Dear Readers,
“Congress shall make no law respecting an establishment of religion, or prohibiting the free exercise thereof; or abridging the freedom of speech, or of the press; or the right of the people peaceably to assemble, and to petition the Government for a redress of grievances.”
I’m going to be transparent with you all – this week is one where I struggled with what to write in this letter. At a moment in history where there’s much discussion and concern about freedom of speech, particularly in relation to news media, it begs to be addressed in forums such as this one. My goal as editor of this paper, and as a journalist, is to always address important issues such as these with clarity and balance, so that’s where I’ll attempt to begin.
The Quadrangle itself is no stranger to challenges. Throughout our 101-year history, there have been multiple instances where student journalism on this campus has not been seen or treated as equal to our protections under the First Amendment. There have been moments when people hesitated to speak with us out of fear. Despite this, we have always persevered, in part due to the constitutional powers we, and every newsroom across the country, are afforded.
Today, new proposals from the Federal Communications Commission raise serious concerns about the future of media in the United States. There is a precedent being set with lasting implications for the future of American freedom: the freedom of information, the freedom of education, and simply put, the freedom to exist in a healthy democracy.
With constant breaking news alerts and what can feel like tragedies everyday, we’ve become united in our desensitization to news. Day to day, it can feel hard to know what notifications to pay attention to and what can be swept underneath the rug without any damage caused. Pay attention to this one.
For more on the FCC and the development of recent events, I encourage you to read this week’s Manhattan Caucus column, which provides an excellent overview of these issues in further context.
As for the rest of Issue 4, in news we bring you Lt. Governor Antonio Delgado’s talk on campus, student/faculty research published in the Journal of Financial Crime and a new face in the recreation and wellness department at MU. In features, we bring you the expansion of MU’s Jasper Safe program and Sanctus Artem on the quad. In A&E, we bring you an overview of the first-ever Sixth Borough Film Festival, premiering this April and the debut of a film focused on the untold stories of Jews in Pakistan. Lastly, in sports, we bring you more on women’s volleyball’s electric win against Rhode Island and a Games of the Week overview. We hope you’ll check it all out.
Stay safe and stay informed. We’ll see you back next week.
Until next time,
