Each of the four candidates – incumbent Arlene Silveira and her challenger, Nichelle Nichols, along with Mary Burke and Michael Flores, who are competing for an open seat – has confirmed his/her attendance.

The forum will take place Wednesday, March 21, from 7:00 – 8:30 pm at Covenant Presbyterian Church, 326 South Segoe Road. The church, at the corner of Segoe and Mineral Point roads on the city’s West Side, has plenty of free parking.

Candidates will field questions from the audience.

The Madison School Board races have drawn attention like no others in recent years, largely driven by the discussion over how to best close the achievement gap between minority and majority students. The school board will also be the first to write work rules for teachers and other employees under the state’s new collective bargaining law.

Silveira, who has been on the board since 2006, is director of global custom sales for Promega Corporation. Nichols is vice president of education and learning at the Urban League of Greater Madison. Burke is a former state Commerce secretary and former president of the Boys and Girls Club of Madison. Flores is a Madison firefighter.

The election is April 3.

Based in Indianapolis, SPJ is a national membership organization that promotes high professional and ethical standards among journalists, First Amendment principles and the belief that a free and vigorous press is vital in a representative democracy. The Madison professional chapter was formed around 1990. Membership costs $75 annually, and it is open to journalists who spend at least half of their professional life writing or editing work for publication.

###

Shadid, a two-time Pulitzer Prize winner, worked for The Daily Cardinal and graduated from UW-Madison.

The appreciation, first published in the Wisconsin State Journal on Feb. 18, can be found here.

The Madison Pro Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists mourns his death.

The brown bag luncheon will take place on Feb. 28 from 12-1 pm in Room 5055 at Vilas Hall, 821 University Ave., on the UW-Madison campus.

Priest is an American author and Pulitzer Prize-winning journalist whose work focuses on intelligence and counterterrorism. As one of The Washington Post’s specialists on National Security she has written many articles on the United States’ “War on terror.” In 2006 she won the Pulitzer Prize for Beat Reporting for her reporting on black site prisons and in 2008 The Washington Post was awarded the Pulitzer Prize for Public Service for the reporting of Priest and Anne Hull and photographer Michel du Cille at Walter Reed Army Medical Center.

Priest’s most recent book, “Top Secret America: The Rise of the New American Security State” was published in September, 2011. Co-authored with William Arkin, it uncovers and explores the top-secret world the U.S. government created in response to the 9/11 terrorist attacks.

The luncheon will feature Priest discussing her work and sharing tips for local reporters on how to investigate U.S. homeland security spending and policy in their communities. Space is limited and RSVPs are required. Professional journalists should RSVP to Mark Pitsch at mpitsch@madison.com. Professionals who can spend time speaking to student journalists after the reporter roundtable are encouraged to do so.

Please note: Ms. Priest’s flight arrives in Madison at 11 a.m. Feb. 28. Changes to her flight schedule could prompt changes to or cancellation of this event.

At 6:30 p.m. Feb. 28, Priest will give the UW-Madison Nafziger Lecture at the Fluno Center, Howard Auditorium, 601 University Avenue. The Nafziger Lecture is made possible through generous donations from alumni, friends and the family of Ralph O. and Monona H. Nafziger.

You do not have to be an SPJ member to be a mentor or to have a mentor.

We will connect one professional with one student. Under the program the pair should talk at least once a week for a four month period. The interaction will be both in person as well as via email and phone. We want the professional to use their skills to help the student build toward a professional career as a journalist.

Areas of expertise include: Broadcast Journalism (Reporter/Producer/Sports/Photojournalist), Print Journalism (Reporter/Editor/Sports/Feature/Photojournalism), Magazine (Reporter/Editor), Radio (On-air, Producer).

For more information, please contact Joe Radske, vice president of the Madison Pro Chapter, at 262-366-1259 or jradske@wkow.com.

MADISON – The State Capitol media landscape is changing. Within the past two years several nonprofit news organizations have been established offering to share their reporting with traditional media outlets.

In conjunction with the Wisconsin Newspaper Association, the Madison Pro Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists is sponsoring a discussion about nonprofit media on Feb. 23 at 10:30 a.m. at the Madison Marriott West, 1313 John Q Hammond Drive, Middleton. The event will be prelude to the WNA annual convention, which runs Feb. 23-24.

“Nonprofit News: What You Need to Know About ‘Free’ Media” will be moderated by UW-Madison journalism ethics professor Stephen J. Ward and feature representatives of the Wisconsin Center for Investigative Journalism, Wisconsin Reporter, and the Center for Media and Democracy. It will give the nonprofit news organizations a chance to explain what they do and it will give news editors and publishers an opportunity to ask questions of the groups.

WNA and SPJ members, and other members of the media, are encouraged to attend.

The event is free and open to the public.

###

Other events — talks, training, social events — will be scheduled on other days.

This is another step in more firmly anchoring the SPJ Madison Pro Chapter in the area media landscape.

Journalist Dick Wheeler chosen for Distinguished Wisconsin Watchdog Award

Dick Wheeler, the late founder of the Wheeler Report, has been named the 2012 recipient of the Distinguished Wisconsin Watchdog Award in recognition of his four decades of tirelessly opening Wisconsin state government to public scrutiny.

The award is part of the second annual Wisconsin Watchdog Awards reception and dinner, presented jointly on Wednesday, April 25, by the Wisconsin Center for Investigative Journalism, Wisconsin Freedom of Information Council and the Madison Pro Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists. Gwyn Guenther, Wheeler’s daughter, will accept the award.

