We, the Daily Nebraskan editorial staff, love the First Amendment. It allows us to make such outlandish statements as “Nebraska football is back this year” and “ASUN represents the student body.” There is no idea more sacred to journalism than that of free speech, and we strive to protect that right at any cost. But it has come to our attention that we recently printed an article that some students found offensive, and want to assure you, our readers, that we had no idea misogyny was such a touchy issue.
Our opinion page has long been known as the best collection of poorly-argued drivel this side of the Platte—the South Dakota “Sun-Herald” takes the northern trophy—and we’re proud of such a distinctive tradition. But even that high standard sometimes falls short, and a piece slips through on some editorial undersight is published which inflames passions on all sides. Unfortunately, it can be difficult to judge which articles will receive such negative attention. Yes, the same author infuriates thousands of students with every article he writes, but we as editors are consistently and publicly surprised each new time he does so. We firmly believe in the idea of tenth chances. Eleventh, if the March 15th issue goes as planned. And we’ll be surprised then, too.
Trust us when we say that we did not expect this article to find its way into the national spotlight. When we published it, the assumption was that six people would read it, surely no one would be offended, and life would go on. We promise. At no point was the idea of 50,000 page views floated; otherwise, we would have sold far more ad space.
Our ultimate pledge to our readers is this: we promise patently inflammatory content will receive more stringent editorial oversight in the future, unless you morons decide not to approve next year’s student fees. In that case, 20-page exposés about why “civil rights” are a cover for the rise of the Mole People might start to seem quite reasonable. Thank you for your attention, and we look forward to doing this again soon.
