Editors, attorneys join search for new director at Reporters Committee
Contact: Steering Committee Chairman Tony Mauro at tmauro@alm.com or Search Committee Chairman John C. Henry at johnchenry48@yahoo.com
A committee of distinguished journalists and attorneys has been named to conduct a national search for candidates for the executive director’s post at the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, an opening created with the resignation of First Amendment advocate Lucy Dalglish.
“We have assembled a stellar group of journalism and legal professionals whose depth of knowledge and experience will insure that we find the right person to carry forward the traditions and mission of the committee,” said Tony Mauro, a National Law Journal reporter who chairs the Reporters Committee. “We are very grateful for their willingness to assist us in this important search.”
Directing the search is John C. Henry, a former news editor for The Associated Press in Washington. Henry chaired the Reporters Committee 13 years ago when Dalglish, then an attorney with the Dorsey & Whitney law firm in Minneapolis, was hired as executive director.
Dalglish is leaving the organization to become dean of the Philip Merrill School of Journalism at the University of Maryland on Aug. 1.
In addition to Mauro and Henry, members of the search committee include:
- John Seigenthaler, chairman emeritus of The Tennessean and founder of the First Amendment Center
- Dawn E. Garcia, deputy director of the Knight Journalism Fellowships at Stanford University
- Michael Getler, ombudsman for the Public Broadcasting System and former editor and reporter at The Washington Post
- Hodding Carter, University of North Carolina professor and former Knight Foundation president
- Sue Porter, vice president of the Scripps Howard Foundation
- Sandy Rowe, former editor of The Oregonian and president of the Committee to Protect Journalists
- Neil Lewis, director of the non-partisan Task Force on Detainee Treatment
- Charles Tobin, partner at Holland & Knight LLP
- Laura Handman, partner at Davis Wright Tremaine LLP
- David Boardman, executive editor of the Seattle Times and member of the Reporters Committee Steering Committee
- Saundra Torry, editorial writer at USA Today and member of the Reporters Committee Steering Committee
- Lois Lloyd, business manager and senior staff member at the Reporters Committee
The group is seeking an attorney with journalism experience to oversee a 12-person staff in Arlington, Va., and coordinate legal assistance to journalists across the country. The executive director supervises production of legal briefs in key First Amendment and access cases, serves as a national spokesperson on free press and freedom of information issues, raises money to run the organization, and oversees the Reporters Committee digital and print initiatives.
Letters of interest — accompanied by a resume and the names and contact information for three references — can be sent to execdirsearch@rcfp.org. Deadline for applications is June 15.
To see the full job announcement, go to http://www.rcfp.org/about-us/jobs.
About the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press
Founded in 1970, the Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press offers free legal support to thousands of working journalists and media lawyers each year. It is a leader in the fight against persistent efforts by government officials to impede the release of public information, whether by withholding documents or threatening reporters with jail. In addition to its 24/7 Legal Defense Hotline, the Reporters Committee conducts cutting-edge legal research, publishes handbooks and guides on media law issues, files frequent friend-of-the-court legal briefs and offers challenging fellowships and internships for young lawyers and journalists. For more information, go to www.rcfp.org, or follow us on Twitter @rcfp.