“Dick Wheeler devoted his life to covering the state Legislature, in particular, and was a passionate defender of the public’s right to know what their government was up to,” said Bill Lueders, president of the Wisconsin Freedom of Information Council. “He was a tough but fair reporter, and he did more than anyone to shed light on the workings of Wisconsin government. The entire state owes him a debt of gratitude.”

“Dick was always willing to share with other journalists his extensive knowledge of Wisconsin politics and legislative procedure,” said Mark Pitsch, assistant city editor of the Wisconsin State Journal and president of the Madison Pro Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists. “Moreover, he earned respect from each side of the political aisle and across state agencies under several administrations.”

Wheeler, who died on Nov. 11 at age 67, launched the Wheeler Report in 1972, after having covered state legislatures in Ohio and Michigan. It began as a mimeographed write-up that was mailed to subscribers each day. Later it was sent out by fax, then email, which is how it is distributed today. The Wheeler Report also maintains a robust website, tracking state news.

Often, Wheeler was the first member of the public to receive important government documents such as audits, legislation and fiscal analyses, which he immediately posted to his website for others to see. The Wheeler Report remains one of the state’s most comprehensive sources of information about state government.

The Wisconsin Watchdog Awards, a celebration of investigative reporting and open government, will feature a keynote address by Walt Bogdanich, a three-time Pulitzer Prize winner and University of Wisconsin-Madison graduate. Bogdanich is a New York Times investigations editor and former investigative producer for 60 Minutes and ABC News.

Also, winners of the Wisconsin Freedom of Information Council’s annual Opee Awards will be recognized for their work promoting open government

The event at the Madison Club, 5 E. Wilson St., is sponsored by the Wisconsin Newspaper Association, Wisconsin Broadcasters Association and the law firm McGillivray Westerberg and Bender. The evening will begin with a reception at 5 p.m., followed by dinner at 6. Tickets are available for $55.

Register online at wisconsinwatchdog.eventbrite.com. Attendance is limited to 120 and organizers expect all tickets will be sold.

Sponsors are being sought for the Wisconsin Watchdog Awards. Information is available at wisconsinwatch.org.

In addition to speaking at the Wisconsin Watchdog Awards, Bogdanich will appear on a panel as part of the 120th anniversary celebration of The Daily Cardinal, a UW-Madison campus newspaper. Three days of events, including an open house, drinks and dancing, are planned for April 26 through 28.

Contact: Andy Hall, ahall@wisconsinwatch.org, 608-262-3642

Pulitzer winner Bogdanich to speak at Wisconsin Watchdog Awards

Three-time Pulitzer Prize winner and University of Wisconsin-Madison graduate Walt Bogdanich will deliver the keynote address at the second annual Wisconsin Watchdog Awards on April 25.

Bogdanich is a New York Times investigations editor and former investigative producer for 60 Minutes and ABC News.

The Wisconsin Watchdog Awards reception and dinner is presented jointly by the Wisconsin Center for Investigative Journalism, Wisconsin Freedom of Information Council and the Madison Pro Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists.

“Walt Bogdanich is one of the world’s greatest investigative journalists, and his work has helped save lives and expose wrongdoing,” said Andy Hall, the Center’s executive director.

“We’re honored to have him back in Madison.”

The Wisconsin Watchdog Awards, a celebration of investigative reporting and open government, is open to the public, with proceeds supporting the nonprofit and nonpartisan Wisconsin Center for Investigative Journalism.

The event at the Madison Club, 5 E. Wilson St., is sponsored by the Wisconsin Newspaper Association and others.

The evening will begin with a reception at 5 p.m., followed by dinner at 6. Tickets are available for $55. Register online at http://wisconsinwatchdog.eventbrite.com/. Attendance is limited to 120 and organizers expect all tickets will be sold.

The recipient of the 2012 Distinguished Wisconsin Watchdog Award will be announced soon.

Also at the event, winners of the Wisconsin Freedom of Information Council’s annual Opee Awards will be recognized for their work promoting open government.

In addition to speaking at the Wisconsin Watchdog Awards, Bogdanich will appear on a panel as part of the 120th anniversary celebration of The Daily Cardinal. Three days of events, including an open house, drinks and dancing, are planned for April 26 through 28.

Bogdanich graduated from UW-Madison in 1975 with a degree in political science. He received a master’s in journalism from Ohio State University in 1976.

In 2008, Bogdanich won the Pulitzer Prize for Investigative Reporting for the series “A Toxic Pipeline,” which tracked how dangerous and poisonous pharmaceutical ingredients from China have flowed into the global market. Bogdanich also won the Pulitzer Prize in 2005 for National Reporting for his series “Death on the Tracks,” which examined the safety record of the U.S. railroad industry, and in 1988 for Specialized Reporting, for his articles in The Wall Street Journal on substandard medical laboratories. He has also won four George Polk Awards, an Investigative Reporters and Editors Award, and an Overseas Press Club award.

Agenda

Jan. 30, 2012

I. Call to order
II. Treasurer’s Report
III. Membership Report
IV. President’s Report
A. Watchdog Awards
B. SPJ-sponsored Madison School Board debate
C. SPJ-WNA event
D. Website
V. Discussion/Action: Regular business meeting date/time: 7 pm, first, second, third Mondays of the month? Vintage? Memorial Union?
VI. Discussion/Action: Contribution to Watchdog Award
VII. Discussion/Action: Next Training: May 11, social media?
VIII. Discussion/Action: Sunshine Week
IX. Discussion/Action: Publicizing Awards
X. Discussion/Action: Midwest Journalism Conference
XI. Discussion: Bylaws
XII. Discussion: Mentoring
XIII. Discussion: High School Contest
XIV. Discussion: Non-profit status
XV. New Business
XVI. Adjourn

Votes could be taken on any Action or New Business item