DIY History | Transcribe | Campus Culture | Daily Iowan and Leona Durham controversy, 1970-1972 | 1970-12-19 "DI Budget Cut Reduced; Durham Defends Paper"

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Daily Iowan and Leona Durham controversy, 1970-1972

1970-12-19 "DI Budget Cut Reduced; Durham Defends Paper"

Saturday, December 19. 1970 P-C

DI Budget Cut Reduced; Durham Defends Paper

A proposed $3,000 cut in the editorial budget of the Daily Iowan was reduced to $899 Friday in another long and bitter meeting of the student newspaper's publishing board - Student Publications, Inc. 
Interspersed between budget cuts and hostile exchanges between members of the board and the DI staff was the second resignation of Assistant Publisher Mary Kauppi in less than two months.
Mrs. Kauppi submitted her resignation - which was rejected - in the November meeting over differences with controversial Di Editor Leona Durham. 
This time Mrs. Kauppi said she was resigning because she is getting married Dec. 26 and moving to Michigan. The second resignation was accepted.

Publisher Frank Hash, who assumed the Di helm this year with Mrs. Kauppi, had proposed the $3,000 slash in the DI editorial budget to counter a current $24,000 deficit. 
But after nearly three hours of heated debate, the cut was reduced. The $889 finally whittled from the DI Budget consisted of funds for salaries, operating expenses and photographic needs. 
Mrs. Kauppi's bid to drop the weekly fine arts page and fire Fine Arts Editor Michael Ryman failed on a 2-4 vote. Another motion to direct Hash, Mrs. Kauppi and Miss Durham to suggest further cuts also failed. 
"I don't want to go through this a second time," said SPI member George Forelll, director of the UI School of Religion. 
Miss Durham - who saw herself and her staff severely criticized by Mrs. Kauppi last month - answered the charges Friday by reading a long statement to the board. 
Miss Durham termed Mrs. Kauppi's attack a "disruptive grandstand play" and argued that "professional journalists would not be in unanimous agreement with her on the quality of the DI."
The DI editor - who was fired and then rehired by the board last May - also expressed objections to the cuts. 
Miss Durham said the budget "neither can nor should be cut," and predicted that "the quality of the newspaper will suffer."
She added: "Kauppi does not dictate the contents of the paper. If (Board member David Schoenbaum wants  [?]
he might recom [?]
course of action [?[
commission."
The commission [?]
studying the "role of the DI at the university. Schoenbaum and Forelll have been the most vocal;DI critics on the board. 
Other exchanges erupted periodically between the board and Di Managing Editor Amy Chapman and Ryan. 

Ryan when asked about a bonus fund by SPI Chairman William Albrecht replied "That's very cute."
"It's not cute" snarled Albrecht. "It's an honest question."
Later in the meeting Albrecht exclaimed. "From what I hear you can make about four times as much working for Burger Chef than you can for the DI. If that's true, then why in the hell is everyone complaining about losing their damn jobs."
Carol Ehrlich, a graduate student on the SPI board suggested that Hash and Mrs. Kauppi cut their own salaries to save money.
"I don't understand why the publisher and assistant publisher don't allocate cuts for themselves," she said. "It's pretty top heavy salary distribution. If we're going to do it, then I think we should do it all across the line."
Some members of the Di staff have expressed resentment over the fact that the $22,000 combined salaries of Hash and Mrs. Kauppi exceeds the wages paid the entire student staff. 

Schoenbaum earlier had objected to asking Miss Durham for her opinion of the proposed budget cuts. Schoenbaum, a member of the history department cited the "basic inequity" of consulting Miss Durham and not the other department heads. 
The board did agree to send Miss Durham a copy of the agenda prior to each meeting after Board member Ronald Zobel termed the objection to not getting them "completely val"

Forte Gives Views On Iowan 

Last year's editor of the Daily Iowan has criticized the student newspaper's publishing board and DI editors for their "cavalier attitudes ... toward the traditions and future of the Daily Iowan."
Lowell H. Forte, a graduate student from Webster City, recently wrote board members of Student Publications, Inc. and UI President Willard L . Boyd about the controversy surrounding the student newspaper. 
"I doubt that any soul searching will take place for the board has obviously been more concerned with procuring an activist journal of opinion rather than a good newspaper which provides information as well as intellectual stimulation." Forte wrote. "There is a difference between antagonistic for the sake of being antagonistic and angering people because an issue demands that people be aroused. 
"Thus the failure is not with the editorial staff per se but with the board itself, particularly certain individual members."
Forte cited "so many abstentions on very important votes recently," and said "A (board) member is there to help make decisions. If he or she is not so inclined, they should resign"
Forte single out for criticism SPI member David Schoenbaum, a history professor, who referred last month to complaining DI advertisers as "boobs."
" Such statements ... can prove more damaging than any 10 things the paper's student staff could do ... When an advertiser pulls his ads because of anger toward a particular editorial of an embarrassing news story , that is one thing. But if he pulls his ads because of an utterly stupid and totally uncalled for statement, particularly when it is made by someone who should know better, then either a resignation or public apology is called for. 
"To say that the Daily Iowan's present situation is a disaster would be a gross understatement. But the situation will continue as long as we are faced with a board that ... seems either afraid to exercise that power or more interested in playing games of wit. Not only is the very future of the paper at stake, but also the reputations of various board members who, by their present activities, think they are saving theirs."

