The View from Here: A letter from the editor-in-chief

In the past few weeks we’ve been getting many letters to the editor from faculty because of an editorial cartoon that ran in our Oct. 2 issue that suggested that faculty created events for themselves. Just recently we received a letter from our district chancellor, Ron Galatolo.

A common thread throughout these letters is that students are the number one priority bar none. Each letter cites the many services and campus events that revolve around us.

A college campus is inherently going to serve students. The administration putting students first shouldn’t be applauded when their support is expected. The editorial cartoon was not a personal attack on our president Dr. Regina Stanback-Stroud, but rather a comment on how it feels to be a student at Skyline. The campus has all of these incredible events but students get little to no notice of them nor inclusion.

For example the upcoming theater production of “You Can’t Take it With You” is only a week away, but if you were a student looking for information about it you’d be hard pressed to find any. It’s not on the Skyline College website anywhere including the event calendar. Even a search for it turns up nothing. The most important way to include students in the campus is to keep them informed.

Since the media policy debut kept the paper, which is run by students for students, out of the loop and restricted us from conducting interviews with faculty and administration, we haven’t felt like a number one priority. Even after its revision the policy has left an adverse effect. It’s been extremely difficult for our writers to get anything in-depth or candid from student services.

Just this week I questioned the campus security if officers had guns on them but I was not able to get an answer from an officer, instead I was instructed to ask the public information officer who had to ask security and then email me the answer. This is not the first time reporters have had issues acquiring sources and information. In the past year we’ve counted at least nine times a reporter has been told “no” when trying to secure an interview.

This is a total deviation from the flow of information. The Skyline View exists for the sole purpose of informing students and if our reporters aren’t allowed that information then it’s also being kept from the entire student body. Everyone has the right to refuse to speak to the press, but it feels systemic when there are multiple instances of student service employees not cooperating.

In one of the letters sent to us a faculty member expressed a sadness for the future of journalism with The Skyline View at the helm of it and I have to agree. We’re also sad for the future of journalism here at Skyline. There’s a restriction on what’s allowed to be said to us and we cannot get accurate information firsthand.

Our priority is the students of this campus and without our administration supporting us in what we do we can’t say the same for them.

Update: article headline was updated. 9:12 p.m. 10/30/2014.