A new Student Media Association (SMA) has formed from the Student Journalism Conference (StuJoCon), the largest gathering of Australian student journalists to date.
StuJoCon featured an illustrious lineup of speakers, including Kate McClymont, Shankari Chandran, Antony Loewenstein and Nour Haydar. The conference hosted 31 daytime events and four evening events.
At a plenary during the conference, a national association of student media was born as the best approach to addressing the challenges facing Australian student journalism.
The SMA aims to advocate on behalf of student publications, to improve communication and transparency between student media, and to address issues facing specific publications including censorship and budget cuts.
Following the conference, the attendees have been working on a draft constitution. A public consultation process will take place at a later date.
The interim government includes Imogen Sabey (Honi Soit, NSW) as President, Riley Bampton (Glass, QLD) as General Secretary and five other board members spanning ACT, NSW, Tasmania and Victoria.
The association is expected to begin operations in early December, with elections taking place soon and a new board elected each year. It will be the only union of its kind to represent student journalists.
LaSallian, a Filipino student newspaper who attended the conference, were the only publication with experience of a student media union. The College Editors’ Guild of the Philippines, of which LaSallian is a member, has existed since 1931 and has sought similar goals to the SMA.
Quotes attributable to Imogen Sabey, Honi Soit editor, StuJoCon Director, and interim SMA President:
“It is my hope that this association will benefit student journalists for many years to come. Across Australia, student media are facing a myriad of challenges that we are much better-placed to address as a collective. It has been extremely rewarding to see what student journalists can accomplish when we are together, and I hope this association will improve the future of the media industry.”