Clergy Abuse Scandal The Focus Of Talk At Norwalk Community College

By Amy Maciaszek
Norwalk Daily Voice
November 11, 2015

http://norwalk.dailyvoice.com/events/clergy-abuse-scandal-the-focus-of-talk-at-norwalk-community-college/601496/

NORWALK, CONN. -- A panel discussion Nov. 17 at Norwalk Community College about clergy sex abuse news in Connecticut features three area journalists who've covered it.

It also includes a viewing of the trailer for the newly released film "Spotlight" that focuses on Catholic clergy sex abuse coverage in the Boston area.

Norwalk Community College is partnering with the Connecticut chapter of SNAP (Survivors Network of those Abused by Priests) to host the panel discussion that features Dave Altimari, Tom Connor and Dan Tepfer, three Connecticut journalists who have spent years writing about the problem of sex abuse, college officials said.

Titled "Spotlight on Investigative Journalism: Covering the Clergy Sex Abuse Crisis," the event takes place from 1:30-3 p.m., Nov. 17, in the college's East Campus Glen Re Forum.

Altimari writes for "The Hartford Courant" and his stories have won numerous awards, including a George Polk Award for coverage of the Rowland administration, college officials said. Altimari’s articles on clergy sex abuse in Connecticut have appeared regularly in the Hartford Courant for years.

Connor writes for "Connecticut Magazine," about Marcial Maciel Degollado, the founder of the Legion of Christ, a religious order based in Cheshire, Conn. Connor’s interview with Cardinal Edward Egan, the former archbishop of Bridgeport, uncovered his controversial views on the church’s handling of the problem, college officials said.

Tepfer has written for the "Connecticut Post" for more than 25 years. He has uncovered stories of clergy sex abuse in Bridgeport and across Fairfield County for over a decade, college officials said.

Norwalk's Journalism Program Coordinator Lori Soderlind and Gail Howard, co-leader of Connecticut SNAP, will moderate the discussion.