News Library News Online
Vol. 18, No.3/Spring 1996

The Pentagon Papers - Linda Amster Was There
Aside Bar
Conference Advance
Fundraising, News Division-Style
Awards
Conference Advance: You're Coming Back To Boston -- Great !!
Awards: George Schlukbier Wins SLA Award
Kudos For Pete And Barbara
Conference Advance: Attention Conference Newbies
Membership: Welcome New Members
Notes From The Chair: Beantown Beckons The News Division Once More
Nuts and Bolts: The Changing Role Of The News Library Manager - Stay Visible
People
International News: Nordic News Researchers And Librarians Meet In Sweden
Awards: Elizabeth Larson Wins The Vormelker-Thomas Student Stipend Award
Internet: Website Update

THE PENTAGON PAPERS - LINDA AMSTER WAS THERE

[Editor's note: Barbara Semonche wrote this on the Newslib listserv]

This year is the 25th anniversary of the publication "The Pentagon Papers." It is time to get that book out and re-read it. When you do, take a moment to look at the acknowledgements page in the front of the book. Among the list of four names in my edition (3 of which were New York Times reporters/editors) you will note Linda Amster, reference librarian for the NY Times. Another reason to applaud that publication: prominent recognition and credit given for the extraordinary contributions of a first-class news researcher.

Not many of us were in the newspaper business when this story about the Pentagon Papers broke in 1971. Linda was not only on the scene, she was a major player. No wonder the NY Times librarians have the well-earned reputation for being the paper's "brain trust." Linda is a prime example of the very best in our profession.

Some of us on this list may be unaware that Linda is a long-time News Division member. Perhaps we can persuade her to take a few moments and elaborate for us the story behind the story. We need to hear it.

Three cheers, four huzzahs and an armful of verbal bouquets to Linda and all the other "investigative" news librarians.

To the top.

THE ASIDE BAR
Linda Henderson

It seems we actually have survived the snowiest winter on record here in southern New England, and we'll be all spruced up and springed up by the time that you get here. The sand on the roads may even be gone by then.

Boston is a great city, but I have never really been a tourist up there before. I can't wait to actually STAY there for a few days, instead of just running up there for an event and running home. Of course, I hope that some of you will be coming on down to Providence after SLA for the IRE conference. I've had some interesting talks with our news library colleagues lately about our role (or lack of same) in the computer-assisted reporting movement. I hope we can have some good discussions with our reporting colleagues, both at SLA and IRE.

Teresa and her helpers have put together what should be a great conference line-up. I hope to see lots of old friends and new faces. And, again, I'm asking you old friends to adopt a newbie. They're lots of fun and provide a two-way learning experience. I'll also be looking for volunteers to write summaries of the programs for the Summer issue of NLN. Please don't run in the opposite direction when you see me. I DO take no for an answer.

The awards banquet this year will be bittersweet when we honor Cathy Jones, who died at SLA Winter Meeting in Cleveland. We'll all miss Cathy.

See you in the Hub!

Linda

To the top.

CONFERENCE ADVANCE

To the top.

FUNDRAISING, NEWS DIVISION-STYLE

A News Division members, you're not asked to peddle cookies. Nor are you asked to circulate catalogs of cheap what-nots.

What you are being asked to do is come to the News Division suite on Tuesday during conference week for a silent auction. You'll be able to bid on memorabilia emblazoned with logos of news organizations from across the country and, we hope, around the world.

What's the catch? YOU NEED TO BRING THE MEMORABILIA!

Con your marketing department out of t-shirts, ball caps and coffee mugs. take whatever they have to give you. Get famous people in your organization to autograph things. Just bring something.

The auction block isn't limited to news-related items. News librarians will buy anything. Get companies in your city to donate samples of local or regional products. Bring books of local interest or locally-brewed beer. The possibilities are endless.

Call Chris Hardesty at the Raleigh News & Observer (919-829-8935) to let him know what you're planning to bring or to get ideas. If you don't call him, he'll call you.

And don't forget to bring your checkbook or some extra cash to take home some of the things on the auction block.

To the top.

AWARDS:
CATHERINE A. JONES IS KWAPIL RECIPIENT

The Joseph F. Kwapil Memorial Award, the highest recognition of the News Division will be presented posthumously to Catherine A. Jones for her contributions to News librarianship and for her outstanding service to the News Division. Jones died suddenly at the winter conference in Cleveland.

Cathy Jones had been a member of the News Division since 1980. She chaired the Student Stipend award committee in 1986-1987, and chaired several division conference panels on various aspects of reference sources for news libraries . Though she did not direct a library in a news media organization, Jones was the chief of the Congressional Reference Division, an information research center whose sole clientele is an organization of newsmakers, the United States Congress. She often compared her clients to reporters ; both groups wanting information on a wide variety of public affairs issues immediately. This is the perspective she brought as a member of a committee in the early 80s that produced a white paper report on the advisability of the Newspaper Division reaching out to recruit members in other news media organizations. The efforts of this committee resulted in a News Division with increasing membership in magazine and broadcast libraries as well. As a member of the Awards committee, she and other committee members continued this effort by selecting the first division awardee that came from other than a newspaper library.

Cathy Jones also served the division through dedicated service to the association at large. She served as the first Chair of the Government Relations Committee and received the President's award for her work. From 1988 -1991 she served on the Board of Directors as Treasurer of SLA. She worked on several committees including the Nominations Committee, the Finance Committee, the Strategic Planning Committee, and at the time of her death the Professional Development Committee. She was made a fellow of SLA in 1992 and was active in many of their activities including chairing the annual reception for first time conference attendees.

