NOTES

Tuesday, March 1, 2011 • 7 p.m.
Witherspoon 201, Student Senate Chambers

CALL TO ORDER

• MEMBERS PRESENT: Paul McCauley, Henry Allen, Michael Biesecker, Jim Rothschild, Dean Phillips, Susannah Brinkley, Mario Terry, Amanda Wilkins, Mollie Mohr, Thomas Anderson, Andrea Mason, Caleb Van Voorhis, Bradley Wilson
• OTHERS PRESENT: Stephanie Doss, Ronilyn Osborne, Chelsey Francis, John Wall, Laura Wilkinson, Emerson Barker, Cordera (C.J.) Guion, Alanna Howard, Javan Sutton, Paul Blake, Kenneth Hertling, Martha Collins, Krystal Pittman, Tyler Dukes, Evelyn Reiman
• ABSENT: Dao Xuan Nguyen, Kristen Paese, John Bullard, Stephanie Edwards, Kelly Hook
• QUORUM was NOT present.

OLD BUSINESS

• Notes from January  CLICK HERE
• Because there was no quorum at the January meeting, the minutes of the November meeting (CLICK HERE) still need to be approved.

NEW BUSINESS

• Top Leaders Appointment Policy amendment (Tommy Anderson, Jamie Lynn Gilbert) CLICK HERE to see suggested revisions. No action was taken due to lack of quorum.
• Hiring of editor for Agromeck — Candidate: Stephanie Doss (Susannah Brinkley announced that the advisory board would be recommending that Stephanie Doss be hired as editor.)
• Hiring of business office manager — Candidate: Ronilyn Osborne (does not require a vote) (announcement by Kristen Paese) (Andrea Mason announced that the advisory board would be recommending that Ronilyn Osborne be hired as editor.)
• Hiring of editor for Technician — Candidates: Chelsey Francis, Emerson Barker, Laura Wilkinson and Dan Eckert (motion by Paul McCauley) (Paul McCauley  announced that the advisory board would delay announcing its recommendation until a quorum was present.)
• Hiring of editor for Nubian Message — Candidates: Cordera Guion, Jasmine Chadmon (Paul McCauley announced that the advisory board would be recommending that Cordera (C.J.) Guion be hired as editor.)
• Hiring of general manager for WKNC 88.1 fm — Candidate: Molly Matty (Tommy Anderson announced that the advisory board would be recommending that Molly Matty be hired as editor.)
• Hiring of editor for Windhover — Candidates: Alanna Howard and Javan Sutton (Susannah Brinkley announced that the advisory board would be recommending that Alanna Howard be hired as editor and strongly recommended that she consider Javan as a designer.)
• Hiring of station manager for Wolf TV — Candidates: Kenneth Hertling, Paul Blake, Darius Dawson (does not require a vote) (Hank Allen announced that the advisory board would be recommending that Paul Blake be hired as station manager and strongly recommended that he hire Kenneth Hertling as his assistant.)

REPORT UPDATES

ADJOURN

EXECUTIVE SESSION
The Student Media Board of Directors may adjourn into executive session to discuss matters of litigation, potential litigation or personnel.

QUORUM DEFINED — A majority of the voting members present shall constitute a quorum. Of those voting members present, a majority must be student members who are eligible to vote.

REPORTS

Agromeck
Submitted by Susannah Brinkley

Personnel — Promotions Manager Amanda Corbett quit the staff due to an internship she took on this semester. I hired Alex Sanchez as the replacement for this position. I have also hired two Technician writers to serve as reporters and they have proven to be reliable and enthusiastic members of the staff.

The staff counts are now as follows:

• four section editors (photo, design, sports, marketing)
• two assistant editors (photo, design)
• seven designers (three new)
• four writers
• one copy editor
• one ad staff member

Training — Two of my staff members and I attended the North Carolina College Media Association annual conference in Boone, N.C. Assistant Design Editor Stephanie Doss and Promotions Manager Alex Sanchez were both present. We attended sessions on writing, photography, yearbook and typography. The conference was a good bonding opportunity for my staff and the other media and I hope it remains a priority for Student Media in future years. CLICK HERE to view sessions summaries.

Revenue — We have 13.5 pages of commercial ads for this book, and we sold 10 senior ads. As of Feb. 25, we have sold eight yearbooks.

Promotions — Alex and I have been working on e-mailing the students who are in the book. Assistant photo editor Jordan Moore has been in share of obtaining group shots for the index. We currently have one PSA running on WKNC 88.1 FM, and I intend to work with Jamie Gilbert on recording one or two more for the rest of the year.

