Leveraging difference in letters
It's always a judgment call on letters to the editor that express potentially offensive views.
Consider a recent letter in which a parent expressed frustration at bawdy behavior at local high school graduations.
The writer made some cogent points about how rude and distracting some people's irrational exuberance can be. Then she added a line that "basically it is the black community that behaves this way."
Should I have cut that reference? Would it alter the thrust of the letter? Was she entitled to that opinion or is a racist observation? In the marketplace of ideas do such opinions need to be aired?
And was she merely reported what she has seen and heard?
One letter writer offered this reaction:
"In response to the distress caused by the lack of seeing her son graduate in a peaceful manner, I extend my sympathy. Though, admittedly, I do not understand the printed honors of her son included in her submission. Surely she is not the only mother in Greensboro who has a son or daughter graduating from High School with top honors. I failed to understand how this information affected her reasons for submitting her entry. Therefore, I must presume that the inclusion of this tidbit of information was for her personal gratification.
" I agree that this is an occasion that a parent should enjoy. I however do not agree with the connotation she made that accused an entire race of people of the years long disturbances caused at such occasions. I believe that Ms. Davis needs to take into account several factors before she can make such an inconceivable declaration. (1) Emotional states of both parents, students and friends will be elevated due to the nature of this occasion, (2) Other races are also present during commencement exercises and I think it is safe to assume that they may be the cause of their own fair share of disturbances, and (3) It is impossible to assign blame to any one race due to one person's narrow view and past experiences at commencement exercises. To make such a deduction would require that Ms. Davis be present at every commencement exercise in not only Greensboro but the entire country. Assuming the impossibility of this fact, I can safely say that she is incorrect and unfair in her assessment of the African-American race's behavior during commencement exercises. Truly I am saddened that my first editorial letter to the News and Record had to be one of such a sad circumstance. I hope that other loyal readers will not share the same experience in the future."
In a comment on the letters blog, Sue was a little more cynical (unless she was joking). The racial reference was why we published the letter, she wrote..
It was not.
The balancing act in choosing letters is a delicate process. We try to represent a wide range of different views, without passing judgment on those views, but we try not to publish mean or offensive letters. Obviously it's a subjective judgment.
In this case, did I make the right call? What would you have done?
Comments (10)
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The right call. And I think the letter writer was correct in her observation of a racial difference--i.e. I think there is a correlation (not a perfect one) between race and the amount of applause a student receives. It's about the same difference you'd see at church services on Sunday morning: whites trending toward ritualistic decorum, blacks trending toward exuberance and celebratory worship.
It's a confrontational and ill-tempered letter, but so are many others, and there's no need to be so censorious about racial matters that an arguable point of view can't be expressed. Get the issue out in the open.
Posted on June 7, 2007 12:36 PM
The right call. And I think the letter writer was correct in her observation of a racial difference--i.e. I think there is a correlation (not a perfect one) between race and the amount of applause a student receives. It's about the same difference you'd see at church services on Sunday morning: whites trending toward ritualistic decorum, blacks trending toward exuberance and celebratory worship.
It's a confrontational and ill-tempered letter, but so are many others, and there's no need to be so censorious about racial matters that an arguable point of view can't be expressed. Get the issue out in the open.
Posted on June 7, 2007 12:42 PM
People should be allowed to celebrate at these events. If it takes an extra hr., people are just going to have to deal with it. Let's face it, how many times in their life can people go up on a stage and get cheered by others. If the people celebrate excessively, then the person awarding the diploma should be able to control it by doing something like asking the recipient to sing a song or something. This could maybe help curtail things.
Posted on June 7, 2007 2:13 PM
Allan:
The great thing about freedom of the press is that you can print pretty much anything you want.
Maybe (very likely) I'm cynical, but I agree with Sue. A letter with a racial dig sparks some controversy and possibly brings eyeballs to the paper and its web-pages--good for business, no? However, it's hard to see that there was anything worthwhile in Ms. Davis' letter. Unless you believe that there is a crisis of graduation rudeness.
At best, the N&R seems to have very lax editorial standards.
Posted on June 8, 2007 11:50 AM
Oh, I don't know. It's a legitimate topic to me, and was, in fact, the subject of a fairly substantial NPR piece -- not that that's a stamp of approval in some people's books.
Posted on June 8, 2007 4:08 PM
Oh, I don't know. It's a legitimate topic to me, and was, in fact, the subject of a fairly substantial NPR piece -- not that that's a stamp of approval in some people's books.
Posted on June 8, 2007 4:09 PM
I revoke my approval based on NPR's having discussed this matter.
Graduation is one of few cultural rituals where the community is broadly represented. The operative rule ought to be live and let live. Like SCS says, a little lost time isn't going to kill anyone, and might be a good excuse to cut the commencement address.
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Ok, so I'm back after having failed to answer the "challenge question." Whooo, what a challenge. My preschooler could do it. I'd suggest getting more challenging questions or changing the name. The answer is 4, by the way.
Posted on June 8, 2007 11:44 PM
Allen:
We'll never know for sure, but I really wonder if the N&R would have accepted the letter absent the racist sentence.
And if the N&R would have accepted the letter, it's hard to imagine what it wouldn't accept :)
Posted on June 9, 2007 2:45 PM
Allen, if you had two LTEs to choose from (one with, one without this racial reference and both equally well written), which would you choose to publish?
Posted on June 9, 2007 8:19 PM
Dave: I would have run the letter absent the racial reference.
Sue: I probably would have run both, but that's a copout answer.
So if I had to choose, I'd probably opt for the one without the racial reference, but not without some reflection.
Posted on June 11, 2007 12:32 AM