Toting signs that read "Black is Not Equal to Criminal" and "Don't Put a Face on Crime," approximately 25 Penn students protested media coverage of minorities -- especially in The Daily Pennsylvanian -- at a national Fox News broadcast on College Green Friday morning.
According to College senior Elizabeth Todd, the students saw the taping as a vehicle to voice their concerns.
"We just felt, what better way to display your displeasure with media depictions than through a media source?" said Todd, president of the African American Arts Alliance.
While a smaller group of students were protesting Fox News' coverage, Todd said others' concerns are more centered on campus media.
"People have been very upset about the way that minority students in general have been depicted in the DP in reference to this whole crime wave," she said.
One such story which raised complaints involved a photograph of Wharton sophomore Justin Wynter, who was arrested and charged with entering another Penn student's domicile in Harnwell College House on Sept. 28 and touching her in an inappropriate manner.
On Friday, a story about Harnwell residents' response to the assault -- "Harnwell residents exercise caution: E-mails sent through dorm reminding students to lock doors" -- ran with Wynters' photograph.
"For a large part of American history, the connotations of a black male have been lock your doors, clutch your purse," United Minorities Council President and College senior Darcy Richie said. "It's so blind to then put on the front page an image of a black man next to the words 'lock your doors.'"
However, Todd said that the photo of Wynter is less of a racial issue than a matter of empathy.
"Because the accusation is of a sexual assault, it seems to be such a sensitive matter that you wouldn't want to put people's pictures, regardless of race," she said.
Richie said she believed that running Wynters' photo stems from a lack of racial understanding on the part of the editorial board of the DP.
"They don't really understand that ways that they present certain things send across a certain image," she said. "They basically put a face to the crime wave. Someone who is aware of issues like this... of history... it wouldn't have even come to their mind to put a picture of a black student's mug shot."
However, Richie stressed that it is not only black students who are currently at odds with the DP.
"We're not just making this a black issue," she said.
In response to sentiments such as these, the Delta Sigma Theta sorority called a meeting on Thursday night "to discuss people's feelings on the way the DP has been reporting," according to Todd.
"It was pretty spur of the moment, but once everyone got to that forum, people were just really upset," she said. "We felt like there was a need to do something. Someone brought up that Fox News was going to be there on Friday... and we thought it seemed like a place where you'd get noticed."
The group decided to meet at DuBois College House the following morning and march to College Green together with homemade signs.
However, though the group came with specific intentions, its message was not clear to some people present.
"I had difficulty trying to see what their message was and what they were trying to accomplish," said Penn Republicans Chairman Dan Gomez, a Daily Pennsylvanian columnist and College junior who was participating in the Fox panel discussion. "I wasn't really sure if their beef was specifically with Fox News or about the media in general."
Wharton freshman Ryan Hayward, a fan of the television show who came to see the taping, was also baffled by the protest.
"The general consensus among the crowd was that no one really understood what they were talking about," he said, noting that when he requested research on one protester's claim that the DP always runs photos of black students who commit crimes, the protester said she had none.
"Their signs just didn't make sense," he added.
Hayward said that he does not support the protesters' sentiments.
"They're saying the DP is racist, but they're not going to show photos of white kids if they didn't do it.... They're making a scandal out of something that doesn't exist."
Some students said the bigger issue is that media organizations run photos of people charged with but not convicted of crimes.
"To print his picture before there's been a trial and evidence" will cause readers to assume that the accused is guilty, said College junior Michael Patterson, president of Penn's chapter of the American Civil Liberties Union.
"I would like to see nationally... for news organizations to exercise more caution," he added.
According to Jennifer Palladino, a member of Students Together Against Acquaintance Rape, photos of charged individuals should not be printed until the individuals are convicted.
"Whatever happens, people are going to think they're guilty," Palladino said. "They can't get that image out of their head."
According to Richie, the rally was the beginning of things to come, saying that "it was the first step of a large initiative to address reporting of the marginalized community."
Todd added that there will be another meeting held on Wednesday to discuss future plans.
"People are writing [columns] to the DP and organizing potential activities on the walk," she said. "They're trying to organize a forum with the DP and students who are concerned about bias in reporting, and trying to have a meeting with the editors of the DP. There are a variety of things that people want to talk about."
| Related articles: No 'malicious intent' for Wharton sophomore (Dec 10, 2003) Questions arise from dismissal of charges (Dec 08, 2003) Charges dismissed for Wharton sophomore (Dec 05, 2003) |
