Published September 16, 2010

WBUR employs some street-smart Jumbos, but none of them can believe this: The Daily Beast reports Tufts University is America’s most dangerous college campus. A Tufts official calls the conclusion “gross inaccuracy.”

Mighty Jumbo (graysky/Flickr)

In its second annual ranking, the Daily Beast compiled federally mandated crime stats for campuses across the country.

The numbers for Tufts, which cover reports (not convictions) over the most recent three calendar years, are grim: one murder, 36 forcible rapes, 100 robberies, 119 aggravated assaults, 174 burglaries.

After the mean streets of Medford, the University of Maryland, Baltimore, comes in at No. 2. Harvard University comes in at No. 3; MIT is No. 14.

Tufts brass was quick to respond, noting its crime data covers all three campuses, including in Chinatown. In an internal memo provided to me by a source, Executive Vice President Patricia Campbell calls the Daily Beast’s methodology “flawed” (emphasis mine):

First, unlike some Boston area universities, Tufts has reported to the U.S. Department of Education not only incidents that take place on our three campuses but also incidents on adjacent public property that are reported to us by municipal police. This is done so that our community is aware of such incidents and can take proper precautions, but it may create the misperception that our campuses are less safe than they really are. Most of those off-campus incidents do not involve Tufts students, faculty or staff. Second, safety data reported for our health sciences campus in downtown Boston has historically included off-campus areas that are several blocks away from campus–much farther than would normally be reported. This has also inflated the number of incidents reported for Tufts.

The Daily Beast explains its methodology this way:

We pored over the three most recent calendar years of campus security and crime data (2006-2008) compiled by the U.S. Department of Education, as well as the FBI and the Secret Service, in conjunction with the Clery Act, the federal mandate requiring all schools that receive federal funding to disclose crime information annually. The data reflect incidents reported to campus or local police, not convictions.

If you don’t go to school in Camberville, the report does offer uplifting news: Nationwide, incidents of major crimes on college campuses are down, compared to last year’s report (which, by the way, named Emerson College most dangerous).

Are you a student who feels unsafe? Or do you think the rankings are bogus?

• Don’t miss: Armed robbery victim asked for SIM card back (Tufts Daily)

Published September 16, 2010

WBUR's Robin Young (Jesse Costa/WBUR)

Two WBUR greats are honored today: Here & Now host Robin Young and Con Salsa host José Massó will be inducted into the Massachusetts Broadcasters Hall of Fame.

“They’ve invested more than their time and energy.  They have brought us great gifts, from music and insight to information and companionship,” said Arthur Singer, the Hall of Fame president.

“They’ve been our eyes and ears at our sporting events, at the State House, our city halls and our schools. As  Massachusetts  listeners and viewers we are fortunate to have had them in our lives.”

For many in Massachusetts, Robin’s face may be more familiar than her voice. She is a Peabody Award-winning documentary filmmaker. She has been a national host and reporter on ABC, NBC and CBS and locally on WBZ-TV. She hosted a cooking game show. She directed Red Sox games. Once she appeared on the cover of TV Week with Bobby Orr. If you missed it, the Globe printed a Q&A with Robin this weekend about the changing media landscape.

WBUR's Jose Masso (AP)

José’s career spans decades, long before we were Boston’s NPR News Station. Con Salsa — which he describes as “part music show, part party, part community center” — celebrated 35 years on WBUR this summer. Radio Boston recently interviewed the Puerto Rican salsa king.

As one observer wrote in Hispanic Issues in Higher Education:

José’s resume reads like the cast of a Hollywood movie. The political liaison on the presidential campaign trail. The investigative TV journalist. The innovative high school teacher who makes learning fun. The late-night disc jockey. The high-powered sports agent.

Other broadcasters honored today:

• Bruce Arnold
• Jim Coppersmith
• Phil D.
• Dale Dorman
• Tom Ellis
• Gary Lapierre
• Wilmer “Bill” C. Swartley Jr.

Along with many of our deceased colleagues:

• Roger Allan
• Ken Coleman
• “Big Brother Bob” Emery
• John Henning (commemorated here and here)
• Robert J. Lurtsema
• Johhny Most
• Harry Wheeler

What’s your connection to these men and women?

Published September 15, 2010

American Muslims, also known as Americans, prayed for religious unity on Friday, Sept. 10, 2010, in Bridgeview, Ill. (M. Spencer Green/AP)

It’s like the “Ground Zero mosque” controversy in newspaper form. And it’s right here in New England.

To mark the end of Ramadan, the Portland (Maine) Press Herald printed a front-page photo of American Muslims praying. It ran on Sept. 11.

Readers complained “en masse,” according to the the publisher, for “insensitivity” to the Americans who died on that day nine years ago. There’s even a Facebook page to boycott the paper. (“The muslim criminals killed almost 3000 inocent (sic) Americans,” writes one commenter.)

The Press Herald publisher, Richard Connor, has since apologized:

Many saw Saturday’s front-page story and photo regarding the local observance of the end of Ramadan as offensive, particularly on the day, September 11, when our nation and the world were paying tribute to those who died in the 9/11 terrorist attacks nine years ago.