Saving...

Saturday, December 19. 1970 P-C DI Budget Cut Reduced; Durham Defends Paper A proposed $3,000 cut in the editorial budget of the Daily Iowan was reduced to $899 Friday in another long and bitter meeting of the student newspaper's publishing board - Student Publications, Inc. Interspersed between budget cuts and hostile exchanges between members of the board and the DI staff was the second resignation of Assistant Publisher Mary Kauppi in less than two months. Mrs. Kauppi submitted her resignation - which was rejected - in the November meeting over differences with controversial Di Editor Leona Durham. This time Mrs. Kauppi said she was resigning because she is getting married Dec. 26 and moving to Michigan. The second resignation was accepted. Publisher Frank Hash, who assumed the Di helm this year with Mrs. Kauppi, had proposed the $3,000 slash in the DI editorial budget to counter a current $24,000 deficit. But after nearly three hours of heated debate, the cut was reduced. The $889 finally whittled from the DI Budget consisted of funds for salaries, operating expenses and photographic needs. Mrs. Kauppi's bid to drop the weekly fine arts page and fire Fine Arts Editor Michael Ryman failed on a 2-4 vote. Another motion to direct Hash, Mrs. Kauppi and Miss Durham to suggest further cuts also failed. "I don't want to go through this a second time," said SPI member George Forelll, director of the UI School of Religion. Miss Durham - who saw herself and her staff severely criticized by Mrs. Kauppi last month - answered the charges Friday by reading a long statement to the board. Miss Durham termed Mrs. Kauppi's attack a "disruptive grandstand play" and argued that "professional journalists would not be in unanimous agreement with her on the quality of the DI." The DI editor - who was fired and then rehired by the board last May - also expressed objections to the cuts. Miss Durham said the budget "neither can nor should be cut," and predicted that "the quality of the newspaper will suffer." She added: "Kauppi does not dictate the contents of the paper. If (Board member David Schoenbaum wants [?] he might recom [?] course of action [?[ commission." The commission [?] studying the "role of the DI at the university. Schoenbaum and Forelll have been the most vocal;DI critics on the board. Other exchanges erupted periodically between the board and Di Managing Editor Amy Chapman and Ryan. Ryan when asked about a bonus fund by SPI Chairman William Albrecht replied "That's very cute." "It's not cute" snarled Albrecht. "It's an honest question." Later in the meeting Albrecht exclaimed. "From what I hear you can make about four times as much working for Burger Chef than you can for the DI. If that's true, then why in the hell is everyone complaining about losing their damn jobs." Carol Ehrlich, a graduate student on the SPI board suggested that Hash and Mrs. Kauppi cut their own salaries to save money. "I don't understand why the publisher and assistant publisher don't allocate cuts for themselves," she said. "It's pretty top heavy salary distribution. If we're going to do it, then I think we should do it all across the line." Some members of the Di staff have expressed resentment over the fact that the $22,000 combined salaries of Hash and Mrs. Kauppi exceeds the wages paid the entire student staff. Schoenbaum earlier had objected to asking Miss Durham for her opinion of the proposed budget cuts. Schoenbaum, a member of the history department cited the "basic inequity" of consulting Miss Durham and not the other department heads. The board did agree to send Miss Durham a copy of the agenda prior to each meeting after Board member Ronald Zobel termed the objection to not getting them "completely val" Forte Gives Views On Iowan Last year's editor of the Daily Iowan has criticized the student newspaper's publishing board and DI editors for their "cavalier attitudes ... toward the traditions and future of the Daily Iowan." Lowell H. Forte, a graduate student from Webster City, recently wrote board members of Student Publications, Inc. and UI President Willard L . Boyd about the controversy surrounding the student newspaper. "I doubt that any soul searching will take place for the board has obviously been more concerned with procuring an activist journal of opinion rather than a good newspaper which provides information as well as intellectual stimulation." Forte wrote. "There is a difference between antagonistic for the sake of being antagonistic and angering people because an issue demands that people be aroused. "Thus the failure is not with the editorial staff per se but with the board itself, particularly certain individual members." Forte cited "so many abstentions on very important votes recently," and said "A (board) member is there to help make decisions. If he or she is not so inclined, they should resign" Forte single out for criticism SPI member David Schoenbaum, a history professor, who referred last month to complaining DI advertisers as "boobs." " Such statements ... can prove more damaging than any 10 things the paper's student staff could do ... When an advertiser pulls his ads because of anger toward a particular editorial of an embarrassing news story , that is one thing. But if he pulls his ads because of an utterly stupid and totally uncalled for statement, particularly when it is made by someone who should know better, then either a resignation or public apology is called for. "To say that the Daily Iowan's present situation is a disaster would be a gross understatement. But the situation will continue as long as we are faced with a board that ... seems either afraid to exercise that power or more interested in playing games of wit. Not only is the very future of the paper at stake, but also the reputations of various board members who, by their present activities, think they are saving theirs."