The School of Journalism received a grant from Liberty Tree to host a seminar on April 12 to focus on journalism ethics and the First Amendment issues.

The panel discussion asked “Are the traditional media tools of accountability – ombudsmen, newsroom ethics codes, journalism reviews, news councils and public journalism – able to keep up with the mushrooming ethical issues of a Twitter, Facebook, WikiLeaks world?”

According to William Freivogel, School of Journalism director, the panel was comprised of Alicia Shepard, NPR’s ombudsman, Jan Schaffer, executive director of J-Lab, Margaret Wolf Freivogel, editor of the St. Louis Beacon, and Gary Gilson, former head of the Minnesota News Council.  Bill Babcock, SIUC ethics professor and editor of the Gateway Journalism Review, moderated.

The panel was followed by a lunch with a second panel discussion, which reacted to the morning’s discussion.  The afternoon group included Gene Policinski, executive director of the First Amendment Center, David Yepsen, director of the Paul Simon Public Policy Institute, Carolyn Kingcade, a journalism professor and former Reader's Advocate at the St. Louis Post-Dispatch and Mr. Freivogel.

“Additionally, we have solicited student essays of up to 1,000 words on the topic of the conference, with the winner’s essay to be published in the Gateway Journalism Review,” said Freivogel. “The winner will receive a $300 award.”

Comments and discussions will be published in the following issue of the Gateway Journalism Review.  The cover story of the journalism review will be on the subject of the conference.

The Liberty Tree Initiative is aimed at building awareness of the First Amendment through education and information. The goal is to bring enlightening and thought-provoking programs to college campuses across the country. The Liberty Tree Initiative campus program is made possible by the support of the McCormick Foundation, American Society of News Editors, the First Amendment Center and the Brechner Center for Freedom of Information at the University of Florida.

Greg Petrowich, executive director of Southern Illinois University Carbondale’s WSIU Public Broadcasting, is mid-way through his first term on the National Public Radio governing board.

Petrowich, who came to WSIU in March 2009, is one of 10 station managers from across the country on the board. The station managers, along with six public members and the NPR Chief Executive Officer, make up the 17-member board.

“It has been an eye-opening, sometimes challenging experience,” said Petrowich. “Locally we focus most on news and programming. On the board, we look at everything- policies, financing and programming.”

Petrowich serves on three committees as part of his board duties: membership and governance, development, and distribution and interconnect.

“I think it is important for people to take a turn in the governing process,” said Petrowich. “It is important to have a variety of viewpoints. Public radio in Los Angeles and New York City is quite different than in Southern Illinois. Everyone needs to be represented.”

A recent project the board has been overseeing is the renovation of a newly purchased building for the NPR headquarters in Washington, D.C.

While being a member of the governing board is not designed to give members an advantage, Petrowich said it does obviously help with the flow of communication.

“When you are involved in the frontline you have a better understanding of what is coming down the pipe,” said Petrowich. “New media is one of the areas we are tracking and is rapidly developing. It is good to be up-to-date on the issues and new trends.”

Petrowich added that in addition to the large geographic region served by WSIU, the high number of students receiving hands on experience at the station make it somewhat unique to the NPR system.

Currently, approximately 100 SIUC students work in a variety of areas with WSIU alongside 33 full time employees and 100 plus volunteers.

“We use the operations of WSIU radio and television as a teaching and programming experience for students,” said Petrowich.

In addition to his duties on the NPR governing board, Petrowich has a full load of projects locally with WSIU. Renovating the workspace and programming for multicast television channels are two of the larger, on-going projects.

“The building we are in was designed for broadcasting 40 years ago,” said Petrowich. “We are currently spending out two grants that will transform the television studios into modern studios, which will help students to gain more knowledge for today’s work place.”

“As far as the television programming, we have three times as much real estate to program with the addition of channels 8.2 and 8.3”

Petrowich said that in 2009 WSIU television went to a multi-channel format which now allows the broadcast of more programming, including SIUC basketball games, local programs, etc.

Two items Petrowich is currently paying particular attention to are the 50^th Anniversary celebration for WSIU and federal funding challenges. Currently, WSIU receives about a third of its $3.5 million budget from federal grants.

Petrowich earned his bachelor’s degree in radio-television from SIUC in 1991. He and his wife have two children.

The Global Media Research Center is pleased to announce its Fall 2010 Speaker Series.  All events are free and open to the public.  Faculty are encouraged to use Center events as a resource for their students and classes.  The Center has a method of taking student attendance if faculty would like to use events as an extra credit opportunity.  For more information, contact Laura Germann at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or 453-6876.

GMRC Speaker Series

Fall Semester 2010

Thursday, September 9^th

Dr. Dafna Lemish – Chairperson, Department of Radio-Television

“What’s TV Good For?”: The Views of Producers of Children’s Television Around the World

3:00 p.m.

Communications Building, Room 1032

Wednesday, September 22^nd

Ms. Vivian Schiller – President, National Public Radio

Open Discussion with NPR President, Vivian Schiller

2:30 p.m.

Location TBD

Tuesday, September 28^th

Mr. Joseph Oduro-Frimpong – PhD student, Department of Anthropology

Reflections on Doing Fieldwork in Ghana (working title – he will return in August from doing research on Ghanaian video-movies)

3:00 p.m.

