By Rebecca Rosen Lum
Freelance Unit Chair

“Citizen journalism”: The phrase has a certain democratic, Mr.-Smith-Goes-to-Washington ring to it.

But publishers’ beeline away from skilled journalists toward everymen who will work for free or cheap is part of a larger trend that serves ultimately to torpedo democracy. For without a robust, untethered and principled news media, the idea of democracy is just that – an idea. An exercise in theory.

It should come as no surprise that enterprising, rigorous journalism — the kind that nourishes a democracy — is costly. It’s costly because it is time-consuming and labor-intensive, and requires skill, both depth and breadth of knowledge, resourcefulness, vetting. That’s before we even get to writing with elegance and impact.

Seldom a day goes by that a posting does not appear on Craigslist seeking skilled writers so bursting with “passion” for the topic at hand that they are willing to devote hours of investigative reporting for the thrill of “exposure.” Ironically, many of these employers represent do-good nonprofit organizations, such as “JustMeans,” which offers roughly two cents a word for the thrice-weekly, quality postings it demands.

Resist, cried news media analyst Alan Mutter.

Mutter (“Reflections of a Newsosaur”) lit a match to a combustible topic this week when he pilloried publishers, including online content providers, for failing to pay journalists an honest buck for an honest day’s work – and challenged journalists to reject substandard pay. Read his full column here.

“It’s time for journalists to stop participating in their own exploitation by working for a pittance – or, worse, giving away their valuable services for free,” Mutter wrote.

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Before visiting Carolyn Jung’s blog, you might want to grab a snack.

Packed with interesting recipes and original food reporting, Food Gal features gorgeous, high-quality photography that will leave your stomach requesting attention. Vibrant cilantro curls atop a comforting noodle soup. Wisps of foam cloud the top of a tangerine wheat beer. Which is to say nothing of the perfect golden pile of these olive oil potato chips, improbably home made in the author’s microwave. (Click here for the recipe).

Jung, a Guild Freelancer who describes herself as “obsessed with all things ginger, almond paste, and chocolate,” spent 11 years as the food writer/editor at the San Jose Mercury News, earning a James Beard award for her feature writing and even judging the Pillsbury Bake-Off.

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Once upon a time, not so many decades ago, a group of respected academics believed that LSD and other hallucinogens would revolutionize American society — and they set out to prove it.

The fascinating story of what happened next is the subject of “The Harvard Psychedelic Club,” the latest from GuildFreelancer Don Lattin, published by HarperOne and now arriving in bookstores.

Lattin, who formerly covered religion at the San Francisco Chronicle, makes a case that this movement was more than a fleeting sidebar to history, as asserted by his subtitle: “How Timothy Leary, Ram Dass, Huston Smith, and Andrew Weil Killed the Fifties and Ushered in a New Age for America.”

Already, Lattin’s book has been inspiring warm reviews from critics around the nation, who call it “informative,” “beautifully constructed” and “highly entertaining.”

When not busy on book tour, Lattin support the Freelance Unit of California Media Workers by serving on our credential committee, ensuring that the press passes we issue are held only by working journalists who meet professional standards.

For details on upcoming Bay Area book-signings and other information on “The Harvard Psychedelic Club,” visit Lattin’s Web site, or by follow his fan page on Facebook.

Veteran CPA Jason Stallcup will help Guild Freelancers learn how to keep more of what we earn at a lunch seminar — including plenty of time to ask questions — Friday, Dec. 11 at our Guild offices in San Francisco.

Over the past 17 years, Jason has seen the number of people filing as freelancers skyrocket.

“There are a lot of people being laid off and looking to set themselves up independently,” he said. “I hear, ‘Should I incorporate? Should I go LLC?’ Most people are perplexed by quarterly tax payments, what’s deductible and what’s not. I’ll give the lay of the land and go down the whole laundry list.”

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At our November unit meeting, Guild Freelancers unanimously elected longtime reporter Rebecca Rosen Lum as our first unit chair.

Rosen Lum, a San Francisco resident who formerly covered religion for the Contra Costa Times, already has devoted countless hours to help build our unit. She never shies from a challenge, be it setting up our lunchtime professional workshop series, researching health care and other benefits and even traveling across town to purchase a used laminator for our new media credential.

This fall, Rosen Lum won a grant from the Berger Marks Foundation to support her work as she continues to organize our freelance unit.

Members agreed to defer election of a unit vice-chair and secretary/ treasurer until our Dec. 11 meeting, at which time we also hope to name members of standing committees on benefits, events, outreach and other topics.