American Society of Journalists and Authors

American Society of Journalists and Authors
Name	American Society of Journalists and Authors
Abbreviation	ASJA
Formed	1948
Type	Professional association
Headquarters	New York City
Location	United States
Membership	Freelance writers, authors, journalists, editors

American Society of Journalists and Authors The American Society of Journalists and Authors is a professional association for independent nonfiction and fiction writers. Founded in 1948, it has pursued standards for freelance practices while interacting with institutions such as The New York Times, Time (magazine), The Washington Post, The Wall Street Journal, and The Atlantic. Its membership and activities have intersected with figures and organizations including Helen Gurley Brown, Gay Talese, Norman Mailer, Bob Woodward, Carl Bernstein, Jackie Kennedy Onassis, Toni Morrison, and Bob Dylan.

History

The society was established in the postwar era alongside institutions like Columbia University, Princeton University, Harvard University, Yale University, and Barnard College. Early members engaged with publications such as Reader's Digest, Life (magazine), Esquire (magazine), Playboy, and The New Yorker, and with authors including Doris Kearns Goodwin, John Updike, Norman Mailer, Truman Capote, and E. B. White. Over decades the group navigated changes prompted by technological shifts tied to Bell Labs, IBM, Apple Inc., Microsoft, and Google. The society’s past interactions involved legal and labor landmarks like cases associated with National Labor Relations Board, Securities and Exchange Commission, United States Supreme Court, First Amendment, and legislative contexts including Copyright Act of 1976 and Digital Millennium Copyright Act. It adapted to media evolutions influenced by Radio Corporation of America, National Public Radio, Cable News Network, The New Republic, and online platforms such as HuffPost, BuzzFeed, Slate (magazine), and Medium (platform).

Organization and Membership

Membership has included freelance contributors to outlets like Scientific American, Nature (journal), The Lancet, New England Journal of Medicine, Smithsonian (magazine), and National Geographic (U.S.), as well as book authors published by houses such as Penguin Random House, HarperCollins, Simon & Schuster, Hachette Book Group, and Macmillan Publishers. The society’s rolls have featured writers who produced works on subjects ranging from World War II, Vietnam War, Civil Rights Movement, Watergate scandal, and 9/11 attacks and who interacted with public figures such as Martin Luther King Jr., Malcolm X, Richard Nixon, Lyndon B. Johnson, Barack Obama, Donald Trump, and George W. Bush. Affiliates have included authors of biographies about Abraham Lincoln, Theodore Roosevelt, Franklin D. Roosevelt, Winston Churchill, Adolf Hitler, Joseph Stalin, and Mahatma Gandhi.

Governance and Leadership

Governance structures mirror those of associations including American Civil Liberties Union, Reporters Committee for Freedom of the Press, National Press Club, PEN America, and Society of Professional Journalists, with boards, committees, and elected officers. Past presidents interacted with institutions such as Columbia Journalism Review, Poynter Institute, Reuters, Associated Press, and Agence France-Presse. Executive leadership has negotiated with unions and entities like United Auto Workers, SAG-AFTRA, Writers Guild of America, Authors Guild, and legal counsel linked to firms that appeared before the United States Court of Appeals and Supreme Court of the United States.

Advocacy and Legal Activities

The society has engaged in advocacy alongside groups including Electronic Frontier Foundation, Public Knowledge, Consumer Federation of America, ACLU, and Reporters Without Borders on issues related to copyright, contracts, and freelance rights. It has submitted amicus briefs and supported litigation touching statutes such as the Copyright Act of 1976, Digital Millennium Copyright Act, and matters adjudicated by the United States Court of Appeals for the Second Circuit and the Supreme Court. The society worked on contract standards referenced by publishers like Oxford University Press, Cambridge University Press, Random House, and magazines such as Vanity Fair and GQ (magazine), and engaged with legislative processes in the United States Congress, committees including the House Judiciary Committee and the Senate Judiciary Committee.

Programs and Services

Programs include mentoring, networking, contract review, and seminars similar to offerings from PEN America, Society of Professional Journalists, National Writers Union, Authors Guild, and Jacob Burns Film Center–affiliated workshops. The society hosts panels with editors from Atlantic Monthly Group, Condé Nast, Meredith Corporation, Gannett, and Hearst Communications and partners with educational entities such as Ithaca College, Syracuse University, Northwestern University, and Columbia University Graduate School of Journalism. Services have included legal referral networks, model contract templates used by authors working with literary agents like William Morris Endeavor, Creative Artists Agency, and ICM Partners.

Publications and Awards

The society publishes member directories, guides, and annual lists akin to resources produced by Publishers Weekly, Kirkus Reviews, Library Journal, and The New York Review of Books. Awards and recognition parallel those from Pulitzer Prize, National Book Award, Edgar Award, PEN/Faulkner Award, and PEN/Hemingway Award, while celebrating journalism achievements comparable to George Polk Awards, Peabody Awards, Emmy Awards, and Logie Awards. Notable honorees include writers profiled in outlets such as The New York Times Book Review, Los Angeles Times, Chicago Tribune, Boston Globe, and San Francisco Chronicle.

Criticism and Controversies

The society has faced criticism similar to debates surrounding Authors Guild, Writers Guild of America, Fairness Doctrine, and controversies tied to digital platforms like Facebook, Twitter, YouTube, and Amazon (company). Disputes have involved high-profile cases concerning contracts, attribution, and copyright also seen in litigation involving HarperCollins, Simon & Schuster, Google Books, and Hachette Book Group USA. Debates echoed broader tensions involving public figures and media outlets such as Rupert Murdoch, Jeff Bezos, Arianna Huffington, Roger Ailes, and Les Moonves.

Category:Professional associations based in the United States