Here is latest episode of The jPod -- interviews and conversations with a journalist. Today, I talk about the work of international female journalists and discrimination in the newsroom. My guest is Elle Toussi, an American journalist based in LA who started the nonprofit "In One Minute" as part of her platform for multimedia storytelling.

Click here for the podcast: www.jenniferkarchmer.com/podcasts.html#ElleToussi

Pay particular attention (go to 14:00) to the discussion of the lack of female trainers in the hostile environment training field. Can men effectively train women for dangerous assignments? Should more women be part of the teams preparing reporters for conflict reporting? 

Join the conversation via these hashtags and links and comment on this blog below:
#WomenMatter 
#WomenInJournalism
#PressFreedomMatters
Elle Toussi @ElleToussi 
SPJ @spj_Tweets
SPJ International Community @SPJ_IJC 
Jennifer Karchmer @journalist_jk

For Further Reading:
"Report: Violence against women journalists," by Annabelle Sreberny
“Violence and Harassment against Women in the News Media: A Global Picture"
“International News Safety Institute, Survey: violence against women journalists”

by Jennifer Karchmer
 
Gone are the days when you would open the classifieds of The New York Times and circle all of the news jobs you could find in the Employment section. In the mid-1990s, as I pounded the payment in the Big Apple, the stock market was flying and many of the news gigs were on Wall Street. I finally made my way to Prudential Securities as an editor, then the Bond Buyer as a municipal bond reporter and finally to CNN Money as a personal finance writer. Times were good for reporters and many other professions.
 
Today, it’s no secret the downsizing sword has slashed newsrooms — to domestic and international bureaus alike. Many of my news brethren have jumped ship, turning in their cub reporter hat for the PR flak jacket. Others have changed careers altogether. Unfortunately, parents are advising their college-bound teenagers with: “There is no money in news,” “Don’t choose journalism as your major,” “The pay is bad.” Like a broken record, this gripe about our profession has been spinning for 10 or 15 years.

But the tide is turning. Due (or thanks) to the hostile environment created by today’s White House toward the press corps, news agencies seem to be stepping up and, I believe, it is the best time to launch your journalism career and throw your hat in the ring. Amid the esoteric headlines screaming “alternative facts” and the oxymoronic “fake news,” today’s reporters are serving as the Trump Administration’s punching bag, and in some cases, they themselves are feeding the frenzy.

A new generation needs to pick up the reins and continue the legacy of journalism, the tenets that the profession sits on: questioning authority, holding government and those in power accountable and asking the hard questions. We need you now more than ever. Here’s some humble advice:
 
Find the jobs. If you’re a recent college grad boasting a journalism degree yet whining there are no jobs like your counterparts with humanities and social sciences degrees, then you’re in the wrong profession. A true reporter is out there digging, mining, pawing and pushing until the jobs surface. But you don’t even have to get your hands dirty these days. Hundreds (yes hundreds) of online portals list jobs.

Just last month, on March 29, I did a search on the website for The Wall Street Journal (a Dow Jones company, which is owned by NewsCorp), and 21 media jobs appeared, including copyeditor, reporter, photographer and producer. And those are positions just in New York City; WSJ has bureaus around the country. If you can deal with working for Rupert Murdoch, there’s a place for you to consider.

How about ProPublica, the independent news organization that does investigative pieces? They too are hiring: Web Producer, Engagement Reporter, Senior Editor, Data Reporter. Don’t forget about the obvious social media sites like LinkedIn, where I engage with companies directly, find recruiting managers and see job listings all the time for reporting and writing. We all know Facebook is great for posting birthday wishes for your cat and pictures of your favorite dessert, but I’m finding freelance, part-time and remote reporting jobs in FB groups dedicated solely to journalism. The best part about FB is that you can see who is posting the listing and you can send your resume directly to them, or request more information about qualifications and pay and get your foot in the door through networking.
 
Question Authority and Don’t Back Down. “If journalism is good, it is controversial, by its nature.” So said WikiLeaks’ Julian Assange in the 2013 documentary, “We Steal Secrets: The Story of WikiLeaks.” Whether or not you’re a fan of Assange (he has lots of detractors), you’ve got to admit that he hits the nail on the head when it comes to role of journalism in our society. Who are we who call ourselves journalists if not the very people who ask the hard questions and challenge authority?

​The Trump administration is playing offense with the media, using a Twitter feed and overly aggressive tactics to prey upon and mock the people in charge of taking him to task. Being hard-nosed comes with being a journalist, and it’s nothing to apologize for. Get your journalism degree and wave it proudly (even if you are making only $10 an hour).

Join a news organization. The Society of Professional Journalists, the International Society of Weekly Newspaper Editors, Reporters Without Borders, the Committee to Protect Journalists, the International Women’s Media Foundation, the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press – these are just a handful of the scores of journalism and media organizations that exist worldwide. They all do good work toward defending press freedom and it may be out of your pocketbook or schedule to join all of them. Many offer student discounts to join so if you’re even a few year’s out of college, now is a great time. Take one afternoon in front of your computer with a cup of coffee, and peruse each of these worthy organization’s websites and decide to support at least one this year.
 
