Alcoa begins modernization project in western North Carolina

Alcoa announced the kickoff of a $110 million modernization project at Cheoah Dam, one of four hydroelectric dams that make up Alcoa Power Generating Inc.’s Tapoco Project.  This modernization effort demonstrates Alcoa's commitment to follow through on its relicensing commitments in a timely manner.


Alcoa kicks-off Cheoah Dam Modernization Project: 
New generators, turbines, transformers to increase efficiency

Alcoa today kicked off a $110 million modernization project at Cheoah Dam, one of four hydroelectric dams that make up Alcoa Power Generating Inc.’s Tapoco Project.  The modernization effort will increase the dam’s efficiency and energy output and increase the life of the dam by at least another 40-50 years.

“Hydropower is clean, renewable, reliable and efficient,” said Rick Bowen, Alcoa Energy President. “These attributes equal sustainability – sustainable energy and sustainable jobs. That’s why we are looking forward to replacing the four 90-year-old Francis turbines with four new high-efficiency turbines, generators, and transformers which will provide an additional 22 megawatts of generating capacity at APGI’s Tapoco Cheoah plant.”

The modernization follows the recent relicensing of the Tapoco project by the Federal Energy Regulatory Commission. The new 40-year license was effective March 1, 2005 and outlines protection, mitigation, and enhancement measures for the Project that address ecological resources as well as other beneficial uses of the Cheoah and Little Tennessee Rivers, including hydropower generation, watershed protection, endangered species enhancement, fish passage and recreational opportunities.

Click here to read the complete press release.

When the Cheoah Dam was completed in 1919, it was the world’s highest overflow dam at 225 feet.  The dam was made famous by serving as the backdrop of the jump scene in the 1993 major motion picture, The Fugitive, starring Harrison Ford.

YES!Weekly revisits the Eszter Vajda case

Here's an interesting take on the UNC-TV stories from Eszter Vajda by YES!Weekly reporter Keith Barber. 

After reviewing the public records from UNC-TV, Barber writes: "It appears the pressure placed on UNC-TV management didn’t come from Alcoa, but from politicians like Basnight. Therefore, if UNC-TV management laid a finger on Vajda’s Alcoa segments, state legislators, Gov. Beverly Perdue’s administration and every single Alcoa opponent would’ve cried foul."

Revisiting the Eszter Vajda case

By Keith Barber

The Society of Professional Journalists Code of Ethics dictates that journalists must be accountable to their readers. “Admit mistakes and correct them promptly,” the code of ethics states. That is why I want to revisit the case of Eszter Vajda, the former UNC- TV reporter who was fired by the public broadcasting station on Aug. 17.

In my column published in the Aug. 18 edition of YES! Weekly, I harshly criticized the management of UNC-TV for a series of blunders over the past seven weeks. When I filed my story, it appeared the station’s management team was building a case against Vajda.

My instincts proved correct. But now I realize that UNC- TV was completely justified in dismissing Vajda.

Two face-to-face meetings with Vajda, a six-year veteran of UNC-TV, and her researcher/collaborator Martin Sansone had left me with the impression that the station had purposefully distanced itself from Vajda’s documentary, The Alcoa Story, and her three-part series about Alcoa’s efforts to re-license the water rights to a 38-mile stretch of the Yadkin River for another 50 years. The series aired on “North Carolina Now” last month. But I only heard one side of the story in those meetings.

Each time I solicited input from UNC-TV, I was told to speak with the station’s spokesman, Steve Volstad. Typically, I would leave voicemail messages and Volstad would respond via e-mail. Volstad was responsive but would not comment on personnel matters. Vajda’s disciplinary review on Aug. 13 fell under that category.

And then there was the disclaimer that UNC-TV added to the beginning and ending of parts two and three of the “North Carolina Now” series. “For the first time in its network’s history, UNC-TV has made the decision to refrain from exercising its customary editorial review over an individual reporter’s project,” the disclaimer read. “The reason for this unusual step is to alleviate any concerns surrounding unfounded and untrue allegations of inappropriate suppression by UNC-TV management of the reporter’s ability to tell this important story.”

The disclaimer threw me for a loop; I was not alone.

A panel of three professors from the UNC School of Journalism and Mass Communication blasted UNC-TV for its “ill-advised” decision to abdicate its editorial responsibilities. But once I learned the whole story, I understood the unorthodox move by the station’s management.

On Aug. 18, I traveled to Research Triangle Park to pick up a DVD that contained more than 5,800 internal documents from UNC-TV as part of a public-records request by YES! Weekly. When I began sifting through the internal e-mails and memos (many of which had been entirely redacted), my heart began to slowly sink.

In one e-mail message, Vajda thanked Roger Dick, a Stanly County community activist and one of Alcoa’s most outspoken critics, for taking her to dinner. The SPJ Code of Ethics states, in part,

“Refuse gifts, favors, fees, free travel, and special treatment.”

