1970_11 The Daily Collegian November 1970

              A statement by the Daily Collegian staff
The recommendations made by
the newly formed Editorial Advisory Board concerning Daily
CoUegtan policy came as no surprise to those of us on the CoUegtan staff. We have long suspected the advisory board would be
used aa a poUUcal tool by the
Baxter admlnlstraUon to "leglU-
rolze* the curtailment of our
freedoms.
No matter how many disclaimers the administration wlU issue
after this statement appears, we
feel It Is only a matter of Ume
before we are silenced and the
Collegian Is transformed Into a
mouthpiece for the administration and Board of Trustees. We
w the n
f the
Editorial Advisory Board as the
first step In that process.
If It isn't already apparent,
the advisory board Is stacked
against the Collegian In favor of
the conservative Department of
Journalism and the administration. That comes as no great sur-
Student Body President Bill
Jones, and Dr. John Duke, chairman of the Journalism department, appointed by 'the faculty
of the Journalism department. A
fifth member of the board, nominated by the Board of Publlca-
Uons and appointed by Baxter,
has yet to be named.
The advisory board suffers
from an Incredible lackofUberal
and student representation. The
only student on the board, David
Fox, has a built-in conflict of
interest. He Is stlU closely tied
to the Journalism department and
Insight, and presently works with
Bill Jones In the capacity of a
public relauons aide. It is no
secret that relations between the
Jones admlnlstraUon and theCol-
leglan are not the best in the
world. We therefore seriously
question Fox's ability to remain
Collegian by Popovlch concerning
the board's recommendations, we
would be hard put to classify his
thinking as either progressive or
liberal.
'Professionals'
We therefore conclude that no
attempt has been made to balance
the Editorial Advisory Board. To
be sure, the board Is composed
for the most part of "professionals," but It cannot be said; to
represent the profession. It rep-
*        school of thought
schools of
The Editorial Advisory Board's
The
» field with n
suggested   forml
Objectivity
n the fl
t place
It was Baxter';
Dick of the Community Relations
Office, who played a key role in
getUng a new and Inexperienced
Board of Publications to accept
his plan for the board's composition. (Dick is Baxter's representative on the Board of Publi-
We also question the objectivity
and   fairness of Dr. John Duke,
partment. Of all the members on
the advisory board, Duke Is the
most hostile to the Collegian. He
played a key role In severing his
department's relations with the
Collegian when theStudentSenate
affirmed the Board on Publication's policy of
He has long been critical
COLLEGIAN FORUM
•general welfare of the stu- with the Board on Publications'
: body and the coUege. We have and  Student   Senate's Judgment
i it ail before. We know how that the special editions do in-
games Is played, and we deed serve the generalwelfareof
■  this ad- the student body and coUege as a
George Popovlch, In explaining
the board's feeUngs about the
special editions to members of
our staff, said It was the board's
feeling they were nothing but
•propaganda." What that means
is anyone's guess, but the tone is
clearly racist. It Is possible
Popovlch and others on the board
are under the mistaken Impression the primary function of the
special editions Is a "news* function. It Is well understood by
those dealing directly with the
special editions that they are a
were brimming with 'professional* arrogance, bigotry and a
total lack of understanding about
the nature and role of student
newspapers.
«t blatant Indiscretion
e black, c
Opinions
editorials, including feature-
editorials and commentaries by
guest writers, are not necessarily those of Fresno State CoUege
or the student body.
THE DAILY COLLEGI.'N
passing Judgment on us.
Until the
conflicts o
left, a right
profession,
international students special
editions in terms of the Board
on Publications' policy on the existence of these papers. The
Board on Publications, In a meeting last month, passed a motion
specifically requesUng that the
advisory board pass no Judgment
regarding
their legitimacy. The advisory
board was to make recommendations concerning the validity only
of special
other areas of the campus, (I.e.
Academic Senate, Women's Lib-
Athletlcs   Department,
by minority groups to explain
their feelings and aspirations to
the restof the college community.
They are for all Intents and purposes a four-page weekly commentary devoted to enlightening
the white middle-class majority
on campus.
/»*    Misunderstanding
In that respect the special editions are In harmony with the
functions of a college newspaper.
The main function of a college
paper Is to serve as a forum for
opinion and comment. That this Is
the main function of a college
newspaper Is little understood by
the Baxter administration, the
Board of Trustees and many
others Inside and i
lege community. The news fui
, although an Important e
element. College newspapers differ with other newspapers In that
they serve an Intellectual community In an environment supposedly ar     	
change   of   ideas  and  vigorous
Blacks and chlcanos represent
new and much needed lr
campus. They have
thing   f
liar, and should
so. How this
either through
supplement or
something
been debated ever since
of minority representa-
he  Collegian came up.
LETTERS TO THE EDITOR
that one of the greatest cornerstones of Its foundation Is Us
Christian ethics. The cry Is heard
that we as a nation must uphold
our ChrlsUan principles and disavow the, -harbingers of hate.*
The disenchanted young are told
assuredly to work within our
, great system and change it thereby.
