Like most of my reading responses, several focused on the differences between the Setonian and other, larger student newspapers. I wrote about how some people on staff write a "how to" guide for their particular position, as opposed to a full manual. I didn't know that there was a staff manual. I've been on the staff for three years and I have not seen it or heard of it. I guess that shows how useful it is to everyone. The author also gave suggestions on the process one could go through to become an editor. I wrote about how there isn't any competition for position on the Setonian, so no formal application is necessary.
This section of the book was focused on the legal problems that newspaper can run into. Libel is a big concern and I learned that it really only applies to people who aren't already in the public eye. Politicians can be bashed in opinion editorials and letters to the editor, but their young children, for example, are typically not commented on. I disagreed with the author when it was suggested that possible topics for a student newspaper could be about websites that rate teachers and the comments they have. Those kind of subjects are more for gossip and pop magazines. Obscenity was another controversial issue. Though you shouldn't remove words from people's quotes, removing obscene language keeps the newspapers classy.
It's not actually a staff manual -- they are two separate documents, one written by a former business manager, and the other by a former editor-in-chief, and they're extremely useful documents for those particular jobs (though, as I said last time, they could use some updates).
A staff manual sounds like a good possibility for a future EL200 class project, though I'd probably want to do it during a semester when the editor-in-chief was taking EL200.
I heard of the manual-wasn't Stormy's last EL200 project to revise it. As I recall, she showed it to us during our final meeting.
Ratemyprofessor.com or Ratemyteacher.com are not newsworthy-there are always going to be people that dislike professors. No one can be liked all the time. However, students should still watch what they say, since I'm sure there's a way to find out the identity of the post's author. Bitch sessions do not belong in a newspaper-save that for AIM.