Macon State College Office of Student Life Student Media Bylaws Preamble Student Media at Macon State College consists of Fall Line Review, a student literary/art magazine; MSC-TV, a campus closed-circuit television lab; and Matrix, the student newspaper. Fall Line Review and Matrix are open forum enterprises and are staffed with students who are free to select the materials to be published without undue criticism or pressure. MSC-TV was created to be a training lab, not an open forum, and materials are subject to prior review of the Student Media Coordinator. Student media serving as open forums are valuable aids in establishing and maintaining an atmosphere of free and responsible discussion as well as intellectual exploration on the campus. They are a means of bringing student concerns to the attention of the faculty and the institutional authorities, and of formulating opinions on various issues on the campus and in the world at large. In response to the editorial responsibility of student media, the College must provide sufficient editorial freedom and sufficient financial resources for the student media to maintain their integrity of purpose as vehicles for free inquiry and free expression in an academic community. Institutional authorities have a responsibility to provide written clarification of the role of student media, the standards to be used in their evaluation, and the limitations on external control of their operation. At the same time, the editorial freedom of student editors entails corollary responsibilities to be governed by the canons of responsible journalism, such as the avoidance of libel, indecency, undocumented allegations, attacks on personal integrity, and the techniques of harassment and innuendo. By authority of the Board of Regents and the President of Macon State College and on behalf of the College community, the Macon State College Student Media Coordinator presents these bylaws governing specific student media, said bylaws representing the general framework of operations of the Macon State College Student Media. Macon State College is an Affirmative Action/Equal Educational and Employment Opportunity institution. Factors of race, national origin, sex, age, religion, or disability are not considered in treatment of students, in accordance with Federal and State laws and regulations. Mission Statements and College Expectations The purpose of the Student Media Program at Macon State College is to provide interested students with opportunities to learn about the art and craft of creative endeavors, journalism, and new media via three primary outlets – an annual literary/art journal, a campus closed-circuit television lab, and a newspaper. Fall Line Review is a literary/art journal featuring the creative and collective consciousness of Macon State College students. It is a Recognized Student Organization of the Office of Student Life. It is the expectation of the College that the journal will be staffed with well-qualified and responsible leaders and staff. It is also an expectation of the College that items published in the journal are selected by the Fall Line Review Editorial Board based on literary and/or artistic merit. Students must be currently enrolled or have been enrolled during the previous two semesters in order to be eligible to have work published in the journal. As a college published and financed student publication, Fall Line Review should explicitly state that opinions expressed are not necessarily those of Macon State College or the student body and that the publication is funded with Student Activities fees. MSC-TV provides the student body with timely and pertinent information concerning the campus community and the events thereof via a closed-circuit television network and provides students with the opportunity to develop skills in the television medium and experience firsthand the technological advances being made in the medium, as they relate to new media. It is a Recognized Student Organization of the Office of Student Life. It is the expectation of the College that the campus closed-circuit television lab will be staffed with well-qualified and responsible leaders and staff. It is also an expectation of the College that items displayed on the campus network and the MSC-TV Web page have been approved by the Student Media Coordinator prior to airing. Items not displayed on the network or Web site are the responsibility of the individual who created them. As a college published and financed student enterprise, MSC-TV should explicitly state that the programming is funded with Student Activities fees. Matrix, the student newspaper, provides the students of Macon State College with timely and accurate campus news. It is a Recognized Student Organization of the Office of Student Life. It is the expectation of the College that the student newspaper will be staffed with well-qualified and responsible leaders and staff. As a college published and financed student publication, Matrix should explicitly state on the editorial page that opinions expressed are not necessarily those of Macon State College or the student body and that the publication is funded with Student Activities fees. Student Media Policy 1. As safeguards for the editorial freedom of student publications, the following provisions are necessary: A. The student press should be free of censorship and advance approval of copy. (MSC-TV is the exception as it is a training lab, not an open forum.) This editorial freedom entails corollary responsibilities to be governed by the canons of responsible journalism such as the avoidance of libel, indecency, undocumented allegations, attacks on personal integrity, and the techniques of harassment and/or innuendo. B. Leaders and staff members should be free to develop their own editorial policies and news coverage. Leaders of student publications should be protected from arbitrary sanction because of student, faculty, administrative or public disapproval of editorial policy or content. Only for proper and stated causes (individual student media guidelines, Student Code of Conduct and this document) should leaders and staff members be sanctioned, including removal, and then by orderly and prescribed procedures. The agency responsible for the appointment of editors/managers should be the agency responsible for their removal. (See Student Media Advisory Board.) C. All College financed student publications should explicitly state on the editorial page that opinions expressed are not necessarily those of Macon State College or the student body and that the publication is funded with Student Activities fees. Leaders and staff members are not official spokespersons for the students or Macon State College.
