How to Bring a Speaker

Bringing a speaker to UT is a great way to create dialogue about your group and the issues it deals with. It's a good idea to plan for at least one big speaker every year.

First, contact the speaker and discuss available dates. Try not to set the date for a Friday, Saturday, or Sunday. Students are more likely to attend on a weeknight.

After you set the date, make a timeline of what you need to get done before the event. Pace yourself and don't leave everything to the last two weeks.

You'll have to reserve a space on campus for the event. Room reservations must be made in the SSB (see Section III). Speakers generally require an auditorium (rooms like GAR 1 and the CMA auditorium are good for speakers).

Make a budget. You'll need to find out where the speaker will be staying, flight estimates, food costs, and the speaker's fee. You can find this info on the web. Once you have the budget, you can start asking for money.

Ask for funding from the Texas Union Events Co-sponsorship Committee. The ECC has funding for events on campus. Applications are available at the Student Activities Center Desk (4th floor of the Texas Union) and must be submitted no later than two weeks prior to the program. They could run out of money before they get to you, so apply early. For more information call 475-6648.

You can also apply for funding with the University Residence Hall Association. Go by their office (located in Jester West #0006) or download the application online http://www.utexas.edu/students/urha. You must turn in your application the Friday before their next meeting, and they only meet every other week.

You'll have to make a short presentation to the ECC and the URHA before they will approve you for the amount you request. In the presentation you must stress the importance of the issue and impact your speaker will have on the university community. Emphasize how your group will attract different types of students at UT. See sample ECC application attached.

Once you are approved, you need to begin publicizing your event. This is usually part of the budget and ECC will fund that. You can design flyers and posters in the Graphics Lab in the Texas Union on the 4th floor (see Section VIII).

Advertise your event:

1. By tabling
2. On the UT calendar of events
3. On KVRX Student radio as a Public Service Announcement (495-5879). Free.
4. In the Daily Texan, the Austin American Statesman, and the Chronicle for free (see Austin Media List for contact information). You can also purchase quarter-page ad space in these papers. Budget them into your funding applications; you may be able to have them paid for.
5. On any listserves you belong to. A good one to post on is the NoWar list. It is a progressive events list for Austin, with thousands of members. Email Rahul, rahul@peaches.ph.utexas.edu. Also publicize it on the Austin Peace and Justice Coalition listserv. Email Austin_PJC@yahoo.com
6. Contact other student groups around campus who might be interested and attend their meetings to advertise your event. Ask if they can post announcements to their list-serves as well.

A few days before the event you should send a news release to the Daily Texan to let them know about the event (see Section X). Speakers sponsored by student groups make good stories for the University section of the paper.

Keep in contact with your speaker in the planning process. Keep her/him updated on flight times and numbers, sleeping accommodations, and date and time of the event.

Confirm your room reservation a few days before the event and make sure the sound system in the room is working properly.

The day of the event:

o The day of the event: Arrive at the room one hour ahead of time. Set up the equipment you will be using and make sure it works. Lay out literature on a table at the back of the room, or outside the room. Lay out books (especially if the speaker has published) to sell for fundraising.
o As people arrive: Be at the door to greet people. Hand them a program (if you made some) or any related literature. Circulate a sign-up sheet.
o When the event begins: Introduce yourself and mention your group and any other groups that may have co-sponsored the event. Introduce the speaker and thank him/her. After the presentation, monitor the Q&A for time purposes. When the Q&A is over, thank the speaker and everyone in the audience for coming. Ask if everyone had the chance to sign the sign-up sheet and remind them of the table at the back. Urge them to get involved with the issue discussed and let them know how they can.
o After the event: Write a follow-up letter summarizing the event and post it to the e-mail list. Suggest any actions members can take to get involved. Write a short thank-you to the speaker.

Films and Film Series

Films:

Set a date for the film screening and reserve a room for the screening. If the film is long (1-2 hours) and a large audience is expected, you can reserve the Union Theater. Reservations for all facilities within the Union are made at the Reservations Office (room 4.300B). Call 475-6677 for more information. If the film is short (under 20 min.) you may want to show it at your general meetings.

