August 2025 Gleanings
Behind the scenes
Your BIPC board has been busy behind the scenes this summer, making connections, applying for grants and planning a retreat. This issue also features a "member Corner," where we post the latest comings and goings of our members. Please send us you updates!
Our next board meeting is an in-person event set at the beginning of the Sept. 13 retreat on the University of Hawaii-Hilo campus. Read on for more.
President's Message
Aloha Press Club Members,
As we move forward into the second half of the year, I want to invite you all to two important events that will help shape the future of our club and honor a beloved member of our community.
First, please mark your calendars for our members' retreat on Saturday Sept. 13, at UH Hilo. This will be a critical opportunity for us to come together and have an open, engaging discussion about the Big Island Press Club's mission, as well as our short-term and long-term goals.
Your voice and perspective are essential to this conversation, and we need your input to ensure the club continues to serve its members and the community effectively. Whether or not you can attend, please share some feedback for the members to discuss at the retreat. You can do so here: https://forms.gle/wb5ey3V6LgJ4jESk7
I also want you to save the date for a very special occasion: our annual Torch of Light luncheon on Saturday, Dec. 13, at the Plantation House in Pahala. This year, we will be honoring the late Julia Neal, the publisher of the Ka`u Calendar. Julia was one of the last hometown publishers here on the island and a fierce advocate for community journalism. Her dedication and spirit are an inspiration to us all.
I look forward to seeing you at both events. Your participation makes a huge difference in the strength and direction of our club.
Also, we are seeking out members to step up and serve on the board in 2026. Please reach out if you are interested in serving.
Mahalo nui loa,
Tiffany Edwards Hunt, president, Big Island Press Club
Are we in a news desert?
We're pleased to see the Hawaii Tribune-Herald has hired a government reporter after a more than two-year hiatus. You've probably seen bylines from Daniel Farr, who's been hitting the bricks and producing solid, unbiased local government news. Farr joins stalwart cops and courts reporter John Burnett, a BIPC officer and past president, and community reporter Kyveli Diener.
Now, to address the problem of NO news reporters at all stationed at West Hawaii Today. Lucky we have Big Island Video News and Big Island Now to fill in some of the gaps over there, albeit primarily with press releases from government sources. Some original reporting though, and we thirst for more!
Speaking of news deserts ...
BIPC has agreed to participate in Honolulu Civil Beat's digital survey and in-person focus groups to understand residents’ information needs, news consumption habits, and media literacy.
The Civil Beat project received a grant from the Lenfest Institute and Google News to study "the growing news deserts in the Kauaʻi and Hawaiʻi Islands."
Stay tuned to learn more!
And, speaking of grants -- BIPC is sending out applications as well. Board members Maya-Lin Green, Megan Moseley and Nancy Cook Lauer, with the assistance of Treasurer Robert Duerr, have been logging many hours over the past two months gathering data, forging partnerships and filling out forms, all with the goal of building on BIPC's focus of growing more journalists and increasing media literacy on our island.
Keep you fingers crossed!
Member Corner
Patsy Iwasaki, BIPC board member and UH Hilo assistant professor of English served as the local conference chair of “Oceanic Journeys: Multicultural Approaches in the Humanities.” It was the first time the international conference of the New Directions in the Humanities Research Network was held in Hawaii. The event brought in faculty and scholars from places such as Japan, Spain, India, and Belgium and honored emerging scholars among the UHH student body.
Former BIPC board member Peter Sur, previously a Tribune-Herald reporter, County Council aide and public information officer for the Hawaii County Department of Environmental Management, was named Gov. Josh Green's East Hawaii representative.
Former BIPC board member T. Ilihia Gionson is now chief public affairs officer for W.M. Keck Observatory. He previously was public affairs officer for the Hawaii Tourism Authority and also served as executive assistant/public relations for former Mayor Billy Kenoi and district communications director for former U.S. Rep Tulsi Gabbard. Gionson was recently named a recipient of Pacific Business News 40 Under 40 leadership recognition.
Former BIPC president Denise Laitinen was a featured speaker at the International Association of Chiefs of Police Public Information Officer Conference in Kansas City, Missouri, the first person from the Hawaii Police Department to speak at an IACP conference. "The conference was the same week as the BIPC Scholarship dinner, which is why I couldn't make the event," she said. Laitinen was promoted to fill the Hawaii Police Department's first-ever public relations officer position.
Former BIPC board member Tom Callis, previously a Tribune-Herald reporter, earlier this year moved from his position as media specialist for the TMT International Observatory to executive assistant/public information officer for Hawaii County Mayor Kimo Alameda.
Have member news? Please send your info to nclauer@gmail.com
2025 Big Island Press Club Board
Please feel free to contact any board members with your suggestions, or if you wish to volunteer!
President: Tiffany Edwards Hunt, former journalist, middle school teacher
newswoman@mac.com
Vice President: Jim Wilson, retired publisher, Hawaii Tribune-Herald jimwilsonvolcanocottage@gmail.com
Secretary: Nancy Cook Lauer, retired journalist, UHH student publications advisor, blogger www.allhawaiinews.com <nclauer@gmail.com>
Treasurer: Robert Duerr, filmmaker and journalist, Hawaii Fishing News <surf77@me.com>
Immediate Past President: John Burnett, journalist, Tribune-Herald <jburnett@hawaiitribuneherald.com>
Director: Patsy Iwasaki, professor, University of Hawaii-Hilo
<piwasaki@hawaii.edu>
Director: John Atwell, former CIA Senior Operations Officer, columnist, editor <jno.p.atwell@gmail.com>
Director: Maya-Lin Green, education and communications team member, Pacific Islands Climate Adaptation Science Center <mlgreen@hawaii.edu>
Director: Megan Moseley, journalist, reporter for Maui News <info@meganmoseley.com>
Director Emeritus: Ross Wilson, PR, Current Events rossw@current-events.com