Editor's note: See an appreciation of Cathy's life on page 19.

AWARDS:
MARY ANN SKINNER, GEORGE SCHLUKBIER WIN HENEBRY AWARDS

Mary Ann Skinner is Newsday's Director of Editorial Technology, with overall responsibility for the company's library and information services, including the coordination of technologies used by its editorial departments. She is also an associate of the Electronic Publishing group responsible for Newsday Direct, the newspapers online information service.

Mary Ann served on the digital archive committee of the parent Times-Mirror Company and heads the editorial effort to produce a totally electronic paginated newspaper.

A member of the Newsday team for 22 years, Mary Ann previously served as Library Director and was responsible for implementing the newsrooms electronic text library, the multimedia archive and the newspapers fee-based research service known as 2FINDOUT.

Mary Ann has been a member of the news division since 1984. She served as News Division Treasurer and President of the Long island Chapter.

Mary Ann is a graduate of Fordham University and holds a masters degree from Columbia University School of Library Science. She met her husband in the Newsday Library and they now live in Merrick, N.Y. .

George Schlukbier has been vice president and editor of Nando.Net/McClatchy New Media in Raleigh, NC since August, 1995. George came to Raleigh in the summer of 1993 to be director of the New Media Department of the News & Observer. He oversaw the launch of the Nando.net and NandoLand, which are companion on-line services. NandoLand is available free to public school student throughout North Carolina.

Before joining the News & Observer, George spent five years with McClatchy Newspapers. He started at the Sacremento Bee in 1988 as director of editorial library research. His job soon evolved into other areas, including development of in-house on-line computer databases and development of a public information store. From 1991 to 1993, he was coordinator of McClatchy Information Center and was coordinator of the corporate new products development team.

Before joining the Bee, George started and ran an information consulting service - Info Bank, in Toronto.

George received his BA from the University of California at San Diego in 1972 and a Masters in Library Science from McGill University in Montreal in 1977. He and his wife, Maureen live in Raleigh with their two sons and a daughter.

To the top.

IN MEMORIAM
CATHERINE JONES: AN APPRECIATION

By Donna Scheeder
U.S. Library of Congress
Congressional Reference Division

Catherine Jones, a News Division member since 1980, died while attending the Special Libraries Association Mid-winter conference in Cleveland Ohio. Cathy will be sorely missed by her colleagues and friends in the News Division. "She was a woman of great courage and very helpful to other colleagues facing the challenges she faced," Congressional Research Service Director Daniel P. Mulhollan said. "We will miss her terribly because the effectiveness that CRS has today is due in no small part to her leadership and foresight in meeting the needs of the Congress."

Ironically, Cathy died not far from where she was born in Conneaut, Ohio. Before embracing librarianship as her vocation she traveled extensively with her husband Tom, as his army career took them to a wide variety of places. This gave Cathy an opportunity to try different careers. Cathy was a bookkeeper for an Arthur Murray Dance studio in Kentucky; Sue Mason, personal shopper at White's Department store in Augusta Georgia; and an editor for the Army Information Exchange System in Europe. She and Tom came to Washington in 1965. Cathy worked days as a secretary at Muzak and attended Catholic University Library school at night. Before receiving her MLS in 1969 she secured a position in the reference library at the Office of Management and Budget. From there she went to the ALA Washington Office as associate director and then to George Washington University Library where she served as associate librarian for reader services.

Cathy became Chief of the Congressional Reference Division August 14, 1978 and remained in that position until her death. When Cathy first arrived the only on-line news source was the New York Times Information Bank. The division had a substantial backlog of work and the staff felt unappreciated and underpaid. Cathy changed all of that.

Today CRD is networked. Staff have a wide variety of information sources to search, including on-line systems and CD-ROMs. Under Cathy's guidance the division developed its product line of short reports for Congress and created the InfoPack, prepackaged collections of information on recurrent topics of interest to the Congress. Cathy was delighted to see this concept replicated in many research institutions, including Eastern European, Japanese and Russian parliamentary libraries. Staff of the division became Information Research Specialists and received increased recognition for their abilities to extend reference techniques beyond the limitations of traditional library tools.

Cathy was a consummate professional and devoted a great deal of time to building and promoting her profession - particularly through teaching and the Special Libraries Association. Her commitment and contributions were recognized in many ways. The honors include the SLA President's award in 1987; being made an SLA fellow in 1992 and being awarded the Distinguished Alumnae award from Catholic University in 1994, which she shared that year with Justice Antonin Scalia. These were recognitions of an individual who couldn't say no when asked for help. Cathy served SLA and the News Division in numerous capacities, including as Treasurer of SLA from 1988 to 1991; Chair of the Government Relations Committee; Washington, D.C. Chapter President; and at her death, member of the Professional Development Committee.

She also took the time to reach out to individuals. As Lynn Tinsley a current member of the SLA Board wrote," I met Cathy for the first time in Cincinnati at a reception. She ... made me feel like I belonged there. When I won the Board election she was right in there being very supportive."

The News Division was special to Cathy as a professional network where her spirit for fun and adventure could also be indulged. whether it was tending bar in the division suite, serving as chair of the student stipend committee or as a panelist on a division program. She was proud of being a founding member of the Raucous Caucus along with other News Division leaders at winter meeting in Williamsburg.

