Comm. Arts dean silent on removal of director
By Zane McMillin (Last updated: 07/12/09 11:37pm)For almost two weeks, Pamela Whitten, dean of the College of Communication Arts and Sciences, has been mum about the status of both the School of Journalism and its former director, Jane Briggs-Bunting.
Briggs-Bunting was asked to resign or face suspension after the dean took office almost two weeks ago. Journalism students have questioned the decision and have received no word from Whitten, who has not spoken publicly about the incident.
Repeated attempts by The State News to speak with Whitten have been unsuccessful.
Reporters from The State News have visited Whitten’s office several times and only briefly spoke with the dean regarding the status of Briggs-Bunting on one occasion. On the first attempt, Whitten’s personal staff directed all media inquiries to university spokesman Terry Denbow, who has declined several times to comment on personnel matters. Also during that first attempt, Kirsten Khire, communications manager for College of Communication Arts and Sciences, told The State News that no new developments with regard to Briggs-Bunting had occurred and attempts to wait and speak with Whitten would produce only the same comment from the dean.
When asked to comment while leaving her office Tuesday, Whitten referred media inquiries to Denbow.
“There is nothing anyone else can say other than what I said (last week),” Denbow told The State News on Tuesday.
An attempt to reach Whitten for comment at home Sunday also failed.
When a reporter showed up to speak with Whitten on Thursday about communication policies in the School of Journalism, the dean’s office was promptly closed for the day.
Briggs-Bunting said there was a desire to move the School of Journalism to a research based-curriculum, instead of a teaching one, and that could have played a factor in her dismissal. She was hired as the director of the school in 2003.
Journalism faculty met with Whitten on Thursday, but the details of the meeting were not released. It also was closed to students. Several members of the faculty have declined to comment or not returned calls to The State News about the situation and the details of the Thursday meeting.
The lack of public comment from Whitten has not gone unnoticed by journalism students, who have even go so far as to create a Web site, www.savemsujrn.com, to express their concerns.
Jayna Salk, a journalism education sophomore who has contributed to the Web site, said although Whitten has yet to publicly comment, she is feeling better about the situation than she did when the news first broke.
“I think that Dean Whitten is definitely making small strides to communicate better with people, but I still kind of think there’s a lot to be done,” she said. “The feeling I’ve been getting from people around the J-School is that she really does have the best interest of the J-School in mind.”
Salk said Whitten has scheduled a meeting to be held this Friday with students to discuss the school, although she is not sure whether the meeting is supposed to be one-on-one or if more than one student will be allowed to attend.
“She’s talking so much about a new direction and about changing the way things are done and I want to hear her ideas,” she said. “If I don’t agree with them, I think, as a paying student, she should hear my ideas.”
Jessica McLean, who recently graduated from MSU and majored in English and journalism, said she doesn’t want to make speculations as to why Whitten asked for Briggs-Bunting’s resignation.
“It’s one of those things that you have to wonder if there’s something going on behind closed doors,” she said. “But it could be something as innocent as there (being) a new direction and they don’t feel she’s part of it.”
MSU professor of journalism and communication Stephen Lacy declined to comment on the matter, but said the faculty is ready to move on.
Several calls to MSU spokespeople Sunday went unreturned.
Originally Published: 07/12/09 11:28pm
student
07/13/09 12:45amAs an undergrad student, I have to say that I disagree with these students that oppose the new dean because of her desire to add more research to the Journalism School.
First, if there is an academic activity that has to be pursued, it is research. Research is the most academic activity and being part of such large University involves a lot of research to support the academic programs and activities.
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2009 jschool alum
07/13/09 5:22amNo, the students are protesting because Whitten is making drastic changes without explaining anything.The problem is mostly her silence,not what she wants to do. So far she’s demonstrating total disrespect for CAS students by refusing to talk with them or even hear their concerns. Hopefully Friday will yield some much-needed transparency from Whitten.
responsetoSTUDENT
07/13/09 8:08amstudent,
You are WRONG!
Research is important, but only for certain subjects like science and social science. Students do not go to Journalism School to do research. They go to get job training and learn a skill. The hope is after they graduate they can get a job in any market and make a good living. This new Dean should know that! CUT IT OUT WHITTEN
Annoyed student
07/13/09 8:43amThis article says the faculty is ready to move on. Why can’t you journalism students and State News writers move on too? It says right there in the article that Whitten wants to move journalism towards a research-based curriculum. The only reason this is getting any sort of publicity, either through the State News, LSJ, or Detroit News is because journalism has a voice. The way the students are behaving is ridiculous. If I were Whitten, I wouldn’t want to talk to you either. All you are doing is whining, writing stories on no new information, marching into her office, and calling her AT HOME. Stop the drama already, and start showing Whitten some respect.
Steve Lacy
07/13/09 9:39amExcellence in research and teaching are not mutually exclusive processes. The MSU J-School has had a history of doing both well. This is as it should be at a research university.
Steve Lacy
State News Editor Alum
07/13/09 10:53amHey guys: Look up the definition of research and you will see it’s basically the same thing as reporting. The best reported stories are well-researched. Great journalists ARE great researchers, writing about facts based on real research. Period. Otherwise, you’re just blogging.
Townsend
07/13/09 11:47amTo student (1st post): Amen! Great thoughtful and detailed post. And you’re dead-on, too… Steve Lacy, who I’ve had the pleasure of interacting with, knows his stuff, too…
… on the other hand, ‘Response to Student’ is totally clueless.
