Technician seeks restructuring

Students on campus may have noticed a change in Technician during the past semester. There have been criticisms of poor coverage and content with little value to the University. 

Wednesday, Technician's editorial board wrote to the campus community, soliciting help for and referring to events which have led to a decline in the quality of the publication. Students and alumni were uncertain as to how to respond, in large part because they were never informed on what actually occurred. 

Problems within Technician likely began during the 2009 fall semester when Ty Johnson, the previous editor-in-chief, was managing a largely understaffed publication. 

While there were sufficient writers to keep the paper writing, a number of leadership positions were left empty and Johnson took the additional responsibilities of managing or contributing to the news and featuressections as well as writing stories for the paper. 

Mike Alston, general manager of WKNC, said this situation already posed a problem for Technician. 

"The biggest concern was the editor-in-chief was writing stories," he said. "Ty [Johnson] seemed overworked and overwhelmed. The structure was bad then and it's gotten worse now." 

Johnson represented a large portion of the senior staff up to the end of the semester, committing much time and effort to the paper.  

Because of this, Johnson's grades suffered and fell below the requirement for senior leaders of the Student Media Association. 

Tyler Dukes, Technician editor-in-chief for 2006 to 2007, said this is not an individual specific fault, but something which has always been an issue. 

"There's something that can never be fixed," Dukes said. "That's getting enough people who can balance Technician and academics well. We've always struggled with that and it's the same at any student paper." 

Johnson was suspended by the SMA coordinator for his GPA falling below the requirement despite already having submitted to an academic plan to bring it up.  

"Running Technician is always a challenge," Dukes said. "It's a lot of work." 

After Johnson left Technician, the position of editor-in-chief, along with the other responsibilities Johnson took onto himself, were vacated and the paper's leadership left in disarray. The lack of senior organization drove many of the writing staff to leave as well. 

While the remaining staff members did what they could to salvage the publication, Technician was left without much of its leadership and greatly understaffed. This is when the noticeable decline in quality began. 

"I've noticed there haven't been as many big stories in the paper," Dukes said. "Technician hasn't been at the front of many big events. I would guess the quality has suffered somewhat." 

According to Alston, however, the future of the publication looks worse. 

"They don't have an editor for next year," he said. "As of right now, it's a bleak future. No one wants to be editor and the problem is what will be the case once the current senior members are gone? It's the job of the media advisor and editor to find new leaders and staff." 

To address this issue, Alston, who is a member of the SMA Board of Directors, proposed a committee which is charged with the survival of Technician. 

"At Tuesday night's meeting,[the Board of Directors] recognized a problem with the current structure but no one proposed a solution," he said. "I proposed a committee to find a new editor-in-chief for Technician." 

According to Alston, the committee is responsible for rewriting the description of the editor-in-chief, opening and closing the position on the appropriate days, before April 13, and interviewing candidates before the next board meeting. Additionally, the staff will be tasked to come up with a survival strategy for the paper, and come up with a plan to advertise and recruit for the position. 

"If the committee finds a good leader, Technician could be back on track," Alston said. "If not, it could be the end of Technician. A weekly paper could be considered the end." 

Jim Ceresnak, student body president, said Technician's survival is essential. 

"Student Government and Technician have always had a close, if at times contentious, relationship, but we have a mutual respect and an inseparable relationship," he said. "For 90 years Technician provided the glue to hold campus together, and we can't lose that." 

Ceresnak, who attended Tuesday's Board of Directors meeting as well, said there was a lot of heated discussion but ultimately a solution has to be reached. 

"There're a lot of factors contributing to why issues have come up and we need to figure out how to fix them," he said. "Technician has faced challenges but it's my view it is an essential institution and the challenges are not insurmountable." 

Dukes said the future of Technician depends on what happens in the next few days with the new committee. 

"There are a lot of passionate people who want to be informed and like Technician," he said. "Too many people care about the paper and it's very unlikely Technician will fail. There are too many people and too much support. We can find a way to get Technician back on track." 

Alston said Technician needs a leader to survive. 

"Since Ty left, no one has emerged as leader," he said. "Someone on staff needs to step up and sacrifice themselves to keep the paper alive."

Dukes said this means inspiring students and staff to write and to enjoy their work. 

"The board, leaders and staff need to inspire people to write," he said. "The staff has to be proud of what they do and have fun with their work. There is absolutely a future for Technician."