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Journalism Scholarships Available

Journalists, Editors Eligible for $5,000 Scholarships for Religion Courses
Study Islam, Religion and Politics, War, Theology -- on us

COLUMBIA, Mo., Nov. 16, 2011 /Christian Newswire/ -- RELIGION | NEWSWRITERS invites all journalists to apply to its Lilly Scholarships in Religion Program. The scholarships give full-time journalists up to $5,000 to take any college religion courses at any accredited institution at any time.

Religion headlines are dominating news coverage -- sex abuse, religion and politics, Islam in America, Post-9/11 -- now is the perfect time to dig deeper into today's hottest stories. More than 200 people have already taken advantage of RELIGION | NEWSWRITERS' Lilly Scholarships in Religion Program for Journalists.

Topics reporters have studied include: Islamic Movements, God & Politics, Christianity and Culture, Religious Tradition and Scientific Inquiry, Buddhism and Science, Violence and Liberation, Religion and Medicine and many more.

"The courses led to dozens of story ideas and new resources. I came out a sharper researcher and writer, two benefits I was not expecting going in," said Eric Marrapodi of CNN who took four Lilly scholarship courses in the last three years at Georgetown University.

The scholarships can be used at accredited colleges, universities, seminaries or similar institutions. Journalists can choose any religion, spirituality or ethics course. Scholarships cover tuition, books, registration fees, parking and other course-related costs. Online and travel classes are also eligible (as long as travel costs are part of the curriculum).

All full-time journalists working in the general circulation news media -- including reporters, editors, designers, copy editors, editorial writers, news directors, researchers and producers -- are eligible, regardless of their beat.

The next scholarship application deadline is Jan. 1, 2012. Scholarships must be used within three academic quarters of their award date.

RELIGION | NEWSWRITERS is the world's only association for journalists who write about religion in the mainstream news media. The scholarships are offered through its non-profit arm, the Religion Newswriters Foundation, with funding from the Lilly Endowment, Inc.

Complete information about the Lilly Scholarships in Religion program is available at bit.ly/j8MOOg. Direct questions to Amy Schiska at 573-355-5201 ext. 3#, or Schiska@RNA.org.

RELIGION | NEWSWRITERS offers training and tools to help journalists cover religion with balance, accuracy and insight. Visit www.RNA.org to learn more about our RELIGION | LINK story ideas, Religion stylebook and primer, contests for religion reporting, annual conference and more.

I Am A Journalist

Want a first-hand look at what young journalists are saying about their jobs?

Check this out:

http://wearejournalists.tumblr.com/

Twin Cities TV Station Loses Defamation Suit

KSTP hit with $1 million defamation verdict

Article by: HERÓN MÁRQUEZ ESTRADA , Star Tribune
Updated: November 8, 2011 - 7:14 AM

A holistic healer said she was defamed by a 2009 news story.


A Dakota County jury has awarded a holistic healer from Hudson, Wis., $1 million in compensatory damages from KSTP-TV for a March 2009 story it aired about her treatment of a patient, attorneys for both sides said Monday night.

The jury's award is believed to be the largest verdict ever in a Minnesota defamation lawsuit.

Jurors made the award Friday after a weeklong trial before District Judge Richard Spicer, and returned Monday to deliberate on punitive damages. They declined to issue a punitive award.

Attorney Paul Hannah, who represented KSTP, said he based his argument against punitive damages on the fact that the $1 million compensatory award was the largest in state history for such a case and therefore sufficient punishment for the broadcaster.

"I believe that to be the case, that this is the largest," said Hannah, a prominent Minneapolis media law attorney who expects that KSTP, Channel 5 in the Twin Cities, will appeal the verdict and file motions to get it reduced or overturned.

The lawsuit also named as defendants Cheryl and Eric Blaha, former patients of the holistic healer, but the jury found that they were not liable for monetary damages.

The gist of KSTP's story was that Susan Anderson, then known as Susan Wahl, a Hudson doctor of naturopathy, had "de-prescribed" anti-anxiety medication to Cheryl Blaha. Cheryl Blaha then claimed to KSTP in interviews that she had tried to commit suicide as a result of being weaned from the medicine by Anderson.

