Download the 2015 MPA Fall Conference registration form below.

— DOWNLOAD —

It will be held Oct.17 at the Hilton Garden Inn at 250 Haskell Road, Bangor, Maine. You can also call the hotel directly at 207-262-0099 and ask for the MPA Group Rate.

– The MPA group rate of $149 and room availability cannot be guaranteed after Saturday, October 3.

– No registration fee for Hall of Fame members or guests.

– Registration fee covers continental breakfast, all workshops and Scholarship Auction.

Deadline for Conference Registrations is Monday, September 28.

Yep. This is my favorite MPA auction find. I’m not sure if it was PPH’s Jeff Ham or BDN’s Nancy Golding bidding against me – it was a long time ago – but I beat them in the end, paying more than $60 for the darn thing. Every spring when I get birdy out, I think of the MPA and that auction.

Why is the Auction so important? Proceeds fund Association scholarships for Maine student journalists. Many of the recipients of MPA scholarships are working for Maine newspapers today. That’s why I’m chairing this year’s auction to be held Saturday, October 17 at the MPA Fall Conference in Bangor.

​Won’t you take a few minutes to pass the word at your newspaper about the auction? While newspaper swag is fun and we don’t want to discourage your promotional materials, it’s items like Birdy here that bring in the money. Questions? Call me, Terry Carlisle, at The Ellsworth American​: 667-2576 or email me tcarlisle@ellsworthamerican.com.

Decisions and comments are arriving daily from judges via FedEx, U.S.P.S and email for the 2015 Maine Press Association Better Newspaper Contest. We’re carefully compiling results (very exciting!) and plan to start notifying newspapers later next week.

A full day of conference events is planned for the MPA Annual Fall Conference on October 17, 2015, at the Hilton Garden Inn in Bangor, including informative sessions (see below), the Hall of Fame Inductee Luncheon, annual Scholarship Auction, and the 2015 Better Newspaper Contest Awards Dinner & Banquet.

Meanwhile, The Hilton Garden Inn in Bangor is taking room reservations for MPA members and guests. The MPA has a special group rate of $149 a night, good for the nights of October 16 and 17. To make reservations, Click Here. You can also call the hotel directly at 207-262-0099 and ask for the MPA Group Rate. The deadline for room reservations is October 3.

This year’s MPA Conference Committee has been hard at work to present a program of interesting and engaging sessions. Here’s a taste of what you can expect:

Covering courts in Maine. Veteran legal affairs reporters Scott Dolan of the Portland Press Herald, Judy Harrison of the Bangor Daily News, and Chris Williams of the Lewiston Sun Journal will share their experiences and insights on reporting on the justice system during this panel discussion. What happens when a judge orders journalists not to report on testimony given in open court? Or when attorneys whisper questions to prospective jurors during jury selection so journalists can’t hear? Just what are the restrictions on cameras and electronic devices in courtrooms? Is access getting better or worse? Learn the answers to these and other questions you may have pertaining to this vital and dynamic beat.

Don’t take “No” for an answer. Lewiston Sun Journal Managing Editor Judy Meyer will lead a session on how to use the full force of Maine’s Freedom of Access Act. Have you ever asked for access to public information and been denied? It happens too often, and if you don’t think you’re getting a straight answer, speak up. Learn how to pry public records loose and how to challenge government officials who refuse to release records. Judy will review public records laws, where to find records, how to ask for them and what to do when you’re told “no.” She knows this subject inside and out. Judy serves as vice-president of the Maine Freedom of Information Coalition and is a member of the Right-To-Know Advisory Committee to the Legislature.

Innovation and Disruption in the Media Industry. Well-known digital media and marketing consultant Shannon Kinney will discuss the latest trends in the changes rocking our newsrooms and advertising departments. A sample: “In order to transform a local media company, bold changes are necessary. We must change our culture or suffer the consequences. Mobile requires resources and a strategy NOW. Our content strategies must change and evolve. And we must invest in data and analytics or be left behind.” In this dynamic session you’ll learn key takeaways from Shannon’s visits to companies including BuzzFeed, Mashable, Hearst Corp., McClatchy, New York Times, Wall Street Journal, Pinterest, Facebook, Twitter, Tout, Yelp, and many more. What trends matter to local media companies? Where can changes offer the most results? Find out.

