promoting fairness, accuracy, & balance in the news media
The WNC is offering two $2,000 WNC Scholarships!Application deadline – April 15
Herb Robinson Scholarship – high school seniors apply;
Dick Larsen Scholarship – current college or university students apply.
and be sure to have a look at last year’s scholarship winners
Journalism students at Whitney High School (CA) take the TAO of Journalism Pledge.
“We want to show our readers and the larger journalism community that we stand by the ideals of being Transparent, Accountable and Open in our reporting and all of our practices as student journalists.” — The Roar, Whitney High School, CA
“Journalistic ethics are becoming even more critical to the practice of journalism as the field evolves….[We] like the simplicity of the pledge and the fact that it can apply equally and easily to citizen journalists, students, bloggers, professional journalists in all media.” — The Kerronicle, Kerr High School, Houston, TX
“Why are we doing it? Well, because we should.” — The Purple Tide, Chantilly High School, VA
Almost 1,000 student journalists from coast to coast have now taken the “TAO of Journalism” Pledge, promising to be Transparent, Accountable and Open in their practice of journalism. More than 850 of them nationwide took the Pledge during the Journalism Education Association’s Scholastic Journalism Week (Feb. 19-26). The quotes above are among comments emailed to the Washington News Council, which originated the TAO of Journalism concept and trademarked the TAO Seal.
The TAO Pledge and Seal allow journalists to make a public statement of ethical principles to help instill trust among their readers, viewers and listeners. The JEA endorsed the concept at the organization’s annual national convention in Kansas City last November. Kathy Schrier, executive director of the Washington Journalism Education Association and executive assistant at the WNC, attended the convention and led the endorsement effort. The TAO Pledge also may discourage school administrators from imposing prior review on student publications, JEA leaders believe.
The TAO Pledge — which is open to mainstream journalists, independent bloggers, freelancers, newsletter writers, or anyone else committing “acts of journalism,” asks journalists to publicly promise that they will be “Transparent” about who they are, “Accountable” and willing to correct any errors, and “Open” to other points of view. The idea, originally introduced at a Journalism That Matters gathering, is steadily gaining traction with media organizations and individual journalists worldwide as a way to help maintain public trust. (See Directory page on TAO website for a list of pledgers so far.)
After all, journalists want everyone they cover to be transparent, accountable and open. So why not them? It’s a two-way street. Those qualities always increase credibility and public trust in any institution or organization that adopts them. The same will be true for journalists and media organizations.
Any media group or individual journalist who takes the TAO Pledge gets listed on the TAO of Journalism website with a link to their publication and/or website. They can then post the TAO Seal in their masthead or on their website.
For some examples of how some sites are using the TAO Seal, see:
1. Spot.us
4. B-Town Blog
Student journalism organizations may take the TAO Pledge and display the Seal for free. Independent individual journalists are asked to donate $25 per year and media organizations (three or more staff) are asked to donate $50 per year to help support the TAO project’s website, maintenance and outreach. The Washington News Council is a 501c3 nonprofit organization, so donations are tax-deductible.
JEA is encouraging schools and student media to sign the Pledge and to invite their school administrators to sign on, as well. Students receive a color poster of the TAO Pledge that can be displayed as a reminder of their commitment. In addition, student publications that took the TAO Pledge during Scholastic Journalism Week receive temporary stick-on “TAOttoos” of the TAO seal for all members of their staff. The Washington News Council ordered 3,000 of these to be mailed to TAO pledgers nationwide.
The TAO Pledge and Seal are open to anyone who is interested. Just TAO it!
The Washington News Council has just been named “Organization of the Year” by the Municipal League of King County. Here is their press release, sent out today to news media statewide.
This is a great honor for our little non-profit organization. We would like to thank all of our friends, supporters and donors who helped make our important work possible over the past 12 months — and over the past 12 years — to encourage high-quality journalism and media ethics.
Other Civic Award winners this year include King County Sheriff Sue Rahr (Public Official of the Year), BECU – Boeing Employees Credit Union (Business of the Year), and Susannah Frame of KING5 (Government News Reporting). So we’re in really good company!
The Muni League, which turned 100 years old in 2010, is a highly respected organization that supports good government and public service in our region. Past winners of the “Organization of the Year” award include Futurewise, Seattle Works, Urban League, Intiman Theater, Real Change, King County Bar Association, and Pioneer Human Services. We’re honored to join this distinguished group.
The award will be presented at the League’s 52nd Annual Civic Awards dinner on March 31. We invite you to attend to help us celebrate the occasion.
I would personally like to thank the great team that helped “reinvent” the WNC in the past year: Kathy Schrier (executive assistant), Jacob Caggiano (communications strategist), Brian Glanz (web developer) and Heidi Dietrich (blogger, now with AOL Patch). Plus my terrific WNC Board Officers: Suzie Burke, Martin Neeb, Olivia Lippens and Shannon Frew. You’re the ones who really made this award possible.
Finally, special thanks to all the generous donors who supported the WNC and helped us meet the Gates Foundation Challenge Grant by raising $100,000 by Jan. 15, 2011, which was matched by the Foundation. We are determined to keep up this vital work and expand our activities in 2011 and beyond. With your continued support, we’ll do exactly that! Please call or email me with your ideas and suggestions. One last thing: WOO-HOO!
John Hamer gives Jacob Caggiano a sample back rub.
We know you get a lot of solicitations to give money, but here’s why we’re different.
This year we’re up for a challenge grant from the Bill & Melinda Gates Foundation, so all your dollars will be doubled if we can meet our goal of $100,000. Thanks to your help last year, we were able to reinvent the News Council and bring you a completely new website with new features and experiments designed to keep up with the explosion of new media. Over the year we launched our Online Community, the TAO of Journalism Seal, and the Washington News Lab, and we’re excited to take them even further in 2011. We’ve also awarded two scholarships, hosted many events and workshops, and have stayed on top of the headlines with an updated blog on the local journalism community.
