Minutes of the Meeting of the Board of Directors

Canadian Association of Journalists

Saturday January 31, 2004

 

Present: Ron Friesen                   Karen Pauls

              Saleem Khan (chair)       Charles Bury

              Jennifer Fowler              Trudi Beutel

              Paul Schneidereit            John Dickins

              Robert Cribb                 Maria McClintock

 

Regrets: Erica Johnson, Michelle MacAfee

 

1. Agenda Approval – S. Khan

C. Bury moved to receive the agenda, M. McClintock seconded.

 

List-serve moderation guidelines added to new business.

 

M. McClintock moved to accept the agenda as amended, T. Beutel seconded. Agenda approved.

2. Approval of Past Minutes

September Board Meeting

P. Schneidereit moved to accept, J. Fowler seconded. Minutes approved.

Task List

Item 1: J. Dickins and C. Bury agreed to make the report immediately. Many members and chapters are unaware of the chapter and regional rep. election procedures.

 

Item 2: C. Bury reported that the new moderation guidelines have been applied to the list-serve. There have been no major changes.

 

Item 3: Completed.

 

Item 4: J. Dickins reported that the airlines asked him to check back in the new year, when they may be able to offer contra deals.

 

Items 5-7: Withdrawn

 

Item 8: Completed. K. Pauls reported that Wendy Cumming won’t be a formal member of the membership committee, but will serve as a consultant.

 

Item 9: S. Khan reported that he has had initial discussion with lawyers, but hasn’t had a chance to follow-up.

 

Item 10: Withdrawn.

Item 11: A duplicate of item 3. Completed.

 

Item 12: J. Dickins reported that the awards committee has decided that the names of judges will be printed in the conference program.

 

Item 13: K. Pauls is the new membership committee chair.

 

Item 14: J. Dickins reported that the CAJ has been getting a lot of positive feedback on press releases. M. McClintock noted that the CAJ has been mentioned by Juliet O’Neill.

 

Items 15 & 16: Withdrawn.

 

Item 17: J. Dickins reported that there’s been no response from Mike Gordon. OGC is probably defunct. T. Beutel suggested the web site be taken down. R. Cribb responded that the CAJ may not have the right to do so, as the CAJ is just one of OGC’s sponsor organizations. P. Schneidereit asked how this would effect the budget. J. Dickins responded that the $3,100 in the OGC account will revert back to the CAJ. P. Schneidereit said the resolution to set aside funds for OGC should be removed. Issue to be discussed under budget item.

 

Item 18: See IRE report.

 

Item 19: Work ongoing.

 

Item 21: J. Dickins said he’d spoken to Michelle MacAfee about chairing a Montreal conference. Diodora Bucur, the new chapter president, and Robert Frank, vice-president are not well-known enough in media circles to get committee support. K. Pauls asked if Diodora should be on the board. J. Dickins said it is up to the chapter as they have to choose a rep to the national board.

 

Item 22: R. Cribb noted this item was removed by mistake. Tasked to advocacy committee.

 

Items 29 & 30: Completed, see M. MacAfee’s report.

3. President’s Report – P. Schneidereit

T. Beutel moved to receive report, M. McClintock seconded.

 

P. Schneidereit reported the frequency of press releases has continued to be high. The CAJ has done around 30 interviews, with 20 in 24 hours. The CAJ is now a high-profile organization on advocacy issues.  Coordinating press releases between several organizations would make the process even longer.

 

C. Bury noted that the CAJ’s partnership with FPJQ is important and positive. FPJQ and the CAJ are of a similar mind. J. Fowler asked which other partners are important. P. Schneidereit said CJFE can be an ally, but it depends on the issue. R. Cribb said PWAC is interested in joining with the CAJ, but there’s little interest for us.

 

K. Pauls asked if CAJ news releases and press releases were going on the list-serve as discussed. J. Dickins reported that this already happens.

 

T. Beutel moved to accept report, C. Bury seconded. Motion passed.

4. Executive Director’s Report – J. Dickins

K. Pauls moved to receive report, R. Cribb seconded.

 

J. Dickins reported that the past few weeks had had a profound impact on himself and the organization. When the CAJ first stood up to Canwest, he had to, for the first time as an Executive Director, put principles before financial considerations.

Online Registration

We’ve had 51 new members since January 1^st. Two of them are renewals. The system is working great.

 

J. Dickins sent out a questionnaire to the first 30 registrants. He found that many were brought in by word of mouth. Some were list-serve subscribers. This is a sign that list-serve appeals actually work.

