EDITORIAL: Speech space

Administrators need to find alternatives that will allow more people to hear big-name guest speakers. Administrators need to address the lack of adequate facilities for guest speakers especially since Irvine Auditorium is closed for renovations. Yesterday, Meyerson Hall's Room B-1 overflowed with students, faculty and staff who gathered to hear Noam Chomsky speak. People were sitting in the aisles, in the doorways and on the stage of the 800-seat room. It finally got to the point where the doors needed to be closed, leaving many outside in the foyer. An organizer made an announcement at the beginning of Chomsky's speech telling attendees that the University was unable to provide an alternate site for closed-circuit viewing. Closed-circuit TV should be used for speakers such as Chomsky who will draw large crowds so that the number of people who would be able to see the speaker wouldn't be limited to the room size. The same issue was brought up when first lady Hillary Clinton spoke on campus as part of the Trustees Council of Penn Women's 10th anniversary celebration. That speech was held in Zellerbach Theatre, an 800- to 900-seat auditorium. Why wasn't an answer found for the dilemma then? This is a consistent problem that administrators need to solve or at least find a temporary solution. The University should resolve the issue before another big-name speaker comes to campus because it is simply an embarrassment for this institution not to have sufficient speaking facilities.