Follow the same publicity procedures as you did for bringing a speaker. You may or may not wish to apply for funding with the ECC. If this is your big event for the year, go for it. It will help with advertising. If you plan on bringing a speaker later in the year, hold off on asking for funds for your film event. The ECC probably won't give you money for two events (unless they are really great events that can bring a huge crowd). However, the URHA may be willing to give you money for more than one event. Apply for funds with them for every event you have on campus.

Film Series:

If you have several films that you want to show, it may be a good idea to set up a semester-long film series. Showing films twice a month is great way to get people involved in your group and to get people talking about the issues your group deals with.

A good example of a successful film series is the "Free the Media" film series that was held in Spring 2001. A different film regarding media issues was shown bi-monthly. It generated a large audience and opened up some great dialogue concerning the problems with corporate-owned media.

To put on a film series you must make a timeline and a list of all films you will show during the semester. Show the films in the same room, at the same time, and on the same night of the week each time.

You can advertise in the same way as the speaker event and film screening, but since this is a semester-long event, you will have to go a little further. Update the PSA's at the radio station and newspapers. Also, list the entire semester's film schedule on your webpage. Make sure you send reminders to your list serve at least 3 or 4 days before the film.

Show up to each film night 30 minutes early to set up and to test the tape and the equipment. Make sure there are enough chairs and that the TV screen is visible from everywhere in the room. After the film is over, open up the floor for questions and comments. Monitor the discussion, and if it's going slow, start talking about an interesting point and get people involved. At the end, remind people of your next film in the series and give a quick synopsis of what it's about. Direct people to your literature table and make sure everyone has signed the sign-up sheet.

Always have a sign-up sheet and a table of literature at every event.

(SAMPLE ECC APPLICATION)

The Propaganda Model:

Some Contemporary Applications

A lecture by Edward S. Herman

Submitted to the Events Co-Sponsorhip Committee
by the Alliance for Media Reform
11/29/00

(SAMPLE ECC APPLICATION CONT.)

Table of Contents

Introduction and Speaker's Biography
Answer to Questions in CRB Application form
Budget

Speaker's Bibliography

(SAMPLE ECC APPLICATION CONT.)

Introduction and Speaker Bio

We live in a media culture. Our lives revolve around interaction with media: the newspapers we read, television we watch, music we listen to and advertisements we see everywhere. Because media plays such a major role in our lives, it is crucial that we understand how it is created, and how it affects us. Edward S. Herman is in a unique position to help us understand these issues.

After earning a Ph.D. in economics from the University of California, Berkeley, Herman joined the faculty at the Wharton School of the University of Pennsylvania and for 30 years taught courses in micro and macro economics and financial regulation. In addition to work on economics and political economy, Herman has become widely known for his research and writing on U.S. foreign policy and media analysis. He also taught courses on "The Political Economy of the Mass Media" and "The Analysis of Media Bias" at the Annenberg School of Communication at the University of Pennsylvania for a decade.

Herman combines his extensive, diverse experience to explain the politics and economics that go into defining what is "news." In Manufacturing Consent, his groundbreaking work with Noam Chomsky, he develops the idea of "filters" that shape the news stories we see on television or in the paper. Herman merges theoretical concepts with concrete data and analysis to examine media coverage. Herman's propaganda model laid the foundation for much contemporary media analysis.

As a professor emeritus of finance, Herman has maintained his active writing and public speaking schedule. In his lecture, "The Propaganda Model: Some Contemporary Applications," Herman will use the propaganda model to explain recent news events such as the presidential election, NAFTA, and the chemical industry and its regulation. How were these stories covered? How can we explain the final news product, and understand it better?

To participate in a democracy, we need information to make our decisions. Herman presents a compelling argument that we must critically examine the information we rely on, and question the impact it has on our lives.

(SAMPLE ECC APPLICATION CONT.)

Answers to Questions in CRB Application Form

1. What are the goals and purpose of this program?

Media is something that affects absolutely everyone. The goal of the program, then, is to encourage discussion of how media affects our lives. Specifically, the program aims to explain how contemporary news events are reported, and how to critically examine the information we are presented. Inviting a nationally recognized expert in the field gives the entire UT community -- faculty, staff, administrators, and students -- an opportunity to critically examine the information we are presented everyday.

