After hearing NPR - on Tuesday's ATC - tout Robert Siegel's selection for the 2010 Chancellor Award, I decided to email Columbia University's School of Journalism's Abi Wright (Director of the duPont and Chancellor awards) and Nicholas Lehmann (Dean of the Journalism School and chair of the Chancellor selection committee). I've yet to hear back from either, so I've decided post the letter here (with no changes).
Dear Abi Wright and Nicholas Lehmann,I'm contacting you to ask how Columbia University's School of Journalism can justify giving the Chancellor award to Robert Siegel. In the award announcement on the School of Journalism web site, Mr. Lehmann states:"Robert Siegel brings intellectual heft and a profound humanity to his reporting."I find this disturbing given that I have been closely following NPR reporting and can provide several examples of Mr. Siegel exhibiting an utter lack of intellectual rigor and a rather callous attitude to the sufferings of people when they are victims of US foreign policy. For example:Siegel was instrumental in selling the phony intelligence that led to the Iraq Warhttp://nprcheck.blogspot.com/2007/02/trip-down-memory-lane.html and continued to parrot unsubstantiated claims about Iran's involvement in Iraq http://nprcheck.blogspot.com/2008/04/two-crocks-for-price-of-one.html.And where is Siegel's "intellectual heft" as he fails to inform listeners about the basic background of Conservapedia's Andy Schlafly or challenge Schlafly's biased statements http://nprcheck.blogspot.com/2007/03/wikipedia-v-wackopedia.html. Again, where is "intellectual heft" or "profound humanity" in the long overdue piece Siegel hosted on torture/rendition flights http://nprcheck.blogspot.com/2007/12/spoof-news-better-late-than-never-sort.html where he is chuckling during this discussion of one of the most barbarous aspects of the US War on Terror?It really saddens me that a lackluster newsreader and lightweight apologist for US State Department/Pentagon interests such as Robert Siegel garners a distinguished award from one of our nations premier journalism schools. But perhaps I should not be surprised, since as Chris Hedges so recently pointed out, our liberal establishments refuse to take principled, radical stands - opting instead to "pay homage to the marvels of corporate capitalism [and militarism] even as it disembowels the nation and the planet" http://www.truthdig.com/report/item/the_origin_of_americas_intellectual_vacuum_20101115/.Sincerely,Matthew MurreyNPR Check
I also cc'd the letter to a few other Columbia School of Journalism faculty members, to the editors of the Columbia Journalism Review, to FAIR, Media Matters and Truthdig. If I receive any responses I will post them if given permission.