Cathy also had a full life outside of work. She loved to travel and to birdwatch and was able to combine these two interests into some amazing adventures. She built quite a life list in a relatively short time by trekking to Nepal, traveling to Indonesia, hacking through the jungles of Brazil and sailing to the Galapagos Islands. Her motto could have been "the farther away the better!" I accompanied Cathy on her last trip. Before going to conference in Cleveland we "stopped by" the Cayman Islands where our new adventures included snorkeling with people friendly stingrays.

Though Cathy fought several battles with cancer she never let that interfere with her desire to live life to the fullest. Perhaps her greatest legacy is her courage, determination and counsel to others she knew who were facing major health problems.

The New Division has lost a friend and colleague. Survivors include her husband Tom; a son Michael, her grandson Timothy, a brother and two sisters, 98 staffers of the Congressional Reference Division and 845 members of the News Division. Memorial contributions may be made to the SLA student scholarship fund.

To the top.

CONFERENCE ADVANCE:
YOU'RE COMING BACK TO BOSTON -- GREAT !!

By John Cronin

You'll find that we've made a lot of changes since you were last here. So, as usual, we're going to be able to offer you a combination of lots of interesting historical sights and sounds, along with some great new spots.

First off, the area surrounding the conference hotels is Boston's Copley Square, which abounds in restaurants, shops and parks. Nearby is Newbury St., which teems with art galleries, chic shops and other distinctive attractions. On a nice summer day, they may even tempt you to skip one or two sessions and stroll around.

For those of you who want to attend church, there are many interesting houses of worship in the immediate area, including Trinity Episcopal, Old South Congregational and Emmanuel Episcopal churches. A Roman Catholic chapel is found right in the Prudential Center ("the Pru"), which adjoins the conference hotel.

And, should it rain, shoppers need not lose heart. The conference hotels are joined to two major shopping complexes - Copley Place and the Pru, so you have no excuse for going home without souvenirs and some nice gift for yourself.

For joggers and other "workout artists" the hotels have excellent facilities and will provide you with safe jogging area maps. My favorite running place is along the Charles River. Not only do you get a good workout, but you also get a great view of the Boston and Cambridge skylines.

Going toward downtown Boston from Copley Square, you are only four or five blocks from the Boston Common and the Boston Public Garden. The Public Garden, which is beautifully maintained by the city, is a treasure trove for flower lovers.

The Public Garden is surrounded by two of Boston's finest hotels - the Four Seasons and the Ritz Carlton. They both serve afternoon tea (or something stronger) should you wish to partake.

Going further uptown, you are only about a quarter of a mile from the Fenway, a large park located just behind the Museum of Fine Arts. The Fenway is surrounded by many of the city's colleges, such as Emmanuel, Simmons and Wheelock Colleges.

Right near the MFA is the Isabella Stewart Gardner Museum, one of Cronin's own favorites. There will be a News Division reception at the Gardner on Wednesday night, but if you can't make that, try to get to this fascinating museum/palace on your own.

Baseball fans shouldm't leave the city without getting to Fenway Park. The Red Sox will play on the weekend of June 8 - 9 and then won't be back in town until Thursday the 13th. So if you want to see the "Green Monster", you'd better plan early. By the way, the Sox haven't won a World Series since 1918, but this could be the year!

Be sure that you get to the city's famous North End, which is about a mile and a half from Copley Square. The North End is wall-to-wall Italian bakeries and restaurants. After a good meal and a cannoli and cappuccino in one of the coffee houses, you can contentedly stroll (or waddle) back to your hotel.

Boston's Chinatown also provides fans of pan-Asian cuisine with lots of Thai, Cambodian and other oriental restaurants. In fact, between Boston and Cambridge, you'll never run out of great places to eat.

Don't leave Boston without getting over to Cambridge and the "Hahvahd Yahds" so you can "pahk ur cah" (translations will be provided in the division suite). Cambridge also has some beautiful parks, historical sights and restaurants.

For those of you who plan to rent cars and do some further sightseeing, the Boston Chapter information desk, the various hotel concierges and your local Boston-area news librarians will be honored to give you plenty of ideas.

We're glad to have you coming back to Boston, so keep well until we all see each other in the "land of the Bean and the Cod".

To the top.

AWARDS:
GEORGE SCHLUKBIER WINS SLA AWARD

By Richard Geiger
Library Director, San Francisco Chronicle

It was announced in the SLA Winter Conference that George Schlukbier has won SLA's 1996 Information Today Award for Innovations in Technology.

The winner of this award, previously named the Meckler Award, will receive a $1,000 honorarium and a plaque from Information Today at the 1996 annual conference.

Now there's some good news! Congratulations, George!

To the top.

KUDOS FOR PETE AND BARBARA

A round of applause from appreciative colleagues at computer keyboards all over the world for Pete Basofin and Barbara Semonche, our electronic wizards.

Pete, we thank you for your diligence on the News Division home page. Here we can keep up with Division news and conference info, read the results of surveys and essays about our profession, find reference tool and Internet site recommendations and so much more. Pete keeps it fresh and relevant. If you still haven't visited this site, drop in at http://www.nando.net/prof/poynter/nd/ndmenu.html.

Barbara, we thank you for managing the newslib email list. With the listserv, we communicate with each other instantly and easily. We get assessments of vendors and products, discuss trends in newspaper management, debate the future of news librarianship, read timely job postings, and seek and receive advice on problems from those who have "been there/done that."