As a staff, we are also working on planning a distribution event for April. This event would hopefully turn Agromeck into a big deal and get its name out there. The plan is to partner with different on-campus organizations and encourage seniors to come pick up their books.

The Web — The Web has taken a back seat so far this semester. However, I have asked designer Lauren Wrenn to take control of updating the Facebook and Twitter sites several times weekly and she has so far been doing a great job. The Web is our primary place of advertising for book sales, so I will be pushing that for the next month.

Coverage — After securing 24 more pages for the book, I have determined that February and March will receive significantly less coverage than the other 10 months in the book due to portraits, ads and the index. There are 17 pages of senior portraits in the book with 415 portraits.

Deadlines — We made our Feb. 4 deadline and proof corrections have been submitted.

Our next one is Feb. 25, but we will miss it because the portraits have not been sent in yet. There must have been a miscommunication with the portrait company, Herff Jones, as they did not realize NCSU’s Spring Break had been moved forward one week, and they did not communicate that they pushed their production back one week. As a result, they had to quickly turn around our portraits, but they have still not made it in, though they should be here in the next few days.

The dust jacket was submitted Feb. 25..

Ethical / Legal Issues — The Technician unknowingly reprinted one of the Agromeck’s articles, a story about the Undergraduate Tutorial Center. Zach Diezel, a Technician writer, wrote the story for the Feb. 4 Agromeck deadline and did not realize that he should not turn it in to the Technician. No one on the Technician staff noticed the duplication, so the story ran. I have addressed the issue with Technician Editor Amanda Wilkins, Features Editor Laura Wilkinson, Production Assistant Tyler Dukes and the writer. Both Wilkins and Wilkinson said they would discuss duplicating stories with their staff.

Nubian Message

Submitted by Mario Terry

Revenue — The Nubian Message is set to print 750 copies per the production schedule, of that 750, ~550 are read. In the last board report there was a desire to fundraise; however, there have been no attempts to date to do so. The aforementioned was discussed at the last staff meeting on 02-24-2011. In a better light, our advertising efforts seem to be paying off. Specifically, a greater focus has been placed on advertising, and in the next issue (March 2) there is an ad from The Office for Diversity & Inclusion. As mentioned before, ads can only help.

Personnel — Since the last board meeting there has been no staff turnover. In addition, there are five new staff members. I’ve hired a photographer, an additional copy editor, an alternative layout editor, and two more staff writers. All successes of the Nubian Message can be attributed to the dedicated and driven staff.

Training — In addition to the required monthly training sessions, both the managing editor (Jasmine Harris) and the chief copy editor (Jasmine Chadmon) are responsible for holding staff training sessions. Last week Chadmon held training on news writing. The aforementioned is a major advantage. I plan to continue aiding the staff in an effort to always express a message that’s able to reach the NCSU community professionally. The student media guidelines in regard to training and coaching are in place as well. I am aware that my reign as editor will be coming to an end shortly; therefore, I’m in the process of implementing a secession plan.

Coverage — There has been an event planning and publicity committee established with the goal of continuing growth in readership. Specifically, this committee will be responsible for planning events, such as: forums, bake sales, etc. The Twitter account is the most direct correlation with increased readership. The Facebook fan page is somewhat helpful, but this could be attributed to facebook losing its place in the world of social networking. The most concrete way in judging readership is through interpersonal, face to face, interactions from staff members and me to readers. Specifically, handing out the papers has been beneficial; through attaching faces to the publication. Krystal Pittman will receive the past copies of the Nubian Message at the end of the semester, to archive and document the leftovers.

Deadlines— So far we’ve had two issues come out late this semester. Issue 11 per the production schedule was scheduled to come out on Jan. 19, but came out on Jan. 21; and 12 per the production schedule was scheduled to come out on Jan. 26, but came out on Jan. 28. The root causes of late distribution were as follows: communicative problems with turning in copy on time due to the break and a personal problem that the layout editor faced. The aforementioned problems now have solutions and a system in place to ensure that the paper will come out according to the production schedule. In addition there has been a problem with tuning in time sheets on time. As editor, I’m aware of the repercussions of late time sheets. I missed the deadline, even though I had the time sheet filled out and everything. I also had a personal problem at the beginning of the semester that required me to go home for a couple of days. There has been a checks and balances system implemented into the Nubian Message to ensure that time sheets are turned in on time. Again, I am aware of the problem that late time sheets cause, such as next year’s budget estimations. This will be the second time I’ve turned in a late time sheet, I’m aware of the consequences. On a greater scale, the paper has come out 16 times to date, the exact number of times it was projected to, according to the production schedule. I’m sure the Nubian Message will continue to put out a decent paper, on time. Deadline was the greatest opportunity for us at the beginning of the semester.

