CAABJ Christmas Celebration and Dessert Reception - December 18

The Charlotte Area Association of Black Journalists invites you to our Christmas Celebration and Dessert Reception, taking place Sunday, December 18, 6-8 p.m. This festive evening will be held at DoubleTree by Hilton, in Gateway Village, 895 W. Trade St.

We'll celebrate a very productive year within our organization that included workshops, scholarship fundraisers, and a successful summer speakers series. We also want to celebrate you, our members, because without your support CAABJ would not be what it is today. Admission is free for CAABJ members; $5 for non-members/general public. Click here to RSVP for this event on Facebook.

Also, in the spirit of giving, we're offering a $10 discount on CAABJ membership. So if you're a current member who needs to renew, or prospective member who wants to join, please take advantage of this deal. You'll be able to pay by check at the event, or you can pay online by clicking here.

An Evening with Isabel Wilkerson - December 1

Levine Museum of the New South, Harvey B. Gantt Center for African-American Arts + Culture, and the Mint Museum are presenting a talk and reading by critically acclaimed author and Pulitzer Prize winner Isabel Wilkerson. "An Evening with Isabel Wilkerson" will take place this Thursday, December 1, 7 p.m. in McGlohon Theater at Spirit Square (345 N. College St.).

A former national correspondent and bureau chief at The New York Times, Wilkerson is the first black woman in American history to win a Pulitzer Prize in journalism. Inspired by her parents’ migration from the South, she devoted fifteen years to the research and writing of her first book, The Warmth of Other Suns. The result is a critically acclaimed best-seller and the first major work chronicling the decades-long migration of some six million African-Americans who fled the South. The Warmth of Other Suns follows the intimate and moving stories of three African–American families who left the only place they'd ever known—the rural, small town South—to find a better life in the urban North and West. Wilkerson's book made it onto President Obama's summer reading list, and Tom Brokaw described it as "An epic for all Americans who want to understand the making of our modern nation."

You can hear Wilkerson discuss her book and career in person at this upcoming event. There will be a book signing following her talk. CAABJ member Mary C. Curtis, who used to work with Wilkerson at The New York Times, will moderate the event.

Tickets are $12, and are on sale through the NC Blumenthal Performing Arts Center Box Office: carolinatix.org or 704-372-1000.

CAABJ's Wine Tasting a Success! Thank You

CAABJ's second annual wine tasting, held September 30 at Press Wine/Food, was a huge success. CAABJ member Alexis Mitchell, who was the lead planner for the event, gives a recap below.

The atmosphere of the tasting was awesome. Press Wine/Food is located in the heart of Uptown Charlotte and has a laid-back, winery feel. The mood of the event was enhanced by live jazz played by trombonist Buff Dillard. He kept our guest tapping their feet and singing tunes.

Photo by CAABJ member Jon Strayhorn, of MAC 330. Click here to see more.

At this year’s tasting, we added a new element, by introducing a silent auction. Businesses who participated--Perry’s Estate Jewelry, Brownlee Jewelers, Sirius XM, Chima Brazilian Steakhouse, and more--supported our event overwhelmingly with donations. To see everyone placing their bids on items was amazing. We set a new record in fundraising. A large portion of the money collected will go to the CAABJ Scholarship Fund, which benefits a college journalism student in our area.

On behalf of the Charlotte Area Association of Black Journalists, we thank all of you who came out to support the Jazzy Wine Tasting, especially our host venue, Press. If you missed the tasting, then you missed a treat. We hope to see you at next year’s event.

CAABJ's Jazzy Wine Tasting - September 30

Charlotte Area Association of Black Journalists (CAABJ) Presents

A Jazzy Wine Tasting

A Scholarship Fundraising Event

Friday, September 30, 2011

7 p.m.

Press Wine/Food

Mix, mingle, and enjoy good drinks and food at one of Uptown Charlotte’s trendiest wine bars. There will also be a special raffle/silent auction with items from Perry's Estate Jewelry, Chima's Brazilian Steakhouse, and many more. Proceeds from this event will benefit CAABJ’s college scholarship. Cost is $20 per ticket. Free parking available in gated parking deck at W. Trade and S. Mint streets. Press Wine/Food, 333 W. Trade St., presswinefood.com.

The Heat Is On: Summer Talk Series Finale with Police Chief Rodney Monroe on August 25

Charlotte-Mecklenburg Police Chief Rodney Monroe will be the third and final speaker in our summer talk series on Thursday, August 25, at 6:30 p.m. The event will be held at Showmars Restaurant, 2004 East Seventh Street. Chief Monroe will discuss crime, use of Tasers, DNC safety, and other topics as well as take our questions. Please arrive promptly because the chief will speak at 7 p.m. A brief CAABJ meeting will follow.

Click here to RSVP for the August 25th event on Facebook.

