Cornell Moderator

From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia

You have new messages (last change).
The Cornell Moderator

Volume 2, Issue 7 of the Cornell Moderator
Type Bi-monthly newspaper
Format Tabloid, on newsprint
Owner Independent
Editor Kelly Cronin and Andi Girardin
Founded 2004
Political allegiance No editorial political stance
Price Free
Headquarters Ithaca, New York
Circulation 3,000-5,000
Website: Cornell Moderator

The Cornell Moderator is a student publication founded in 2004 at Cornell University in Ithaca, New York. Self-described as "unabashedly unbiased", the Moderator is meant to serve as a vehicle for intellectually-honest campus discussion.

The publication uses a unique point-counterpoint-point-counterpoint format in which two writers who disagree are encouraged to address and respond to one another's arguments. The paper itself takes no editorial position, allowing the mutually-opposed arguments of its freelance writers to succeed or fail on their own merits.


Contents

[edit] About

Founded in part to rebuke politicized campus dialogue, the Moderator intends to promote constuctive engagement of the major issues of the day.

The topics of controveries and features covered in the Moderator are selected by its editorial staff, and are heavily influenced by current events around the world and at Cornell. The Moderator publishes 2 to 3 issues per semester, and has a circulation ranging from 3,000 to 5,000 issues per print run.

[edit] History

The Moderator was founded in 2004. Its original name was You Turn, a play on the name of the liberal campus newspaper Turn Left, founded in 2000. In its early stages, the Moderator's editorial staff opted to change the publication's name to one which would better reflect its mission.

Since its initial publication, the Moderator has become a well-known campus newspaper. Its popularity has led the editorial board to expand printing and circulation, giving more students the opportunity to read about the issues affecting their world.


[edit] Criticisms

The following criticisms are suggested by an editor of Turn Left, whose paper the Cornell Moderator lambasted in an early issue.

  • Poorly-informed, irrational, and partisan contributors
  • Insufficient editorial oversight
  • Questionable editorial direction
  • Features written to initiate the politically unaware are boring and patronizing to those who already follow politics
  • Prompts are phrased with a conservative bias:
    • "Is Homosexuality a Choice?" (Issue 2)
    • "Should the United States Take Over the World?" (Issue 2)
    • "Should Cornell have a White Program House?" (Issue 3)
    • "Should assassination be used as a foreign policy tool?" (Issue 5)
    • "Does it Matter if You’re Black or White?" (Issue 7)
    • "Is America’s a Culture of Death?" (Issue 7)
  • Prompts are phrased with a liberal bias:
    • "Can Preventive War Ever Be Morally Acceptable?" (Issue 1)
    • "Is Wal-Mart Hurting America?" (Issue 2)
    • "Should prostitution be legalized?" (Issue 3)
    • "Cornell ROTC: Should they get the boot?" (Issue 5)
    • "Sweatshops: What’s the Cost of Cheap Labor?" (Issue 7)
    • "Hunting: Sport or Slaughter?" (Issue 7)


[edit] Rivalry and Other Newspapers

The publication's irreverent criticism of other campus newspapers' intellectual honesty has caused some friction in the past. Most notably, Black Perspectives, an African-American student-run newspaper, denounced the Moderator's critique in its own pages.

Several on-campus newspapers have made humorous attempts at mocking the Moderator's format and lack of decisive political stance, including the Cornell Review and Cornell American.

The Cornell Centrist was founded in 2006 in response to the Moderator's declaration that -- although the Moderator strove to balance extremists' political positions -- the Moderator was not itself politically moderate, nor indeed did it claim any position on the political spectrum. The Centrist, by comparison, is avowedly partisan.

[edit] External links


Student Organizations at Cornell University

Publications

Cornell Daily Sun • Cornell Review • Cornell American • Cornell Moderator • The Cornell Centrist • Turn Left • Cornell International Law Journal • Cornell Law Review

Music

Glee Club • Cayuga's Waiters • Chordials • Class Notes • Hangovers • Sherwoods • Savoyards • Chorus • WVBR • Symphony Orchestra

Other

At What Cost? • EMS • Redbud Woods controversy • Telluride • Quill and Dagger

Cornell University

History • Campus • Academics • Student Life • Athletics • Research • People
Retrieved from "http://en.wikipedia.org../../../c/o/r/Cornell_Moderator_02c6.html"