We have acknowledged that we erred by at least not offering balance to the story and its prominent position on the front page.

It’s not apparent what kind of “balance” the editors could have offered here. The Press Herald suffers from an unfortunate limitation of its medium: The news in its pages happens the day before it’s printed. The Muslim gathering featured on the front page happened on 9/10. The paper’s extensive 9/11 coverage ran on 9/12. (Remember, that famous NYT cover is dated Sept. 12, 2001.)

Dan Kennedy calls the Press Herald apology “repulsive.” TIME blogger Nate Jones calls it hysteria:

If you are a Muslim in America, be warned: apparently now even the very fact that you exist is offensive to people on September 11th.

The recurring insinuation is that Muslims in America aren’t American. Recall the WGBH-TV debate in which Rep. Stephen Lynch (who won Tuesday night’s Democratic primary in the 9th Congressional District) called them “they,” as excerpted here by Universal Hub:

“Respect and tolerance lives on a two-way street. I know a lot of those families who lost loved ones that day, I know a lot of firefighters who, their families, who perished that day and I just think it would be a huge win for the Imam to move that mosque and I would hope they would do that as a symbol for us and our fallen.“

“They,” of course, are us.

What do you think? Should the Portland Press Herald have stood by its coverage — or was it insensitive? Leave your opinion — respectfully — in the comments.

Related Stories:

• Read the original Press Herald story
  

Published September 14, 2010

(OakleyOriginals/Flickr)

What do you with an alligator after it turns up in the Charles River?

PETA, the animal-rights group, has written to Wayne MacCallum, director of the Massachusetts Division of Fisheries and Wildlife, asking to grant the stray gator “a chance at life.” I received a copy of this letter in an e-mail from a PETA spokesman, excerpted thus:

According to an article in The Boston Globe (attached), the alligator was captured and taken in by Rainforest Reptile, a facility that uses animals for public display and traveling exhibitions. Rainforest Reptile apparently intends to use the alligator for shows until the animal is too large for such purposes, after which it plans to send the animal to an alligator farm in Texas or Florida.

Alligators at such farms are often housed in concrete cells that are in stark contrast to their natural habitat of rivers, swamps, marshes, or lakes. And unlike the rivers and lakes in which most alligators live, these enclosures have no mud or vegetation for nest building. At farms, they are forced to live in an environment that is completely devoid of everything that is natural and important to them. Those who are killed for their skin and/or meat are often beaten on the head with metal pipes in order to immobilize them and prevent their hides from becoming damaged. The animals are then skinned—sometimes while they are still alive—and their hides are sold to be made into shoes, handbags, and other items.

I will add only this: No animal deserves to be captured by an organization whose website looks like this.

Published September 13, 2010

Jill Stein (courtesy of the campaign)

Every election has this candidate: She does not stand a realistic chance of winning, but she is on the ballot. How should we cover her?

This perennial question showed itself again when the Boston Media Consortium — which includes The Boston Globe, NECN, Channel 7, Channel 5, Channel 2 and WBUR — decided to exclude Green-Rainbow gubernatorial candidate Jill Stein from a Sept. 21 broadcast debate. Stein had not raised enough money to meet the consortium’s criteria for participation.

“The Boston Media Consortium thinks that they can silence our voices!” complained Jeff Boudreau on our Facebook page.

Today the consortium announced an about-face: Stein will be able to participate after all, since the debate falls before the Oct. 1 fundraising deadline. Earlier, before the decision was reversed, our ElectionWire political analysts chimed in.

Democrat Dan Payne wondered, “Why should a candidate with no chance of winning take up one-fourth of the time in debates that will help determine who governs Massachusetts?”

But Republican counterpart Todd Domke said Stein’s participation in debates is a matter of fairness — to the public:

Dr. Stein already proved her credibility. The media consortium came up with these criteria to keep wacko candidates from ruining constructive debates. But in the last debate, Stein was the only candidate to exceed expectations. Many viewers were surprised that she was as articulate and knowledgeable as the “serious” candidates. Now we’re supposed to pretend she is not on the ballot, not an option, not newsworthy, not a factor in a four-candidate field?

Of course, a Democrat (Payne) would have an interest in keeping out the candidate who might siphon votes from the Democratic incumbent. And a Republican (Domke) would want the incumbent’s re-election battle to be that much harder.

NU media thinker Dan Kennedy argues it might be time to ditch the consortium model altogether — which was formed in 1994 to pressure Sen. Edward M. Kennedy to debate Republican challenger Mitt Romney. Kennedy opines:

Give the longshots a chance to make their pitch and force the major-party candidates to react to their ideas. As we get closer to the wire, I think it’s legitimate to use polling in order to exclude candidates with no chance. I’d like to see Baker and Patrick debate one on one, but not yet.

What do you think? Does Jill Stein deserve equal access to debates? How would you rate our coverage?

More Coverage:

• WBUR’s ElectionWire blog
• Payne: The Stein Way — Don’t Play By The Rules
  
• Domke: Stein Should Not Be Banned In Boston