By Ellyn Ferguson
They were pioneers in a journalism trend that baffled official
Washington: Reporters in Washington who looked for regional and hometown angles in national stories. Since they were neither national nor hometown reporters, regionals often found themselves ignored.
Sean Griffin, RRA's first president, said the decision to organize was motivated "by a growing realization that there was a caste system, that it was hard to get past the receptionist desk in official Washington."
As the group got active, newspapers such as The New York Times and The Washington Post wrote about the RRA.
"Doors began to open," Griffin said.
On Dec. 14, the RRA will mark a decade of serving as a voice for
reporters who cover Washington for readers beyond the Beltway. With the Freedom Forum as a co-sponsor, RRA is holding a four-hour review of regional reporting - past, present and future.
The event at the Freedom Forum will start at 9 a.m., beginning with breakfast and a question-and-answer session with James Rosen of the Raleigh News & Observer, the 1998 winner of the Robin Goldstein
Washington Reporting Award.
From 9:30 a.m. to noon, panels moderated by Griffin and Gene Roberts, former New York Times managing editor, will examine the role of regional reporters and the value editors and the public place on Washington reporting.
One panelist is Rep. Paul McHale, a Pennsylvania Democrat who found
himself under scrutiny when he called for President Clinton's
resignation because of the Monica Lewinsky scandal. He will critique
Washington coverage.
Question-and-answer sessions will follow each panel.
At 12:30 p.m., David Broder, the Washington Post columnist and veteran political reporter, will deliver the keynote speech. Lunch will be served.
Invitations will be sent out this month.
By Dina ElBoghdady
Now the RRA is a major force in shaping the next economic census - or at least the colors of the press kit it arrives in.
Seven RRA-ers got to be members of a focus group on shaping the
presentation of upcoming census data. Next year the Census Bureau is
issuing a set of economic data that comes out once every five years.
To help the agency tout the release, press officials arranged a meeting of RRA board members at a downtown Washington office building. They were asked advice on such vital decisions as:
We also got to tell the census folks what regional reporters look for in data: the more local the better; comparable from year to year; no
more than a year out of date; and presented in per-capita format.
The kind folks at the census not only provided free sandwiches and
cookies, but also gave the RRA $300 for rounding up members and offered participants $100 each.
The seven members donated their fee to the RRA for the 10th anniversary event. They were Jim Specht, Deb Kalb, Carl Weiser, Onell Soto, Brian Tumulty, Jennifer Maddox and Marc Heller.
-- Carl Weiser,
Gannett News Service
When does a question cross the line?
Deciding whether to get personal
The Detroit News
In Brief
We all hear about how focus groups are now a major force in shaping
politics.
Gannett News Service
President Christine Dorsey provided the latest update on planning for the 10th anniversary event to be held at the Freedom Forum Dec. 14. Invitations are expected to be mailed shortly.
The confirmed participants include: David Broder of The Washington Post; RRA founding members Tom Brazaitis and Sean Griffin; retiring U.S. Rep. Paul McHale, D-Pa., a critic of Washington reporters; and University of Maryland journalism professor Gene Roberts, who led The Philadelphia Inquirer to 17 Pulitzer Prizes.
Brett Lieberman, president of the Regional Reporters Education Foundation, informed the board that RREF was not pursuing extra funding for the 10th anniversary event. Dorsey and Weiser said they did not think additional funding was needed.
The board will approve RRA's 1999 budget at its December meeting.
Weiser and Onell Soto briefed the board on tentative events with representatives of the Health Care Financing Administration and Fish & Wildlife Service. The board also expressed interest in pursuing an RRA event with the new House speaker.
The next meeting was set for Dec. 7 at noon.
By Christine Dorsey
Donrey Media Group
I've been in town three and a half years, and I'm still learning the ropes. Compared with the likes of Alan Emory or Tom Brazaitis, I'm a neophyte in the world of Washington journalism.
But I have learned one thing: Washington is an ever-changing environment. As the latest elections and aftermath have proven, nothing is certain in Washington. No matter how long you've been here, something is sure to surprise you.
It sometimes gives me comfort to know that no matter how long some of my colleagues have been here, they, like I, have to start from scratch every two years. We must get acquainted with new lawmakers, brush up on new legislative initiatives and memorize a new slate of political leaders.
I realize I'm being a bit biased here, but RRA has been a tremendous help to me in the last few years. Not only did I learn about the Paul Miller Fellowship through RRA, I also met some excellent reporters whom I've tried to learn from and emulate.
As you know, RRA is celebrating its 10th anniversary this year. Included in this newsletter is a rundown of the December event we are hosting to commemorate the organization's humble beginning. We've lined up some of the finest journalists on the beat, as well as others who can give some perspective on regional reporting.
David Broder of The Washington Post will give the keynote address at lunch. We chose David not only for his prominence in the field but also because he has managed to bring a regional perspective to national stories. He thinks beyond the Beltway and writes with average readers in mind.
Other speakers include former and current regional reporters, educators and one retiring lawmaker who all will discuss the good - and the bad - aspects of reporting from Washington.
We on the RRA board hope you will make time Monday, Dec. 14, to join us at the Freedom Forum to celebrate a decade of RRA.
Use the event as an opportunity to get reacquainted with colleagues you don't often have time to see, network with other reporters on your beat and learn a thing or two about this unique and challenging beat we call regional reporting.
RRA president Christine Dorsey can be reached at (202) 783-1760 or by e-mail, cdorsey@nationalpress.com.
My Virtual Reference Desk is one of the most expansive reference sites around.
It includes links to all the latest editions of reference books you should have on your desk, but haven't had the money or time to buy. The links include Roget's Thesaurus, Funk & Wagnalls, Bartlett's Quotations, World Fact Book and the Daily Almanac.
In addition, reference links are broken down into 50 different subject categories. A look at "education" found links to everything from college rankings to elementary schools with home pages.
You'll also find such handy items as The Atomic Clock, links to transcripts for television talk shows and a unit converter (when you want to know how hot it is and you need to convert Celsius into Fahrenheit.)
It also has one of the better all-inclusive journalism pages. It provides hundreds of links to papers, all major columnists and a wide array of news features - from This Day in History to lottery results.
MVRD can be found at: http://www.refdesk.com
-- Lolita Baldor,
New Haven Register
September 1998 Regional Reporter