Tessie Dubois, who has served as publisher / editor of the St. John Valley Times since January 2010, will step down mid- to late fall. To join this award-winning newspaper as its next publisher / editor, please send resume to maine@wallsnewspapers.com

Jeffrey D. Clark, 65
BATH – Jeffrey D. Clark – The advantage of knowing when you’re going to die is that you get to write your own obituary. For a journalist, that’s the gold standard.
I, Jeffrey Davies Clark, was born on Feb. 8, 1950, in Belfast, to Leroy H. “Pete” Clark, of Belfast, and Edith Mae “Di” Clark, née Davies, formerly of Liverpool, England. I was the oldest of six children. After a childhood on the family farm in Swanville and a side trip to Colorado, we moved to Belfast in 1962, where I graduated from Belfast Area High School in 1968.
After three years at the University of Maine at Orono, the realization dawned that I was about to graduate with an English degree, possibly the most useless piece of paper in academia. Taking a semester off to think things over seemed a good idea to me, but not to my draft board, so in May of 1972 I enlisted in the U.S. Air Force. I was stationed at Offutt AFB outside Omaha, Neb., where I literally found the rest of my life. I became a reporter and then editor for the Air Pulse, the weekly newspaper serving the Offutt community. And in a cornfield in Cass County I found the woman I would very happily spend the rest of my life with, Patricia Morris. She has been my rock and my light and my love.
Pat and I were married on June 21, 1975, in Plattsmouth, Neb. In 1979, we returned to Maine, where I continued as a reporter and editor, first on Sam Pennington’s Waldoboro Weekly, then at Peter Cox’s Maine Times, and finally on Down East magazine, where Dale Kuhnert gave me the job of a lifetime chronicling the people and places of this astonishing state. In 1983, Pat and I welcomed our daughter, Jocelyn “Josie,” and in 1986, our second daughter, Erin, arrived. Two more wonderful daughters simply do not exist in this world, and I apologize to both of them for leaving too early.
For five years, I served on the board of Maine Rivers, an organization devoted to protecting Maine’s freshwater rivers and streams.
I passed away on Aug. 4, 2015, from complications related to esophageal cancer. Visiting Hours will be on Friday, Aug. 7, from 4-6 p.m. at Desmond Funeral Home, 638 High St., Bath, and a Mass of Christian Burial will be held on Saturday, Aug. 8, at 9 a.m., at St. Mary’s Catholic Church, Bath, with interment following.
Survivors, besides Patricia and Josie of Bath and Erin and her husband, Steve Zaremba, and their daughter, Emma Lillie, expected to join us Oct. 1, of Salem, N.H.; include my five amazing siblings and their families: Kym Sanderson (Bill) of Belfast, and son Brian; Joyce Clark Sarnacki of Hampden, and daughters Jillian and Aislinn; Kris Clark (Kathy) of Brewer, and daughters Allyson and Bekah; Keith Clark (Nancy) of Belfast, and children Adam, Megan and Sara; and Kerry Clark Jordan (Bruce) of Veazie, and children Eve and Eben; and our honorary sister, Carole Hall of New Haven, Vt., and her children, as well as our honorary daughters, Ashley Pesek (Nick) of Sedgwick, and her family and Christina Pickett (Ed), and her children.
I also leave behind my lifelong and much-valued friends, J. Andrew and Irene McMahan of Sidney; and many cousins in the United States and England. A special thanks to the doctors and nurses at New England Cancer Specialists in Brunswick, including Dr. David Benton and Nurse Practitioner Theresa Sirois, as well as Dr. Sean McCloy at Integrative Health Services of Maine in Portland.
It’s been a trip, folks. Thank you to all the family and friends and complete strangers who have made this life so interesting. Now, on to the next one! Until the circle is unbroken.
– 30 –

In lieu of flowers, please
consider a donation to
Maine Rivers
P.O. Box 782
Yarmouth, Maine 04096
or
Brunswick Area Respite Care
41 Greenwood Road
Brunswick, Maine 04011
in memory of my late
mother-in-law, Lillie – See more at: http://obituaries.pressherald.com/obituaries/mainetoday-pressherald/obituary.aspx?n=jeffrey-d-clark&pid=175445030&#sthash.wKtpgihO.dpuf

The Times Record, located in the college town of Brunswick in beautiful Mid Coast Maine, is seeking a talented, community-minded reporter to join our news team. Professional experience and familiarity with AP style is preferable, but we are willing to work with the right person. Candidates should be self-starters, work well under a daily deadline, and be up for the challenge of covering features, schools, local government and business/economic development. The right candidate will quickly forge a trust between themselves and the community, and demonstrate a passion for community journalism. Please send a cover letter, resume, and three clips to jswinconeck@timesrecord.com. No phone calls please. We plan to fill this position quickly! The Times Record is an equal opportunity