22nd Annual NAMIC Conference to Feature 'A Conversation With Soledad O'Brien'

NAMIC And CNN Partner To Present Special Forum On Ethnicity And Gender

NEW YORK, Sept. 2 /PRNewswire/ -- Soledad O'Brien, CNN anchor and special
correspondent, has been confirmed as a special guest speaker for the 22nd
Annual NAMIC Conference, Diversity: Pipeline to Innovation. Presented
annually by NAMIC (National Association for Multi-ethnicity in Communications)
in conjunction with Cable Diversity Week, the 22nd Annual NAMIC Conference
will be held September 14-16, 2008 at the New York Marriott Marquis in
Manhattan.
(Logo: http://www.newscom.com/cgi-bin/prnh/20060705/NYW092LOGO )
NAMIC, in partnership with CNN, will present a special luncheon, "A
Conversation with Soledad O'Brien," on Monday, September 15 at 1:00 p.m. EDT.
O'Brien will discuss "CNN Presents: Black in America," the network's landmark,
multi-media initiative reported by O'Brien. The groundbreaking documentary
series featured six hours of programming revealing the state of Black America
40 years after the assassination of Dr. Martin Luther King, Jr. The NAMIC
session will be an in-depth, one-on-one interview with O'Brien conducted by
CNN correspondent, Lola Ogunnaike. "A Conversation with Soledad O'Brien" will
also include a Q&A session with the luncheon's attendees.
"It's crucial that we as a media industry shine a light on the issues
still affecting Black Americans today," commented O'Brien. "This is a
discussion that needs to be had as we face our future as a nation, and NAMIC
is the perfect organization to be furthering the conversation."
"We are delighted to partner with CNN to continue the compelling dialogue
sparked by the Black in America series," said Kathy Johnson, president, NAMIC.
"The NAMIC Conference presents an optimal setting to further the discussion on
ethnicity and gender in America at this dynamic time in our history."
An award-winning media veteran with a career spanning more than 20 years,
O'Brien also covers political news as part of CNN's "Best Political Team on
Television." A past recipient of NAMIC's Mickey Leland Humanitarian
Achievement Award, O'Brien was part of the coverage teams that earned CNN a
George Foster Peabody award for its Hurricane Katrina coverage and an Alfred
I. duPont Award for its coverage of the tsunami disaster in Southeast Asia.
O'Brien has also received the National Urban League's Women of Power Award and
a Gracie Allen Award for her reporting from Cyprus on the Israeli-Hezbollah
conflict as well as her post Hurricane Katrina reports from the Gulf Coast.
Also among O'Brien's many honors are the NAACP President's Award, which she
garnered in recognition of her humanitarian efforts and journalistic
excellence and the inaugural "Soledad O'Brien Freedom's Voice Award," created
in her honor by Community Voices at the Morehouse School of Medicine for her
accomplishments in her field along with her commitment to cover stories that
others fail to pursue.
For more information on the 22nd Annual NAMIC Conference or to register
online, log onto www.namic.com or call the NAMIC national headquarters at
(212) 594-5985.
About NAMIC
NAMIC (National Association for Multi-ethnicity in Communications) is the
premier organization focusing on multi-ethnic diversity in the communications
industry. Founded in 1980 as a non-profit trade association, today NAMIC is
comprised of 2,000 professionals belonging to a network of 17 chapters
nationwide. Through initiatives that focus on education, advocacy and
empowerment, NAMIC champions equity and inclusion in the workforce, with
special attention given to ensuring that the leadership cadres of our nation's
communications industry giants reflect the multi-ethnic richness of the
populations they serve. For more information, please visit www.namic.com.
SOURCE NAMIC

Daphne Leroy, Vice President, Marketing & Communications, NAMIC,
+1-212-594-5985, daphne.leroy@namic.com; or Charmaine Chapman, BTB
Communications, +1-310-882-5498, char@btbcommunications.com