Ethics/Legal issues: In the Jan. 19 issue there was a letter to the editor with no attribution to the author. The mistake was detected, and the proper steps were taken to correct the mistake.

Technician
Submitted by Amanda Wilkins

Personnel — The staff has been hovering around 120 people. The people who have left have left for personal reasons. Viewpoint staff numbers are dwindling, but Dr. Kochersberger has been helping communicate with opinion writers and two have come up. Recruitment is slow, but a steady stream of people are coming up and being hired.

Due to a conflict with University Policy 11.55.6, Chelsey Francis is unable to serve as news editor. The position has been reposted and all resumes and cover letters are due the March 16 (due to the fact Spring Break is coming up). Chelsey, due to the suddenness of this ruling will serve as interim news editor.

I am happy to say that Viewpoint is back on track. I am in the process of training a viewpoint editor. His name is Trey Ferguson and he has been shadowing me for two weeks now. I know it has been a long time coming, but the viewpoint staff is solidifying.

Training — Tyler Dukes has continued to take feedback and suggestions for training and bringing people to speak. He is doing an excellent job. Recently, he arranged for visits to both the News & Observer and WRAL offices. Staffers and editors were able to sit in on a budget meeting and tour their facilities.

On Feb. 19, editorials and staffers went to the NCCMA conference at Appalachian State University. Each staffer was able to attend four different seminars and tour The Appalachian’s office. The Technician won Best in Show for our print and online product. Reflections are posted on the website.

Technology — Brian has been doing a great job keeping the computers updated and making sure the computers are in working order.

The first two weeks of production during the new year were plagued by leaks above the design computers in the office. Crew came out to survey the leak and finally got it patched. There have been no visible issues since.

Due to CF cards not making it back with camera bodies, photographers have been asked to purchase their own CF cards to use in the Canons. Our hope is that photographers will continue to take care of the equipment and be more mindful of how they use it.

Coverage — The Technician still is covering a variety of topics and issues. The Viewpoint section has been taking a look a budget cuts, national issues and task force white papers. The news section is tackling issues going on around campus and pertinent events to campus. The features section is working on decreasing the amount of commentary, but varieties still the spice. Mark Herring has done an excellent job using multimedia and getting a human story. Sport’s has been focusing on men’s and women’s basketball, but also the gymnastics and baseball teams.

The news section wants to do more investigative pieces and Tyler Dukes has arranged a training the help expand their skills.

Deadlines — Deadline has not been an issue this year at all. There has been about 10 times where we missed deadline. Many times it was close. The main reason we do miss deadline is stories coming in late and those issues have been addressed with a new late policy. If a writer has a late game or late event, they must come to the office to write their story. We have also missed deadline for the late basketball game against Carolina and there was a night were there was a technical error when the front page was sent to the New & Observer. Biko Tushinde came back to the office until 5 a.m. to make sure the page sent correctly.

Ethics/Legal issues — Updated corrections and clarifications are online. Adviser Bradley Wilson has said the formatting is incorrect; however the document is so large it is hard to format it all correctly. I have determined that the whole document, which goes back to corrections in 2007, is 50 pages when copied in Microsoft Word.

There have been three instances of issue this year:

1. The Technician and Agromeck share writers a lot of the time and there have been two instances this year where writers have put Agromeck stories in the Technician. The writers and section editors have been contacted regarding this issue and there have been no further issues since.
2. On Wednesday, Feb. 8, the story “Golden Graham” featured what was supposed to be a photo illustration, during which a photo was flipped. I was unaware of the flipped photo. The agreement for the photo was between Cory Smith, the deputy sports editor, and Luis Zapata, the color corrector. The attempted photo illustration was supposed to show how TJ Graham was both a track runner and a football player, however the photo of Graham on the track field did not fit so the best solution, determined by the color corrector and deputy sports editor was to flip the photo. The design did not reflect that the photos were illustrating anything. I have spoken to both Cory and Luis about how this violates the Code of Ethics. Both have agreed that they understand this policy and will not do it again. This was their first offense.
3. On Friday, Feb. 25, there was another attempted photo illustration attempting to depict a girl being stalked by a guy in relation to a story about N.C. State being an open campus. It was not clear that it was staged and only after reading the caption could the photo’s topic be discerned. After speaking with Biko Tushinde, the managing editor for the night, and Brooke Wallig, the deputy news editor for the night, I determined that the photo had been submitted as it was and was not questioned. After checking the photo assignment calendar, I saw that Chelsey Francis had assigned the photo and Danielle Neujhar had taken the assignment. I spoke with Danielle about the assignment and she expressed that she was uncomfortable taking a candid shot for the assignment because it could potentially be dangerous. I agreed and she clarified that she had asked Chelsey Francis what she should do. Chelsey advised her to stage the photo. This was not approved by anyone. I have spoken with Chelsey about why we do not do this, what qualifies as a photo illustration and how the photo editor is the only one who has the power to determine how an assignment is to be taken in these situations. She says that she never approved Danielle to stage the photo, but told her to check with Sarah about how to complete the assignment.