If you are not on the list, subscribe by sending email to listproc@ripken.oit.unc.edu. Leave the subject line bank and eliminate signature lines. In the message area write: SUBSCRIBE Newslib Firstname Lastname.

Pete and Barbara, consider this a thank you note from your legion of fans who value your dedication.

To the top.

CONFERENCE ADVANCE:
ATTENTION CONFERENCE NEWBIES

Will Boston be your first, second or third trip to SLA? If the answer is yes, you may want to attend a meeting for newcomers. It is an informal meeting where we talk about topics we would like to see discussed at upcoming conferences. Afterwards, perhaps we will go to dinner. It will be a great chance to socialize with other news librarians.

If you are interested in attending this meeting or know someone who is, please contact me. I'll post specific details about the meeting on newslib and the mail bulletin board at SLA, under 'N.'

Carolyn J. Edds
News Researcher/Librarian
P.O. Drawer 1657
Herald-Journal
Spartanburg, SC 29304
riverat@teleplex.net
(864) 582-4511, ext. 7246
(864) 594-6350 (fax)

To the top.

MEMBERSHIP:
WELCOME NEW MEMBERS

By Ginny Everett, Membership Chair

Fifty-two librarians from news and corporate libraries as well as library school students joined the News Division between September 1995 and February 1996, bringing our membership to 845 as of January 31, 1996. These new members are listed below. To help all of us network, the list includes work addresses when known. We hope to see many of these new faces at the SLA conference in Boston.

Our 1996 News Division membership directory will be mailed in May. Our records for the directory come from SLA records, so be sure to keep SLA informed of any changes or additions to your address.

Amy C Binner
26 Milnar Ct.
West Seneca NY 14224
716/675/8565
binner@acsu.baffalo.edu
11/19/1995

Gwinn Bruns
CNN News
Atlanta GA
404-827-1282
Gwinn.Bruns@turner.com
02/26/1996

Mary C Clements
1603 Curtis Rd
Chapel Hill NC 27514
clements@nccu.edu
11/19/1995

Karen L. Coggins
US Dept. of Defense
Fort George Meade MD 20755
02/26/1996

Lauren D. Colburn
Atlanta Journal-Constitution
News Research Services
PO Box 4689
Atlanta GA 30302
404-526-5420
lauren_colburn@ajc.com
02/26/1996

Jackie Davenport
Cowles Publishing Co.
Spokesman-Review Library
W 999 Riverside
Spokane WA 99201
509-459-5528
02/26/1996

Louise De Chevigny
Radio-Canada
Services Bocumentaires B4-1
1400 Roul Rene Levesque
Montreal PQ H2l 2M2
Canada
514/597/6576
dechevig@montreal.src.ca
11/19/1995

Leslie Devlin
Univ. of Texas
Ctr. for Transportation Research
3208 Red River Ste. 201.8
Austin TX 78705
512-472-8875
02/26/1996

Diane Doyle
5500 Friendship Blvd
Apt 222ON
Chevy Chase MD 20815
301/718/9197
ddoyle@cap.gwu.edu
11/19/1995

Kathy A. Drewke
Atlanta Journal-Constitution
News Research Services
72 Marietta St
Atlanta GA 30303
404-526-5420
kathy_drewke@ajc.com
02/26/1996

Susan J Ebbs
102 Eaglesham Way
Cary NC 27513
12/09/1995

Carla M Ellard
15602 Smoke Signal Pass
Pflugerville TX 78660
cellard@fiat.gslis.utexas.edu
11/19/1995

Catherine Flagg
Library
Ottawa Sun
380 Hunt Club Road
Ottawa ON K1G 5H7
Canada
613-739-5115
ottlib@ottawa.net
02/26/1996

Michael Fowler
Payroll
Blockbuster Entertainment Group
961 E. Main St.
Spartanburg SC 29302
864-534-5919
mikefowler@aol.com
02/26/1996

Michael R. Fox
Library
Kitchener-Waterloo Record
225 Fairway Rd. South
Kitchener ON N2G 4E5
Canada
519-894-2231
newsroom@therecord.com
02/26/1996

Stanford S. Friedman
Library 11th Flr
Conde Nast Publications
350 Madison Ave.
New York NY 10017
212-880-6622
sfried@condenast.com
02/26/1996

Margaret T. Gallup
News
Sarasota Herald-Tribune
PO Box 1719
Sarasota FL 34230
941-957-5144
AGJG82A@PRODIGY.COM
02/26/1996

Miriam L. Garcia-Matteson
1855 Lindenhall Dr.
Loveland OH 45140
mmatteso@theme.music.indiana.edu
02/26/1996

Diane K. Grey
4111 E Okara Rd
Tampa FL 33617
grey@luna.cas.usf.edu
02/26/1996

Marilyn Hertz
Globe Information Services
444 Front St. W
Toronto ON M5V 2S9
Canada
416-585-5255
mhertx@globeandmail.ca
02/26/1996

J Adrian K. Ho
510 Pine Ave. W Rm 2
Montreal PQ H2W 1S6
Canada
fpmb@music.mcgill.ca
02/26/1996

Annabel S. Hooton
Info. Resourc Ctr.
Insurance Corp of BC
Rm 249 W. Esplanade
North Vancouver BC V7M 3H9
Canada
604-661-2758
annahoot@axionet.com
02/26/1996

