Counter Terror Expo US to Feature Panel of Elite Counterterrorism Journalists
Reporters from AP, FOX News and The New York Times to discuss challenges
of covering global counterterrorism issues
ARLINGTON, VA – March 19, 2012 – The Counter Terror Expo US , being held May 16-17, 2012 at the Walter E. Washington Convention Center , will feature a panel of elite counterterrorism journalists to discuss the challenges that they face in covering global counterterrorism issues. The panel, “Media Perspectives on Covering Global Counterterrorism,” is scheduled for Wednesday, May 16 at 9:15 a.m. immediately following Michael Leiter’s keynote address.
This panel discussion will take a close look at some of the obstacles and challenges facing journalists when covering global counterterrorism issues including personal safety, scarce sources, controversial topics, and reporting from abroad. David Silverberg, editor of Homeland Security Today, the leading source for independent news and analysis on homeland security affairs, will be moderating the panel. With a combined reporting experience of more than 85 years, the esteemed journalists participating in the panel discussion include:
- Catherine Herridge, Chief Intelligence Correspondent, FOX News
- Eric Schmitt, Senior Writer and Washington Correspondent, The New York Times
- Thom Shanker, Pentagon and National Security Correspondent, The New York Times
- Eileen Sullivan, Counterterrorism Reporter, Associated Press
“We hand-selected this panel of leading reporters which includes a Pulitzer Prize winning author and journalists who have reported from around the globe to provide attendees with a real-world discussion of the challenges that media endure to report on global counterterrorism issues,” explained Wayne Crawford, vice president, North America, Clarion Events. “We look forward to the insight they have to share and how it can help bolster awareness and our collaboration efforts.”
Brief biographies on the participating panelists follow.
Catherine Herridge, Chief Intelligence Correspondent, FOX News
Catherine Herridge is an award-winning Chief Intelligence correspondent for the Fox News Channel. Catherine was the first network correspondent assigned to the Homeland Security beat in 2001. She now covers intelligence, the Justice Department, and the Department of Homeland Security.
Catherine’s latest book, The Next Wave, exposes the new face of terrorism and predicts the source of future threats. It was the first book of its kind since Bin Laden’s death to show what the next chapter of terrorism could look like – she calls it “al Qaeda 2.0.” Catherine’s investigative reporting has exposed the rising threat of homegrown terrorism, how social networking is the lifeblood of the digital jihadist, and the profound influence of the first American on the CIA’s kill or capture list, Anwar al-Awlaki.
Eric Schmitt, Senior Writer and Counterterrorism Correspondent, The New York Times
Eric Schmitt is a senior writer who covers terrorism and national security issues for The New York Times. Since 2007, he has reported on terrorism issues, including assignments to Pakistan, Afghanistan, North Africa and Southeast Asia. Eric is a co-author of “Counterstrike: The Untold Story of the Secret Campaign Against Al Qaeda,” a New York Times bestseller that examines the evolution of American counterterrorism policy. Since joining The Times in 1983, some of his special projects include the HUD investigation in Puerto Rico the spring of 1990, the Persian Gulf War in Saudi Arabia and Kuwait from January until March 1991, the war in Somalia in December 1992, and the conflicts in Haiti in September 1994. Schmitt has shared two Pulitzer Prizes. In 1999, he was part of a team of New York Times reporters awarded the Pulitzer for coverage of the transfer of sensitive military technology to China. In 2009, he was a part of a team of New York Times reporters awarded the Pulitzer for coverage of Afghanistan and Pakistan.
Thom Shanker, Pentagon and National Security Correspondent, The New York Times
Thom Shanker has been the Pentagon correspondent for the The New York Times since May 2001. He joined The Times in 1997 and was assistant Washington editor, responsible for managing the newspaper’s coverage of foreign policy, national security and economics from the Washington bureau. Thom is a co-author of “Counterstrike: The Untold Story of the Secret Campaign Against Al Qaeda,” a New York Times bestseller that examines the evolution of American counterterrorism policy. Prior to The Times, he was foreign editor of The Chicago Tribune. During his lengthy career as a foreign and national security correspondent, Shanker was based in Berlin covering the wars in Croatia and in Bosnia-Herzegovina, NATO policy, nuclear smuggling and the withdrawal of American, British, French and Russian troops from Berlin following the reunification of the German capital. He was also based in Moscow covering the first years of the Gorbachev era, the death of the USSR and the collapse of the communist empire in Eastern Europe. He has written on foreign policy, military affairs and the intelligence community for The New York Review of Books, The New Republic and the American Journalism Review. He is a contributor to “Crimes of War: What the Public Should Know,” an anthology published by Norton.
Eileen Sullivan, Counterterrorism Reporter, Associated Press
Eileen Sullivan covers counterterrorism for The Associated Press and specializes in homegrown terrorism and domestic radicalization. She has covered every significant terror plot in the U.S. since September 11. Most recently she and three other AP reporters won the Goldsmith and Polk awards for a series that revealed the New York Police Department’s secret programs to spy on Muslims throughout the Northeast since 9/11. She previously covered the Department of Homeland Security for the AP and for Congressional Quarterly. She began her career with the Courier-Post in Cherry Hill, N.J.
For more information on exhibiting, please click here. To register for Counter Terror Expo US, please click here. To receive additional details and event updates, sign up for the Counter Terror Expo US newsletter.
Counter Terror Expo US is being organized by the Arlington, VA-based US division of Clarion Events, the UK’s largest independent event organizer.
About Counter Terror Expo US:
Counter Terror Expo is a unique expo and conference designed specifically to address the issues facing all of the disparate groups responsible for countering terrorism in the United States: the DoD, DHS, police, government and state agencies, along with those responsible for securing the nation’s vital infrastructure in both the private and public sectors. Counter Terror Expo US is based on the highly successful and award-winning Counter Terror Expo staged annually in London. For more information visit www.counterterrorUS.com.
# # #
PR Contact:
Leah Wilkinson
WilkinsonShein Communications
703-907-0010
leah@wilkinsonshein.com
