I think the potential of this forum was demonstrated earlier this evening. Within hours of posting the story about Cori Jackson, the email accounts of Caleb and I were being flooded with responses both on the page and on tips of other stories regarding Dean Irene Stevens.
As part of this flood we received a message from CJ himself requesting that we remove the entry. After speaking with his attorney, CJ was advised to have the post removed until he meets with the judge again. We have agreed to remove it, for the time being, as we would not want to impede any progress in his case. The post has not been deleted, but will not appear in a published form for the time being. I have also made an effort to ensure that all comments made on the entry while it was up were saved and will reappear when and if we re-post. We are working closely with CJ and hope to have the post back up soon. I understand with the rise and fall of blogs at Butler that many are sensitive to saving information, I myself was able to save the True BU entries in various forms. I request that anyone who still has this post available please refrain re-publication. I reiterate, this is by request of CJ and his attorney and we do not want to impede his case.
The Underground has been slowly exposing the many realities of student, faculty and administrative life at Butler, none more disturbing than the recent events surround Mr. Jackson. As such we have been treading some delicate borders and negotiating legal and ethical realities which are unprecedented in this type of forum. Occasionally this leads to some hard choices, ones that we do not take lightly.We will always act in the best interest of the community by insuring the integrity of The Underground, protecting those whose stories are being shared and not shying away from controversy.
Again, CJ's story has not and will not fall to the background. It remains underground and though we exposed it only briefly, the response was immense. We expect to have something to present within the next day or two and will keep everyone updated.
Thank you all for your concerned responses. We hope we have your understanding in the matter.
-Jon
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Thanks for keeping us abreast of the situation. I'm interested in hearing the administration's side of the story, although I feel that, due to ongoing legal action, they will not say much.
ReplyDeleteUnfortunately, I think our administration does not realize how important transparent, two-way communication actually is. In this day and age, where the internet is creating a groundswell for the everyman, having an open-door policy on controversial incidents is paramount to the interests of any party in the debate. For our administrators who most likely remember a time when "no comment" was an acceptable response, this change is hard to swallow. However, regardless of the part they play in all of this, they have failed to recognize the line in the sand they are drawing. For me (and I assume many in my generation feel similarly), the administration's closed-door policy causes me to question their credibility on this and other issues. Willingness to be forthcoming, even when the information might be embarrassing, will create a relationship of mutual respect and trust in the long run. Quashing the voice of the dissenters (or The Dissenters) in no longer an applicable tactic for public relations. Butler would be wise to, as Prof. Watts pointed out in the previous Butler Underground post, let "all winds of doctrine [were let] loose to play on the earth" (-Milton). Rather than hiding from it's students, Butler should use the facts in this case to validate their process. If they cannot do so, it is indeed embarrassing, but essential to creating good student relations given modern technologies and the tendency of young persons to scrutinize their authority.
ReplyDeleteI just wanted to say I really appreciate the direction this blog seems to be going. I never saw what TrueBU had to say, but from what I can tell you have so far been incredibly responsible with the information you publish. It is very professional in tone and attempts to stick to the facts of what is really happening on campus.
ReplyDeleteThanks for doing this!
I wish that someone who quotes Milton (even if quoting an English professor who quoted Milton) would take the time to get his or her "its" right. "It's" is short for "it is." Mallory meant to say, "Rather than hiding from its students..." Frustrating.
ReplyDeleteOh, and the blog owner needs to get the "Caleb and I" versus "Caleb and me" thing down.
This is, after all, an institution of learning.
HAHAHAHAHAHAHAHAHA
ReplyDelete