Debora L. Kingsella
1337 Millersport Hwy #7
Williamsville NY 14221
716-626-2277
dlk2@acsu.buffalo.edu
02/26/1996

Vincent G. Kueter
Seattle Times
PO Box 70
Seattle WA 98111
206-593-8803
vkue_new@seatimes.com
02/26/1996

Terri-Jo Lambert
136 Beechwood Dr
Carrboro NC 27510
919-969-7600
lambt@ils.unc.edu
02/26/1996

Michelle Lavey
Detroit Free Press
321 W. Lafayette Blvd
Detroit MI 48226
313-222-6851
mlavey@alumni.sils.umich.edu
02/26/1996

Michelle M. Leon
Library
Times Media LTD
PO Box 1138
Johannesburg 2000
South Africa
011/497/2138
michelle@ml.co.za
11/19/1995

Joan L Levinstein
Time, Inc.
Time Res Center
1271 Sixth Ave.
New York NY 10020
212-522-0438
jlevinstein@info.timeinc.com
12/09/1995

Douglas H. Loynes
Library
Indianapolis Newspapers Inc.
307 N Pennsylvania St
Indianapolis IN 46260
317/630/9541
dloynes@inetdirect.net
11/19/1995

Carol A. Mahoney
Knowledge Center Library
Burton Marsteller
230 Park Ave. S
New York NY 10003
212-614-4258
02/26/1996

Adele C Marley
Editorial
Putuxent Publishing Co
10750 Little Patuxent Pwy
Columbia MD 21229
410/730/3620
11/19/1995

Margaret L Marotta
12851 Haster 21B
Garden Grove CA 92640
714-997-1200
mmarotta@wahoo.sjsj.edu
12/09/1995

Jacqueline F. McKeon
SCSU
Library Sciences
501 Cresent St.
New Haven CT 06515
203-421-1175
jlmckeon@aol.com
02/26/1996

William D Micchtom
Univ. of Ilinois-UC
GSLIS
501 E Daniel
Champaign IL 61820
michtom@alexia.lis.uiuc.edu
11/19/1995

Aloma L. Musson
Ace Limited
Information Services Dept.
30 Woodbourne Ave.
Hamilton MH 08
Bermuda
02/26/1996

Nerissa L Nelson
419 N Pinckney St #202
Madison WI 53703
608/251/0624
nergrapa@aol.com
11/19/1995

Suzanne M. Oatey
Editorial Library
Los Angeles Times
Times Manor Sq.
Los Angeles CA 90053
213-237-7728
suzanne.oatey@latimes.com
02/26/1996

Lisa M. Panzer
Knight-Ridder Info. Inc
1 Commerce Sq
2005 Market St
Philadelphia PA 19103
215-587-4446
Lisa_Panzer@corp.dialog.com
02/26/1996

Iris M Quigley
Newsday Inc.
Library
235 Pinelawn Rd
Melville NY 11147-4250
516-843-2333
NLIBRARY@PANIX.COM
12/09/1995

Rex B. Reyes
Library
Seattle Times
PO Box 70
1120 John St.
Seattle WA 98109
206-464-2307
02/26/1996

Lynda F Richardson
#804-27 Henderson Ave
Ottawa ON K1N 7P3
Canada
cf375@freenet.carleton.ca
11/19/1995

Nathan A Rupp
5466 Mary Jo Way
San Jose CA 95124
nrupp@wahoo.sjsu.edu
11/19/1995

Mark W Shields
Bronx Ref. Ctr
New York Public Library
2556 Bainbridge Ave
Bronx NY 10458
718-220-6575
11/19/1995

Kelli J. Shimabukuro
Circulation
Howard County Library
660 Cradlerock
Columbia MD 21044
410-313-7725
shimabuk@nitnoi.howa.md.us
02/26/1996

Lorraine A Simon
Detroit Free Press
Library
321 W Lafayette
Detroit MI 48226
313-222-6847
12/09/1995

Jennifer D. Small
2306 Wickersham #1301
Austin TX 78741
512-385-3923
jsmall@glis.utexas.edu
11/19/1995

Laura J Smart
974 Quinton Pl
London N6H 4R2 ON
Canada
lsmart@julian.uwo.ca
11/19/1995

Glenn T. Storbeck
3080 15th Ave. NE #3
Seattle WA 98105
gtstorb@u.washington.edu
02/26/1996

Helena L Svenne
Globe & Mail
444 Front St W
G15
Toronto ON M5V 2S9
Canada
416-585-5461
hsvenne@globeandmail.ca
12/09/1995

Michelle Tymocko
Bibliotheque
Societe Radio-Canada
1400 Blvd. Reno-Leseque E
Montreal PQ H2L 2M2
Canada
514-597-6271
02/26/1996

Glenda F West
Resource Ctr.
Natl'l Public Relations
310 Front West 6th Fl.
Toronto M50 3B5 ON
Canada
west@toronto.nationalpr.com
11/19/1995

Andrea L. Wilson
4505 Duval St. #246
Austin TX 78751
awilson@gslis.utexas.edu
11/19/1995

To the top.

NOTES FROM THE CHAIR
BEANTOWN BECKONS THE NEWS DIVISION ONCE MORE

By Charlie Campo

Though I joined SLA in 1980, my first conference was Boston in 1986.

What a week it was! The Celtics won the NBA championship on Sunday, and the city erupted in celebration. During the cab ride back from the Boston Globe tour, our driver boasted that earlier that afternoon she had driven Celts star Dennis Johnson to the Boston Garden. I don't remember if that effected her tip.

