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No interviews
for murderers
i
MARK
i»\vsvv:viii«
n the minds
of today’s
television
journalists,
“murderer” is a
synonym for
“real big story.”
Theodore
Kaczynski, bet
ter known to the
world as the Unabomber, has be
come the target of a great amount
of verbal abuse from major mem
bers of the media.
To make an even bigger name
for themselves, these supposed
[journalists have violated the pri
mary objective of reporting. They
are making news, not reporting it.
In the process, they have shown
allous disregard for those who
ave died and those who could
ie as a result of their efforts.
The SmokingGun.com posted
etters written to Kaczynski, re-
ealing a lot of popular journal-
sts who were slobbering for an
judience with a maniac who
illed three and maimed 20 oth-
rs. The tone of these letters is
ickening.
Shawn Efran, Dan Rather’s
Mproducer on '60 Minutes II,”
share abdmaa K^ied K acZ y ns kj a “hero and a
■noneer for trying to get his en
vironmentalist message out to
he public.
Showing that “network loyal-
is as great a myth as “journal-
to campus.: t ( j c ethics,” Efran went on to say,
TPlease understand that ’60 Min-
Ites IT is not the same program
In which your brother and mother
Ivvho discovered the Unabomber’s
identity and turned him into to au-
lorities) appeared. They ap-
ared on '60 Minutes’ with Mike
'allace and Lesley Stahl. Our
skory will allow you to personally
_yfute what they said about you.”
duplex Willi was*! | etter was sent w jfh
--r : Rather’s signed approval.
rooms'.'°268-fl® ■ This is not to say that CBS’
producer was the only person
IQgg willing to throw his morals and
IHalues out the window and snug-
i. Lots-of-fun.ig g| e U p to rav j n g i una tic. Katie
Fri(6pm 8pm) Couric, host of NBC s Today
inside Banko'i- wrote that talking to her
7 L0 846 S o”^ would “give (Kaczynski) a
naslertxirm n S
me, $400/M ■
ner and/ot lal n
Call 221X671
<. abdmVaMTw
94-3007
tewable summeso
location. $360te
tse on 1/4®
i2.
es. male o< Is™*!
Of 220-7547.
dng apartment
urn pus.
/EL
chance to explain your experi-
nces to our huge audience and
also the opportunity to share your
ieiR^to^ vicws and concerns, which 1
imy 846-8915.
ow you’ve long wanted to do.”
vww.traveial^# Barbara Walters was also
^Rippy to sell herself, signing off
s i a n,j andTiSi# 1 ' d l ettei ' wr i tten producer
. and condos,ic« Kdtie Thomson that said her
-575-2026.
program, “20/20,” “will provide
jog
-spo a lair forum for [Kaczynski) to
express your views, and you
:aii 260-6805. could reach the most people by
appearing on ‘20/20.’ ”
LOSS Greta Van Susteren, host of
*y)N’s “Burden of Proof’ and
/ S for $38, safe p 0 j n ^” g Us hed in her letter
B Kaczynski that “no one can
dispute that you are an extremely
JlljSIcjSiart man.”
Apparently, members of the
media have developed a theory
Bra ^JI | t t l ie rest °f society would re-
Want to be taken seriously?
hase.C^Kill someone.
This is a horrific concept for a
■“variety of reasons. First of all,
Here is nothing newsworthy about
anything Theodore Kaczynski has
■ say. The man terrorized the na
tion for two decades but has not
pen behind bars for a significant
jiount of time. People who op-
ised Kaczynski’s wild environ-
lentalist beliefs are unavailable
contradict him, because they
arc dead.
i; It seems obscene that a man
pho kills people would be given
a chance to spout off his views
when a person who lives a stable,
Rponsible life cannot. It is even
more scary that this person would
put on television without re-
ird to the feelings of those who
it family members or to the ef-
tt it would have on society.
Kaczynski’s reputation and
potentially horrifying effects
of giving him a soapbox in front
of, t TV camera obviously pale
in comparison to the massive
egi^ of TV journalists. Their at-
■npted cuddling sessions with
the Unabomber show their lack
of concern for the rest of society.
In a move that certainly
ised an increase in angst and
irs in New York, Kaczynski re
tted all requests for interviews,
jrhaps he is more socially con-
lous than those people who
Ire willing to kiss up to him
Ith the cameras rolling.
ut
Sraphy
33.
