Community Programming

Each year AAJA partners with various community groups in the convention's host city.

In 2005, the Asian American Journalists Association launched a national Media Access project to provide workshops where professional journalists coach various community groups and nonprofit organizations on how to get their news in the news. Each year at AAJA national conventions, participants who don't have much experience dealing with media have a chance to learn what makes an effective news release, how to pitch a story and/or how to do a television interview.

Additionally, through a variety of panels, AAJA is able to continue nurturing new relationships and opening up fresh dialogue between our members and the communities that we serve. All community programming is free and open to the public/AAJA convention attendees. For more information contact events@aaja.org.

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2010 MEDIA ACCESS WORKSHOP
FRIDAY, AUGUST 6 | 10AM TO NOON | THE LOS ANGELES TIMES, 202 WEST 1ST STREET

MODERATOR: THOMAS HUANG, SUNDAY & ENTERPRISE EDITOR, THE DALLAS MORNING NEWS; ETHICS & DIVERSITY FELLOW, THE POYNTER INSTITUTE
PANELISTS: KEITH WOODS, VICE PRESIDENT, NATIONAL PUBLIC RADIO; JENNY HAMEL, REPORTER/ANCHOR, SAN DIEGO 6 NEWS; ELISE HU-STILES, ONLINE REPORTER, THE TEXAS TRIBUNE; GRETCHEN PARKER, PUBLIC COMMUNICATIONS MANAGER, USC ANNENBERG; MY-THUAN TRAN, REPORTER, LOS ANGELES TIMES; VICTOR HERNANDEZ, DIRECTOR OF COVERAGE/ADJ PROJECT MANAGER, CNN; LINDA TAKAHASHI, FREELANCE BROADCAST JOURNALIST
RSVP FOR MEDIA ACCESS This is a session for local community organizations to learn how to pitch their stories to the media and how to get their news covered. Meet with local and national journalists in print, broadcast and online media. How do these reporters, editors and producers choose stories to cover? What’s a pitch, and what should go into one? How do you pitch a local story to national media? How can you help journalists gain access to and understand diverse communities? Learn from these journalists and hear first-hand how they make their news decisions. The workshop will include a one-hour panel discussion involving several journalists from Los Angeles and across the country. Then the session will move into small groups, with a journalist facilitating a conversation in each group. The session will wrap up with a final Q&A. NOTE: No shuttle service provided for this event.
PRESENTED BY THE ASIAN AMERICAN JOURNALISTS ASSOCIATION IN PARTNERSHIP WITH THE LOS ANGELES TIMES. SPONSORED BY UNION BANK

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FROM CONCEPT TO DISTRIBUTION: DOCUMENTARY FILMMAKING
SATURDAY, AUGUST 7 | 10:30AM TO NOON

"We Are The Children of Communism" by Cui Zi'en (2007) / Photo Courtesy of dGenerate Films

MODERATOR: EMIL GUILLERMO, INDEPENDENT JOURNALIST/COLUMNIST; PANELISTS: BILL KUBOTA, PRODUCER/DIRECTOR, KDN FILMS; KARIN CHIEN, FOUNDER, DGENERATE FILMS; ABE FERRER, EXHIBITIONS DIRECTOR, VISUAL COMMUNICATIONS; MARISSA AROY, FILMMAKER, "THE DELANO MANONGS: FORGOTTEN HEROES OF THE UFW"; JONATHAN REINERT, FILMMAKER, "LEFT ON LOCKETT LANE"; CHRISTOPHER WONG, FILMMAKER, "WHATEVER IT TAKES"
For the first time, as part of AAJA's community programming, this panel of award-winning independent filmmakers and directors will talk shop about the applications of being a journalist to becoming a documentary filmmaker, the new landscape of web video delivery, distribution, funding and more.

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TOWN HALL MEETING
18 YEARS LATER: REVISITING THE L.A. RIOTS
SATURDAY, AUGUST 7 | NOON TO 2PM

Photos ©1992 Hyungwon Kang/Los Angeles Times

MODERATOR: JINAH KIM, REPORTER, NBC NEWS AND KNBC/LOS ANGELES PANELISTS: ANGELA OH, APPOINTED BY PRESIDENT CLINTON TO SERVE ON THE PRESIDENT'S INITIATIVE ON RACE; K.W. LEE, FORMER EDITOR, KOREA TIMES; LARRY AUBRY, BLOGGER, LOS ANGELES SENTINEL; BILL BOYARSKY, FORMER REPORTER, LOS ANGELES TIMES, NOW LA OBSERVED BLOGGER; SANDRA HERNANDEZ, LOS ANGELES DAILY JOURNAL; HYUNGWON KANG, PULITZER PRIZE-WINNING PHOTOJOURNALIST
Share your knowledge, understanding and perceptions at this year's town hall meeting which revisits one of history's most ignored yet controversial racial media stories of our time: the April 29, 1992 riots resulting from the acquittal of the police officers accused of unlawfully beating Rodney King. A black rebellion against police brutality turning into multi-ethnic mob assaults as the city of Angels burned, choked and wailed for three days and nights. 54 people lost their lives, 2,000 suffered injuries, $1 billion in damages, including 2,280 Korean American-owned stores had been looted, burned or destroyed. Some say the flames were fanned by how some "mainstream" mass media covered the story or presented some aspects of it. Free and open to the public. AAJA convention registrants encouraged to attend. SPONSORED BY ASIAN PACIFIC AMERICAN LEGAL CENTER

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NOTE: Programming subject to change. Please check back for updates

(Last updated 6/30/10)