Paper Offers “How Connecticut Chained Itself to Slavery”
The Hartford Courant published a special issue Sunday of its Northeast Magazine called “How Connectict Chained Itself to Slavery.”
It begins:
“Connecticut was a slave state. Does that sound wrong? Does it feel wrong? It shouldn’t. Connecticut has a history to confront as much as any Southern state.
“This reconsideration of Connecticut and its complicity in the institution of slavery is not an academic one. It is driven by the growing, clamorous debate across our country over reparations.
“Connecticut is one of the richest states in the richest country, but much of that wealth is stained with the blood of slaves.
“That may shock many in Connecticut, who know their state was a force in the abolition of slavery, and that it sent thousands of its young men to die in the war to free the enslaved and end an inhuman, ungodly institution.
“But the fact is that politically and socially and economically, Connecticut was as much a slave state as Virginia or Mississippi. It even had that most iconic of slave institutions: the plantation.
“The big difference is that we hid most of our involvement because, well, we could. In large part, the slavery that Connecticut benefited from happened somewhere else.”
Boston Globe to Publish Same-Sex Unions
Citing their value as ”community news of interest and importance to many of our readers,” the Boston Globe said Sunday that it will begin publishing announcements of same-sex commitment ceremonies and civil unions.
The Globe’s policy differs somewhat from the recently announced New York Times decision in that same-sex unions will appear under a separate heading rather than be mixed in with traditional wedding announcements. Globe editor Martin Baron said that decision reflects the fact that ”the law in the state continues to make a distinction between wedding/marriage and same-sex commitment ceremonies. This recognizes a distinction as defined by law and as defined by most religions as well.”
Nebraska Paper Excels on Native Issues
The Journal Star in Lincoln, Neb., with a circulation of 75,000 daily and 83,000 on Sundays, serves a population that is not overly diverse. Yet the paper still emphasizes diversity in hiring and coverage practices. In Lancaster County, the editor says, 89 percent of the population is non-Hispanic white, 3.4 percent is Hispanic, 2.9 percent is Asian American and 2.8 percent is African American.
But where The Journal Star really fills a void is in Native issues, reports People & Product of the Newspaper Association of America. “We have a specialty in covering Native issues because Nebraska is a Plains state where Native Americans used to be [in the majority],” says Kathleen Rutledge, the editor. “There are four reservations in Nebraska, and Pine Ridge is just over the border in South Dakota. There’s a history and tradition of Native people here, which is why we’ve tried to cover Native American issues in the paper.”
The paper’s news editor is Jim Johnson, a Native American who joined the Lee Enterprises paper a year ago from the St. Petersburg Times, where he was one of three news editors.
Garrett Morris Says He’ll Start Multicultural Magazine
Former “Saturday Night Live” star Garrett Morris is set to launch a new magazine called Savant, which will be a multicultural publication covering everything from the arts to politics, reports Michael Starr in the New York Post. Many of Morris’ celebrity friends are expected to be featured.
Is It “Saddam” or “Hussein”?
Should the news media refer to Iraqi president as “Saddam” or “Hussein?” asks the Los Angeles Times.
“Actually his name is Saddam Hussein al-Majd al-Takriti,” said Tom Kent, deputy managing editor at Associated Press. “He uses neither al-Majd or al-Takriti, and Hussein is not a last name.”
Which Pundits Have Worked in Newsrooms?
Writing in the American Prospect, Nicholas Confessore argues that one factor behind some conservative pundits’ recent attack on New York Times editor Howell Raines is that most have never worked in a newsroom.
“While a few conservative pundits — Robert Novak, Fred Barnes, Paul Gigot — got their start in daily journalism, most have spent the bulk of their careers in politics and political advocacy. Kristol was Dan Quayle‘s chief of staff. The National Review’s Kate O’Beirne was a lobbyist for the Heritage Foundation. Krauthammer was a psychiatrist and then a speechwriter for Walter Mondale before joining The New Republic during the 1980s. And nearly anyone who ever set foot inside the White House under Ronald Reagan or the elder George Bush, it seems, now holds down a syndicated column, from Linda Chavez to Mona Charen to Oliver North.
“For that matter, few conservative journalists have spent serious time in a newsroom. Most advance through a network of movement magazines, journals and think tanks: summers at the National Journalism Center, internships at the Heritage Foundation and articles in the National Review (followed, for the lucky ones, by a lucrative book deal with the Free Press and a cushy sinecure at the American Enterprise Institute). By contrast, a typical reporter starts on the metro desk, bounces around to a few domestic bureaus and may even spend time overseas before getting to cover the White House for a paper like the Times. Editors also come up through the reporting ranks. Raines earned his stripes at The Atlanta Journal-Constitution before coming to the Times as chief of the Atlanta bureau in 1979.
“That doesn’t mean that the Times’ critics are all mindless partisans. But most of them are divorced from the professional culture of journalism in general and large metropolitan newspapers in particular. Like most conservative activists, they tend to think of mainstream and establishment media organizations, such as the Times, as less professional and more nakedly partisan than they actually are. . . . “
Newspaper Job Fairs in Tampa, Hartford
The American Society of Newspaper Editors and the Tampa Tribune are sponsoring a job fair in Tampa, Oct. 10-11. They say they have lots of recruiters and they have jobs.
To register:
Tampa, Fla., Oct. 10-11, The Tampa (Fla.) Tribune.
Contact Beverly Dominick
The Tampa Tribune
200 S. Parker St.
Tampa, FL 33606
813-259-7633
fax 813-259-7676
e-mail jobfair@tampatrib.com
visit http://recruiting.tampatrib.com/recruiting/jobfair/
Other job fairs on the schedule:
Hartford, Conn., Oct. 19, Hartford Courant
Contact Jeff Rivers
Hartford Courant
285 Broad St.
Hartford CT 06115
800-524-4242, ext. 6481
fax 860-241-3865
e-mail rivers@courant.com
Raleigh, N.C., Oct. 24-26, The News & Observer
Contact Will Sutton or Becky Beach
The News & Observer
215 S. McDowell St.
Raleigh NC 27601
919-829-4530
fax 919-829-4529
e-mail jobfair@nando.com
visit www.newsobserver.com/jobfair
Detroit, Nov. 21-22, The Detroit Free Press
Detroit News and Detroit Newspapers
Contact Joe Grimm
The Detroit Free Press
600 W. Fort St.
Detroit MI 48226
800-678-6400 ext. 6490
fax 313-222-5981
e-mail grimm@freepress.com
visit www.freep.com/jobspage/toolkit/spirit.htm
Sacramento, Calif., Jan. 31, The Sacramento (Calif.) Bee
Contact Kathy Brown
The Sacramento Bee
P.O. Box 15779
Sacramento CA 95852-0779
916-321-1007
fax 916-556-5605
e-mail kbrown@sacbee.com
Jackson, Miss., Feb. 13-15, Jackson State University
HBCU Newspaper Conference
Contact: Betty Anne Williams
5124 Linnean Terrace N.W.
Washington DC 20008
202-686-2961
e-mail: baw.editor@verizon.net
Austin, Texas, February (exact dates to be determined)
Austin (Texas) American-Statesman
Contact Sharon Roberts
Austin American-Statesman
305 S. Congress Ave.
Austin TX 78704
512-445-3660
fax 512-445-1713
e-mail sroberts@statesman.com
