Special Interest Journalism Organizations

As noted elsewhere, journalists are joiners. Perhaps nowhere is that more evident than among the host of specialized journalism organizations—essentially those not covered in other organizational entries. It seems there is hardly a professional journalism role that does not boast at least one association for the sharing of ideas, best practices, and concerns about policy or economic incursions into the work of members.

Some of the groups noted below have formed because they could not join existing organizations. This was true of several women's journalism groups that were controlled by and limited to male membership for decades. Likewise, photographers came together in two different groups in the mid-1940s to seek more overt recognition for the creative efforts of their members in an era when photographs were rarely credited. So did editorial cartoonists, the most famous of whom were widely recognized and could thus help form an association to support the efforts of other cartoonists. Both the American Meteorological Society (AMS) and the National Weather Association (NWA) have certified broadcast meteorologists. As of 2008, nearly a thousand television weather people had been certified by the AMS; starting in 2009, they will issue Certified Broadcast Meteorologist certifications that stations can display. Some groups helped small professional subgroups—ombudsmen are one example—seek comfort and support from others scattered across many markets.

The well-known National Press Club of Washington, D.C., began more as a social gathering place, eventually becoming both an important source of news and a model for countless other similar groups in other cities. It also reflected the social pressures on journalism (and American society generally) which led to very public controversies about the admission of black and later female journalists to its membership roles. Its debates and eventual admission decisions were widely reported simply because of the club's visibility across the capital city and the country at large.

As media change, so do the organizations serving them. The Society of Newspaper Design dropped the “paper” in its name as members increasingly worked across multiple media. The growing number of online journalists—some professionally recognized but many more not—created its own group to help achieve both recognition and common standards. The photographers' groups eventually admitted those doing video for television news. Several groups have formed to protect the interest of reporters and other journalists as government and technology clash and put pressure on rights of access.

The information on each association below is based largely on their individual websites.