Enforcing Taboo at a Troubled Campus
by Jett Rucker Responding politely to two of our applications to place a small ad in her university's student newspaper, Natasha Monnereau, Advertising Manager at the New University student newspaper at University of California, Irvine, was perhaps more-forthcoming than she had to be (for which we thank her). In one of her missives, she kindly included a full copy of New U's advertising policy, which emphasizes the paper's right to reject any advertisement that doesn't suit them, but leaves unmentioned any right they might claim to accept advertising that might not suit other powers holding sway over their vast (27,000 students)-and tranquil-campus. Powers, for example, like the Anti-Defamation League, Pacific Southwest chapter. This bastion of interethnic comity ballyhooed in September of last year that it had sent a letter to the editor-in-chief (not the advertising manager) of the UC Los Angeles Daily Bruin suggesting they drop an advertisement they were then running inviting readers to link to Bradley Smith's book Confessions of a Holocaust Revisionist. They did, and right smartly at that. Maybe Natasha Got the Memo, as one of her responses (received September 24) to CODOH's importunings reads, "We are unable to accept requests having any association with Bradley Smith." Bradley Smith! Now, where have we heard that name before? Perhaps a further memo was circulated to all University of California student newspapers imposing a ban on that name, hatred for and fear of which might soon attain the levels hitherto reserved for such as Adolf ... there's no need to go on. Fortunately, California (just one state, but a big one, with a budget deficit said to be visible from outer space) has no fewer than three university systems, and one of the others, California State University, has one of its 23 campuses at a place called Northridge. At CSU Northridge, the advertising manager has exhibited the temerity-or is it mere negligence-to accept an ad from this same notorious Bradley Smith that consists of a link (in a list of links) reading, "Read the evidence. Judge for yourself." It leads to ... yes, you guessed it. The editor-in-chief of the Daily Sundial, I predict, is about to receive a Letter, containing an offer he or she will find themselves quite unable to refuse. And this Letter, I shouldn't be surprised, may go out to the other 22 campuses of CSU, where alert advertising managers such as our Natasha Monnereau will take heed and, we hope.... Continue Reading Donate via Pay Pal or Credit Card |
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