Not the last word on CSU editorial

Student editor will defend actions, but could lose his job

Sara Burnett, Rocky Mountain News

Published September 24, 2007 at midnight

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The college newspaper editor under fire for an editorial that included a profane reference to President Bush plans to defend the newspaper's actions at a hearing Tuesday night.

J. David McSwane, editor-in- chief of the Rocky Mountain Collegian at Colorado State University, could be suspended or fired if CSU's Board of Student Communications determines the editorial violated student media policies.

"We're standing by it and I plan to defend it," McSwane said Sunday night, taking a break from work on today's edition of the Collegian. "I'm just going to go in, tell the truth and we'll see what happens."

The editorial, printed in Friday's edition, was intended to get students thinking about free speech, McSwane said. It referenced a University of Florida student who was shocked with a Taser after disrupting a forum featuring U.S. Sen. John Kerry.

The four-word editorial stated only: "Taser this . . . F--- Bush," with the expletive spelled out.

The editorial sparked almost immediate controversy. Complaints rolled in, local businesses pulled ads, and CSU President Larry Penley issued a statement saying he was disappointed with the decision to run it.

McSwane said most of the criticism had come from nonstudents and called critics a "vocal minority."

McSwane said he also has heard from students and alumni who support the editorial.

The Collegian, which is published Monday through Friday while classes are in session, is a self-funded, student-run publication. It does not receive money from student fees, and under state law, university officials are prohibited from censoring or regulating its content.

It has an adviser, but student media policies say advisers do not review or approve content before it is published.

The publisher of the Collegianand other student-run media, and the entity responsible for overseeing them, is the Board of Student Communications, made up of three faculty members and six students. It also includes the leaders of each student media publication, including McSwane, as nonvoting members.

Among the board's policies is a specific reference to profane and vulgar words. It states that such words should "not be used in news accounts or letters to the editor unless they are considered by the editor-in-chief to be essential to readers' understanding of the situation."

"Profane and vulgar words are not acceptable for opinion writing," the policy also states.

McSwane said he has no plans to resign.

"That would be an insult to my staff, who have supported me," he said.

The newspaper's seven-member editorial board agreed on the editorial before it was published. Though it wasn't a unanimous vote in favor, it "wasn't close," McSwane said.

The entire editorial board is now standing behind the item, and today's issue of the Collegian will likely include an opinion piece explaining the decision further, McSwane said.

He also said that if a loss of advertising revenue because of the editorial is severe enough, he will make cuts to staff salaries. His $290 per week salary will see the largest cut, he said.

This is not the first time McSwane has made national headlines.

As a student at Arvada West High School, he posed as a pot-smoking dropout trying to enlist in the Army.

He secretly taped a recruiter encouraging him to fake a diploma, sparking an investigation into unethical recruiting practices.

Editorial debated at hearing

The Board of Student Communications, made up of three faculty members and six students, is responsible for overseeing the Collegian.

• When: 7 p.m., Tuesday

• Where: Grey Rock Room, Lory Student Center

• Decision: Board bylaws say that a decision on what action, if any, should be taken must be announced within two days of the hearing.

burnetts@RockyMountainNews.com or 303-954-5343

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