Colleagues:

Just a reminder of our JAGIS social session coming up at the ESRI User
Conference in July. Please let me know if you think you MIGHT make it.

I believe there are two conferences vital for journalists: one is the
meetings of the Special Libraries Association and its sub-division essential to
our craft, the News Researchers (http://www.ibiblio. org/slanews/ nln/). The
other conference is the ESRI User
Conference<http://www.esri. com/events/ uc/>in San Diego. This brings
together the full range of GIS users and demonstrates that GIS is one of the
truly transdisciplinary tools for analysis and presentation.

The ESRI conference this year is July 13-17 in San Diego's Convention
Center. Normally, registration fees for non-licensees are rather steep, but if
your organization has a license for ESRI software, then you are covered. Ah, but
if you have a reporter's credentials, or are a professor of journalism, you can
get press credentials. That means you can attend all aspects of the conference
without writing a check or breaking out your credit card.

Should you want to get those credentials, e-mail Clem Henriksen (
chenriksen@...) right away with your request. Clem is the new media
industries manager (whose wife is a member of the Society of Environmental
Journalists).

From my experience, I encourage you to consider attending at least three of the
many events in San Diego:

1) The Map Gallery and Opening Reception, Monday, July 13, 3:30-8:30p.m.
http://www.esri. com/events/ uc/exhibits/ map_gallery. html
2) Meeting: News Media SIG, Date: 7/14/2009, Time: 12-1:00 p.m., *Room: 26 B
3) The JAGIS Board Meeting and dinner, Tuesday evening, place and time yet to be
determined (assuming there is sufficient attendance. Send an e-mail regarding
your interest and participation to tom@jtjohnson. com) This is really a social
occasion, not a true business meeting. Unless, of course, someone thinks there
is business to be conducted in the name of this VERY informal outfit.

Hope to see all of you in San Diego.

Cheers,
Tom Johnson