Committee preserves student membership
Board proposal adds representatives from professional sector
By John Digrado
Daily Bruin Staff
Continuing with discussions on the proposed restructuring of
UCLA Student Media’s governing body, Operations Committee members
met Wednesday evening to vote on a revised version of the plan.
Committee members recommended to keep the current structure of
eight students intact, but would also add three additional seats
for professional or industry members, bringing representation from
outside of the university to a total of four.
"In an early configuration of the board restructuring effort,
professional or industry, representatives were added and students
seats were removed," wrote Communications Board chair Deanna Cherry
in a memo regarding the revised proposal.
"Subsequent discussion seemed (to) create a consensus about
preserving student membership, while at the same time increasing
professional/industry representation," she continued.
As the proposal stands, professional members would be bringing
their expertise and experience in their respective fields to
Student Media. But they may also take a large role in bringing
other resources to the media, the memo said.
"We can achieve a number of things" by increasing outside
representation, said Student Media Director Arvli Ward. "(We will
create) a board that represents us well to the community, and also
retain a (student media) that is largely independent."
The revision met with heated debate from Daily Bruin editor in
chief Roxane Márquez and undergraduate President York Chang,
both of whom questioned the professional members’ need to retain a
voting position on the board.
The board is "including professional representation for leverage
(with the university)," Chang said. "But is it necessary for them
to have votes? You’re talking about a major change to the
composition of your governing body because of specific (needs)," he
added.
Márquez argued that bringing professional members to the
board table with voting privileges may compromise Student Media’s
journalistic integrity in the long run.
"Student Media should get their funding through advertising,"
Márquez said. "Ads can be accepted, ads can be rejected, but
what were talking about here is basically that the source of
(Student Media’s) money gets a vote. That’s unacceptable.
"If (professional members) are committed to enhancing student
media, and they need to have a vote, I would question their
motivations." Márquez explained
Chang also argued that professional members who wished to offer
their expertise to Student Media could possibly be represented on
an ex officio basis. This would provide community members an
opportunity to give their input and resources without voting.
"There is no need to change the constituency of the voting
members of the board if (professional representatives) wouldn’t do
it without a vote," Chang said.
Other committee members noted that while the four professional
members would hold voting privileges, the new plan would also
retain the current eight student members, maintaining the students’
majority voice on the board.
Ward commented that professional members could bring more depth
to a board which has sought to redefine its role in Student Media
in recent months.
"There is a wealth of possibility that exists in the community,"
Ward said. "There’s a lot out there that we can do – and a lot of
that flows right back to the students.
Still, Gary Bernato, the editor in chief of Ha’Am, also voiced
his concern for the seven campus newsmagazines, which have recently
taken on more responsibility in advertising.
"Personally, I don’t know (about the professional members),"
said Bernato, who is also an operations committee member. "All I
know is how to run my magazine, and we need help in advertising. If
bringing in professional members to the Communications Board will
help, then I’m all for it."
Bernato later abstained from the recommendation vote.
Though Operations Committee members narrowly recommended the
revision the debate may not be over. Communications Board members
have yet to decide on the new structure, and have the option of
continuing discussion until all options are explored, Ward
said.
"I don’t know where we go from here," he said. "A lot of this is
untested. We don’t know what it’s going to create."Comments to
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