CAJ Fundraiser

J. Dickins reported that the loss of our fundraiser was a shock. However, a replacement has already been found. Brad Adshead will be taking over immediately.

Treasurer’s position

T. Beutel volunteered for the position.

 

P. Schneidereit nominated T. Beutel, C. Bury seconded. Acclaimed.

 

P. Schneidereit moved to accept the E.D. report, R. Cribb seconded. Motion passed.

5. Budget Committee – J. Dickins

K. Pauls moved to receive the report, R. Friesen seconded.

 

2003 Financials

J. Dickins reported that the CAJ is in good financial shape. In fall 2001, while the CAJ was tangling with Canwest, funding was lost and forced an austerity budget to be implemented. The plan worked.

 

Pulled in over $19,000 at the Toronto conference, despite SARS, the competing Innoversity conference, and the high price. Still, memberships have the greatest impact on the budget, because they bring in revenue but don’t cost a lot in expenditures to maintain. Conferences bring in a lot of revenue, but cost a lot to run, so net gain isn’t as significant as membership which has very little on the expense side. 

 

The NWS brought in around $7,000 thanks to cost reductions. We also made a small surplus on awards. We had around 250 entries, and about half of those entrants normally pay the non-members fee.

 

Media Magazine, now cut to three issues per year, is now running a small surplus as well. Our agreement with CIDA should continue for another couple of years at least. The board spent $2,000 less than budgeted last year.

 

CAJ surplus has grown from $21,000 at the end of 2002 to $27,208.

 

The national conference brought in less than budgeted, but had less expenses. Salary was over budget because of remittances to the receiver-general. Capital expenditures were a little over budget because of the cost of ordering gift glasses.

 

P. Schneidereit asked about CIDA-related expenses.  The CAJ-CIDA Fellowship, it was pointed out, has helped our visibility considerably. CIDA is happy with the results as well.

 

C. Bury asked if the gas reimbursement rate for the board of 20 ˘ per km could be increased, now that the CAJ is doing better financially. Bury drives 870 km round-trip to get to board meetings. The reduction was an emergency measure, and the emergency has passed. K. Pauls suggested the board wait to see how the Vancouver conference works out. P. Schneidereit suggested it be put on the agenda for the teleconference. J. Fowler noted it would be fair to compensate those who are saving the CAJ money on flights. J. Dickins noted that the auto reimbursements are not a significant expenditure.

 

K. Pauls moved that the mileage allowance be increased from 20˘ per km to 30˘ per km for all CAJ-related travel. R. Friesen asked what the budget impact would be. C. Bury estimated it would cost $500-1,000 per year. K. Pauls noted that board members are not usually reimbursed for travel to and from the airport. Reimbursements are negotiated on a case-by-case basis. T. Beutel said the motion was too general, and should be more specific about board meeting or inter-city travel. Business at home for the chapter, for example, would not qualify. T. Beutel made a friendly amendment that that the motion be modified to read that the mileage allowance be increased from 20˘ per km to 30˘ per km for all travel to and from CAJ board meetings. Amendment passed. Motion passed.

 

S. Khan asked if audio-visual expenses could be reduced. J. Dickins said expenses had already been reduced significantly. S. Khan noted that meeting room rentals and accommodation costs are far above budget. J. Dickins responded that these expenses are a trade-off, as room rates are bargained against meeting room rates. The CAJ has to ante up for unused rooms in our block. The Hilton ended up billing us for extra charges. Also, the Kathy Gannon speech had to be held at another hotel, which increased costs, and that was already a cost split with the hotel.

 

R. Cribb asked about the promotional sales item for NWS, under revenues. Revenue there is much higher than budgeted. J. Dickins reported that some of that money came from the 2002 NWS but needs to be reflected in the financial statements.

 

J. Dickins reported that mail and miscellaneous revenues includes money from Canada Newswire and jobs we advertise on the website.

 

P. Schneidereit moved to accept the 2003 budget, C. Bury seconded. Motion passed.

2004 Budget

K. Pauls moved to receive the 2004 budget, M. McClintock seconded.

 

J. Dickins reported that he plans on reducing the CAJ’s reliance on fundraising, and increasing its surplus. Generally we bring in $60-62,000. However, since the conference will be in Vancouver $40,000 has been budgeted in revenue from Vancouver fundraising, and $20,000 in PEI, instead of the regular $35,000. Budgeted on not getting a grant to hire a summer student. CIDA funding is solid and reliable for now. Revenues for membership are budgeted at $65,000 instead of $60,000 because of extra revenue expected from the new membership system. There are no major changes in administrative expenses.