There have been a lot of changes. The Celtics have gone from champs to chumps, the historic Boston Garden has been replaced by a shiny new FleetCenter, Boston's Back Bay has undergone a major rejuvenation and the News Division will have to generate its own riotous revelry this time around. You know - like we do in every other city.

Our division used to recruit first-time attendees to serve as bartenders in the hospitality suite during conference week. John Cronin penciled me in for a lot of hours "mixing" with division members in Boston. Preparing a "Perrier with a twist" or "two fingers of Johnny Walker, ice, no water" was a hectic and "neat" way to introduce the new kid on the block to the tap-estry that is the News Division. (Sorry, nothing on tap, but we do have it in a bottle.)

Matter of fact, that is how I met one of the loveliest people in our Division. She will be honored with the Kwapil award during Monday's awards banquet.

Catherine Jones' career and affiliation with SLA and news librarians provide powerful reasons for us to celebrate the diversity of our membership. She enjoyed a career as a canny and tough administrator and a nurturing, fun-loving colleague. She made me feel that I was not only welcome, but belonged in this group of talented commiserators. I will miss Cathy at conference this year.

Awards chair Mary Kate Leming and her committee have announced the other awards, as well. Congratulations to the Agnes Henebry Award winners - George Schlukbier of NandoLand and Mary Ann Skinner of Newsday. Sign up early to hear this year's presenters testify to the winners' accomplishments. The banquet is a ticketed event at the Kennedy Library. (Please, no gate-crashers like last year).

Elizabeth Larson of Ann Arbor, Michigan is this year's Vormelker-Thomas Student Stipend Award winner. Committe chair Barbara Maxwell reports that the winning application package and essay showed a lot of thought and were well-written. The tradition of bringin top-notch students to conference continues.

It is important that we continue to forge pleasant conference memories by welcoming new faces and renewing old acquaintances. Talented people of purpose with common goals abound at each year's meeting. Sharing personal experience is the remaining significant difference between virtual and real networking. "Please come to Boston..."

Tom Lutgen and I sat through some long sessions at SLA Winter Meeting in Cleveland. Tom dug right in to the conference planning and I rode right out to tilt at political windmills.

As a result of my tilting, I will be representing the division on an ad hoc committee of the Division Cabinet. The committee has been formed to examine a controversy among several existing divisions and a group which has petitioned to form a new Health Science Division. I opened my mouth and was recognized as an interested, disinterested party. So, I will let you know how things turn out.

I want to thank each member who has done something for the News Division this year. Many contribute quietly, through a phone call, letter or e-mail. Some write for publication, others devise innovative solutions. Many help plan and conduct workshops and countless members give professional counsel. There are many excellent ambassadors for news libraries among our membership. Thank you all for extending a helping hand.

To the top.

NUTS AND BOLTS
THE CHANGING ROLE OF THE NEWS LIBRARY MANAGER - STAY VISIBLE

By Marcia MacVane
Portland Newspapers

I was going to dedicate this column to downsizing, but I am postponing it. It appears that we may have discussions/meetings on this topic at the conference which will give a much broader range for me to report on AFTER the conference. Stay tuned.

I have been thinking about how my job has changed and evolved since I moved from being a library assistant to managing the library. During the past week, I actually worked on only about a dozen very simple research requests. I spend more time away from the library than in it. The rest of my time last week involved:

1. Participation in the Technology Section committee. This committee has been charged with developing a prototype page/section/display aimed at technology and science. We have one month to complete our assignment.
2. Attended a monthly managers meeting with the president of the company.
3. Attended daily news meetings.
4. Attended a capital expense request meeting.
5. Participated in new company-wide stretch training program.
6. Conducted two performance appraisals.
7. Spent part of a day with a visiting Russian journalist, explaining the value of library systems and how they work.
8. Performed quality control on in-house database.
9. In-house training.

10. Staff meetings.

I began to question whether I was really being a library manager and looked more carefully at the way I spend my time. I decided to try to justify my "outside" activities and perhaps eliminate those things that were not done within the department.

One of the most dangerous things that can happen to a library is for it to become invisible. We were invisible for a long time. The library manager spent all of her time in the library, insulated from the rest of the company. In 1990, our most advanced piece of equipment was an electric typewriter. Salaries were low and status was non-existent. When I became manager, I made it a professional goal of mine that I would move the department into the new world and help give it the recognition it deserved.

How to do it?

First of all, I have an excellent supervisor. He is the executive editor of the newspapers and recognizes the importance of the libary. He began by including me in his weekly senior editors' meetings, which immediately gave me (as well as the library) much prestige within the news department. He continued to invite me to meetings held for reporters and editors, training sessions on writing...anything going on in the newsroom. This gave the library a physical presence and gave me a fresh insight into the workings of the news department. I then shared this new knowledge with the librarians.

In the beginning, I felt like a fish out of water. No one could really understand what I was doing there. Some expressed amazement and asked me why I was there. I responded that I was learning so that I could contribute. Over time, I have become more comfortable and actually do contribute valuable information to the various groups.

Attendance at the various meetings also keeps me informed. At one of these meetings, I learned that the photo department was purchasing its own archiving system, circumventing the capital request I had made for the library. If I had not attended that meeting, the photo department and NOT the library might have become the image archivers. We are back on track, working with the photo department developing interim measures for archiving photos digitally in the library until we purchase our new front end system.

