More WIA problems .. AR Magazine

[VK4ADC]

From text edition for June 30 2019 - VK NATIONAL NEWS BROADCAST ON VK1WIA : http://www.wia.org.au/members/broadcast/wianews/

Also in MP3 edition of news available at: http://www.wia-files.com/podcast/wianews-2019-06-30.mp3

First, Peter VK8ZZ Secretary of the WIA:-

It is with regret that the Board of the Wireless Institute of Australia advises that the services of the Editor of AR Magazine have been terminated, effective immediately.  The apparent values of the editor of AR are not conducive with those of the WIA and the Board has decided that they were unable to continue to work together to meet the goals, objectives and aspirations of the Institute  

The editor of AR Magazine has attempted to hold the Wireless Institute of Australia to ransom by denying the publication of the July  August edition of Amateur Radio magazine. This unilateral action by the editor of AR is considered unconscionable and not at all in the best interests of the membership of the Institute.  The Editor of AR magazine indicated in a letter to the board that he was taking this action over the non-payment of an annual, honorarium of $4000 and unsubstantiated expenses of $1000. He had invoiced the WIA for both of these amounts.

The WIA Finance Committee declined payment as payment of these invoices, previously paid to him over the past few years, as it has been discovered, would breach the ATO (Australian Tax Office) guidelines  for honorariums and expense reimbursement.  The WIA Board has been working towards a mutually satisfactory resolution of this matter with a review that was still underway - the editor was aware of this as work-in-progress. Unfortunately, the letter from the editor received on June 24 preempted the completion of that review.  

An honorarium is an ex gratia payment, i.e., a payment made, without the giver recognizing themselves as having any liability or legal obligation, to a person for his or her services in a volunteer capacity or for services for which fees are not traditionally required. It is a common remuneration practice in schools or clubs.  Honorariums are made at the behest of the organisation not that of the individual. There is no legal, moral or other obligation on the organisation, indeed it is inappropriate, to pay an honorarium on any ongoing basis.  

This action to end the long-term service of the AR editor is not taken lightly by the Board of the WIA and we are greatly saddened. We fully acknowledge the substantive contribution that has been made to the continuation of the long history of the WIAs magazine over many years.  

As an immediate measure the Board has already appointed an Editor-in-Chief, who will oversee AR magazine, the current technical editors, as well as an electronic media publications group - details to be announced shortly.  The intention of the WIA Board is to continue publishing AR magazine with minimal impact to the schedule.  

This has been Peter VK8ZZ Secretary of the WIA

[VK2CSW]

Good grief.

Why do all organisations which rely on volunteer labour inevitably slide into these types of morasses?

Further, from the WIA website:

https://www.wia.org.au/newsevents/news/2.../index.php

Date : 27 / 06 / 2019 
[b]Author : Peter Clee - VK8ZZ[/b]

Summary 

It is with regret that, following a lengthy deliberation, the board has voted to remove Peter Freeman (VK3PF) as the editor of AR Magazine effective immediately. 

The circumstances that surround this decision are reflective of the challenge that has been highlighted several times at the AGM and subsequently regarding the need for the behaviour of the WIA and its volunteers to change to meet the challenges presented by the world in which we find ourselves. 

Dr Harry Edgar (VK6YBZ) has been appointed “Editor in Chief” in a new role that will be an annually appointed board position no different to that of President and Vice President. 

Harry will announce in due course the forward looking strategy for making AR Magazine the best Amateur Radio and Electronics journal in Australia. 

In the meantime the board is working to receive handover from Peter and to ensure the delivery of the next issue of AR Magazine to our members in a timely manner. 

The board would like to thank Peter for his contribution to the WIA and to the hobby of amateur radio over the past 10 years and wish him well in the future. 

Authorised by 
The Board of the WIA 
27th June 2019 


Background 

As some of you would have observed, in previous years the WIA has reported in its financials an expense for “Editors Honorarium”. 

An “Honorarium” is defined by Wikipedia as “an ex gratia payment, i.e., a payment made, without the giver recognising themselves as having any liability or legal obligation, to a person for his or her services in a volunteer capacity or for services for which fees are not traditionally required.” 

In late 2018 the board received an invoice from Peter for $5000 comprising $4000 for the editors honorarium and $1000 for expenses. There was no justification provided for the expenses. 

The finance team rejected this invoice on the basis that: 

  With respect to the honorarium component, an invoice is a demand for payment - The WIA has no liability or legal obligation to “pay” an honorarium. 

