Hoosier State Press Association - The Indiana Publisher
Issue link: https://www.ifoldsflip.com/i/121236
The Indiana Publisher Published alternate Thursdays Volume 78, Issue 8 ��� April 11, 2013 2013 INDIANA GENERAL ASSEMBLY First Amendment wins in legislative actions Lawmakers amend ag bill to remove criminal defamation F ollowing amendments in two state House committees, S.B. 373 ��� known as the Ag Gag bill ��� now contains no First Amendment or criminal defamation issues in the view of HSPA Executive Director and General Counsel Steve Key. Originally, the bill Bill Friend authored by state Sen. Travis Holdman, R-Markle, would have made it a criminal act to share photos or video of agricultural, industrial or mining operations without prior consent from the owners. Representatives of farm- Brian Bosma ing operations complained that videos uploaded online unjustly portrayed their businesses as being cruel to animals. The bill as passed by the state Senate was opposed by HSPA, the Indiana B Broadcasters Association, motion picture industry, animal rights groups, environmental groups and organized labor. HSPA testified that remedies already exist for owners to deal with problems such as trespassing, burglary and libel. The association also pointed out that the language would not survive scrutiny in a legal challenge because it violated the First Amendment and argued against the introduction of the concept of criminal defamation to Indiana. State Rep. Bill Friend, R-Macy, sponsored the bill. He worked with state Rep. Don Lehe, R-Brookston, on an amendment for the House Agriculture and Rural Development committee, chaired by Lehe. That amendment moved the point of the new crime from the dissemination of photos or videos to the physical act of pressing a shutter or record button on a media device in attempt to clear the First Amendment hurdle. However, that move left criminal defamation in the bill. The committee passed that version of S.B. 373 with a vote of 9-3. See Ag, Page 4 Bill keeps publication requirement for school district financial reports y voice vote, the Indiana Senate agreed to reinstate in H.B. 1427 language requiring the publication of annual school financial reports in local newspapers. State Sen. Earline Rogers, D-Gary, offered the amendment to the education bill April 9. She spoke on the four elements of effective public notice ��� independent third party, archive-able, accessible, and verifiable ��� and how newspapers, not govern- ment websites, covered all the parameters. The bill���s sponsor, state Sen. Dennis Kruse, R-Auburn, and state Sen. Susan Glick, R-LaGrange, also spoke in favor of the amendment. Glick talked about the importance of sharing information with taxpayers. No senator spoke against Rogers��� amendment. Lt. Gov. Sue Ellspermann, presiding over the Senate, then called for a voice vote. The ���ayes��� overwhelmed the ���nays.��� See Reports, Page 4 Join HSPA in web efforts to preserve public notices Newspaper PDF���s needed to protect vital institution H SPA���s efforts to preserve public notice advertising include an upgrade to its public notice website. In order to make the website a success for all newspapers, HSPA needs PDF���s of member newspapers pages. Publishers are asked to reply to an email from HSPA Executive Director and General Counsel Steve Key requesting information about each newspaper for the project. HSPA partner Tecnavia Press Inc. will use the PDF���s to post public notices from each paper on one website. The association created a public notice website a few years ago to collect on one site all public notices from HSPA newspapers as a defensive measure against legislation that would eliminate public notice publication in newspapers and replace it with government website postings. (HSPA identified four anti-public notice bills in this session of the Indiana General Assembly.) The HSPA Board of Directors decided to change vendors in an effort to increase participation, Key said. ���We���re now transitioning to a public notice website operated by Tecnavia Press,��� he said. ���Your fellow publishers need each paper to participate to make the site a success.��� Code needed with printed notices Start adding the following code to the end of every public notice ad ��� hspaxlp ��� as soon as possible in at least 4 point font. This code will allow Tecnavia to identify newspaper pages that contain public notices and post those notices on a redesigned public notice website. If the code adds a line to the public notices, don���t charge the government unit for the extra line. ���It���s vitally important that your staff include ���hspaxlp��� in all printed public notices as soon as possible to make the public notice website a viable weapon in the fight to preserve public notice publication requirements,��� Key said. Protect public notices HSPA requests that member papers print a code ��� hspaxlp ��� with every public notice. When: Please start printing the code now. Submit rates to increase ad revenue Keep your paper in advertising buys H SPA and its advertising arm, Midwest Advertising Placements, need your help to remain competitive and increase placements in Indiana newspapers. The HSPA board of directors requests that newspapers approve a negotiating window for MAP staff to operate within. This will allow staff to suc- cessfully quote ad buys in a timely manner. It gives HSPA the flexibility through MAP to negotiate on newspapers��� behalf in our efforts to win new business for state newspapers. Please send your 2013 ad rates via the form newspapers previously received, or visit wwww.hspa.com/2013rates to download a form. Check the box marked ���YES, we want to participate in the negotiating window program��� at the bottom of the form to be sure your newspaper is included in quotes. Complete the form and return it to advertising coordinator Shawn Goldsby by email at sgoldsby@hspa.com or fax at (317) 624-4428. Please return this form as soon as possible to provide the information needed for HSPA and MAP to update databases and rate sheets. For additional questions, please contact Goldsby at (317) 803-4772 or MAP Advertising Director Pamela Lego at (812) 350-7711. Where: The code should go at the end of each public notice in at least 4 point font. Why: The code will allow soft�� are to copy w notices from PDF���s for posting online. Information request The HSPA Board of Directors will soon ask member newspapers to upload PDF files of their pages to an FTP site in order to post public notices online. To prepare for that update, HSPA asks publishers to send the following information for each paper in your group, if applicable, to Shawn Goldsby at sgoldsby@hspa.com: ��� Your newspaper name ��� Your publication days ��� Names of employees who will upload PDFs ��� Those individuals��� phone numbers and email addresses. If a newspaper by chance doesn���t create PDFs of its pages in the production process, please let HSPA know. Publishers can direct questions about this project to Steve Key, HSPA executive director and general counsel, at skey@hspa.com or (317) 624-4427.