eChaser: September 2003


	Society of Professional Journalists, Fort Worth Professional Chapter Public Relations Society of America, Greater Fort Worth Chapter International Association of Business Communicators, Fort Worth Chapter eChaser archive [graphics format] September 2003 MEETINGS Next at IABC/Fort Worth ... Know Your Audience, and Write to It Do you use "style" for its own sake rather than having your audience in mind? How much do you really know about your readers? For communications professionals determined to make a point while keeping their audience attentive, Scott Cytron, ABC, will offer 10 tips for success at the next IABC meeting. Writers, managers and directors will leave with concrete examples they can take back to their staffs and clients. Cytron specializes in the accounting, medical, financial planning, collections and debt, and high-tech industries. He instructs communicators at a range of corporations with Jeff Herrington's Writing for Intranets and Web Sites and also is executive editor of the bimonthly national magazine Collection Advisor. He was president of the 330-member Dallas IABC chapter in 2000 and currently is coordinator of portfolio evaluators for the International Accreditation Board, a member of the International Audit Committee and deputy district director for IABC/U.S. District 5. * Time & date: 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 2 * Place: Petroleum Club, Carter-Burgess Plaza, 777 Main St., 39th floor * Parking: $2.50 in parking garage at Seventh and Commerce streets (get ticket validated) * Cost: $17 members, $22 nonmembers, $12 students * RSVP: Julie Trowbridge at trowbridgeja@c-b.com ----- Next at Greater Fort Worth PRSA ... Just Super-size It: One Big Media Training Seminar Army Reserve Lt. Col. (ret.) Joe Trahan, APR, has more than 20 years experience in government, association, educational and nonprofit public relations and lives in New Orleans. So you bring him to town for a 20-minute speech? No, you hand him a chunk of time and turn him loose on his favorite topics, including media relationships: friend or foe?; the gumbo soup of media training; press conferences that really work; and top dog barks first -- the spokesperson's role. He also will attend an informal reception/information exchange at the Renaissance Worthington on Tuesday evening, Sept. 9. The PRSA meeting is the next day. More from Heather Senter at hsenter@witherspoon.com. Dr. Trahan, former commander of the 314th Public Affairs Operations Center in Birmingham, Ala., has made training presentations across America and in Paraguay, Norway, England, France, Belgium and Germany. He teaches an average of 3,550 people annually in media relations skills. * Time & date: 11 a.m.-1:30 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 10 * Place: Petroleum Club, Carter-Burgess Plaza, 777 Main St., 39th floor * Parking: free valet in parking garage at Seventh and Commerce streets (get ticket validated) * Cost: $20 members, $23 nonmembers, $18 students * RSVP by noon Sept. 8: rsvp@fortworthprsa.org ----- Next at Fort Worth SPJ ... Far from Bliss: S-T Reporters Go Inside Baylor Scandal What's it like to cover one of the biggest ongoing news stories of the year? Reporters who have been on top of the scandal at Baylor University will give a firsthand account at the September meeting. Star-Telegram investigative reporter Danny Robbins, S-T sports writer Jeff Caplan and others will discuss what was involved in getting the story, working with sources and additional aspects. Maybe someone will describe the energized atmosphere in the newsroom that Friday evening before the story broke in the Saturday editions. The checking and rechecking of facts, the sense of accomplishment, the professional pride in, frankly, thwapping the competition made for vivid memories. Robbins broke the story about the secretly made tapes that revealed coach Dave Bliss discussing a plan to cover up NCAA violations by portraying a deceased player, Patrick Dennehy Jr., as a drug dealer. Robbins, who continues to work on the story, has plenty of experience dealing with college sports scandals, having covered the troubles at SMU in the 1980s and, more recently, Bob Knight's son's apparel business at Texas Tech. * Time & date: 1 p.m. Saturday, Sept. 27 * Place: ballroom cantina at Joe T. Garcia's Mexican food restaurant, 2201 N. Commerce St. * Cost: $13 members, $18 nonmembers, $5 students; cash bar; just to hear the program -- free * Menu: Joe T.'s famous enchilada dinner * RSVP: Kay Pirtle at mkpirtle@yahoo.com ================================================= STRAIGHT STUFF The Sherman Herald Democrat and the FOI Foundation of Texas are teaming to co-host "Responsible Rights: Government in the Sunshine," a free seminar on public records and open meetings, Monday, Sept. 29, at the Grayson County College Center for WorkPlace Learning in Denison. The traveling symposium on the Texas Public Information Act and the Texas Open Meetings Act is directed toward reporters and elected officials and presented by FOI attorneys. Texas FOI Handbooks will be available for $20. Registration is due Sept. 22. The Herald Democrat is providing lunch. Organizers Holli Schaub and Kim Svatek note that the daylong seminar is one of only two to be held this year statewide. "This is something that Kim and I have pushed for in the last year," Schaub said, "and we are so excited that it is finally happening." For information, call (214) 977-6658 or go to foift.org. Directions are at grayson.edu/tour/location.html. To RSVP, e-mail holli@herald-democrat.com or call (903) 893-8181 ext. 2281. ... PR types and the merely helpful -- churches, civic and professional organizations, neighborhood associations, businesses -- are rallying behind the "Shower of Love," a county-wide baby shower to benefit women who give birth at Tarrant County's public facility, John Peter Smith Hospital. Volunteers are needed to staff donation sites for new or gently used infant-care and nursery goods Oct. 10-12 at Bass Pro Shop adjacent to Grapevine Mills mall and in the parking lots at Hulen Mall and Northeast Mall. Items will be collected by Partners Together for Health, the JPS foundation, then distributed to the patients and families by social service staff members and hospital volunteers. Partners director Janet Neff emphasizes that a shower can be hosted in anyone's home, office or club. "Just send e-mails to everyone and collect baby goodies," she says. JPS records almost 6,000 births each year, and roughly half of these families cannot afford what most would consider basic necessities to provide their babies with a healthy start in life. A Shower of Love for Parkland Hospital in Dallas raised $650,000 in items and money in its first two years and helped more than 2,000 families, all making less than $20,000 annually. This year's Dallas goals are $750,000 in donated items and assisting more than 2,500 families. More at www.showeroflove.org or from Partners at (817) 920-7310 