THE CONSTITUTION OF THE MEDIUM

Article I
Article II
Article III
Article IV 		b Article V
Article VI
Article VII
Article VIII 		Article IX
Article X
Article XI
Article XII

Article I: The name of this organization shall be The Medium.


 Article II: The purpose of this organization shall be to compose and distribute a weekly entertainment publication, which shall be entitled The Medium, for the consumption of Rutgers University community.


 Article III: Membership shall be open to all Rutgers University students and must comply with federal laws prohibiting discrimination on the basis of race, sex, handicap, age, sexual orientation, or political and religious affiliation. Compliance with these laws means that membership, benefits, and the election of officers will not be made on the basis of these factors.


 Article IV: The Medium Editorial Board shall consist of the following positions:

  1. Editor-in-Chief
  2. Managing Editor
  3. Senior Editor
  4. Business Manager
  5. Opinions Editor
  6. News Editor
  7. Features Editor
  8. Arts Editor
  9. Personals Editor(s)
  10. What's Shakin' Editor
  11. Online Editor
  12. Advertising Manager

The editorial positions are listed here in the order of rank.


One person may fill more than one position. However, the Editor-in-Chief, the Managing Editor, the Senior Editor, and the Business Manager must be distinct persons.


Any member of the Editorial Board may appoint an associate editor as necessary to aid with the production and/or distribution of the publication. The associate editors shall be considered staffers, but not a part of the Editorial Board.

  1. The Editor-in-Chief shall be ultimately responsible for the content of The Medium. The Editor-in-Chief shall oversee all aspects of production of each issue and ensure that each section is accounted for. The Editor-in-Chief shall run meetings of the Editorial Board and the staff in general. The Editor-in-Chief shall decide upon purchases with the Business Manager. The Editor-in-Chief shall decide upon the number of pages in each issue and allotted to each section, taking into account the recommendation of the Business Manager. The Editor-in-Chief shall perform the duties of the Business Manager in his/her absence.
  2. The Managing Editor shall ensure that all organizational forms will be completed and submitted properly. The Managing Editor shall supervise the production of The Medium alongside the Editor-in-Chief. The Managing Editor shall ensure that at least one copy of The Medium be placed in the morgue. The Managing Editor shall perform the duties of the Editor-in-Chief in his/her absence.
  3. 3. The Senior Editor shall be responsible for addressing grievances between staff members. The Senior Editor is the editor who has had the longest tenure on the paper and is not the Editor-in-Chief, Managing Editor or Business Manager. In the event two candidates qualify for the position of Senior Editor, the elected executive board members shall choose the Senior Editor based on their merits. The Senior Editor shall perform the duties of the Managing Editor in his/her absence.
  4. The Business Manager shall keep The Medium's financial records. The Business Manager shall be responsible for all monetary transactions. The Business Manager shall decide upon purchases with the Editor-in-Chief, and shall make such purchases. The Business Manager shall make recommendation about the number of pages in a given issue. The Business Manager shall work with the Advertising Manager to assure accounts' financial transactions are updated regularly.
  5. The Opinions Editor shall be responsible for the content and layout of the Opinions pages. The Opinions Editor shall be responsible for soliciting writers for the section. The primary function of the Opinions pages will be to provide a forum for the opinions of the Rutgers community and, especially, those of the Editorial Board.
  6. The News Editor shall be responsible for the content and layout of the News pages. The News Editor shall be responsible for soliciting writers for the section. The primary function of the News pages will be to provide news articles of interest for the Rutgers community and forum for commentary on news events.
  7. The Features Editor shall be responsible for the content and layout of the Features pages. The Features Editor shall be responsible for soliciting writers for the section. The primary function of the Features pages will be to provide a forum for all features articles and comics.
  8. The Arts Editor shall be responsible for the content and layout of the Arts page(s). The Arts Editor shall be responsible for soliciting writers for the section. The primary function of the Arts page(s) will be to provide commentary on artistic events and a forum for literary artistic works.
  9. The Personals Editor(s) shall be responsible for collecting all personal ads submitted to The Medium. The Personals Editor(s) shall keep all submitters identities' confidential except when requested by a proper authority. The Personals Editor(s) shall not print any submissions that do not include a corresponding name and address.
  10. The What's Shakin' Editor shall be responsible for the content and layout of the What's Shakin' page. The primary function of the What's Shakin' page is provide the Rutgers University community with a list of local events including but not limited to cinema, music, dance, theatre, lectures, and organization meetings.
  11. The Online Editor shall maintain and update The Medium web site. The Online Editor shall refer all business matters relating to the upkeep of the web site to the Business Manager.
  12. The Advertising Manager shall be responsible for soliciting advertisements from outside sources. The Advertising Manager shall be responsible for ensuring proper placement of the given ads. The Advertising Manger shall be responsible for delegating responsibility for creating the advertisement as necessary. The Advertising Manager shall work with the Business Manager to assure accounts' financial transactions are updated regularly.