2. What is the anticipated demographics and size of the audiences of this program?

We will book a campus auditorium for Herman's main public lecture. We anticipate an audience of 200 to 300 people (note: the event actually drew over 400!).

Herman's talk will be of special interest to students in the College of Communication. However, Herman has a diverse background and is recognized for his work in economics, political economy and foreign policy. In addition to journalism, RTF and advertising students, Herman will draw students from American studies, public affairs, finance, economics and government. We also expect significant attendance from the local professional journalism community and media-related fields. Finally, the lecture will be of interest to the general public, and we will do publicity and outreach in the community.

3. Please provide background research information (give summary of places this event has occurred and past attendance).

Herman has lectured both in the United States and abroad for more than three decades. Although he takes a critical stance toward institutions in the culture, he is known for his ability to connect with audiences that include a wide range of people and political opinions. That is due in large part to his exhaustive research and thoughtful analysis. Herman's lectures are grounded in careful study, not polemics.

Among his recent lecture topics have been:
"Media Evolution and the Erosion of the Public Sphere"
"Privatizing Public Space"
"The Market Versus Democracy: NAFTA, the WTO, and the New Corporate Sovereignty"
"The Media Versus Democracy"
"From Security to Insecurity State"

4. Please provide an itemized budget for the program on the attached sheet.

(SAMPLE ECC APPLICATION CONT.)

Budget

Talent Fee: $500

Air Fare: $400

Hotel: $200 (Paid by the department of journalism)

Venue rental: no charge (Campus Auditorium)
Sound/Lights: $150 (Paid by the department of journalism)

Posters/Flyers: $250
Chronicle ad: $550

No admission charge.

Co Sponsorships:
Department of Journalism ($350)
Cosponsors' contribution: will pay for food, local transportation, hotel, venue rental, sound/lights and incidental expenses of speakers.

Total request to ECC: $1,700

(SAMPLE ECC APPLICATION CONT.)

UT Organizations

1. Alliance for Media Reform
Contact: XXX
E-mail: representative@SLF.com
Phone: 512-453-3841

The Alliance for Media Reform is a student organization that encourages discussion of media-related issues through public lectures and informal meetings. Early this year, the organization brought Jim Hightower, nationally-syndicated radio host and author, to speak to the UT community. The group will also be sponsoring a video-and-discussion series on media topics this spring.

2. National Association of Black Journalists- UT
Contact: XXX
E-mail: representative@SLF.com

The student chapter of the National Association of Black Journalists works to increase awareness of racial issues in the media, and to assist black journalists in their career goals. NABJ offers: a job fair, resume workshops, internship information sessions, and brown-bag lunches with professionals. Students also bring speakers to the University to discuss journalism-related issues. Most recently Pamela Newkirk, journalist and well-known scholar of race studies, spoke at the University and drew many students, faculty and local journalists.

(SAMPLE ECC APPLICATION CONT.)

Ed Herman Bibliography

Books
Among his 22 published books are:

The Political Economy of Human Rights (2 vols, with Noam Chomsky, South End Press, 1979).

Corporate Control, Corporate Power (Cambridge University Press, 1981).

Demonstration Elections: U.S.-Staged Elections in the Dominican Republic, Vietnam, and El Salvador (with Frank Brodhead, South End Press, 1984).

Manufacturing Consent: The Political Economy of the Mass Media (with Noam Chomsky, Pantheon, 1988).

The "Terrorism" Industry (with Gerry O'Sullivan, Pantheon, 1990).

Beyond Hypocrisy: Decoding the News in an Age of Propaganda, With a Doublespeak Dictionary (South End Press, 1992).

Triumph of the Market: Essays on Economics, Politics, and the Media (South End Press, 1995).

The Myth of the Liberal Media: An Edward Herman Reader (Peter Lang, 1999).

Most recently he published Degraded Capability: Media Coverage of the Kosovo War (co-edited with Philip Hammond, Pluto Press, 2000.)

Regular "Fog Watch" column in the monthly Z Magazine.

Published numerous articles on economics, finance, foreign policy, and media analysis in a wide array of professional and popular journals.