By Mark Harden / SPJ Colorado Pro communications chair
Hello again, and welcome to the June edition of the newsletter of the Colorado Professional Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists.
In this edition, we introduce you to our new chapter leaders, recap our farewell to Fred Brown, catch you up on student news, and tell you how to register for our national conference this fall.
Read on for the latest. (For more, visit our website.)
New chapter board members and leaders
SPJ Colorado Pro welcomes Ryan Lowery, an independent reporter and editor in Colorado Springs, and Michael Braithwaite, a Denver Gazette reporter and digital strategist, to our chapter board following our recent membership election, and we say farewell to departing board members Kara Mason and Deb Hurley Brobst (although Deb will continue as contest chair overseeing our annual four-state Top of the Rockies Journalism Excellence Awards).
For the coming 12-month period, longtime chapter leader Doug Bell will serve as chapter president. And the board selected Marco Cummings as president-elect for a year, followed by a term as chapter president in 2027-29.
CLICK HERE for full details of our leadership and board changes.
Friends of “Ethical Fred” gather for a celebration of his life
On May 7, our chapter joined with the Colorado Freedom of Information Coalition and the Denver Press Club for a tribute to the late Fred Brown, our friend, a leader of all three organizations, a renowned journalist and educator, and a beacon of journalism ethics. (CLICK HERE to watch a video of presentations at the event at the Press Club.)
On hand were his wife, Mary Brown; many SPJ leaders and members, including several former national presidents; many of Fred’s Denver Post colleagues (including Editor Lee Ann Colacioppo); representatives of KUSA-9NEWS and the University of Denver, where Fred also worked, and the Denver Zoo Conservation Alliance, where he volunteered; and three of the Colorado Capitol press corps’ infamous flock of rubber chickens.
Also on May 7, the national SPJ board issued a proclamation honoring Fred, CFOIC President Steve Zansberg presented its Jean Otto Friend of Freedom Award to Mary in Fred’s name, and the Colorado State Senate paid tribute to Fred. (CLICK HERE for a story on the Senate recognition by Marianne Goodland of Colorado Politics). Previously, our chapter created a new annual Ethical Fred award for journalistic ethics in Colorado, and national SPJ renamed its ethics award for Fred.
Thanks to everyone who joined us on May 7 (including Denver Mayor Mike Johnston), and to Kevin Vaughan of 9NEWS for emcee’ing. (Photos by longtime Post photographer Lyn Alweis.)
CLICK HERE for SPJ Colorado Pro’s tribute to Fred.
By the way, the fifth edition of the media ethics guidebook that Fred helped to edit is available in paperback and e-edition. CLICK HERE for more.
National honors for Colorado student journalists
Colorado collegiate journalists from the University of Colorado Boulder and Colorado Mesa University have been honored in SPJ’s national Mark of Excellence Awards. The awards are for collegiate journalism published or broadcast in 2025. This year, students and staffs from 45 newsrooms across the United States received national honors.
The Colorado national honorees are:
- Spencer Stepp of KVCU Radio 1190 News at CU Boulder, who won for Radio In-Depth Reporting for a piece entitled: “The story behind Denver’s teacher walkout.”
- Enrique Quintero of The Criterion at Colorado Mesa University in Grand Junction, who won for work on Western Slope wildfires.
First-place winners in SPJ’s 12 regional Mark of Excellence competitions were considered for national honors.
CLICK HERE for all the national Mark of Excellence winners. And CLICK HERE for this year’s regional winners in SPJ’s Region 9 – Colorado, Utah, New Mexico and Wyoming.
SPJ Colorado Pro leaders coach DU student journalists
SPJ Colorado Pro chapter leaders Doug Bell and Marco Cummings met in early May with journalism students at the University of Denver, where Marco is an alumnus.
Doug presented “How to Get a Job in Media,” sharing advice on interviewing, networking, resumes, cover letters, and breaking into the journalism industry.
Under Doug’s leadership as education chair, SPJ Colorado Pro is active in coaching, encouraging and awarding scholarships to the state’s journalists of tomorrow, and Doug regularly travels the state to meet with students. In April, we announced our new mentorship program designed to connect working journalists with Colorado college students. CLICK HERE for more.
Photo by DU Clarion staff photographer Carter Schwent.
National SPJ conference is Oct. 1-2
Early-bird registration is now open for the 2026 national SPJ conference in Columbus, Ohio, featuring four days of learning, networking and conversations shaping the future of journalism.
If you register by June 30, you’ll lock in early-bird pricing for SPJ26. Society members receive additional savings on registration. And rooms are available at $220 a night through Aug. 31 until the group-rate block of rooms sells out. CLICK HERE for details, to register for the conference and to book a room.
It’s not too late to submit a proposal for a session at the conference. CLICK HERE to do it.
At the conference, SPJ will honor this year’s Fellows of the Society, the highest professional honor awarded by the organization. They are Julie K. Brown, Robin Givhan, Walter V. Robinson and Dick Vitale. Brown, Givhan and Robinson plan to attend the conference and participate in a keynote session.
SPJ Foundation opens grant cycle
The SPJ Foundation has opened its 2026 grant cycle and invites applications from journalists, media professionals and organizations working to strengthen press freedom, support newsroom resilience and advance public trust in credible journalism.
The 2026 grant cycle will prioritize initiatives that advocate for journalists and journalism, defend press freedom, promote media literacy and help build public trust in credible news.
“The strength of journalism depends on both resilience and innovation,” said SPJ Foundation Grants Committee Chair Jane Kirtley. “We look for bold but practical ideas that help journalists advocate for themselves, improve public understanding of the news and safeguard access to trustworthy reporting in meaningful, measurable ways.”
The foundation will host a free informational webinar on the grant program at 10 a.m. MDT on June 10. CLICK HERE to register for the webinar.
Applicants must submit grant proposals by 9:59 p.m. MDT Aug. 13. CLICK HERE for more information.
And that’s a wrap on this edition of our newsletter. Please join us at SPJ Colorado Pro and help us further our mission of better journalism. Colorado chapter membership is now included in your national membership at no extra charge. CLICK HERE for information on how to become a member.
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