Being involved as much as possible in the newsroom never was as important as it recently became. We were "downsized" and had to eliminate 15 FTE's from the newsroom. I was among the group selected to trim these positions and was able to defend and protect my "territory", losing only vacation coverage for myself from the library budget.

A library manager does just what the title implies: manages the library. This job may differ from newspaper to newspaper, depending upon the demands of the newsroom. To manage anything, you need to have knowledge of what and how various people/departments will impact you. To do this, you need to get out of your chair, leave the office, and BECOME A PRESENCE. Although you may become much busier, your job will become much easier as well because you will not be operating in the dark.

And one other hint - one that I am still learning - stop doing those things˙20that really don't matter. If they need to be done, try having a librarian do them. I have foisted off some of the niggly little details, such as circulation records (reports of the number of requests that the library receives) onto the library assistants. Now I just read the monthly reports, saving me a good deal of time. And now I am considering dropping circulation reports altogether, since reporters are now doing their own in-house research from their computers.

Being a library manager is a constant work-in-progress. You need to be able to adapt to changes in demands/needs immediately. Keeping as well informed about newsroom activities will help prepare you for the job ahead.

To the top.

PEOPLE
By Catherine Kitchell
Bureau of National Affairs

There have been a number of changes at The Washington Post. Behzad Ilchi was hired as Deputy of News Research. Pam Smith has been promoted to Deputy for Financial Management. Sheryl Rosenthal, whom many knew as a consultant with Star/Cuadra, was hired as Manager of Research Systems and Paul McCarthy has been hired as Manager of Online Publishing.

National Public Radio has filled their two new full-time positions. Long time part-timer Kee Malesky has moved to full time. Also hired was Alphonse Vinh, who comes to NPR after seven years at the Yale University Library. Rob Robinson, Senior Librarian at NPR, says they received 92 applications for the two jobs that initially required three years of news library experience. Because only a couple applicants had any news experience, that requirement had to be dropped in the final selection of candidates.

Kathleen Flynn, formerly coordinator of electronic information services at U.S. News and World Report, has joined the staff of the Atlanta Journal and Constitution in January. She will be the Deputy Director of News Research Services. Just in time for the Olympics!

Scott Wilson has joined the Orange County register as a researcher. Scott was formerly at The San Francisco Chronicle, with a stint in between as a copy editor at The Louisville Courier-Journal.

Dorothy Horrocks, Assistant Editorial Research Manager at the Fort Lauderdale Sun-Sentinel, retired in late December 1995. Bob Isaacs, Editorial Research Center Manager, named Michael Meiners as Research Superviser and Dean Perry as Database Superviser. Jennifer Irving and Douglas Layer have joined the staff as researchers.

On the education and training front..

A number of librarians have been turning up on interesting panels. Both Alison Head of The Press Democrat, Santa Rosa, CA, and Richard Geiger of The San Francisco Chronicle were photo/text archiving panelists at the Seybold San Francisco 1995 Conference this past fall. Richard also was the moderator on a digital photo archiving panel in February in Denver for the National Press Photographers Association. Mary Ann Skinner of Newsday was a panelist at February's Seybold Boston Seminar on digital libraries.

Bruce Rosenstein, Reference Librarian/Communications Officer at The USA TODAY Library, will be an adjunct professor at The Catholic University of America, where he will teach the summer session class on special libraries and information centers.

Well worth reading is Sperry Krueger's article "Getting More out of Nexis," in the January/February issue of Online. Sperry does an excellent job detailing how the MORE search command can be used most effectively on Nexis. Sperry has a new position as Resource Manager at The News & Observer in Raleigh, North Carolina. Also, Chris Hardesty is the new Research Manager at The News & Observer. He was previously Head Librarian at The Chattanooga Times for the past eight years.

Kudos and congrats

Congratulations to the staff of the library at Time magazine. They were singled out for praise in the December 18, 1995 "To Our Readers" column by Time President Bruce Hallett. All the librarians - Angela Thornton, Sandra Jamison, Joan Levinstein, AnnMarie Bonardi, and Angela Azzolino are pictured as "cybersleuths" acknowledging that the new library is largely computer driven though they are also noted for their "human touch" - "that spark of humor, that willingness to make the extra effort." Thornton, who was promoted December 1 to her new position as Information Coordinator, Time Research Center, joined Time in 1974. The new research center is designed to be on the cutting edge in delivering information by anticipating stories at the beginning of each week and enhancing the thought process for all the reporters and editors before the final deadlines.

Steve LaVoie, Director of Libraries for The Oakland Tribune, has been awarded the "Partners in Preservation Award" for his weekly column "Time Capsule," which spotlights local heritage issues in the East Bay area. Approximately 90% of the photos from The Oakland Tribune were donated to the Oakland Museum. The first show of the collection was displayed through May and was called "African Americans in the News: People, Politics, Protest and Promise." Steve assisted curating the exhibit.

The North Carolina State Chapter of Special Libraries Association has presented two awards to news division members this year. Barbara Semonche received the Meritorious Achievement Award which honors a Chapter member for notable and enduring contributions to the profession. It emphasizes local activity and leadership of an exemplary nature. Virginia Hauswald at the Winston-Salem Journal received the Horizon Award which is presented to a relatively new Chapter member who, through work and professional activities, shows promise of becoming an outstanding member of the profession. Both are well-deserved.

