TWICC: The First Amendment
The past week has been a real bummer for anyone interested in the First Amendment in Nebraska.
Governor Pete Ricketts’ office released an application for journalists and news outlets to become “credentialed” by the governor’s office in order to attend press conferences. The application includes criteria for applicants to be “a bona fide journalist of repute” and “free of real or perceived conflicts of interest.”
It’s hard to begin to explain why this is such a bad idea. First, even if I agreed to a government entity getting to decide who journalists are, this criteria is completely open to subjective disqualifications. This gives the governor’s office carte blanche to only credential outlets that give Gov. Ricketts favorable coverage.
Government agents should not get to decide who is and is not a journalist.
This is especially egregious given the office’s refusal to credential Emily Chen-Newton of NOISE, which stands for “North Omaha Information Support Everyone.” NOISE is a nonprofit news website founded three years ago, specifically to cover Omaha’s minority communities. Chen-Newton tried to become accredited by the governor’s office, but was ignored. She was then shut out of a March 31 news conference she attempted to attend in person.
The governor’s strategic communication director, Taylor Gage, has previously called NOISE an “advocacy organization funded by liberal donors.” NOISE does not accept donations from anonymous donors or those that might create a conflict of interest. It discloses donors who give over $5,000 a year, including the Sherwood Foundation, the Omaha Community Foundation, and the American Journalism Project.
NOISE specifically focuses on North Omaha, a predominantly Black region of Omaha. North Omaha and communities of color have largely been ignored by traditional media outlets. NOISE is an amazing resource to share stories about the North Omaha community from the people who live there.
Luckily, Nebraska’s largest newspapers, the Omaha World-Herald and the Lincoln Journal Star published a joint editorial criticizing the decision. It is unclear whether NOISE or traditional newspaper outlets will attempt to become credentialed through this process.
Additionally, a bill to give free speech protections to student journalists failed Wednesday. In Nebraska, school administrators are able to censor student news they consider controversial or unflattering.
Having been a student journalist in Nebraska, I know all too well the realities of prior review and restraint. Administrators would rather hamper the efforts of student journalists than potentially face an angry parent. How are student journalists supposed to speak truth to power when those in power won’t allow them to do their job?
The First Amendment is at the core of our American ideals. Journalism is called “The Fourth Estate” because it functions as a check and balance on our systems of power. Hindering journalists, especially those who are typically ignored by the government (i.e. people of color, young people) only serves to make our communities less informed, less interested, and more complacent.
Which is, of course, exactly why they’re doing it.
TWICC: The NCAA
I feel like a lot of things that get “cancelled” these days can be fairly subjective. But if you watch the video above and aren’t instantly pissed, we are going to have a problem.
The NCAA is in the middle of March Madness, the biggest event of the year in both men’s and women’s college basketball. All of the players are in a quarantine bubble for three weeks in order to keep everyone involved in the tournament safe. The men’s teams were provided with a full-service weight room with plenty of equipment. The women’s teams were provided with a SINGLE rack of dumbbells and a stack of yoga mats.
The issue was originally brought to light due to an Instagram post by Ali Kershner, Standford University’s sports performance coach. Following the backlash, the NCAA Women’s Basketball Vice President Lynn Holzman released the following statement, blaming the disparities on “limited space.”
The video from Sedona Prince, a forward from the University of Oregon, proved this to be bullshit.
After facing backlash on Friday, the NCAA revealed the updated women’s weight room on Saturday morning. The NCAA claims that the women’s weight room was always intended to be upgraded, beginning with the third round teams. Alternatively, the men’s weight room was available for all teams throughout the entirety of the tournament.
It almost makes me more angry that the NCAA was able to correct the problem so quickly, because that means that they had the capacity to prevent this problem in the first place. They just didn’t think it was that important.
How did no one think this was going to be an issue? You have both the men’s and women’s teams locked down in the same facility for three weeks, with visually inequitable treatment. There is a lengthy history of discrepancies in treatment of men’s and women’s sports, but this is just ridiculous.
