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Take Action: Register for UNITY 2012 Convention!

October 18th, 2011 by Onica   |   1 Comment

Mandalay Bay Convention Center

Register early to take advantage of early-bird rates and a payment plan option.

UNITY Quadrennial Conventions are like no other gathering – they are the largest gatherings of journalists of color with media professionals and those who care about diversity in news media.  The 5th Quadrennial UNITY Convention – UNITY 2012 – promises just that plus more!

In addition to focusing on racial and ethnic diversity in news media, the convention will serve as a platform for the organization’s commitment to diversity and inclusion by also expanding to address issues around sexual orientation in the media.

The convention will feature professional development workshops, plenary sessions and an industry Media Showcase & Career Expo – including recruiting and exhibiting booths – as well as a variety of networking events.

The member alliances of UNITY: Journalists of Color, Inc. – the Asian American Journalists Association, National Association of Hispanic Journalists, National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association and Native American Journalists Association – will gather at Mandalay Bay Resort and Casino inLas Vegason August 1-4 to participate in plenary sessions, professional development sessions, networking events, multicultural celebrations and more.  UNITY ’12 will offer an opportunity to network with industry leaders, journalists, media professionals and bloggers, as well as media justice activists; the convention is open to all who are interested in advancing diversity and inclusion in news media.

Starting NOW, using only your e-mail address (which must be the same as the one used for your association membership), individuals who register at www.unityconvention.org will receive an early-bird rate of $325 for members, $150 for student members, $500 for non-members, $250 for student non-members and $200 for partner/spouse/guest.  Registrants will also have the opportunity to secure hotel rooms and receive access to the attendee service center.

In addition, a payment plan option breaks down the early-bird registration rate into three payments: The first deposit is due at time of registration, a second payment is due on November 30th, and a final payment will be charged on March 15th.  This option is only available during this early-bird period.

Early-bird registration rates will expire on March 16, 2012; Register TODAY!

NLGJA Enters UNITY Journalists’ Alliance

September 19th, 2011 by admin   |   1 Comment

NLGJA logoDevoted to Diversity, UNITY Diversifies Its Own Mission

McLean, Va. (Sept. 19, 2011) – UNITY: Journalists of Color will now include the National Lesbian & Gay Journalists Association (NLGJA), after the boards of directors of both organizations agreed to the partnership last week. NLGJA’s mission to advance the interests of gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender journalists is consistent with UNITY’s mission of ensuring that American newsrooms, and consequently news coverage, reflects the diversity of our communities.

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UNITY ’12 Coming Soon . . .

June 28th, 2011 by Onica   |   2 Comments

In 400 days, the UNITY ’12 Convention kicks off at The Mandalay Bay Resort & Convention Center in Las Vegas, Nev., to be held from Aug. 1-4 next year!

The momentum and energy at the recent National Association of Hispanic Journalists’ 29th Annual National Convention at Disney’s Coronado Springs Resorts in Orlando, Fla., gave us a preview of what to expect at UNITY ’12.

NAHJ’s convention brought together nearly 800 attendees, who spent four days participating in skill-building training sessions, networking and interviewing with recruiters in the Job Fair Expo. They celebrated journalism and honored Mexican journalists, whose bravery in trying to simply do journalism was felt by all; it reminded everyone of the ties that bind us together in the important plight to tell the stories of our communities. Then there was the “See You in Las Vegas” closing event, where the energy and momentum for UNITY ’12 pierced through past the lighted, blinking, glitzy Vegas pins many attendees’ wore on their chests. The reunion, at UNITY ’12, could not come any sooner in 400, 399, 398 . . . days!

As the countdown continues, we look forward to the next two pre-UNITY alliance conventions that will take place over the next few weeks. The Native American Journalists Association will host its convention from July 14-17 in Fort Lauderdale, Fla., followed by the Asian American Journalists Association, Aug. 10-13, in Detroit, Mich.

