Editorial policy inconsistent

Monday I learned that The Chronicle has taken the ultimate step to remedy what many perceive to have been a lapse in journalistic standards: the editorial board fired the authors of Monday, Monday. While I suspect the decision to silence a columnist had much to do with the author/editor relationship, the editorial board should take time to think about the ramifications of its decision, particular in light of its history.

The Chronicle has never been shy about printing stories to create controversy. When I was a student at Duke, the editors elected to run a paid-for advertisement written by a well-known neo-Nazi under the guise of “revisionist” history. Simply put, the ad claimed that the Holocaust never happened. To make matters worse, the editorial board defended its decision to print the advertisement because of the advertiser’s First Amendment rights.

While I, and others, did not agree on this point it is worth noting the board was not alone in their opinion. What was not disputed, however, was that the editorial board decided to publish a highly offensive advertisement under the guise of promoting free speech.

Since that time, the Chronicle’s history of publishing offensive letters and columns has sadly continued. At least until a columnist had the gall to poke fun at St. Mike and his 11 apostles. Yes, the column in question was in poor taste. Yes, Monday, Monday did unfairly malign one or two of the members of the men’s varsity basketball team. But when compared with the truly egregious submissions that have been published in the past, how can the editorial board justify its decision here?

If this is a first step in a new policy at The Chronicle, the editors should be applauded in taking a more active stance against publishing offensive material. However, perhaps the furor over these articles and advertisements could have been avoided if the editors actually did their jobs in the first place and edited the materials submitted to them before publication.

Ethan Litwin

Trinity ’92