Weekend Update

Here is the latest from around the Athens campus (...and beyond!) that went down while everyone was enjoying the beginning of Fest season here at OU or just the absolutely beautiful weather!

OU Board of Trustees
The BoT commented on many critical issues during their meeting Friday, including one of the letters delivered by the protesters Thursday evening. OU SPJ President Evan Millward and President-elect Ian Bowman-Henderson were in attendance at the rally, with Ian giving an impassioned speech and calling for more accountability by those in charge.

The Board again delayed finalization of the Statement of Expectations, though they did approve a slew of student fee increases for the 2009-2010 academic year. Chair C. Daniel Delawder even addressed the much-publicized quote that was run in July by the Athens NEWS and has since been posted here several times. In a (hopefully) positive change, Delawder will be replaced as chair next year by C. Robert Kidder.

Read more from The Post: 1, 2, 3
and The Athens NEWS: 1, 2

Hocking College Public Records Disaster
For those who don't know, Hocking College (just up US 33 in Nelsonville) is in the midst of a presidential search. However, when pressed to see public records and evaluations of the candidates' visits to campus, a faculty union representative discovered that those records had been destroyed...what makes this more interesting is that the man who did the destruction is a former OU Trustee...

Read more from The Post and the Athens NEWS.

It would appear that as spring is blossoming in southeast Ohio, so is the tangles of First Amendment and Open Records issues at hand.

We'll keep you updated here as these stories develop!

Let's Get Ethical...Ethical...

Celebrate National Ethics Week with OU SPJ as we discuss the coverage of the Tax Day tea parties across the country and as well as other current media problems.

Bring your friends for what never fails to prove lively and provocative discussion!

PLUS - Get your copy of the SPJ Code of Ethics at the meeting!

See you there!

Join the Cause

Dear SPJers,

Please join the Ohio University Student Union and OU SPJ tonight on College Green at 8 p.m. for a rally to protest the Statement of Expectations explained in the last blog post.

This is a nonviolent rally that will conclude with a march to President Roderick McDavis' residence on Park Place, where OUSU leaders and rally attendees will present him and the board with a bottle of wine and letters and petitions expressing grievances.

Roger Sikes, of the OUSU, tells WOUB's NewsWatch tonight that he hopes the meeting and rally will generate dialogue between the administration and the students.

We hope to see you there to support not only other students, but the union leaders and faculty and staff members who are suffering because of the financial crisis.

8 p.m. on College Green - well see you there!

Evan Millward
President, OU SPJ

Great Expectations

The Ohio University Board of Trustees is headed back to Athens on Thursday for another meeting.

This time, they will be voting on the resolution so innocently titled the "Statement of Expectations."

In the fall, enough protest and outcry arose from campus groups that the vote was delayed until this Friday.

So, what is the "Statement of Expectations?"

You can read it in its entirety here on pages 445-448.

It is basically a resolution outlining the role of the Trustees in the university community and, more importantly, in the university's corporate culture. And while minor changes have been made that now make it explicitly clear that Trustees can voice individual dissent as long as they are not speaking for the Board as a whole, this clauses catches my eye:

"e. While Trustees should seek information and ask questions of others, they should refrain from publicly criticizing the President or other members of the University Community. Criticisms or concerns that Trustees may have about the President or other members of the University Community should be conveyed to the Chair who will determine the appropriate method for the Board to address the issue."

In essence, this clause undoes all the freedoms that the document previously afforded Trustees who wish to voice their dissent. Who constitutes as a "member of the University Community?" Do I? Do you? If so, then what can a Trustee say when they disapprove of a policy or resolution?

The good news here, though, is that this resolution is non-binding and acts as guidelines only so, as far as I know, no repercussions will be felt if a Trustees does dissent vocally or publicly criticize the President.

I encourage everyone to let your voices be heard, however, and tell the Trustees that this resolution is unnecessary and that the muzzle-effect doesn't work. You cannot successfully silence dissent without blatant disregard for the First Amendment right of freedom of speech.