 

In the past we’ve had many options for meals and number of days for the national conference. However, this will not work easily with the online registration system. After consultation with K. Pauls and T. Beutel, J. Dickins estimated the expenses for the conference. In total, conference expenses are expected to be around $75,000. Sponsorship revenues are forecast at $40,000, instead of the usual $60,000. The fees for Toronto were raised because fundraising wasn’t as strong as it used to be. The low attendance at the conference was at least partly because of the fee. Still, meal costs are increasing. The banquet, with tax, is significant. We want people to buy tickets for the other meals, but attendance at the awards banquet is most important.

 

J. Dickins proposed a base price of $179 including the awards banquet, with the option of adding other meals as desired on a pay as you go basis.  The lower fee for those with an income under $30,000 has been eliminated. The student fee is still low at $99, and the associate and non-members fees are still high. The day fee is $120. About 200 people are expected to sign up for the $179 fee with the awards banquet. The Friday reception will be cancelled, and the Saturday lunch or Sunday brunch will be ticketed. This way, the number of meals is much more strictly controlled. Meal expenses are estimated at $16,000 plus an additional $5,000 for coffee breaks

 

T. Beutel suggested the Sunday brunch could offer just coffee, pastries and a keynote, since costs for the brunch are getting so high. The cost would be low enough to factor it into the conference price at $189, $202 with tax. The Saturday lunch will remain a ticketed event, should we have one.

 

Fees for NWS will remain the same. We’re estimating a surplus of $4,200.

Media magazine and awards expenses are expected to remain steady. The overall surplus is forecast to be $30,000.

 

R. Friesen moved to approve the budget, C. Bury seconded. Motion passed.

6, Conferences

Vancouver 2004 – Beutel

R. Friesen moved to receive the report, T. Beutel seconded.

 

T. Beutel reported that she’s very happy with the number of people in Vancouver offering to help. There will be five simultaneous sessions, because of the volume of people interested. Kevin Newman is under consideration for the host of the banquet. Still trying to contact Rick Mercer.

 

R. Friesen moved to accept the report, M. McClintock seconded. Motion passed.

Next IRE Workshop – Pauls

R. Friesen moved to receive the report, M. McClintock seconded.

 

K. Pauls said that while the IRE conference was a good idea, the fall is busy for E.D., it doesn’t bring in a lot of money, and Montreal didn’t do all that well. Still, it’s value-added for members. There was maybe one American delegate in Montreal. The IRE is interested in hosting next year’s conference in Niagara-on-the-Lake, but costs would be prohibitive.

T. Beutel asked if IRE was willing to continue their support. K. Pauls said IRE paid for half the speakers, so we can’t afford to do it without them. We have to be committed to it before we go to them. There were coordination problems with Montreal, as IRE went incommunicado for a while. About six out of the 85 delegates in the Vancouver IRE were American. IRE is more insistent on Niagara-on-the-Lake because of the poor turnout.

 

R. Friesen said that attracting Americans across the border is very difficult. M. McClintock said the attraction of Niagara-on-the-Lake is its proximity to New York. It’s also aggressively advertised in the U.S.

 

P. Schneidereit said Canadians might be willing to go to the U.S.  K. Pauls said IRE already has plenty of its own events. R. Cribb said there aren’t a lot of U.S. border cities. If we’re not pulling in Americans, that’s the IRE’s problem, not ours. We’re not losing money on it, and we get memberships and goodwill out of it. The CAJ should continue. P. Schneidereit said the main concern is the workload on J. Dickins.

 

T. Beutel moved that the CAJ approach the IRE about holding a cross-border, investigative events in late September/early October in Toronto, J. Fowler seconded. Motion passed.

 

T. Beutel moved that the planning committee and organizations take into account the above recommendations, C. Bury seconded. Motion passed.

 

M. McClintock moved to accept the report, P. Schneidereit seconded. Motion passed.

 

Charlottetown NWS

C. Bury moved to open discussion, T. Beutel seconded.

 

J. Dickins said that we don’t have anybody from the board on the NWS committee. K. Pauls, R. Cribb, and T. Beutel volunteered. K. Pauls agreed to go to the conference.

Location for 2005 conference and NWS

Board brainstormed locations for the 2005 national conference and NWS.

 

K. Pauls moved that we ask the Manitoba chapter to host the 2005 national conference, that we ask the Edmonton chapter to host the 2005 NWS, that a national conference be held in  Halifax in 2006, and that Ottawa host the 2006 NWS, R. Friesen seconded. Motion passed.

