6:00-7:30PM
Film: Showing of new documentary, ”Secrecy“

7:40-9:00
Reception and discussion of film with directors Robb Moss and Peter Galison

SATURDAY, OCT. 18

9:00-10:10AM

Panel: Ethnic Media
Ethnic media face unique challenges in covering the news of their
communities. For ethnic media in California, a threat to news
organizations’ editorial independence and free speech rights often
comes from their own readers. Why do some ethnic audiences react with
such intensity? How should ethnic media respond? Ethnic media must
also figure out how to remain relevant to their communities, as core
readership ages and younger generations, following the patterns of
early 20th Century ethnic assimilation, opt for English over the
homeland language of their parents.

Ahn Do, Publisher and Editor, Nguoi-Viet Daily News
Jamal Dajani, LinkTV
Sandy Close, New America Media
Kaiping Liu, Deputy Editor, World Journal-SF
Taesoo Jeong, Editor-in-Chief, Korea Times-SF
Andrew Lam, New America Media
Juan Gonzales, El Tecolote
Kevin Weston, New America Media

10:25-11:35

Panel: New Channels for News and Information
YouTube, a crucial news source in the 2008 election cycle, did not exist as of the Kerry v. Bush contest. The panel of leading digerati examine the latest steps in the evolution of the media/information ecosystem and their relevance to the political system. Through the lens of the current presidential election, panelists will also examine the rise (and fall) of competing media platforms and the increasingly symbiotic relationship between “traditional” and “nontraditional” media.

Evan Hansen, Editor-in-Chief, Wired.com
Roy Sekoff, Editor, Huffington Post
Jay Walsh, Head of Communications, Wikimedia Foundation
Robert Rosenthal, Executive Editor, Center for Investigative Reporting
David Satterfield, Managing Editor, San Jose Mercury News
Olivia Ma, News Manager, YouTube
Roger Myers, Holme Roberts & Owen

Workshop: Getting the Most Out of City Hall and Police
Leading investigative reporters and legal experts pour through
the public files, explaining what key information can be gleaned from
them, where to go to get it and how to overcome obstacles to access.
Knowing your rights is just the starting point.

Karl Olson, Levy Ram and Olson
Thomas Peele, Contra Costa Times

11:50-1:00

Panel: Post 9/11 Secrecy in Government Intelligence and Law Enforcement
Post-9/11, the federal government has erected a wall of secrecy around its law enforcement and intelligence activities, especially
in the realm of communications surveillance. Panelists will discuss whether the balance between national security interests and first amendment rights is appropriate--with particular
emphasis on the government’s stance in FOIA litigation, its use of the “state secrets privilege” in cases concerning the NSA and the latest information on secret surveillance practices
--and will consider how that may change under the next administration.

Jon Eisenberg, lawyer who represented al-Haramain Islamic Foundation
Marcia Hofmann, Electronic Frontier Foundation
Kevin Bankston, Electronic Frontier Foundation, battled US government over telephone surveillance
Declan McCullagh, CNET Chief Political Consultant

Workshop: Accessing government databases
Leading investigative reporters and legal experts discuss the
enormous amount of information now being stored electronically by
governments, how to obtain that information and overcome obstacles to
access.

Rachel Matteo-Boehm, Holmes Roberts and Owen
Erin McCormick, San Francisco Chronicle
Phillip Reese, Sacramento Bee

1:15-2:15

Lunch and award ceremony

2:15-3:15

Featured speaker: Head Judge Alex Kozinski of the 9th Circuit

3:30-4:40

Panel: International censorship of the Internet
The internet’s decentralization and universal accessibility were
supposed to create a global free speech zone, beyond the power of any
government to regulate or control. Not so, it turns out. Many
governments now block their citizens’ access to websites deemed
offensive or threatening by censors, with China having built the most
systematic and comprehensive system of internet censorship, the
“Great Firewall.” What exactly does China censor and why? Can Google,
Microsoft and like companies force the government to change? Could
the World Trade Organization, in a case initiated by CFAC, force
China to curtail its censorship?