DJ
07/13/09 1:39pmTenure and political independence is a lie. If you don’t toe the line of extreme Platonic socialism and a controlled press, you are ousted.
Actually DJ...
07/13/09 2:27pmActually DJ, tenure essentially does means they cannot oust you. Notice she lost her administrator position only(for which there is no tenure). She is, via tenure, unable to be forced from her teaching position. (merits of if thats good/bad is a different discussion)
Whether they wanted to remove her from that position or not is irrelevant as they’re unable to do so.
So, compared to every other job in America, that’s pretty iron clad protection if you ask me…
Conflict of Interest?
07/13/09 4:26pmWhy all these stories? Is this really that news-worthy? Does Briggs-Bunting have some sort of political pull with the State News that explains all this attention? The fact that a newly appointed administrator would restructure a department is not exactly surprising. Would similar attention be paid if this was some other academic department?
I agree with Annoyed Student. Move on.
JRN Student
07/13/09 4:33pmI, a Journalism major, am quite tired with all of these articles concerning the new dean. Yes, she has been quiet and reserved since taking over and ridding Jane Briggs-Bunting of her position. But is it really necessary to update the saga every day? If nothing new has been said, is a front-page article required to explain that nothing has been said?
I say no. She will eventually come out after this onslaught dies down. I know it has been a slow summer, but updating on the same topic almost daily gets real old fast.
07/13/09 10:59pmAt the beginning of this fiasco, I sided with Briggs-Bunting because I am a Journalism major and I feel that she has done a decent job. But I’ve noticed that all the coverage for this makes Bunting out to be a victim.
We know that Whitten is staying silent to the media, which is a little disturbing because she is leading the Communcation Arts and Sciences, but she’s probably got an idea that’ll lead the Comm Arts college forward.
I bet once things cool down, she’ll be willing to talk. And Briggs-Bunting was a great director, but it’s time to move on.
GPM
07/14/09 8:48amBy research-based, does she mean she wants to move the curriculum to statistical analysis like it is for the sciences and social sciences? I’m not quite sure how that would provide the innovative skills journalism grads need to save their dying profession…
Re: JRN student
07/14/09 9:06amI think that you could of worded this a little differently:
“I know it has been a slow summer, but updating on the same topic almost daily gets real old fast.” I mean, I am NOT a journalism student myself and I feel that you could of worded this more clearly.I am sure that you want to convey the proper message to your readers, don’t you agree?
Real Shady State News!
07/14/09 9:10amWhy did you delete my post?
“This article says the faculty is ready to move on. Why can’t you journalism students and State News writers move on too?”
Because she’s the head of the State News Board of Directors….?
I fail to see anything offensive here and the fact that you Deleted it because you didnt want to draw more attention to that fact is pretty poor journalism, even for this student newspaper. Shame on you.
Spartan Advocate
07/14/09 11:09amIf you’re as upset as I am, and want some accountability, follow me on twitter: http://bit.ly/A9GSV
07/14/09 1:47pmI am wondering if it is wise for departmental/economic changes to be mandated by the College, as opposed to the departments being forced to make the cuts.
I would like to hear what others think on this . . .
07/14/09 1:49pm(I see that the students are the one’s pushing this concern, but as a larger issue, i wonder if changes like this should be coming from departments or their colleges.)
LVS '05
07/14/09 2:05pm@State News Editor Alum:
“Look up the definition of research and you will see itâs basically the same thing as reporting. The best reported stories are well-researched.”
In the academic context, “research” means academic research, with an emphasis on publishing peer-reviewed journal articles. The best reported studies ARE well-researched, but an emphasis on teaching students how to research would fall within a—wait for it!—TEACHING-BASED curriculum.
“Great journalists ARE great researchers, writing about facts based on real research.
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LVS '05
07/14/09 2:16pmIn the previous comment, I meant to write “articles,” not “studies.”
07/14/09 5:17pmHuh. Is anyone happy with their Dean? Makes me wonder what they’re doing with our tax-payer’s money.
J-School Grad
07/14/09 10:42pmI cannot development a full opinion on the new Dean because I have not seen or heard her plans for the future. However I do consider her silence on the matter a complete lack of respect for the Comm Arts College, its students and faculty. She is now in charge of a college whos purpose is to communicate, something she has yet to do. Also I do agree with the fact that reporters are researchers but I think the point others are making is that Briggs-Bunting along with the J-school faculty set up a curriculum that as journalists already included research skills but was heading in the web-based direction.
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RE: Above Post
07/15/09 8:33amShe’s not commenting because legally she’s not allowed to by MSU. In any labor dispute the less you say the better. Even At Will employees have some leverage if you start listing reasons why they were removed (even legit ones) whereas if you just say they need to go, they have no legal ground to stand on.
Crappy because we deserve to know, sadly, thats not how it works.
Spartan Advocate
07/15/09 9:48amBut shouldn’t the dean of a college work for his/her constituents? “http://bit.ly/A9GSV”: http://bit.ly/A9GSV
Spartan Advocate
07/15/09 9:49amTry again
student
07/15/09 11:23amJUST IN!
EAST LANSING, Mich. — A leader in using technology in the quickly changing newsroom has been named the interim director of Michigan State University’s School of Journalism, Dean Pamela Whitten of the College of Communication Arts and Sciences announced today.
http://news.msu.edu/story/6565/