College Media Advisers Blog

While many advisers and student press folk are gathered in New York, some are handling brush fires at home. This item appeared on the listserv today:

SGA president criticizes' newspaper's coverage

Student Body President Stefanos Arethas claims a memo he sent to the Student Media Board regarding content issues of The University Times was not an act of censorship, but a misunderstanding.

Displeased with the student newspaper’s editorial content, Arethas sent the Student Media Board a memo March 2 with suggested content changes. Arethas told the Student Media Board he hoped the problems would be fixed, before stating Article II, Section 3 of the Student Body Constitution, which gives him power to temporarily freeze funding of any branch within the Student Association.

Student Media Board only funds The University Times and has no influence over the newspaper’s content, other than the selection of Editor in chief.

Chad Smith, Editor in chief of The University Times, said Arethas’ memo threatens censorship, a violation of Constitutional rights and a means for Arethas to control editorial content in the newspaper.