Jobs posting

Since it's been so rare to see newsroom job listings in the past year, I thought it might be good to post these here:

1. The Rockford (Ill.) Register Star and http://www.facebook.com/l/;rrstar.com seek an editor to drive coverage for our daily Local and State report. The Local and State editor must be comfortable leading a reporting staff and supporting editors in a fast-paced multimedia newsroom. This requires editing for print and online and driving issue-oriented news enterprise that will reflect and shape our community, from concept to execution. You may be right for the job if you have strong language skills/news judgment, can edit copy from youngsters and senior staff, work well with all newsroom departments and can stay cool on deadline. You’ll need a minimum of five years editing at a daily newspaper to be considered for the job on our Metro Desk. Connections to the Midwest a plus. Salary up to $62,000, depending on experience.

The Register Star is a 60,000-circulation newspaper in northern Illinois. Our Web site, http://www.facebook.com/l/;rrstar.com, has more than 3.5 million page views per month. Rockford, the third-largest city in Illinois, is a growing market of more than 300,000 within easy driving distance of Chicago, Milwaukee and Madison.
Apply to Managing Editor Doug Gass, 99 E. State St., Rockford, IL 61104 or dgass@http://www.facebook.com/l/;rrstar.com.


2. The Rockford (Ill.) Register Star and http://www.facebook.com/l/;rrstar.com seek a general assignment reporter to join our multimedia newsroom. We're looking for a reporter who has three to five years daily newspaper experience and a Web-first mindset. You may be right for our Metro Desk if you have strong language skills, a thirst for perfection and the ability to stay cool on deadline. We also prize team players who are curious and proactive. Connections to the Midwest a plus. Salary range is $32,000 to $40,000, depending on experience.

Send a resume and clips to Managing Editor Doug Gass, 99 E. State St., Rockford, IL 61104 or dgass@http://www.facebook.com/l/;rrstar.com.

Sorting out health care

Weeding through the increasingly heated rhetoric about health care and trying to find a down-the-middle source of information, I find that FactCheck.org does a credible job of checking out the claims being made in ads, e-mails, etc. The site is pretty even-handed toward both sides of the political aisle.

'Close the J Schools'

From the Huffington Post, a blistering commentary on the value of J schools, especially for graduate degrees. From the lead:

These kids are paying upwards of $70,000 (the cost of Columbia's J-School, including living expenses) for a ghost's chance of landing a job, at pitiful pay, in an industry that is rapidly collapsing. What's going to be the next hot field in graduate study? Blacksmithing? Bloodletting? Steamship design?

It sounded like a freight train

Video from freight train's "black box" camera of the tornado that struck northern Illinois Jan. 7, 2008. The tornado derails the train near Harvard.

NINA survey

NINA members:
Please take a few minutes to complete a survey about NINA training opportunities. The results will help us plan workshops and conferences that address the needs of our members. Thanks!

Scholarships awarded

Five high-school journalists have been honored with scholarships from NINA. Story and photos here.

Deadline 2009: Will Newspapers Survive?

Here's a two-part video from NINA's June 18 panel discussion in Chicago. Part 1:



Part 2: