Drama, drama, drama

This morning when I got in from The Echo, the birds would NOT shut up! Before I could fall asleep, the first lights of dawn had already begun streaming into our eastward-facing window. Crazy birds. Go to sleep.

I headed to class at the end of the chapel period, just in time to drop some papers by the Echo office. With only a few minutes left to get to class, I rushed off down the hall, only to be accosted by a very irate Jan. She informed me of her (and the department's) anger over a Letter to the Editor that had been published that morning in The Echo. In the letter, Lee Hildebrand (the station manager for the last two years) accused our campus radio station of some sketchy stuff, and Jan said it was totally unsubstantiated and that Wes knew that and shouldn't have published it. I told her Wes did not write the letter and really didn't know much about the situation as it did not concern my page and hadn't even had a chance to read the letter. Jan told me that the letter was a "slap in the face" to the communication department and The Echo will not hear the end of this. Preview of coming attractions? Pray for me.

The truth is, Taylor's comm. Department doesn't need The Echo to slap it in the face. It's done enough damage to itself. In fact, The Echo, under the leadership of Wes and Joe, is the only thing the comm. department really has to be proud of right now. I take that back, we have a few pretty decent plays, but besides that, I've almost been ashamed to call myself a comm. major this year.

The Comm. department is like an incredibly dysfunctional family. It basically owns The Echo and has been pushing it to become a more professional paper. Part of that means printing more controversial stories, which the faculty actually encourage. In fact, in my interview for editor-in-chief, Jan actually asked me if I was willing to print stories even if it would be unpopular. However, the minute something happens in the department, all that goes out the window. Case in point: We never printed ANYTHING in The Echo about Ollie because the Comm. department wouldn't let us! If anyone in any other department had been diagnosed with pancreatic cancer, we'd be on it in a second. The Comm. department thinks we're some PR tool. What is this? It isn't journalism, that's for sure.

Also, the Letters to the Editor section of any paper expresses the opinions of individuals writing the letters, NOT the paper itself. Jan was angry because the dept. didn't get to tell its side of the story. Well, a letter to the editor doesn't tell the other side of the story. Also, we gave Justin Clupper the opportunity to rebut Lee's letter, but he DECLINED!

Well now I'm definitely not excited about next year. It's obvious that the radio station people need to sit down and get their differences settled in a civilized manner without dragging other media into it. I hope things cool down over the summer.