Sharon Ostmann at The Orange County Register announces her engagement to Bob Clairemont, a teacher in Orange County. The date has not yet been set but hopefully the wedding will take place before the end of the year. Congratulations! (Or is it really "Best Wishes!" to the bride?)

To the top.

INTERNATIONAL NEWS
NORDIC NEWS RESEARCHERS AND LIBRARIANS MEET IN SWEDEN

by Sanna Kilner
Chief of the Gotenborg Posten News Research Center and Archive

Last spring the Research department at Goteborgs-Posten (a daily newspaper in Gothenburg, Sweden) conducted a survey about the status of archiving at newspapers in Sweden and the other Nordic countries. Some papers had made a complete transition to electronic archives, some had just begun the operation and some still dwelt in the dusty, old clip archive. But they had one thing in common: a very strong interest in the development of their work and a wish to discuss these questions with collegues.

So we decided to arrange a two-day seminar for researchers and librarians in January of this year - the first time for such a gathering. More than 90 news researchers and archivists gathered to hear speakers, discuss issues and decide on some new ways to network with each other.

On the first day, Nora Paul from the Poynter Institute, gave a very engaging and interesting speech about the task of the modern information specialist. She listed the different parts of our job and made it very clear that we can't just go on with the old service attitude, but must develop a more professional attitude. She made the point that we have a critical role to play in our newsrooms. Her presentation inculcated in us a feeling of pride about our jobs and the importance of our assignments in the newsroom.

In the afternoon, Eero Sormunen from the University of Tampere, Finland, told us about the development of electronic search systems and the problems with very large information quantities. He pointed out the differences in character-matching searches and relevancy searches.

On the second day, representatives from three University faculties, Journalism and Mass communication studies, Library studies and Information Technology studies, told us about their education and showed us some examples of cooperation between newspapers and faculties concerning information retrieval systems.

The most important work of the seminar, however, was the opportunity for the delegates to discuss how to cooperate between their respective research departments. Many good suggestions came up and as a result of that we have already started two listservs, one called FAKTA for a general discussion on research and library matters and another called NEWSLINK for users of this special electronic archive system. We also talked about job rotation between the respective research departments and contacts with international organisations. We decided to arrange a new seminar next year, in Stockholm, which will be organized by Svenska Dagbladet (a Stockholm daily).

We think this was a good starting point for a lively discussion among the researchers in Nordic newspapers.

To the top.

AWARDS:
ELIZABETH LARSON WINS THE VORMELKER-THOMAS STUDENT STIPEND AWARD

Elizabeth Larson, a student in the School of Information at the University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, haas been awarded the Vormelker-Thomas Student Award. The award comprises a $1,500 stipend to help a student attend the annual SLA conference. Elizabeth has a BA in English and Communications from the University of Michigan and has worked in marketing and public relations.

When asked to provide additional informaiton about herslf for NLN, Elizabeth wrote the following:

"It's interesting to see the paths that life treats you to. Four years ago, I graduated form the University of Michigan with a BA in English and communication, determined that my career path would lead me into several communication and public relations positions. My goal was to eventually pursue my MBA, but never planned to pursue other graduate work in between. However, encountering a tight job market, I soon realized that these positions weren't overly plentiful. After obtaining positions which focused on p.r. and communications, I realized that what I really was interested in was the research and the information behind the products and campaigns. My love for the communication world was still there, but I needed more to grow. And then my interest and excitement about technology kept recurring in my life. How could I link my interest in technology with communication?

"After skill assessment and program evaluation, I determined that obtaining a library science degree would be beneficial for my professional development. Adapting to life as a college student again hasn't been the easiest task. My free time is spent studying, sleeping and maintaining sanity. I really miss not being able to spend as much time shopping, reading, cooking, working out and traveling. However, my energies currently need to remain focused on the goal at hand. (I admit though, study breaks do include frequent trips to the coffee house, movie theater and gym!)

"One area that excites me about this field is that it is changing at a challenging pace. The infiltration of technology into libraries and organizations is changing work flows and capabilities. Having the opportunity to be a part of a library school that is technologically focused has been a great asset. Because the scope of the school is broadening to encompass more non-traditional disciplines, I feel encouraged to not only think "outside of the box," but broaden my knowledge and skills into other areas that may have traditionally not been associated with librarians.

When asked to provide additional information about herself for NLN, Elizabeth wrote the following. If you see Elizabeth at conference, please introduce yourself and welcome her to the News Division.

To the top.

INTERNET:
WEBSITE UPDATE

By Pete Basofin
Sacramento Bee

The SLA News Division website has begun featuring the home pages of regional news library groups. The Washington, D.C. News Group has posted some preliminary information about their association, plus a member directory. Details about current activities will follow.

We know there are formal and informal networks of news librarians around the United States and in other countries. Why don't use the ND website to keep members informed and to recruit new people? It's easy to create a home page. Just compile information about your group (upcoming events, member listings, contacts, etc.) and send it to me. I'll add the HTML coding and post your page on the web. Or if you prefer to design your own page, then here's a change to learn and show off your web authoring skills! Please send any material to me at my e-mail address: peteb@mother.com.

The News Division URL is: http://www.nando.net/prof/poynter/nd/ndmenu.html


News Library News
SLA News Division Home

The page was reformatted on 3/31/03. The content, including URLs and contact information, on this page has not been updated to preserve the historical record.

Comments about News Library News should go to the editor.
Comments about the Web site should go to the Webmaster: newsdivisionweb@yahoo.com