Rocket’s opinion hurts campus community
I realize that a student newspaper doesn’t need to always paint a positive picture of the school, and only write articles supporting all the organizations on campus. I support the paper’s right to print what they want. I also support the paper’s right print editorials that disagree with decisions made by the student run organizations on campus. What I don’t support is when a series of opinion articles that berate the efforts of an organization are published behind a veil of secrecy. You would expect there to be a level of professionalism and respect that would promote a positive relationship between the different organizations on campus.
The last two articles written about guest speakers on campus (“Farm Kings Reality Star” and “Cody Lundin Shares Survival Tips”) failed to give any mention of the campus organization responsible for the event. The organizers of these events – SAE and SGA respectively – granted the writer special access for interviews and photos, yet they were not even mentioned. When a writer fails to even include the organization responsible for an event, you are left wondering why.
The editorial in the latest edition of the Rocket appears to hint at a reason. It rips the entertainers that have visited SRU this year, and those that were on campus previously, and calls them “D-list reality stars.” This not only is a swipe at entertainers themselves, but it also belittles the efforts of the organizations responsible for bringing them to SRU. That is not something a student paper should be doing. No student organization on campus is better or more important than any other. All the student organizations should be working together for the betterment of the Slippery Rock community as a whole, not tearing each other down. In light of The Rocket’s recent antics, it would appear they have lost sight of that goal.
Respectfully,
Matthew L. Steffey
Senior Communication – Public Relations major, and University Program Board member