Andyet this poUUcal campaign
offers ample evidence of why so
VIGIL
(Continued from Page 1)
THE DAILY COLLEGIAN   3
Collegian statement
(Continued from Page 2)
ireaslng the Collegian staff and
lumber of pages Is highly de-
irable. Editors of the Collegian
iave been pushing for a larger
iewspaper and staff since last
ear. It has been their belief
hat what Is happening through-
le country and In California
It is our teeUng that cover
f these areas In addition ti
events will give all of us I
understanding   and  per
il to <k
1 with
Again, we believe the advisory
lard's suggestion to limit space
the editor and editorials results
in the board's basic misunderstanding of a college newspaper's
role on campus. We are the only
campus-wide forum available to
students for the expression of
Ideas and opinions. To greatly
curtail space available to such a
(unction Is to negate ourprlmary
ever, that since its Inception the
Collegian has maintained a policy
of covering news, sports and cultural events In addition to providing an open forum. We feel we
have provided a reasonable balance between all four areas and
therefore, must view the board's
suggestion to limit editorial
space as unjustified and based
on  prejudice   rather than sound
One-sided reporting
The Editorial Advisory Board's
last recommendation Is the most
misleading of all. The board said
that, "numerous Instances of inaccurate and one-sided re"portlng
of the Dally Collegian, and the advisory board urges the Collegian
editor (Burton Swope) and his
staff to seek out contrasting and
opposing views In ordertodouble
check the accuracy of a news item
and in order to present both
sides. A lack of accuracy and
one-sided reporting discredit a
newspaper In the eyes of ltspub-
The   .
i  board failed t<
sided reporting In i
pers. The question is one of
degree. While admitting that we
have made mistakes and not every side has always been heard
from, we feel we have done a
reaonsably good Job in reporting
news stories. What mistakes have
and In most cases Immediately
corrected.
The Collegian has tried to seek'
out contrasting views In reporting
news stories. Sometimes that is
difficult on a campus experiencing a wave of repression, and
where most of Us members Uve
In fearand distrust ofthelr peers.
It is difficult at times to get the
other side whei
wlU not talk to c
when they are always "out for the
day* or "tied up In a meeting."
It Is difficult to obtain contrasting
views when faculty are so frightened of losing their Jobs they
would rather remain silent and
unnoticed rather than outspoken
and under scrutiny.
Opposite sHojl
What- e advisory board has
done In making such a recommendation public is Just the op
posite of Its Intent. In and of
Itself It has the effect of destroying reader confidence in the Daily
Collegian. No matter how hard
we have tried in the past and will
try in ihe future to give our
readers balanced and well-
rounded coverage, we have been
stigmatized as a paper given to
"inaccuracy and one-sided stories?" In that respect the board
has done more damage to the
Collegian than a staff of incom-
In conclusion, we find the performance of the Editorial Advisory Board unsatisfactory. We
see dangers In its continued operation. The advisory board
sounded like a good Idea as long
as It was theory, but In practice
it has turned out to be detrlmen-
the Student Senate to either radically alter Its functions and composition or to abolish It. It Is
confusing vital issues, slandering
the Collegian, and serving only
the forces of repression and reaction on campus.
-The Dally Collegian
Editors and Staff
Involved.
Are we being asked to become
Involved so that we, too, may
stand up in an official capacity,
call our fellow man a lying son-
ofabltch? To become so wrapped
up In a position within a hierarchy that we hold an opponent
to be a vote for anarchy? Attempt
to use a position of power to
strip our elders of their last
vestiges of human dignity by
shunting   them  Into  prison-like
Are we to emulate these "officers of the public trust- who
continually tax the working man's
pocketbook to allay waste In government spending yet grant corporations tremendous tax benefits? In an economy that produces $900 billion worth of goods
and services yearly, shall we
emulate those who worry about a
man who makes off with $5,000
from welfare, and yet rewrite
tax  laws   to  allow corporations
Shall the young emulate these
men such that they lie and cheat?
And if these be good men, what
Is It In our society that makes
good   men  strike  constantly  at
Which American ethic are the
young to adopt?
The religious ethic we pay Up
service to which says love your
fellow man, or the politico-corporate ethic who says step on
your fellow man so that you might
officially recognized La Mesa.
Directlva because of the administration's denial to acknowledge this group, Vigil stated any
Individuals or groups recommending any person (or persons)
for La Raza faculty will be beard
development of La Raza Studies,
the community, the students, and
the administration.
"As a community we see no
real future for La Raza Studies
on this campus or any other program which-is supposed to meet
What about La Raza classes?
Vigil explained that whatever
courses are offered wlU depend
on the hired faculty's speclaU-
zaUon In their areas of major.
•The college has every Intention of having a La Raza Studies program and the end result
will be revealed In the spring,*
he said. 'Whatever develops
depends on the committee's and
administration's decisions on
formal course offerings.*
Pickett, disputing Vigil's
statements, said, "It seems absurd that Baxter's LaRazaCommittee can't recognize the future
nlty/ he stated.
•Until this administration (and
La Raza Studies committee) attempt to develop a progressive
relationship with the Chlcanos,
there cannot be any change from
that direction from which this
institution was founded, which excludes Chlcanos and Blacks from
equal and full participation.
•Ultimately, the Chicano community will not let its existence
on this campus be seduced by
those who persist to dictate what
Is right and what is wrong on
determining our   own   future/
I. Brough
TUNE-UP
SPECIAL!
Includes  replacing spark plugs,
points,   boil  carburetor,  adjust .
liming and adjust valves.
<2Dxf oro Motors
Complete Transmission and Engine Repair
3953 N. Blackstone Telephone 229-8818
At Fresno State
who gets asked out
more often
than anyone else?
The Oly Picnic Tap & 120 paper cups
Get enough Oly to to last. Call Target Sales, 268-6671, for the nearest Olympia
draft outlet And ask about our go-anywhere kegs with the new Oly Picnic Tap.
Olympia Brewing Company, Tumwater, Washington. "Oly •