The story was reported by KSTP's Jennifer Griswold, who declined to comment Monday night when reached by phone, saying any reaction would have to come from Hannah. Hannah said he is not sure whether KSTP plans to issue any statement regarding the verdict.

Naturopathy is an alternative medicine based on the belief that vital energy or vital forces help the body regulate such things as metabolism, reproduction and growth.

In her suit, Anderson claimed medical records indicated that Blaha's own medical doctor had reduced the medication and that there was no proof of the alleged suicide attempt, said Patrick Tierney, Anderson's lawyer.

"That was certainly the heart of it," Tierney said Monday night. "KSTP bought [Blaha's story] hook, line and sinker, and that's what this case was about."

Jury found 'actual malice'

Tierney said he has handled other defamation cases that resulted in verdicts in the high six figures, but none as large as the one against KSTP.

"It's significant," he said, noting that the jury found "actual malice" in its verdict against KSTP, which he said would make it almost impossible for the award to be overturned or reduced.

But Hannah said he will file motions in coming weeks attempting to do just that. He would not elaborate, but the possible grounds for making such post-verdict motions are that the instructions to the jury regarding the law were incorrect or that the facts did not merit such a high award.

Anderson, in a memorandum in support of the suit, claimed KSTP "knew that the story ... was false," as evidenced by pages and pages of medical records dating back to 2007.

Tierney stated that a week after the alleged suicide attempt, the woman met with her doctor "and never mentioned any suicide attempt."

He said the same records also indicate that KSTP knew the claim that Blaha's doctor did not know Blaha was weaning herself from the anti-anxiety medication was false.

Tierney said the jury awarded Anderson about $100,000 for lost earnings, past and future, and $900,000 for damage to her reputation as a result of the broadcast story.

KSTP "created a report instead of reporting on something," he said.

Minneapolis media attorney John Borger said that, although he could not say with absolute certainty that the $1 million verdict is the highest in state history, he could not think of a higher one.

Tierney, Hannah and Borger all said they know of awards in the $700,000 range, but nothing to equal this one.

"If this is not the highest, it's certainly right up there," Borger said.

StarTrib Joins Paywall Club

From Minneapolis StarTribune on 10/31/11


Newspapers ask online readers to pay

Article by: DAVID PHELPS , Star Tribune
Updated: October 31, 2011 - 7:09 AM

This week the Star Tribune joins the wave of media outlets that have adopted a digital subscription model.

Newspapers are beginning to ask online readers to pay for something that for years they have gotten for free -- the news.

Within the past year, newspapers including the New York Times, Boston Globe and Dallas Morning News have adopted various digital subscription plans, or "paywalls," that require customers to be paid subscribers for unlimited access to the newspapers' content.

While there's a risk that consumers will reject paying for news online, it's one that traditional media finally are willing to take.

"It's become OK to pay for [digital] material," said Chris Wexler, group planning director for media buyer Compass Point. "As that becomes the norm, newspapers have an opportunity to do that as well."

This week, the Star Tribune will introduce a metered paywall, similar to the New York Times model, that allows readers 20 free views of articles or blogs per month before requiring a paid subscription to read further. Most Star Tribune print subscribers already get unlimited digital access.

"There was no reason not to do this from the onset [of news websites]," said Star Tribune Publisher Michael Klingensmith. "It was a mistake to go down the path that was taken. I never saw the common sense of it, to turn your back on your subscribers."

Klingensmith estimated that digital subscriptions can add 8 to 10 percent in additional revenue. In the case of the Star Tribune, that would be $3 million to $4 million a year, once the subscription model is fully functional. "It's very meaningful money with a basically marginal contribution," he said.

Growing revenue from digital subscriptions would be a huge boost for the newspaper industry, which has suffered declines in advertising and circulation, particularly in the aftermath of the Great Recession.

Since the mid-1990s, the industry has wrestled with how to build online sales, while technological advances allowed an array of competitors to siphon readers and advertising revenue. As a result, the newspaper industry is now a generation removed from the days when print was the dominant way to distribute news.

