Hoosier State Press Association - The Indiana Publisher
Issue link: https://www.ifoldsflip.com/i/626803
fulltime status with the newspa per. Newspapers may offer an extend ed work schedule to the intern if the intern's schedule permits. Papers will set the actual work dates with the interns since school schedules vary. How are students recruited? The HSPA Foundation will reach out to colleges and universities about available openings and ask students to rank those newspapers where they could work and find housing. Newspapers who hire the stu dents will chose from the appli cant pool. Applicants will be pre screened by INAEA representatives. How will students be trained? HSPA Advertising Director Pamela Lego, with the assistance of INAEA ad directors, will provide a training session for the interns so they receive some newspaper and digital advertising sales back ground before heading to the news papers. When is the deadline? Deadline for newspapers to regis ter is Friday, Jan. 29. Recruiting of students will begin as soon as the HSPA Foundation knows which papers have request ed an intern. Newspapers should register now by completing the simple electronic form at www.HSPAfoundation. org/registration. Click on the Ad Directors tab in the menu bar. The program encourages stu dents to enter careers in newspa pers. What are the costs? Each intern receives $330 per week for the 40hour, fulltime position. The Foundation provides the stipend and asks the newspa per to kick in $33 a week to cover the nonrefundable taxes. Creditonly internships are also sometimes awarded if students and newspapers agree to the arrange ment. How are interns placed? The Foundation works to place students with newspapers close to their hometown or campus when ever possible to save them housing and commuting costs. If a newspaper and student have an internship agreement already, the newspaper can seek funding through the Pulliam program. The Foundation can accommodate the request if the student is chosen by the selection committee and if the agreement is noted on both appli cations. What training is included? The Pulliam program offers more than most internships. Two Foundationprovided men tors work with the students on multimedia and writing to improve their skills. The students must create a mul timedia project during the intern ship to prepare them for the expec tations in the industry. Page 4 January 14, 2016 Editorial Continued from Page 1 Advertising Continued from Page 1 T he Hoosier State Press Association's Freedom of Information Committee was asked to examine newspaper policies across the state concerning letters to the editor. A survey of Indiana editors collected responses represent ing 32 newspapers. Based on this information, the FOI Committee makes the following recommendation to Indiana newspapers regard ing letters to the editor: Policy Each Indiana newspaper should consider, if it doesn't already have one, a written policy concerning letters to the editor. Such a policy will give staff members guidance in how to treat letters submitted by the public. The public in turn will have an understanding of parameters for submitting a letter and reassurance that the newspaper staff will treat all letters equally. The Freedom of Information Committee believes all newspapers should have the autonomy to write their own policies. Points that follow are intended to aid newspapers that are writing a new policy or reviewing an existing pol icy rather than dictate any decisions for the newspaper. The FOI Committee believes a letters to the editor policy should address the following points: Word limit Most newspapers have word limits on the length of letters that will be accepted. The survey showed limits ranging from 200 to 800 words. Five newspapers said they have no word limits. If a letter writer can't reduce his or her submission to meet the limit set, some newspapers may run the submission as a guest column rather than a letter to the editor. Anonymity Most newspapers do not allow anonymous letters. The two newspapers that do allow anonymity required verifica tion of the author before the letter could be published. Editing All newspapers edit let ters to correct spelling and grammar issues. Nearly all newspapers try to have a dis cussion with the author if the submission needs to be short ened or sections rewritten. If an editor makes changes to the letter, most newspapers share the edited version with the author before the letter is published. Acceptance of handwritten letters All newspapers surveyed accept handwritten letters. Original letters Most newspapers prefer original letters by the author, rather than a signed form let ter disseminated by an orga nization asking individuals to attempt to get the letter pub lished locally. A few newspa pers would run the form letter if the editor felt its relevance to local readers called for pub lication. Open letters Eighteen newspapers will publish open letters addressed to public officials. Most newspapers do not publish open letters directed toward private individuals. Nine newspapers in the sur vey do not allow any open letters and ask that all letters be directed to the editor or the public. Policy benefits A concise and precise policy will bring consistency to how your newspaper treats letters to the editor and reassure readers that they all will be treated equally if they decide to share their opinion with the newspaper. Questions concerning these recommendations may be addressed to HSPA Executive Director and General Counsel Steve Key at skey@hspa. com or FOI Committee chair Scarlett Syse at ssyse@ aimmediaindiana.com. Good policy: Letters to editor HSPA committee offers suggestions LIKE HOOSIER STATE PRESS ASSOCIATION ON FACEBOOK FOR INDUSTRY NEWS, DEADLINES AND OTHER UPDATES