The Constitution of Noise@UNSW

1. Definitions & Nature

1.1 General Definitions

Unless stated otherwise, in this document:

• Noise, Noise@UNSW, and The Journal all refer to the publication named Noise@UNSW.

• The Website means the website https://noiseatunsw.com, as well as any of its subdomains.

• The Editorial Team refers to all Students defined in Section 2.

• Coordinators refers to the three executive positions of Noise.

• Correspondents (i.e. Law correspondent, SRC Correspondent, Arc Sport Correspondent, etc.) refers to the appointed managers of Noise’s subcommittees, who are charged with approving the publication of low-urgency content and overseeing reportage on topics in their relevant section of UNSW.

• The Editors refer to the complete set of Students defined in Section 2.2. Editor(s) refers to any individual or subset of this set.

• The Executives, The Managing Editors, and The Coordinators refers to the complete set of students defined in Section 2.4. The singulars of these terms can refer to any individual or subset of this set.

• Ordinary Resolution means any vote where half plus one eligible votes are cast in favour of a particular outcome.

• Special Resolution means any vote where 2 of every 3 eligible votes, plus one eligible vote, are cast in favour of a particular outcome.

• Student(s) means any individual(s) enrolled in at least 6 Units of Credit (or, if the definition of Unit of Credit changes, then 0.125 FTSE as defined by TEQSA) in any given term of the university year AND is progressing towards a UNSW-Issued Qualification AND holds less than 0.125 fractional appointed teaching hours in any given academic term.

• UNSW-Issued Qualification refers to a:

  • Bachelor’s Degree,

  • Non-Graduate Diploma,

  • Graduate Diploma or Certificate,

  • Doctoral Degree (by coursework or research), or

  • Masters Degree (by coursework or research)

​ that is issued under the University of New South Wales Act, or the University Preparation Program.

• Staff means individual(s) defined by the University of New South Wales By-Laws to be Academic Staff or Non-Academic Staff for the purposes of appointment to UNSW Council, excluding those who meet the criteria for Students.

• Woman means any individual who considers themselves to be a woman.

• Gender Diverse Person means any individual who considers themselves to be gender diverse.

• Working Days means any day from Monday to Friday (inclusive), excluding:

  • Days falling within the UNSW Annual Shutdown Period, and

  • Any day which, on the academic calendar used by the majority of UNSW students (currently the T academic calendar) is designated as an Exam Period EXCEPT the Exam Period designated for the Summer Term.

• Any word that is in Bold text must ONLY be interpreted according to its definition in Section 1.

• Unless specified otherwise, “or” should be interpreted to be inclusive (i.e. equivalent to and/or).

1.2 The Purpose of Noise

Noise@UNSW is a student-run organisation which works to address the issues faced by UNSW students. Noise must retain an editorial which regularly reports on these issues, and provides general advice on student advocacy.

2. Structure

2.1 General Composition

Noise shall be composed of:

• 3 Elected Coordinators,
• A general body of editors, and
• Subcommittees reporting to the coordinators, including:
  • 3 Appointed EDM/Grievance Officers, and
  • Correspondents for:
• Arts, Design and Media
• Social Sciences, Humanities, Languages
• Law & Justice
• Business
• Engineering
• Medicine
• Science
• UNSW Governance (Academic Board, CIO, etc)
• Arc Governance (including SRC and Arc Board)
• Arc Clubs
• Arc/UNSW Sport
• Postgraduates
• Paddington Campus
• Canberra Campuses

2.2 The Nature of the Editors

The editors exist to curate the content published in Noise, as well as to provide a consistent source of content for the editorial. Media Contributors and Editors differ only in the nature of their responsibilities and eligibility criteria, but have all the same rights. An individual may hold both positions at once, but only retains 1 vote to each Resolution.

2.2.1 The Rights of Editors and Media Contributors

Each editor has the right to:

• Publish in Noise (as outlined in Section 3), AND
• Review material before publication (as outlined in Section 3), AND
• Vote (as outlined in Section 4), AND
• Run for Executive positions (as outlined in Section 4).