The shift by newspapers to charging for digital content has become even more critical in a technological world dominated by smartphones and digital tablets that allow readers to get their news anytime and anyplace. Those devices are compatible with pay-as-you-go subscription models. Today, consumers pay for music from the iTunes store, order electronic books or stream movies from Netflix.

Regional newspapers like the Star Tribune will have to continue providing premium coverage in areas such as local government, business, state politics, the arts community and high school sports, experts said. Investigative reporting and lively feature writing are critical as well to attracting digital subscribers.

"Sports is a big differentiator," Wexler said. "The Vikings, the Twins. Major League Baseball has a paywall that is huge. For power users, you charge for enhanced elements like video or the ability to operate on different platforms."

Dan Sullivan, a professor at the University of Minnesota's School of Journalism and Mass Communication, said smaller community newspapers also could benefit from a paywall because they do something that other major media do not -- news reporting at a grass-roots level.

"Small-town papers can pitch a paywall as a community-building activity that makes people feel more part of the community," Sullivan said.

The St. Paul Pioneer Press did not respond to inquiries about whether it would seek digital subscriptions or continue providing free content.

One advantage of a paywall is the ability of newspapers to do targeted advertising by getting more information from subscribers, similar to Google and Facebook. "Then you can track their behavior -- what stories are they reading, what are they interested in," Sullivan said. "You can marry behavior with identity."

For newspapers, however, a more fundamental question persists: Will online readers pay for the news?

A study released last week by the Pew Research Center concluded that the potential for subscription revenue from tablet users "may be limited." Only 14 percent of tablet readers will pay for news on their device, while just 25 percent said they would be willing to pay $5 a month if that was the only way to access their favorite source, the study said.

"Information is very sketchy so far," said Klingensmith. "But this is part of a transformation that needs to happen to our business model."

Earlier this year, the news website Mashable concluded that traffic on the New York Times website declined 5 to 10 percent after a paywall was implemented. But since then, the Times has seen its Sunday print circulation rise, as it bundled print and digital subscription plans.

Ultimately, part of the impact on readership will depend on how much free access the newspaper allows and how much it charges once the paywall has been reached, said Bill Mitchell of the Poynte Institute.

"If the meter is set up in a way that is annoying, you can diminish the audience," he said. "All of these pitfalls are serious, but news organizations are beginning to figure out how to adjust the meter to avoid those pitfalls."

Klingensmith is optimistic that the subscription model for digital news is here to stay. "No one has done it and canceled it," he said.

What Skills Do Journalists of the Future Need?

Here is a short excerpt from a post on the skills needed by future journalists. To see the entire article, click here.

For the past two years, OurBlook.com has been conducting interviews with top experts in journalism and media about the future of journalism. In my previous post for MediaShift, I offered a collection of views about where the industry and profession is headed.

We recently began asking interviewees to outline what they see as the role and skillset of the journalist. Overall, experts agreed that the future journalist will be:

A multitasker, juggling various responsibilities and roles, many which may have nothing to do with "traditional" journalism.
Technologically savvy, having at least a basic understanding of programming, web tools, and web culture.
A gatekeeper for a particular beat, directing readers to the most current and trustworthy news, regardless of who wrote it or where it's housed.
A versatile storyteller, who knows how to present a story online in various formats.
A brand and a community manager, who cultivates a constant and interactive conversation with their readership.

Watergate Figure Kenneth Dahlberg Dies

Kenneth Dahlberg died this week. Because of his role in Watergate, and because you saw the film "All the President's Men," I thought you might be interested in this portion of an article on him from the Mpls StarTribune.


During an eventful life that spanned nearly a century, Kenneth H. Dahlberg went from a one-room schoolhouse to aerial heroism during World War II and then to vast success as a Twin Cities businessman.

But it was his brief cameo role in the Watergate scandal nearly 40 years ago that remained a footnote to his life that never really went away.

Dahlberg, a Deephaven resident who founded what became the Miracle-Ear hearing aid company and bankrolled other companies, died Tuesday. He was 94.