Vajda’s e-mails also reveal her alliances with politicians, state officials and special-interest groups adamantly opposed to Alcoa’s bid for another 50 years of control over the Yadkin River. Richard Morgan, the former NC Speaker of the House and a paid consultant for the NC Water Rights Committee, paid Sansone $3,000 for his consultancy services. Considering Sansone and Vajda’s close personal and professional relationship, this represented a major conflict of interest for Vajda.

“Avoid conflicts of interest, real or perceived,” the SPJ Code of Ethics states. “Remain free of associations and activities that may compromise integrity or damage credibility.”

UNC-TV’s internal documents depict a power struggle between Vajda and station management over how the Alcoa story should be presented. Vajda lobbied hard for a full-length documentary, while Shannon Vickery, the station’s director of programming, and news anchor Mitchell Lewis maintained that the station simply didn’t have the resources to produce a lengthy piece on Alcoa.

It appears Vajda attempted to go over the heads of her direct supervisors and make her plea to UNC-TV Director and General Manager Tom Howe. But Vickery canceled the April 23 meeting and gave her a protocol warning. On at least two occasions, Vickery and Lewis reminded Vajda that her request to produce a documentary had been denied, and she should not give the impression UNC-TV was going forward with a long-form story. UNC-TV Production Manager Karen Pearce also complained about Vajda’s reluctance to follow station protocol, saying that Vajda pulled resources assigned to “Legislative Week in Review” for her story on Alcoa, and then canceled the shoot at the last minute.

On June 28, NC Secretary of Commerce Keith Crisco arrived at UNC-TV headquarters and met with Vickery to discuss the status of the Alcoa story. Crisco brought a release form that would allow for the Department of Commerce to take possession of Vajda’s tapes and incorporate the footage into a documentary production. Sansone composed the release form with Vajda’s full knowledge. The release form included language that would have allowed Vajda to edit her footage as a third party at some point in the future.

Vajda admitted she did not divulge her actions to Vickery, Lewis or anyone at UNC-TV. This end-run around management was orchestrated by Vajda, and constitutes insubordination on her part. Insubordination is grounds for dismissal.

Much to her credit, Vickery denied Crisco’s request. Vajda’s raw tapes remain in UNC-TV’s possession. Other e-mails reveal Vajda’s inappropriate reaction to her tapes being subpoenaed by NC Sen. Fletcher Hartsell for review by the Senate Judiciary II Committee. In an e-mail to

WUNC-FM reporter Laura Leslie, Vajda stated, “This is something I’m happy with!… Hartsell is saving my ass!” Critics called Hartsell’s action a violation of the First Amendment, but inexplicably, Vajda was pleased by the development.

Meanwhile, Howe and Vickery were fighting to protect Vajda’s privileged materials from the clutches of the Senate committee. While Vajda was ecstatic, UNC-TV management was pleading with UNC System President Erskine Bowles to persuade Hartsell to cease and desist. Bowles offered no support, and simply told UNC-TV management to follow their lawyers’ advice. There was no unanimity on the legal issues, and it wasn’t clear if North Carolina’s Shield Law applied to UNC-TV, but the laws regarding state agencies certainly did. With great reluctance, UNC-TV turned over Vajda’s footage. A dangerous precedent had been set, but it would be unfair to blame UNC-TV’s management for the reckless actions of politicians and state officials.

A June 25 letter from Howe to state Sen. Marc Basnight sheds light on the disclaimer. After a phone conversation with Basnight, Howe composed a letter denying any pressure from Alcoa or anyone else leading to decisions regarding the format and timing of the Alcoa segments.

“I am completely confident that no impropriety of any sort exists in regard to the editorial or production processes associated with this project,” Howe states.

It appears the pressure placed on UNC-TV management didn’t come from Alcoa, but from politicians like Basnight. Therefore, if UNC-TV management laid a finger on Vajda’s Alcoa segments, state legislators, Gov. Beverly Perdue’s administration and every single Alcoa opponent would’ve cried foul.

The SPJ Code of Ethics is a living document, and each story brings with it a unique set of ethical challenges. Vajda should be commended for diving into the Alcoa story, and telling the human drama behind the political battle. But Vajda found herself in over her head, and in her quest to make a name for herself she crossed the line time and time again. Vajda’s actions also set off a chain of events that led to a dangerous precedent, which has caused irreparable damage to UNC- TV’s credibility. In the end, the station’s management had no choice but to fire her.

Questions about the future of UNC-TV linger:

Can UNC-TV regain the trust of its audience and therefore, enable its reporters to tell important stories? Can the state’s Shield Law for journalists be extended to state agencies?

In the name of public enlightenment and the protection of our democracy, I pray the answer to both questions is a resounding “yes.”

