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Letter of support to Montclarion editors and staff
The Society of Professional Journalists supports the editors and staff of the Montclarion as you work to force the Montclair State University Student Government Association to stop conducting business behind closed doors.
1/30/2008
Mr. Karl de Vries, Editor-in-Chief
The Montclarion
Montclair State University
113 Student Center Annex
Upper Montclair, NJ 07043
Dear Mr. de Vries:
The Society of Professional Journalists supports the editors and staff of the Montclarion as you work to force the Montclair State University Student Government Association to stop conducting business behind closed doors.
Furthermore, the Society condemns the recent move by the SGA to freeze funding for the Montclarion in an attempt to prevent the newspaper from being printed. Not only did the SGAs action deprive University students of a print edition that they had already paid for, it cost the Montclarion thousands of dollars in advertising revenue and subjected the University to negative publicity across the country.
The Society urges the SGA to recognize that if the Montclarion is to truly represent the interests of the students of Montclair State University, it must operate independent of the control of the SGA and be free to report on the actions of student legislators. If the SGA continues to consider the Montclarion as an arm of student government, the Association fails in its duty to serve the students and it fails to realize the critical importance of the free-press guarantees outlined in the First Amendment.
The Society urges the SGA of Montclair State University to free up the money that was budgeted for the printing of the Montclarion and to reimburse the newspaper for the advertising revenue that was lost because the most recent edition could not be printed.
Such an honorable move would suggest that the SGA has the interests of the University community at heart, and it would bring some good news for all concerned.
Sincerely,
Clint Brewer
President
Society of Professional Journalists
Neil Ralston
Vice President, Campus Chapter Affairs
Society of Professional Journalists
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