OCTOBER 2014
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Freedom of Information Foundation of Texas update: When Gov. Rick Perry, facing two felony charges, chose to pay his lawyers from his campaign account
instead of using state funds, the move drew a veil of secrecy across details of
Perry’s representation. Using the Texas Public Information Act, Texas Lawyer asked the
governor’s office for legal contracts and payment amounts for five lawyers Perry hired
immediately following his indictment. The office only released the contracts
for criminal defense lawyer David Botsford, who received $79,550 in June, and Baker Botts partner Tom Phillips, whose firm got $15,000 in November 2013. The governor’s office did not release the information for three other Perry lawyers. Details. ... The state’s highest criminal court tossed out a state law banning “improper photography” — photos or videos taken in a public place without consent and with the purpose
of sexual gratification — as a violation of free speech rights. In an 8-1 ruling, the Texas Court of
Criminal Appeals said photos, much like paintings and films, are “inherently expressive” and therefore protected by the First Amendment. Details. ... Steve Lipsky’s tainted water well had already stirred national debate about the impacts of
oil and gas production. Now it stars in a free speech dispute that has landed
in Texas’ highest court — the biggest test of a state law meant to curb attempts to stifle public
protest. So much methane has migrated into the well on Lipsky’s Parker County estate that he can ignite the stream that flows from it with the
flick of a barbecue lighter. The Wisconsin transplant blames the phenomenon on
nearby gas drilling in the Barnett Shale. In the past three years, he has
shared those suspicions in YouTube videos, the film “Gasland Part II” and in news reports. Range Resources, the accused local driller, maintains it
is not to blame.
Details.
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PEOPLE & PLACES
Author/writing coach Carmen Goldthwaite’s “Texas Ranch Women: Three Centuries of Mettle and Moxie” hit bookstores last month, and she planned to hit the trail as well, selling
copies: Oct. 11, discussing “Texas’ Daunting Women” to TCU Women Exes, 10:30 a.m. in Tucker Hall; Oct. 18, book signing, 1-3 p.m.
at TCU Barnes & Noble; Oct. 20, proclaiming “Texas Ranchers: Sassy & Savvy Women of the Republic” to the Frances Cooke Van Zandt Chapter of the Daughters of the Republic of
Texas, 1 p.m. at Botanic Garden in Fort Worth; Oct. 26, book signing, Texas
Book Festival in Austin, 2 p.m. at The History Press booth. “This book has been 15 years in the making, finding the stories and writing about
ranch women in Texas, some well known, others little known. But they all made a
difference,” Goldthwaite writes. “Beneath the sunbonnets, Stetsons or high-fashion couture, the women of the Lone
Star state carved out ranches, breathed new life into spreads and expanded
acreage when husbands, sons and fathers fell. Early ones struggled amid hostile
inhabitants. Later ones struggled through droughts and blizzards. Some
survived. Some thrived. Because of all, Texas is a different kind of country.”
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GET A JOB
The GCG Marketing account services team has openings for account coordinator,
account executive, senior art director - interactive, art director and
production artist. Details. ... The Los Angeles Times has openings: for a Denver correspondent to help
explore the rollout of legal marijuana in Colorado and anchor reporting on
water policy, resource management and federal lands administration; for a
correspondent to cover the Southwest states out of Arizona, with a heavy
emphasis on immigration and the border with Mexico; and for a reporter in the
Washington bureau to cover the California delegation and do general assignments
in the Mid-Atlantic states. Digital fluency is essential. Apply to Kim Murphy,
kim.murphy@latimes.com. ... BuzzFeed News and the Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism
are sponsoring a year-long investigative reporting fellowship for journalists
of color and other diverse backgrounds. Details. ... 13WMAZ/13wmaz.com in Macon, Ga., is accepting applications for a full-time digital news producer.
E- digital content manager Chipster Harold Goodridge at hgoodridge@gannett.com.