or the Fit Life Foundation in Plano, (972) 578-5719. ... Mention influence and famous people come to mind, but Connie Hurn, M.Ed., asserts that the not-so-famous can have remarkable influence, too. "You may not know it, but you have tremendous potential for having influence," she says. "Or you may already have it but don't know how to use it effectively." Hurn, president of Connie Hurn Consulting Services, will present an all-day seminar, "Your Influence ... Use It or Lose It!," on Tuesday, Sept. 16, in the Camellia Room of the Fort Worth Garden Center, 3220 Botanic Garden Blvd. Registration begins at 8:30 a.m., with workshops from 9 to noon and an experience-based question-and-answer session from 1 to 4:30. Participants are encouraged to bring a lunch and network during the noon hour. The seminar, supported by the Fort Worth Women's Business Center, will emphasize how to become a leader instead of a follower and how to earn trust and respect, create more productive relationships, balance responsibilities, focus on priorities, make better and faster decisions, and communicate more effectively. A workbook will be provided. Cost is $139 through Sept. 9 or $165 at the door. Park free. More from cfhurn@msn.com, or call (817) 236-8208. ... The man who managed the media for Elizabeth Smart's family for more than 10 months will tell how to avoid media pitfalls during a crisis at a teleseminar Thursday, Sept. 4, from 2 to 3 p.m. in UNT Health Science Center room EAD-314, third floor of the main building, 3500 Camp Bowie Blvd. Chris Thomas, owner/officer with The Intrepid Group in Salt Lake City, will present seven elements for managing a crisis. RSVP at rsvp@fortworthprsa.org by Sept. 1. Sept. 4, coincidentally, is the RSVP deadline (same e-) for a second PRSA teleseminar, "Working with Celebrities: Trade Secrets from a Pro," from 2 to 3 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 9, at Alcon Laboratories. Cost is $10. Speaker Rita Tateel, founder/president of The Celebrity Source, matches celebrities with corporate and nonprofit PR programs, special events and ad campaigns. ... CPA Vickey Hons will examine financial and accounting issues relevant to small businesses at the PR Consultants Special Interest Group meeting at 11:30 a.m. Friday, Sept. 19. Questions submitted ahead of time will be addressed. Organizer Nancy Farrar asks participants: "Do you prefer the Central Market community room, where you can bring your lunch and it's free, or would you like me to book a restaurant? Maybe something new." Reach Farrar at (817) 937-1557. ... IABC/Dallas has your Tuesday, Sept. 9, all booked, with online consultant Jerry Stevenson, co-author of Ragan's Almanac of Top Intranets, fronting a morning seminar on what makes the perfect Web-print-e-mail integrated communications package and career expert John McDorman of Transition Consulting sharing tips over lunch on how to keep a career in this volatile job market from capsizing. Everything happens at the Crowne Plaza North Dallas Hotel, 14315 Midway Road. More at dallasiabc.com. ... Marketplace ethics come under scrutiny at the Dallas PRSA luncheon Wednesday, Sept. 10, at the Park City Club, 5956 Sherry Lane, as Brian Wenning, TXU ethics and compliance director; Karen Blumenthal, Dallas bureau chief of The Wall Street Journal; and Rita Kirk Whillock, chair of the SMU Division of Corporate Communications and Public Affairs, discuss the pressures and perils of doing business today and the absolute necessity of doing it with integrity. Information at prsadallas.org/calendar.html. SPJ national update: just trying to find that balanced fairness, and it's an Aggie joke, right? A federal judge denied Fox News Channel's request for an injunction to block Al Franken's new book, which uses the Fox slogan "fair and balanced," and Fox dropped the suit three days later. U.S. District Judge Denny Chin said the book, "Lies and the Lying Liars Who Tell Them: A Fair and Balanced Look at the Right," is a parody protected by the First Amendment. "There are hard cases and there are easy cases. This is an easy case. This case is wholly without merit, both factually and legally," the judge said, adding, "It is ironic that a media company, which should be protecting the First Amendment, is seeking to undermine it." Franken called the ruling a victory for satirists everywhere, "even bad satirists." The book was moved up from its September rollout because of publicity from the suit. Penguin Group added 50,000 copies to the original run of 270,000 after the lawsuit was filed. On the day of Chin's ruling, Aug. 22, the book was No. 2 on Amazon.com's best-seller list, behind "The South Beach Diet." ... SPJ has formally urged Texas A&M not to kill its journalism department. Faced with state funding cuts and too few j-profs for too many majors, the university asked the A&M Board of Regents and the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board to allow the department to go away next August. SPJ asks that the regents and coordinating board deny the request and instead help the university strengthen the program. San Antonio Express-News business reporter Travis Poling, SPJ regional director for Texas and Oklahoma, called it "unthinkable that a school as steeped in tradition as Texas A&M would rather discontinue an important department than reinvigorate the tradition of providing the building blocks for excellence in journalism." Meanwhile, in the grand 12th Typesetter tradition, student editors at The Battalion ran a headline -- THE TEXAS A&M ADMINISTRATION'S VISION OF JOURNALISM -- and a testy statement on a page that otherwise was as blank as Bevo's stare. They also gathered 2,000 signatures on a petition to save the program. SPJ national update II: taking it to the AG. In response to Attorney General John Ashcroft's talking up the USA Patriot Act, the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press issued a list of concerns. In particular, Section 215 lets prosecutors obtain "any tangible thing" -- not just "business records," as the Department of Justice contends -- for investigations involving foreign intelligence or international terrorism. A Justice official acknowledged last year in a letter to Congress that such an order could be applied to a newsroom, but the department will not say whether or how often it has been. More at rcfp.org/news/releases/view.cgi?2003_08_20_ashcroft.txt. On Aug. 5, a legal advocacy group challenged in federal court in Los Angeles the constitutionality of the act. The Center for Constitutional Rights, based in New York, argues that it infringes on free-speech protections by outlawing "expert advice and assistance" to groups that the United States has labeled terrorist organizations, even if the assistance is humanitarian and has no connection to terrorism. The previous week, the ACLU sued over a provision that allows the government to secretly seize business records in terror investigations. SPJ national update III: William Nessen walks. The