November 15, 2012, Thursday - Society of Professional Journalists: Dramatic Details—Without Dramatic License at The Loft

Tme: 7:00pm

Location: The Loft, Performance Hall, 1011 Washington Avenue South

Society of Professional Journalists: Dramatic Details—Without Dramatic License 
 
The Society of Professional Journalists and the Loft cosponsor an event exploring the choices writers make when writing the “truth.”

"The tools of the theater are not the same as the tools of journalism." Those were the words performer Mike Daisey used last winter to defend his now infamous monologue about Apple's supply chain in China. The story was full of vivid details about Daisey's undercover observations at the factory complex and his emotional conversations with its workers—many of which turned out to be made up. After the piece aired on This American Life, Daisey admitted to taking "dramatic license" in order to tell a more compelling story. At this event, we will interview four Twin Cities journalists about how they incorporate dramatic details into their stories—without the dramatic license. How can writers hone their eyes and ears to recognize details that bring true stories to life. Panelists include Sasha Aslanian of Minnesota Public Radio, David Hanners of the St. Paul Pioneer Press, Boyd Huppert of KARE 11, and Steve Marsh of Mpls St. Paul and Delta Sky magazines.

Sasha Aslanian got her start as a daily news producer in the MPR newsroom in 1992. From 2000 to 2008, she produced documentaries for American RadioWorks, the national documentary unit of American Public Media. She is the creator of MPR News' Youth Radio Series. Aslanian has won awards named for famous news men: Edward R. Murrow, Lowell Thomas, Heywood Broun, and Eric Sevareid. She is a graduate of Grinnell College.

David Hanners has been a reporter for the Saint Paul Pioneer Press since 1994.  His awards include the 1989 Pulitzer Prize in Journalism for explanatory journalism, the 1990 George Polk Award for regional reporting, he has been honored with first place awards from the Minnesota Associated Press Association, the State Bar of Texas, the Austin Headliners Club, the Press Club of Dallas, the Texas Farmers' Union, the Aviation/Space Writers' Association and the Texas Associated Press Managing Editors. Hanners is a graduate of Indiana State University in Terre Haute.

Boyd Huppert got his start in broadcasting as a 16-year-old announcer at his hometown radio station, WEVR in River Falls, Wisconsin. He majored in Journalism and Political Science at UW-River Falls and began his television career in 1984 at WSAW-TV in Wausau. Boyd worked at two more TV stations, KETV in Omaha and WITI in Milwaukee, before joining KARE 11 in 1996. In 2012, Boyd was honored with the national Edward R. Murrow Award for writing, his eighth national Murrow Award. He's also the recipient of the 2011 national Sigma Delta Chi Award for feature reporting—his third. In 2007 Boyd was awarded a national Emmy for feature reporting.

Steve Marsh has written for Wall Street Journal, GQ, Grantland, and Vulture.  He is senior writer at Mpls.St.Paul Magazine and Delta Sky.  He’s interviewed everyone from Jay-Z to Uggie the terrier from The Artist. He’s written stories on dead dolphins and dead poets (John Berryman) and Vicodin dealers on the Internet. Minnpost's David Brauer calls him "the most nimbly aggressive local writer since David Carr."

THIS EVENT IS FREE AND OPEN TO THE PUBLIC.