Dedrick Russell Elected NABJ Region III Director

Congratulations to CAABJ President Dedrick Russell on being elected Region III Director of the National Association of Black Journalists during the 2011 NABJ Convention, held August 3-7 in Philadelphia. Dedrick, who is the education reporter for WBTV, is now an NABJ board member for the next two years and will help guide the professional and student NABJ chapters in the seven states that make up Region III: Alabama, Florida, Georgia, Mississippi, North Carolina, South Carolina, and Tennessee.

Dedrick succeeds Ken Knight, of The Tampa Tribune, who served Region III well for several years. To learn more about Dedrick's recent election and his plans for Region III and the national chapter as a whole, click here to read this interview with him by Glenn Burkins for Qcitymetro.com.

NABJ was founded in 1975 and, currently with 3,500 members across the country, is the largest organization of journalists of color in the nation. The Charlotte Area Association of Black Journalists (CAABJ) has been a professional chapter of NABJ since relaunching in 2006. CAABJ will be holding its own 2012 board elections in coming months, so members--those interested in running for office and those who will be voting--should be on the lookout for details.

Mayor Anthony Foxx to Speak at CAABJ's Summer Series on July 14

After featuring Mecklenburg County Manager Harry Jones in the kickoff of its "The Heat Is On: Summer Talk Series" two weeks ago (click here to read Michaela Duckett's article for Qcitymetro.com), next up CAABJ brings in Charlotte Mayor Anthony Foxx. Mayor Foxx will speak this Thursday, July 14.

The event starts at 7 p.m. and will begin with a CAABJ meeting, and then Mayor Foxx will speak to the audience. CAABJ members and guests will have a candid conversation with the mayor about how he thinks the media covers city government. He could also give an update on the Democratic National Convention planning and other city projects. The event takes place at Kickstand Burgers-N-Bar, 1101 Central Ave. See you there!

NBC News' TheGrio.com Partners With Interactive One's NewsOne.com

Excerpt from press release

NEW YORK, July 11, 2011 /PRNewswire/ -- NBC News and Interactive One announced a partnership this week that will form the premier African-American digital news alliance with the widest audience reach in the industry. This unprecedented partnership leverages complementary assets from NBC News' TheGrio.com and Interactive One's NewsOne.com to create an expanded platform for African-American journalism. Based on comScore measurement, the combined net audience of NewsOne and TheGrio was 2.1 million in May 2011, up from 661,500 in May 2010. As the online usage of Black Americans continues to grow, this digital alliance between TheGrio and NewsOne presents a new opportunity to better connect, inform and engage the African-American audience.

Under the partnership that went into effect July 1, 2011, TheGrio.com and NewsOne.com will coordinate and share editorial content for both websites, and Interactive One will provide sales representation and oversee advertising sales operations for both entities. The relationship also opens up the potential for co-marketing and promotional opportunities in a shared portfolio that includes Interactive One's various digital assets, Radio One's 52 radio stations, TV One and Reach Media, and the many platforms of NBC News.

Click here to read full press release.

CAABJ's Mary C. Curtis Helps to 'Reboot Charlotte'

CAABJ Member Mary C. Curtis, an award-winning print and multimedia freelance journalist, is currently a correspondent for FOX Charlotte's new series, "Reboot Charlotte," which chronicles the city as it "emerges from the recession and is thrust onto the world stage with the Democratic National Convention."

In the video below, Curtis reports on Charlotte's growing cultural arts scene.

Visit www.rebootcharlotte.com for more coverage.

Meck County Manager Harry Jones to Speak at CAABJ's Summer Series on June 30

On Thursday, June 30 at 7 p.m., CAABJ will hold the first installment of its "The Heat Is On: Summer Talk Series." The guest speaker at this event will be Mecklenburg County Manager Harry Jones.

Jones will talk about issues facing the county, tell us if the county will see more budget cuts next year, and he'll share his views on how the media has covered county government. He'll also take questions from the audience. Join in on this candid conversation. There will be a CAABJ meeting as well. The event takes place at Dilworth Neighborhood Grille, 911 E. Morehead St.

Charlotte Mayor Anthony Foxx will be the next to speak in this series, scheduled for July 14. More details to come soon.

See Photos from CAABJ's 'End of Sweeps' Mixer

Click here to see dozens of photos from CAABJ's End of Sweeps After-Work Mixer, held May 26 at Bluprint Restaurant. Photos by Fred Braziel/Media Arts Collective.

See Photos from CAABJ's 2nd Annual Bowling Event

Click here to see more than 150 photos from CAABJ's Second Annual Bowling with the Journalists scholarship fundraising event, held May 13 at AMF University Lanes. Photos by Jon Strayhorn/Media Arts Collective.