  The $1000 of expenses lacked any form of justification - The WIA has a long held policy regarding the payment of volunteer expenses - they always requires justification. 

The finance team escalated this matter to the board in early 2019 and the board undertook significant research on the Australian Tax Office’s position on honorariums and expenses and the historical payment of the same to Peter. 

Following a debate the board concluded that: 

   The manner in which these payments have been made in the past was inconsistent with the nature of the payments. 

   The $1000 unspecified expense claim that had been paid in the past breached the long standing policies of the WIA and must be rejected. 

The board supported the finance teams assessment of the validity of this invoice and, over the course of the early part of the year sought to consider whether an honorarium was appropriate, and if so, what should be its quantum. 

The board considered this matter from two key perspectives: 

   the work undertaken in preparing AR magazine would have been reduced due to the recent shift from 11 issues to 6 issues per year. 

   Financial responsibility given the uncertainty at the time regarding the WIA’s future revenues (This is related to the exam processes being shifted to AMC) 

It was the view of the board at the time that: 

   There was no basis on which the honorarium should continue to be paid at the same rate as the number of issues, and therefore the work required, had been reduced (In later discussions with Peter it was disclosed by him that the work involved was around 20 - 25 hours per issue). 

   The payment of any ex-gratia payment should be held over until there was more certainty regarding future cashflows of the institute. 

In May, 2019, the board had a conference call with Peter and explained this position. It was agreed at that discussion that the board would decide what to do at the June board meeting (Which was held on the evening of the 25th of June.) 

On the 24th of June, Peter emailed the board demanding the immediate payment of the Honorarium threatening to withhold the July / August issue of AR magazine unless it is paid. This letter was sent to all of the members of the WIA board, to the members of the publications team and the broadcast team. 

Having reviewed Peter’s letter the board scheduled a special sitting on the evening of the 26th of June to address this particular matter. It was concluded that the action, by Peter, in seeking to hold the organisation to ransom were: 

   Unconscionable 
   Inconsistent with the values of a volunteer operating in a volunteer capacity 
   Inconsistent with the values of the WIA. 
   representative of the self serving behaviours that have plagued the WIA in the past; and 
   entirely inconsistent with the behaviour our members should expect and demand. 

The board voted unanimously to, effective immediately, remove Peter from his role as editor and to establish a framework that ensures that no single person can hold the organisation to ransom in this way again. 

[VK4ADC]

Now a slightly different slant on AR magazine, probably should be of concern to most WIA members :

From text edition for JULY 14 2019 - VK NATIONAL NEWS BROADCAST ON VK1WIA : http://www.wia.org.au/members/broadcast/wianews/

Also in MP3 edition of news available at: http://www.wia-files.com/podcast/wianews-2019-07-14.mp3


At the recent WIA Open Forum, held during AGM weekend, it was made abundantly clear by the members that "something needed to be done" to ensure the survival of the hobby.

The WIA Board committed to drive a program of change that is intended to return our hobby, which some would call "the original electronics experimenters club" to its rightful position within our community.

For roughly  100 years, (beginning in October, 1933), AR Magazine has been a staple for radio and electronic enthusiasts around Australia. The results of the 2017 boards survey into Amateur Radio clearly demonstrated that, of those who responded, the publication of a stimulating and relevant journal was of utmost importance.

When speaking to members regarding AR Magazine during the recent AGM one of the matters that was repeatedly raised was the slow shift of the journal from being a journal of technical excellence that educates others and demonstrates our contribution to society to one that was becoming more of a social journal.  One member observed that this is not restricted merely to our Journal, and argued that it is representative of the hobby migration from one of technical discovery to that of a social activity. It should be noted that this view was not held by all involved in the discussion with others citing the progressive activities of their clubs to educate and cultivate tomorrows members.

It is the view of your Board that the WIA and its Journal should lead, not lag the community and with a vision of delivering, once again, Australia's premier radio and electronics journal. I am here to ask, on behalf of the Board, and Harry, our recently appointed "Editor in Chief", for your assistance.

The WIA is looking for contributors for the WIA Magazine.    If you have a technical article (whether previously submitted to AR magazine or not), a construction project, or you or your employer are involved in the design, construction, manufacture or delivery of technology or technology based products that you believe would be of interest to the radio and electronics experimenters in Australia we would love to hear from you.

If you can assist, or know someone who can assist, please email wiamag@wia.org.au

The WIA commits to ensuring that submissions are processed promptly if they are received in a publishable format, and to advise you should anything else be required.

