First Annual Charity Battle of DC Media Bands
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Journopalooza to Rock National Press Club
Date: Friday January 9, 2009
Time: 8 pm
Doors open 7:15
Place: National Press Club
529 14th St. NW
13th Floor
Washington, DC 20045



Can't make it to the show?
Donate $50 and we'll send you an official Journopalooza T-shirt in appreciation of your support.

Everyone knows reporters are a competitive breed. There's an apocryphal story about Steve Dunleavy, formerly of the New York Post, getting his tires slashed by a rival trying to beat him to a story. The tire-slasher? Dunleavy's own father.

Trouble is, we don't have many ways to settle who's the best. Sure, the profession doesn't suffer from a lack of awards. There's the Polk, the Hillman, the NMA , the almighty Pulitzer. But that's precisely the problem--much as with college football, the proliferation of awards does not anoint a single undisputed champion. So we've decided to figure this out following a long-held tradition of the Streets. With a battle.

On January 9, prepare for an all-out musical assault at the National Press Club. Four of D.C.'s best bands -- composed of journalists from the Washington Post, the Los Angeles Times, McClatchy Newspapers, the Washington Independent, Bloomberg News, among others -- will try to claim for themselves the title of Best Reporter-Based Washington Rock Group. Who will prevail? The bluesy thump of Nobody's Business? The New Pornographers-esque power pop of Anchorage? The eclectic sounds of Suspicious Package? The spare, dark indie rock of The Surge? Only the first annual JOURNOPALOOZA will determine who wears the crown.

And just as the best journalism is that which serves the public good, JOURNOPALOOZA is a rock festival with a charitable mission. All proceeds will benefit two very worthy causes.

The Committee to Protect Journalists is an advocacy organization that aids our colleagues in their efforts to bring out the truth under the harshest of conditions. Half of the money raised with Journopalooza will go to CPJ's
Journalist Assistance Fund, their emergency resource to save journalists who must go into hiding or exile to escape threats; journalists in need of medicine and other material support in prison; and journalists injured after violent attacks. The other half of the proceeds will help fund the National Press Club's efforts to hone the skills of the next generation of newsgatherers with their array of training programs and scholarships.

In addition to an evening of competition-fueled music, JOURNOPALOOZA has everything a journalist or rock-n-roller could want. An open buffet of munchies. Limited edition JOURNOPALOOZA t-shirts designed by Pulitzer-winning cartoonist Tom Toles of Suspicious Package (and the Washington Post). And, of course, a bar. A cash bar, by necessity. Our profession is in financial trouble. Trouble that can only be fixed by rock n' roll.

Media inquiries contact christina@journopalooza.com



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