5. Students have the opportunity to express personal opinions through editorial columns that are clearly labeled as such. 6. Letters to the Editor of student publications must bear positive identification of authorship. Editors and staff members, before publication, must be able to verify and clearly identify the author of the letter. In limited cases, identification of the author may be withheld at the discretion of the editors, with the advice of the Student Media Coordinator. 7. Leaders and staff members of student media may give news and editorial coverage to political events and controversies. At no time, however, will the leaders or staff members of any student publication, acting in his/her official capacity, enter into student partisan politics and/or use the facilities or the privileges of his/her office for the promotion of a political party or candidate. 8. Reprinting of materials from other sources does not mitigate deviations from this Student Media Policy. 9. The leaders of student media, along with the Student Media Coordinator, and any faculty advisors shall establish policies designed to encourage contributions from all segments of the College community.
12. The Student Media Center is the base of all operations for the Student Media. 13. These policies are subject to periodic review by the Office of Student Life, respective publication staffs and advisors, and shall not be interpreted as all-inclusive. Student Media Fiscal Policy
Fall Line Review, MSC-TV, and Matrix are Recognized Student Organizations (RSO) of Macon State College. They receive funding from the Student Activities fee.
1. "All mandatory student fees collected by an institution shall be budgeted and administered by the president using proper administrative procedures, which shall include the advice and counsel of an advisory committee composed of at least fifty percent students [Macon State College Student Affairs Committee]. Students shall be appointed by the institution’s student government association. All payments from funds supported by student mandatory fees shall be made according to approved business procedures and the appropriate business practices of the institution (Board of Regents Minutes, 1999-2000, p. 364). 2. "All publications, including bulletins, annuals, magazines, etc., published either by students, faculties or staffs of any institution of the University System shall be published only under proper supervision and authority of the president the institution. All financial contracts pertaining to such publications shall be approved by the president or his/her designated representative." from the Board of Regents Policy manual, Section 1000: Information, Records, and Publications, 1002.02 INSTITUTIONAL PUBLICATIONS.
The Student Media Coordinator serves as the "designated representative" responsible for all financial aspects of student media. Any action by a student publication involving expenditures, purchases, chargeable services, maintenance, and contracts must be approved by the Student Media Coordinator in advance of the expenditure. Student Media Advisory Board The Student Media Advisory Board is an organization of the Office of Student Affairs. The Board has the primary responsibility of appointing the editor in chief of the student newspaper. (See Editor in Chief Application and Appointment Process, in Matrix bylaws.) The secondary responsibility of the Board is to assure due process when, in the judgment of the Board, any leader or staff member, including the editor in chief, must be sanctioned, including removal for cause. Additionally, the Board reviews requests of the student media regarding name, format, and other significant changes in the organizations. Normally, the organizations will not change names more frequently than once in five years. The Board will meet annually in the spring to appoint the Matrix editor in chief. Modifications to the agenda and schedule shall be set by the chair of the Board. Other meetings may be held at the discretion of the chair. Any member of the Board may request a meeting by submitting a written request and reason to the chair. Membership The Student Media Advisory Board shall be composed of six members including three nonvoting members as follows: Student Government Association President/designee, voting member Director of Student Life, chair and voting member Faculty member, voting member Matrix editor in chief, non-voting member Student Media Coordinator, non-voting member Journalism professional, non-voting member The Student Media Coordinator, editor in chief and the journalism professional may make recommendations and participate in the discussions related to the selection of the editor in chief, but do not vote. Student Media Coordinator – Responsibilities The Student Media Coordinator receives his/her authority from the Georgia Board of Regents through the President of the College and the Dean of Students. The Student Media Coordinator is designated the operating and non-editorial policy-making responsibilities for student media and promotes professionalism in the practice of journalism. The Student Media Coordinator is familiar with all student media programs and their activities, provides consistency from year to year, assists