With your help we can once again publish Australia's premier journal for radio and electronics enthusiasts.

Thats all from me, this is Aidan, VK4APM

[VK3BA]

G'day Doug,

Firstly, thanks for establishing, running and moderating this forum. It filled a gap when the VK Logger Forum went offline - but then returned last year. So now we have two similar forum sites and I guess like many others, I'm constantly checking both forum sites. But that's how it goes.

Re the AR-Mag, well here are my thoughts...

- The way that it was communicated from the WIA in recent times about the dismissal of the previous editor and from what I've heard from the previous editor, I suspect there's more to come on this as there are two sides to a story and I guess we've only seen one side of it thus far.

- I seem to recall that the previous editor on numerous occasions asked for technical article submissions. I guess not all submitted articles were suitable for publication for various reasons. Personally, I think the previous editor did a fine job for many years given the situation he may have found himself in.

- Is the future publication of AR-Mag relevant in 2019 moving forward?? These days it might just be a handy introduction to newbies and an update of what various clubs and members are up to - a handy tool for the WIA I guess...

- As we've all seen, there's been a great proliferation of technical articles posted on the this and the other forum over the many years. They can be posted instantly with various unlimited detailed diagrams, drawings, photos, etc and then questions, suggestions, improvements and feedback can be provided relatively instantaneously.

- There is of course things such as Facebook as well for various interest groups which may be catering for some radio interests. I've found many of these unsearchable for various radio topics and for at least two years haven't logged in to Facebook as I regard many segments of it as a wasteland and/or gathering place for trolls. But that may change, depends on how bored I become.

- I was listening to the latest VK6 News tonight after the footy and there was a short article based on a comparison of AR-Mag from 50 years ago to what it's been in recent years - mainly in regards to advertising... http://audio.vk6.net/20190714.newswest.mp3 If we look at a lot of print media these days, the amount of advertising is a lot less that what it may have been many years ago. These days we have the internet, search engines, etc.

- I'm no longer a member of the WIA, mainly in protest as to how the boards of recent years have conducted themselves and alleged mismanagement of WIA funds. Therefore I'm hardly in a position to make any suggestions to how the WIA should operate - hence I'll refrain on any further comment on this. But I'm a proud member of Amateur Radio Victoria as they take care of most of the repeaters in Victoria, which I'm a regular user of. I often advocate to those that aren't a member of a club but are users of many repeaters in VK3, that perhaps an easy way for them to contribute is to then become a financial member of Amateur Radio Victoria. But each to their own.

Again, these are only my opinions & thoughts. I look forward to hearing what everyone else thinks about the whole situation.

Cheers,

[VK2CSW]

As someone who types words and edits the words of others for a living, I sympathise with the editorial staff of any publication that relies on copy from 'the membership'.

For me, when looking at Amateur Radio magazine specifically, I see a number of issues that detract from it's overall appeal.

It is trying to fill too many roles, that is to say, who is it aimed at? Who is the audience? I don't know what the WIA sees as the answer to this, but in its current forms the magazine doesn't really feel like it pitches at specific groups particularly well. The editors should consider compartmentalising the magazine more formally by having distinct sections for technical copy, editorial copy, social/club copy and possibly a section for prospective amateurs and/or newcomers.

This newcomer section is problematic because I am not sure that it would be easy to strike a balance between assisting the newcomer and boring them to death when the editors rely on content from random contributors. Many of the newcomer focused articles published over the years have tended to be written in a voice that either feels like an 18th Century headmaster talking to a poorly performed student or the articles feel like they are talking to a six year old. It is a very difficult task for professional writers to get this right, so with amateur contributions it is doubly hard.

This leads to the next issue - a lack of editorial oversight and a lack of editorial direction setting. Publishers use style guides and house policies to inform he way articles are written for their publications. These styles and policies will vary from publication to publication and sometimes from article type to article type. By enforcing these style guides gives the reader a feeling of continuity across their interaction with the magazine.

Enforcing a style guide is pretty easy in a publishing house. This is where editors and sub-editors come in. They edit and proof submissions and work with the writers and authors to massage the copy into shape. In a magazine like Amateur Radio it would be very difficult. The volunteer editors and staff simply do not have the time (or will) to do such a job on each and every article that is submitted. Over the years it has become apparent that many articles aren't even proofread before going to press.

How the WIA overcomes these editorial issues is a difficult thing, production and enforcement of a style guide is probably needed but that is fraught with problems when using membership contributors, as amateur writers do not always appreciate an editors suggestions and directions - it is sometimes seen as a personal affront and leads to many other difficulties.

