LETTER FROM THE EXECUTIVE BOARD

Greetings, Reporters!

We, the Executive Board of the International Press Corps at the Sir Mutha Model United Nations Conference 2023, wholeheartedly welcome all the reporters for the 5th edition and thank you for participating in this conference.

Each and everybody has the right to freedom of thought and expression, which includes the freedom to hold beliefs without interference and to look for, receive, and share information and ideas via any means and without regard to geographical limitations. Journalists provide a vital service by disseminating information and shedding light on global events. Their reporting fosters the understanding of diverse perspectives and cultures and promotes transparency and accountability in world affairs. As it was once said by the American journalist, Walter Cronkite; “Freedom of the press is not just important to democracy, it is democracy.”

All that we ask of each one of you is that your articles have interesting and enlightening content that is supported by prior, sincere research on the subject, argumentation, professionalism, and satire. Remember that a journalist's job is to expand and even the delegations' perspectives, not to denigrate them. Bring about change in a subtle yet powerful way. We hope that every reporter has the best possible experience in journalism and leaves this conference with the ideals of objectivity, independence, humanity, accountability, and truth. Most significantly, we hope that SMMUN"23 will be a remarkable experience that captures your feelings of passion and dedication.

We wish you the best of luck!

Warmest regards,
The Executive Board,
(Deepti Mahesh Aswani, Chairperson)

ARTICLES TO BE WRITTEN

Opinionated Editorial (Op-ed):

An opinionated editorial expresses the reporter's viewpoint on the committee's Agenda. The reporter is authorized to write the document in a completely biased manner. The reporter is allowed to state their sentiment, on the agenda and the committee proceedings with adherence to their respective press agencies. The document doesn't need to include any details regarding the committee's deliberations. However, the reporter is free to do so if they believe including committee proceedings would improve and augment the editorial. Any outside sources consulted by the reporter must be cited after the article. The opinionated editorial must be submitted via the provided Google form on the first day and is limited to a maximum of 800 words.

Beat Report:

This report is focused on a particular subtopic within the larger committee agenda to which the reporter has been delegated. The reporter is free to select any subtopic pertinent to the committee's agenda, delve deeply into the subject, and draw conclusions supported by in-depth research. The reporter is required to list all references to outside sources utilized in the report at the end. The reporters may choose to include a description of the relevant committee proceedings in their report or facts or events that have occurred in the past linked to the topic they have chosen.

Interview:

Reporters are required to get in touch with two delegates from their designated committee and have an in-person interview if they have approved of the same. Reporters are only permitted to speak with the delegates during breaks or at other times they deem appropriate. They are not allowed to interview the delegates when the committee is in session. The delegate may be asked a maximum of 5 questions, and the submission format is a Procès-Verbal (an official written record of the interview) and a recorded oral interview. The prognosis cannot exceed 200 words. On the first day, the Procès-Verbal and interview recordings must be uploaded via the linked Google form. The Procès-Verbal should include facts quoted by the delegates being interviewed, opinions and positions on issues as well as a summary of the interview itself in a question-answer format.

Press Conference:

Reporters are required to pose questions to the delegates in committee by the stance they take, the agenda at hand & the various other committee proceedings wherever they see fit. A press conference would be held to challenge their position on the agenda or the veracity of the delegate's research. Reporters are permitted to question and criticize delegates about the solutions they gave during the committee. Questions should make sense and get right to the point. Follow-up questions will be granted during the press conference. Ten minutes will be given to each reporter to ask questions to the delegates.

Final Report:

On day 2, reporters must submit a final report via the supplied Email ID. The final report serves as a concise recap of the committee's two-day proceedings. It must go into detail about the significant committee actions, resolutions, discussions, and observations with the appropriate context. The report needs to be written objectively and concisely. The word count of 900-1200 words for the report must be strictly adhered to.