7. Media magazine

Report given by J. Dickins

M. McClintock moved to receive the report, C. Bury seconded.

 

J. Dickins reported that the magazine is doing well. The editorial advisory board is looking at adding some new members. There’s been some discussion of doing an electronic version, which would be low-cost. A printed edition would be released in April, and an electronic one in June with complete award nominee stories, and printed October and December issues.

 

C. Bury asked if D. McKie would still want his stipend. J. Dickins said McKie is willing to negotiate if it means keeping the magazine in the black.

 

C. Bury moved that the $750 surplus be turned back to the magazine, R. Cribb seconded. Motion passed.

 

C. Bury moved to accept the report, M. McClintock seconded. Motion passed.

8. Awards – J. Dickins

K. Pauls moved to receive report, C. Bury seconded.

 

Some judging for this year’s awards have yet to be filled. So far we’ve got Sig Gerber, Heidi Graham, Russell Mills, and Joe Banks. We’re still looking for a TV judge. The overall award will be named after Don McGillivray. The number of Hong Kong entrants was down this year, possibly because of SARS.

 

R. Cribb asked if a video about Don McGillivray should be shown at the awards. J. Fowler said Lindsay Chrysler has agreed to come and speak about him. R. Cribb asked if we should invite any of his family. J. Dickins said McGillivray’s family live in Victoria. K. Pauls suggested Natalie Clancy do the video, as she’s on maternity leave. T. Beutel said E. Johnson will be on leave as well.

 

M. McClintock said it’s important that McGillvray’s family get a formal invitation to show that we care. We could also ask for some photos. K. Pauls asked if it might be important to let certain people know, so they can come to the conference.

 

C. Bury task listed to make a list of people who might be interested.

 

P. Schneidereit said once the award is announced there can be a biography of McGillivray on the website as well.

 

R. Friesen moved to go in camera, C. Bury seconded.

 

Board voted unanimously to approve a $1,500 pay raise for J. Dickins retroactive to the start of the year, and a $1,000 bonus for his work in 2003.

 

R. Cribb moved to adjourn for the day, C. Bury seconded. Meeting adjourned at 4:30 p.m.

 

9. Advocacy – Cribb

Draft of ethics guidelines

M. McClintock moved to receive the report, J. Fowler seconded.

 

R. Cribb presented the report and a draft statement of principles for undercover reporting. At this point it just needs some tightening up and additions.

 

Board tasked to read statement of principles and email R. Cribb with feedback.

 

J. Fowler asked if it’s implied that CAJ members should abide by these guidelines. R. Cribb said members are expected to, but they are not binding in any way. The principles will be formally presented at the AGM. R. Cribb suggested setting aside a room to discuss the principles. J. Dickins suggested the draft be placed in the delegate packages. C. Bury said it might be a good idea to have a lawyer look over the draft, since it could ultimately end up in court. J. Dickins said there is a lawyer on the east coast who has offered to do free work for us in the past. J. Fowler suggested it be included in the package for new members. J. Dickins suggested they could be instead referred to the web site. C. Bury said that, once approved, it should be put into a pamphlet.

Juliet O’Neill Case – Further Action

The Ottawa Citizen has launched a legal challenge on O’Neill’s behalf. She is a long-time member.

 

R. Cribb moved that the CAJ contact Ottawa Citizen lawyers and offer CAJ assistance in their legal challenge against the RCMP. Motion passed.

 

P. Schneidereit tasked to contact O’Neill, then her legal team.

Andrew McIntosh

The RCMP used an insistence order to compel the editor of the National Post to seize documents.  R. Cribb testified and submitted an affidavit.

 

The decision came out in favour of the National Post. A precedent has been set in favour of protecting the relationship between journalists and sources. There will be an appeal on it. This is a good thing. If it goes to a higher court it, could cover the nation instead of just Ontario.

 

T. Beutel noted that BC is having its five-year review of FOI.  She will be representing the CAJ. R. Friesen said Manitoba was supposed to conduct one a couple of years ago, but nothing has been heard so far.

 

M. McClintock said the whistle blowing legislation working its way through Parliament Hill likely won’t be passed before the election. P. Schneidereit suggested that once the election is done, the CAJ bug them to bring the legislation back.

 

M. McClintock moved to accept the report and the guidelines, R. Friesen seconded. Motion passed.

10. Membership Committee

J. Fowler moved to receive the report, C. Bury seconded.

 

S. Khan handed chair to C. Bury.

Current Membership – K. Pauls

The board reviewed the up-to-date membership figures.

Freelancers Caucus – S. Khan

We haven’t heard back from Jeff Pappone on this. Hal Doran said a couple of months ago that it seems to be pretty dormant. A list-serve has been set up for them already.

