April Fools' editions sink college papers

[Ediacara]

April Fools' editions sink college papers

By DAN NEPHIN
ASSOCIATED PRESS WRITER

PITTSBURGH -- Being funny without being offensive is tough to do, which is why three college newspapers that published April Fools' Day editions - those at Carnegie Mellon University, the University of Scranton and the University of Nebraska at Omaha - are in trouble.

Carnegie Mellon's paper, The Tartan, voluntarily shut down for the rest of the semester after publishing a racially charged cartoon in its 12-page spoof edition. The cartoonist lost his job, and the editor in chief - who blamed fatigue for clouding editors' judgment - is taking a leave of absence from the Pittsburgh university until fall.

University of Scranton officials in Pennsylvania closed The Aquinas for parodying Mel Gibson's "The Passion of the Christ," college administrators and Georgetown University, a fellow Jesuit institution.

The Gateway, the Nebraska paper, apologized for its four-page edition titled The Ghettoway. One story, with the headline "Gateway cameras stolen during weekend," was written by Ono Udidn. Another fake byline: Mindjo Bidness. The news editor, who is black, told The Gateway for a story Tuesday that she thought the content was representative of pop culture in general.

More at the Seattle Post-Intelligencer

[boobooday]

1. First Amendment Right to Stupidity

I love how they crack down on the college students for questionable behavior, but our airwaves and mainstream newspapers are filled with much more egregious examples of media behavior.

http://www.wgoeshome.com

[girl gone mad]

2. Censorship is alive and well..

at Universities accross the country.

[orthogonal]

3. Let's burn them books!

"The horrible cartoon ... is a repudiation of our core values and it must not be tolerated," university President Jared L. Cohon wrote in a letter to the newspaper of the drawing, which shows a goat using a slur in describing how he hit a black person on a bicycle.

Tolerate free speech?

Never!

Let's rid the university of that subversive "Jewish Science" too!

Oh, sorry, wrong set of Fascists -- that was the 1930s version in Germany. My mistake! I'll try to remember the modern, american version of politically correct censorship.

Censorship at any Federally funded university -- and according to the way Federal student aid is judged almost all universities qualify as "Federally funded" -- is the only thing that "must not be tolerated".

Offended by someone else's speech? Answer it. Don't attempt to suppress it.

[drfemoe]

4. well . ahem

too bad they can't take their cue from our fearless *leader*.
I'm sure we have just as much *free speech* as the Shi'ites enjoy.

[PaDUer]

6. At least the editor at the Univ of Scranton's paper

was smart enough to notify one of our local news stations to come to the school about this.

[PaDUer]

5. More to the Univ of Scranton's paper

http://www.scrantontimes.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=11249699&BRD=2185&PAG=461&dept_id=415898&rfi=8

http://www.scrantontimes.com/site/news.cfm?newsid=11242978&BRD=2185&PAG=461&dept_id=415898&rfi=8

[Moderator]

7. Please discuss here

http://www.democraticunderground.com/discuss/duboard.php?az=view_all&address=102x470510