U.S. journalist detained in June while covering the separatist war in Indonesia was convicted of immigration offenses and freed after 40 days in jail. Nessen was deported and barred from entering the country for one year. His release came after the Banda Aceh District Court on Aug. 2 sentenced him to one month and 10 days in jail with the time he had already spent in detention -- one month and nine days -- deducted from the sentence. ----- News for That Moment of Sharp Recognition In western nations, would-be journalists often create weblogs to quench that reporting/commentary thirst. But in South Korea, the publishing instinct has taken root in one of the country's most influential media outlets: OhmyNews, an experiment in "citizen journalism." Anyone who registers with the site can become a paid reporter, and more than 26,000 people, from professional writers to chambermaids, have done so, supplementing a staff of more than 40 editors and reporters who publish about 200 stories a day. The site -- an unpredictable blend of the Drudge Report and a traditional, but partisan, newspaper, its stories tending to be anti-corporate, anti-government, anti-American and oozing with emotion -- attracts an estimated two million readers daily and has been credited with helping to elect South Korea's new progressive president, Roh Moo-hyun. Editor/founder Oh Yeon-ho, a veteran investigative journalist, started OhmyNews in 2000 in reaction to the country's entrenched conservative media. He wanted readers to sit up in exclamation, hence the play on "Oh my -- !" It's here, but it's in, well, Korean. ================================================= PEOPLE & PLACES Star-Telegram Northeast Tarrant political reporter John Kirsch has been selected as a Knight Fellow to attend a "Government Secrecy: Local, State, National" seminar Sept. 7-12 at the Knight Center for Specialized Journalism at the University of Maryland in College Park. ... Northeast education writer Jennifer Radcliffe has been invited to attend a seminar on how the No Child Left Behind Act will influence testing and instruction and other issues related to statewide testing. The seminar, organized by the Hechinger Institute and the Center on Education Policy, will be Sept. 5-7 in San Francisco. ... Verlie Edwards, who as chapter president spearheaded the last, great Texas Gridiron Show in 1996, has been elected 2003-04 vice chairman of the Governmental Affairs Directors Institute for all Realtor associations in the United States. She'll be chairman in 2004-05. Kudos & Contracts ... For the fifth year, Envision Works will lead Fort Worth's Cowtown Brush Up in its fund-raising efforts, Web development and marketing and sponsorship communications. Also at Envision Works, The Plant People selected EW as its Web consulting and marketing partner. ... WhiteWater Consulting Group, LLC has retained the LaChapelle Agency in Bedford to create a media kit and help develop a public relations plan. WWCG provides a full range of leadership, education and development training; business and cultural change strategies; and organizational assessments for clients that have included Perrier Group of America (now Nestlé Waters North America), Walt Disney World Resorts, McDonnell-Douglas Aircraft Co., Honda Motors, UC Berkeley and Advance Bank, Australia. Kudos & Contracts II ... InterStar Marketing & Public Relations has joined Venturemark and CVA Advertising & Marketing on a team to develop a national branding and marketing program for The Buxton Co. The Texas-based Buxton is an industry leader in market research technology used by cities, economic development groups and major retail outlets including Pier 1 Imports, Container Store, FedEx and Microsoft. InterStar will coordinate national trade media and public relations efforts, while Venturemark will provide Web-based strategies and CVA will oversee the graphics, advertising and collateral materials. Kudos & Contracts III ... Steele & Freeman has selected Witherspoon Advertising and Public Relations to help with marketing and PR. Witherspoon has already completed a four-color brochure, and ongoing activities will include producing additional collateral materials. Steele & Freeman has more than 20 years of area general contracting experience in a variety of fields -- educational, medical, industrial, commercial and auto dealerships -- and is consistently ranked among the top 10 general contractors in Tarrant County. ================================================= GET A JOB The Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra Association seeks a development officer. Requirements include a college degree, organizational and communication skills, strong expository writing ability and a command of grammar and spelling, with two years development experience preferred. Professionalism, discretion and teamwork are essential. Knowledge of orchestral music is helpful, but not required. Salary commensurate with qualifications and experience; a comprehensive health plan, pension plan and paid parking are provided. Send cover letter and resume to Development Jobs, Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra Association, 330 E. Fourth St. Suite 200, Fort Worth 76102, or e-mail devjobs@fwsymphony.org. ... Partners Together for Health, the foundation for JPS Health Network, still has an opening for a grant writer. Must have excellent writing skills, including ability to prioritize not only copy but schedule. Understands what deadlines are and doesn't panic. Experience preferred. Contact Kimberly Britton with the foundation, (817) 920-7331, or Bruce Smith in JPS Human Resources, (817) 920-7371. ================================================= NEW MEMBERS PRSA ... Lauren Olson, TWU Law School ... Kendal Smith, Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth ... Cathy Lynn Walensky, TTI Inc. ... Susan Reaves Chapel, Weatherford ISD SPJ ... Kim Svatek, Sherman Herald Democrat ================================================= COMINGS & GOINGS Additions ... reporter Penny Cockerell to The Associated Press in Dallas (first day Sept. 22) after 11 years with The Daily Oklahoman, where she won first-place awards in state and regional competitions for her coverage of the Oklahoma City bombing and the subsequent trials in Denver, the crash of the space shuttle Columbia and other major stories throughout the Southwest; she also was assigning editor for the Oklahoman's Millennium series Exits ... at the S-T: J.T. Rushing, taking his interest in politics to the land of hanging chads and The Florida Times-Union, where he will be state Capitol bureau chief, working out of Tallahassee (they like folk singers there, too); his last day with the Star-Telegram is Sept. 12 ... business reporter Ginger Richardson, moving to Phoenix ================================================= READING MATTERS "Benjamin Franklin: An American Life" / Walter Isaacson / Simon & Schuster An urban entrepreneur who rose up the social ladder, from leather-aproned shopkeeper to