FORMATTING GUIDELINES:

• Font details are to be adhered to in all pieces.
• Font - Times New Roman
• Heading size - 14
• Body size - 12
• Italics and bold can be used as per the reporter’s wish.
• Content should be broken into relevant paragraphs.
• The reporter’s name, press agency, committee, type of submission and word count must be included in bold at the top of the document.
• It is to be noted that citations and the details mentioned above are not part of the word count. The word count only includes your composition and the title.

RUBRICS:

Content:

Every entry will be evaluated based on its organization, presentation, and accuracy. Each section must provide the necessary information clearly and simply. Reporters are urged to give background when and if necessary. Research conducted on the writing style, news agency viewpoint, and committee agenda will be taken into consideration. The word limit and all other guidelines must be followed by reporters.

Every report must accurately reflect the perspective and history of the news organization being represented.

Creativity:

Reporters need to think outside the box and use unique approaches to express information. They are advised to use analogies, metaphors, storytelling techniques, and other creative tools to convey their message. Remember to keep your writing clear and concise while doing so.

Listening Skill:

Reporters must pay close attention and work diligently during the committee. The remarks and responses of delegates must also be accurately covered by reporters. Reporters must be meticulous because the final report must include every significant occurrence from the committee.

Questions and Speech:

Questions ought to be clear, precise, brief, and steady in their approach to delegates. Throughout the press conferences, reporters are advised to maintain composure and confidence. Reporters are anticipated to pose inquiries that are essential to the committee and will spark a lively discussion. The queries must be pertinent to the information discussed in the committee.

Lexicon and Grammar:

Every written item must follow the established grammar and spelling conventions of Indian English, which is based on British English. For all pieces, a formal tone of expression is required.

Plagiarism:

At the conclusion of the presented document, any facts and information that were gathered from other sources must be cited. The originality of content is of utmost importance. Plagiarism of any kind in any of the articles without a citation is highly prohibited.

COMMITTEE PROCEEDINGS:

• As observers, reporters will be seated in the same room as the delegates according to their respective assigned committees.
  Each reporter will be permitted to take notes using either a pen and paper or one of their devices.
• When preparing the report, interesting and significant facts or statistics can be taken from the delegate's speech.
• Kindly ensure your punctuality where deadlines are concerned.
• You can either interview a delegate or question them during the press conference if you need further clarification on something they mentioned.

CITATIONS AND SOURCES:

VIABLE SOURCES THAT CAN BE USED:

1. Information from committee proceedings.
2. Websites of news agencies such as BBC, CNN, Al Jazeera, The New York Times, etc.
• https://www.bbc.com/
• https://www.cnn.com
• https://www.nytimes.com/international/
• https://www.aljazeera.com/
3. Official UN websites of committees.
4. Resources such as Wikipedia or Quora are strictly not allowed as it is not verified since they can be edited by anyone on the website.

INFORMATION ON HOW SOURCES OUGHT TO BE CITED:

Note the superscript, for eg; [1] or {a} mentioned at the end of the report and start listing the citations.

[1] - Yemen | | UN News

Avoid pasting the raw URL. Kindly replace it with the name of the link. In case of a document, kindly mention the name of the author. It is to be noted that mentioning citations in all the pieces is a must. Numerous and sincere citations are welcomed.

DEADLINE AND SUBMISSION DETAILS:

1. Beat Report - 3.00 PM IST, June 27th (Day 1): Word limit: 300 - 500
   Forms link for submission:
   https://surveyheart.com/form/646e208d33049a5359d96a7e
2. Op-Ed - 5:30 PM IST, June 27th (Day 1): Word limit: 600 - 800
   Forms link for submission:
   https://surveyheart.com/form/646e238c144349537a581436
3. Procès Verbal - 8:30 PM IST, June 27th (Day 1): Word limit: 200
   Forms link for submission:
   https://surveyheart.com/form/646e25db6f41e2541239e1b9
4. Final Report - 1:30 PM IST, June 28th (Day 2): Word limit: 900 - 1200
   Email id for submission:
   sirmuthamun.ipc2023@gmail.com