At the very least the editors need to look at proofing, layout, flow and passive and active voice in articles, along deleting the endless disclaimers contributors feel it is necessary to include in the text - if they are worried about pedants and trolls writing nasty emails and letters to the editors, simply do not publish those emails and letters. Including the disclaimers detract from the meaning of the article and gives the reader a feeling that the writer is timid and unsure of their knowledge.

One tricky issue is the technical vs. social vs. trying attract newcomers balance. It is a very difficult path to tread. I would suggest that a paper magazine is not the ideal place to try and attract younger newcomers as they will have difficulty sourcing it and probably won't have an interest once they do, given the arcane subject matter in most articles.

Given that the editorial staff are volunteer, as are the contributors, it is a mammoth task to get it right and bedded down inside the deadlines - I have no doubt I wouldn't make the grade, so I do applaud those who do and I do appreciate their efforts.

[VK4ADC]

Nik

You are quite right when you mention the dual forum status and the bother of having to check both forums. My only comment - and I have to be careful here - is that the VKLogger forum's presence is not guaranteed ( I suppose this one isn't either really). However the AHRDF domain name is registered until mid 2022 and enjoys hosting courtesy of Overflow Internet Hosting ( OIH.COM.AU ) - plus actually has several administrators and moderators.  It doesn't depend purely on one person - me.
VKLogger seems to be on a year-by-year renewal basis and Adam has previously stated that it is there only while being actively used or until HE decides otherwise.

Regarding AR magazine, well I do look forward to reading it when it arrives now every TWO months but you are right in saying there are other means of distributing articles these days.  Maybe a future alternative to AR might be large technical repository on the WIA web site where all old + new articles are available as separate PDF files for download at NO charge. Add to that separate repositories for activities (VHF/ UHF, Contesting, the state-by-state activities reports) that can easily be added to - yet stays available long after Facebook has forgotten to retain them. 
Personally, I don't have that problem : I simply add my 'things of interest' to my web site at VK4ADC.COM, easy to access and free for everyone.

I joined the WIA back in the mid-1960s and have been a member since then with the exception of some years in the late 80s/ early 90s when I was largely inactive due to workplace conflict issues. I can see value in WIA membership because, despite RASAs recent intrusion, I still think they are the best representative of the amateur service to the ACMA and other government bodies. They have the prior engagement history and they have the membership numbers to confirm that representation. (RASA - who knows ?) I was a WIA Assessor for over 10 years and membership was a mandatory requirement - but that has ceased now. 

I will probably continue my WIA membership because I suspect the fight for bands and modes is going to ramp up over the next few years due to spectrum pressures and the WIA will be fighting that for us. 

Flame suit now set to maximum !! Go for it...

Doug

[VK4AN]

Around the time of the WIA conference in Sydney I inquired as to the commercial rates for advertising in the mag, and I am still waiting for that quote, which might explain why the magazine lacks commercial matter! The magazine info on the WIA website needs an editors look over itself, being a dogs breakfast when it comes to what clubs can do and contacts etc.

I also believe it needs better content regardless of recent events, the recent review of the Icom 9700 is a case in point as it left many wondering if it indeed as an all mode rig, the review was by no means all mode in its scope! Their deadlines are also long, which means content is often old by the time it hits the presses, which does not help.

It shouldn’t be hard to look at what is published in other mags for the WIA to get an idea of what’s needed, although I am not sure we will be seeing an Australian article on why a clean shack is a good shack like the one I saw in a recent copy of Japan’s QST magazine!

[VK5TM]

Also as an editor for a niche magazine that relies on contributions for the content, all I can say is, it can and is hard going.
Not only to get material in the first place but also trying to get it to conform to a style appropriate to the magazine format.

The two things going against paper magazines these days are timeliness of the information (it is usually way out of date by the time it is published) and trying to have the right mix of content to give every reader something of interest, particularly now (as mentioned above) with the almost instant availability of this information on the internet.

Both AR magazine and the ARRL's magazine QST, to me, have the same shortcomings, not a lot of anything that I would call "interesting".

Society news (ie the WIA's news) is usually just a repeat in many cases of what has been posted on the WIA website.

Club news is an area that falls well short. Out of the many clubs Australia wide, very very few submit anything for publication - what, nothing interesting happening in your club?
And don't get me started on club websites, a flame proof suit wouldn't provide any where near enough protection.

