Federation of Students Elections

THE FOLLOWING is from the  100.3 Sound FM "No" Committee. Any reference to CKMS is in refernece to the 100.3 Sound FM which operates by this new name.

 100.3 Sound FM "No" Committee Information:

Summary - Vote No in the CKMS Referendum1) Students in 2008 voted 2:1 to revoke funding of CKMS

2) Voting No is not a vote against campus radio, only CKMS

3) CKMS has not been transparent or accountable

4) They have not demonstrated support through membership

5) They have only 35% students as members currently

6) Internet radio, like Radio Laurier, is a better choice

7) Feds oversight removes its independence

8) No guarantee that students will be members by paying fee

9) Fee should not be tied to CPI; Imprint is not

10) No arrangements set out on how to refund

 Details - Vote No in the CKMS Referendum

In 2008, students decided with an unequivocal 2:1 margin to revoke CKMS’s funding. Has CKMS changed since then? Is this proposal you will vote on right for UW?

Voting No to this question is not a vote against campus radio, nor against freedom of speech or press. It is a vote against CKMS’s proposed form of radio and a judgment on their actions since the last referendum.Last year’s Students’ Council set out terms for CKMS to comply with to retain support. 2/3 of the governance items were not fulfilled, including providing board minutes to Feds and complying with a CRTC requirement for a faculty board member. CKMS has not been transparent nor has it been accountable as they claim.When only 2 of 7 board seats were acclaimed to undergrad students not on the board before the last referendum, do you call that change? When they have only 68 members, do you call that support? When only 24 or 35% of members are students, do you agree that that the station is no longer controlled by community members?In January, Laurier will be starting Radio Laurier, an Internet radio station. Such a station is cost effective, independent, and modern. Were CKMS such a station it could still air Warrior sports games and offer opportunities to host shows.

The proposed level of oversight in this unprecedented agreement with Feds will make CKMS anything but independent. Feds has never entered into such an agreement with other campus media. Do you want Feds leering over your independent student media?

There are issues with the referendum question. It was provided 1 hour before Council debated to call the referendum, and this has left many holes and concerns. Nothing in the agreement even guarantees that students who pay the fee will be members of CKMS! Neither does their bylaws, nor have they proposed changes.Approving this deal will make it so that CKMS will be the only external organization whose fee is tied to the Consumer Price Index. Radio costs are relatively fixed and their income will rise with student population growth. Students should decide when the fees go up, as with Imprint, who had decreased their fee in the past.The amount of the fee is not an issue, but the principle is. Nothing in the agreement has outlined how it will be refunded. Is CKMS going to do it from their warehouse, or is Feds stuck with the administration? It is likely that this will increase refunds for the Student Refugee Program as they are on the same line item.CKMS has claimed they have been transparent, accountable, are student oriented, and will be independent. This is quite far from reality.Please vote No in the CKMS referendum.