Plus, if you chip in $200 or more before January 15th, 2011, our Executive Director John Hamer will personally provide one of the following services:
A) Bake you Cookies
B) Mow your lawn
C) Give you a back rub
Now that’s dedication! Nothing short of what you can expect from a lean and mean non-profit that is determined to keep the truth alive. Thanks for your support!
Please click here to help keep us strong
You can also donate by phone by calling our office at 206-262-9793
Or mail us a check at
P.O. Box 3672, Seattle, WA 98124-3672
The Washington News Council is a 501(c)3 organization. All donations are tax-deductible.
We are pleased to share our new video explaining our mission at the News Council as well as the exciting projects we’ve taken on over the last year, such as our Online Community, TAO of Journalism seal, Online Media Guide, and others.
Have a look and pass it on!
Please come in! Take a look around. Make yourself at home.
We have completely redesigned the WNC website. (It’s about time, some say…)
Our goal is to make this site timely, engaging, interactive, helpful and fun! We hope it will become a key forum for discussion of news-media matters in Washington state – including ethics, accuracy, fairness, issues, people and trends.
SAVE THE DATE for the Washington News Council’s 12th annual Gridiron West Dinner — Friday, Nov. 12, 2010, at the Washington State Convention Center. We will “toast” (i.e., roast) five former Mayors of Seattle — Wes Uhlman, Charles Royer, Norm Rice, Paul Schell and Greg Nickels. We’re happy to have David Horsey and his “flying pies” drawing back for our invitations and programs. Mike Egan will emcee again this year, and Jim Anderson/Cabaret Productions will provide music and songs. Reception starts at 5:30 pm, with dinner and program at 7 pm. This has become a favorite event of the fall season, with video, photographic, musical and personal “toasts” to our honorees. Tables and tickets are available now. Call our office (206.262.9793) for more details.
The Washington News Council awarded two $2,000 scholarships to students planning careers in communications. The scholarships are named after the late Dick Larsen and Herb Robinson, both longtime editors at The Seattle Times.
WNC President John Hamer, who worked with Larsen and Robinson for many years on The Times’ editorial board, presented the scholarships during a June 24 reception at the WNC office, located above the Pyramid Alehouse in Seattle.
Peter Sessum, 38, a junior at the University of Washington who is studying journalism. He is a staff writer for The Daily. He was formerly a student at Edmonds Community College and editor-in-chief of the Triton Review campus newspaper.
Before that, Peter was a liaison officer with the U.S. Army in Afghanistan and an international advisor in the poppy-eradication program there.
He is a member of the Asian American Journalists Association, the Society of Professional Journalists, the American Civil Liberties Union, and Veterans of Foreign Wars.
John Hamer & Pete Sessum
In an essay accompanying his scholarship application, Peter wrote:
“Media is the watchdog of the government, but someone needs to watch the watchdog. That is the purpose of the people. As journalists, we should be transparent, accountable and open. And the people should be able to expect that of us. It is the duty of the reporter to inform the people of the issues at hand. Then, the people can make informed decisions.”
Alexander Herbig, 18, who is graduating from Mountlake Terrace High School and will attend Seattle Pacific University in the fall. He plans to study communications, global development and psychology.
During high school, Alex was a Young Life leader and camp counselor. His senior project was Simply Haiti, which launched two days before the Haitian earthquake and raised $30,000 for a feeding program and earthquake relief. He also was a photojournalist and editorial writer for The Hawkeye school newspaper, and MVP on the junior varsity soccer team.
Alex Herbig & John Hamer
In an essay accompanying his application, Alex wrote:
“I feel as though trust is a journalist’s best friend. Journalists have the ability to twist a story just about any way they want, making the good guy look like the villain or the other way around. Not only that but their stories can create some serious consequences for the person or company in the story. With this power comes the responsibility of the journalist to be trustworthy.”
Scholarships are funded by donations from individuals, foundations and corporations. Since 2000, the WNC has awarded 22 scholarships with a total value of nearly $30,000.
CONTACT: John Hamer, President, WNC – 206.262.9793 (info@wanewscouncil.org)
The Washington News Council has joined the Alliance of Independent Press Councils of Europe. We’re not in Europe, you say?
True, but neither are several other press councils in AIPCE: Botswana, Israel, Peru, Sri Lanka, Thailand, and Zambia, among others. It’s a big tent, this group, and their numbers are growing. (For more details, see What is a Press Council?) [Read more...]
Seattle’s newest media player opens for business today.
Spot.Us, which allows community members to fund civic journalism projects, has expanded to Seattle. Journalist David Cohn started the network in San Francisco in late 2008 and added on a Los Angeles site early this year. He sees Seattle, as a third major west coast city, a natural fit.
“Seattle has a really robust journalism community,” Cohn said.
David Cohn, founder of Spot.Us
With Spot.Us, readers decide what stories they want to fund. Journalists and news organizations post story proposals with an estimated cost to report and research on the Spot.Us site. Anyone interested in the pitch can pledge a donation. If the pledges reach the necessary amount to fund the story, the money is collected.
“I’m a big believer that the public should be able to participate in journalism,” Cohn said.
So far, two-thirds of stories pitched on Spot.Us have reached their funding goal. [Read more...]
See also: more about the WNC Team
JACOB CAGGIANO is the Council’s Communication Strategist. It’s his job to pitch ideas and get audiences to latch on. He also dedicates long hours behind the scenes working with the website, the Washington News Lab, and other experiments designed to change the way we interact with news and information.
Connect with Jacob in the Washington News Council Community.