There have been other calls of inequality in the provided food, swag bags, and even the COVID tests given to the men’s and women’s teams. This has been met by excuses and rebuttals about revenue and sponsors for the men and women’s tournaments. “Well maybe they’re spending more money on the ones that make more money.” Like just say you don’t respect women and save the syllables.
I don’t care who gets the cooler t-shirt, but you cannot argue about training space! These are college athletes playing the same sport. They deserve equal accommodations.
No excuses.
TWICC: The Royal Family
By now, most of you have probably seen Oprah’s interview with Meghan Markle and Prince Harry. It was a surprisingly raw look into Meghan’s experience entering the royal family and all that she endured as the first person of color to join the family. But the most shocking revelation of all was that a member of the family questioned Prince Harry about “how dark” his first child could potentially be.
The monarchy is obviously an incredibly white and colonial institution, but WHAT?! Just look at Oprah’s face!
Archie was the first great-grandchild of the Queen to not receive a royal title and subsequently not receive the protection that comes with that title. It was a break in protocol, that according to Meghan, came with absolutely no explanation.
Queen Elizabeth finally released a statement addressing the interview:
"The whole family is saddened to learn the full extent of how challenging the last few years have been for Harry and Meghan.
"The issues raised, particularly that of race, are concerning. While some recollections may vary, they are taken very seriously and will be addressed by the family privately.
"Harry, Meghan and Archie will always be much loved family members."
With the interview lasting nearly two hours and so many shocking revelations being brought to light, it is incredibly disappointing to see such a half-assed response. Reductionist language like “saddened” and “concerning” are very revealing of the actual feelings behind this statement.
The family isn’t sad, they’re pissed.
There is going to have to be a reckoning with the monarchy and its history of racism. The monarchy survives by providing an “ideal” family to its citizens. Without public support, it cannot continue.
So many institutions have been rocked to their core and forced to deal with their racist histories. The royal family has a lot to sift through.
Harry and Meghan decided to leave rather than continue the abuse. Will the rest of England follow?
TWICC: Dr. Seuss
Dr. Seuss Enterprises released the following announcement on March 2nd:
People are coming out of the woodwork to defend these books from being cancelled. The hurtful portrayals include an Asian character eating from a bowl with chopsticks, with some depictions including yellow skin. Another shows two barefoot African men wearing grass skirts.
What’s important to note is that the company themselves decided to take these books out of production. It wasn’t a bookstore or a library, but Dr. Seuss Enterprises. I’ve seen people on Facebook lamenting to the late Dr. Seuss about how he is being unfairly cancelled, when his own company made the final decision. I would argue that taking the books out of production and therefore refusing to profit from these hurtful depictions is one of the most helpful reactions they could have had.
People are saying, “They’re just children’s books.” But that is exactly why they are so harmful.
Some of our earliest experiences with race and racial socialization come from the books we read as children. It is not surprising that books published in the 30’s contain harmful racial stereotypes.
Why is it so hard to change?
No one is saying that you should burn your children’s Dr. Seuss books. If you have one of these books, you can use it as a starting point for an important conversation with your children. Maybe think about diversifying your bookshelf and incorporate stories with characters that look different than your family.
One way we can prevent something like this from happening in the future is to open ourselves to different perspectives and nurture an inclusive and representative understanding of the world around us. Reading is magic like that.
HERE IS A LIST OF CHILDREN’S BOOKS ABOUT DIVERSITY & INCLUSION
(check out BookRiot.com for the full list)
A New Series: This Week in Cancel Culture
I have spent a considerable amount of time thinking about cancel culture. Or callout culture. Or consequences culture or whatever you call it.
More than most.
I dedicated my Master’s thesis to cancel culture and the idea of redemption for those who have been cancelled.
HOWEVER, and that’s a big however, there has to be accountability for wrongdoing. Cancel culture certainly hasn’t stopped since I wrote my thesis and I am still intrigued by the place it has in our culture.
I have decided start a series called This Week in Cancel Culture about well…who got cancelled this week.
I’m sure there will never be a lack of content and I’m excited to maybe bring a fresh perspective from someone who has both studied and witnessed cancel culture.
Who knows, maybe I’ll get cancelled. A girl can dream.