"His attitude was that Watergate made good copy, and that's how journalism works," said Warren Mack, who wrote a biography of Dahlberg. "Ken understood that, and even though it was a source of pain for [his wife], Ken never really saw it that way."

Paul Waldon, who worked for Dahlberg nearly 25 years, remembered him as "a patriot, businessperson and entrepreneur who was always trying to do the right thing. ... He was the real deal."

A daughter, Dede Disbrow, also called Dahlberg "a patriot -- he bled red, white and blue."

Born in St. Paul, Dahlberg grew up on a farm near Wilson, Wis., attending a one-room school before moving back to the city to finish his education at an accredited high school. After working for several years in the hotel industry, he was drafted shortly before the United States entered the war.

Shot down three times

He became a fighter pilot and on June 2, 1944, four days before D-Day, he arrived in England to join the 354th Fighter Group, flying P-51 Mustangs to support the invasion.

Credited with 15 aerial victories, Dahlberg was shot down three times behind enemy lines, escaped twice and sat out the last few months of the war as a POW in Stalag VII-A near Munich. Among other military honors, he received a Distinguished Flying Cross.

After the war, he went to work for a firm called Telex, which made hearing aids and other communications equipment. He started his own company in 1948, which became Miracle-Ear, a firm he later sold to go into the venture capital business. Among the companies he invested in was the Buffalo Wild Wings restaurant chain.

"He comes out of World War II with a thousand dollars of back pay [from] when he was a POW and was willing and able to do anything," Waldon said. "He wanted to do whatever he could to make the republic better."

In his years working for Dahlberg, Waldon recalls what he called "Ken-isms," including: "He always lived life on the edge and said if you're not, you're not using up your allotted space."

He also dabbled in politics. Dahlberg's political activities grew out of a wartime friendship with Barry Goldwater, who had been one of his aviation instructors. Dahlberg was a deputy chairman of fundraising for the Arizona Republican's presidential campaign in 1964.

No Watergate wrongdoing

As the Midwest finance chairman of President Richard Nixon's 1972 re-election campaign, Dahlberg was pulled into the Watergate scandal even though he engaged in no wrongdoing. He became linked to the scandal after a $25,000 check he delivered to the Nixon campaign turned up in a Watergate burglar's bank account, tying Nixon to the break-in.

The contribution, which was legal, had come from Dwayne Andreas, a native of Worthington, Minn., who was former chairman of Archer-Daniels-Midland.

Dahlberg was cleared by a grand jury of any wrongdoing, but his role in Watergate was parlayed into a moment of high drama in the movie that documented the scandal, "All the President's Men."

One scene shows Washington Post reporter Bob Woodward phoning Dahlberg to ask about the check, eliciting a tense standoff, though no allegations are made against Dahlberg.

At one point, as the White House tapes later revealed, Nixon's chief of staff, H.R. Haldeman, mentioned Dahlberg's role to Nixon, to which the president responded, "Who the hell is Ken Dahlberg?"

Mack, a longtime friend of Dahlberg who wrote his biography, "One Step Forward: The Life of Ken Dahlberg," said that he didn't mention Watergate in the book "because it's still uncomfortable for Betty Jayne [Dahlberg's wife]. There was always this implication that he did something wrong."

Mack added that Dahlberg himself lamented that Watergate overshadowed his accomplishments in battle and in business. "He was just the victim of circumstance," Mack said.

'Flying right up to the end'

Flying remained a passion throughout Dahlberg's life. He served with the Minnesota Air National Guard until 1951, was inducted into the Minnesota and Arizona Aviation Halls of Fame, and continued flying -- either as pilot or co-pilot -- into his 90s.

"He was flying right up to the end -- he was still so good at it," Disbrow said. "And he was a funny guy -- I'd take him for rides around the lake in a convertible and he'd ask why I couldn't afford a car with a roof."

Along with his wife of 64 years and Disbrow, survivors include another daughter, Nancy Dahlberg; son K. Jeffrey Dahlberg; brother Arnold Dahlberg, and sisters Marcella Savage and Harriet Dolny.