Xiao Qiang, Director, China Internet Project, and Editor, China Digital Times
Libby Liu, President, Radio Free Asia
Peter Scheer, Executive Director, California First Amendment Coalition
Lauren Gelman, Executive Director, Center for Internet and Society, Stanford Law School
Lewis Segall, Counsel to Google
Jim Dempsey, Center for Democracy and Technology

Workshop: Getting the Most Out of Court and County Files
Panelists, including journalists and lawyers, follow the
trail of public records from birth to death and explain just what
information is available, where you go to get it and how to overcome
obstacles to access.

Tom Newton, California Newspapers Publishers Association
Tim Crews, Sacramento Valley Mirror
Burt Robinson, San Jose Mercury News
James Chadwick, Sheppard Mullin Richter and Hampton

Assembly ends at 4:45

**Throughout Saturday attendees can see demos of Maplight.org, a
sophisticated web-based tool to highlight the connection between
campaign contributions and legislative outcomes.

See Page 2 for 2007 Assembly

CFAC, San Rafael, CA-- The late Chauncey Bailey, jailed videoblogger Josh Wolf, New America Media executive director Sandy Close, AP reporter Martha Mendoza, and legislators Gloria Romero and Mark Leno are among the recipients of awards given by the California First Amendment Coalition (CFAC) at the organization’s Free Speech and Open Government Assembly held at the Annenberg School for Communication in Los Angeles. 

Chauncey Bailey
The awards are given in recognition of an individual’s or organization’s courage and commitment to First Amendment principles. The 2007 Bill Farr Award, given jointly by CFAC and the California Socierty of Newspaper Editors, was presented on Friday, Oct. 26, to the late Chauncey Bailey, editor of the Oakland Post and a veteran journalist, who was gunned down on an Oakland street August 2 while reporting on Your Black Muslim Bakery. Bailey was also honored last month by the Northern California chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists

Darkness Award / City of Glendora
CFAC also announced the 2007 winner of its Darkness Award, given to cities, agencies or individuals who stand against the goals of free speech and access to information. This year’s Darkness Award, presented last Friday, went to the City of Glendora, CA for its disregard of the California Public Records Act.  According to CFAC, Glendora city officials required the public to pay excessive copying fees, created a mandatory records request form, demanded explanations from requesters as to the purpose of their requests—all in violation of state law

Sandy Close
CFAC honored Sandy Close, executive director of New America Media, with the special Leadership Award for tireless work giving voice to ethnic media, immigrants and youth. CFAC said Close has been “fearless in introducing a number of innovations, among them: multilingual polling to bring the voices of ethnic audiences into national focus, youth media publications and broadcasts and a unique news service that provides content, analysis, opinions and voices from every sector of society.”

CFAC also awarded four Beacon Awards to individuals who have championed free speech and open government: Bob Suhr, Josh Wolf, Martha Medoza, and one award to both State Senator Gloria Romero and Assemblyman Mark Leno.

Bob Suhr
Bob Suhr, a businessman-turned-open government activist, was named for using his understanding of the California Public Records Act to unearth the “unvarnished and untold truth” about the cost of public employee retirement and health benefits in Santa Cruz County

Josh Wolf
Josh Wolf, another Beacon Award winner, made national headlines last year for being incarcerated the longest of any journalist in US history for refusing to release to federal prosecutors his unpublished video of a 2005 anarchist rally in San Francisco.  Wolf demonstrated “unwavering commitment to journalistic ethics and the need for a federal shield law,” CFAC said.

Martha Mendoza
Martha Mendoza, AP reporter and Pulitzer Prize winner, was honored for her news stories about government wrongdoing, including an article exposing rapes of young women by US military recruiters.

Gloria Romero and Mark Leno
CFAC gave a joint Beacon Award to State Senator Gloria Romero (Los Angeles) and Assemblyman Mark Leno (San Francisco) for their sponsorship of legislation to open up selected police disciplinary files to public view, to establish journalists’ right to interview California prisoners, to increase access to public records and to improve open meeting laws. 

CFAC is an award-winning, nonprofit public interest organization dedicated to advancing free speech, more open and accountable government, and public participation in civic affairs. CFAC’s activities include strategic litigation to enhance First Amendment rights for the largest number of citizens, legal consultations, educational programs, legislative oversight of bills affecting access to government and free speech, and public advocacy.