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SABEW to honor Morrow


2010
02.04

Posted in Awards, Educational, Obituaries, SABEW | No Comments »

The Society of American Business Editors and Writers, in cooperation with the family of the late David J. Morrow, will create a memorial fund in his name that will aid students and honor superior business journalism, society officials announced Thursday.

Morrow, a SABEW board member, pioneer editor of TheStreet.com and the first Donald W. Reynolds Endowed Chair in Business Journalism at the University of Nevada, Reno, died Monday night at 49 after a brief battle with cancer.

Contributions to the fund, called the Dave Morrow Prize for Audacious and Talented Financial Journalists, were kicked off Thursday with a $50,000 contribution from Jim Cramer, co-founder and chairman of TheStreet.com and host of CNBC’s “Mad Money.”

SABEW will be the fund’s host. Donations in the form of checks should be made payable to the Dave Morrow Prize and sent to SABEW, University of Missouri – Columbia, School of Journalism, 134 Neff Annex, Columbia MO, 65211-1200. Make credit card donations by calling SABEW’s Vicki Edwards, (573) 882-2878.  SABEW is a nonprofit 501(c)(3) organization, and donations will be tax deductible. SABEW’s tax identification number is 36-3297751.

Morrow’s successor as TheStreet.com editor-in-chief, Glenn Hall, said Thursday that Morrow’s family has requested that money be used for both college tuition for promising students aspiring to careers in financial journalism as well as for students or young journalists seeking to attend SABEW’s annual conference.

The editor-in-chief of TheStreet.com from 2001 to 2009, Morrow’s term on the SABEW board of directors was to expire in the spring of 2011. His unexpired term is to be filled as part of a regular election of board members to be held at the society’s 47th Annual Conference March 19-21 in Phoenix.

Morrow’s business journalism career also included stops at the New York Times, Smart Money and Fortune magazines and the Detroit Free Press.

“Morrow had a positive effect on so many people in business journalism,” said Warren Watson, SABEW’s executive director, in a statement. “We feel that the Dave Morrow Prize encompasses a variety of things that he cared about.”

Services for Morrow are pending, but condolences can be sent to one of his sisters, Beth Hammond, at 305 Lake Road, Inman SC, 29349.

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Tribute to Dave Morrow


2010
02.02

Posted in Obituaries, SABEW | No Comments »

Here is an excerpt from TheStreet.com editor Glenn Hall’s tribute to his predecessor Dave Morrow, who died Monday night from cancer at the age of 49:

“During his 27-year journalism career, Dave left his imprint on many of the most influential media of our time, including SmartMoney magazine, The New York Times, The Detroit Free Press and Fortune magazine.

“At TheStreet, Dave’s vision of no-nonsense journalism with an original voice is embodied in columns such as ‘The Five Dumbest Things on Wall Street,’ among other initiatives. He encouraged reporters to write in their own style and always have something unique to say.

“During his eight years as Editor in Chief, Dave’s uncompromising drive for journalistic originality and success brought considerable growth and acclaim to the Web site. With Dave at the helm, TheStreet.com won five Society of Business Editors and Writers Awards; one Loeb Award, with five nominations in total; two New York Press Club awards, one Webby nomination; two Codie Award nominations, four Online Journalism Award nominations and four awards from the Media Industry Newsletter (min).

“Those accomplishments culminated in Dave winning Min’s 2007 award for Best Editor of a Web Site and subsequently being inducted into Min’s Digital Hall of Fame.

“Underneath the drive to succeed, Dave was a true original with an oversized heart. He cared deeply about his readers, his staff, his colleagues, his friends and his family. Dave possessed a rare combination of Southern charm and Yankee brashness that made his high hopes and expectations for everyone and everything both motivational and filled with genuine good humor.”

Read more here. Morrow had left TheStreet.com last year to teach business journalism at the University of Nevada-Reno.

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SABEW extends Best in Business contest deadline


2010
01.22

Posted in Awards, SABEW | No Comments »

The Society of American Business Editors and Writers has extended the deadline for its annual Best in Business contest by one week to Feb. 1.

The deadline was this coming Monday, Jan. 25.

The contest, which honors the best business journalism in print and online, is the largest of its kind, drawing more than 700 entries across a variety of categories. SABEW made the entry system all electronic this year.

“Our new computerized process is adding technical steps for entrants — many of whom have lost their in-office technical support to layoffs and buyouts — and we want to be sure we can help everyone who wants to enter do so,” said Beth Hunt, manager of editorial operations at American City Business Journals and the person overseeing the contest this year.