Membership initiative – K. Pauls

The second wave of mailouts still need to go out. We still don’t have a chapter liaison. S. Khan volunteered since he pretty much does the job already. CAJ News will be going out in May.

 

J. Dickins can have a detailed breakdown of members’ employers and media in a few weeks.

 

Awards committee tasked to look at the data when it’s available.

 

We will need to find a new chairperson next time around, this is Karen’s last meeting on the board. Board thanked Karen for her work on the membership committee.

Chapter reports

We’ve had trouble getting Saskatchewan to send someone to the board, possibly because there is no central city. They still qualify for a position, though, as a region. Saskatchewan has had a lot of trouble getting organized. P. Schneidereit suggested we look at the way the board and the bylaws are structured so that the board doesn’t get too big. Chapter and national reps are important, but regional reps could bring up the number of people.

 

P. Schneidereit moved to strike a committee to look at the bylaws and the way the board is structured, K. Pauls seconded. Motion passed.

 

J. Fowler, C. Bury and M. McClintock volunteered to sit on the committee. The committee will report back for the AGM.

J. Dickins also noted that Manitoba has had a few new signups, bringing it over 50 members. Will be forwarding new memberships instantly to chapter reps from now on.

 

Last year chapters were supposed to have one paid event, this year there should be two. R. Cribb asked if there is a mechanism to check this. S. Khan said we’re relying on chapter reports which don’t come in very often.

 

S. Khan reported that Toronto has had an event. M. McClintock reported that National Capital had three paid events through the year. She noted that she doesn’t get support for social events. S. Khan said he has started inviting speakers to pub nights. There has been a lot of trouble bringing out Carleton students in Ottawa, although Algonquin College has been supportive. R. Friesen reported that Manitoba had a paid event. K. Pauls reported that Halifax had two paid events. T. Beutel reported that BC had a paid event with Julian Sher. C. Bury reported that the Montreal chapter had the IRE workshop and there were another couple of events as well.

 

S. Khan tasked to remind chapters of the requirement for two paid events.

 

K. Pauls noted that Trevor Haché isn’t working in journalism anymore, but will remain on the membership committee.

M. McClintock moved to accept the report, R, Friesen seconded. Motion passed.

 

C. Bury passed chair to S. Khan.

11. New Business

List-serve – R. Cribb

C. Bury sent out a message last week that the number of subscribers is up to 650, but still only one third of the subscribers are members. We started issuing an appeal last year. We’ve issued five. After the second month we stopped getting any memberships from the list.

 

R. Cribb said we should come up with new ideas to convince people to join. S. Khan said we can now put a link to the online registration right in the appeal. P. Schneidereit asked if posts from members could be highlighted in some way, versus posts from non-members. He also suggested there could be a members-only list. C. Bury said it should remain open. R. Cribb said highlighting members’ posts was a great idea. C. Bury said the $20 optional list-serve fee should be removed

 

C. Bury reported that there is a new moderator, Allan Bass.

Code of silence

We’ve awarded the code of silence for the past three years. It’s an award for the country’s most secretive organization. We get lots of press on it every year. Entries are solicited through a press release, the list-serve and the website. R. Cribb asked if anyone would like to lead the selection, as he’s done it for the past three years. P. Schneidereit volunteered. R. Cribb and T. Beutel volunteered to help out.

 

S. Khan tasked to look into getting the code of silence.ca and .com domains.

 

R. Cribb tasked to email J. Dickins a photo of the award.

 

O’Neill Fundraiser

J. Dickins got an email from Zev Singer regarding a fundraiser of O’Neill. He’s selling medium-sized panties with her picture on them. It symbolizes how the RCMP went through O’Neill’s underwear drawer. He would like to give the proceeds to an organization that champions press freedom. K. Pauls asked why the money isn’t just donated to her legal defence. M. McClintock noted that the take isn’t going to be very high anyway. Board agreed to respectfully decline the offer.

Board judges for Student Hong Kong Fellow

J. Dickins reported that last year we got about 40 entries. The judges have to read them all and have a teleconference to justify their thoughts. Usually the judges are board members or people we choose. J. Fowler, M. McClintock and S. Khan volunteered.

16. Next Meeting – Board

June teleconference

Board agreed to do teleconference 7 PM EST on the 14^th of June.

 

September board meeting

Board agreed to meet weekend of September 17-19, 2004.

17. Adjournment

R. Cribb moved to adjourn, R. Friesen seconded. Meeting adjourned.

 

The board thanked K. Pauls for her hard work over many years.