Insist that this resolution be thrown out...the implications of its passing are too great. Should this resolution be successful, the culture of fear and inaccessibility will reach a fever pitch here in Athens and we will have passed a point of no return. In the fall, a group of vocal students and constituents stopped voting on this resolution - we can do it again...and this time we can silence those who wish to silence others.

Evan Millward
President, OU SPJ

Resumes and Cover Letters

Join OU SPJ and Professor Cary Frith as we discuss the Do's and Dont's of professional journalism resumes and what is really necessary in a cover letter.

Bring your updates resume and cover letters for work and get a headstart on making yourself stand out from the crowd!

We'll see you in Scripps 116 at 5 p.m. for the workshop!

Reflections

Last week was a packed one for us. Let's recap quickly, shall we?

Tuesday evening during our regular meeting time we elected a new Executive Board for the 2009-2010 school year. You can see those individuals listed a couple of posts below. Give them congrats and wish them luck when you see them!

Thursday evening we welcomed Adnrew Revkin, environment reporter for the New York Times to campus for a discussion which he title "9 Billion people + 1 Planet = ?". He was VERY interesting. What'd everyone think of his speech?

And we capped it all off with inductions and a Centennial Celebration on Friday evening. A special thanks to everyone who attended in spite of the gorgeous weather! Also a congratulations to all those who were inducted. 2007 Scripps alum Jon Peters was our keynote speaker and he discussed his time at Scripps and what SPJ means to him and to the field.

Let us know what you thought about last week's festivities!!

Revkin Tonight

For those of you planning to attend Andrew Revkin's keynote address at 7 p.m. in Scripps 111, we are warning you to arrive no less than 15 minutes early because seating is extremely limited and all parties involve expect to fill the auditorium.

Again, arrive early to hear Andrew Revkin this evening.

We'll see you there and again tomorrow for our Centennial Celebration!

2009-2010 Executive Board

Congratulations to the 2009-2010 Executive Board and thanks to all our members who came out this evening and voted!

President: Ian Bowman-Henderson

Vice President: Taylor Mirfendereski

Secretary: Jamie Ratermann

Treasurer: Emma Morehart

Publicity: Lauren Smith

Programming: Kevin Zeiber, Gina Edwards

Congrats to everyone!

Elections TONIGHT

Please join us as we vote on the 2009-2010 Executive Board this evening at 5 p.m. in Scripps 116. Each candidate will make a short presentation prior to voting.

Here is the ballot:

President:
Sarah Maloy
Ian Bowman-Henderson

Vice President:
Taylor Mirfendereski

Secretary:
Melisa Michael
Jamie Ratermann

Treasurer:

Publicity Chair:
Lauren Smith

Programming Chairs (choose 2):
Kevin Zieber
Miaomiao Shao
Emma Morehart
Graylyn Roose
Gina Edwards

We'll see you all there and best of luck to all candidates!

State of Play

Students-

We at Ohio University have the unique opportunity to screen a new journalism film before it opens to the general public.

A synopsis is listed below for State of Play which will be shown on Wednesday, April 15 at 9:30 p.m. at the Athena Grand on East State Street.

Tickets can be picked up starting Thursday outside of the Front Room in Baker or at either main entrance to Scripps.

Oscar® winner Russell Crowe leads an all-star cast in a blistering thriller about a rising congressman and an investigative journalist embroiled in a case of seemingly unrelated, brutal murders. Crowe plays D.C. reporter Cal McCaffrey, whose street smarts lead him to untangle a mystery of murder and collusion among some of the nation's most promising political and corporate figures in State of Play, from acclaimed director Kevin Macdonald (The Last King of Scotland).

Handsome, unflappable U.S. Congressman Stephen Collins (Ben Affleck) is the future of his political party: an honorable appointee who serves as the chairman of a committee overseeing defense spending. All eyes are upon the rising star to be his party's contender for the upcoming presidential race. Until his research assistant/mistress is brutally murdered and buried secrets come tumbling out.