Because the entry process involves several technical steps that sometimes require technical support from SABEW staff, Hunt urged those journalists planning to enter to not wait until the last minute.

Hunt said that SABEW already has about half of the number of entries that it received last year.

The winners are expected to be announced in late February, and they will receive their awards at the SABEW conference in Phoenix in March.

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SABEW Best in Business contest for 2009 now accepting entries


2010
01.04

Posted in Awards, SABEW | No Comments »

The Society of American Business Editors and Writers annual Best in Business contest is now accepting entries for 2009.

The contest aims to recognize the best in business journalism from the last 12 months, from blogs and weekly business newspapers to the business sections of the largest metropolitan dailies and business magazines.

Those who enter before Jan. 13 will receive a discounted entry fee. To enter, go here. The final deadline to enter is Jan. 25.

The entry process is online, with stories and other information submitted via PDF file.

Each entrant’s membership status must also be current in order to enter.  Members with renewal dates of Jan. 1, 2010, or earlier, whose membership dues have not yet been paid will have to renew being able to enter. Renewals can be completed online here.

For more information, go here.

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NYT publisher Sulzberger to speak at SABEW conference


2009
12.11

Posted in New York Times, SABEW | No Comments »

Arthur O. Sulzberger Jr., chairman of The New York Times Co. and publisher of The New York Times, will speak about the future of newspapers at the Society of American Business Editors and Writers 2010 national conference in Phoenix in March.

Sulzberger will deliver the luncheon keynote speech on Saturday, March 20. That evening SABEW will hand out its Best in Business awards at a banquet at the Heard Museum, one of the world’s best collections of Native American art.

Sulzberger’s remarks are of particular interest to business journalists who have seen their ranks severely diminished in recent months due to tumultuous economic times for American news media.

Sulzberger joins a growing list of speakers at the conference that include:

  • Len Downie, former executive editor of The Washington Post and author of a recent study seeking a new model for news reporting that concluded, among other things, that the government should subsidize local journalism.
  • Kenneth Feinberg, whom President Obama appointed special master for executive compensation, and has become known in the mass media as the White House’s “compensation czar,” with sweeping authority over the compensation given to executives of corporations receiving federal bailout money.
  • Ricardo Salinas Pliego, chairman of Mexico’s Grupo Salinas, ranked in 154th place on the 2008 Forbes magazine list of the world’s richest people.

Read more here.

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SABEW launches redesigned site


2009
12.09

Posted in Redesigns, SABEW | No Comments »

The Society of American Business Editors and Writers unveiled its redesigned Web site on Wednesday morning that is much easier to read and find information.

The site uses a lighter blue background that fades as the page drops down. Previously, the top of the page had been black.

New features on the site include a “Member to Member” section where SABEW members provide coverage tips, and a Blog Roll that has an extremely limited selection of business news blogs.

A nice touch to the site is the inclusion of photos of regular writers to the site, such as that of Dow Jones reporter Dawn Wotapka, who writes the Biz Buzz column.

Executive director Warren Watson writes, “The new website is only part of a series of technical enhancements that will include a new membership database, conference registration system, Best in Business entry system, expanded jobs section and freelance database. Members will be able to log into the website and view and correct their personal information as needed.”

However, other parts of the site still need updating.  The Talking Biz News feed to the site had not been updated in more than 24 hours when reviewed at 11 a.m. EST. And one of the three “SABEW Spotlight” stories was more than four months old, while another was a month old.

The site also has not updated information about the board members. Former president Bernie Kohn, who left the Baltimore Sun earlier this year, is now a spokesman for the Maryland Department of Labor, Licensing and Regulation, and former TheStreet.com editor David Morrow is now a journalism professor at the University of Nevada-Reno. Neither has been updated.

The rollout had been expected last week, but was delayed while the organization worked out some kinks. Some still exist. I tried to update my password to get into the members only section, but that function is not working properly.

DISCLOSURE: I previously was managing editor of the news content of the site until September and wrote the Biz Buzz column.

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Former SABEW prez lands job at American Banker


2009
12.08

Posted in Job changes, SABEW | No Comments »

Jodi Schneider, a former president of the Society of American Business Editors and Writers, will start working next week at American Banker, she posted Tuesday on her Facebook page.

Schneider will have a senior editing position at the publication. She had previously worked for Congressional Quarterly and as local business editor of the Washington Post. She was president of SABEW in 1995 and remains active in business journalism as a trainer for the Donald W. Reynolds National Center for Business Journalism.