Mark Passwaters is a senior
electrical engineering major.
Opinion
THE BATTALION
No secrets for Core
Columbia had no right to keep students from speaking to media
c
(olumbia University’s
Graduate School of
I Journal ism, one of the
nation’s top journalism
schools, has hired former
Vice President A1 Gore to
teach a class titled Cover
ing National Affairs in the
Information Age this se
mester. He will later lecture at Middle Ten
nessee State and Fisk University, also in
Tennessee.
A problem erupted the first day of class
when Columbia told students enrolled in
Gore’s class not to discuss it with journal
ists. An advance email warned them against
speaking about the class. University spokes
woman Suzanne Trimel justified the gag
rule by saying the class “was not a news
event.”
The other two schools made it clear their
classes would be on the record. Last week,
Columbia finally lifted the policy of re
strictions. The failed attempt for classroom
silence violated free speech and contract
rights.
The irony of these restrictions at a jour
nalism school was not lost on the three
dozen professional journalists who showed
up on the first day or on the students who
were enrolled. “It definitely goes against
what we’re taught, but it’s A1 Gore, and we
have to accommodate him,” said student
Benjamin Stein.
Attorney Floyd Abrams, a visiting pro
fessor at Columbia, said, “It is ultimately
self-defeating for the school to believe it
can really transform what is inevitably an
event fraught with public interest into one
purely of private or academic interest.”
The question remains why the school did
not want students to talk to the press. Jour
nalism students are attending college to
learn a difficult and, at times, controversial
craft. This group especially should be
taught to value rights to free expression.
After all, journalists deal with the First
Amendment on a daily basis. Exceptions for
privacy should be made to protect sources
when necessary. And no one has a right to
slander or falsely represent a person. Gore
is just teaching a college class, not dis
cussing nuclear secrets.
A classroom setting with the goal of fos
tering a learning environment does not war
rant secrecy. Ironically, the desire to keep
what was said under wraps
has ensured that the students
will now talk nonstop about
how they could not talk to
anyone.
Predictably, the New York
Press had a field day over
Columbia’s attempt to muz
zle its students. The New York
Post ran the headline “Hyp
ocrites Triumph at Free
Speech Temple.” New York
Observer columnist Gabriel
Snyder called Gore’s veil of
■secrecy “a classic ivory-tow
er boondoggle” and said the
gag was “sure to make
Joseph Pulitzer and Edward
R. Murrow roll simultane
ously in their graves.”
The students are now al
lowed to give their opinions
of Gore’s class and tell any
one what he talks about, and
rightfully so. No one is going
to suffer from that process.
The most interesting as
pect of this situation con
cerns ownership of intellec
tual property. Gore defended
the gag rule when he said, “I
think normal classes are off
the record. I think the stu
dents will get a better experi
ence if it’s as much as possi
ble a normal classroom
experience.”
This incident also raises
the question of who owns
college lectures. Students
should be free to do whatever
they wish with any profes
sor’s pearls of wisdom. It is
unlikely that much of this
knowledge is ever prized
highly enough by a student to
be placed on any record.
Perhaps Gore thinks oth
erwise, but there is a big
difference between a college class and a
White House briefing. The buyers, or the
students, are the owners of classroom in
tellectual property in the first place. They
are the ones who have paid the fees and
tuition and should thus be free to do with
the lectures as they wish, short of passing
off someone else’s ideas as their own.
Fortunately, Columbia lifted its ban on stu
dents talking about the class. The Washington
Post reports that the college simply makes it
known it prefers no one talk to the press. It is
disturbing that a school would attempt to si
lence its own students. The journalists of to
morrow are in an odd position — privy to in-
CHAD MALLAM/I n e Battalion
formation but discouraged from sharing it.
Americans everywhere must keep a close '
watch on any potential threat to their right of
free expression. Apparently, not everyone
shares that value.
Jona than Jones is a junior
political science major.
Mail
Condom Day promotes
AIDS awareness, is an
overall good idea
In response to Cayla Carr’s Feb. 14
column.