the organizations, and provides an educational experience for the organizations’ members. The Student Media Coordinator, as primary advisor, is available to provide guidance and learning resources to the students of each organization and for assisting the leaders and staff in creating and maintaining high standards for responsible publication. The student staffs of the student media may select faculty advisors approved by the faculty member’s division chair/school dean and the Executive Committee of the Academic Council. The student leaders, Student Media Coordinator, and advisors (if any) will work together to develop and implement individual policies for each media outlet that are consistent with these policies, Macon State College policies and the policies of the Board of Regents of the University System of Georgia. The responsibilities of the Student Media Coordinator include but are not limited to: 1. Acting in an advisory capacity, supervising the non-editorial operation of recognized student media and such other student media as might be established by Macon State College. 2. Being available to the leaders and members of student media in order to share ideas and concerns about the organization. 3. Providing mandatory and voluntary training in various aspects and skills of student media. 4. Acting as a liaison between student media, the administration and community. This includes hearing complaints and suggestions and protecting the status of student media as public forums – namely Fall Line Review and Matrix. (MSC-TV is the exception as it is a training lab, not an open forum.) 5. Meeting with student leaders of the student media to discuss progress and direction of the group and attending as many meetings and functions of the student media as possible.6. Serving as non-voting member on the Student Media Advisory Board. 7. Approving all requests for expenditure of funds by the student media in advance of the expenditure. 8. Recommending sound editorial policies and establishing, implementing and monitoring sound fiscal, production and personnel policies. These include, but are not limited to: A. Long-range planning in all areas of responsibility B. Review and submit appropriate budget proposals of student media C. Hear complaints and suggestions D. Act as a liaison between student media and the community Members of the Student Media – Responsibilities Responsibilities of the student media students include, but are not limited to:1. Being available in order to share ideas and concerns about the organization.2. Meeting with the Student Media Coordinator regularly to discuss progress and direction of the group. 3. Keeping the Student Media Coordinator abreast of any changes that occur within the organization and its programs. 4. Coordinating all on-campus and off-campus events, meetings, functions, etc., as well as discussing all financial and budgetary matters with the Student Media Coordinator. 5. Attending all meetings of the Student Media Advisory Board – Matrix only.6. Attending training sessions as required. The leaders and staff members of Matrix are required to participate in training sessions sponsored by the Student Media Coordinator, which are designed to provide fundamental education in the production of a newspaper. 7. Being aware of College policies and regulations as presented in The Macon State College Student Handbook - http://www.maconstate.edu/studentlife/docs/studenthandbook.pdf 8. Complying with all guidelines for Registered Student Organizations –http://www.maconstate.edu/studentlife/docs/rso_handbook.pdf – with the following exceptions – the Student Media budget is a line item in the general Student Activities budget; the Student Media Coordinator is responsible for approving all student media expenditures. 9. Being aware of the scope of personal authority as related to professional responsibility. (See Student Media Policy) 10. Securing approval of expenditures from the Student Media Coordinator prior to expenditure. Faculty Advisors – Responsibilities Responsibilities of the faculty advisors (if any) include, but are not limited to: 1. Offering organizations their own professional experience and knowledge to assist in the growth and development of leadership within the organization. 2. Providing a degree of continuity to student organizations whose compositions may necessarily change from year to year as new students enter and others graduate. 3. Providing knowledge of university operations, policies, and procedures to assist organizations in facilitating organizational programs and the achievement of organizational goals. 4. Safeguard the College as well as the organization by working with students to assure that organizational programs and activities are educational in nature, that they contribute to the total educational mission of the College, and the organization is worthy of continuing recognition and association. 5. Guiding the organization in its activities and its relationship with the College. 6. Taking an active part in the formulation of group policy through active interaction with group members.
These Student Media Bylaws were adapted with permission from Kennesaw State University.
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