Sarah Tudor, the photo editor, is aware of this issue and has agreed to meet with me about how we can prevent photo illustration confusion in the future. We plan to develop a planning sheet which she can help section editors work on and present to photographers who choose to take photo illustration assignments.

Also on Friday, Feb. 25, the article “N.C. State the focus of Atorney (sic) General’s investigation” had many errors, besides the misspelled and misleading headline. The errors and headline were corrected early Friday morning by Bradley Wilson and Chelsey Francis, so the online edition has been corrected and corrections have also run in the paper. The writer, John Wall, who was out-of-town during the corrections process, and the editors who worked that night, Chelsey Francis and Brooke Wallig, have been briefed on the changes and the processes necessary for these stories to be completely clear and accurate. The Technician staff worked with Keith Nichols and Tom Miller to clarify the story. Corrections and a corrected version of the story are posted online.

Windhover
Submitted by Mollie Mohr

The staff has purchased fonts, divided up sections for the designers who have developed margins, grid structure, and other design details for the book. The current activity is the actual design of the book. Jeremy Purser and I met with Frank Pulley, from Theo Davis Printers to discuss our budget and ideas for ink, pages, and any manipulations (such as folds) that may be in our budget. Frank has been incredibly helpful in showing us what is and isn’t in our budget, and how we can design a beautiful product while staying within the budget. We have made decisions within the printing budget that have allowed us to create 100 more copies of the book than we originally planned. We are excited about this, because more copies are more coverage, and we’re beginning to think through distribution strategies. Jeremy has been emailing him with any further questions that have come up since that meeting to make sure we stay within our budget.

• Literary final selections: 29 poetry pieces, 12 prose pieces.
• Visual final selections: 87 pieces

The direction we have chosen for the book has been determined by the very visible emotions in our visual submissions and literary submissions. We have decided that the ordering of the book will be like an emotional gradient. Since the book is sectioned off to different designers, the colored paper that has been chosen will do the same thing from cold to hot or vice versa. Finding a “thread” for the book has been helpful in seeing how the different literary and visual pieces flow together.  To buy these fonts ($510 total), we were able to move around within our budget:

• Office Supplies – $360 (- $360)
• Photocopies – $100
• Reception – $350 (- $150)

The reason we now have $200 for the reception is because the designers and I feel that we could plan an excellent reception without using the full $350. During our last Open Mic night in November, we had food donated by Neomonde and Jimmy Johns, and we are confident that we could find businesses to donate for the reception as well. Also, money allotted to fonts is originally a part of our Office Supplies budget, but we are excited to have spent a little more with the reception money and confident that it will increase the quality of the book.

We are on schedule for creating a mock-up book by Feb. 25, and to send the book to the printer by March 4. This month is also important in selecting the audio submissions and having the CD mastered and duplicated by the beginning of April.

My work currently apart from overseeing the design of the book consists of keeping the web site updated, sorting through audio submissions, and identifying leaders for next year as well as brainstorming ideas on a financial plan for next year’s budget.  Tommy has graciously sent out several emails to recruit any last minute audio submissions, and I will be working with him and Chris Cioffi throughout the production process of getting the CD duplicated. I am also beginning to plan specifics for the reception release and Open Mic on April 17 in the Craft Center. We hope to look for different grants or scholarships to keep Windhover safe next year and for the years to come!

WKNC

Submitted by Thomas Anderson

REVENUE (The following was prepared by Jamie Lynn Gilbert.)

Revenue:

• Non-fee income (money in the bank), as of Feb. 24, 2011: $30,317.64
• Tir Na Nog — $9,000
• Regular donor announcements — $8,102.62
• Wolfpack Sports — $3,150
• Benefit Concerts — $6,333
• Promotions — $800
• Live Nation — $2,285
• Merchandise Sales — $540
• Other — $107.02

Total Budgeted income – student fees = $48,500 to be raised by WKNC/Student Media $48,500 – $30,317.64 (money in the bank) = $18,182.36 left to be raised by WKNC/Student Media

To meet our income expectations, that $18,182 will come from (estimated/expected totals):

• Wolfpack Sports — $10,950, with regular payments continuing through May/June
• Tir Na Nog — $5,700, with our current contract running through June 30, 2011

That leaves a minimum of $1,532 to come from regular donor announcement sales, promotions through Live Nation and other companies, merchandise sales and Afterhours dance parties. There is also about $600 that has been/will be deposited that has not shown up in our account yet. The business office has already met and exceeded its sales goal for FY1011 and added three new clients in February 2011.

