Help/FAQs

WHAT IS THE OPC?
The Overseas Press Club of America was founded in 1939 in New York by a group of foreign correspondents. The OPC seeks to maintain an international association of journalists working in the United States and abroad; to encourage the highest standards of professional integrity and skill in the reporting of news; to help educate a new generation of journalists; to contribute to the freedom and independence of journalists and the press throughout the world, and to work toward better communication and understanding among people.

WHAT IS THE OPC FOUNDATION?
The Overseas Press Club Foundation is the 501 (C)(3) charitable oganization affiliated with the Overseas Press Club. The Foundation has a broad mandate to improve the media's understanding of international issues and to raise the quality of news-gathering efforts in covering the world. The most tangible expression of this charter is a scholarship program for undergraduate and graduate students in American colleges and universities, who aspire to become foreign correspondents. The program began in 1992 and every year offers $2,000 scholarships to 12 talented student winners of a national essay competition. Learn more about the OPC Foundation

WHAT IS THE FREEDOM OF THE PRESS COMMITTEE?
Since 1939 the Overseas Press Club of America has defended the rights of journalists around the world. The principal instrument of that defense is OPC's Freedom of the Press Committee. Through direct communication with heads of state, diplomatic personnel and public officials the Committee makes the case on behalf of individual journalists in jeopardy. The Committee points out the errors of restrictive press policies and laws, the failure of governments to live up to the freedom of the press declarations they have signed, the dangers that journalists run because of the impunity enjoyed by those who attack journalists and when the Committee comes to the defense of individual journalists, it usually reminds the government targeted of its record of abusing of the press.

HOW DO I LOG IN TO THE WEBSITE?
Website registration is open only to active OPC members. If you had an online OPC account with the former website, you will need to generate a new password. In the top right-hand corner of the site, select "password" and enter the email address associated with your OPC account. A new password will be sent to this email address. Once you have this password, you can log in to the website.

Once logged in, you can edit your profile. If you'd like to use your first and last name with a space in between (the former site did not allow for the space) as your username, you may. In any case, fill in the "Real Name" blank on the Personal Information tab as you'd like your bylines to appear. This way, if you create a blog or post a comment on a story or in the forum, your real name will be easily recognizeable to members.

You may also change your password and fill out your online profile here, including uploading a photo and/or avatar, maximum dimensions are 85x85. Be sure to select "SAVE" at the bottom of the page to save your profile changes.

For more assistance with logging in to the website, please contact OPC editor Aimee Rinehart and select "Website Feedback."

ABOUT THE COMMUNITY
The OPC Online Community is available to OPC Members only. To participate in the forums, you must be logged in to the website.

The OPC reserves the right to remove postings that contain profanity or are otherwise are abusive to other members. The OPC will warn and then block a members privileges for those who continue to post abusive comments.


HOW TO PARTICIPATE IN THE COMMUNITY
Go to "Forum"

Select the topic you'd like to learn/read more about. For example, "Multimedia Reporting."

Click on a discussion that interests you, for example "Tools on the Job." Read the post and the comments associated with that post and then select "Add New Comment" in the lower right-hand corner of the page. Provide a subject line, enter your comments in the body of the comment box and select "Preview." If you're satisfied with the posting, select "Save." Your comments will post automatically to the forum.