Overseas news, well, there hardly is any most times (yes, some may have no interest in what is going on in overseas societies and the hobby in general, but amateur radio is a global hobby, not something restricted to ones own backyard).

Technical information/articles, or lack of, an easily fixed situation where articles from overseas journals could be reprinted (long standing agreements make this a relatively simple and easy task).

Contests, although not one of my interests, seems to be the one area that is more than adequately covered, maybe even to the point of detracting from other content.

Of course comes the biggest problems of all, the lack of volunteers to do something about all of the above and the old boys networks that can't see past the end of their collective noses.

It doesn't matter what club/organisation/body of any hobby/sport/community organisation etc you belong to, it is ALWAYS the same few people that do all work while the rest sit back and watch and twiddle their thumbs while moaning about how much better things could be if only.......

As for getting new entrants into amateur radio, there are (to my mind) only two areas where a foothold could be established.

Firstly and most importantly is the younger generation - those still at school.

There are "some" clubs that do very well in this area in terms of "taking it to the kids". But more need to get out there and do this sort of promotion.
Despite the perceived image of modern kids, there are still many that like the "nerdy" stuff, you just need to spark the interest of a few and it will have a snowball affect (I met a young lad of 11/12 the other day that got his Foundation license 12 months ago and his younger brother is now showing an interest).

Second group are those about to be or are newly retired. A lot of people in this group have been too busy during their working lives to take up a hobby and are now looking for something to fill their time.

I don't see any point in making a major point of targeting those in between these two groups, in this modern world, they don't have the time nor the money to pursue a long term hobby.

Unfortunately, we now have the situation that will more than likely kill any meaningful increase in the amateur population, the absurdly expensive cost of getting a license and a ridiculously convoluted system of getting one for those that persevere.

Flameproof suit? Nah, can't be bothered.

[VK3RX]

I don't mind reading WIA news in AR, because I rarely look at the WIA website.

From reading around there are obviously quite a number of locals working on technical projects of varying degrees of complexity and other interesting things, but as far as contributing articles to AR, unfortunately some either have an anti-WIA viewpoint, or as I recall one saying he thought AR and printed magazines were an anachronism and seemingly for those reasons wouldn't contribute.

I subscribe to a number of printed and electronic-only magazines and bulletins, and I find that I read the printed ones far more closely and repeatedly. The mags lie around in the shack or lounge and get picked up often, whereas the digital versions tend to get skimmed once on arrival then very rarely looked at again. Arriving electronically means they turn up with everything else that needs attention.

Yes, editorially AR needs refocussing, including sourcing articles from overseas journals - electronic ones included - and more for newcomers and club news also would be a start.

[VK4AN]

The editors note in the new edition makes for interesting reading, which I will reprint here to save folk from having to venture over to the dark side......

 Editorial 

You will all be aware by now that changes have taken place in the management of the production/editorial team of the AR magazine. These changes have provided an opportunity to review the operation and content of our Journal and make it, once again, Australia’s premier electronics and amateur radio publication. 

In order to achieve this the future magazine needs a faster turnaround, increased technical value (for example, the number and style of technical articles) and a unified supporting online/digital approach. The editorial process will be undergoing changes to streamline the review process and remove the barriers to publication that have existed in the past. Some new articles of interest to the wider community of electronic, digital and radio technical developers will be added to increase the reach of the journal. 

We will be developing an upgrade in style, content and advertising for the magazine and it will be supported by content sourced through and within the digital and social media environment. A team of Digital Content Technical Editors and technical support has been appointed to ensure material is fast-tracked into the digital space that is relevant content and quickly available to readers. Material will be selected from the digital channel for inclusion in print media with those who have contributed articles, that will be published in AR, with contributors rapidly notified so that they can participate in the publishing process. Accordingly, we will be seeking expressions of interest for additions to both the Digital Technical Editor team as well as those of Technical Editors for the print material. If you are forward thinking with an interest in getting exciting new information to aspiring and current electronic, digital and radio amateurs please contact me on vk6ybz@wia.org.au. 

In addition to new articles of broader interest you will see, an exciting new regular multi-page inclusion that will be called Amateur Foundations focussed entirely on the delivery of resources to aspirant and early stage operators. This will include regular material from Onno Benschop (VK6FLAB). 

I hope you will look forward to receiving your new look journal and follow us regularly on social media.

http://www.wia.org.au/members/armag/2019/july/

[VK3RX]

Good to see.

We hope it all pans out.

[VK3BQ]

there is now an alternative Australian AR magazine, called QTC, online and free, you can get a copy here

https://www.qtcmag.com