Schneider had been the the economics and finance editor of Congressional Quarterly, before becoming the media outlet’s first training director in 2007. She was laid off earlier this year and started a blog for DC journalists looking for a job.

Previously, she was an assistant managing editor at U.S. News & World Report.

Schneider had been a deputy managing editor at The Orlando Sentinel as well as an editor and reporter at newspapers in Wisconsin, Colorado and Florida. She holds a bachelor’s degree from the University of Wisconsin-Madison and a master’s degree from the Medill School of Journalism at Northwestern University.

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SABEW makes Best in Business all online


2009
11.25

Posted in Awards, SABEW | No Comments »

The Society of American Business Editors and Writers announced that its 2009 Best in Business contest will accept entries only online.

Mark Scarp writes, “Also, entries received by Jan. 13, 2010, will pay a discounted rate. The final deadline is Jan. 25, 2010.

“’SABEW has invested in a significant amount of technology to receive entries online,’ said Beth Hunt, manager of editorial operations for American City Business Journals and incoming SABEW secretary. ‘We hope that offering the early date will avoid the big crush of deadline.’

“Entries for the 2008 contest were also received electronically, except in the General Excellence categories for newspapers and magazines.

“At least one contributor to each entry must be a SABEW member. A separate contest with the same deadline schedule is for SABEW’s student members, who pay no fee for submitting one entry.”

Read more here.

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SABEW to hold conference call on covering executive compensation


2009
11.20

Posted in Company coverage, Educational, SABEW | No Comments »

The Society of American Business Editors and Writers will hold a conference call this week for business journalists who want to learn more about covering executive compensation with more depth and meaning.

The call will be held Monday, Nov. 30, at 3 p.m. EST. The moderator will be Floyd Norris, the chief financial correspondent of The New York Times.

The call will discuss the best places to look for executive compensation data and CEO contracts, how and when executive pay rose so high, the role of shareholders in curbing executive compensation, why past government efforts to curb executive pay failed, and how executive compensation negotiations are being changes by the Obama administration clampdown.

Also on the call will be Nell Minow, editor and co-founder of The Corporate Library; Paul Dorf, managing director of Compensation Resources; and Michelle Leder, editor and founder of footnoted.org.

To sign up for the call, send an e-mail with “yes” in the subject line to sabew@missouri.edu. You will then receive e-mailed instructions on how to participate and how to ask questions before or during the call.

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Compensation czar to speak at SABEW conference


2009
11.17

Posted in SABEW | No Comments »

The man whom Time magazine called “the Solomon of settlement,” Kenneth Feinberg, will speak to the Society of American Business Editors and Writers’ 2010 national conference here in March, SABEW announced Tuesday.

President Barack Obama appointed the acclaimed mediator in June as special master for executive compensation, and has become known in the mass media as the White House’s “compensation czar,” with sweeping authority over the compensation given to executives of corporations receiving federal bailout money.

In late October, Feinberg announced that 25 of the highest-ranking executives at seven firms receiving large amounts of tax dollars would see their annual salaries cut by an average of 90 percent from what they were in 2008.

The seven companies are AIG, Bank of America, Chrysler, Chrysler Financial, Citigroup, General Motors and GMAC.

“Kenneth Feinberg is performing one of the Obama administration’s most high-profile duties, and his recent decisions to massively reduce some executives’ pay have been debated in corporate conference rooms as well as discussed by SABEW members,” said SABEW President Greg McCune, training editor at Thomson Reuters. “We will have even more to talk about after hearing his presentation to us in Phoenix.”

Time’s Nov. 2 issue contained a story by the magazine’s Stephen Gandel that said Feinberg, 64, “holds a unique position in American society. He decides what people –- their pain as well as their day-to-day roles -– are worth. Appointed 25 years ago to distribute about $200 million to Vietnam vets poisoned by the herbicide Agent Orange, he has become the Solomon of settlement.”

Feinberg’s other well-known assignments include those as administrator of the September 11th Victim Compensation Fund and, in the wake of the shocking 2007 shootings at Virginia Tech, as fund administrator for the Hokie Spirit Memorial Fund.

In 2005, Feinberg’s book, “What is Life Worth?”, was published by Public Affairs Press.

Feinberg is the second major speaker to be secured to appear at the Phoenix conference. Ricardo Salinas Pliego, chairman of one of Mexico’s biggest business conglomerates, has agreed to be its keynote speaker.

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