About a dozen people turned up to hear a panel of journalists and religious leaders organized by SPJ Cleveland. The evening turned into a wide-ranging discussion, with enough questions flowing from the audience to keep our panelists talking till the library threw us out.

So what is the problem with religion coverage today?

"Coverage is generally thin, shallow, surface (oriented) and responding to incidents, like the study says," said Mark Rollenhagen, pastor at Faith Lutheran Church and a former Plain Dealer reporter.

Nancy Erikson, editor of the Catholic Universe Bulletin and a former reporter for several local dailies, cited a Sept. 16 poll by the Pew Research Center that found a majority of Christian voters are Obama supporters. That's contrary to the prevailing wisdom that religious Christians vote Republican.

"You wouldn't see that in the papers," Erikson said. "Now, I would write about it" in the Universe Bulletin, she added. But there was a time when newspapers did look deeper for religion stories. Today, she said, publications are so short staffed, reporters simply don't have the time to dig deeper.

When a reporter goes out to cover a news event and spots religious protesters, she doesn't often look for the underlying issue. "You see the people with the signs, it makes a great photo, you pound out your 500-word story" and go home. "Get it done" is the attitude today, Erikson said with a sigh.

The study that prompted the discussion, by professor John Green of the University of Akron, said readers complained that religion stories were too fact-based and didn't cover spirituality.

"Doesn't it depend on whether you're writing about an event, as opposed to a feature?" said Shih Ying-Fa, abbot of the Nien-Fo Ch'an Order of Buddhist Monks and founder of CloudWater Zendo, the Zen Center of Cleveland. A former broadcaster, Ying-Fa spent 20 years in radio before converting to Buddhism and adopting the religious life.  

A few years ago, Ying-Fa said, there were regular stories about minority religions and their spiritual beliefs. There were two religion reporters at the Plain Dealer, and he was contacted regularly by them, "asking me to clarify some point on religion."

That type of coverage has dried up, he said. "I think the reason people don't get enough details about religion is that people (journalists) are not putting it out like they used to ... unless there's an event."

But event coverage, he noted, is usually fact-based and brief. It doesn't look at wider or deeper issues, just the event.

Rollenhagen protested that the portrayal of "evangelicals" in the media is associated with news and television events. That has led to a stereotype of evangelicals as people who constantly pressure others to convert to their way of thinking. But Rollenhagen, who is an evangelical Lutheran, said that's quite far from the truth.

Erikson remembered that a decade ago, there were lots of stories about alternative religious groups, such as people practicing Wicca, a modern pagan religion derived from ancient beliefs and rituals. These stories focused on spirituality - the type of thing the study found readers still want.

Lack of staff at news organizations is a key factor in the lessening of this coverage, Ying-Fa said.

"The store has been shrunk. There's less on the shelves now. How to restock it, I think, is the question."

But there was some optimism in the room, expressed first by Erikson, who pointed to the many small publications that are providing the kind of detailed features that once appeared in newspapers. Often, they publish for free on the Internet. The result is that one can punch in the words "Zen Buddhism" and get a huge range of information, some of it quite well written and accurate.

Perhaps the shelves have been restocked. They're just in a different place.

If you're a student, don't forget about the PRSA Greater Cleveland Student Day 2012 on Oct. 26 at the Hilton Garden Inn Downtown Cleveland.  

Learn about a career in public relations, take advantage of interactive panel discussions led by local PR leaders and participate in the following sessions:

• Opportunities in CLE
• Choosing Your Career Path
• Interviewing, Networking And More
• Connecting The Dots: Integrated Campaigns
• Resume Review

This year there's a new interactive luncheon where you'll have the chance to network with local pros and talk about their specialties.  

The program costs $40.00 with breakfast and lunch provided. It lasts from 8 a.m. to 2 p.m. with registration starting at 7:15 a.m.  For more information and to sign up online click here

If you're planning a trip to Chicago around Nov. 9 you might want to stop by the Navy Pier for the daylong SPJ JournCamp.  

