CONVENTION | February 6, 2025
Program
Michael Bolden will offer a comprehensive vision for the future of local news, essential for those invested in community well-being and journalism. He will highlight the opportunity to use challenges as catalysts for innovation, forging a future for local journalism that is more robust, inclusive, and deeply connected to the communities it serves.
Michael Bolden is CEO and executive director of the American Press Institute. Previously, Bolden was a managing editor at The San Francisco Chronicle. Earlier in his career, he was a journalism lecturer at Stanford University and managing director of the John S. Knight Foundation.
Marisa Kwiatkowski is director of journalism at the Knight Foundation. Before joining the organization in 2024, Kwiatkowski spent 20 years as a reporter, working for USA TODAY’s national investigative team and local outlets in Michigan, South Carolina and Indiana. Her work has spurred multiagency investigations, criminal charges, resignations and changes to federal law and state policy.
Kwiatkowski is best known for the investigative series she and her Indianapolis Star colleagues produced on USA Gymnastics and it’s handling of child sexual abuse allegations, including those against former team doctor Larry Nassar.
In a world in which not everyone understands the value of local news, how can journalists make connections with potential readers? With potential sources? In this session, we’ll get inside the mindset of emerging audiences. We’ll look at how people get information in an increasingly complex media environment and how journalists can engage strategically with people they’re not already reaching.
Joy Mayer is the founder and director of Trusting News, a project that studies how people decide what news to trust and helps journalists and the public understand each other.
Join Bill Day from Magid as he shares the latest research from their AD.VANTAGE tracking study. Learn where consumers are planning to spend, what they want to hear from marketers, and how you can best deliver messages to key segments. You'll walk away with actionable intelligence you can use in your pitch tomorrow.
Bill Day is an experienced research and consulting executive with a successful record leading project team to improve sales and reduce expenses for Fortune 500 companies.
Since last year’s INA Convention, billions of dollars have been spent making AI better. New models can now write better, understand more, and even demonstrate reasoning as it solves a complex multi-step problem. With all those billions burned up, can it finally do journalism?
Matt Waite is a professor of practice in the College of Journalism and Mass Communications at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln who teaches courses in data analysis and visualization.
Join us to hear from media professionals who have found success in freelance. Learn how they got started and continue to find success in their field. Our panelists took something they are passionate about and turned it into a creative content career.
Beth Mund, Producer, Casual Space podcast
Laney KT, Senior Producer/Entrepreneur
Ben Friedman, President, Totus Media
A CONVERSATION WITH TERRY BRANSTAD
The nation’s longest-serving governor, former U.S. ambassador, and ex-Iowa Newspaper Foundation board member, Terry E. Branstad chats with retired editor Brian Cooper. Ambassador Branstad will share his observations and insights, built upon his long career in public service, and where newspapers played a part along the way.
Before his retirement in 2019, Brian Cooper worked 37 years as an Iowa editor—four with The Ottumwa Courier and then 33 at the Dubuque Telegraph Herald. He has written more than half-dozen non-fiction books—sports biographies and corporate histories.
Amb. Terry Branstad holds the record as longest-serving governor in the history of the United States. He held the office of Governor of Iowa from 1983 until 1999, and then again from 2011 until 2017, when he was appointed U.S. Ambassador to China.
Journalists don’t get credit for any decisions, policies or practices that the audience can’t see. So, how easy is it for *your* audience to understand your ethical principles? Your funding? How you work to be fair in your coverage? How seriously you take accuracy? How you cover topics like crime or politics? This session will walk through why and how journalists can be shining a light on their credibility and integrity.
Joy Mayer is the founder and director of Trusting News, a project that studies how people decide what news to trust and helps journalists and the public understand each other.
About a quarter of all adults say they get news from YouTube, not to mention recipes, reviews, and finding things to do in their communities. Join Bill Day from Magid as he shares the latest research and lessons from the field on engaging viewers and unlocking revenue from YouTube in 2025.
Bill Day is an experienced research and consulting executive with a successful record leading project team to improve sales and reduce expenses for Fortune 500 companies.
Ever had a big story happen in your community that you just knew you could have done more if you just knew a little data journalism? A new project from the University of Nebraska-Lincoln’s College of Journalism and Mass Communications is going to give you everything you need to learn how to do local journalism with data, all in a box. Cost to you: Nothing. Free tools, free textbook, free data.
Matt Waite is a professor of practice in the College of Journalism and Mass Communications at the University of Nebraska-Lincoln who teaches courses in data analysis and visualization.
Iowa sports-media professionals talk about the paths they have taken to their careers, the ups and downs of their work, and their pro tips on how to succeed in a competitive field.
Jake Brend, We Are Iowa
Paul Yeager, Iowa PBS
Sam Lozada, Freelancer
Des Moines Room
The session will be filled with lots of useful tips to strengthen news coverage by making public records a routine part of journalists' reporting.
Randy Evans, Kyle Ocker, and Sarah Weber will lead a panel of journalists who will talk about techniques they use to mine public records and produce meaty stories for their readers.
Learn how the INA's Customized Newspaper Advertising uses your data to sell print and digital advertising, how we can help expand your market and what sales resources we offer our members at no cost.
In today’s competitive job market, attracting and retaining top talent is crucial for organizational success. We will explore effective strategies to enhance your employee value proposition, emphasize your mission and purpose, optimize recruitment processes, and foster a culture where people want to work. We will discuss approaches to talent attraction and delve into retention techniques. Attendees will leave with actionable insights and tools to build a strong talent pipeline and cultivate a loyal workforce.
Kellie Gottner has over 20 years’ experience in PEO and Human Resources in various roles, Kellie joined Aureon HR/Merit Resources in 2002 then in 2013 to Iowa Network Services, which later rebranded to Aureon. Kellie most recently served as Chief People Officer for Aureon prior to joining the Connectify HR team.
Join young professionals from the media industry to hear top tips on how to land that job you are hoping for and what to expect in those first few years in the workforce.
Katie Burns, Agriland FS
Allison Moore, Storm Lake Times Pilot
Calyn Thompson, WHO-TV
Cody Holtgrewe, WOI Ch. 5
Paul Yeager is an Emmy Award-winning producer and on-air talent at Iowa PBS. Currently, he is host of the award winning, nationally distributed PBS program Market to Market, the weekly journal of rural America. Paul also reports, writes and edits news and feature stories for the program as well as producing the weekly online-only offering, the MtoM Podcast.
Registration
IOWA NEWSPAPER
ASSOCIATION REGISTRATION
Use code INVOICECONV for your newspaper to be invoiced
IOWA COLLEGE MEDIA
ASSOCIATION REGISTRATION
Use code INVOICEICMA for your school to be invoiced
The deadline to reserve your hotel room at the Marriott Hotel and receive the INA's discount rate of $124 is January 22, 2025. To make reservations visit Marriott Reservations