On second thought, I agree wholeheartedly with Lucas. The opinions page is a disgraceful blemish in an otherwise venerable newspaper. On the average day, a full eighth of The Herald is dedicated to nothing but Brown students complaining about something and sparking unnecessary feuds - I can see why GQ called us the douchiest school.
Think of how many trees we're killing just to print this nonsense. I'm surprised there's not a protest on the Main Green about it. Seriously. Look at what I'm writing right now. It's straight bullshit. I haven't thought about this at all. I just know that it's due in an hour, and I have to write it or else The Herald's editor-in-chief will personally kick my ass.
My friends try to console me by pointing out that the opinions section serves an important purpose. They say that civil discourse is "good for democracy," that we need a space to debate the important issues of our time. That sounds great until you look at what actually gets printed. As Lucas pointed out, seeing how the sausage is actually made gives one a different perspective.
Opinions editors like Lucas and myself are real victims of this. We're trapped in a vicious cycle. We only want to publish the best, most well-thought-out columns, but our corporate masters don't care about quality. Like Bill O'Reilly and Chris Matthews, the market has driven college newspapers like The Herald to breed a new generation of pundits addicted to stoking the flames of controversy and discord.
Every day I wake up, I look at the man I've become and weep. I came to Brown with such high aspirations, and now I'm just another corporate sellout working for the almighty dollar. The rest of The Herald continues to fight for journalistic integrity, while opinions editors Lucas, Garret Johnson '14 and I shamelessly exploit the discord and petty differences in our student body.
That's why I've decided to protest the opinions section and not continue on as an editor next semester. I hope that my action will inspire others to do the right thing and not write opinions.
