Journal-isms
Under pressure from NABJ members, as expressed at the group’s annual convention last week, the organization will begin talks in the next 30 days with UNITY. At a meeting Friday, Richard Prince reports, members voiced their concern over NABJ’s decision to withdraw from the coalition of minority organizations. Bryan Monroe, former NABJ president and Unity convention chair in 2008, said at the meeting:
“The move to leave Unity was done in haste. I feel strongly about that.” There are “people who have their jobs because of relationships they built up” at Unity conferences. The problems with Unity “could have been worked out in an hour in a room by people who wanted to get things done. We’re NABJ,” and didn’t have to leave “just because we got our feelings hurt.”
Though they recognize the challenges of UNITY’s financial and governance structure, members hope there is a way to reconcile without jeopardizing NABJ’s own future. Regardless of how talks go, both groups have already scheduled separate conventions for 2012. || Previously: New York Times chooses UNITY conference over NABJ in 2012
