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Association for Women Journalists


AWJ-Chicago: the visible, credible voice for women journalists

AWJ-Chicago supports women in journalism and promote the respectful treatment of women by the news media. We are a nonpartisan, not-for-profit organization. We offer members, which include men, a network that we hope offers a little bit of sanity in a crazy industry.

CindyRichardsSusySchultzCicelyTeal.AllisonTaichWeb.jpgAWJ Chicago is comprised of working journalists, academics and students from national, local and regional news outlets and all the major journalism schools in the area. It includes women and men involved in every aspect of the business and across all mediums.

 You could say that the organization was born in protest. The first Association for Women Journalists-Dallas-Ft. Worth, was founded in 1988 by a group of women objecting to a demeaning promotional campaign for a local newspaper. Female employees of the paper petitioned to halt the ads but were largely ignored. The lack of response to their requests pointed to the need for an organization to help improve media representation of women and to improve the position of women employed by the industry so that similar incidents would not occur in the future. The first meeting to discuss the employees' outrage was the start of something much bigger. Most of the Texas women belonged to the Journalism and Women Symposium, national professional organization that meets once a year. They fashioned their group after the JAWS model and scaled the group's events for the local environment.

DiannBurns6743JoshLott185.jpgChicago's AWJ chapter was started in 1993 and fashioned after the Dallas-Ft. Worth group. Our first meeting was organized by Michelle Stevens, Cindy Richards, Susy Schultz, Mary Galligan and Adrienne Drell. It was held at Northwestern University's Medill School of Journalism, thanks to Mary Dedinsky, who opened the school's doors to us. The meeting attracted more than 60 women -- more than half of whom handed over $25 checks to become the group's founding members. Over the years, the Chicago chapter has grown along with other AWJ chapters. 

Since its start in 1993 AWJ-Chicago has organized and sponsor numerous timely discussions and events. To name a few: The Off-The-Record Breakfast series included conversations with ACLU president Nadine Strossen, civil rights lawyer and scholar Lani Guinier, U.S. Appellate Court Judge Ilana Rovner and others. Annual meeting speakers have been Carol Marin, Mary Schmich, Pam Zekman, Mary Mitchell, Danice Kern, Lynn Sweet, Felicia Middlebrooks, Kirsten Scharnberg, Jodi Rudoren, Diann Burns, Tracy Baim, Melody Spann-Cooper,  Jane Hirt and Sarah Nordgren. Panel discussion topics have covered handling racism and sexism in sources, benefits of photographer/writer teaming, negotiating within your newsroom, future of online journalism and others.

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This page is edited by Karen Kring.
 


 
 
© Association for Women Journalists Chicago