McCaffrey has the dubious fortune of both an old friendship with Collins and a ruthless editor, Cameron (Oscar® winner Helen Mirren), who has assigned him to investigate. As he and partner Della (Rachel McAdams) try to uncover the killer's identity, McCaffrey steps into a cover-up that threatens to shake the nation's power structures. And in a town of spin-doctors and wealthy politicos, he will discover one truth: when billions are at stake, no one's integrity, love or life is ever safe.

More information here.

Congratulations!

This past weekend, six Ohio University student journalists took home Mark of Excellence Awards at the SPJ Region 4 Conference in Columbus.

Here is our press release with more details:
MoE Presser

Publish at Scribd or explore others:

InDesign, In-the-Know

Join OU SPJ in Scripps 001 (yet again a different room - in the basement) as we learn some InDesign basics and create a page using this program.

We'll be taught by Mike Dibari, a graduate student in E.W. Scripps School of Journalism. He has been a working photojournalist for the past 20 years. His work has been published in a variety of newspapers and magazines including: the Washington Post, the Los Angeles Times, the Baltimore Sun, the Detroit Free Press, the Albuquerque Journal, and Time magazine.

Come hone your skills on this crucial design software with OU SPJ!

Get Elected!

Just a friendly reminder:

Now is the time to begin nominating yourself (and others with their permission) for Executive Board positions for the 2009-2010 school year.

The following positions are available:
President
Vice President
Secretary
Treasurer
Programming Chair (2)
Publicity

If you are interested (and you all should be), please email Jamie at jr923107@ohio.edu. All nominees will be required to make a short speech on Tuesday, April 14 at 5 p.m. in Scripps 116 just prior to elections.

You have until Friday at 5 p.m. to make nominations and fill out the forms Jamie will provide you. Best of luck to all candidates!

Descriptions:
Exec Board Descriptions 09-10

Publish at Scribd or explore others: Presentations & Spre leadership spirituality

Letter of Intent:
Executive Board Application

Publish at Scribd or explore others: School Work Education leadership spirituality

Conference Recap

For those who attended the Region 4 Conference, what'd you think?

Share your thoughts here!

You can read our tweets at #ouspj as well!

How Tweet It Is

Greetings!

For those of you who can't make it to the SPJ Region 4 Conference in Columbus this weekend, OU SPJ now allows you to continue to follow the excitement!

For you Twitter users, you can read all about the happenings from members who are at the event by visiting this group - http://bit.ly/7eZN. Our members in attendance will be Twittering the events using the hashtag #ouspj.

Don't miss a minute of this thrilling conference!

Evan

NYT Reporter to Visit OU SPJ

In celebration of Earth Month (April), OU SPJ is extremely proud to bring Andrew C. Revkin of the New York Times to campus April 16.

Mr. Revkin will present the keynote speech,
"9 Billion People + 1 Planet = ?"
in Scripps 111 at 7 p.m.

For the first time in its history, the human species has both become a planet-scale force and become aware of that fact. Spikes in population and resource appetites have been sustained by technology and fossil fuels -- so far. But with an estimated 9 million people living on the planet by 2050, the road to a stable, prospering human population is highly uncertain.

Revkin, a prize-winning author and environmental reporter for The New York Times, explores how people are, and aren't, working to smooth the path, from the Arctic to the Amazon to the White House.

This event is co-sponsored by the Office of Sustainability, OU SPJ, the E.W. Scripps School of Journalism, Dr. Debatin's 1804 Grant, and the School of Visual Communication.

As members of OU SPJ we may also have a unique possibility to meet Mr. Revkin on a more personal level. We'll have more as it becomes available.

This is just another in the long list of unique and thrilling opportunities OU SPJ has planned for Spring Quarter 2009!

2009 Schuneman Symposium

Folks,

This is a phenomenal opportunity available to anyone on campus next Thursday. While not directly affiliated with OU SPJ, it is an incredible opportunity for those who can attend. It also features our OU SPJ advsier, Cary Frith in the afternoon panel!

