Se ‘TOR, “RB LL

Well, folks, I guess it’s time that we put together another one of our thrilling little pieces to show you all that we really do listen to any complaints we hear, and recently we have had more than our fair share.

Let me first explain that editing is not a job to be taken lightly. The student newspaper is a very important part of the student community, and should be treated as such. We do our job as best we know how, while still trying to please all the readers. However, this is an impossible job. No one can please everyone at the same time, and we are no exception to this rule. Also remember that we are new at this job, and we still have a lot of things to learn.

One complaint we have been hearing a lot lately concerns the way in which we edit material which is submitted to the GEM for publication. First of all, folks, it clearly states in our masthead ev- ery week on page four, “We reserve the right to edit submissions due to space or taste limitations”, and “We reserve the right to not print submissions that are passed in after deadline on Monday”. True, the deadline sometime changes, depending on our workload, but it is never any later than 5:00 on Mondays. Therefore, we do NOT HAVE to print ANYTHING that we receive later than that time. If we deem it reasonable, we will print it. If we don’t, then we won’t. That’s OUR decision to make.

Second of all, if an article is too long, we have the right to print as much of it as we see necessary, or to not print it at all. If it is an article that applies to the entire university community, fine— we will print it. However, if it is a long article that appeals only to a small part of the population, say, one group or society, we have the right to edit it in order to make room for things that apply to everyone. We also have the right to not print letters to the editor if we deem them unsuitable.

Another complaint we have received of late concerns five lines free, and some of the continuing submissions that we print. The purpose of five lines free is to provide a classified ad section for students so they can sell things, print short notices, and use it as a personal column TO AN EXTENT. However, as of late, certain people have been abusing this priviledge. We have no intention of eliminating Five Lines Free, but we do intend on limiting the sub- missions. However, we don’t want to discourage people from sub- mitting things. We just want them to use a little discretion.

We hope this has cleared up any misunderstandings that have been created in the past. If you have any questions at all, or ideas, comments, anything-— let us know by either calling or writing or through the VAX. We do have office hours, and there is usually someone here at the office in the afternoons. We’d love to hear from you!!

Dawnne Chappelle

* Cora-Lee DesRoches

Co-Editors

“Barly in life I had noticed that no event is ever correctly reported in a newspaper.”

—George Orwell ,

Cora—Lee DesRoches, Co—Editor

Dawnne Chappelle, Co—Editor

Ian Mollison, Production Editor

Derrick Cameron, Advertising Manager Vivian Huizenga, Photographer

Jim Macgrath, Typesetter, Graphics Editor James Connolly, Systems Manager

Dawn hinbise. Entertainment Editor Matthew Beardsley, Sports Editor

Chris Vessey, Circulation Manager

GEM Staff Members:

Wendell Blackett, Kaberi Dasgupta, Malcolm Gorrill, Bobbi-Sue Keating, Laura Kilfoil, Dave MacKinnon, Lisa Murphy, Sam O’Kello, Ellen Perry, Nancy Taylor, Mark Walker

This Week’s Contributors:

Too many te mention in this small insignifi- gant space..

Anyone can contribute to The GEM: an- nouncements, short stories, poems, letters, or just plain ideas can be dropped off at the Barn, sent through VAX MAIL to GEM, or stuck on our door down in the basement of the utility building. a ;

We reserve the right to not print submissions that are passed in after

the deadline on Monday.

We cherish typed and double spaced sub- missions and submissions on computer disk or through VAX mail. For legal reasons, all submis- sions must include the author’s name and phone number. However, names will be withheld from publication on request.

Deadline for submissions is Monday, 3:00pm

The GEM 1s published by the University of Prince Edward Island Student Union. Views ex- pressed are not necessarily those of the GEM staff, the UPEI Student Union, or of anyone in particular.

We reserve the right to edit submissions due to space or taste limitations.

. Phone 566-0629 or 566-0530 or send VAX mail to account GEM.

The GEM is a member of the Canadian Uni- versity Press.

a —

aL hureday, October 20, 1900s