The three-day Native American Journalism Career Conference, held at Crazy Horse Memorial in South Dakota every April since 2000, is the largest Native student journalism program of its kind in the country.
About 250 people, including 154 Native high school and college students from 10 states gathered at Crazy Horse Memorial, April 22-24, 2008. The 9th annual conference attracted the biggest total attendance, and the second-best student attendance. Thirty-five experienced journalists — many of them Native American — mentored the students on the basic skills and practices of journalism, including writing, photography and multimedia. Speakers at general sessions included Freedom Forum and USA TODAY founder Al Neuharth, Mount Rushmore Superintendent Gerard Baker, former Native American Journalists Association president Mike Kellogg and Crazy Horse Memorial Foundation CEO Ruth Ziolkowski.
“This conference introduces and promotes journalism as a career path for Native youth who otherwise might not consider it,” said Jack Marsh, Freedom Forum vice president and one of the conference founders. “Natives are the most underrepresented group in America’s newsrooms. Quality news organizations that value a diverse workforce are eager to hire Native journalists and improve the coverage of Indian Country, Native people and Native issues. When the diversity of a newsroom reflects the diversity of the community it serves, the news coverage is fairer and richer.”
The conference is funded by the Freedom Forum Diversity Institute and co-sponsored by the South Dakota Newspaper Association, the Crazy Horse Memorial Foundation, the Native American Journalists Association, and the journalism programs at South Dakota State University and the University of South Dakota.