The Guidon staff has decided to resume its work for the 102-year-old independent student newspaper despite ongoing concerns about autonomy and independence.
On Nov. 21, four staff members along with The Guidon’s faculty adviser met with the provost, Karen Gaines. The conditions for resuming work were once again declined and the staff were subsequently directed to meet with Department of Global Humanities chair Amy Woodbury Tease and Pamela Koppelmann, director of compliance.
Despite The Guidon’s conditions still being unmet, the staff decided that their obligation to the Norwich community takes precedence for the time being.
The Guidon was suspended by the provost in June. Later, in an Oct. 10 message to the Norwich community, Gaines wrote that The Guidon staff “do not have the training and mentorship we feel is necessary to educate and prepare them for this important responsibility.” She added that the newspaper would remain suspended until January.
However, in the Nov. 21 meeting, Gaines told reporters that the suspension was instead a “personnel matter” and had nothing to do with their published stories. She assured The Guidon staff that she trusted them and their work.
The controversy surrounding the suspension first began to get public attention after The VTDigger published a story on Oct. 10 about The Guidon’s suspension. Four days later, in response, Norwich President John Broadmeadow issued a statement addressing the issue. Broadmeadow acknowledged ongoing debates involving the provost and staff, the Faculty Senate, faculty members, and some students regarding The Guidon’s future.
“The discussion was around the degree to which the paper’s academic advisor should establish and enforce oversight of journalistic ethics before restarting publication,” Broadmeadow wrote.
According to the College Media Association, the nation’s largest college media adviser organization, no one – including faculty advisors – should assert “oversight” of an independent student media organization.
“To avoid further public rancor and unwarranted criticism against Norwich, I have ended the debate by requesting the Provost reinstate the Guidon’s publication as soon as practical,” Broadmeadow added.
However, in a Nov. 5 statement posted to The Guidon’s website, the staff announced that they would not resume work until Norwich administrators, as well as The Department of Global Humanities, adopted formal policies protecting The Guidon’s independence and autonomy.
The Guidon requested the following conditions:
- Adopt New Voices Protections: The university must implement measures aligned with Vermont’s New Voices law, ensuring the independence of student journalists and protecting our ability to operate without undue influence or censorship.
- Addressing Reputation Impact: We request a clear explanation from the Provost Dr. Karen Gaines regarding the school’s plan to address and remedy the damage to The Guidon’s reputation, intentional or not, to help restore both the paper’s standing and students’ confidence in its future.
- Supportive Statement from DGH: We ask that the Department of Global Humanities adopt a formal statement affirming its support for The Guidon’s independence, including protections from any form of external pressures.
- End External Involvement: We request that any policy requiring The Guidon to submit internal documents for approval be discontinued, and that external influence of any kind cease immediately. This behavior restricts student autonomy and undermines the intellectual freedom essential for an independent press.
Despite the stagnation of the past few months, The Guidon staff is still focused on resuming the watchdog accountability journalism they had been publishing last academic year. While The Guidon looks forward to resuming reporting stories on the Norwich community as soon as possible, it may take a few days to properly return to publication.
As always, if anyone has a story idea or news tip, please email [email protected].