2.2.2 The Responsibilities of the Editors

Each editor is required to:

• Produce at least 1 article in any 3 month period during their time as editor, AND
• Not violate any of the terms outlined in the Regulations, AND
• Review at least 1 article in any 3 month period.

An editor who does not meet all of the above criteria is immediately removed from their post, and must complete the requirements of 2.2.3 to re-engage in their position. Any of the requirements may instead be considered non-compulsory expectations for an individual by Ordinary Resolution of the editorial team.

Each editor is also expected to:

• Vote in general matters (as outlined in Section 4), AND
• Engage with community members to identify potential coverage topics.

2.2.3 Eligibility to become an Editor

All Editors of Noise must meet the following criteria:

• Be an individual, AND
• Be a Student, AND
• Have not been removed as an Editor or Media Contributor through Section 6, AND
• Have published a minimum of 2 articles in Noise OR Be endorsed by at least 3 current editors AND have 1 article published in Noise.

An Ordinary Resolution may permit any of the above criteria, other than being an individual, to be ignored for a specific person. This resolution must include a time limit for the individual to also meet the ignored criteria. If they fail to do so, they will be considered no longer an Editor.

2.2.4 The Responsibilities of Media Contributors

Each media contributor is required to:

• Contribute to the social media assets of at least 1 published article, AND
• Not violate any of the terms outlined in the Regulations.

A media contributor who does not meet all of the above criteria is immediately removed from their post, and must complete the requirements of 2.2.5 to re-engage in their position. Any of the requirements may be considered non-compulsory expectations for an individual by Ordinary Resolution of the editorial team.

Each media contributor is also expected to:

• Vote in general matters (as outlined in Section 4), AND
• Engage with community members to identify potential coverage topics.

2.2.5 Eligibility to become a Media Contributor

All media contributors must meet the following criteria:

• Be an individual, AND
• Be a Student, AND
• Have not been removed as an Editor or Media Contributor through Section 6, AND
• Have some demonstration of their graphics design abilities available (this may include contributions to prior Noise assets), which will be assessed by the Coordinators.

An Ordinary Resolution may permit any of the above criteria, other than being an individual, to be ignored for a specific person. This resolution must include a time limit for the individual to also meet the ignored criteria. If they fail to do so, they will be considered no longer a Media Contributor.

2.3 Confirmation of Appointment

On reaching the criteria outlined in 2.2 for a position as Editor or Media Contributor, an individual must contact the Coordinators with linked, attached, or embedded evidence that all relevant criteria are met. The Coordinators are required to respond within 10 business days. Coordinators may deny an applicant only on the grounds outlined above.
Any current Editor or Media Contributor may request an Ordinary Resolution for an individual’s application criteria to be modified in accordance with 2.2.3 or 2.2.5, depending on which position is being applied for.
No Editor appointed within 14 days of a Coordinator election may run for the position.

2.4 The Coordinators

The coordinators exist to maintain organisation within the Editorial team, and ensure compliance with the Regulations. The role is both administrative and executive. Coordinators are NOT precluded from their role as an Editor and/or Media Contributor.

A coordinator’s term is for ONE academic year. No individual may be a coordinator for more than 25 months in any 36 month period.

In addition to any other responsibilities outlined in the Regulations, the Coordinators are required to:

• Maintain a list of current editors and media contributors, including contact information, AND
• Provide at least 1 avenue of communication between all editors and media coordinators, as well as at least 1 avenue of communication to the Grievance Officers, AND
• Maintain avenues of correspondence with other student and general media outlets, AND
• Produce an annual “State of Noise” press release outlining the membership, subscriber counts, and financial status of Noise alongside any other information they believe is relevant, AND
• Appoint 3 EDM/Grievance Officers from the Editorial Team within the first 3 weeks of their term, AND
• Produce handover documents for future Coordinators, AND
• Maintain an archive of non-private information collected by Noise, AND
• Run an Annual General Meeting in the 4th Quarter of the year.

