Contrary to popular belief, there were choices available to readers of newspapers in Soviet Russia. There was Pravda, which means “Truth,” and Izvestia, which means “News.” This led to a cute saying, “there’s no truth in the news, and no news in the truth.” So why not recreate this at Smith College?
Alyssa Mata-Flores, a 21-year-old Smith College senior and one of the sit-in’s organizers, explained that the rule was born from “the way that media has historically painted radical black movements as violent and aggressive.”
“We are asking that any journalists or press that cover our story participate and articulate their solidarity with black students and students of color,” she told MassLive in the Student Center Wednesday. “By taking a neutral stance, journalists and media are being complacent in our fight.”
In contrast to the students at the University of Missouri, who sought to avoid any scrutiny whatsoever by use of force, rationalized by a putative “reporter” who disgraced himself for the cause, the children of Smith have openly admitted their claims can’t withstand the slightest scrutiny.
“By taking a neutral stance, journalists and media are being complacent in our fight.”
While the speaker’s major is left unsaid, Alyssa Mata-Flores has made herself the poster girl for the abject failure of education at Smith College. It’s not just her demand that any media “allowed” to cover their protest swear allegiance to her cause, but her magnificent lack of grasp of what the media exists to do. There’s no truth in the news from Smith College.
Apparently, the secret the students feared would get out provided another insight into the depth of thought and understanding that comes of a fine Smith education.
The Daily Hampshire Gazette carried a comprehensive rundown of the sit-in. Reporter Katherine Hazen wrote that the event featured a sharing of stories. “Students came up one by one, and pensive silences followed. ‘Student workers are students — we are here to provide services, not to serve you,’ said senior Cynthia Gomez as she relayed her experience working in the Campus Café.” More: “Ariana Quinones reminded the crowd of the sit-in’s purpose. ‘Black lives matter, black lives matter, black lives matter, and that’s why we’re here,’ she said to much applause.”
Yeah, between those “pensive silences” and chanting “black lives matter,” there was much to conceal lest the media expose the Smith students as being, well, kinda pathetic. And then, things got really deep with, “we are here to provide services, not to serve you.” Parents need to ponder where that tuition money is going.
But the grown-ups at Smith, more than the children who at least are there to learn even if things don’t appear to be going very well, were happy to help the kids lock the gates to their safe Gulag.
Smith organizers said journalists were welcome to cover the event if they agreed to explicitly state they supported the movement in their articles.
Stacey Schmeidel, Smith College director of media relations, said the college supports the activists’ ban on media.
“It’s a student event, and we respect their right to do that, although it poses problems for the traditional media,” Stacey Schmeidel said.
Smith College is a private institution, and as such, has the right to ban media from its campus. That much is fine. But they didn’t ban media from the campus; they banned only those journalists who refused to “agree to explicitly state they supported the movement.”
Why the children want only media who will gush alongside them, pretend that their empty and conclusory words weren’t written by some twisted version of Dr. Seuss, that their “pain” is heart-rending and their need for “safe spaces” to protect them from unpleasant thoughts, is no big mystery.
They are calling us mean names, like “infants.”
That’s because your actions are nothing more than childish tantrums.
They don’t take our “pain” seriously.
That’s because your claims of “pain” are trivial.
They won’t support our cause.
That’s because you have no cause, other than your demand that every slight, real or perceived, be fixed to achieve your bizarre vision of safety.
They don’t believe us.
That’s because you lack any “facts” to prove your claims, and that’s why you ban journalists who report facts rather than those who will string together meaningless words reflecting your narcissistic cries.
When you expose students to the media, this is what you get.
And that’s the edited, most supportive version there is, courtesy of the New York Times.
But what of Schmeidel, or the deans, presidents, chancellors and other administrators from colleges nationwide who acquiesce to this infantile insanity? Are they engaged in a policy of appeasement, assuming that if they let the babies throw their hissy fits, it will run its course and they’ll go back to their studies after a nice hug and a pizza?
Or do these administrators and faculty believe that these students are on to something? Do these admins agree that they are engaged in systemic racism, that naming schools after presidents, buildings after benefactors hundreds of years ago who don’t pass muster with these children must be fixed? Do they really believe in the need for a trigger warning for the school’s mascot?
The fear is that the latter is the case, that the purported grown-ups into whose hands we’ve entrusted our children are just as moronic and myopic as our babies. Of course, the only way to know for sure is to have someone question these admins, challenge their appeasement, test the efficacy of removing Woodrow Wilson’s name from a school at Princeton.
But at Smith, at least, there will be no media scrutiny, because they are banned with the support of the administration. The students demand that they be given their private gulag, where no one “complacent” with their cause be allowed in, and they call it a “safe space.”
And they are making sure that the only “news” they hear is that which comports with their fortune cookie platitudes. This is a great way to make sure that no one challenges their feelings by asking for facts, for truth. It worked for the Bolsheviks, so why not the students?
If there is no truth in the news, then they can pretend they aren’t infants throwing a tantrum over nonsense. And as long as their substitute parents tell them they’re good little children, there will be no one to tell them to grow up and get back to their studies so they learn something before shouting nonsense.
