ISOJ 2021 opening virtual party will be sponsored by JSK Journalism Fellowships at Stanford University

The John S. Knight Journalism Fellowships will sponsor the innovative, virtual opening party for the 22nd International Symposium on Online Journalism, a premier online journalism global conference organized by the Knight Center for Journalism in the Americas.

For the second time, ISOJ will be held completely virtually from April 26-30, 2021. Registration for ISOJ Online 2021 is now available for free at https://isoj2021.splashthat.com/w. Similar to last year, the program will spread from Monday to Friday, and each day’s activities will start with a keynote speaker, followed by a workshop, two panels, and entertainment to celebrate the opening and closing days.

Even in its online version, ISOJ will open space for social events, as it has traditionally done in Austin during the in-person conference for over two decades. So ISOJers can meet each other in virtual parties as they did in Austin in the past.

“We are grateful and proud to count again on a partnership with the JSK Journalism Fellowships at Stanford University to put together a social event during ISOJ Online,” said professor Rosental Alves, founder of ISOJ and Knight Center’s director. “The intense work of this global conference has always been complemented by social events in Austin, like the parties sponsored by the JSK Fellowships. This year, even with the online-only version of ISOJ, we are glad to join forces again with JSK to create an innovative virtual environment to keep this tradition alive and bring the Austin flavor virtually by hosting live music from the ‘live music capital of the world.’ It’s an opportunity to mingle with other ISOJers, reconnect with colleagues you already know, and make new connections with others from around the world who are also interested in the evolution of journalism in the digital era.” 

The opening party will be held on Monday, April 26, from 5:30 p.m. to 7 p.m. CST, on the platform Shindig. The link to access the party will be provided to conference attendees, along with tips on how to use the platform. Shindig allows participants to “run into” each other and start conversations on video. It provides a virtual stage as well, where artistic performance, presentations and announcements can be seen by all participants in the party.  

“We are proud to support ISOJ, such a unique conference that brings together innovators in online journalism from around the world,” said Dawn Garcia, JSK Journalism Fellowships director. “The great energy and humanity of the event, a tone set by the incomparable Rosental Alves, means we all come away with a lot of new ideas and connections for future journalistic collaborations — and have a lot of fun at the same time.” 

Like Rosental mentioned, there will be opportunities to mingle and reconnect with fellow ISOJers, and to enjoy a live performance by Jackie Venson, a local Austin artist. Venson is a multi-instrumentalist, singer/songwriter known for her beautifully complex music and blazing guitar skills. Born and raised in Austin, Texas, Venson has performed around the world, both as a headliner and as support for major acts such as Gary Clark Jr, Aloe Blacc, and Citizen Cope, to name a few. You can check out her music and some of her live performances at https://jackievenson.com.  

Additional updates for ISOJ Online 2021 are available on Twitter, Facebook, and LinkedIn. 

ISOJ 2021 is free, but the Knight Center for Journalism in the Americas at University of Texas at Austin accepts donations to ensure that it can continue offering free access to a diversity of free training programs for journalists. In addition to ISOJ, the Knight Center offers the Iberian American Colloquium on Digital Journalism (a conference in Spanish the day after ISOJ) and many online courses, including MOOCs that are open for all journalists and anyone interested in journalism. It also publishes LatAm Journalism Review, a trilingual digital magazine. If you would like to support the Knight Center, please click here