dining with kings, the book's namesake in his full 84 years was America's best scientist, inventor, diplomat, writer and business strategist and also one of its most practical political thinkers. He organized neighborhood constabularies and international alliances, local lending libraries and national legislatures. He combined two types of lenses to create bifocals and two concepts of representation to foster the nation's federal compromise. He was the only man who shaped all the founding documents of America: the Albany Plan of Union, the Declaration of Independence, the treaty of alliance with France, the peace treaty with England, and the Constitution. He proved by flying a kite that lightning was electricity, and he invented a rod to tame it. But the most interesting thing that he invented, and continually reinvented, was himself. America's first great publicist and a lover of life in the lustful margins, he carefully crafted his own persona, portrayed it in public, and polished it for posterity. Benjamin Franklin, it says inside the book cover, is "the Founding Father who winks at us." As readers of author Isaacson's colorful narrative might assert, he also is a fine read. ================================================= RESOURCES No question that acronyms, those pronounceable words formed from the first letters of a descriptive phrase, are fundamental to 21st-century communication. They're the ultimate "in" language, too, up there with slang and the latest profanity. There's a dandy acronym translator (DAT) at acronymfinder.com. Type the acronym in question, such as "ASAP," in either upper- or lowercase letters. ... Hammering home the idea that they're here for you, the Ace Hardware people offer "Answers @ Ace" with help files and even interactive online movies on everything from installing and repairing gutters to calculating grass seed to repair projects such as painting a room, waterproofing basements and conserving energy. Go to www.acehardware.com/home/index.jsp, click on the "Project How-To's" link to get down to business. ================================================= PRESIDENT'S CORNER Roger Partridge, Greater Fort Worth PRSA As we head into fall, opportunities abound. First up is the Elizabeth Smart-and-PR teleseminar Thursday, Sept. 4, at UNT Health Science Center followed by the teleseminar on working with celebrities Tuesday, Sept. 9, at Alcon Laboratories. Next there's the super-sized "Train the Trainer" program with internationally recognized media relations expert Joe Trahan, APR, on Wednesday, Sept. 10, at the Petroleum Club. Our second professional development seminar of the year will be Wednesday, Oct. 8, when Gerald Grotta, Ph.D., and Julie O'Neil, Ph.D., will present a seminar and luncheon program on "Public Relations Measurement and Evaluation on a Limited Budget." We asked what topics interested you, and this was No. 1. Keep talking, we're listening. Details next month. For information on all of our activities, go to fortworthprsa.org. Make reservations at rsvp@fortworthprsa.org. Thank you to the dedicated and hard-working board of directors for planning the chapter's educational opportunities. And congratulations to our newest accredited members: Mary Dulle, APR, with Alcon Laboratories and David Hogan, APR, at Abilene Christian University. ----- PRESIDENT'S MESSAGE Lori De La Cruz, IABC/Fort Worth I keep hearing that fall is right around the corner, and I can't wait. Until then, cool off with IABC/Fort Worth on Tuesday, Sept. 2, as consultant/teacher Scott Cytron, ABC, will remind us that our audience comes first and then suggest a double handful of ways we can make sure that happens. Do we sometimes, subconsciously, work for the approval of colleagues before the client? You know we do. Scott's topic is as immediate at that Petroleum Club pie a lá mode calling your name (and better for you!). Thank you, Gus Whitcomb, managing director of strategic communications at American Airlines, for a great program in August. Gus explored the virtues of being ready for what follows a crisis. The crisis hurts, but the aftershocks can be ruinous if you're not prepared. Also, he said, try to have your life in some semblance of order at all times. As an example, never have a spouse and a spouse-to-be show up at the same time; if it isn't a crisis before they get there, it will be after they arrive. There you have your own disaster, making for some tricky PR and pretty fancy footwork. IABC/Fort Worth will unveil an updated logo, improved Web site and luncheon sponsorship opportunities at the September meeting. We're back in our regular room on the 39th floor, so I hope to see you there ... for IABC Tuesday! ----- OVER & OUT John Dycus, Fort Worth SPJ Chapter voters -- half of the membership cast a ballot -- approved by acclamation the slate of officers and directors for 2003-04, and a robust crowd it is: president Larry Lutz (Star-Telegram), scholarships VP Gayle Reaves-King (Fort Worth Weekly), programs VP Mark Horvit (Star-Telegram), membership VP Dino Chiecchi (The Associated Press) and directors Gary Hardee (Star-Telegram), John Jenkins (KXAS-Channel 5), Mike Martinez (Knight Ridder Online), Tony Pederson (SMU), John Sparks (KTVT-Channel 11) and Tom Williams (Haynes and Boone, LLP). New to this leadership mix are directors Jenkins, Williams, Martinez and Pederson, and we especially welcome them. Now let's go do something. ... Stop this man before he hyperventilates. "In the first year that chapters have been ranked using a star system, our chapter received the maximum number -- four," reports prez Larry Lutz. "This recognition, announced last month, is a great tribute to our members, board, officers and especially last year's hard-working program directors, Penny Cockerell and Mark Horvit. National also credits us with 103 'certified chapter members,' which earns us three votes at the convention Sept. 11-13 in Tampa. Thanks for all you do! All of you!" ... Lutz, Horvit and executive secretary Kay Pirtle will represent the chapter in Florida. ... From the science beat: In a twist on the accepted wisdom that food we enjoy must be bad for us, researchers have found that eating one or more pizzas a week dramatically reduced the incidence of some cancers. In a study of 8,000 people, determined pizza-eaters were 59 percent less likely to get cancer of the esophagus, while the risk of developing colon cancer fell by 26 percent. No word on what all this pizza stuffing did to the odds of dying of a heart attack. Wait, this just in. The pro-pizza research was conducted in Milan, Italy. Closing words: "I looked up the definition of 'liberal' in a Random House dictionary. It gave the synonyms for 'liberal' as 'progressive,' 'broad-minded,' 'unprejudiced,' 'beneficent.' The antonyms it offered: 'reactionary' and 'intolerant.' I have always suspected those fine folks at Random House of being liberals. You just can't trust anybody these days." -- Walter Cronkite in his first column for King Features Syndicate

