Iraq Discussion's Focus Was Too Single-Minded
By Ben Heidlage '06

I am writing to voice my disappointment with the discussion on Iraq, held Monday, March 24, in the Frank Blue Room. After reading President Stanley's letter, I came to the discussion expecting a diverse set of opinions and an in-depth dialogue. Instead, I listened to three professors, all with nearly indistinguishable opinions, talk about why they disliked the corporate media. While I myself agree with many of the statements made, I did not go to the discussion to listen to my internal dialogue. I was particularly disappointed for two reasons: first with the topic in general, and second with the way the topic was discussed.

First of all, the topic was wholly unoriginal. With the outbreak of war, I expected a discussion that would address the issues that had arisen in the past couple of days. The role of economics in the war, the issues of international diplomacy and respect, the role of the U.N. in the future, all are examples of pertinent and very timely topics. Instead, the discussion focused on the role of the media in the new war. The discussion harked back to an earlier talk that I had attended in the first semester. The viewpoints were the same, and the criticisms of large media corporations tired and boring.

The discussion could have been worth some value had there been something that resembled meaningful discourse. While the speakers did discuss the role of media, the opinions were identical, and there was not one disagreement. In addition, I felt that some of the speakers hadn't even done the basic research. I couldn't believe it when one of the professors actually asked what the acronym WMD stood for! Finally, the rants about corporate conglomerates had little evidence backing them.When I asked about the historical trend of a pro-war media, regardless of the existence or non-existence of large corporations, the issue was dropped.

I will continue to attend campus discussions, but I hope that in the future, I will walk away with more than I came in with.