Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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Free press Decision reaffirms the power of media in South Carolina Thankfully, a South Carolina judge has ruled in favor of the continued power of the press in this state. The press in South Carolina is a shaky proposition at best ? this is the state that ^ put William Fitts into jail for writing a column. In thic rerpnt ra?p thf* fnnntv cr,V?r\r?1 KrvarH Vio/-l ?HIV U MU|/V1 UVHV/V/1 UVU1 U X1UU OUVU to prevent continued publication of a series of articles on a grand jury proceeding that detailed the gross mismanagement of Jasper County's government. The allegations were things that the people of Jasper County had every right to know about so they could assess their government and maybe change it. But the school board filed a law suit to prevent the people of the county from finding out how badly it and other government arms had messed up Jasper County. It was prior restraint of the worst kind, in which a government agency seeks to censor the press in an effort to cover its own butt instead of seeking an open discourse with the people it is supposed to represent. Reprehensible is the only word to describe the lawsuit. It is equivalent to a person being shot to silence the opposing viewpoint, to prevent those who know from talking too much ? except instead of grade-B actors using guns in a poor gangster movie, it is a government agency trying to use the power of the courts to shut someone up. As Jay Bender, attorney for the S.C. Press Association, said in a personal letter to The Gamecock, "the freedom of the press is never won. It is a freedom that must be vigorously defended against those who claim that their particular purpose should be paramount to the one freedom that ensures all of our freedoms." The press never defends its constitutionally protected freedoms in its own self interest. The press is interested in being a vital link in the chain that binds people to their government, keeping them informed and aware of what is going on in their name. Brother Jim Students who attack preacher are un-American, censoring fools USC students occasionally show their ugly sides, and when they do, it gets very ugly. Thursday, a few students decided it would be fun to toss some eggs at "Brother Jim" Giles, the young preacher who appeared at USC two years ago, and has returned this week. It's fun to make fun of him, because sometimes it seems he's not really interested in converting people to the Gospel but in making people make fun of him. He's seems like a joke, a self parody. But, if he meets the rules and regulations of this university to be a guest speaker, he has every right to say what he wants to say, for as long as he continues to observe our rules. The freedom of speech has long been controlled by our courts. And the general rule of thumb about free speech is you can't control what people want to say, but you can control where and to some extent, when they say whatever they want. That's why USC has the policy regarding sponsorship. "Brother Jim" was a sponsored speaker, a guest of the university, when he was viciously attacked by a bunch of hoodlum students out for a few laughs no doubt. You might think "It was just a few eggs," but Giles now has a nasty cut on his nose and an even nastier bruise on his eye. This seems to be the freedom column here in The Gamecock today. Above, we defended the freedom of the press, and here, we're discussing a violent attack on the freedom of speech. Anyone who attacks, physically attacks a person speaking his mind, which is his right, is un-American. You have every right to disagree, and yell and scream back if you disagree. But the kind of people who will physically attack someone like this are "| probably the kind of people who also burn books because they disagree with those ideas. They are idea-censors. t And someone once said, about book-burnings in Germany in < me laie .jus, -wnerever tney Durn dooks, tnere they will also burn people." It became tragically true. 1 We can never tolerate this kind of action. It goes against ; everything for which this country stands. I" 1 1 "] V rmt I 11 lhe Gamecock i r Best Non-daily Collegiate Newspaper, Southeastern Region Society of Professional Journalists, 1987-88 ^ Editor in Chief Datebook Editor . stephen guilfoyle jenny sharpe { j Copy Desk Chief Graphics Editor wayne yang michael sharp Assistant Copy Desk Chief Comics Editor kathy blackwell tracy m1xson , News Editor Adviser _ hal millard pat mcneely ? Assistant News Editor mary pearson J! kelly c. thomas Director of Student Media . Features Editor ed bonza susan nesb1tt Advertising Manager Assistant Features Editor margaret michels tom joyner Production Manager Sports Editor laura day kevin adams Assistant Production Manager Assistant Sports Editor ray burgos chris silvestri Assistant Advertising Manager ^ Photography Editors barbara brown h brian sauls i teddy lepp Letters Policy: The Gamecock will try lo print letters received, letters should be. til a maximum. 