In the meantime, you don’t have to wait until Aug. 1, 2012, to connect with your UNITY family. Join the UNITY 2012 Convention: Las Vegas group on Facebook and stay tuned to new developments, make connections with old and new friends, get social and extend your UNITY ’12 experience beyond the four days in Las Vegas.

Message from UNITY President

April 11th, 2011 by admin   |   No Comments
Joanna Hernandez portrait

Joanna Hernandez

I am saddened by the decision that the board of directors of the National Association of Black Journalists has made to leave the alliance of UNITY: Journalists of Color.

I understand that this is a business decision, that the NABJ board members are doing what they think is best for their organization. And I wish them well.

As the newsroom census report recently released by ASNE makes clear, our mission is not over. UNITY will continue to advocate for communities of color to be fairly and accurately covered in the media.
And we will keep advocating on behalf of all journalists of color.

The programming committee for the UNITY 2012 convention in Las Vegas has begun planning innovative workshops and sessions of interest to all journalists. We welcome everyone committed to our mission to attend the convention. And we will always welcome feedback and encourage suggestions from NABJ members.

So although the NABJ board has made this decision, we will never shut the door nor turn our backs on our friends and colleagues.

Countdown to UNITY 2012

March 19th, 2011 by Onica   |   No Comments

The kickoff of the UNITY 2012 convention is exactly 500 days away, when we’ll meet up at The Mandalay Bay Resort & Convention Center in Las Vegas, Nev.

It’s been two-and-a-half years since members of the alliance partners stood 7,500 strong at UNITY ’08 in Chicago. Since then, times in our industry have been exciting as well as challenging – after nearly 400 company recruiters attended the UNITY ’08 Job Career Fair & Expo, it was hard to believe the acceleration of layoffs and economic meltdown that soon followed. It prompted UNITY to begin tracking job losses in the industry for a period of one-year, starting with the day of the historic collapse of Lehman Brothers. A year later, it was clear, as reported in UNITY’s 2009 Layoff Tracker, that the news industry was losing jobs at a rate of 22 percent when job loss in the general economy was 8 percent.

Newsrooms were monitored, and media companies such as ABC, Honolulu Advertiser and The New York Times were encouraged to mind diversity whenever they thought about letting go of journalists. UNITY’s board of directors embarked on a public-policy campaign with the Federal Communications Commission to create an environment that would encourage policy that promotes diversity.  These efforts enabled UNITY to represent the interest of its alliance members with the FCC on media consolidation, Net Neutrality, universal access and issues regarding minority ownership.

UNITY also launched an initiative, New U: Entrepreneurs Working Through UNITY, funded by The Ford Foundation to develop news entrepreneurs of color through a program created by NABJ member Doug Mitchell and co-directed with NAJA member Alli Joseph. The program gave 16 journalists of color an opportunity to develop and advance their news business ideas through training and one-on-one mentoring.  After a 2.5 days boot camp training held at each of the alliance association’s 2010 conventions, one-on-one mentoring and online voting on each person’s 3-minute video pitch, four news entrepreneurs were selected and each received a $5,000 award to support their business ideas. The Ford Foundation has approved funding for another go-around, and twenty additional news entrepreneurs of color will have an opportunity to participate in this initiative before the next UNITY convention.

As we gear up for UNITY in Las Vegas, alliance associations will begin to reach into their memberships for innovative ideas that will help position journalists of color to take the lead in transforming our industry and telling the stories of communities of color. And as the nation buzzes about jobs, as we suspect the political campaigns in 2012 will also be doing, we plan to deliver another successful Career Fair & Media Expo with virtual and onsite opportunities for jobseekers.  Likewise, we expect the educational sessions to be equally dynamic, skills-building and forward thinking to give journalists of color a competitive advantage in today’s newsrooms.  Soon the programming committee, comprised of two representatives from each alliance association and led by AAJA’s Paul Cheung and NAHJ’s Robert Hernandez will assemble to begin the process of calling for session ideas.  Stay tuned and count down with us. 500 … 499 … 498 …

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