UNC -TV Email Records Raise Questions about Anti-Alcoa effort

Public records provided by UNC-TV show that a video by Eszter Vajda was part of a coordinated campaign by groups opposed to Alcoa Power Generating Inc.'s effort to obtain a new operating license for the Yadkin Project.  Although the records provided by UNC-TV are heavily redacted, the emails uncovered:

* A $3,000 payment by opposing groups to a researcher working with Vajda on the UNC-TV story.  That revelation – breaking what UNC journalism professor Leroy Towns called the cardinal sin of journalism – has raised concerns about the credibility and integrity of the reports and the efforts to discredit Alcoa.

* Vajda was coordinating her actions with political adversaries of Alcoa Power Generating.

* Vajda told those adversaries to by-pass her work email and use her personal email address.

Emails indicate that Vajda and researcher Martin Sansone frequently joined APGI's opposition –including former House Speaker Richard Morgan, political consultant Carter Wrenn, Stanly County banker Roger Dick and Stanly County lobbyist Bruce Thompson – to coordinate their efforts.
                                
Morgan is involved in developing strategy for the NC Water Rights Committee, a group that was created by Thompson to oppose APGI's relicensing effort. Coincidentally, Thompson is a board member at UNC-TV.

Click here to the view a copy of the public records and click on articles below to learn more about this issue:
                                                    
Laura Leslie: Isaac Hunter’s Tavern (August 18, 2010)
Vajda out 
UNC-TV Production Director Shannon Vickery confirmed today that Senior Legislative Correspondent Eszter Vajda “is no longer employed” by the station.  Vickery couldn’t comment further, citing confidentiality reasons. 
Sources at the station say Vajda was the subject of a disciplinary hearing late last week, even before Saturday’s news stories that revealed she’d taken money from former House Co-Speaker Richard Morgan.

John Locke Foundation (August 18, 2010)
Alcoa Documentary “Researcher” Lied to WFAE?
Latest twist in the UNC-TV documentary on Alcoa and its North Carolina operations involves a globe-trotting “researcher” getting $3000 from an anti-Alcoa activist (and former best-bud of Jim Black, Richard Morgan.)
That researcher/aspiring filmmaker, Martin Sansone, yesterday told WFAE that the $3000 from Morgan was needed to help get him back in the country following the volcano eruption in Iceland which shut down air travel from Europe earlier this year.
But UNC radio Laura Leslie notes that the eruption did not happen until after Sansone and Morgan worked out the payment plan.

WFAE Radio (August 17, 2010)
$3,000 Payment Lands UNC-TV, Reporter More Scrutiny
If you're a reporter, you don't accept payment from sources or the people you're covering. It's a basic tenet of journalism ethics. 
But the e-mails that Alcoa received from UNC-TV show that money did change hands. A researcher received $3,000 from former House Speaker Richard Morgan for his work on the series. 
That's significant because Morgan now works for the North Carolina Water Rights Coalition, which is the most vocal opponent of Alcoa's hydropower operation on the Yadkin River.
“It’s further confirmation that the TV report was part of the opposition's effort to seize Alcoa Generation's property,” says Alcoa spokesman Mike Belwood.

The News & Observer (August 14, 2010)
Alcoa foe paid worker on TV story
A researcher who worked on UNC-TV news stories critical of the aluminum company Alcoa took money from a consultant fighting the company's control of dams on the Yadkin River.
Former House Speaker Richard Morgan, who works for the N.C. Water Rights Committee, gave $3,000 to Martin Sansone, a long-time friend of Eszter Vajda, the UNC-TV correspondent who reported stories about Alcoa that aired last month.

UNC Journalism Professors Critical of UNC-TV Series

Journalism experts have criticized a three-part series about Alcoa that was broadcast on UNC-TV on July 6-8, saying the segments did not meet universally accepted journalism standards and should not have been accepted for broadcast.

Alcoa has obtained a draft memorandum prepared by a panel of three journalism professors from the UNC School of Journalism & Mass Communication.  The review by Leroy Towns, Andy Bechtel and Jim Hefner cites a “breakdown in the editorial process” that resulted in “an unbalanced and slanted view” of these issues that is “unsupported by the facts.”

Because the UNC-TV series is being distributed widely by Alcoa’s opponents, it is important for people to understand that independent journalism experts have raised serious concerns about the credibility of the stories.  Viewers need to know the series has serious flaws and should not be taken at face value. 

For more analysis about the UNC-TV series, click here to read a related blog post by Leroy Towns.

“Sources are stacked on one side, statements about health risk and environmental damage are made without credible sources, 40-year-old documents are made to look modern, and a lawyer for people suing Alcoa dominates. Additionally, Alcoa projects in other states are slid into the program so that they appear to reflect on the Yadkin project and facts favorable to Alcoa were ignored,” Towns writes.  “Any UNC journalism student producing this kind of “story” would get a failing grade.”

Read more about this story from WRAL TV or the Carolina Journal.