西北大学新闻学院院长为杰夫·赛申斯抗议报道辩护

       西北大学的学生报纸就如何报道前总检察长杰夫·塞申斯（Jeff Sessions）最近在校园露面发表了评论，而新闻学院的院长则坚决支持报道。

       麦迪尔综合营销传播学院媒体新闻学院院长查尔斯·惠特克（Charles Whitaker）在一次采访中说：“负责该报道的学生一直忍受着做新闻的'罪过'，这让我感到恶心，因为他们受到恶毒的欺凌和badge骂。”周二的声明。

       学生们批评了《每日西北》报道塞申斯11月5日事件的方法，其中包括记者在其Twitter帐户上张贴抗议者的照片，并向学生发短信询问他们是否愿意接受采访。周日，《每日报》的编辑们为塞申斯在校园里对“学生遭受的伤害”做出贡献并侵犯其同学的隐私表示歉意。

       通常，道歉旨在减轻批评，但是这一道歉引起了新一轮的强烈反对。专业记者将道歉描述为“尴尬”，因为与人们接触故事和为公共活动拍照是基本的新闻惯例。

       鉴于批评哈佛大学的学生报纸，《绯红色》最近因要求移民和海关执法部门评论一个有关“废除ICE”学生集会的故事而受到好评，一些人声称这是试图控制新闻叙述的学生令人不安的趋势的开始。

       惠特克承认，如果做得不好或不公平，新闻业可能会“吓“”个人和社区。虽然“不乏实例”，但《每日报》的会议报道却不是其中之一。

       惠特克在声明中说：“但是让我完全清楚的是，《每日报》报道的抗议活动是由前司法部长杰夫·塞申斯最近在校园露面所引起的。

       西北新闻网（NNN）的新闻主任乔伊·萨夫奇克（Joey Safchik）是该大学获得艾美奖的学生经营的电视网络，该新闻主任告诉《新闻周刊》，也敦促他们撤回其报道。根据执行董事会的一致决定，他们决定不删除报道，因为他们确信报告的准确性和公正性。

       萨夫奇克说：“我们对校园负有责任。这是一个微妙的情况，背景非常重要，但我认为任何人都不必为做准确的新闻而道歉。”

       萨夫奇克不同意《每日报》的道歉决定，也不同意通过学生目录中列出的电话号码与学生联系是对隐私的侵犯，但萨菲奇克不同意这种说法。

       学生对《每日邮报》报道的另一个问题是，它发现了抗议者，可能使他们有能力受到纪律处分。西北航空没有针对学生抗议者的大赦政策，总统莫顿·夏皮罗（Morton Shapiro）说，伤害某人或关闭演讲的学生将面临后果。

       《每日报》的编辑们说，学生与大学之间的这种动态关系意味着他们需要的工作方式不同于专业出版物。

       “知道我们的员工在尽最大的努力做到我们作为学生记者的工作，同时努力消除有关学生新闻的组成知识的空白，并表明我们至少听到了学生的真正关注，”特洛伊·克洛森（Troy Closson）编辑《每日报》社长在Twitter上发布。

       《新闻周刊》与Closson取得了联系，但没有及时收到回复以发表该消息。

       尽管NNN谨慎行事，不要让学生处于弱势地位，但Safchik表示，该电台将自己视为专业出版物，并有义务报告在公众抗议活动中发生的事件。

       萨夫奇克说：“如果再次发生，我们将以同样的方式进行。” “我们有三名记者在现场，与各方代表进行了交谈，并核实了我们在广播或社交媒体上所说的每句话。这就是我来到西北航空追求的那种新闻，梅迪尔也鼓励这种工作。”

       惠特克称学生激进分子称该报道侵犯了示威者的个人空间是“天真”和“头脑错误”。一些学生还批评《每日新闻》的记者“粗鲁”和“不敏感”，而惠特克解释说的这一主张将通过与学生一起研究报道技巧来解决。

       教务长拒绝为鼓励学生报道西北大学的生活和时间而道歉，但在他的声明中说，他理解《每日邮报》编辑为什么这么做，声称他们“被硫酸和公开羞辱打倒了。” 院长说，虽然打算为社区康复，但它发出了“关于新闻业的令人毛骨悚然的信息”。

       惠特克（Whitaker）没有屈服于“最响亮，最有影响力的声音”，而是鼓励学生利用意见页来批评报道或加入工作人员。

NORTHWESTERN'S JOURNALISM DEAN DEFENDS JEFF SESSIONS PROTEST COVERAGE, SAYS STUDENTS ENDURED 'VICIOUS BULLYING' FOR THE 'SIN OF DOING JOURNALISM'


       While Northwestern University's student newspaper issued a mea culpa for how it covered former Attorney General Jeff Sessions' recent on-campus appearance, the journalism school's dean stood firmly behind the coverage.

