CAJ, CAJEF news innovation conference registration opens

TORONTO , Jan. 7 /CNW/ - The Canadian Association of Journalists and the CAJ Education Foundation are pleased to announce online registration is open for a groundbreaking conference where news staff and management can learn about emerging techniques, technologies and models to transform journalism for the 21st century.

Journalists, decision makers and members of the public can register for the Jan. 30 conference in Toronto by visiting http://www.caj.ca.

"We're making this conference affordable and accessible to everyone, including journalists who are out of work," said CAJ and conference chairman Saleem Khan.

A discounted early bird registration rate is in place until Jan. 15 . Unemployed journalists qualify for a deep discount equivalent to the student rate.

"We recognize that times are tough in our industry and want to do whatever we can to help our colleagues find their way toward better days," said CAJ president Mary Agnes Welch .

The conference focuses on skills, strategies and tactics that news organizations can start implementing immediately. It will be held on Jan. 30 at the MaRS Centre, a major innovation hub a stone's throw from Queen's Park.

"If you're a working journalist, senior media manager or executive, you must attend this conference," CAJ and conference chairman Saleem Khan said. "Journalists and news organizations need viable solutions to the real challenges they face today, not technological utopianism or academic speculation about the future of news.

"This conference offers practical and strategic tools to ask the right questions, get the right answers and put them to work," he said.

Journalists at the forefront of innovation and experts in other spheres will share knowledge that can advance news media, including new investigation, newsgathering, storytelling, engagement and operations approaches, technologies and models.

"There has never been a conference like this in Canada and the CAJEF is excited to lead the way in helping to reinvent journalism here," CAJEF president Robert Cribb said. "This is an important step to ensure that citizens remain educated, engaged and informed about the world, which is essential to a healthy democracy."

While the conference focuses on journalism and has primary appeal to news professionals, it is open to the public and the speakers, topics, practices and discussions will be of interest to people from all walks of life.

"We have no doubt that anyone who attends this conference will leave with new skills and ideas, a brighter perspective on journalism and a positive outlook on the opportunities available to us today and tomorrow," CAJ president Mary Agnes Welch said.

    
    Just a few of the leaders speaking at the conference:
    - Jim Brady, president, digital strategy, Allbritton Communications;
      former executive editor of WashingtonPost.com
    - John Cruickshank, publisher, Toronto Star
    - Michael Lee, chief strategy officer, Rogers
    - Patrick Lor, president, Fotolia North America
    - Rachel Nixon, director of digital media, CBC News
    - Kenny Yum, editor, GlobeandMail.com
    

The conference is structured in four tracks:

1. A novice to intermediate track will teach working journalists key principles of how and why to use existing and new tools, techniques and technologies, including social media such as Twitter and Facebook. Journalists will also be able to bolster traditional hard skills such as photography and video in sessions for reporters who increasingly work concurrently in multiple media on multiple deadlines.

2. An intermediate to advanced track for journalists already familiar with social media, online and computer fundamentals, who wish to build upon and apply those skills and knowledge to investigate and tell stories in new ways. Sessions will include computer-assisted reporting, sophisticated uses and applications of openly available online and software tools, visual and data-driven narratives and more.

3. An executive and senior manager track to help decision makers explore and understand strategic issues, news and business models, and to outline and demonstrate why and how they can capitalize on transformational shifts in media enabled by the Internet.

4. An "unconference"-style track to tap the knowledge of conference delegates and the public at large. The unconference model is a framework proven in the technology sector to enable attendees to self-organize, discover and engage in deep-knowledge grassroots sessions.

    
    Registration fees until Jan. 15:
    $45 - Student member
    $45 - Unemployed journalist
    $99 - Member
    $129 - Associate member
    $199 - Non-member


    Registration fees after Jan. 15:
    $50 - Student member
    $50 - Unemployed journalist
    $119 - Member
    $159 - Associate member
    $299 - Non-member
    

The Canadian Association of Journalists is Canada's largest professional organization for journalists from all media, with about 1,100 members across the country. The CAJ's main roles are to provide high-quality professional development for its members and public-interest advocacy.

The CAJ Education Foundation is a federally registered charitable foundation whose purpose is to improve understanding of Canada and its place in the world.

For further information: Chairman, Saleem Khan - [phone] or [email protected]; Mary Agnes Welch, CAJ president, [phone] or [phone]; Executive director, John Dickins, [phone]; To join the CAJ, please visit: http://www.caj.ca/membership