- UAC Community Issues Panel
Working with the Media & Public Relations
Date: Thursday May 24, 2012
Time: 2:30 – 5:30 pm
Cost: $35
A new feature at UAC 2012 will be a pre-conference panel called “Working with the Media and Public Relations.” Panelists include astrologers Eric Francis, Chris Turner, Jack Fertig, Donna Woodwell, Roy Gillett, Gloria Star and David Railey, along with journalist Ed Snow – founder of ANS Astrology News Service. Other contributors include astrologers Toni Dore, and Rebecca Crane, with a “yet to be announced” well known journalist also on the Media Panel. These panelists offer a depth of media experience for those attending UAC, and will share time-tested ways to build relationships with the media and strategies for interacting with a sometimes misinformed public and cynical press.
About the panelists
David Railey was journalism major in college working for Associated Press, when he first began to study astrology. Astrology soon won out over journalism, but awareness of public perceptions of astrology and portrayal in the media never faded. David offers over 30 years of experience as a full-time professional astrologer in working with the mediaon TV, radio and print, including his current efforts to promote western astrology in China. As the “panel coordinator” David says, “I am really pleased by the talent onboard. This is a must see UAC event for any astrologer seeking media expertise.”
Donna Woodwell jump started her media career at the age of 13 when she won a national Weekly Reader contest and a prize phone conversation with President Reagan. The event landed her on national television and launched her passion for the mass media. She worked as a reporter and editor for various local newspapers, and as an
editor for the University of Michigan college newspaper. Donna later attained master’s degrees in Journalism and Latin American Studies from the University of Texas. Long since an active member of the astrological community, Donna serves on the board of ISAR, is a past board member of NCGR, and the founding president of the Astrological Society of Austin.
She is also the coordinator for the publishers’ board of the Astrology News Service, (ANS) launched in February 2011.
Eric Francis, the founder and editor of Planet Waves, is an astrologer and investigative journalist. He was working in his first job as a municipal newspaper reporter when he discovered that his editor also owned an astrology bookstore. This began a long relationship between astrology and journalism, which has taken Eric through the pages of many newspapers as a horoscope writer, including the Daily Mail and the Daily Mirror plus numerous other venues. Today, Eric covers global turning point events through the lens of astrology. He is a specialist in newly-discovered planets.
Edward Snow is Managing Editor of the Astrology News Service (ANS), the jointly sponsored news organization committed to helping the astrological community improve its public image. A career PR consultant and publicist, he worked as a journalist in Southern California and, in his first PR industry job, swiftly found himself managing west coast news operations for the General Electric Co. He transferred with GE to Chicago and subsequently managed national and local PR campaigns at some of Chicago’s leading public relations firms. His first exposure to astrology was in 1976 when he was asked (by local astrologers) to help craft a response to the infamous “Objections to Astrology” statement that published in The Humanist magazine.
Chris Turner was the astrology columnist for a high circulation Australian entertainment magazine for 17 years. Her column, weekly articles and profiles of celebrities were immensely popular and as a result she appeared regularly on TV and radio news and lifestyle programs during that period. She also has had two books published and in the 90’s and 00’s contributed articles regularly to both lay and astrology publications. For 5 years she was the media officer for the Federation of Australian Astrologers and currently teaches “Astrology and the Media” for the International Academy of Astrology.
Roy Gillett has stood up for astrology in the media since 1979, appearing on television, radio and in press reports. His book “Astrology and Compassion the Convenient Truth” makes strong case for astrology’s role in society in the 21st Century. As President of the Astrological Association of Great Britain, Roy has experience of negotiating with broadcast regulators and service providers, as well as engaging in correspondence and on the media with astrology’s detractors.”
Gloria Star has authored numerous astrology books and articles, and demonstrates her media savvy in feature columns in magazines, newspapers and online. She currently writes a regular feature column for The Mountain Astrologer, Astrology News. A conference organizer for UAC, Gloria has been active locally, nationally and internationally with astrological organizations for many years, serving as an elected officer and board member for several such groups as well. She is a Certified Astrological Professional (CAP) through the International Society for Astrological Research (ISAR).
Jack Fertig has been studying astrology since 1969 and practicing professionally since 1977. Well-known in the San Francisco Bay Area through long-running columns in local papers, he writes the internationally syndicated sun-sign column, “Q-Scope”. Jack is active in the professional community and a founding member of AFAN. He is also a member of ISAR, NCGR, and of course the San Francisco Astrological Society.