You're Invited: Journalism and Media Justice in the South

WILMINGTON — Do you want your news outlet to better serve the public interest in North Carolina? Are you covering the local movement for racial justice?

If you’re a reporter who wants to build skills in accessing public records, reporting on state government or understanding movements for social justice, please join us at the Free Movement Conference in Wilmington on March 23–25.

Free Press will facilitate the conference’s “Journalism and Media Justice in the South” track. The series of panels, workshops and discussions are part of our News Voices: North Carolina initiative, which focuses on connecting reporters and residents throughout the state.

Here are the details:

What: Free Movement Conference
When: March 23–25 (Fri.–Sun.)
Where: Hannah Block Historic USO/Community Arts Center, 120 South 2nd St., Wilmington
RSVP: Tickets are available here.

Here’s what’s on the agenda:

• MuckRock: Putting Public Records in Everyone's Hands: One of the leading open-government organizations in the country is coming to the Port City to train journalists, activists and anyone else who wants to learn how to access information under the Freedom of Information Act.
• How to Keep an Eye on Raleigh: A veteran journalist discusses how to keep tabs on the North Carolina General Assembly.
• How-To for Citizen Journalists: Led by student journalist Azuree Bateman and Professor Tamara Jeffries of Bennett College.
• Who Is Your Media Strategy? Free Press Organizer Alicia Bell shows community members, organizers and advocates how to build ongoing transformational relationships with local media.
• Legacy of Black Media: Featuring Free Press’ Joseph Torres, co-author of News for All the People; North Carolina Central University Journalism Professor Brett Chambers, who heads the Triangle Association of Black Journalists; and Octavia Rainey, columnist for The Carolinian.
• Truth, Fear and the Wilmington Water Crisis: With Lisa Sorg of North Carolina Policy Watch, Adam Wagner of StarNews, Wilmington-based activist Dana Sargent and Melanie Sill of the Democracy Fund.
• Anti-Oppression Media Strategies Toward Transgender Justice: Featuring Lewis Wallace of Scalawag, Reverend Debra J. Hopkins of Sisters Together and Reaching, Gabrielle Bellot of the Literary Hub and Kyle Dacuyan of PEN America, a national organization promoting freedom of expression.

Free Movement 2018 also includes sessions on ending mass incarceration, shutting down the school-to-prison pipeline, arts activism, grassroots fundraising and more.

Register now to attend the Free Movement Conference on March 23–25. Free Press Journalism Program Director Fiona Morgan is available for press inquiries at 919-491-1901, and at fmorgan@freepress.net.