Secrets to Accessing the Media Workshop - June 11

The Charlotte Area Association of Black Journalists presents its Sixth Annual Secrets to Accessing the Media Workshop on Saturday, June 11, 1-3 p.m. at Levine Museum of the New South, 200 E. 7th St., in Uptown Charlotte.

At the workshop, CAABJ will connect the community with members of the media—a panel of journalists from newspapers, magazines, TV, radio, and Internet—as they offer tips and advice on how to get stories told, explain how news at individual media outlets is produced, and answer questions from the audience. The panelists are:

April Bethea, Reporter, The Charlotte Observer
Glenn Burkins, Editor, Qcitymetro.com
Chris Dyches, Web Producer, WBTV
Eric Frazier, Reporter, The Charlotte Observer
Carlton Hargro, Editor-in-Chief, Creative Loafing
Trey Harmon, Associate Producer, WCNC-TV
Davida Jackson, Associate Producer, News14 Carolinas
BJ Murphy, On-Air Personality, WGIV Radio

The event is free and open to the public. Members of non-profits, HOA’s, community organizations, church and civic groups, etc., are encouraged to attend. Light refreshments will be served. Guests are asked to RSVP at rsvp@caabj.com. Free parking is available at Seventh Street Station (bring your ticket into the museum to be validated).

CAABJ thanks Levine Museum of the New South for hosting this workshop. For details on the exhibits and other events taking place at the museum, visit www.museumofthenewsouth.org.

End of Sweeps: After-Work Mixer

CAABJ is celebrating the end of sweeps with a mixer on Thursday, May 26, 7-9 p.m., and invites you to come out and mingle with the brightest journalists and media professionals the Queen City has to offer. There will be free appetizers and great drink specials, and it's taking place amongst the ambience of one of Uptown's newest restaurants, Bluprint Restaurant (227 W. Trade St.). This event is free and open to CAABJ members and non-members. For more on Bluprint, visit www.bluprintrestaurant.com.

Bowling with the Journalists

Charlotte Area Association of Black Journalists (CAABJ) Presents

Bowling with the Journalists

A Scholarship Fundraising Event

Friday, May 13th

7:30-10 p.m.

Enjoy a meet-and-greet with appetizers, and then bowl all you want for two hours in our reserved lanes. Invite your friends and colleagues to aid us in this great cause. Cost is $20, and that includes shoes. AMF University Lanes, 5900 N. Tryon St.

Advance ticket sales for this event have closed. You can still purchase admission at the door. Any questions, email us at info@caabj.com.

America’s Newsrooms Fail to Match U.S. Diversity

The following news was released today from the National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ).

The latest survey of journalists of color in newspaper and online newsrooms was released underscoring a widening diversity gap in terms of reflecting America, said officials of the National Association of Black Journalists.

The results of ASNE’s annual diversity survey show journalists of color – and especially African American staffers - in newspaper and online newsrooms declined for the third year in a row, from 5,500 to 5,300, though overall, according to the survey of full-time journalists conducted since 1978.

Especially hard hit are black journalists. ASNE noted that “there were 929 fewer black journalists in the 2010 survey than were recorded in 2001,” a drop off of 31.5 percent.

“Study after study shows diversity has taken a hit and now it is just being completely abandoned by news organizations in some of the most diverse cities in this country,” said NABJ President Kathy Y. Times. “Diversity is being ignored.”

The percentage of minorities in newsrooms totaled 12.79 percent, a decline of .47 percentage points from a year ago. Asian Americans dropped from 3.27 percent in 2010 to 3.10 in 2011; African Americans from 4.88 percent in 2010 to 4.68 in 2011; Hispanics from 4.63 percent in 2010 to 4.54 in 2011, and Native Americans constant at .48 percent.

The census showed 441 newspapers had no minorities on their full-time staff. This number has been growing since 2006.

Sweet Deal: Join CAABJ by Valentine's Day and Save

The Charlotte Area Association of Black Journalists already offers some of the most affordable membership rates of any professional organization around. And with a new, special promotion, CAABJ is sweetening the deal. Between now and Valentine's Day (February 14, 2011), you will save $10 off a one-year membership. This offer is for new memberships as well as renewals.

With this special offer, you can become a Full Member for only $40, an Associate Member for $25, or a Student Member for $10. Your membership will be good for 12 months from the time it is processed, and entitles you to all of the benefits and opportunities of being a member of CAABJ. Joining is quick and easy. Just click here to pay your membership online through our secure Paypal page.

By becoming a member of CAABJ, you’ll be investing in your career, industry, and community. CAABJ holds meetings, workshops, and social and networking events throughout the year. The organization also utilizes its resources to help connect members with professional development, jobs, freelance opportunities, internships, and it awards a scholarship annually.

For more details on membership, go to www.caabj.com/p/joinrenew-caabj-membership.html. If you have any questions, email info@caabj.com.