Article V: The Medium staff consists in those persons that have written at least one published article or aided in the production of The Medium in the past six-month period, as an editor, associate editor or other staff member. In addition to being printed, candidates for election must be considered an “active” member of The Medium. An active member of the Medium is defined as submitting material that is published and making effort to attend weekly meetings. In the event that a voter’s eligibility cannot be determined, the current executive staff decides.


Article VI: Elections shall proceed in the following manner:


At the end of each semester elections shall be held for the twelve posts detailed in Article IV. Elections may be held at other times after the resignation or impeachment of an editor.


Voter eligibility shall be determined by the voter's staff status as defined in Article V.


To elect for a permanent post, the election must be announced at least one week before the scheduled election.


In the event of a resignation a replacement editor may be named, however an election will be held at the next scheduled meeting with both nomination and elections occurring the same night. The winner of the election is the candidate that receives a majority vote of members at that weeks meeting.


Nominees must not be discriminated against as stated in Article III, and furthermore must have published no less than three articles in The Medium or have served as an associate editor (see article IV) in the six-month period immediately prior to the election.


Nominees for the Executive board (Editor-in-Chief, Managing Editor and Business Manager) must have served as an editor.


The elections shall be run y the Editor-in-Chief, excepting elections in which the incumbent Editor-in-Chief is a candidate. If the Editor-in-Chief is unable to run the election, the next in command editor shall run the election if not similarly conflicted (see Article IV).


Candidates must receive a simple majority of votes from the staff. Candidates shall have the right to speak on their behalf for no more than three minutes prior to the election. The candidates shall then leave the room while the remaining members discuss the merits and demerits of candidate. In case of a tie, the staff will revote after discussing the merits and demerits of each candidate in closed session.


Candidates shall have the right to speak on their behalf for no more than three minutes prior to the election.


Elected Editors shall assume office immediately following election.


Elections shall be held at regularly scheduled weekly meetings as defined in Article VIII. In the event that an election is held at an alternate time, a quorum of no less than 50% of the total staff must be present.


 Article VII: An editor may be removed from office only on the grounds that he or she has not fulfilled the duties as editor as detailed in Article IV. Motion for removal must be made at least one week prior to actual vote for removal. At that time the motion must be readmitted and the merits and demerits of the given editor may be discussed in closed session before the final vote is made. The editor in question will be permitted to appear at the vote and answer the charges brought before him or her. Should removal not take place, the grounds on which the given editor was impeached shall not be used again upon that editor. An editor may be removed only with a two-thirds vote of staff. The impeachment procedure shall be run by the highest-ranking editor who is neither an accuser nor accused.


Following removal, the highest-ranking editor who is not an accuser shall appoint an acting editor and schedule a formal election to find a permanent replacement.


Impeachment proceedings shall be held at regularly scheduled weekly meetings as defined in Article VIII. In the event that an impeachment proceeding is held at an alternate time, a quorum of no less than 50% of the total staff must be present.


 Article VIII: The Medium staff shall meet weekly at a scheduled time and place to discuss and resolve any pending issues relevant to The Medium.


 Article IX: The Medium shall have a staff advisor, who will count as an honorary and acting staff member with all the associated rights and privileges. The advisor must be actively in the employ of Rutgers University in an instructional capacity.


 Article X: The Medium Constitution will be properly ratified by a simple majority vote by the current Editorial Board.


 Article XI: The Medium Constitution may be amended by a two-thirds vote of the current staff as necessary. Amendment votes require a quorum (as defined in articles VI and VII).


 Article XII: This organization shall abide by all applicable laws of the State of New Jersey and the United States.


This organization shall abide by all applicable rules and regulations of the University and under the privileges as granted by the Student Activities Office, Deans, and Dean of Students where chartered. This organization shall also abide by the rules and regulations of the Board of Governors, the University, and the Colleges as provided by the Board of Governors and the Deans of the Colleges.


Last updated: (4/28/2004)