9/23/2016
FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

Contact:
Lynn Walsh, SPJ National President, 614-579-7937, Lynn.K.Walsh@gmail.com
Rachel Semple, SPJ Communications Coordinator, 317-920-4785, rsemple@spj.org

INDIANAPOLIS – In one of her first appearances as president of the Society of Professional Journalists , Lynn Walsh is speaking today at the inaugural California Domestic Violence Summit today in Valencia, California.

“One of my goals for the coming year is to do more outreach to community groups and organizations to discuss journalism and media ethics,” Walsh said. “It is so important for journalists to be compassionate and ethical while covering victims of crimes and domestic violence. We at SPJ want to not only help educate journalists on best practices in covering these types of stories, but to also share with community groups what goes into the decisions journalists make and what ethical journalism looks like.”

Walsh will lead a breakout session on covering domestic violence, sexual assault and victims’ issues as a journalist. The session will include information about how victims are covered by the media. Walsh will also discuss the “Minimize Harm” section of the SPJ Code of Ethics and how journalists can make ethical decisions while reporting on domestic violence and sexual assault stories using the SPJ Code of Ethics as a tool.

The summit was organized by Kim Goldman, whose brother Ron Goldman was murdered alongside Nicole Brown in 1994. It seeks to educate organizations, law enforcement, social workers and individuals to take back their communities. Net proceeds of the event will go to Ventura County Coalition for Family Harmony, SCV Domestic Violence Center, The Youth Project and Signal Charity.

Since her brother’s death, Kim Goldman has become a victim advocate and executive director of The Santa Clarita Valley Youth Project, an agency that provides free mental health to teenagers dealing with depression, trauma, domestic violence, abuse/neglect, loss, substance abuse and more.

The summit is hosted by Signal Multimedia and College of the Canyons and will include tools that community organizations, law enforcement, social workers and individuals can use in their communities.


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