Ciara is the immediate past president of the National Association of Black Journalists (NABJ); Hernandez was a board member of the National Association of Hispanic Journalists (NAHJ), where she served as a regional director. Their UNITY terms began on Oct. 10, 2009, and will run through Dec. 31, 2010.

UNITY:Journalists of Color is a strategic alliance advocating news coverage about people of color, and aggressively challenging its organizations at all levels to reflect the nation’s diversity. Representing more than 10,000 journalists of color, UNITY is comprised of the Asian American Journalists Association, National Association of Black Journalists, National Association of Hispanic Journalists, and the Native American Journalists Association.

The weekly column by Beinart, who teaches national political reporting and opinion writing at the CUNY Graduate School of Journalism, made its debut this week. The column covering politics and foreign policy will appear on Mondays.

Beinart, former editor of The New Republic, joined the CUNY J-School faculty at the beginning of the 2009 fall semester.

The piece refers to Jarvis, director of the J-School’s interactive journalism program, as one of the most ubiquitous digital media gurus despite his “prescription for radical change.”

“The Economy & the News” panel will also include representatives of Bloomberg, the Associated Press, WNYC, FT Alphaville, and CNNMoney.com.

The J-School group, which includes Dean Stephen B. Shepard, Associate Dean Judith Watson, and Associate Professor Jeff Jarvis, head of the interactive media program, is taking a lead role in the Aspen Institute’s annual Forum on Communications and Society (FOCAS). This year’s theme is Of the Press: Models for Preserving American Journalism.

A key part of the program is Jarvis’s report on CUNY’s ongoing New Business Models for News Project. You can hear his address and follow other conference sessions on the New Business Models for News web site, newsinnovation.com.

According to the Aspen Institute, “the purpose of the Forum is to develop a set of recommendations for leaders in media, government, foundations, community groups, and other societal institutions to sustain the journalistic functions of the press essential to democratic governance through new models, practices and solutions, and to identify new areas of research in the field.”

On Sept. 12, the new Encyclopedia of Journalism, which includes the Key Documents volume Lewis edited and wrote, is due out from Sage Publications. The CUNY J-School will host a press party on Oct. 14 to celebrate the international launch of the six-volume reference guide. In addition, Lewis’s promotion to the rank of Professor becomes effective Sept. 1.

As editor of Key Documents, Lewis used a representative sampling of documents to help explain such topics as media and the law, ethics codes, newsroom policies, and journalism education. Assisting him in the selection and modification process was Dr. Consuella Askew, the J-School’s chief librarian.

In addition to the general introduction, Lewis wrote a precis for each section and document, emphasizing how the content fits into a broader journalistic context. “In the end, the hope is to breathe life into the documents and give journalists and researchers a deeper appreciation for the workings of journalism,” he said in the introduction.

Besides his encyclopedia work, in the past year Lewis successfully launched the 39-credit Bachelor of Arts in Journalism degree program he created for York.

Lewis teaches Feature Writing and Narrative courses at the CUNY J-School.

Lens aims to showcase great photography from The Times staff and archives, as well as magazines, museums, books, and other sources from around the web. “We want to show our readers what we do as photographers so they get insight into the process,” Estrin said. “A critical aspect of this is we are looking to form an online community about photography.”

He credits Watts and Loomis with being instrumental in the editorial planning and development of Lens.

Watts is an interactive student in the J-School’s business & economics concentration who is doing a summer internship with another Times venture, The Local citizens journalism site. She will also continue working on Lens.

Loomis, who is specializing in interactive and international journalism, is heading off to Switzerland this summer for an internship at International Bridges to Justice, a human rights organization that strives to protect due process and achieve fair trials for accused people around the world.

The CUNY J-School’s second annual Awards for Excellence in Journalism grossed nearly $350,000, most of which will be used for student scholarships.

In addition to Walters, the event recognized alumni from the Class of 2008: Fritzie Andrade, who works for NBC’s local integrated media; Joshua Cinelli, a web editor for the New York Daily News; and Dana Oliver of the AOL.com style section. Another 2008 graduate, Bloomberg News business reporter Cristina Alesci, received the first Frederic Wiegold Award, named for a senior editor at Bloomberg Markets magazine who passed away last year.

In her remarks upon accepting her award, Walters referred to the challenges facing journalists today: “Yes, newspapers are in trouble. Yes, our kids are getting their news from the Internet while we, the parents, are coping with Blackberrys and web sites and blogs and bleebs and blabs and iPhones and iPods, not to mention Google and Wikipedia and Twitter – and God help me, even I have been known to tweet.”

But she also said we are entering a new golden age of journalism: “We now have the ability to instantly communicate the whole world, to entertain, to inform, to educate. We are entering a whole new astonishing way to present and receive news and if used correctly what a force for good. And what are the next opportunities? When will one of the students here tonight come up with a new and better way to tweet or Twitter or tell a story? Who will they be honoring 20 years from now?”

Walters began her career more than four decades ago as a writer for NBC’s Today Show. She went on to become the program’s first female co-host and to interview numerous world leaders and celebrities, including every U.S. president and first lady since Richard Nixon. Walters joined ABC News in 1976 and co-hosted the news magazine show 20/20 for 25 years. She remains an active contributor to the network through her prime time specials and work as co-executive producer and co-host of the popular daytime talk show, The View. She is also the author of a best-selling autobiography, Audition: A Memoir.

Co-chairs for the event were Mercedes and Sid R. Bass; Barry Diller, chairman & CEO of IAC; Evelyn and Leonard A. Lauder of the Estee Lauder Companies; Catie and Donald B. Marron; Peter G. Peterson, founder and chairman of Peter G. Peterson Foundation; David Westin, president of ABC News; Maureen White and Steven Rattner; and Mortimer Zuckerman, chairman and publisher of the New York Daily News and US News & World Report.

The media sponsors included Bloomberg L.P., Dow Jones & Co., The Hearst Corporation, The McGraw-Hill Companies, News Corporation, The New York Observer, The New York Times Company, and Time Inc.

Sponsored by The Guardian, the podcast will cover the latest developments in the U.S. media scene.

Jarvis is director of the interactive program at the CUNY J-School. Read more about the podcast in this post on his BuzzMachine blog.

“Where Unmentionables Come With a Story,” chronicled the struggles of the dwindling number of Manhattan’s Lower East Side shops selling clothing, lingerie, shoes, and jewelry at bargain prices.

Vega reported and narrated the audio slideshow and served as a producer. A member of the CUNY Graduate School of Journalism’s pioneering first class, Vega was among three top graduates honored last year at the J-School’s inaugural Excellence in Journalism Awards gala, an event headlined by noted broadcast journalist Tom Brokaw.

Vega has been on staff for nearly a year at NYTimes.com, which won a prestigious 2008 Peabody Award on April 1.