Cytron specializes in the accounting, medical, financial planning, collections and debt, and high-tech industries. He instructs communicators at a range of corporations with Jeff Herrington's Writing for Intranets and Web Sites and also is executive editor of the bimonthly national magazine Collection Advisor. He was president of the 330-member Dallas IABC chapter in 2000 and currently is coordinator of portfolio evaluators for the International Accreditation Board, a member of the International Audit Committee and deputy district director for IABC/U.S. District 5.

* Time & date: 11:30 a.m.-1 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 2

* Place: Petroleum Club, Carter-Burgess Plaza, 777 Main St., 39th floor

* Parking: $2.50 in parking garage at Seventh and Commerce streets (get ticket validated)

* Cost: $17 members, $22 nonmembers, $12 students

* RSVP: Julie Trowbridge at trowbridgeja@c-b.com

Next at Greater Fort Worth PRSA ...

Just Super-size It: One Big Media Training Seminar

Army Reserve Lt. Col. (ret.) Joe Trahan, APR, has more than 20 years experience in government, association, educational and nonprofit public relations and lives in New Orleans. So you bring him to town for a 20-minute speech? No, you hand him a chunk of time and turn him loose on his favorite topics, including media relationships: friend or foe?; the gumbo soup of media training; press conferences that really work; and top dog barks first -- the spokesperson's role.

* Time & date: 11 a.m.-1:30 p.m. Wednesday, Sept. 10

* Place: Petroleum Club, Carter-Burgess Plaza, 777 Main St., 39th floor

* Parking: free valet in parking garage at Seventh and Commerce streets (get ticket validated)

* Cost: $20 members, $23 nonmembers, $18 students

* RSVP by noon Sept. 8: rsvp@fortworthprsa.org

Next at Fort Worth SPJ ...

Far from Bliss: S-T Reporters Go Inside Baylor Scandal

Robbins broke the story about the secretly made tapes that revealed coach Dave Bliss discussing a plan to cover up NCAA violations by portraying a deceased player, Patrick Dennehy Jr., as a drug dealer. Robbins, who continues to work on the story, has plenty of experience dealing with college sports scandals, having covered the troubles at SMU in the 1980s and, more recently, Bob Knight's son's apparel business at Texas Tech.

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The Sherman Herald Democrat and the FOI Foundation of Texas are teaming to co-host "Responsible Rights: Government in the Sunshine," a free seminar on public records and open meetings, Monday, Sept. 29, at the Grayson County College Center for WorkPlace Learning in Denison. The traveling symposium on the Texas Public Information Act and the Texas Open Meetings Act is directed toward reporters and elected officials and presented by FOI attorneys. Texas FOI Handbooks will be available for $20. Registration is due Sept. 22. The Herald Democrat is providing lunch. Organizers Holli Schaub and Kim Svatek note that the daylong seminar is one of only two to be held this year statewide. "This is something that Kim and I have pushed for in the last year," Schaub said, "and we are so excited that it is finally happening." For information, call (214) 977-6658 or go to foift.org. Directions are at grayson.edu/tour/location.html. To RSVP, e-mail
holli@herald-democrat.com or call (903) 893-8181 ext. 2281. ...

