NEFAI 2019 Schedule
Journalists from a variety of media and all six New England states will gather Sept. 22-24 at Northeastern University in Boston to learn the latest investigative and database reporting techniques and public records access skills. The fellows chosen for this ninth annual New England First Amendment Institute reflect today’s diverse news media and come from daily and weekly newspapers, television and radio stations and online publications. Learn more about NEFAI 2019.
DAY ONE — The Value of Transparency
September 22
Shuttle Schedule
Hotel to Restaurant at 6:45 p.m.; Restaurant to Hotel at 9:30 p.m.
2:00 Registration [Cabral Center]
2:45 – 4:00 Keynote Address [Cabral Center]
Casey Frank | Miami Herald
Introduction: Thomas Fiedler | Boston University (formerly)
4:00 – 4:15 Break
4:15 – 6:00 Panel: Tales from the Trenches [Cabral Center]
Panelists will share their practical experience in investigative work through painstaking interviewing and use of freedom of information laws to unearth corruption and bring truth to light.
Jennifer Levitz | The Wall Street Journal
Wesley Lowery | The Washington Post
Lisa Yanick Litwiller | Hearst Connecticut Media Group
Moderator: Thomas Fiedler | Boston University (formerly)
7:30 Dinner [Off-Site — Maggiano’s Little Italy]
Dinner will be served at Maggiano’s Little Italy, 4 Columbus Avenue in Boston. A shuttle will be provided from the institute hotel to the restaurant at 6:45 p.m. and from the restaurant back to the hotel at 9:30 p.m.
DAY TWO — How Do We Harness FOI Laws and Public Data to Further Investigations
September 23
Shuttle Schedule
Hotel to Institute at 7:15 a.m.; Institute to Restaurant at 4:45 p.m.; Restaurant to Hotel at 8:30 p.m.
8:15 – 8:30 Announcements [Curry Student Center – Room 440]
8:30 – 9:30 Common Pitfalls in Accessing Documents Through FOI Requests and How to Respond [Curry Student Center – Room 440]
Judy Meyer | The Sun Journal
Jenifer McKim | New England Center for Investigative Reporting
Tim White | WPRI-Providence
Moderator: Michael Donoghue | Vermont Press Association
9:30 – 9:45 Break
9:45 – 11:15 Web Scraping [Curry Student Center – Room 440]
Maggie Mulvihill | Boston University
Lindsey Vickers | Boston University
11:15 – 11:30 Break
11:30 – 1:15 Break-Out Sessions A
The specifics of each state’s public records and open meeting laws will be discussed and hands-on cases will be reviewed in break-out sessions with knowledgeable attorneys and journalists from each state.
Connecticut [Curry Student Center – Room 348]
Mike Savino | WFSB-Hartford
Mary Schwind | Connecticut Freedom of Information Commission
Maine [Curry Student Center – Room 335]
Judy Meyer | The Sun Journal
Sigmund Schutz | Preti Flaherty
Massachusetts [Curry Student Center – Room 346]
Peter Caruso | Caruso & Caruso
Laura Crimaldi | The Boston Globe
New Hampshire [Curry Student Center – Room 336]
Caitlin Andrews | Bangor Daily News (formerly of Concord Monitor)
Gilles Bissonnette | ACLU of New Hampshire
Rhode Island [Curry Student Center – Room 340]
Raymond A. Marcaccio | Oliverio & Marcaccio
Amanda Milkovits | The Boston Globe
Vermont [Curry Student Center – Room 440]
Michael Donoghue | Vermont Press Association
Lia Ernst | ACLU of Vermont
12:15 Lunch [Served in Curry Student Center – Room 440]
1:15 – 1:30 Break
1:30 – 3:00 Tips for Staying Out of Legal Trouble: Common Issues in Defamation and Invasion of Privacy [Curry Student Center – Room 440]
Robert Bertsche | Prince Lobel Tye
Gregory V. Sullivan | Malloy & Sullivan
3:00 – 3:15 Break
3:15 – 4:15 Former Fellows Panel [Curry Student Center – Room 440]
Brian Amaral | The Providence Journal
Zeninjor Enwemeka | WBUR-Boston
Grant Welker | Worcester Business Journal
Moderator: Michael Donoghue | Vermont Press Association
5:15 – 8:30 (or later) Dinner and Presentation [Off-Site — Lincoln Tavern & Restaurant]
Dinner will be served at Lincoln Tavern & Restaurant, 425 W. Broadway in South Boston. Shuttles will be provided for those who need transportation from the institute to the restaurant. A shuttle will also be provided from the restaurant to the institute hotel at 8:30 p.m. though you are welcome to stay later.
5:45 – 6:45 Featured Speaker
Scott Higham | The Washington Post
6:15 Dinner
DAY THREE — Digging Deeply and Listening Carefully
September 24
8:15 – 8:30 Announcements [Egan Research Center – Room 440]
8:30 – 10:00 Panel: Effective Sourcing [Egan Research Center – Room 440]
When your FOI request languishes your reporting continues. Developing sources, relationships, knowing how to evaluate what you get.
Cindy Galli | ABC News
Tara O’Neill | Hearst Connecticut Media Group
Phillip Martin | WGBH-Boston
Moderator: Michael Donoghue | Vermont Press Association
10:00 – 10:15 Break
10:15 – 12:15 Break-Out Sessions B
Using database technology to analyze publicly available or FOI-request-won data to understand societal, financial, and economic trends is an important tool for the seasoned reporter.
Basic Database Analysis [Egan Research Center – Room 206]
Brooke Williams | Boston University
Anastasia Lennon | Boston University
Advanced Database Analysis [Egan Research Center – Room 306]
Matt Kauffman | Hartford Courant (formerly)
12:15 – 1:45 Lunch [Egan Research Center – Room 440]
12:45 Featured Speaker
Maria Hiaasen
1:45 – 2:30 Photo/Break [Location TBD]
2:30 – 3:30 Break-Out Sessions C
The Confrontational Interview & Transition to Audio or Video [Egan Research Center – Room 206]
Mike Beaudet | WCVB-Boston, Northeastern University
Writing Workshop and Narrative Flow [Egan Research Center – Room 306]
Jeff Howe | Northeastern University
3:30 – 3:45 Concluding Remarks [Egan Research Center – Room 440]
Justin Silverman | New England First Amendment Coalition