Banner Image for Schedule
Illustrations used in banner designed by www.freepik.com

2021 Christopher J. Georges Conference on College Journalism

Schedule

Friday, April 9, 2021

(all times are EDT)

4:00 – 4:05 p.m.
Opening remarks and welcome
Ann Marie Lipinski, curator of the Nieman Foundation for Journalism at Harvard
4:05 – 5:00 p.m.
Keynote & conversation
Abby Phillip, senior political correspondent and anchor at CNN
Moderator: Amanda Su, president of The Harvard Crimson
5:00 – 6:00 p.m.
Participant Introductions

Saturday, April 10, 2021

10:00 – 11:00 a.m.
The State of Student Journalism Today
Taylor Blatchford, news producer at The Seattle Times and founder of The Lead, a resource newsletter for student journalists, will present an overview of the state of student journalism.
Introduction by James Bikales, managing editor of The Harvard Crimson
11:00 – 11:10 a.m.
Break
11:10 – 12:15 p.m.

Breakout sessions with Nieman Fellows (choose one)

Covering a Beat
Scott Dance, environment reporter for The Baltimore Sun; Sarah Kaufman, chief dance critic for The Washington Post; and Robert Frederick, digital managing editor for American Scientist, share tips and advice for developing journalistic expertise on a particular subject, and how to develop or pursue a journalistic beat.

Working in Radio/Podcasting
Yasmin Amer, senior podcast reporter and producer for WBUR; Emily Corwin, investigative reporter and editor for Vermont Public Radio; and Samantha Broun, managing editor for Atlantic Public Media’s Transom.org, talk about the many exciting opportunities of working in radio.

Starting Out in Television
Amber Payne, former NBC Nightly News producer, and Bukola Adebayo, senior producer for CNN Digital in Nigeria, discuss the many different jobs in television and the skills necessary to break into the business.

Working at Digital-First Outlets
Maxwell Strachan, senior features editor for Vice, and Joseph Bernstein, senior technology reporter for BuzzFeed News, talk about the various jobs and skills needed to work in digital-first newsrooms.

12:15 – 1:00 p.m.
Lunch
1:00 – 2:00 p.m.

Breakout sessions with Nieman Fellows (choose one)

Diversifying Newsrooms
Austin Bogues, reporter for The Asbury Park Press, and Willoughby Mariano, investigative reporter at The Atlanta Journal Constitution, discuss the urgent challenges facing the news business as it works to diversify its ranks, as well as advice for journalists of color working to navigate a career in journalism.

International Reporting
Ever wondered what it would be like to report on global stories from countries around the world? Join Alissa Rubin, Baghdad bureau chief for The New York Times, and Vidya Krishnan, an investigative journalist based in India, for a session on international reporting.

Finding Your Journalistic Voice
John Archibald, Pulitzer Prize-winning columnist for the Alabama Media Group, and Marc-Olivier Bherer, Op-Ed editor and reporter for Le Monde in France, talk about how to write columns, Op-Eds and opinion pieces and share tips on honing your journalistic voice.

2:05 – 3:15 p.m.
Student Lightning Round: Hear from Your Peers
Short presentations from student participants about special projects and newsroom challenges
Moderator: Hanaa’ Tameez, staff writer, Nieman Journalism Lab

The Harvard Crimson (Harvard) Presenter: Hana Kiros
A look at the Crimson’s commemorative issue on March 10, 2021, marking the one-year anniversary of the day students learned they had to leave campus because of COVID-19, and the editorial board’s “Notes from Day 365: Requiem for a Lost Year.”

The Bates Student (Bates College) Presenter: Vanessa Paolella
A look at how The Bates Student made a successful transition from a print-first to a digital-first platform.

Cal State Journalism Newswire (Cal State) Presenters: Aidan McGloin and Madalyn Amato
The Cal State Journalism Newswire is a newly created news service for the student news outlets in the California State school system.

The Famuan (Florida A&M) Presenter: Ariyon Dailey’s 2020 Gun Edition centered around gun violence, statistics and advocacy efforts in the Tallahassee area to end gun violence.

The Massachusetts Daily Collegian (UMass Amherst) Presenter: Cassie McGrath
A look at “What Went Wrong,” a three-part series on the causes and effects of the COVID-19 outbreak on the UMass campus.

The Open (UMass Amherst) Presenter: Claire Healy
Claire Healy will discuss creating The Open, a new international multilingual magazine that is available in English, Arabic and Spanish.

3:15 – 3:30 p.m.
Final thoughts/comments and survey