Coverage of social conflict topic of University of Oregon School of Law symposium

EUGENE, Ore. -- (Nov. 5, 2007) -- A symposium that will address the conundrum created by the contemporary media’s "competing sides" coverage of social conflict will take place at the University of Oregon School of Law on Friday, Nov. 16.

Critics charge that this method of covering conflict does not provide useful information to the public and has contributed to a media credibility crisis. At the event, panels of practicing journalists, academics and political activists will discuss a new way of covering conflict that integrates conflict theory with journalism practice called interest-based reporting (IBR). For example, IBR de-emphasizes the positions of the parties and emphasizes instead what conflict theory calls interests -- the needs, interests, and concerns that drive those positions.

The symposium on "Interest-Based Reporting: Elevating the Coverage of Conflict" will take place from 11:15 a.m. to 4:30 p.m. on Friday, Nov. 16, at the William W. Knight Law Center, 1515 Agate St. The University of Oregon School of Law’s Appropriate Dispute Resolution Center, the Missouri Center for the Study of Conflict Law & the Media, and the University of Oregon School of Journalism and Communication are sponsors of the conference. Registration costs $15 and can be completed online at www.law.uoregon.edu/org/adr/events/2007.php, or by calling 541-346-0140.


Featured speakers will include Brent Walth, a Pulitzer Prize-winning reporter who writes for the Oregonian; Jim Godbold, an associate editor at the Register-Guard; Mark Zusman, an editor at Willamette Week; State Senator Floyd Prozanski, who represents south Lane and north Douglas counties; Bob Stacey, executive director of 1,000 Friends of Oregon; Dave Hunnicutt, president of Oregonians in Action; and Jon Palfreman, Distinguished Professor of Broadcast Journalism at the UO School of Journalism and Communications. Palfreman's documentaries have won Emmy, Dupont, and Peabody Awards.

About the University of Oregon
The University of Oregon is a world-class teaching and research institution and Oregon's flagship public university. The UO is a member of the Association of American Universities (AAU), an organization made up of 62 of the leading public and private research institutions in the United States and Canada. Membership in the AAU is by invitation only. The University of Oregon is one of only two AAU members in the Pacific Northwest.

Contact: Credence Sol, director of communications, University of Oregon School of Law, 541-346-1665, csol@uoregon.edu

Link: University of Oregon School of Law events, http://www.law.uoregon.edu/org/adr/events2007.php

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