Programme and Speakers 2012

SUNDAY NOVEMBER 11

4.00 pm    Registration at the Europa Hotel

5.00 pm    SoE AGM

6.30 pm    Welcome reception

6.55 pm    Welcome to Belfast

7.00 pm    Society of Editors Lecture – Lord Hunt of Wirral, Chairman of the Press Complaints Commission

Belfast City Hall by kind permission of Belfast City Council
Lord Hunt took up the role of chairman of the PCC in October 2011, at one of the most turbulent times in the history of British journalism. He has always argued in favour of a non-statutory system of press regulation, and has been at the forefront of the debate that has raged about how the media landscape will look in the wake of the Leveson inquiry.
Chaired by Francesca Unsworth.
Head of Newsgathering , BBC,President of the Society of Editors,

8.15 pm    Buffet reception

10.30 pm  Late bar in the Piano Bar, Europa Hotel

MONDAY NOVEMBER 12

8.00 am     Breakfast
English breakfast in the restaurant or continental breakfast in the conference foyer Europa.

9.00 am     Welcome
 Francesca Unsworth, Head of Newsgathering BBC, President, Society of Editors,

9.15am      The world after Leveson
 The shock waves from Lord Justice Leveson’s far reaching and controversial inquiry  are still being felt. It posed fundamental questions about ethics and conduct not just in the press, but also in the police, politics and public life. It also raised the thorny issue of regulation. What were the lessons, have they been learned, and what happens now?

Chaired by Steve Hewlett, The Media Show, BBC Radio 4

Lord Black, Executive Director, Telegraph Media Group
Chris Blackhurst, Editor, The Independent
Bill Hagerty, editor and consultant
 Phil Harding, former controller of editorial policy, BBC
Professor John Horgan, Press Ombudsman, Republic of Ireland
Lord Inglewood, Chairman, House of Lords Communications Committee
Philippa Kennedy, Press Ombudsman, The Sun
Peter Preston, Director, Guardian Foundation                   

10.45 am   Coffee

11.00 am   Maintaining standards
Post-Leveson, training and continued personal development has become an even greater priority. We look at what editors, trainers and students said in a special SoE survey.

Simon Bucks, Associate Editor, Sky News
Joanne Butcher, Chief Executive, National Council for the Training of Journalists

11.30 am   More than one way to skin a cat
Rufus Olins, Chief Executive of Newsworks, leads a debate on how best to promote news brands and generate revenue at a time when the whole world of publishing has been turned upside down by changing reader habits and technological advances in content delivery.

12.15pm   Lunch

2.00 pm    Adapt or die. Whatever Next?
From micro TV to hyper local – what’s new in the news emporium? We all know things have shifted light years away from the Victorian newsroom model,  but what are the next steps? Editors discuss viewers, listeners, surfers, tweeters, readers, revenues and relevance.

Chaired by Jim Chisholm,  consultant and media analyst
Damien Bates, Editor, Press and Journal
Carla Buzasi, Editor-in-chief, Huffington Post UK and AOL
 Stefano Hatfield, Editor, i
Marilyn Hyndman, Programmes Director, Northern Visions
Rob Irvine, Editor-in-chief, MEN Media
Mike Wolsey, Editorial Director, Complete Newspaper Solutions

3.15pm    Tea

3.30pm     In the public interest… but why won’t they tell us?
Members of the public have a right to know, but journalists are finding it increasingly difficult to get answers to the simplest of questions on their behalf. A creeping control culture means that face-to-face contact, and even telephone calls are being replaced by carefully managed email exchanges.  De-humanised, sterile, and obstructive, this trend poses a serious threat to journalism and genuine transparency – at all levels.

Chaired by Wendy Austin, Presenter, Talkback, BBC Radio Ulster
Mike Gilson, Editor, Belfast Telegraph
Christopher Graham, Information Commissioner
Anthony Longden, journalist and consultant
Olivia O’Kane, Media Lawyer, Carson McDowell
Andy Trotter, Chief Constable, Chair, ACPO Communications Advisory Group                  

4.30pm-    Keynote address:
Rt Hon John Whittingdale MP, Chairman of House of Commons Culture, Media and Sport Select Committee

5.15 pm    Working sessions end

6.20 pm    Buses to Titanic Quarter

6.45 pm     A taste of the Titanic exhibition

7.15 pm     Reception
 
8.15 pm     Annual Gala Dinner – Black tie

Welcome by Dianne Thompson, CEO, Camelot
Edmund Curran, former editor, Belfast Telegraph
 Mick Hume, journalist and author

11.00 pm   Return to Late bar at the Europa Hotel

TUESDAY NOVEMBER 13

8.30 am    Breakfast seminar in the conference room
A full buffet breakfast will be served in the conference room from 8.30 am with the seminar itself starting at 9.30 am prompt.

9.30 am    Keeping the investigative end up – there is a way to pay for it
Just at the time when journalism is needed, funding it has proved a serious headache for media organisations. But new models have emerged that mean rigorous investigative journalism and major stories can still be delivered – and paid for.

Chaired by Noel Thompson, Presenter, BBC Radio Ulster
Brian Flynn, Investigations Editor, The Sun
Ruth O’Reilly, Editor, The Detail
Iain Overton, Editor, The Bureau of Investigative Journalism
Mark Watts, Editor, Exaro

10.30 am  New President’s inaugural address  – Jonathan Grun, Editor, Press Association                

10.45 am  Conference close