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VOLUME 45 NUMBtR 28
Challenge of editors election rejected
Freeman:
'They ripped out my heart
and stepped on it'
BY 808 BOLDING
“Who is the editor of The
West Georgian?”
“I see a smokescreen.”
“Who is the unnamed ad
ministrator?”
“This sounds like a detective
story.”
Packed into the second floor
classroom of the humanities
building, members of the
student publications board
mulled over these and many
other questions as Scott
Freeman appealed The West
Georgian editor’s election of
last week. Freeman, dressed
uncharacteristically in a blue
suit, light blue shirt, and dark
tie, was unhappy about losing to
Debra Newell. After all, he’s
put “two and one half years of
blood and toil into that paper.”
The tension of the meeting
was broken by a series of
almost laughable “whodunits”
and one liners. But the result,
rejection of Freeman’s appeal,
wasn’t so laughable to the 20-
year old senior psychology
major who has served as news
editor this year.
“I think Debra Newell is
going to be overwhelmed by the
job as editor next year. 1 think
she’s a good writer, but I don’t
think her heart’s in it I wish
to God it were.”
Is Scott’s?
“Not anymore. They just
ripped it out of my chest and
threw it on the ground and
stepped on it. The committee
took the dedication and blood
I’ve put into this paper and said
it was worthless and told me to
go to Hell.”
“I was shafted out of the job I
deserved on merit alone
without politics.”
Freeman’s friend and this
year’s editor of The West
Georgian, Robin Stacy shared
his disappointment with the
outcome of the meeting.
“I thought it was a pile of shit.
It’s not fair to say Debra will be
editor next year. Lisa
McNerney will. Debra is only a
pawn. I don’t doubt Lisa and
Chester Gibson will raise The
West Georgian to new heights of
mediocrity and hype,” Stacy
said.
“I just think that the com
mittee’s rejection of the staff’s
petition was tantamount to
saying they didn’t give a damn
about the paper’s wishes.”
Lisa McNerney, who has
endured a rocky relationship at
times with The West Georgian
staff in her first year as the
student paper’s adviser,
thought the committee dealt
with the appeal in the “only
proper way.”
“While I think it was right of
the committee to hear Scott’s
WEST GEORGIA COLLEGE, CARROLLTON, GA. 30118
challenge, I think the com
mittee did the right thing in
upholding it’s previous election
since no fraud on Debra’s part
was proved.”
“What the hell good is it going
to do me to control the paper?”
she asks.
“My main motivation is to
make The West Georgian the
most professional experience a
college newspaper can be.”
McNemey’s and the com
mittee’s rationale is no con
solation to Freeman. He wanted
the job and he’s bitter about it.
“It was not a fair hearing.
Dahl’s (chairman of the
publication board) mind was
made up the morning I walked
into his office and delivered the
letter of challenge.
“I feel disappointed and let
down by the committee because
they didn’t choose the most
qualified candidate.”
Freeman, winner of two
Georgia Press Association
awards this year for his stories
on the psychology department’s
reorganization and a con
troversial memorandum
authored by the director of
student activities, obviously felt
he was that candidate.
What will he do with The West
Georgian next year? Enter
tainment? News? Columns?
“Nothing,” chime in both
Freeman and the new editor,
Debra Newell.
The mutual dislike between
the two talented writers doesn’t
need much prodding to come
spewing to the surface with all
its venom.
“Well, Scott Freeman can get
right on over it,” says Debra
Newell.
“I’m not saying he’s not a
good writer, but he’s got to
learn to control his emotions,”
she adds.
“I would resent deeply being
a flunkie for Debra Newell,
especially when she has the job
I deserved. Hers was a hollow
victory because one week they
elect her and the next, except
for her vote, they would have
kicked her out.”
Hollow or not, the “political”
defeat hangs over Freeman’s
head like a raincloud.
“I’m hoping to work for the
Carrollton papers next year. If
not, ~ I’ll deliver pizza or
something.”
Interviews with students and
faculty reveal mixed feelings
about the recent editor’s
election for The West Georgian.
Some feel that Scott Freeman is
the devil. Some think he’s a
savior. And an awful lot of them
just don’t care.
But you can bet one thing,
right or not, Scott Freeman
cares.
BY 808 BOLDING
Scott Freeman, who lost last
week’s West Georgian editor’s
election to Debra Newell, un
successfully appealed that
election to the student
publications board Tuesday.
After reviewing Freerqpn’s
appeal, a motion to set aside the
election failed to carry as Jim
Dahl, chairman of the board,
broke a deadlocked vote.
The board agreed to meet
Tuesday after Freeman cir
culated a letter Friday among
its members. In the letter, he
charged that Newell had unfair
advantage during the
proceedings, that undue
pressure had been placed on the
members of the board on her
behalf, that Dahl had shown
bias from the chair during the
meeting, and that Newell had
perpetrated a fraud upon the
board in her letter of ap
plication.
Newell denied all charges.
“It was a hollow victory for
Newell since she deadlocked the
motion with her own vote,” said
Freeman who bitterly contested
Chairman Dahl’s controversial
ruling to seat the newly elected
editor and managing editor.
“If he hadn’t made the un
precedented ruling to seat
Debra Newell and Ed Lorenz
before summer quarter, I would
have won 7-3,” Freeman
charged.
