05.24.07
Posted in , at 3:50 pm by steve
A report from the chair of our Working Journalism committee:
POLICE/PRESS RELATIONS
I’m speaking on a panel discussion at the Chesterfield Police Department on Thursday morning. It’s a class of chiefs and assorted police types who want to learn more about the media. This should be fun. They have bulletproof vests…I don’t. Wish me luck. Just found out about it on Monday…got the invite from Scott Barthelmass of Chesterfield PD. It will be a chance for me to meet Scott for the first time…I’ve been trading e-mails with him regarding the quarterly meeting of the PIO’s. He is the leader of that group. I’m still set to meet with the PIO’s at their regular meeting in July.
SHIELD LAW UPDATE
I talked to Don Hicks with the Missouri Broadcasters Association. He said the Missouri Shield Law was not successful. It passed the house 149 to 5 on March 15th. When it got to the Senate, it passed our of the general laws committee 7-1. He says it did not get to the floor because two Kansas City senators (Matt Bartle and Chris Koster) threatened to filibuster if it did. Hicks says they are trial attorneys who enjoy the ability to get whatever they need from the press with subpoenas and do not want that to change.
Sponsors of the House bill were Speaker of the House Rod Jetton (Marble Hill) and Tim Jones (Eureka). Jason Crowel (Cape Girardeau) was the Senate sponsor.
Below is the link to the House bill. Don said he would appreciate any help we could give him in next year’s efforts.
Don can be reached at dhicks@mbaweb.org or www.mbaweb.org.
http://www.house.mo.gov/bills071/bills/HB774.HTM
SUNSHINE LAWS
Got half a dozen Illinois handbooks on their way from the Illinois AG’s office. No one has a pocket version that I’m aware of for Missouri or Illinois. I guess we can convene a few folks and decide what needs to go on a card. Do we need two–one for each state? Or one card with both state’s info?
Still trying to get Mike Owens and Jeremy Kohler together to see what their beefs are about strengthening the current law or creating awareness among government types who control public records. Maybe Don Hicks could helps us in future efforts.
CAMERAS IN THE COURT
Nothing working on this yet…this is a biggie…don’t know where to begin.
Chuck Maulden
Director of News Operations
KSDK-TV
1000 Market Street
St. Louis, MO 63101
314-444-5225 office/voicemail
314-444-5164 fax
314-402-5033 cell
314-419-9828 pager
cmaulden@ksdk.gannett.com
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05.05.07
Posted in at 6:45 pm by steve
Dear fellow journalists, The Saint Louis University board of trustees voted Saturday to rescind the charter of the University News. Though the details are still sketchy, the board is giving the university administration and the newspaper staff 10 days to write a new charter. But it isn’t clear how much input the students will have in the final draft.
Over the weekend, the University News staff will decided among themselves what strategy to take with the administration. And the St. Louis Chapter continues to express support and willingness to work with the students to protect a free press on SLU’s campus. Once they make a decision, the chapter will issue a public statement.
If the University News staff decides that it would be best to negotiate a new charter, I will ask the national SPJ journalism education officials to help them develop a model charter that will preserve their editorial independence.
Let’s hope that the administration will be reasonable. In any event, the St. Louis chapter will put out a statement as soon as a staff decision is made and it will contact Kent Porterfield, SLU’s vp of student development, to press for a “good faith” resolution to this dispute.
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05.02.07
Posted in at 6:56 pm by steve
The St. Louis Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists is troubled by reports concerning the University News, the student newspaper at Saint Louis University. The chapter believes a proposed change to the newspaper’s charter will stifle the publication’s editorial independence and freedom of expression on campus.
The university administration’s proposal also violates the existing charter, which gives the newspaper staff the right to reject any changes to the charter, according to the newspaper’s acting adviser and SLU Professor Avis Meyer.
The chapter is asking the university’s board of trustees not to approve this proposal. We urge the university administration to work with the newspaper staff to resolve any dispute in open and transparent dialogue.
In news reports, the university says these measures are designed to improve the publication’s quality. But the existing charter appears more than adequate to deal with any possible problems. Oversight already is provided by a university-appointed advisory board.
If quality is indeed the issue, expanded training opportunities, a larger editing staff and pay for hard-working student journalists would do far more good than a proposal that greatly weakens the independence of a 86-year-old publication.
The university also reduced the stipend for the editor position. Reducing financial support for such a critical position isn’t consistent with building quality journalism.
More troubling is a proposed two-step approval process for the newspaper’s editor. Currently, the editor is selected by the newspaper’s outgoing editorial board. Under the proposal, the university-appointed advisory board would select a candidate, but even that choice must be approved by the vice president of Student Development.
The proposal’s sudden announcement during the last week of classes and the lack of discussion with the newspaper staff raise questions about the university’s motives.
A student newspaper is not an instrument that belongs solely to the university. The newspaper is a public forum where students can freely express themselves and exchange ideas about their community and the world. It should reflect the academic and intellectual freedom found in an internationally renowned institution of higher education.
Rather than trampling on students’ First Amendment rights, the St. Louis Chapter invites St. Louis University to adopt SPJ’s Campus Media Statement, which states that campus publications “are designated public forums and free from censorship and advance approval of content.”
The Board of Directors
St. Louis Chapter of SPJ
Further Reading:
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