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Journalism Integrity
Report, Group 6
Heather Prescott, Chair
Karen Ritzenhoff
Janeffer DelValle
Issues:
Examine how to respond
to the expression of
speech considered
offensive by segments of
the university
community.
Suggestions:
As the recent
controversy regarding
radio talk show host Don
Imus illustrates, hate
speech is a topic that
mainstream media also
has to grapple with.
MSNBC and CBS radio
suspended Imus for two
weeks after making
derogatory sexist and
racist remarks about the
Rutgers University
women’s basketball
team. In the interest
of guaranteeing a safe
and welcoming campus
environment to students
of diverse backgrounds,
regardless of race,
gender, ethnicity, or
sexual orientation, we
recommend the following:
-
Creation of a
student-run monthly
alternative
newspaper to
highlight concerns
about the
Recorder and
other campus media.
Students have the
right to petition
the Media Board for
funds for this
venture. This could
be a monthly
supplement to the
Recorder itself,
or a free-standing
publication.
-
Creation of an
online newsletter or
blog which would be
able to respond more
quickly to
controversial
issues, would be
cheaper to produce,
and would also be
more accessible to
readers on and off
campus. We suggest
students would
register for such
activities for
academic credit and
work with a faculty
advisor. For
examples of
alternative campus
media, see
www.indypress.org/cjp/index.html
-
Organize a series of
events regarding
media ethics by
drawing on expertise
from the Journalism
faculty in the
English Department,
Communication
faculty, in
collaboration with
the Center for
Public Policy and
Social Research,
Student Activities
and Leadership
Development, and the
Media Board.
-
Invite speakers and
experts from other
institutions to give
lectures on media
ethics. For example,
the University of
Minnesota, School of
Journalism and Mass
Communication runs
the Silha Center for
the Study of Media
Ethics and Law is an
excellent resource
for these issues.
See
http://www.silha.umn.edu/index.html
-
Offer regular
workshops on
journalistic
integrity for
students involved
with campus media.
For examples of how
other campuses have
handled offensive
speech, see:
www.thefire.org/index.php
In general, most
campuses are against
speech codes, since
there is the risk that
these codes can be used
to censor the very
students they are
intended to protect.
For further discussion
on this, see:
|
Title:
Only Speech
Codes Should Be
Censored.,
By: Pavela,
Gary, Chronicle
of Higher
Education,
00095982,
12/1/2006, Vol.
53, Issue 15 |
|
Database:
Academic Search
Premier |
http://web.ebscohost.com/ehost/detail?vid=3&hid=118&sid=3f7025a8-3b3a-47fa-8ab9-7a731f1eb5d0%40sessionmgr109
In addition to the above
recommendations
regarding journalistic
integrity, we recommend
that the issue of sexual
assault on campus be
addressed. According to
an article in this
month’s Journal of
American College Health
only 2 percent of
college women who
experience sexual or
physical assault report
it (http://chronicle.com/daily/2007/04/2007041001j.htm).
We recommend using the
guidelines suggested by
Connecticut Sexual
Assault Crisis Services,
Inc., in their
publication The
Campus Report Card
to assess the ways in
which CCSU prevents and
responds to sexual
assault on campus. See
www.connsacs.org
Another model is the
U.S. Department of
Justice, Office of
Justice Programs
publication, Sexual
Assault on Campus: What
Colleges and
Universities are Doing
About It available
at
www.ojp.usdoj.gov/nij
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