PR types and the merely helpful -- churches, civic and professional organizations, neighborhood associations, businesses -- are rallying behind the "Shower of Love," a county-wide baby shower to benefit women who give birth at Tarrant County's public facility, John Peter Smith Hospital. Volunteers are needed to staff donation sites for new or gently used infant-care and nursery goods Oct. 10-12 at Bass Pro Shop adjacent to Grapevine Mills mall and in the parking lots at Hulen Mall and Northeast Mall. Items will be collected by Partners Together for Health, the JPS foundation, then distributed to the patients and families by social service staff members and hospital volunteers. Partners director Janet Neff emphasizes that a shower can be hosted in anyone's home, office or club. "Just send e-mails to everyone and collect baby goodies," she says. JPS records almost 6,000 births each year, and roughly half of these families cannot afford what most would consider basic necessities to provide their babies with a healthy start in life. A Shower of Love for Parkland Hospital in Dallas raised $650,000 in items and money in its first two years and helped more than 2,000 families, all making less than $20,000 annually. This year's Dallas goals are $750,000 in donated items and assisting more than 2,500 families. More at www.showeroflove.org or from Partners at (817) 920-7310 or the Fit Life Foundation in Plano, (972) 578-5719. ...

Mention influence and famous people come to mind, but Connie Hurn, M.Ed., asserts that the not-so-famous can have remarkable influence, too. "You may not know it, but you have tremendous potential for having influence," she says. "Or you may already have it but don't know how to use it effectively." Hurn, president of Connie Hurn Consulting Services, will present an all-day seminar, "Your Influence ... Use It or Lose It!," on Tuesday, Sept. 16, in the Camellia Room of the Fort Worth Garden Center, 3220 Botanic Garden Blvd. Registration begins at 8:30 a.m., with workshops from 9 to noon and an experience-based question-and-answer session from 1 to 4:30. Participants are encouraged to bring a lunch and network during the noon hour. The seminar, supported by the Fort Worth Women's Business Center, will emphasize how to become a leader instead of a follower and how to earn trust and respect, create more productive relationships, balance responsibilities, focus on priorities, make better and faster decisions, and communicate more effectively. A workbook will be provided. Cost is $139 through Sept. 9 or $165 at the door. Park free. More from cfhurn@msn.com, or call (817) 236-8208. ...

The man who managed the media for Elizabeth Smart's family for more than 10 months will tell how to avoid media pitfalls during a crisis at a teleseminar Thursday, Sept. 4, from 2 to 3 p.m. in UNT Health Science Center room EAD-314, third floor of the main building, 3500 Camp Bowie Blvd. Chris Thomas, owner/officer with The Intrepid Group in Salt Lake City, will present seven elements for managing a crisis. RSVP at rsvp@fortworthprsa.org by Sept. 1. Sept. 4, coincidentally, is the RSVP deadline (same e-) for a second PRSA teleseminar, "Working with Celebrities: Trade Secrets from a Pro," from 2 to 3 p.m. Tuesday, Sept. 9, at Alcon Laboratories. Cost is $10. Speaker Rita Tateel, founder/president of The Celebrity Source, matches celebrities with corporate and nonprofit PR programs, special events and ad campaigns. ...

CPA Vickey Hons will examine financial and accounting issues relevant to small businesses at the PR Consultants Special Interest Group meeting at 11:30 a.m. Friday, Sept. 19. Questions submitted ahead of time will be addressed. Organizer Nancy Farrar asks participants: "Do you prefer the Central Market community room, where you can bring your lunch and it's free, or would you like me to book a restaurant? Maybe something new." Reach Farrar at (817) 937-1557. ...

IABC/Dallas has your Tuesday, Sept. 9, all booked, with online consultant Jerry Stevenson, co-author of Ragan's Almanac of Top Intranets, fronting a morning seminar on what makes the perfect Web-print-e-mail integrated communications package and career expert John McDorman of Transition Consulting sharing tips over lunch on how to keep a career in this volatile job market from capsizing. Everything happens at the Crowne Plaza North Dallas Hotel, 14315 Midway Road. More at dallasiabc.com. ... Marketplace ethics come under scrutiny at the Dallas PRSA luncheon Wednesday, Sept. 10, at the Park City Club, 5956 Sherry Lane, as Brian Wenning, TXU ethics and compliance director; Karen Blumenthal, Dallas bureau chief of The Wall Street Journal; and Rita Kirk Whillock, chair of the SMU Division of Corporate Communications and Public Affairs, discuss the pressures and perils of doing business today and the absolute necessity of doing it with integrity. Information at prsadallas.org/calendar.html.

SPJ national update: just trying to find that balanced fairness, and it's an Aggie joke, right? A federal judge denied Fox News Channel's request for an injunction to block Al Franken's new book, which uses the Fox slogan "fair and balanced," and Fox dropped the suit three days later. U.S. District Judge Denny Chin said the book, "Lies and the Lying Liars Who Tell Them: A Fair and Balanced Look at the Right," is a parody protected by the First Amendment. "There are hard cases and there are easy cases. This is an easy case. This case is wholly without merit, both factually and legally," the judge said, adding, "It is ironic that a media company, which should be protecting the First Amendment, is seeking to undermine it." Franken called the ruling a victory for satirists everywhere, "even bad satirists." The book was moved up from its September rollout because of publicity from the suit. Penguin Group added 50,000 copies to the original run of 270,000 after the lawsuit was filed. On the day of Chin's ruling, Aug. 22, the book was No. 2 on Amazon.com's best-seller list, behind "The South Beach Diet." ... SPJ has formally urged Texas A&M not to kill its journalism department. Faced with state funding cuts and too few j-profs for too many majors, the university asked the A&M Board of Regents and the Texas Higher Education Coordinating Board to allow the department to go away next August. SPJ asks that the regents and coordinating board deny the request and instead help the university strengthen the program. San Antonio Express-News business reporter Travis Poling, SPJ regional director for Texas and Oklahoma, called it "unthinkable that a school as steeped in tradition as Texas A&M would rather discontinue an important department than reinvigorate the tradition of providing the building blocks for excellence in journalism." Meanwhile, in the grand 12th Typesetter tradition, student editors at The Battalion ran a headline -- THE TEXAS A&M ADMINISTRATION'S VISION OF JOURNALISM -- and a testy statement on a page that otherwise was as blank as Bevo's stare. They also gathered 2,000 signatures on a petition to save the program.

