UPDATED: Nov. 15 at 3:45 p.m.

With the release of Student Association Finance Board’s spring 2017 budget allocation, some on-campus publications at Syracuse University have been asked to make significant changes.

One of those publications is 20 Watts Magazine, a music production publication that has been on campus since 2011. The magazine publishes two times a semester and has requested $5,772.89 for the spring 2017 semester, equivalent to its budget for fall 2016, said Mikey Light, a junior newspaper and online journalism major and the publication’s editor in chief.

The SA Finance Board, led by SA Comptroller Malik Evans along with other board members, notified 20 Watts that the publication’s budget request was denied, Light said.

The finance board received more than $1 million in requests from various student organizations at SU and recommended 20 Watts reduce its distribution numbers and resubmit a budget not exceeding $4,000, the notification said.

The magazine submitted an appeal to the finance board and a $4,000 budget request. If approved, the magazine will print 500 copies for its 56-page publication and 750 for its 36-page publication, Light said.

20 Watts was not the only magazine to have its budget rejected. The Kumquat, a satire magazine that covers on- and off-campus events, saw its entire budget rejected and was told to move its content to online, said Sara Zadrima, a junior television, radio and film major who is involved with the organization.

The Kumquat requested $1,782.92 from SA’s special programming budget for spring 2017 and was rejected, Zadrima said.

“The finance board believes the organization should focus on its online presence,” a notification from the Finance Board said.

For the current semester, The Kumquat requested $1,495.96 for 1,205 copies of The Kumquat and was funded through the special programming budget but was told to cut distribution by 50 percent, Zadrima said.

The Kumquat plans on submitting two appeals, one for the magazine printing of $1,280 for 605 copies and one for additional equipment of $502.92, Zadrima said.

Another student publication affected by the budget cuts was Jerk Magazine, which publishes the most frequently and has the largest distribution of any on-campus magazine. Esmeralda Murray, the publisher for Jerk Magazine, said the publication requested a few hundred dollars more than usual due to the increase in the overall size of the publication. But the budget has always been in a similar range, Murray said.

While Murray did not disclose the exact budget of what Jerk Magazine requested, SA advised the publication to cut its numbers in half, she said.

“Our distribution numbers might fall more than 60 percent,” Murray said. “… It was initially shocking and we’re definitely a bit vexed, considering that we have to make some heavy changes moving forward.”

Murray is not entirely sure the direction that Jerk Magazine is going to move, but said they are leaning toward circulating less copies but producing monthly issues.

SA Comptroller Malik Evans said that in the past, specifics have not been disclosed regarding the finance board’s decisions. SA Parliamentarian Billy Collins said attendees can ask questions about each decision made by the finance board at public assembly meetings where the budget allocations are approved

During the SA meeting on Monday, Evans will share with the voting members the finance board’s decisions regarding the appeals.

CLARIFICATION: In a Monday article titled “Funding reduced for campus publications,” SA’s bylaws regarding the availability of budget requests for view was unclear. SA bylaws state that finance board budgetary deliberations are not open to the public, though SA Parliamentarian Billy Collins said attendees can ask questions about each decision made by the finance board at public assembly meetings where the budget allocations are approved.

Published on November 14, 2016 at 3:43 am

Contact William: wgmuoio@syr.edu