Editor,
In the words of David Grohl, this is a call. A call to all UNM students to please think twice before cutting ASUNM funding to the Daily Lobo. I was the lone senator to vote against Amendment One when it was Senate Bill 5B. Here’s why:
I believe in democracy. Not that my fellow senators don’t — we just have different ideas of what constitutes a democratic system. My 19 comrades think accountability is essential. Accountability is to be lauded, but I think they are missing the point. An essential precondition for any democracy is a marketplace of ideas, the ability for all citizens to throw around opinions and make their voices heard. I think an amendment in the U.S. Constitution deals with free speech — but who am I to say?
News about current events is somewhat helpful for spawning opinions. The Daily Lobo, a bastion of democratic ideals, provides its readers with news and a forum for opinions.
Perhaps I am simply a good, old-fashioned, peace-and-love hippie too concerned with ideals. Regardless, I have a problem with mob behavior. On the night the Senate passed Amendment 1, I pleaded with my fellow senators to read “The Oxbow Incident.”
Of course, it was unreasonable to expect anyone to read a few hundred pages in one evening. It was not unreasonable for the Senate to temporarily set aside emotions and listen to the Daily Lobo staff. Unfortunately, cooler heads did not prevail.
James Barron and Iliana Lim¢n never had a chance to present their entire argument. The Lobo staff was afforded more courtesy in later debates, but the damage was already done. The bill stormed out of the Senate and waltzed past the president’s veto.
Many senators claim that Amendment One gains decency by forcing the Daily Lobo to be held accountable to the student body. The thing is, the Lobo already is accountable to the student body and its readership.
Every day, readers file their complaints in droves. These complaints, space permitting, are then published. What is more, I’m sure the Daily Lobo staff tries to deal with and remedy legitimate complaints.
Those senators also argue that the Daily Lobo can still receive ASUNM funding by appearing as a student group before the Finance Committee. While I laud the efforts of the Finance Committee to conduct business fairly and impartially, I disagree with placing the objectivity of an independent newspaper in their hands.
Former senators wrote the Lobo into the Constitution to avoid corrupting journalism. I appreciate their foresight and I hope we can prevent Rupert Murdoch’s version of “news” from polluting our newspaper.
The Daily Lobo will survive a funding cut. It is a sound business, and it has prepared for a rainy day. Bear in mind, though, that if we strip the Daily Lobo of student fee money it has relied on for years, we send a clear message: our paper is not important. Looking at the recent U.S. presidential election, maybe democracy is not important, either.
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Josh Ewing
ASUNM senator
