For the second time this year, we’re hosting one of our Watchdog Workshops, an all-day training opportunity for working and student journalists.
Modeled after a similar day-long training event this spring in the Inland Empire, FAC’s Oct. 9 workshop for journalists in the San Diego area will be customized to fit the needs of local reporters and editors of all experience levels. We’re excited to offer this at the Southwestern Community College, which is hosting us at its National City Higher Education Center.
What to expect of a FAC Watchdog Workshop? Check out this short video.
The day’s workshops are being crafted to specifically meet the needs identified by the local journalism community, and will tap the expertise of those doing impactful work in areas of interest.
Local journalists and legal experts will share practical tips, strategies — and even some war stories.
San Diego-area reporters Jake Kincaid and Sofia Mejías-Pascoe, of inewsource, and Daylight San Diego co-founder Kate Morrissey will share lessons learned covering immigration enforcement using state, local and court records. We’ll have a FOIA panel, featuring former New York Times in-house lawyer Al-Amyn Sumar and ProPublica public records specialist Reese Dunklin.
We (Paloma and Thad) will break down how to use the California Public Records Act to create impactful in-depth reporting, while legal director David Loy will give insights on press rights and police transparency.
It’s lining up to be a full day that attendees of all experience levels will walk away from with a deeper understanding of transparency laws and press rights, and most importantly how to use them to fuel watchdog reporting. There will also be networking opportunities.
We’re able to offer this and lunch at no cost, thanks to our generous donors. Are you a San Diego-area journalist or student journalist or editor? Register here and don’t hesitate to reach out to us with any questions.
— Thad Greenson & Paloma Esquivel, Press Education Specialists
P.S. We are looking for partners for our next journalism training. Our commitment to underserved areas of the state has taken us to Fresno with the Central Valley Journalism Collaborative, to Palm Desert with the Coachella Valley Journalism Foundation and to the Inland Empire with KVCR. Have ideas on where we should go next? Reach out to education [@] firstamendmentcoalition.org.