MISSOURI STATE HIGHWAY PATROL
A Division Of The
Department of Public Safety
Public Information and Education Division - PO Box 568 - Jefferson City, MO 65102

NEWS RELEASE

For further information please contact: Capt. J. Tim Hull
Q31012 (573) 526-6115
March 17, 2010
EMPHASIS: AMBER: Children In Jeopardy Workshop Set To Help Missouri Media Find Missing Children
Missouri media outlets are invited to attend the AMBER: Children In Jeopardy Workshop scheduled for 9 a.m. to 1 p.m. on April 23, 2010, at the Missouri State Highway Patrol, General Headquarters Building, 2nd Floor Conference Room, 1510 East Elm Street, Jefferson City, MO. This event is being sponsored by the Missouri Press Association (Doug Crews, executive director).
More than 1.3 million children go missing each year, according to a recent study funded by the U.S. Department of Justice. Of those, only two-thirds are ever reported to law enforcement. Still fewer are ever found or found alive. One tool that helps find missing or abducted children is the AMBER Alert program, an often misunderstood topic by members of the media.
“That’s why the Missouri Press Association is allowing us to conduct a four-hour workshop on April 23 for all media (TV, radio, print, and online), AMBER Alert Coordinators, law enforcement, school officials, and public information officers (school or law enforcement),” said Randy Covington, lead instructor from the University of South Carolina. “The seminar is being taught to help the media in Missouri better understand the nuances and sensitivities associated with missing children cases, especially when an AMBER Alert is called or not called.”
The success or failure of an AMBER Alert often rests on the ability of the local media to use the tool effectively, Covington said.
Instructors from the University of South Carolina’s School of Journalism and Mass Communications have been conducting workshops for the past five years at their campus in Columbia, S.C., Now, under a grant from the Department of Justice, instructors are taking the Children in Jeopardy course on the road. The course is free to sponsoring media organizations.
The seminar is a highly interactive workshop. It uses scenarios derived from actual cases to help the media better understand how they can assist law enforcement safeguard our kids as well as what to avoid that potentially could make these situations worse. The seminars highlight the nuances and complexities of AMBER cases. They are intended for both law enforcement and the media based on the assumption that each would benefit from a better understanding of the cases as well as each other.
Unless a law enforcement agency has had extensive AMBER experience, they may not be prepared for the twists and turns these cases follow. This seminar puts both media and law enforcement into a scenario derived from actual cases. Seminar participants use Interactive Response Devices to respond to the developments incorporated in the scenario. Those responses then frame the discussion.
“I liked the scenarios and case studies,” said one participant. “The ability to discuss and bounce ideas off one another was helpful and informative. I also liked the discussion about writing releases challenging law enforcement to use less cop talk.”
“It gave a good perspective on the media side of reporting. It was very helpful in making AMBER easier to understand,” said another participant.
REGISTRATION LINK: -
https://www.fvtc.edu/apps/mytraining/Public/Home.aspx?1=65535
Login or create a new account (column on the left)
Register for Class 65535 (do not search for class)
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Provide Terri Moorer with your name, title, organization, address, e-mail, cell, gender, and DOB.
INFORMATION/QUESTIONS/PROBLEMS: Terri Moorer, WAN-IFRA Newsplex Program Coordinator, 803-348-0445, moorert@mailbox.sc.edu

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