Free Speech, Banned Books and More: Join ASJA’s Democracy Advocates  June 10

In a time of nearly daily infringements to the First Amendment, journalists and authors face growing threats. Books are being banned. Journalists  and freelancers suffer mounting harassment. News organizations are disappearing or caving to pressure. Democracy itself is at risk.
Join us June 10, 7-8 p.m. ET for a special one-hour webinar to catch up on important news about ASJA’s efforts to advocate freedom of speech.
During the hour, five members of ASJA’s First Amendment and Advocacy Committee will offer updates and address critical questions, including:

– What is ASJA doing to take a stand against First Amendment infringements by the current administration?
– Are freelancer rights still under threat?
– How can journalists better protect themselves?
– What movements are afoot that deserve our attention?
– Should we be writing more about free speech?

Explore all this and more in the discussion. Walk away with tips and suggestions for how you can better act and react to threats against the United States Constitution and your freedom of expression. For more information and webinar registration, please visit the ASJA website.

ASJA members presenting at this webinar are:

Michael Bobelian, an attorney, author and journalist who’s written extensively about legal matters. He’s taught media law and ethics at Baruch College.

Debbie Abrams Kaplan, a freelance advocate, journalist and content marketing writer specializing in medical and health, personal finance and insurance, business and supply chain topics.

Judah Freed, an award-winning author and seasoned journalist based in Colorado. He pioneered media trade reporting on the internet, giving talks about “deep media literacy” on four continents  His recent book is Making Global Sense: Grounded hope for democracy and the earth (inspired by Thomas Paine’s Common Sense). Freed represents ASJA on the steering committee of the Banned Books Week Coalition.

Darcy Lewis, ASJA president, writes about health, medicine, and the business of healthcare from Chicago. A former National Cancer Reporting Fellow, she writes for journalism outlets including Medscape, MedPage Today, U.S. News & World Report, Scientific American, AARP, and Cancer Today. She also writes for leading health systems and nonprofits and has received various writing awards, including the ASJA Best Trade Article Award.

Sherry Beck Paprocki, chair of ASJA’s First Amendment and Advocacy Committee, is an ASJA past president as well as founder and president of R.S. Rock Media, a strategic communications firm that specializes in thought leadership and personal branding.