#NSNC16 – Los Angeles
By Lisa Smith Molinari
Vice President
National Society of Newspaper Columnists
Wikimedia Commons photo
NCNC’s Conference Committee is proud to announce a sparkling marquis of speakers for the upcoming 2016 Conference held June 23-26 in Los Angeles, California. Online registration is open at tinyurl.com/nsnc16la for what will surely be a star-studded event.
Pulitzer Prize winner Leonard Pitts Jr. is a bright light on our Hollywood line-up, and is our 2016 Ernie Pyle Lifetime Achievement Award winner. Pitts writes one of the most popular, long-running syndicated columns in the country, and is the author of five acclaimed books. Pitts also has been the recipient of numerous awards from the National Association of Black Journalists, American Society of Newspaper Editors, Society of Professional Journalists and our own NSNC.
What’s appropriate behavior for the conference hospitality suite, you ask? Who better to offer her seasoned advice than Jeanne Phillips, author of the iconic “Dear Abby” column read by more than 110 million fans worldwide. There’s even a “Dear Abby” star on the Hollywood Walk of Fame.
Michael Ramirez is a senior editor and editorial cartoonist for Investor’s Business Daily. The two-time Pulitzer Prize winner is known for his conservative commentary, and his work has been featured on CNN and Fox News, and in The New York Times, Washington Post, New York Post, Los Angeles Times, Time Magazine, National Review, and U.S. News and World Report.
W. Bruce Cameron is a columnist and author whose book, A Dog’s Purpose, is currently being made into a movie with Bradley Cooper as the voice of the lead dog. Bruce will inspire us with his own journey from having an emailed humor column with six subscribers all the way to the big screen. Bruce will take part in a panel of speakers who will discuss opportunities for columnists in television and movies.
Columnist Helene Elliott is the first female journalist to be recognized by a professional sports hall of fame. Elliott was the 2005 winner of the Hockey Hall of Fame’s Elmer Ferguson Award, and has covered 14 Olympics and countless other major sporting events since joining the Los Angeles Times sports department in 1989.
Dave Berg is a columnist and author who bridged the gap between print and visual media, producing The Tonight Show with Jay Leno and writing for NBC News, USA Today, Huffington Post, Reader’s Digest, National Review, Christianity Today, The Washington Times, The Daily Caller and Crisis Magazine.
Gordon Burgett, owner of Communications Unlimited publishing company and the author of 46 books and more than 1700 articles, will tell us how to sell 75 percent of our articles before actually writing them, then sell them again as reprints. Howard Van Es, president of Let’s Write Books Inc., Kindle marketing expert and author of 22 books, will deliver the latest trends in marketing and self-publishing.
And don’t forget about Friday afternoon and evening, when conferees are invited to tour the former ranch of Will Rogers, historic columnist and Hollywood actor. After the tour, we will stay for a special dinner event at the ranch, cowboy boots optional!
While the 2016 Conference Committee continues to book more top-notch speakers and panelists for our annual event, please take a moment to register (link above) and also book at room in the NSNC block at the Hotel Angeleno, tinyurl.com/NatlSocietyNewspaperColumnists.
Bring along some cool shades, because NSNC 2016 in LA promises a blinding array of bright stars.
