An editorial in yesterday's Republican American disputes this. It also explains a lot about how that school is run these days.
UConn versus WTIC-AM: Impartiality in the airwaves?
February 20, 2018 -
Editorials -
3 comments
The University of Connecticut claims to be an impartial institution. “Through freedom of academic inquiry and expression, we create and disseminate knowledge by means of scholarly and creative achievements, graduate and professional education, and outreach,” reads UConn’s mission statement. Unfortunately, there is reason to believe UConn is on a mission to silence conseratives. That may eventually hurt the university’s academic reputation.
Feb. 16 witnessed the news that the 26-year-old relationship between UConn and Hartford-based WTIC-AM will end with the close of the 2017-18 athletic year. Beginning next year, WUCS-FM, an affiliate of ESPN, will broadcast the games of UConn’s football, basketball and hockey teams. The university’s relationship with WTIC ended for a number of reasons, but Phil Zachary, senior vice president and market manager for WTIC’s parent company Entercom Radio, has highlighted a troubling one.
“The school felt the conservative programming that WTIC airs is at odds with the best interest of the university,” Mr. Zachary told the (Manchester) Journal Inquirer.
It is reasonable to conclude from Mr. Zachary’s comments that Connecticut’s flagship university is targeting conservative speech. That is all the more plausible when one considers that in late November, UConn police essentially allowed the disruption of an on-campus presentation (or more accurately, attempted presentation) by conservative writer Lucian Wintrich.
A university or college that truly values academic freedom doesn’t take sides in political debates. With its actions, UConn is looking like a cheerleader for liberalism. That is no way to encourage the critical-thinking skills the United States and Connecticut sorely need. Additionally, the fiscal year 2017-18 budget for UConn’s main campus in Storrs and four regional campuses (one of which is in Waterbury) is $1.3 billion, and a quarter of this figure is covered by taxpayers, according to a December article in the university publication UConn Today. Not all Connecticut taxpayers are liberal, and the university’s political maneuvering is disrespectful to non-liberal Constitution State residents.
UConn has done well on surveys of American universities’ academic excellence. For example, according to U.S. News & World Report, it is tied for 18th place among public universities and is tied for 56th place overall. However, if UConn keeps playing political games, its standing may slip.
University President Susan Herbst and the board of trustees – Gov. Dannel P. Malloy is ex officio board president – are obligated to explain why UConn is willing to silence the conservative message. No one is well-served by the status quo.