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NEW AND RETURNING MEMBERS
PRSA ... Andrea Condori, Pavlov ... Lee Doren ... Melissa Conger, Alcon ... Donia Chehade ... Rebecca Adkins ... Jerry Cantu, Mansfield ISD ... Allie Payne ... Lesley Weaver, Irving Independent School District
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PRESIDENT’S COLUMN
Richie Escovedo, Greater Fort Worth PRSA
The best laid schemes o' mice an' men / Gang aft agley.
from "To a Mouse" by Robert Burns
I had hoped to deliver a status update on the chapter's strategic planning
process this month. Unfortunately, circumstances and timing have prevented me
from kicking off this process. I appreciate the members who indicated they'd
assist. I haven't forgotten and I'm not giving up on the strategic plan, as
it's among the items for this year's chapter vision. I will have something
positive to report soon.
Speaking of vision and positive news, I'm pleased to share the 2015 slate of
officers: president, Michelle Clark, APR; VP membership/president-elect, Liz Heck; VP programs, Claire Bloxom Armstrong; treasurer, Lisa Albert; treasurer-elect, Beth Lamb; secretary, Lesley Dupre; director, Julie O’Neil, Jahnae Stout and Kay Barkin, APR; Assembly delegate, Carol Murray, APR, and Gigi Westerman, APR, Fellow PRSA. Big thanks to past president Chris Smith for leading the nomination process.
We will vote on the slate at the Oct. 8 luncheon and annual membership meeting.
I encourage all Greater Fort Worth PRSA members to attend and show your support
for the volunteers who will lead the chapter next year.
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STAYING CONNECTED
Betsy Deck, IABC Fort Worth
If you haven’t been able to make an IABC luncheon, this is the one where you really want to
try harder. Presenter Robin McCasland is a legend in IABC circles. A past chair of the IABC Research Foundation, she
also served on the Southern Region board.
She has been president of the Dallas and Fort Worth chapters and was honored as
an IABC Dallas Communicator of the Year. She is the immediate past president of
IABC International (and has some really entertaining stories) as well as being
an experienced communicator who knows her stuff.
We’re meeting at Studios 121 in Haltom City, a 43,000-square-foot complete video
and audio production facility, and webcasting to mass communication classes all
over the Metroplex, allowing the students to ask Robin questions in real time.
This place really opens your eyes to the power of technology and creativity. I
don’t know which aspect is more of a draw, the location or the speaker. Either way,
be there!
A special thank you to the city of Grand Prairie for allowing IABC Fort Worth to
invade its TV studio last month. We appreciate the use of this beautiful space
and loved having a cameraman video our volunteers as they were interrogated by
media coach Lorri Allen. Lorri made a special trip from East Texas to meet with us, and we do
appreciate her time.
If you ever need some good media advice, Lorri is the coach for you! You can
find her at soundbitecoach.com.
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OVER & OUT
John Dycus, Fort Worth SPJ
SPJ national honored Fort Worth SPJ with a Circle of Excellence award at the
national convention for its scholarships outreach — $22,000 given this year — and work with area colleges. Nine professional chapters comprise the Circle of
Excellence, which recognizes outstanding work in First Amendment/freedom of
information, professional development, chapter communications, diversity and
campus relations. Awards are given in each category to one large chapter (75 or
more members) and one small chapter. Fort Worth, a large chapter, won in the
campus relations bracket.
Caught my eye. ‘We are running out of time’: New reports on greenhouse gas emissions. ... Scientists turn table salt into compounds that violate textbook rules. ... Want really cheap solar cells? Make them out of wood. ... Bioglow’s Starlight Avatar world’s first light producing plant. ... Bee colony adapts to environmental impact by using plastic to build nests. ... Could humidity power join the list of renewable energy sources? ... Ocean acidification is kryptonite to all coral reefs — except one in the Western Pacific. ... Bacteria-filled pills could become newest treatment for a host of diseases. ... Local Motors 3D-prints incredible full-scale car in 44 hours.. ... Forget LEDs, this might well be the future of lighting.Aerelight is the world's
first OLED light fixture.
Closing words: "I don't know a better preparation for life than a love of poetry
and a good digestion." — novelist and playwright Zona Gale ... "The thing about democracy, beloveds, is that it is not neat, orderly or
quiet. It requires a certain relish for confusion." — Molly Ivins ... "The best time to plan a book is while you're doing the dishes." — Agatha Christie
the LaRocque Family catalog ...
news/views
the industry / tools of the trade
organizations
antidote
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