Professor’s comments in context
An audio recording from a Nov. 10, 2016 event shared online last week, featured David Parry, Ph.D., associate professor and chair of the department of communication studies discussing his reaction to the 2016 presidential election. The recording appeared on Campus Reform, a conservative website which claims to expose bias and abuse on higher education campuses.
Parry was one of five speakers at the November post-election dialogue created in order to provide a forum for the Saint Joseph’s University community to discuss the outcome of the election.
The event, entitled “Making Sense of the Presidential Election,” was planned two weeks before the results of the election were known, according to Monica Nixon, assistant provost for inclusion and diversity.
Graphic by Kaitlyn Patterson ’20
An unknown person or persons recorded Parry making comments during the event, despite Parry asking the audience to not record him. The recording then appeared online almost two months later. It was also shared on Facebook.
“It demonstrates the media environment in which we live in,” Parry said in a comment to The Hawk. “This is the media environment in which we live, and until we figure out how to more responsibly and ethically live with these digital tools, that these kinds of things will happen to people.”
The university Student Senate released a statement to The Hawk addressing the recording.
“In a moment of controversy, the University Student Senate reaffirms its dedication to a respectful, unitive, and free exchange of perspectives. We encourage open-mindedness in the exchange of ideas by all members of the Saint Joseph’s University community. Ultimately, as our Senate’s community ideals state, true diversity is not only represented by different people, but also by an open exchange of the ideas they each espouse.”
