The former president of the Communication Studies Students’ Association has taken issue with the club’s decision to charge $10 for a previously free event.
Meagan Rènah expressed her disapproval of the decision to charge for a taping and exclusive sit-down with CBC’s George Stroumboulopoulos on the CSSA’s Facebook page and directed comments at the group’s Twitter account.
Sarah Adams, the current the CSSA president, is aware that Stroumboulopoulos Tonight tapings are always free and says she understands the concerns of CSSA members.
“We are going as a group and getting an exclusive interview with him,” Adams explains. “The money that we are raising is going towards getting a gift for George and for the person who set this event up.”
Other former CSSA members also expressed their disagreement with the decision on the association’s original Facebook post; the entire post was later deleted.
The CSSA responded to Rènah and other students with an official Facebook post, and spoke to Excalibur to discuss the club’s decisions.
Rènah says her and the others’ comments on the Facebook post were deleted before the entire post was taken down.
“They effectively censored us. They may disagree with our comments, but there was no need to remove them,” says Rènah.
In their official response on Facebook, the CSSA addressed the original post and the negative feedback they had received.
“We promise our CSSA members we are not cheating them and taking their money for personal gain,” read the post, going on to acknowledge that while Stroumboulopoulos Tonight tapings are normally free, the $10 fee would allow them entry into the “exclusive interview.” The post also explained that the money collected from fees would go towards a networking gala, future events. prizes, thank you gifts, and other expenses.
Adams doesn’t know why last year’s CSSA executive team didn’t charge for the show. She notes that this year, memberships are free. The majority of last year’s members had to pay a flat fee of $10 to be part of the student association.
“We have to charge for events,” Adams says. “The rest of the money is going to go to our events and back into the club. It is not for our own personal gain.”
Tickets for George Stroumboulopoulos Tonight tapings are free and completely open to the public. Last year, members of the CSSA attended a taping of the show for free but didn’t receive an exclusive interview and instead took part in an audience Q&A.
This year, the CSSA has tickets for a taping on November 5. They will not be providing transportation and members will have to meet at the CBC’s downtown headquarters on their own.
Rènah says asking members to pay for an event that was free the year before is unnecessary and unfair to students.
Teresa Vuong, the director of advertising and marketing for the CSSA, says the association is looking to host more events this year, which will also cost more money.
“As we are recalculating certain events and planning for the year, we realized that we do need more funds than previous years,” says Vuong. “During our meet-and-greet we spoke to new members and asked how they would feel about it, and a lot of them were fine with it.”
The George Stroumboulopoulos Tonight will happen as planned.
“Members have spoken and don’t have a problem,” says Adams. “If students have a problem, they are more than welcome to contact us directly.”
