Olive St.), or limited meter parking on Grand Ave. (west).

Details about the event will be posted on our Web site, http://spjla.wordpress.com/

Hollywood, CA. The Los Angeles Press Club is hosting a special hands-on Twitter workshop this Thursday tonight with Mark Briggs. The social media expert will show how journalists and news organizations can use Twitter to shape a new kind of storytelling. He will also have tips on how to mine the ever-growing universe of tweets for breaking stories and sources. Finally, he will share best practices so journalists can ensure the information is reliable.

WHO – Social Media Expert and Journalism 2.0 author, Mark Briggs

WHAT – Hands-On Twitter Workshop with Mark Briggs

WHEN – Thursday, April 16, 2009; 6 p.m. to 9 p.m.

WHERE – The Los Angeles Press Club @ 4773 Hollywood Blvd. , Hollywood , 90027; Plenty of free parking behind the building (enter off of Berendo Street ); Click here for a map; Metro: Red line, Sunset/Vermont station
WHY – When a jetliner landed in the Hudson River in January, editors at Associated Press scanned Twitter for messages or “tweets” from cell phones near the plane. They also found a photo of the downed plane. Twenty-one year-old Janis Krums fed it from his iPhone, beating out professionals by many minutes. The image of the plane floating as passengers walked on its wings was adopted by the AP and other news agencies-and now it is the one many of us remember when we think of the crash. That is just one way journalists are harnessing Twitter’s power to bridge citizens and journalists; Twitter news feeds from print, TV, radio, and web organizations are another.

FYI: Free to press club members. All others: $20. Bring your laptops and cell phones.
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The Los Angeles Press Club stands as an organization devoted to improving the spirit of journalism and journalists, raising the industry’s standards, strengthening its integrity and improving its reputation all for the benefit of the community at large. Serving the Southland since 1913, it is the only Southern California journalism group that speaks for all journalists working for daily and weekly newspapers, radio & TV, magazines, documentary films and online. For more information, go to www.LAPressclub.org.

Whether you have a job or you’re looking for one, you probably need a drink!

So mark your calendar for Saturday, March 28 for good times at J Restaurant & Lounge in downtown LA!

The Asian American Journalists Association and The Society of Professional Journalists invite you to join journalists from throughout the Greater Los Angeles area for an evening of hors d’oeuvres, drinks, and socializing!

The event is free and open to all journalists and friends of journalists. Hope to see you there!

Host: AAJA-LA/SPJ-LA

Location: J Lounge
1119 S. Olive Street
Los Angeles, CA 90015

When: Saturday, March 28 at 7pm

View and rsvp on evite:

http://www.evite.com/pages/invite/viewInvite.jsp?event=JSYUZCPVFMCAFFRRKFQY&unkn\
ownUser=true

Come to the Beverly Hills Public Library on March 25 for a discussion on the ethical guidelines of reporting the arrests and legal battles of Hollywood’s biggest stars in the age of TMZ, blogs and the Internet.

Join the Greater Los Angeles Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists on Wednesday, March 25 at the Beverly Hills Public Library for a panel discussion on the ethics of entertainment reporting in the age of paparazzi, blogs and the Internet.

The panelists are:

TMZ managing editor Harvey Levin

Los Angeles Times reporter Harriet Ryan

Attorney Blair Berk

First Amendment attorney Jean-Paul Jassy will moderate the discussion.

WHAT:  Ethics and Entertainment

WHEN:  Wednesday, March 25, 7 p.m.

LOCATION:      Beverly Hills Public Library auditorium

444 N. Rexford Drive, Beverly Hills, CA 90210

COST:  $10 for SPJ members and students; $15 for non-members. Light refreshments will be served.

PARKING:  Parking is available adjacent to the library at 450 N. Rexford Drive. The first two hours are free, and then it costs 75 cents per half hour.

RSVP:  Email SPJLosAngeles@gmail.com or call the SPJ/LA reservation hotline at (323) 259-3350.