Bay Area Journalists Sharpen Skills at NAHJ Workshop
By Lananh Nguyen

In early June, the National Association of Hispanic Journalists (NAHJ) assembled top bay area broadcasters and print journalists to give workshops at a Professional Development Workshop held at North Gate, UC Berkeley’s Graduate School of Journalism.

Editors, anchors, and photographers discussed their careers and advised workshop attendees on the pitfalls of resume tapes and ethical dilemmas. KGO anchor Jessica Aguirre spoke about the transition from reporter to anchor by way of her own story working as a reporter in Latin America, attending graduate school part-time, and finally anchoring.

KNTV News Director Jim Sanders gave a spirited talk on audition reels, during which he lambasted “cuteness” and instead encouraged the basics, like “telling a story,” as the most important element of a reel. Sanders’ discussion was peppered with anecdotes about his own career, which took him from the army to social work, and finally print and broadcast journalism.

The newspaper workshops underlined the importance of accurate reporting as an ethical standard, and also as a basic requirement of a career in print. Susan Goldberg, Executive Editor and Vice President of the San Jose Mercury News, cited the paper’s new ethics policy as an attempt to prevent future fabrications in light of the Blair, Kelley and Glass scandals.

John Diaz, Editorial Page Editor for the San Francisco Chronicle discussed the difference between news and opinion writing. Diaz and L.A. Chung, Mercury News columnist and former writer for the Chronicle, emphasized strong reporting as a prerequisite for both types of writing.

Photographer Abraham Mendoza (KGO) also advised attendees about improving resume tapes. “I think the group that attended was able to ask very sincere questions about how they could make their photography better… [speakers and attendees] were able meet new friends who also face the same struggles of trying to make the mostinteresting stories they can in the limited time news department allow them.”

The photography workshops were co-presented by award-winning videographers, including the 2004 Associated Press Television-Radio Association (APTRA) Videographer of the Year, Barton Bishoff (KNTV) and Chris Bollini (KFTY), who won the award for Best News Feature.

Region 8 Director Veronica Villafañe, who reports for the San Jose Mercury News in a segment on KNTV, organized the event. Representatives from both English and Spanish-language media were in attendance.


Lananh Nguyen recently graduated from Tufts University with a Bachelor’s Degree in Political Science. She has held several positions in print and broadcast journalism, including an internship at KNTV, and is now pursuing a career in international print journalism