SPJ national update II: taking it to the AG. In response to Attorney General John Ashcroft's talking up the USA Patriot Act, the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press issued a list of concerns. In particular, Section 215 lets prosecutors obtain "any tangible thing" -- not just "business records," as the Department of Justice contends -- for investigations involving foreign intelligence or international terrorism. A Justice official acknowledged last year in a letter to Congress that such an order could be applied to a newsroom, but the department will not say whether or how often it has been. More at rcfp.org/news/releases/view.cgi?2003_08_20_ashcroft.txt. On Aug. 5, a legal advocacy group challenged in federal court in Los Angeles the constitutionality of the act. The Center for Constitutional Rights, based in New York, argues that it infringes on free-speech protections by outlawing "expert advice and assistance" to groups that the United States has labeled terrorist organizations, even if the assistance is humanitarian and has no connection to terrorism. The previous week, the ACLU sued over a provision that allows the government to secretly seize business records in terror investigations.

SPJ national update III: William Nessen walks. The U.S. journalist detained in June while covering the separatist war in Indonesia was convicted of immigration offenses and freed after 40 days in jail. Nessen was deported and barred from entering the country for one year. His release came after the Banda Aceh District Court on Aug. 2 sentenced him to one month and 10 days in jail with the time he had already spent in detention -- one month and nine days -- deducted from the sentence.

News for That Moment of Sharp Recognition

Anyone who registers with the site can become a paid reporter, and more than 26,000 people, from professional writers to chambermaids, have done so, supplementing a staff of more than 40 editors and reporters who publish about 200 stories a day. The site -- an unpredictable blend of the Drudge Report and a traditional, but partisan, newspaper, its stories tending to be anti-corporate, anti-government, anti-American and oozing with emotion -- attracts an estimated two million readers daily and has been credited with helping to elect South Korea's new progressive president, Roh Moo-hyun.

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Star-Telegram Northeast Tarrant political reporter John Kirsch has been selected as a Knight Fellow to attend a "Government Secrecy: Local, State, National" seminar Sept. 7-12 at the Knight Center for Specialized Journalism at the University of Maryland in College Park. ... Northeast education writer Jennifer Radcliffe has been invited to attend a seminar on how the No Child Left Behind Act will influence testing and instruction and other issues related to statewide testing. The seminar, organized by the Hechinger Institute and the Center on Education Policy, will be Sept. 5-7 in San Francisco. ...

Verlie Edwards, who as chapter president spearheaded the last, great Texas Gridiron Show in 1996, has been elected 2003-04 vice chairman of the Governmental Affairs Directors Institute for all Realtor associations in the United States. She'll be chairman in 2004-05.

Kudos & Contracts ... For the fifth year, Envision Works will lead Fort Worth's Cowtown Brush Up in its fund-raising efforts, Web development and marketing and sponsorship communications. Also at Envision Works, The Plant People selected EW as its Web consulting and marketing partner. ... WhiteWater Consulting Group, LLC has retained the LaChapelle Agency in Bedford to create a media kit and help develop a public relations plan. WWCG provides a full range of leadership, education and development training; business and cultural change strategies; and organizational assessments for clients that have included Perrier Group of America (now Nestlé Waters North America), Walt Disney World Resorts, McDonnell-Douglas Aircraft Co., Honda Motors, UC Berkeley and Advance Bank, Australia.

Kudos & Contracts II ... InterStar Marketing & Public Relations has joined Venturemark and CVA Advertising & Marketing on a team to develop a national branding and marketing program for The Buxton Co. The Texas-based Buxton is an industry leader in market research technology used by cities, economic development groups and major retail outlets including Pier 1 Imports, Container Store, FedEx and Microsoft. InterStar will coordinate national trade media and public relations efforts, while Venturemark will provide Web-based strategies and CVA will oversee the graphics, advertising and collateral materials.

Kudos & Contracts III ... Steele & Freeman has selected Witherspoon Advertising and Public Relations to help with marketing and PR. Witherspoon has already completed a four-color brochure, and ongoing activities will include producing additional collateral materials. Steele & Freeman has more than 20 years of area general contracting experience in a variety of fields -- educational, medical, industrial, commercial and auto dealerships -- and is consistently ranked among the top 10 general contractors in Tarrant County.

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The Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra Association seeks a development officer. Requirements include a college degree, organizational and communication skills, strong expository writing ability and a command of grammar and spelling, with two years development experience preferred. Professionalism, discretion and teamwork are essential. Knowledge of orchestral music is helpful, but not required. Salary commensurate with qualifications and experience; a comprehensive health plan, pension plan and paid parking are provided. Send cover letter and resume to Development Jobs, Fort Worth Symphony Orchestra Association, 330 E. Fourth St. Suite 200, Fort Worth 76102, or e-mail devjobs@fwsymphony.org. ...

Partners Together for Health, the foundation for JPS Health Network, still has an opening for a grant writer. Must have excellent writing skills, including ability to prioritize not only copy but schedule. Understands what deadlines are and doesn't panic. Experience preferred. Contact Kimberly Britton with the foundation, (817) 920-7331, or Bruce Smith in JPS Human Resources, (817) 920-7371.