Additionally, Coordinators must continue to meet all the requirements to maintain their position as an editor/media contributor (see 2.2.3 and 2.2.5).
Coordinators cannot receive exceptions to any of the above responsibilities. They are expected to distribute these responsibilities amongst themselves.

3. Publishing

Articles that bear potential risk to Noise’s journalistic integrity or standing within the UNSW student community must be approved as described below.

3.1. Censorship of Noise content will occur where the relevant Noise Coordinator or Correspondent believe the content:

1. Is poorly written or edited material as per Appendix A.
2. Breaches the MEAA Journalists’ Code of Ethics.
3. Is discriminatory on the basis of sex, gender, sexuality, race and ethnicity, religion or disability.
4. Contains excessively graphic depictions of violence, gore or pornography.
5. May result in civil or criminal liability for Noise, including but not limited to defamation, contempt, obscenity, indecency, pornography.
6. Breaches copyright law.
7. Poses a danger to the privacy of any individual or individuals, including revealing their address, zID, income etc.
8. Undermines the working relationships between Noise and UNSW organisations.
9. Unnecessarily or unreasonably asperses Noise.

3.2. It is reasonable and/or necessary to publish content critical of Noise where:

1. The published content is substantially true; and,
2. The content reflects the genuine opinion or perspective expressed by a UNSW student; and,
3. The content concerns a matter of public interest to the UNSW student community; and,
4. The content is based on existing information which is:
5. Set out in specific or general terms within publication; or,
6. Accessible from a reference, link or other access point included in the matter (for example, a hyperlink on a webpage); or,
7. Otherwise apparent from the context in which the matter is published.

3.3. Noise content will be submitted for approval in accordance with the following metric.

1. Content marked as ‘Urgent’ will be approved no more than 12 hours after submission, or at the first interval of 11am or 5 pm after that period.
2. Content marked as ‘Important’ is not necessarily of less significance or importance than an article marked as ‘Urgent’, where a long-form investigative piece is produced over several weeks or months and is thus not timely in nature.
3. Content marked as ‘Low’ or ‘Very Low’ may be approved by the relevant correspondent. All other content must be approved by at least two Editors.
4. Content that is satirical in nature is of a significance one level lower than would otherwise be applicable. For example, an article that criticises UNSW or entities within them but does so in a satirical manner should be marked as ‘Medium’.

All articles, unless specified otherwise in the constitution, regulations, or publishing guidelines, must be approved by at least 2 editors prior to publication, in addition to the original author(s). Approvals are required for all formats of a particular post prior to publication.

3.5. Articles may be submitted for approval upon the cessation of the Primary Editing Period (see Appendix A).

3.6. In the event that any section of a piece of content is censored under 3.1 above, a Noise member or contributor may appeal to the Noise Coordinators and Correspondence Subcommittee, who shall have final jurisdiction by vote after consultation with the relevant parties.

3.7. ‘Letters to the Editor’ may be censored only so far as it may involve Noise in breach of any legislation, or in civil or criminal liability.

3.8. Visual or literary depictions of sexual acts may be published where their inclusion is artistic, or intended to bolster an authorial argument.

1. Any content that contains graphic depictions of violence, gore or sexual acts will require prior approval before publishing. A content warning must also be provided in all formats of the article.

3.9. The Coordinators are required to maintain a set of Publishing Guidelines, which should be considered an extension of this section for the current year.

3.10. Criticism of non-affiliated organisations requires that the writer of the article provide a minimum of 2 business days’ notice to the organisation being criticised, with a request for a comment in response to the claims made. A distinction should be made between a lack of reply and an explicit statement not to comment. Unless the comment is in contempt of the constitution, the entire comment must be included in at least 1 version of the article.