250 to 300 ^ J words long. (>uesl editorials should not exceed 500 words. We reserve the right lo edit letters lor style or possible lj libel. The Gamecock will not'withhold names under any circumstance. - ??_j j< HKj^R^NH T _> i J k r T ? f _ ' k rily|i?>?ltt -?J ? 0\ -=ss^ Pi OF! Jw "...AND THl' Controversy Strange. Throughout the semester I've written on a wii range of topics, ranging from sexism, to theolog to politics. Not once did I receive a letter suppc ting or detracting my positions on these issues You can imagine my surprise to find that a reco review has raised the collective ire of the stude body. It seems the adage is false. You can talk abo sex, politics and and religion, just be sure hot say anything bad about U2. As I said, strange. It appears that there are son on this campus who feel that some bands are sim ly above criticism. They seem to feel that if a bar puts out five or so good albums, that a so-so sixi should receive favorable notice based on the band track record. That isn't right. While it is true that a record should be able 1 stand on its own merits, it is also true that con parisons to past works should not only be e: pected, but encouraged. A band should alwa; strive to top themselves. When a band succeeds i surpassing past works, as U2 did with the release ( The Unforgettable Fire, they should be praise< But when a band releases an album of less-thai Letters to the U2 not really ??1" a blues band is not tl world. I ^o the editor: world eve I am writing a letter of rebuttal in demonsti esponse to Philip Cook's remarks. in recent When I said that experimenting Estonia), vith American blues was new to our place, ai nusic, I was referring to the fact that speech al J2 is now, unfortunately on the top pire." In 0 charts. Those that listen to top 40 democrat nusic would probably not listen to quite lir lues music. Nor would they listen to multi-par he Rolling Stones or the Beatles to Sweden z he extent that they would know of elections heir blues endeavors. Septembe I respect your opinion, and I do Parliame; elieve it was honorable of you to de- ing the ni end Bill, but cutting me down is not up to si) oing to make Bill Sengstacken look political ny better. and the Seeing that I am "just a freedom reshman" and know nothing of the or critich ast, and you, Philip, as a fan of the of these f Jational Guard, tell me was it not the Uniti he Ohio National Guard that killed fact, exis our innocent college students at the Unite Lent State University? that these publicity Monica Costello main part journalism freshman of freedo We wc Kraft's views _ a I _ States. Ashortsighted ?f h? o America We str< "Only in America." Are you sure? Kraft, wi Janice Kraft is perfectly correct in travel abr aying that freedom of speech is a Comparai iberty that Americans value and en- she tries ay (letter to the editor, Nov. 30). 1 I <gllp ^ ^ ' y's: P& r' ??!?= 5 IS WHERE 1 COME TO GET AWAY FRO/1 over U2 revic 1 ifm - - ' " T''-' wM , irnt Sengstacken / HHHHBHHHBHMHHMMBBBM ^||^L " ? ^WY '* p. ^ id L 1 1 th 's worthy material, then they should expect to recei less than rave reviews. :o For it is only through criticism that a band c i- hope to improve. The objective opinion of an oi x- sider is of much more value than the subjecti ps views of the band, and the decidedly colored fe in ing of its devoted fans. )f Everyone has feelings about certain bands, but i. is the joh of the critic to transcend personal fe< l- ings, and get to the heart of the matter. Earlier tl r editor V link many people would about things she ol hat. very little about. Ms. Kraft is obviously ing is that the United States Charlott an lie only democracy in the open-i f Ms. Kraft would follow ;nts she would know that the A 44q f%^ ations in the Soviet Union U months (Latvia, Lithuania, , which were allowed to take HfllSSCO e proof that freedom of [so exists in the "Evil Emfact the American