If you have something to say...
Say it on the Huffington Post
If you have something to say...
Say it on the Huffington Post
The Blog
Sometimes we were ripping from the headlines, but just as often it felt like the headlines were ripping from us. Either way, we were trying to explore issues that were increasingly in the zeitgeist.
Over the years, we've watched young men and women under oath crumble into tears when asked to specifically describe abuse foisted upon them. It is a particularly poignant topic as a trial for former Penn State Coach Jerry Sandusky on fifty-two counts of abuse is fast approaching.
Many have thrown harsh criticism at Paterno for not acting right away. While a heroic, Superman response would've been ideal, it's just that -- a fantasy.
Such is the duality of Paterno's legacy. Media and fans paint pictures in broad strokes of black and white, but Paterno's picture is colored in inscrutable shades of grey.
The conversation that serves to best commemorate the horrible turn of events at Penn State should be, "How are the alleged victims of Sandusky and the Penn State football culture handling this?"
Sandusky's arrest last November triggered a wave of news coverage. But what is the media coverage saying, and how might it affect the public conversation as Sandusky's trial moves forward?
It was only a matter of time before the public would begin to assess the role of trustees in this horror story and to find them seriously lacking.
Permit me one New Year's prediction about which I am absolutely certain, and two for which I have a strong hunch.
It has now been two months since scandal rolled into the Happy Valley. Much is still uncertain and yet the university, the surrounding community, and the nation as a whole remains fixated on the question of responsibility.
We don't weep for Sandusky. As do all "commentators," we have the right to "personally" convict him based on our own idiosyncratic views of the case. But why has the public convicted him at this early stage?
We call on Congress to finish the good work it established with the creation of the Victims of Child Abuse Act (1990) by expanding these services to all of America's children.
Some blunders are unavoidable; often they are self-inflicted. One thing's for certain: 2011 provided some stunning examples of public relations disasters.
We give you the definitive retrospective of the most significant year in recent memory, 12 powerful months marked by fighting for freedom, protesting inequality, watching in awe the fury of nature and wincing at sex and abuse scandals.
Each one of these men has suffered severe damage to their lives and reputations without ever having been found guilty of anything. Shouldn't the punishment follow a finding of guilt -- rather than precede it?
James Ammons, FAMU president, surprised by a CNN reporter, responding to questions about the 'alleged hazing death' of FAMU student Robert Champion pretty much 'failed the test' of leadership when interviewed.
Jerry Sandusky's attorney, has made one misstep after another. However, his strategy of waiving Tuesday's public hearing was a good move because it gives Sandusky more bargaining chips if he hopes to spend anything short of the rest of his life behind bars.