The 2008 election brought monumental change to the Presidency but it also marked significant changes in how campaigns are run and how they are covered by the media.
The impact of the Internet and “new media” changed the face of the electoral politics and election coverage forever. It is this changing political and media landscape that will be examined, in detail, on April 9th at the first Schuneman Symposium on Photojournalism and New Media sponsored by the E. W. Scripps School of Journalism and alumni R. Smith Schuneman and Patricia W. Schuneman.

The day-long event will consist of three panels held in Baker University Center Rooms 240-242 and two major keynote addresses in Templeton-Blackburn Memorial Auditorium.

Amy Goodman of Democracy Now will speak to the community at 5 p.m. in the Templeton-Blackburn Memorial Auditorium and. Steve Hildebrand, one of the masterminds behind the successful Obama campaign, will also speak there at 7 p.m. He will talk about how the Obama campaign used “new media.”

Leading off the morning will be a panel of photojournalists talking about the changing nature of how they visually capture and document campaigns. The panel will feature noted photographers from the School of Visual Communication and major news publications. That panel will be from 9-10:30 a.m.

A second panel will examine the election from the media side. It is titled New Media v. Traditional Journalism. National “new media” experts Bob Benz and Peter Shaplen will join advertising specialist Gary Moneysmith and international expert Dr. Bernhard Debatin to dissect the changing media climate.

In the afternoon (3 to 4:30 p.m.) a panel of political experts headed by professor and author Albert L May from George Washington University and alumnus and AP White House correspondent Phil Elliott will focus on Political New Media. May authored an article “Campaign 2008: It’s on UTube.” Elliott is the youngest reporter ever to be assigned to the White House by AP.

The day will be topped off by the keynote addresses by Goodman and Hildebrand.
All sessions are open and the public is cordially invited to attend.

This impressive Symposium is made possible by the generosity and dedication of the Schunemans. As the director of the E. W. Scripps School of Journalism, I personally express my appreciation to them for making this possible.

Read more here.

Hope to see you all there!

From SPJ President, Dave Aikens

A Federal Shield Law Protects Free Flow of Information
April 2nd, 2009

The House of Representatives passing the Free Flow of Information Act is a big step in the process of finally providing federal protection for journalists from being forced to reveal anonymous sources. SPJ will work diligently to get Senate and presidential approval later this year.

This bill is important to democracy and to making sure government operates well. People who are aware of wrongdoing should be able to make that information public without facing retribution. Journalists who report the wrongdoing based on secret sources should not be forced to break promises and reveal their sources. All but one state has legislative, administrative or common law protections of this nature for journalists. It’s time to extend that protection to the federal level. Too many times federal prosecutors and civil lawyers have come to journalists first when doing their investigations.

This potential Shield Law is an effort by many national media organizations including the Society of Professional Journalists, the nation’s most broad-based journalism organization. The bill enjoys bipartisan support among Representatives and Senators who understand the importance of a free press in society. Passage of the bill will allow reporters to continue to do the essential work of serving as government watchdogs and being the vital link between citizens and government. Journalists would be able to do their jobs without fear of subpoenas and threats of jail time and fines for not revealing sources.

SPJ and its 9,000 members look forward to the continued discussion and debate on this important public issue.

Return of a Classic

On behalf of the entire Executive Board of OU SPJ, we are pleased to announce the return of the...

Grammar Smackdown!

This year Speakeasy Magazine and SPJ are bringing back Grammar
Smackdown, a fun, free event open to all students who enjoy the English
language in all its glory and a little friendly competition. The
Smackdown will take place Thursday, April 23 at 6 p.m. in Scripps 111,
and we're looking for contestants.

Teams of five members will compete in flights to answer the most
grammar-related questions correctly. As teams are eliminated, the
questions get tougher. Prizes will be awarded to the top-winning
teams.

For any questions or to enter your team, e-mail Jennifer England at
jen.l.england@gmail.com with
creative team names and contact information of members by Friday, April
17.

Let's put together a winning OU SPJ team - now open to name suggestions...be clever!!