Sure journalism is tough in terms of the workload, the pressure, the hours and schedule, but if you’re a true reporter and things like ledes, active voice and writing headlines are in your blood, then you know that the profession is right for you. Don’t let your parents, guidance counselor, friends studying business or anyone else downplay your passion. Now is not only a great time to choose the profession, it’s necessary.
 
“It is the role of good journalism to take on powerful abuses, and when powerful abuses are taken on, there is always a bad reaction.” – Julian Assange of WikiLeaks
 
An edited version of this piece was published in “Grassroots Editor: A Journal for Newspeople,” put out by the International Society of Weekly Newspaper Editors (ISWNE), vol. 58, no. 1. This essay was one of a dozen op-eds written by ISWNE members for the special Spring 2017 edition: “The tension between the president and the press: Are journalists affected?” Jennifer is a member of ISWNE.

Letter to friends and colleagues, written on the eve of the US Presidential inauguration:

During the past few weeks, since the reality of the new President has emerged, I have a very good friend who has been asking, "What can I do?” She is not only not in agreement with the President-Elect, but also finds him reprehensible due to his disrespectful behavior and comments. She is not one to sit around and expect things to change on their own. Well-spoken, knowledgeable, and intelligent, she is an activist and motivator. 

On this moment ahead of the Presidential Inauguration, I know she is not alone. A new president will be sworn in just a few hours from now, and some (many?) of us are scared about our freedom of speech, among other rights.

Today, I share actionable items, something that she, and you, can DO with your pocketbook of course, but more importantly, with your intelligent conversation with friends, your FB and social media feeds, and with your principles. I'm talking about following and reading up on the SPJ, the Society of Professional Journalists. 

SPJ is a nonprofit more than 100 years old that works every day to protect and safeguard our First Amendment rights. Although "journalist" is part of the name, the organization is comprised of journalists and non-journalists alike, individuals from all professions who believe that a strong, objective free press is the cornerstone of democracy. Unfortunately, we are faced with an incoming administration that may crush those rights and freedoms.

To show you the kind of work SPJ does, just this week, SPJ joined with more than 60 journalism organizations (yes, there are that many journalism organizations and more around the world) to request a meeting with PE Trump and VPE to discuss journalists' access to government. 

This is the kind of stuff SPJ does on a regular basis, pressuring the administration on behalf of the public. It has HQ in Indianapolis and chapters throughout the US. 

As a member of the Seattle SPJ chapter since 2009, I volunteer with the SPJ FOI (Freedom of Information) committee trying to preserve our right to access public records. Also, as a member of the SPJ International community, I work to improve the safety of journalists working in dangerous regions around the world.

So, click here for SPJs special campaign about joining.

But don't let this come across as a New Year's plea from yet another worthy non-profit desiring a much- needed donation. Really, it’s not so much about the money (although I’m sure they would love your donation), but getting yourself informed.

Read up on what the SPJ does on behalf of the public. Here's the press release with the information about the SPJ letter to PE Trump I've mentioned above.

And for those of you also saying, "What can I do?" these are ways to join in the protection of the First Amendment:

1. Look up #PressThePrez on social media.
2. Join SPJ today. 
3. Make a donation to SPJ, the biggest journalism organization in the United States.
4. Write to me, a freedom of the press advocate who covers free speech and First Amendment issues, and tell me how I can help strengthen your right to free speech. 

Lastly, I will share with you that since 2010 I have traveled internationally talking with reporters in Johannesburg and Pretoria (South Africa), Reykjavik (Iceland), Paris (France) and in other parts of the world, and time and again, they all have cited the United States as the bastion of press freedom. 

They say, “Jennifer​,​ you have the Washington Post, the New York Times, Watergate, Woodward & Bernstein.” They know the names and the institutions; in some cases, they have earned a journalism degree at the very competitive Columbia University (NY) studying our media. They look to the US as a role model in this regard.

If we cannot secure, preserve, and strengthen our free speech freedoms, especially during a time of threat, then how can reporters and the public in repressed regimes around the world have hope of democracy and their freedom of expression?

RESOURCES
Twitter: @spj_tweets
#PressThePrez 
FB: SPJ 

Thank you,
Jennifer Karchmer
Independent Journalist & Freedom of the Press Advocate
www.jenniferkarchmer.com

I first read John D'Agata in "The Lifespan of a Fact," a "true" account of the relationship between writer and editor/fact-checker. He and co-author Jim Fingal got heat for the veracity of the story, although who cares, I say. It was such an interesting display of how a journalist goes from story to source to writing to editing to publishing. The entire book is a conversation via email between the two. All writers who hire editors must read it. 

Then, you must read a (very long) Q&A with D'Agata where he talks about the art and talent of the essay, its intersection with journalism and poetry, and how his grad school non-fiction writing classes "...were exhilarating and liberating, but they also sometimes felt like we were winging it in ways that landed on the wrong side of bullshit."