In her own article, Cayla Carr states
that ASHA reports that an estimated 55
million Americans have an STI and that
two-thirds of these cases occur in peo
ple under 25 years of age. When I take
in these statistics and their gravity, I find
National Condom Day to be a great idea
— it and any other day to pass out pro
phylactics. Valentine’s Day is a contrived
“holiday” that, in most cases, benefits
the greeting card and floral industries
more it spreads true love. However, a
true act of love is helping to save some
one’s life. Carr may not feel the need to
express love or even lust sexually, but
Call
as the statistics show, many other Amer
icans do, and many of them are killing
themselves as they do so. I hardly be
lieve that St. Valentine would agree with
their behavior, but I doubt that he would
have a problem with trying to educate
and save lives on his day.
Truth be told, those who want to have
sex will, and those who don’t, won’t. And
Carr is correct that this really has nothing
to do with Valentine’s Day. Yet, as many do
pqt love and sex together, I would rather
educate today, on the day of love, than ed
ucate on how to live with AIDS later.
Passing out condoms does not devalue
or corrupt Valentine's Day. It simply en
courages responsibility and safety on this
day and every other. You can still pass out
your valentines, but be open-minded and
let others pass out life-saving devices.
S. Shannon Davis
Class of ’02
CARTOON OF THE DAY
EAT AT JoEsil
If X could BEl AN architect...
TUt DNc*RTe>c>Nvit
Grading change is needed
I deally,
people
attend
higher ed
ucational
institu
tions, like
Texas
A&M , to
learn things necessary to be
come successful. Many
times, students actually do
whatever is necessary to get
a good grade. It is the stu
dent’s job to learn, but it is
the professor’s job to facili
tate that learning. The pro
fessor also has the responsi
bility to assign grades that
accurately represent the
amount the student learned in
the course.
Grading styles should re
flect the learning that has
occurred, not the student’s
test-taking skills. Not all
students are able to profi
ciently take a test, although
they may actually know the
material. Therefore, the test
may not indicate how much
people have learned. Some
students easily get lost in
the wording of true/false
tests, while other students
relish their simplicity and
the 50-50 shot of getting
the answer.
An exam should allow the
student to demonstrate the
learning that has taken place
and put an objective number
on that learning. Forcing stu
dents to take exams that do
not suit their needs results in
grade that do not represent
the student’s learning and
retention.
Professors can more ac
curately test students and
work with their needs by of
fering different types of
tests when circumstances
permit. Because not all stu
dents are strong writers, es
say exams should not be
forced on all students. A stu
dent should not be penalized
because his or her English
skills are not spectacular.
Writing is for the English
professors to work with, yet
many professors give essay
examinations.
Other students do better
on tests that are not multiple
choice. Chris Durham, a
sophomore genetics major,
said, “Multiple choice tests
are often confusing to me.
Many times it is easy for a
professor to trick students
with questionable wording.”
If students completely
bomb a test, there should be
ways that they can show
proficiency in that class, in
stead of using a Q-drop.
Cumulative finals are
the best way to test whether
students have learned the
material by the end of the
semester. If students have
shown they are trying to
learn the material by doing
all coursework throughout
the semester and are able to
earn an A on the final, then
the students final grades
should reflect that.
A certain accounting
professor believes that if
one can get an A on his cu
mulative final, and one has
done all course work during
the semester, then one de
serves an A in the class.
Everything may not “click”
for a student during the se
mester, but during the ex
tensive cramming for the fi
nals, a student may
suddenly understand how to
work the problems.
Professors can also factor
in the learning curve of tak
ing that professor’s test by
the way each test is
weighed. Many professors
make each test weigh less
than the next test. This helps
students who did not know
how the professor was go
ing to test or how they
should study for that test.
Because each professor tests
and grades differently, the -
students.are forced to deal
with these differences when
the test is handed out.
Professors can grade stu
dents to reflect their learn
ing in many ways, and it is
their job to explore these
ways.
Students should be al
lowed to choose the type of
test they feel would best
represent the amount of
knowledge they have
learned by test time.
Having each test count
more than the test before it
allows the student’s learning
curve with dealing with
each professor and his or
her test style to be taken
into account. If students
show the proficiency by the
end of the semester, they
should be rewarded with a
good course grade.
The student needs to put
forth the effort to learn the
material, but that student
should not be penalized be
cause a professor writes
tests that are difficult to un
derstand, or because that
student is forced to be tested
in a way not appropriate for
that student.
Thomas Campbell is a
junior agricultural
journalism major.