Not yet good enough. If you want to help out NION and United for Peace (or any other organization for any other purpose), you want to move from simple reporting to "advocacy journalism." Stay in close contact with their national organizers, get to learn about their upcoming actions way ahead of time, do write-ups about each upcoming action at least twice (first at least a couple of months ahead of time, second a reminder shortly before the action), and do at least one follow-up report after each action. For instance, yesterday was NION's National Day of Student Action. You could have helped them by writing up about the action ahead of time, in such a way as to make your article serve as advertisement for the action as well.
Also, educate the national organizers of NION and United for Peace that *planning ahead and timely announcement* of upcoming actions are the key to success in mobilization. For instance, the United for Peace folks sent me on *November 14, 2002* the following announcement (which I had already forwarded here and elsewhere) of an upcoming action that starts on *November 28, 2002*.
***** Date: Thu, 14 Nov 2002 15:49:50 -0800 From: Peaceful Tomorrrows News <news at peacefultomorrows.org> Subject: Join Peaceful Tomorrows at Whitehouse Peace Vigil To: news at peacefultomorrows.org Reply-to: news at peacefultomorrows.org Delivered-to: mailing list newsletter at news.peacefultomorrows.org Delivered-to: moderator for newsletter at news.peacefultomorrows.org Mailing-List: contact newsletter-help at news.peacefultomorrows.org; run by ezmlm X-Sent: 14 Nov 2002 23:49:52 GMT List-Subscribe: <mailto:newsletter-subscribe at news.peacefultomorrows.org> List-Unsubscribe: <mailto:newsletter-unsubscribe at news.peacefultomorrows.org>
_______________________________________ September 11th Families for Peaceful Tomorrows
Action Alert
Join the Women's Peace Vigil at Whitehouse--or in your own communities
Peaceful Tomorrows women and men will join this vigil and host a fast for peace at the Whitehouse on Thanksgiving. Please join us in DC for Thanksgiving or join the vigil whenever you can make it! ________________________________________
ACTION: To join Peaceful Tomorrows at the vigil November 28-December 1, please contact Ryan Amundson, ryan at peacefultomorrows.org.
For all other dates and inquiries, please contact Kristi at globalexchange.org
<snip>
For more information, contact: women at unitedforpeace.org or call Kristi at 415-255-7291 or 202-393-5016 www.unitedforpeace.org *****
Giving unpaid volunteer organizers scattered nationwide *only 14 days* to organize for an action in D.C. is absurd. -- Yoshie
* Calendar of Events in Columbus: <http://www.osu.edu/students/sif/calendar.html> * Anti-War Activist Resources: <http://www.osu.edu/students/sif/activist.html> * Student International Forum: <http://www.osu.edu/students/sif/> * Committee for Justice in Palestine: <http://www.osu.edu/students/CJP/>