NLGJA 2026 National Convention

9:45am PDT

A Toolkit for Intersex Inclusion Seacliff CSara Bonisteel Bi and Trans: The Intersections Seacliff AAmber Dodd ChatGPT For Real Newsroom Work Seacliff DEvan Hirsch • OpenAI Sound Like Yourself: Using Your Voice Across Audio and Video Seacliff BGeorge Bodarky

11:00am PDT

Covering A Divided Nation: Lessons from Black and Brown Media Seacliff BDa'Shaun Harrison • Sonali Kohli • Anajana Nagarajan-Butaney • Mariana Duran Flores Follow the Money: AI and the Cross-Platform Global Newsroom Seacliff CJosh Eidelson • Rakshita Saluja • Todd Gillespie • Lynn Doan • Ben Steverman • Bloomberg Radical, Unreasonable Queer Hospitality Now Seacliff D The Reality of Freelance Journalism Today Seacliff AK Petrin • Soleil Ho • Katherine Lewis

3:00pm PDT

Expanding the Frame: Including Trans and Gender-Expansive Communities in Your Coverage Seacliff BK Petrin • Drew Costley • Jireh Deng • Lex McMenamin Navigating Risk: Practical Safety for LGBTQ+ Journalists covering ICE in the US Seacliff CJennifer Nelson • Tat Bellamy Walker • Clara-Sophia Daly Optimizing Your Résumé for AI Seacliff AJahna Berry • Sonali Kohli We Still Drive at 55: The Bay Area Reporter's More Than Half a Century Seacliff DMichael Flanagan • Cynthia Laird • Jim Provenzano • Michael Yamashita

4:15pm PDT

Diversity is More Than Staffing, It’s News Coverage: Ensuring More Missing People of Color Make the Headlines Seacliff CJonathan Franklin Inside Scoop: Building Sources Inside an Administration in Upheaval Seacliff DK Petrin • Martin Shelton • Claire Savage Primary Sources First: How to Build Custom AI Tooling for Investigations Seacliff A PRSA Presents Connecting Comms and Journalism: Advancing Accurate Representation in Media Seacliff BCurtis Sparrer • Heide Harrell • Matt Marcial • Public Relations Society of America

9:30am PDT

Finding the Real AI Story Seacliff DThe Wall Street Journal If We Built Queer Journalism Today, Would We Call It a Newsroom? Seacliff AEvan Milward • Missy Spears • Divya Karthikeyan • Alex Cooper Reporting on Suicide: A Skill-Building Lab for Ethical Storytelling Seacliff CChristine Yu Moutier Ripped from the Headlines: A Fireside Chat with LGBTQ+ Documentary Filmmakers Seacliff BMeg Shutzer • Hansen Bursic • LaTajh Weaver

3:30pm PDT

Deepfakes, Gender and Sexuality in the AI Era Seacliff ASam Cole • Kathleen Massara • Kate Conger • Tat Bellamy Walker LGBTQ+ Women in News Seacliff C Navigating a Career in Broadcast and Advocating for Yourself Seacliff BSAG-AFTRA The Podcast Era: Audio & Video Storytelling, Queer Narratives and Holding Space Seacliff DPJ Brescia • Ryan Lu

4:45pm PDT

A Tale of Two States: The Role of the Media in Informing Voters about Ballot Initiatives in the 2026 Midterm Elections Seacliff DAnna Castro • Sara Mar • Nadine Bridges • Robert Fischer • Transgender Law Center How CBS News Bay Area (KPIX) and CBS News 24/7 Are Reinventing Broadcast Seacliff BCBS News and Stations Leveling Up Your Reporting with IRE Seacliff CAdam Rhodes The Art of the Slow Burn: A Masterclass in Long-Form Pacing and Narrative Writing Seacliff AJeremy Fox • Terra King • Denny Nivens • Megan Ulu-Lani Boyanton

9:00am PDT

From the Daily Beat to the Best-Seller: How to Turn Your Reporting Into a Book Seacliff A How to Speak Red State Seacliff B Lifting Up Diverse LGBTQ+ Media and Entertainment During Trump 2.0 Seacliff C

2:45pm PDT

KQED: Covering One Of the Queerest Places on Earth Seacliff AKQED Pitch-A-Thon Seacliff CEric Hegedüs • Pat Manning • Cathy Renna Rewriting the Lead(er): The New Rules of Media Management Seacliff DAaron Waisler What in the L? Reclaiming the Word “Lesbian” Seacliff BSunny Leerasanthanah • Franco Stevens • Laila AnnMarie Stevens

4:00pm PDT

Content That Connects: The Social Playbook Seacliff CPatrick Gomez • Jack Irvin • Jonathan Borge • Cait Knoll • People Inc. Los Angeles 2028 Summer Olympics: Covering Queer Athletes Seacliff AJim Buzinski • Chris Bull • Cyd Ziegler The Future of Queer & Trans Media Seacliff BSalgu Wissmath • Soleil Ho • Kit O'Connell

5:15pm PDT

Convention CONNECTions: A Showcase of Student Work Grand Ballroom AVersant • Kellogg Foundation