Sixth Annual PRNDI News Manager Training & Certification
When: June 12-13, 2019 (prior to the start of the PRNDI Conference)
Where: NPR Headquarters, Washington, DC
Who: Public media news directors, managers or aspiring news managers from any size shop, any experience level. Seating limited to the first 20 applicants.
What: Two-day training on essentials of modern public media newsroom management, resulting in a custom action-plan and a PRNDI certificate of completion.
"Presenters were well-prepared, organized and very helpful." -- Aaron Schachter, WGBH
Why PRNDI provides this important training
Today's newsroom leaders face BIG challenges: they set editorial strategy and ethical standards for their organizations; they plan short-term and long-range coverage; they assign and edit stories to serve changing audience needs; they manage people and budgets; and, they're helping navigate a digital future for public media journalism.
This dynamic, interactive two-day workshop will focus on professional growth and practical skills you will use.
You will come away with a clearer newsroom vision, a methodical coverage agenda, strategies to grow employees and improve your teamwork, confidence in your ability to lead others and deliver impactful journalism.
And, from the big picture to the small details, your customized action plan will transform you and your newsroom!
"Thank you! This was really helpful for a developing news manager." -- Michelle Billman, KUNR
Meet the trainers: Mike and Judith
The annual workshop is led by public media news veterans Michael Marcotte and Judith Smelser.
Mike is president of MVM Consulting and a Professor of Practice in Journalism at the University of New Mexico. He's a champion of strong local public media newsrooms, served as news director of KPBS in San Diego and KPLU in Seattle-Tacoma, and is currently a coach for the CPB Editorial Leadership and Integrity Project. Mike was a 2011 Stanford Knight Fellow and a former PRNDI president. He authored The Public Radio News Directors Guide, which laid the original groundwork for this training.
Judith Smelser is the founder of Smelser Editing & Consulting, which recently celebrated five years of providing journalism consulting, training, and story editing to public media stations and collaborations around the country. She has trained and coached over a hundred public media editors and news managers, both through her company and as a mentor in AIR’s Better Editor Fellowship program. Smelser recently co-authored the Big Footprint Playbook, which grew out of a CPB-funded project on high-impact journalism. She previously served as managing editor at Colorado Public Radio and news director at WMFE in Orlando.
Together, Mike and Judith bring over 50 years of journalism experience -- 30 in news management -- leading newsrooms ranging from small to medium to large. Their consulting clients have included NPR, CPB, APM, NETA, Current, KQED, KERA, KUHF, WUNC, KUNC, WESA, WKSU, KPBS, WMFE, KTOO, KCBX, J-Lab, Capital Public Radio, Illinois Newsroom, Indie-Edit, IdeaStream, Northwest Public Affairs Network, the Texas Station Collaborative and state networks in Connecticut, West Virginia, Florida, Indiana, Mississippi and Iowa.
"Excellent training! Well worth the investment of my time and my station's money. I leave excited about the future of my newsroom"
-- Eric Aasen, KERA
Workshop Highlights
The course is designed to concentrate on your two greatest challenges: managing people and managing content. The facilitators shape the training around your situation (using the pre-workshop survey, interactive discussions, small group break-outs and customized exercises).
Highlights of the training include:
- Time Management: How news managers survive the onslaught.
- Coverage Clarity: Setting an editorial agenda unique to your station.
- Content Toolbox: Tools and tips for managing multimedia workflow.
- Give an Edit! A mini-workshop on shaping effective stories.
- Huddle Up: How to run effective meetings.
- Therapist, friend, disciplinarian: The art of managing others.
- Managing Newsroom Culture (and Stress).
- What's Your Plan? For the next crisis. For long term improvement.
- Leading with ethics AND courage.
- Leveraging innovation, collaboration and engagement.
- Your customized "100 Day Action Plan."
Working Agenda (subject to revision)
Day 1
Overview | Introductions | What Does a News Manager Do
Setting Priorities
Organizational Tools & Strategies
Crisis Coverage
Community Engagement | Collaboration
Model Editing
Content Analysis | The Virtue of the Five Tiers
Debrief
Day 2
Reset | Overview
Time Management
Leadership Style | Newsroom Culture | Meetings
Managing Personnel | Difficult Conversations | Managing Up
Managing Stress
Ethics
Strategic Planning
Your 100-Day Action Plan
Certification & 100-Day Check-Up
Those who successfully complete the training will receive PRNDI certification. (Full attendance is required, including the 100-day follow-up session.)
"Nice to hear from other news managers about their work and approaches. Thanks for making a daunting task seem a bit less daunting!" -- Elisabeth Harrison, Rhode Island Public Radio
Price includes meals and follow-up session
Cost is $450 per person, which includes all materials, breakfast and lunch both days.
Also included is a post-workshop online meeting to help you succeed in implementing your action plan.
Hurry To Register! Deadline May 1, 2019Workshop registration is limited to the first 20 registrants. We set the deadline to give us time to survey all participants and customize the training accordingly.
The workshop will be held at the stunning NPR headquarters in Washington, DC. (Photo: inhabitat.com)
To register for the 6th Annual PRNDI News Manager Training, email Christine at [email protected] Christine will issue you a confirmation number. Then you may use the confirmation number to register and pay via the PRNDI Conference registration form.
Note: This workshop is a PRNDI membership benefit, so employees of PRNDI member stations get priority placement! Be sure your membership is in good standing!
Precedes the 35th annual PRNDI Conference, June 13-15, 2019
Attend the news manager workshop, then stay for the annual PRNDI Conference in Washington D.C.
This year's conference agenda includes a welcome from new NPR News executive Nancy Barnes, a session by Jill Geisler on her "Power Shift Project," break out meetingss on solutions journalism, writing for digital, regional collaboration, open records access, managing talk shows, nurturing/retaining talent, building investigative units and much more, including a major session on the 2020 elections and the annual PRNDI awards banquet!
"The collection of resources is amazing. Mike and Judith have a depth of knowledge that is invaluable." -- Lou Gum, KAWC
Contact
For details about the workshop (or all things PRNDI), contact PRNDI manager Christine Paige-Diers: [email protected]