For $35 for SPJ members ($55 for non members) including breakfast and lunch you can take advantage of 4 different trainers offering sessions in: 

• Entrepreneurial Journalism
• FOI, Public Records and Data Journalism
• Visual Storytelling
• Social Media as a Reporting and Engagement Tool
• Mobile Newsgathering
• Copyright and Fair Use (particularly for a digital age)
• Web Programming Basics

For more information and to register before the Nov. 2 deadline, Click Here.   

In recognition of the National Day on Writing, the North East Ohio Society for Technical Communication will be holding its Writing Canvas Workshop, Oct. 20 at John Carroll University. Our own Writer's Week editor, Carrie Buchanan, will be leading one of the afternoon breakout sessions.  

The morning will be dedicated to the challenge of writing mobile apps. Led by Neil Perlin, an internationally recognized consultant, trainer, strategist and developer for all types of online content, the workshop "Mobile Apps Without Coding" will lead attendees through their own whole mobile app development... without using one bit of code. 

The afternoon will offer a choice of attending 2 of 4 possible presentations: 

1. Take Your HAT Mobile - presented by Neil Perlin 
2. Writing Across the Genres- presented by Lynn Nickels - journalist, entertainment writer, technical instructions writer, advertising writer, technical study-guide author, essay tutor, magazine editor-in-chief, and most recently, as an information developer of technical documentation at Rockwell Automation since 2008:
3. Technical Writing and New Trends -  presented by Denise Kadilak - Information Architect with Blackbaud, Inc., headquartered in Charleston, SC:
4. Writing about Health and Environmental Issues - presented by Carrie Buchanan - tenure-track assistant professor in the Tim Russert Department of Communication and Theatre Arts at John Carroll, where she teaches journalism; political communication; media literacy; editing and design; and health and environmental writing. 

There are a number of pricing options available. For more information and to register click here.

Starting Oct. 22 the Poynter Institute is offering a four-week online group seminar, "Building Effective News and Information Websites."  A faculty member will guide attendees through a practical process for building websites including:

• Web Fundamentals
• Web Design Principles and Technologies
• Web Development Principles and Technologies
• Content Management Systems and Beyond

The seminar costs $429 and offers individual feedback and discussion with others in virtual space. 

The application deadline is Oct. 12.  For more information and to apply click here 

Thanks to Kelly Blazek for her dedication and commitment in seeking out many of the jobs posted below. To receive her full newsletter (We only excerpt media-related jobs.) see the separate box headlined Cleveland Job Bank below at right.  

PUBLIC RELATIONS, ASSISTANT PROFESSOR COLLEGE OF THE ARTS AND COMMUNICATION To develop and teach both undergraduate and graduate courses in our rapidly growing public relations/corporate and strategic communication programs. A Master's degree in a relevant field (Public Relations, Communication, Marketing, Public Affairs, Journalism, Management) and substantial record of professional experience is required. Senior-level public relations agency or corporate communication professional experience and a terminal degree (M.F.A. or doctorate) are preferred.Department of Communication Elizabeth Birge, Chairperson birgee@wpunj.edu

SPJ member John Ettorre will be part of the upcoming Lake Communicators' "Marketing for Marcoms event at Breckenridge Village Oct. 10 from 5:30 - 8:30 p.m. 

An award winning writer and popular speaker, Ettorre will lead a breakout session about writing persuasively -arranging the right words in the right order for the right audience. 

Attendees have a choice of 5 out of 9 breakout sessions during this packed marketing event. The cost is $45 for Lake Communicators members and $55 for non-members. 

For more information and to register click here

"What interests me is trying to catch the reflection of the human being on the page. I'm interested in how ordinary people live their lives."  

So says Pulitzer Prize-winning author Tracy Kidder, the featured author for the William N. Skirball Writers Center Stage program taking place this week. 

Kidder is a Harvard graduate who also studied at the University of Iowa. As well as the "Pulitzer" he has won the prestigious National Book Award and the Robert F. Kennedy Award. His books include Strength in What Remains, Mountains Beyond Mountains, My Detachment, Home Town, Old Friends, Among Schoolchildren, House and The Soul of a New Machine.

The event will take place Oct. 9 at 7:30 pm at the Ohio Theatre, Playhouse Square, 1511 Euclid Avenue.  Tickets are $30.00. For more information and to purchase tickets Click Here.