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My Valentine to The Michigan Daily By David Enders Dear Dave, It has been noticed by more than a few people that, after the moral highground (sic) you took regarding the Daily boycott, your participation in the production's (sic) of last week's editorial page was an astounding display of hypocrisy. -recent email to myself from a fellow Daily staff member I devoted a considerable amount of time at the Daily during my first three years in Ann Arbor, forty to fifty hours a week on average. Spending that much time in the same building with the same people led to the formation of friendships and alliances between myself I will always hold dear. My colleagues and I were submerged, bound by the same sleepless hours, negligible (read: slave) wages, the thanklessness of our jobs and our collective lack of contact with the outside world. During the last year, I have usually submitted whatever I write by email. This removal has given me a lot of time to think about things of which I was not aware of until I took a step back. When the boycott began last fall, I was placed in an awkward position. I counted many of those involved with the boycott as friends, or at least acquaintances with whom I shared a mutual respect. I agreed with a number of the assessments they had made: there were problems with the paper's content and coverage that required redress. Because I was no longer a part of the paper's management and siding openly with the boycotters would be tantamount to treason, I steered a middle ground. One of the boycotters asked me if I would create a curriculum for minority journalists who could then apply to work at the paper, thus solving the problem in part by an infusion of new writers from the communities that felt wronged. Unfortunately, the idea dropped quietly by the wayside with the rest of the boycott, when (at least so far as I can tell) most of those involved decided there were more important battles to be fought than what had become a very personal pissing match on both sides. New blood still seems to me the best way to solve any problem of perceived racism or insensitivity on the part of the Daily. I understand it is easy for me to sit in front of a computer and urge people to expose themselves to a culture and institution they have already identified as hostile or insensitive. It could also be construed as unfair for me to suggest that those who already feel wronged make the sacrifices necessary to solve the problem. But the Daily is a student-run and managed organization and that the only way it will reflect what students want it to reflect is if those students are involved. Mistakes made by the paper should not go unaddressed, but righteous indignation and a set of demands are a short-term solution. The Daily has always been a place built on participation from the ground up, not the top down. I considered quitting in solidarity with the boycotters, but in the end chose to stand with the publication to which I had tied my college experience and hope a solution would be reached. If that's the 'high ground,' I'll run for it every time. The Daily has historically been one of the most influential campus papers in the nation. That is in part because of the size and influence of the community it covers, which by default gives it a large circulation and diverse, far-flung readership. But it has generally served its community well and with a great degree of professionalism, an achievement that becomes more impressive for every passing year the University offers no journalism degree. Incentives to work at the Daily have becoming increasingly thin in the past 10 years, and that has been reflected in the makeup of the staff and the paper's high turnover. It is largely students who don't need to hold a job that pays real wages who can commit the time to effectively influence its day-to-day operations. Perhaps the University could offer scholarships to Daily writers and editors to increase student participation. Having a viable student-run paper is in the best interests of the administration and the student body, if only because it makes it easier for each to keep tabs on the other. I wouldn't trade the time I've had at the Daily for anything, I only wish more people could have the same opportunity. I participated in the production of the Daily's annual senior edition two weeks ago - though I can only take credit for what was printed on page 4 - because it was one last chance to spend time with the handful of people who can say their college experiences have been similar to mine. Was the paper that day at times more infantile than amusing? Certainly. Did you have a problem with it? My best advice is to get involved. |