The “unprecedented ruling”
was made early in the meeting
over a question of which editor
and managing editor to seat as
voting members of the
publication board.
The publication board Con
stitution states in Article 111,
Section H that, “After the
editors are elected, they will
replace the former editor on the
board.”
Since the constitution did not
specify how soon after the
election that the new editor
should assume duties, West
Georgian Adviser Lisa
McNerney advocated turning to
Roberts Rules which she said
required that the editor be
seated immediately after the
election.
“Since the committee is a
body of a faculty senate com
mittee, we had to follow
Roberts Rules of Order. I think
the committee dealt with the
matter in the only proper
manner,” McNerney said.
But West Georgian Editor
Robin Stacy argued that the
newly elected editor and
managing editor did not
traditionally assume duties
until summer quarter and
hence should not be seated on
the board until that time. He
pointed out that the constitution
elsewhere states that the editor
and managing editor should be
seated on the board.
“Every editor of The West
Georgian throughout time has
taken office in summer quarter.
Dahl made the ruling, based
solely on his desire to see that
the committee’s action ac
corded with his own wishes. He
went into the meeting with his
mind made up,” Stacy said.
Dahl, an assistant professor
of English, is resigning as
chairman of the board after his
first year because, he "didn’t
seek the job.”
“I’m not a journalist and I’m
not particularly interested in
journalism. I’ve done the best I
could do up to now.”
Dahl denied bias. “I’m not
that kind of person,” he said.
Following the seating con
troversy, Freeman presented
his charges against Newell
saying, "I would not challenge
Newell’s election unless I had
sufficient grounds and the
support of The West Georgian
staff.”
He charged that while each
candidate for the editor’s
position was interviewed
without the presence of the
other candidates, Newell was
“briefed” by her friend Gail
Cowart who “spied” on
Freeman during his interview
in front of the board.
“She knew what questions
were asked. She knew how I
answered and could prepare
her answers to counter mine.
This gave her an unfair ad
vantage over me and I must
question the validity of her
interview session,” Freeman
said.
Newell and Cowart both
denied discussing Freeman’s
interview.
“I was just going downstairs
to call my mother to tell her I
was going to be late,” Cowart
said.
“There’s no way she could
have condensed a 30 minute
interview in 10 minutes,”
Newell said.
Newell countered that copies
of the questions to be asked at
the meeting were already
prepared and distributed to the
candidates before the meeting
by McNerhey.
Chairman Dahl said that he
had not sent the candidates out
of the room to keep the in
terviews secret but to “take the
pressure off the interviewees.”
Freeman alleged that “undue
pressure was placed upon some
committee members by Dr.
Chester Gibson and an un
named administrator.”
“Gibson had direct authority
over McNerney, as her
supervisor, and Randy Evans,
as his debate coach,” he said.
McNerney and Evans are
voting members of the
publications board.
Gibson categorically denied
that he pressured members of
the board. “In conversation, I
may have stated my
preference, but my first
amendment rights are the same
as Mr. Freeman’s.
Freeman dropped his charge
that Dahl misused his position
as chairman of the board to,
“extoll the virtues of Newell’s
writing ability.”
FRIDAY, JUNE 1, 1979
But he did maintain the
charge that Newell had
fraudulently “stretched” her
application.
“Out of the ’75 articles’ that
have been carried in the paper
with her by-line, a large per
centage were pieces written for
the public relations office, not
The West Georgian. She has not
had a ‘say in staff policy’
simply because she attended
less than a fourth of the staff
meetings and often spent less
than two hours at the office on
Wednesday nights as compared
“She is employed by the
public relations office and is
heavily involved in drama,”
Freeman said.
Newell contended that of the
75 articles she cited, 68 were
written exclusively for the
student newspaper.
“I’ve got them right here.
I’ve counted them,” she ex
claimed.
“Different people take dif
ferent amounts of time to do the
same amount of work. It
depends on how much you want
to socialize,” said Newell who
was features editor for the
paper this year.
to an average of 15-18 hours for
the editor, managing editor,
and news editor.
“A history of West Georgian
editors have worked in the
public relations office in the
past.”
“And as for my drama
commitment, I think it has
served me well since
melodrama is the theme of this
meeting,” Newell said.
Robin Stacy replied “Tlie
reason she lays out her pages so
quickly is because she never
does them right.” He com
plained that Newell was not
experienced and skilled in the
technical aspects of paste-ups
and layout.
Freeman added, “The staff
knows who the candidate with
the most expertise and ex
perience is and that is why they
support me.”
He presented a petition
signed by most West Georgian
staff members stating, “Debra
Newell... a competent writer,
has never displayed to us
abilities commensurate with
the position of editor...we feel
that Scott Freeman.... has the
capabilities necessary to make
an outstanding editor of this
publication.”
The petition was ruled out of
order since it was not part of the
charges Freeman cited in his
letter.
Following discussion, the
board decided to vote on the
motion to set aside the previous
West Georgian election by
secret ballot and deadlocked 5-
5. Chairman Dahl defeated the
motion by breaking the
deadlock with his vote against
the motion.
At presstime, Freeman is
uncertain whether to appeal
further.