On Tuesday, Feb. 20, at 7:30 p.m., the Knight News had the opportunity to sit down with the top leadership of the current student government under the auspices of the United People (UP) party. The meeting was intended as a get-together to hammer out the last details of a press conference the newspaper wished to conduct with leaders from both UP and the Democratic Student Alliance (D.S.A.). Instead, the meeting was a colossal eye-opener, providing insight into a student government that is afraid of transparency and views this very newspaper as a personal organ whose purpose is ostensibly to refrain from asking tough questions and unconditionally support UP.
During the course of the meeting, the Knight News was informed that it was "not in our best interests" to endorse a candidate for the upcoming student elections in April. The threat is quite serious because, at this time, Queens College governance is set up in such a way that the president of student government has the majority vote over budget allocations to different clubs, including the Knight News.
The very notion of a newspaper's editorial board supporting a candidate - something that is done at The New York Times and The Harvard Crimson - seemed alien to the student government leadership present. Moreover, the Knight News was asked to censor elements of op-ed pieces that contained rhetoric that was critical of the current student government which is led by the UP party. Asking a student newspaper to censor opinions pieces in one's favor is no small matter. The fact the request was made rather nonchalantly is troubling. Do our current student leaders not understand the very meaning of venality?
Additionally, the Knight News presented the possibility of creating town hall meetings where students could ask questions to leaders of both UP and D.S.A. - something that can help foster better communication between students and their leaders. The Knight News was rebuffed and, instead, student government proposed that an event be created where students ask questions to President Muyskens and Vice President Bertollino. The rationale offered for student government's reluctance was that it was not a good idea for "the average Joe" to be asking party leaders questions, as if "the average Joe" does not deserve a say in shaping his stay at Queens College.
The dynamics of our meeting pose serious questions that must be answered. Why are members of student government, under the leadership of UP, so reluctant to face fellow students? Why is it so difficult to set up a small press conference that would be attended by merely one or two journalists asking a couple questions? Why is the student government requesting that we censor opinions pieces in the grand spirit of authoritarian rule? What is the government hiding? Are there deeper patterns of corruption beneath the surface?
As the election season looms, the Knight News is introducing a special section dedicated to allowing the candidates and party leaders to voice their opinions. The Knight News does not endorse what is said on that page, nor will we pick and choose what gets put on. It is our hope that the page will provide a forum for substantive debate rather than ad hominem attacks, and enable students to make educated decisions about the candidates they ultimately decide to vote for. In the coming weeks, the Knight News will make a serious attempt to educate our student body about what student government does and how their decisions impact our everyday lives here at Queens College. College serves as an academic oasis for debunking myths and arriving at smart, well-informed decisions. Students must stop voting simply because they are forced into the booth by some party minion who won't take no for an answer. We at the Knight News believe that students should know who they are voting for and why it makes sense to vote for one candidate over another. We hope that we can make inroads in raising student awareness of their government.
Student government's attempt to co-opt the Knight News is reprehensible and demonstrative of a ruling party that is afraid of any forms of serious competition - something that is has not enjoyed in many years. The Knight News will not kowtow to student government's blackmail. Our journalistic instincts lead us to believe that where there are attempts at newspaper suppression and avoiding genuine transparency, something is being covered up. It would be a dereliction of our duty as journalists to refrain from investigating our student government. We are here to serve the students of Queens College and provide them with news that seeks the truth. We will hold firm to that commitment no matter who may decide to come knocking at our door.
Be the first to comment on this article!