model of To the editor: :y could be considered to be I would like to nited when compared to uninspired to Pope E ty democracies such as response to Dan Jense ind Germany. The national ter to the editor i held in Sweden this past Sengstacken's musi :r brought a new party into you're slipping! I fou nt, the Green Party, bring- your writing, and imber of parties represented Reader's Digest is hiri c. And the wide range of Mr. Jensen, I do n( parties in West Germany can criticize Micheal youths' willingness and and claim that he to either publically support become another Stinj :e them is another example Mr. Stipe is expressi reedoms existing outside of through his poetic ly ;d States. There does, in you so harshly ju< t several smaller parties in expression? Do you kr d States too, but the fact way to express his feel parties do not get the same Mr. Stipe's lyrics are from the media as the two ful, and are also a bear ies get, is in a sense a denial of himself, his feel m of speech. beliefs. It really dist mid like to know if Ms. Jensen, when someon s ever dared to venture meone else's artistic i he borders of the United such arrogance, nd if not, what is the basis I thing that Bill argument that "only in good rating of REM's ' do these freedoms exist? right on. Mr. Sengstt jngly recommend that Ms. reviews have been supe ith an open mind, either he should keep up th oad and/or take a Gint 316 After reading this it is tive Politics course before to see that I am a d to make generalizations \Iicheal Stipe, Bill Ser good music and I kn K Wartails 7^^ AllAMfA C&STrtWW A IT ALL.'..." ;w puzzles Bill ""7 semester I gave a poor notice regarding the latest Big Country record, Peace In Our Time. I have always counted Big Country among my favorite bands, but I could not justify giving them a good review on that basis alone. The same holds for U2. I think they have the power to create absolutely stunning music, but they have to draw on an inner reserve to do so. To simply go through the motions in order to complete an album should not be encouraged, it should be met with distress. U2 is not the first band to suffer from this. The Rolling Stones haven't released a really good album since Some Girls, and they'll probably never produce an album as wonderful as Exile On Main Street, assuming they ever release another record, ve But the point is, a fan never stops hoping. Yes, it's disappointing to find that a favorite band has let an you down, but there are always those beautiful it- records of the past, as well as the possibility of ve future greatness, elSo, don't be angered that I found Rattle And it Hum to be less than amazing, be hopeful that they el- will return to their days of brilliance, and produce lis an album worthy of their talents. * jviously knows read this, Mr. Jensen, you are going to feel a sudden urge to visit the toilet again. Do me a favor when you are id Sessy Nyman there, take a drink for me. ninded activists Mark Mancuso in Bill political science sophomore nark Dining workers commended say something >an Jensen, (in Last year, I was ready to send a n's Nov. 30 let- similar editorial, only it was criticiz:riticizing Bill ing the dining services here at the ic criticisms) USC. However, Mr. Carl Chandler, iiu meaning 111 iu wiium 1 sent me ariicie nrsi, caiiea I also hear and asked me in to talk. From our ng. hour-long discussion, it seemed ob)t see how you vious that the upper management Stipe's lyrics does care about the student satisfacis striving to tion and not just the profits. Now, I. Just maybe since I was ready to condemn the ng his feeling food service, I feel I should now rics. How can commend the management and the dge his self- employees on their new and improviow of a better ed attitudes. lings? I believe Now it is the rule and not the exstrong, power- ception that the cashier asks politely itiful extension for your order, smiles and even says ings and his "Have a nice day." Being an HRTA urbs me, Mr. major (hotel, restaurant and tourism e criticizes so- administration), I feel praise is more creativity with effective than discipline in helping employees give better service to the Sengstacken's customer/guest, latest album is Sure, there are probably some icken's record cashiers who still need some attitude rb, and I think adjustment. But, then again, e good work. courtesy goes both ways, probably easy evoted fan of John M. Zimmerman lgstacken, and hotel, restaurant and ow when you tourism administration senior