       "I am deeply troubled by the vicious bullying and badgering that the students responsible for that coverage have endured for the 'sin' of doing journalism," Charles Whitaker, the dean of Medill School of Journalism, Media, Integrated Marketing Communications, said in a statement on Tuesday.

       Students criticized The Daily Northwestern's methods of covering Sessions' November 5 event, which included reporters posting photos of protesters on their Twitter accounts and texting students asking if they would be willing to be interviewed. On Sunday, editors from The Daily apologized for contributing to the "harm students experienced" when Sessions was on campus and invading the privacy of their fellow students.

       Generally, apologies are intended to mitigate criticism, but this one caused an entirely new round of backlash. Professional journalists characterized the apology as an "embarrassment," because reaching out to people for stories and taking photos of a public event were basic journalistic practices.

       Given the criticism Harvard University's student newspaper, The Crimson recently received for asking Immigrations and Customs Enforcement to comment on a story about an "Abolish ICE" student rally, some claimed it was the start of a troubling trend of students attempting to control journalistic narratives.

       Whitaker acknowledged that when done poorly or unfairly, journalism could "scar" individuals and communities. While there was "no shortage of instances" of this, The Daily's coverage of Sessions was not one of them.

       "But let me be perfectly clear, the coverage by The Daily of the protests stemming from the recent appearance on campus by former Attorney General Jeff Sessions was in no way beyond the bounds of fair, responsible journalism," Whitaker said in his statement.

       Joey Safchik, news director for the Northwestern News Network (NNN), the university's Emmy Award–winning student-run television network, told Newsweek they were also urged to retract their reporting. By unanimous decision of its executive board, they decided to not take down their coverage because they were confident their reporting was accurate and fair.

       "We have a responsibility to our campus. It's a nuanced situation and context is extremely important, but I don't think anyone should have to apologize for doing accurate journalism," Safchik said.

       Safchik disagreed with The Daily's decision to apologize, as well as, its acquiescence that contacting students through phone numbers listed in the student directory was an invasion of privacy, but noted she respects the people who run the paper.

       Another problem students had with The Daily's coverage was that it identified protesters, possibly putting them in a position to face disciplinary action. Northwestern doesn't have an amnesty policy for student protesters, and President Morton Shapiro said students who hurt someone or shut down speech will face consequences.

       This dynamic between students and the university, The Dailyeditors said, means that they need to operate differently than a professional publication.

       "Know that our staff is doing the best we can to do our jobs as student journalists while working through gaps in knowledge about what student journalism consists of—and showing that we at least hear the real concerns from students," Troy Closson, editor in chief of The Daily, posted on Twitter.

       Newsweek reached out to Closson but did not receive a response in time for publication.

       Although NNN is cautious not to put students in a vulnerable situation, Safchik said the station treats itself as a professional publication and had an obligation to report the events that transpired at a public protest.

       "We would do it the same way if it happened again," Safchik said. "We had three reporters on the ground, spoke to representatives from all sides and have verified every word we've said on air or on social media. That's the kind of journalism I came to Northwestern to pursue, and the work Medill encourages."

       Whitaker called it "naïve" and "wrong-headed" for student activists to claim the reporting violated the personal space of protesters. Some students also criticized The Daily journalists with being "rude" and "insensitive," a claim that Whitaker explained would be dealt with by working with students on reporting techniques.

       The dean refused to apologize for encouraging students to report on the life and times at Northwestern but said in his statement that he understood why The Daily editors did, claiming they were "beat into submission by the vitriol and public shaming." Although intended to be healing for the community, the dean said it sent a "chilling message about journalism."

       Instead of caving to the "loudest and most influential voices," Whitaker encouraged students to utilize the opinion pages to critique coverage or join the staff.