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PRSA ... Lauren Olson, TWU Law School ... Kendal Smith, Modern Art Museum of Fort Worth ... Cathy Lynn Walensky, TTI Inc. ... Susan Reaves Chapel, Weatherford ISD

SPJ ... Kim Svatek, Sherman Herald Democrat

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Additions ... reporter Penny Cockerell to The Associated Press in Dallas (first day Sept. 22) after 11 years with The Daily Oklahoman, where she won first-place awards in state and regional competitions for her coverage of the Oklahoma City bombing and the subsequent trials in Denver, the crash of the space shuttle Columbia and other major stories throughout the Southwest; she also was assigning editor for the Oklahoman's Millennium series

Exits ... at the S-T: J.T. Rushing, taking his interest in politics to the land of hanging chads and The Florida Times-Union, where he will be state Capitol bureau chief, working out of Tallahassee (they like folk singers there, too); his last day with the Star-Telegram is Sept. 12 ... business reporter Ginger Richardson, moving to Phoenix

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"Benjamin Franklin: An American Life" /

Walter Isaacson / Simon & Schuster

An urban entrepreneur who rose up the social ladder, from leather-aproned shopkeeper to dining with kings, the book's namesake in his full 84 years was America's best scientist, inventor, diplomat, writer and business strategist and also one of its most practical political thinkers. He organized neighborhood constabularies and international alliances, local lending libraries and national legislatures. He combined two types of lenses to create bifocals and two concepts of representation to foster the nation's federal compromise. He was the only man who shaped all the founding documents of America: the Albany Plan of Union, the Declaration of Independence, the treaty of alliance with France, the peace treaty with England, and the Constitution. He proved by flying a kite that lightning was electricity, and he invented a rod to tame it. But the most interesting thing that he invented, and continually reinvented, was himself. America's first great publicist and a lover of life in the lustful margins, he carefully crafted his own persona, portrayed it in public, and polished it for posterity. Benjamin Franklin, it says inside the book cover, is "the Founding Father who winks at us." As readers of author Isaacson's colorful narrative might assert, he also is a fine read.

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No question that acronyms, those pronounceable words formed from the first letters of a descriptive phrase, are fundamental to 21st-century communication. They're the ultimate "in" language, too, up there with slang and the latest profanity. There's a dandy acronym translator (DAT) at acronymfinder.com. Type the acronym in question, such as "ASAP," in either upper- or lowercase letters. ... Hammering home the idea that they're here for you, the Ace Hardware people offer "Answers @ Ace" with help files and even interactive online movies on everything from installing and repairing gutters to calculating grass seed to repair projects such as painting a room, waterproofing basements and conserving energy. Go to www.acehardware.com/home/index.jsp, click on the "Project How-To's" link to get down to business.

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Roger Partridge, Greater Fort Worth PRSA

Lori De La Cruz, IABC/Fort Worth

I keep hearing that fall is right around the corner, and I can't wait. Until then, cool off with IABC/Fort Worth on Tuesday, Sept. 2, as consultant/teacher Scott Cytron, ABC, will remind us that our audience comes first and then suggest a double handful of ways we can make sure that happens. Do we sometimes, subconsciously, work for the approval of colleagues before the client? You know we do. Scott's topic is as immediate at that Petroleum Club pie a lá mode calling your name (and better for you!).

Thank you, Gus Whitcomb, managing director of strategic communications at American Airlines, for a great program in August. Gus explored the virtues of being ready for what follows a crisis. The crisis hurts, but the aftershocks can be ruinous if you're not prepared. Also, he said, try to have your life in some semblance of order at all times. As an example, never have a spouse and a spouse-to-be show up at the same time; if it isn't a crisis before they get there, it will be after they arrive. There you have your own disaster, making for some tricky PR and pretty fancy footwork.

John Dycus, Fort Worth SPJ

Chapter voters -- half of the membership cast a ballot -- approved by acclamation the slate of officers and directors for 2003-04, and a robust crowd it is: president Larry Lutz (Star-Telegram), scholarships VP Gayle Reaves-King (Fort Worth Weekly), programs VP Mark Horvit (Star-Telegram), membership VP Dino Chiecchi (The Associated Press) and directors Gary Hardee (Star-Telegram), John Jenkins (KXAS-Channel 5), Mike Martinez (Knight Ridder Online), Tony Pederson (SMU), John Sparks (KTVT-Channel 11) and Tom Williams (Haynes and Boone, LLP). New to this leadership mix are directors Jenkins, Williams, Martinez and Pederson, and we especially welcome them. Now let's go do something. ...

Stop this man before he hyperventilates. "In the first year that chapters have been ranked using a star system, our chapter received the maximum number -- four," reports prez Larry Lutz. "This recognition, announced last month, is a great tribute to our members, board, officers and especially last year's hard-working program directors, Penny Cockerell and Mark Horvit. National also credits us with 103 'certified chapter members,' which earns us three votes at the convention Sept. 11-13 in Tampa. Thanks for all you do! All of you!" ... Lutz, Horvit and executive secretary Kay Pirtle will represent the chapter in Florida. ...

From the science beat: In a twist on the accepted wisdom that food we enjoy must be bad for us, researchers have found that eating one or more pizzas a week dramatically reduced the incidence of some cancers. In a study of 8,000 people, determined pizza-eaters were 59 percent less likely to get cancer of the esophagus, while the risk of developing colon cancer fell by 26 percent. No word on what all this pizza stuffing did to the odds of dying of a heart attack. Wait, this just in. The pro-pizza research was conducted in Milan, Italy.