2008 Woodie Awards
Controversy surrounding Webbies spurs special meeting
By: Mallory Skinner and Gabe Bullard
Issue date: 4/12/07 Section: News
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Despite an hour of vigorous debate April 5 between students and School of Communications faculty, little was decided about a controversial article about the Webbies.
More than 50 students - including members of the Webbies production class - attended an emergency meeting of the Publications Board in room 101 of the Sverdrup building. The Publications Board, a group of faculty and administrators who oversee the Journal, typically meets once a month to facilitate discussion between Webster's student journalists and members of the community.
The emergency meeting was called to address complaints about a March 29 article titled "Faculty squelch Webbies film: School of Communications bungles showing of student-produced film for annual awards show."
The article detailed faculty objections to "Lethal Webbies," a student-made film meant to be shown throughout the Webbies awards ceremony. The faculty told student filmmakers if they removed the potentially offensive material, specifically an over-the-top Austrian villain, they could show the film at the Webbies. But rather than edit parts of the film, students opted not to show "Lethal Webbies" during the ceremony at all.
The article angered faculty within the SOC who charged the article and its headline were slanted in favor of the film students.
Much of the argument revolved around the accuracy of the words "squelch" and "bungles."
Eileen Solomon, a broadcast journalism professor, took issue with the word "squelch" in the headline, contesting faculty merely suggested changes be made to the project. Solomon urged that because film students chose to pull the film rather than edit it, the word "squelch" was inappropriate. She suggested the headline be attributed to avoid the appearance of editorializing.
However, some attendants, disagreed.
Dan Hellinger, professor of history and international relations and member of the Publications Board, countered that journalists have the right to make some obvious judgments when writing headlines and copy. He said if journalists attributed every headline to a speaker, they would risk becoming stenographers.
More than 50 students - including members of the Webbies production class - attended an emergency meeting of the Publications Board in room 101 of the Sverdrup building. The Publications Board, a group of faculty and administrators who oversee the Journal, typically meets once a month to facilitate discussion between Webster's student journalists and members of the community.
The emergency meeting was called to address complaints about a March 29 article titled "Faculty squelch Webbies film: School of Communications bungles showing of student-produced film for annual awards show."
The article detailed faculty objections to "Lethal Webbies," a student-made film meant to be shown throughout the Webbies awards ceremony. The faculty told student filmmakers if they removed the potentially offensive material, specifically an over-the-top Austrian villain, they could show the film at the Webbies. But rather than edit parts of the film, students opted not to show "Lethal Webbies" during the ceremony at all.
The article angered faculty within the SOC who charged the article and its headline were slanted in favor of the film students.
Much of the argument revolved around the accuracy of the words "squelch" and "bungles."
Eileen Solomon, a broadcast journalism professor, took issue with the word "squelch" in the headline, contesting faculty merely suggested changes be made to the project. Solomon urged that because film students chose to pull the film rather than edit it, the word "squelch" was inappropriate. She suggested the headline be attributed to avoid the appearance of editorializing.
However, some attendants, disagreed.
Dan Hellinger, professor of history and international relations and member of the Publications Board, countered that journalists have the right to make some obvious judgments when writing headlines and copy. He said if journalists attributed every headline to a speaker, they would risk becoming stenographers.
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