The editor of the Ames Tribune made an appeal to parliament members at the Inter-Residence Hall Association meeting Thursday.

David Kraemer said he regretted not being present at the March 29 meeting when the newspaper was not chosen as one of four papers for the Newspaper Readership Program.

“I’m sorry I wasn’t here to speak last week,” he said. “I was blind-sighted by the fact that there was even a controversy with the Ames Tribune being a choice of the program.”

Kraemer said the choice of the Des Moines Register instead of the Ames Tribune would be detrimental to the Tribune’s advertising. “The Register now has a foothold in the market that we cannot match,” he said.

If the Ames Tribune is not incorporated in the readership program, they will have to find another way to get on campus, Kraemer said. “The readership program would be the least painful way for the Tribune to be involved on campus,” he said.

Kraemer said his mission is not to undercut the Daily. He said having the Tribune involved in the readership program would be good for campus, good for Ames and good for the Daily.

During the readership program, Kraemer said only a small number of the Tribune papers were not read. “Only seven to 20 percent weren’t read; that means the rest were,” he said. “The trial period was very successful.”

Towers Residence Association President Tony Luken said he didn’t vote for the Tribune not because of the case the Daily made, but because of how his constituents feel.

“My constituents made it abundantly clear that they wanted national news,” he said. “I am opposed to reconsidering our choices, but there is a sunset clause and we will reconsider next year.”

A bill to shift funding of KURE from IRHA to the Government of the Student Body passed at the meeting as well.

Luken, co-author, said GSB ratified the bill as well.

“Both sides agree KURE should be fully funded by GSB, but we shouldn’t just dump that on them,” he said. “There will be a transition phase that will slowly shift the funding from IRHA to GSB so that by 2003, it will be fully GSB.”