Communications Building, Room 1032

Thursday, October 7^th

Dr. Walter Metz – Chairperson, Department of Cinema & Photography

"The Engineers of the Soul": Berlin, Friedrich Kittler, and The Lives of Others

3:00 p.m.

Communications Building, Room 1032

Wednesday, October 13^th

Dr. Kavita Karan – Associate Professor, School of Journalism

Political Communication in India:Interlinking Traditional, Internet, and Mobile technologies in Election Campaigns

3:00 p.m.

Communications 1032

Wednesday, October 20^th

Dr. Jyotsna Kapur – Associate Professor, Department of Cinema & Photography

Brand India’s Biggest Sale: The Cultural Politics and Political Economy of India’s “Global Generation”

3:00 p.m.

Communications Building, Room 1032

Wednesday, October 27^th

Dr. Uche Onyebadi – Assistant Professor, School of Journalilsm

Kenya's Post Presidential Election Violence (2007): Assessing the Role of the Nation & Standard Newspapers

3:00 p.m.

Communications 1032

Tuesday, November 16^th

Dr. Wenjing Xie – Assistant Professor, School of Journalism

The Many Faces of Chinese Media

3:00 p.m.

Communications Building, Room 1032

The magnitude of communication endeavors and channels have created challenges for the future of media, said Gary Kolb, dean of the College of Mass Communication and Media Arts.

Vivian Schiller, the first female CEO and president of NPR, is knowledgeable about these issues, Kolb said.

Schiller arrived at SIUC's campus Wednesday to discuss the new media trends, financial business models and the forward movement of media for faculty and students.

"The guiding principle is that we need to be wherever the audience wants us to be," Schiller said. "That is the headline and everything else is just details. Our audiences continue to grow and are seeking terrestrial radio."

Kolb said it is still unclear where the future of media is heading.

"Media is not going away, but proliferating as a pervasive part of lives," he said. "It is just that no one has figured the transition from old modules to the new modules and how will we find a way to pay for the content."

Schiller was the senior vice president and general manager of NYTimes.com for The New York Times Company before she took a position at NPR, according to a press release. She also served as senior vice president and general manager of the Discovery Times Channel, a joint project of The New York Times and Discovery Communications.

Greg Petrowich, executive director of WSIU Public Broadcasting, said the key topic is the difference between traditional media, such as radio and television, and now, the influx of the Internet.

"Forty years ago, radio went out on radio transmitters, and now audio travels through all types of devices: internet, mobile phone, Wi-Fi," he said. "This really changes the way we do business."

NPR designers and developers have taken advantage of digital instruments by creating applications and other channel formats to reach listeners through the Internet, iPhone, iPad or Android devices, said Schiller. These products have allowed the company to launch products and give newsworthy information quickly to the public.

She said station officials are working on ways to take a very successful pledge drive model on the radio and implant them in digital devices that do not feel intrusive, but organic to audiences.

In the last ten years, the audience for NPR programs across the country has increased by 60 percent, she said. Digital devices and financial support factor whether public broadcasting institutions retain stable audiences.

Kolb said global news operation costs continue to increase and face expensive undertaking, while pubic media such as NPR are supported by local contributions.

Jan Roddy, an associate professor of photography, said NPR stresses the notion of not being swayed by its corporate support. She said she likes the approach of accepting sources from the listening audience, which makes the media more responsive to the diversity and issues of the public.

Public radio listeners have a real sense of ownership of the product, Petrowich said, meaning they are not just passive listeners, but engaged in what NPR does.

Public radio, unlike commercial media in newspapers, has multiple revenue streams such as public donations, said Schiller. She said she hopes for diversity in revenue sources for other means of media.

"When listeners donate (to stations), it reinforces the communal nature of public radio," Schiller said. "The public has a stake in what we do, and vice versa. In a perfect world, I would want to see that expand."

She said although there are setbacks in media, media outlets should continue to home in on the people's interests.

"We serve the public good as mission-orientated organizations," Schiller said. "There are no shareholder values to determine. The value returns back into the organization."

Michara Canty can be reached at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or 536-3311 ext. 259.

Originally posted at http://dailyegyptian.com/2010/09/22/npr-president-discusses-future-of-media/.

Vivian Schiller

President, National Public Radio

Wednesday, September 22^nd, 2010 at 2:30 p.m.

Communications Room 1032

The Global Media Research Center is pleased to provide an opportunity for students, staff, faculty, and fans of National Public Radio to engage in an open discussion with NPR President Vivian Schiller about the future of public media and journalism in a new media world. This session will be moderated by Professor Eileen R. Meehan of the Department of Radio-Television at SIUC.

A media executive and journalist with 25 years experience in the industry, Vivian Schiller joined NPR as President and CEO in January 2009. Schiller leads all NPR's worldwide media operations, including the organization's partnerships with a network of more than 900 public radio stations, and their service to the nearly 30 million people who listen to NPR programming.

During her career, Ms. Schiller has held many interesting positions within the media industry, including serving as the Senior Vice President at The New York Times Company, Senior Vice President and General Manager of the Discovery Times Channel, and Senior Vice President of CNN Productions. Schiller began her career as a simultaneous Russian interpreter in the former Soviet Union, which led her to documentary production work for Turner Broadcasting.

More information about Ms. Schiller can be viewed at http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=99152497 .

This is a free event and all are welcome. For more information, please contact Laura Germann at This e-mail address is being protected from spambots. You need JavaScript enabled to view it or 618-453-6876.