3.11. Noise should maintain an impartial stance on any political issues, except those that directly affect UNSW students, or those that platform an underrepresented student voice. 3.12. Political campaigns (including campaigns for SRC, Arc Board, Club executive positions, UNSW Boards or Committees), gambling, insurance and financial products, pharmacy products, and services which enable academic misconduct must not be promoted (via advertising or any other means) in any Noise publication.

3.13. Editors must declare any affiliations with societies or political parties prior to their involvement with Noise, and must not be the primary author or reviewer of any Noise publication which covers the body/bodies they are affiliated with.

3.14. Noise content should focus on matters of the SRC, PGC, Arc Board, UNSW Faculty, UNSW Council, and UNSW Academic Board elections where possible. However, candidates in these elections and individuals who currently hold these positions must not be the primary author or reviewer.

3.15. The authorship of an article must be disclosed unless:

• More than 3 people are involved in the writing of the article;
• The coordinators have approved the anonymity of the writer AND legal aid has confirmed that anonymity can be maintained; or
• The content is an announcement or update of the Noise project.

3.16. For all content published in Noise, material developed for the purposes of publishing remains the copyright and intellectual property of the original creator(s). However, the creator grants Noise a non-exclusive, non-transferable license to the work with rights to reproduce the work in a material form, to publish the work, and to communicate the work to the public. This license may be revoked by the original creator at any time, in which case any currently available versions published by Noise (including in online content) must be removed within 10 academic days.

3.17. Advertising must not exceed 25% of any given page of print versions, and must not exceed 10% of any web page (except in cases where the level of advertising cannot be controlled, such as social media).

3.18. No material which is defamatory, subject to liability, or in breach of copyright shall be published in Noise without the approval of the individual or organisation from whom a potential risk comes from.

3.19. Content, including both written and visual works, produced solely or partially with the use of generative AI tools may not be published in Noise.

4. Elections and Voting Procedures

1. For a candidate to nominate themselves for an executive position within Noise, they must:
2. Be an Editor for the current academic year, AND
3. Not have held the position they are nominating for more than 24 of the last 36 calendar months, AND
4. Reasonably expect to remain a UNSW student for the entire duration of their term in the role.
5. Elections must have at least 21 days notice provided, with nominations closing no less than 14 days prior to the election.
6. This is reduced to 14 days notice and no less than 7 days between the close of nominations and elections in the case where a standing executive is removed, resigns, or is otherwise unable to fulfil their duties for the remainder of their term, or where a temporary executive is required to fulfil the role of a standing executive.
7. A ranked-preferential voting system will be used for all elections.
8. A returning officer must be appointed for all elections.
9. The returning officer must not be a candidate in the election.
10. The returning officer is responsible for ensuring that all election procedures are followed, and for counting the votes.
11. Each candidate may elect to have ONE (1) scrutineer confirm that all votes have been tallied correctly.
12. Scrutineers may not be candidates in the same election.
13. Scrutineers must not have access to the names, zIDs, or any other personally identifiable information of the voters.
14. If greater than 50% of appointed scrutineers disagree with the returning officer on the election result, a re-count must be called with a new Returning Officer appointed.
15. Subsection c does not apply if there are less than 3 scrutineers.
16. A standing committee for each election is comprised of the returning officer and all scrutineers for that election.
17. The standing committee may, from time to time, request legal aid to join the committee.
18. The standing committee is chaired by the Returning Officer.
19. The standing committee may not include any person or persons who are candidates in the election.
20. The standing committee may, by majority vote (50%), elect to penalise a candidate for up to 25% of their votes in the case that they violate some element of the election rules.
21. The standing committee may, by supermajority vote (2/3rds), elect to disqualify a candidate in the case that they violate some element of the election rules.
22. In the case that an exact fraction is met for any vote, it is assumed that the vote fails.
23. Standing committee members may not vote on any decision which could eliminate or penalise the candidate which nominated them.
24. All members of the standing committee are assumed to approve the vote results if they do not dispute the election result provided by the returning officer.

6. Grievances and Dispute Resolution

Grievances and disputes are to be handled in accordance with the Grievance and Dispute Resolution policy.