Hey, my mother went to Smith! But that was a different era, where we’re not going today.
The question is: Are these named young ladies representative of the student body, or are they outliers?
We’re of the opinion that the childish ones will outgrow their childishness, given time. The director of media relations seems to be the real villain here. Her stance is truly ditzy.
Hey, we thought this was a law blog! You’ve been veering off the straight and narrow lately, with all this campus stuff. No Truth in the News and no News in the Truth. Yea, we like that: CVC = cute, very cute.
These stories are how laws go from bad to worse. Not only are these children our future lawyers, judges and politicians, but the acquiescence to their feelings change the lens of how law is applied. Have you not heard of hate crimes? This is where bad law starts.
Wringing our hands after it’s too late isn’t a very good answer. Try grasping at its roots before the world turns to shit.
And here I thought that newspaper you can’t seem to get enough of was the epicenter of the hive that was responsible for bad laws getting a free ride on the Wobbly Worse Whirliebird ride?
I told you there wasn’t a future in the news. But this “sworn alligence” deal. Well, there you go… how can the truth go wrong there?
If the sponsorship of the MSM doesn’t catch on, jump ship, and get on board before summer break there should be some unique opertunity to knock a few of these old and ridged brands down to size a bit. Throw in a little accelerated inflation in the 4th qtr of ’16 and the young consumer may indeed be primed for some new brand loyalty.
A half a million for one half of one percent of my marshmallow and gram cracker factory on the outskirts of Northampton ain’t looking so bad afterall now is it?
P.S. Have they banned hair product manufacturing in Connecticut yet William? If not, I gaurentee you the soft and curly look is comming back and it’s takes some serious product for most to achieve that style if they want it to even come out anywhere close to looking natural. Same sort of trend line university tuition is on. And here the esteemed one thinks the kids are sneaking one over on the professors?
He can be such a softie…but I must admit, I kind of like it when he picks on kids, I mean professors , ah no I think I mean kids. Nevermind, what’s the diffrence anyway as long as they are gonna be eating my marshmallows and diping my gram crackers in their coffee.
Defense Attorney:
Ladies and gentlemen of the jury, the evidence in this case is insufficient to-
Prosecuting Attorney:
(cutting in, screaming) DID YOU JUST BLAME THE VICTIM?
A modest proposal I’ve been waiting to make:
Can the powers that be (or to come) include components on free expression and due process of law in the cultural competence/ sensitivity/common courtesy training to be offered on campuses under this proposed regime?
That raises two problems. The first is that it creates a conflicted message, as the point of cultural competency, et al., is to teach people to adhere to identity norms imposed for the purpose of eliminating speech and fairness for all but the “marginalized.”
The second is that the notions of free expression and due process, as you and I understand them, are not the concepts to which students would be indoctrinated if left in the hands of academics. They’ve been redefined.
And then there’s the problem with somebody going to college to learn biology, only to learn that his core curriculum is comprised of gender and ethnic studies.
Modest proposal 2:
Let’s eliminate all electives and provide students with a full syllabus (including required readings and rubrics for evaluation) at the time they sign their names in blood as candidates for admission on the application. If there’s truth in marketing (a worthy goal, albeit one sometimes not found in the real world) and alternative programs offered to the new elect, what do you believe the result would be?
And if you did that, no one would go, and there would be no money to pay the faculty for the time they spend removing Woody Wilson’s from the history books. Seriously, EW, what are you thinking?!?
What was Jonathan Swift (is he still on the Intro to Western Civ supplemental reading list–if it still exists) – – thinking?
Dean Swift was inspired, mean, prejudiced against small humans and responsible for more dead baby jokes than Sarah Silverman. He’s currently as popular on campuses as an openly gay woman at the annual Hell’s Angels Labor Day Picnic in Fresno.
Jonathan Swift is as well known/as not as well known as Rod Serling among students of a certain age. Discuss.
I find this revolting appealing!
Did Narkompros compromise feeling?
My class on class struggle
compels me to snuggle
the kitteh of Stalinist Healing.
I have a certain sympathy for the protesters, as protests are traditionally covered in a pro-establishment fashion. But you don’t get good coverage by exiling reporters from your action. You get good coverage by making your case to reporters. You make your case that there is an injustice. You make your case that your tactics are appropriate to the situation. You make your case that you’re intelligently organized… etc. Demanding that coverage suit your politics – what a load of crap.
When you have no case to make, other than manufacturing outrage and crying about the papercuts, there isn’t much hope of convincing the media of the merit of your cause. This isn’t Black Lives Matter. This is just infantile nonsense that diminishes a very serious cause.
Damn straight!
This seems to be further evidence that unintentional irony has a critical mass that millennials have clearly achieved.
There’s a little voice in my head saying that one day, all the college students are going to break out laughing and admit that this was the most complex, sophisticate prank ever pulled. I am such an optimist.
As the song says, “children are our future…”. It scares me that educational institutions are instilling in college kids the virtues of censorship. The spirit of the 1st Amendment (protection, but not vindication of individual ideas, rigorous questioning of public ideas, and open discussions with both sides of an argument) is more important than all of the SCOTUS cases. If the future citizens of this country dont understand its importance, then the 1st Amendment is dead.