Reporters, bloggers, public-relations professionals and many more packed into Philadelphia’s Loews Hotel last weekend for an annual convention examining the intersection of LGBT and media issues.
The National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association convention drew 355 guests from around the country, an increase of about 20 percent from last year’s conference.
Michael Tune, NLGJA executive director, said there were likely numerous factors that influenced the attendance influx, including its location.
“It was in Philadelphia, and so many of our members live on the East Coast and along the Northeast Corridor so having a convention that was close to home for a lot of folks was really helpful,” Tune said. “And I think more people are hearing about NGLJA and the work we’re doing, and I think that work is resonating with a lot of folks. We continue to push for a strong and diverse newsroom, and in today’s economy and media market, that’s incredibly important.”
A big piece of NLGJA news broke during the convention, as NLGJA president David Steinberg informed guests that the association had been invited to join UNITY, an organization of Hispanic, Asian American and Native American journalists.
NLGJA has requested to join UNITY twice in the past, in 1994 and 1998, but UNITY leadership rejected both bids.
The last time around, the National Association of Black Journalists cast the only vote that prevented NLGJA from joining UNITY. NABJ departed UNITY earlier this year.
UNITY hosts a convention every four years, with 2012 being the next event. If the organization were to join ranks, the UNITY event would take the place of the NLGJA convention next year.
Tune said the NLGJA board discussed the UNITY invite throughout the convention, and Steinberg will be working with UNITY representatives in the coming weeks to garner information to present to NLGJA.
“Right now it’s basically a discussion. The board discussed what that partnership would look like, asked questions from their own viewpoints and from the membership over the weekend,” Tune said, noting that many members were cautiously optimistic about the possibility of the joint venture. “It was incredibly positive, but there were also a lot of questions — from an events standpoint, as in what events we would do, what panels we would do, and then also from a business standpoint, as to what this would mean for NLGJA in terms of a business or financial standpoint.”
The convention also saw appearances by openly gay Deputy Assistant Secretary of State Daniel Baer, Ann Curry of “The Today Show” and openly gay CNN anchor Don Lemon.
While last weekend’s hurricane put a damper on some of the convention activities, most went off without a hitch.
“The convention went really well,” said co-chair Sarah Blazucki, PGN editor. “The programming was good, the attendance was up and, even with the hurricane, I think people got a lot out of it. And I was really appreciative of the volunteers, who really made this event succeed.”
For more coverage of the NLGJA convention, visit the student project at www.nlgjaconvention.org.
Jen Colletta can be reached at [email protected].