Telling the immigration story: An SPJ panel discussion

Critics have long said the U.S. immigration system is broken and badly in need of a major overhaul. But, efforts to reform the system at the national level have largely floundered, as critics of reform worry it will offer “amnesty to illegal aliens.”

The Houston Chapter of SPJ will host a panel discussion to examine ways in which the media portrays the issue of immigration reform and explore ways to better tell this complex and important story. The panel will comprise speakers with a broad range of expertise on the subject of immigration, looking at the subject from a legal point of view, as well as the perspective of big-city and small-town journalists.

The meeting will take place at 5:30 p.m. Oct. 16 at the University of Houston (Communications Building Room 244). It will last approximately one hour.

Panelists include Gordon Quan, former Houston City Councilman and noted immigration attorney; Susan Carroll, immigration reporter for the Houston Chronicle; and Andy DuBois, executive editor of the Houston Community Newspapers.