EXPENDITURES — We purchased three replacement power amplifiers. Engineering purchases continue to remain the primary concern in this aspect. Our engineering budget was “zapped” earlier in the fiscal year, so these purchases were made on the basis of expecting more income in the coming fiscal year.

PERSONNEL— Two staff members were fired for alcohol violations (caught on camera) in the on-air studio. One of which held a paid position that has yet to be filled; we will do so as soon as possible. We have upwards of 120 staff members, with a training class of ~20 being tested and added to the staff.

TRAINING — As above, we have just completed the classroom portion of the training class. We look forward to adding these new members to the ranks. Production Manager Liz Cervantes and Public Affairs Director Chris Cioffi have been regularly offering informal, yet certainly important and utile, training sessions to interested students, both on staff and not. These have involved recording and editing audio in Adobe Audition, uploading carts to Audio Vault, and producing segments for Eye on the Triangle as well as PSAs and donor announcements. I would prefer to make these official, timed sessions so as to make them more predictable and accessible to other staff members.

TECHNOLOGY — As above, transmitter and engineering maintenance remains our primary technological concern. On the micro (but quite important level) our in-studio record players remain spotty at best. Our CD players typically work quite well when treated properly; one was recently repaired and replaced. Production microphones still annoy us periodically, but they are manageable and have not caused too much hassle as of recent.

COVERAGE  —Further ground has been made in covering campus events. GM candidate Molly Matty addressed in her position paper the concern to cover more campus events via regular on-campus broadcast; the issue here remains acquiring strong or hard-wire Internet access across campus. We covered West Campus’s Battle of the Bands; this event was off-campus, but the notion is the same. Eye on the Triangle, as I mention regularly, continues to impress with tis coverage of campus groups, life and events.

DEADLINE — Music reviews, minus the occasional hiccup, are returned on time, as well as mandatory blog posts for certain shows.

ETHICS/LEGAL ISSUES — The most notable issue was that of alcohol violations in the on-air studio. This was dealt with promptly, and all parties involved left on terms of level understanding. Staff members periodically notice CDs missing from the on-air studio. I do not believe this is intentional, but certainly remains a topic of concern.

Wolf TV
Submitted by Caleb Van Voorhis

No report

Business Office
Submitted by Andrea Mason

Revenue — We are not meeting revenue projections perfectly. Numbers are low and the staff has been talked to about this. I hope to see an increase in numbers in the next few weeks, seeing as it takes time to implement sales.

Personnel — No significant staff changes; there are five ad reps on staff.

Training — Mike Hartell came and trained the staff about the qualities of a good salesperson. The training was very effective because it gave the staff insight as to how they must go about selling.

Technology — The computers are slow, but we work through it.

Deadlines — The staff meets deadlines pretty well. I do not have much to complain about here.

BUDGET UPDATE: CLICK HERE

Society for Collegiate Journalists
Submitted by May Chung, president

The Society for Collegiate Journalists is planning two events in March in honor of Sunshine Week, the national initiative for freedom of information and the importance of open government. On Monday, March 14 at 7 p.m. in Daniels Hall 434, SCJ is hosting a Wikileaks discussion with various professors in the academic community, including Dr. Joseph Caddell, an adjunct assistant history professor at N.C. State University and a former Air Force intelligence officer for the Department of Defense. Topics will include the legality of Wikileaks and its wellbeing for or peril upon society, as well as questions regarding its founder, Julian Assange. Dr. Robert Kochersberger, Associate Professor in English, will moderate.

The day after, on Tuesday, March 15 at 6:30 p.m. in Caldwell (exact location TBD), SCJ will present a showing of “The Most Dangerous Man in America: Daniel Ellsberg and the Pentagon Papers,” a 2009 Academy Award Nominee for Best Documentary Feature. SCJ plans to provide attendees with a more informed background and framework of the issue, coupled with light refreshments.

SCJ  held its induction dinner at Mitch’s Tavern to officially admit 10 new members. The group welcomes into its ranks members: Alex Sanchez, Amanda Wilkins, Marisa Akers, Elise Heglar, Chelsey Francis, Drew St. Claire, Kierra Leggett, Jordan Moore, Joshua Chappell and Sarah Tudor.