Posted on 02/22/2003 8:13:27 AM PST by madfly
The First Amendment Coalition (FAC) and the U.S. Forest Service (USFS) are working together to find ways to avoid much of the confusion and controversy that surrounded coverage of forest fires in Arizona last year.
Jim Payne, Public Affairs Media Officer for the Southwestern Region of the USDA Forest Service, had been invited to attend the FAC meeting Jan. 9. He was unable to attend as he was out of town when the invitation came. When he returned to Phoenix and found his invitation he wrote Mark Scarp to bring him up to date on what is happening with the forest service. He said he and Carrie Templin, incoming chair for the Southwest Area Incident Information Officers Committee, met with the Southwest Area Coordinating Group (SACG) and made a presentation regarding the media access issue. The SACG is an interagency coordinating group with fire management responsibilities in the southwest.
“We were charged with preparing an interagency draft protocol/guidelines for testing this upcoming fire season. We are just starting and will be working with an interagency group and, at some point in the near future, we will want media representative involved in the process,” Payne wrote.
Scarp has asked that anyone interested in serving as a media representative to please contact him as soon as possible. He can be contacted at (480) 970-2351.
On the same subject, those attending the FAC meeting Jan. 9, learned there will be training workshops held around the state to enable journalists to earn “red cards” from USFS to foster media access to forest fire scenes. Journalists interested in earning the “red card” should contact their local USFS office to find out the dates and times of the workshops in their area.
It was pointed out that virtually none of the journalists covering the Rodeo-Chediski fire last summer had the “red cards.”
In other matters discussed at the meeting, the Coalition Futures Committee made its report with several suggestions for improving its public profile and effectiveness in serving Arizona media.
One suggestion was for board members to schedule presentations to local media and civic groups to explain the coalition’s mission of fostering open government and providing full citizen and media access to public records and meetings.
Arizona’s new Attorney General, Terry Goddard, will be invited to attend the April 10 FAC meeting.
The Valley of the Sun SPJ chapter reminds members of the regional conference with Investigative Reporters and Editors to be held Feb. 21-23 in Tempe. The focus is on sharpening tools for access and use of public documents and other reporting and writing techniques. For more information go to www.spj.org/arizona or use the 24-hour InfoLine (480) 970-2314.
SPJ is also hosting a free Education and the Media roundtable discussion featuring media representatives and representatives of the education establishment. The meeting will be held Thursday, Jan. 30, from 7 to 8:30 p.m. at the boardroom of the Phoenix Union High School District, 4502 N. Central Ave., at Campbell between Indian School and Camelback roads. Refreshments will be served.
Natalie Sentz (SPJ), Jill Jorden Spitz (Arizona Press Club) and Ben Hansen (ANA) volunteered to serve on the Education Committee which sponsors the annual Public Records Update seminars. Anyone wishing to serve as chairperson should contact Mark Scarp at 480-970-2351, or by email at: mscarp@aztrib.com
Attorney Dan Barr reported Brown and Bain’s First Amendment Coalition hotline received 187 calls in 2002. Roughly one half of the calls came from newspapers and half from broadcasters. The hotline received 26 percent of its calls from journalists seeking advice about the Arizona Open Meetings Law, 56 percent regarding access to public records and 18 percent for other issues.
Officers for 2003 were elected at the meeting. Officers are: President – Mark Scarp, East Valley Tribune (SPJ); Vice-president – Dennis O’Neil, KTVK-TV, Channel 3 (ABA); Secretary – Ben Hansen, Prescott Newspapers, Inc. (ANA); and Treasurer – Mary Jo Pitzl, Arizona Republic (SPJ).
Are we now licensing the First Amendment? It's for "the safety" of the journalists?
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