Media Contact:
Bruce Yelk (215) 599-7431, Bruce@gptmc.com
Jeff Guaracino (215) 599-2290, jeff@gptmc.com

GAY AND LESBIAN JOURNALISTS RETURN TO PHILADELPHIA FOR ANNUAL CONVENTION
NLGJA National Convention Comes To Town August 25-28, 2011

Philadelphia, June 1, 2011 – More than 300 journalists from across the United States will converge in Philadelphia from August 25-28, 2011 for the National Lesbian and Gay Journalists Association (NLGJA) convention. Host hotel Loews Philadelphia will welcome these influential members of the LGBT and mainstream media. Founded in 1990, NLGJA is an organization of journalists, media professionals, educators and students working within the news industry to foster fair and accurate coverage of LGBT issues.

The 2011 convention theme is “Media Revolution,” and programs will focus on the ever-evolving shift in media. The four-day assembly will begin with the eighth annual LGBT Media Summit on August 25 and will feature two full days of programming with more than 20 workshops, including the first-ever NLGJA Blogger Exchange, a series of sessions concentrating on the best tactics and strategies for successful blogging. The convention will also include an opening reception with Philadelphia Mayor Michael A. Nutter, a diversity reception, a women's networking dinner and a Sunday brunch.

The Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation will host exclusive tours of historical sites, including the Liberty Bell Center, Independence Hall and the first historical marker in the nation to acknowledge an LGBT historical event (this one commemorates some of the nation's first gay rights demonstrations) .

The Loews Philadelphia Hotel—located just steps away from Center City's Gayborhood—is offering a special rate of $159 per night for the NLGJA convention from August 21 through 29. This rate gives attendees, their friends and family a perfect opportunity to come early and stay late. Visitors will find no shortage of entertainment options in the Gayborhood, home to some of the hottest dining spots, lounges and clubs in the city.

The last time NLGJA held its convention in Philadelphia was in 2002, and the theme was “Out on the Road to Freedom,” a tribute to Philadelphia's place in American history.

For updates and news about this year's convention, visit nlgja.org. For more information about Philadelphia and The Countryside®, go to visitphilly.com/gay and facebook.com/visitgayphilly.

The Greater Philadelphia Tourism Marketing Corporation (GPTMC) makes Philadelphia and The Countryside® a premier destination through marketing and image building that increases business and promotes the region's vitality.

For more information about travel to Philadelphia, visit visitphilly.com or uwishunu.com, where you can build itineraries; search event calendars; see photos and videos; view interactive maps; sign up for newsletters; listen to Hear Philly, an online radio station about what to see and do in the region; book hotel reservations and more. Or, call the Independence Visitor Center, located in Historic Philadelphia, at (800) 537-7676.

Note to Editors: For high-resolution photos of Greater Philadelphia, visit the photo gallery of visitphilly.com/pressroom.

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