Trustee defends opinion

By MEG CADY
UNIVERSITY JOURNAL

Board of Trustees member Dane Leavitt spoke with about 100 students, faculty and community members Thursday afternoon concerning his letters to Paul Husselbee, University Journal managing director, and Jon Smith, Communication Department chair.
Mark Justice, president of the Student Association for Free Expression, said Leavitt agreed to meet with students to promote the free flow of expression and ideas.
In his remarks to the audience, Leavitt said the ultimate issue has come down to who owns and controls the University Journal and to what extent does the school grant students control.
Leavitt read his letter dated Sept. 25 to Smith to the audience, which restates Smith’s comments from his Sept. 18 letter and includes Leavitt’s replies to each comment.
“It would have been better if I’d have called,” Leavitt said concerning his first letter to Husselbee dated Sept. 16. “I wrote an angry letter. The letter was accurate, but it was angry. It was not a fair representation . . . of how I felt.”
In the Sept. 25 letter, Leavitt disagreed with Smith, saying that faculty can exercise “editorial discretion” in respect to the paper.
Leavitt said the case Kincaid v. Gibson did not apply to SUU because it occurred in the 6th Circuit and created a law that applies in Kentucky. He also said as far as he knows, the 10th Circuit has not limited Hazelwood School District v. Kuhlmeier.
Leavitt said the Hazelwood case applies to SUU because “the Publications Council Bylaws retain in the administration substantial editorial control over content.”
Leavitt said another Trustee called and expressed concern, but he is speaking only on part of himself and not on part of the Trustees as a group.
“But I would ask whether appointment as Trustee, or as University President, for that matter, obviates our ability to express concern,” Leavitt said. “I should hope not. Do not these positions or responsibility in fact create a duty to comment?”
Leavitt said he has no desire to dictate the content of the paper but there are times when micromanagement is appropriate. Leavitt said he did not see his letter as
censorship, only as a plea for better judgment.
In the letter, Smith said the student newspaper is not “subsidized by taxpayer and benefactor funds.” Leavitt said Smith’s comment was “internally inconsistent,” and that the Journal is supported by taxpayers and benefactors.
Leavitt said students at the paper are granted a stewardship just as he was when he attended SUSC 25 years ago.
He said the university community is for students but includes more than that. He said it includes faculty, teachers, alumni and townspeople.
“So many interests need to be taken into account in the student publication, such as the Journal,” Leavitt said.
Leavitt said the paper should consider students who pay for the paper with student fees, and the paper should be accountable to those students and reflective of their interests.
Leavitt suggested as a means of a solution that the editor be student appointed.
Leavitt said the newspaper has a responsibility to its readers.
“It is not there for the self-service and satisfaction of those that write but rather those that read,” Leavitt said.
Leavitt said every newspaper has a publisher and owner who dictate content.
“The level of freedom that editors and writers, reporters have with the school newspaper far exceeds what happens in the market place,” Leavitt said. “A newspaper has an editorial position; a newspaper has an agenda. And if a reporter crosses that, its consequences are going to be much different than they are here.
“And so it is not devoid of reality to recognize there are people who have influence by way of comment. It is actually contrary to reality to say that there is no such thing as that type of oversight,” Leavitt added.
Leavitt said he wrote the private letter to Husselbee because he knows Husselbee personally.
He said he did not write to a student because the student might be offended.
Justice asked Leavitt who should have the final say for the paper.
Leavitt said, philosophically speaking, the university and the state have legal liability and so they have interest in having some control over the ultimate content.
Leavitt said the school is the owner of the paper and can make decisions concerning content.
Leavitt said because the paper is for educational purposes, the paper should include cultural, educational and reader value.
Glynn Wilcox, a senior psychology/criminal justice major from Markham, Texas, pointed out that the University Journal masthead says the paper is published
“ . . . by and for the student body of Southern Utah University.”

Dane Leavitt, an SUU trustee, addressed censorship, his role as a trustee, and the role of the University Journal. ELIZABETH MILLER / UNIVERSITY JOURNAL

Leavitt answered that he receives a copy of the paper, and he is not a student.
He also said he understands the Journal is not an official distributor of university affairs, but it still reflects the university.
“Ultimately the institution needs to have the ability to self-perpetuate its existence by maintaining some level of quality in the student publication,” Leavitt said.
Shannon Esmay, a sophomore political science major from Salt Lake City, asked Leavitt why he said thousands were offended when only one student wrote a letter.
Leavitt said he would have to take a poll, but if a poll were taken, he believes many students would say they were offended by the edition.
Tim Justice, a senior political science major from Huntington, said parts of Leavitt’s first letter could be seen as a threat instead of criticism because of Leavitt’s Trustee position and his family ties to Gov. Michael Leavitt.
Leavitt said he is not in a position to pull any funding and his tie to the governor is more like “anti-power.”
“I would have been much more direct had I sought to make a threat,” Leavitt said.
Stephen Roberds, assistant professor of political science, said that, historically, groups that have tried to clamp down were not against free press but said they wanted the press to act “reasonably” and “responsibly.”
He asked Leavitt if the result is not the same.
“I’d say that you are dealing with a special situation here and making generalizations that . . . need to be cautiously acknowledged,” Leavitt said.
Even if the university has the power, Roberds asked, should it censor the paper?
Leavitt said no one has censored the paper, but by right, he said, he and others have commented.
Dan Bott, a senior political science major from Castle Dale, asked if the newspaper should print only what a majority wants.
Leavitt said he hopes a broader spectrum of issues would be covered.
Leavitt said whether it be a member of SAFE or an older member of the community, both should be listened to.
Certain people have stewardship, Leavitt added.
People can complain about power and those who have been given responsibilities, he said, but the power exists, and those people try to use those responsibilities in the best interest of the university.
Geoffrey Chesnut, a senior political science/criminal justice major from Salt Lake City, asked if all voices will be balanced and heard, given the power some people have.
“Let me say this — at this point you’ve had a whole lot more column inches than I have,” Leavitt said. “I mean your voice is being heard.
“Heavens!” he exclaimed. “It’s the most self-absorbed bit of journalism I’ve seen. . . . You have become the focus, and I suggest you . . . recognize there are other issues that need attention.”
Roberds asked Leavitt whether he should expect a letter because he discusses the issue in his political science classes and passes around a copy of the condom edition from the Journal Web site.
Leavitt said the classroom is different and has a different standard than a general circulation publication.