The Problem With The Appalachian's Opinion Section

Opinions are like U2 albums. Everyone is just really fucking tired of hearing them. However, much like Bono, opinions have somehow secured their place in the world of pop culture indefinitely. Perhaps it's for this reason that opinions have adopted the guise of journalism, popping up in newspapers and masquerading as informed thought. Don't get me wrong; opinions are important. Without them, we would have nothing informing our decisions and no sense of morality. But we've come to mistake the importance of some opinions for the importance of all opinions. In other words: Not every thought that tumbles through your precious head is worth sharing. (The irony here is not lost on me)

This being said, should you want to stand on the street corner and shout about your opinions on the texture of oranges, you are certainly welcome to do that. However, when you utilize the medium of mass media to start rambling about every thought that crosses your mind, your entitlement to an opinion starts to get a little hazy.

Rather than continue to dance around the issue, I'll get right to the point: A newspaper's opinion section shouldn't be your personal blog for how you feel about stuff. It should be a section where you share an informed opinion on a topical issue that is relevant to readers. Lately, The Appalachian has been toeing the line between the two and leaning slightly towards the former. One writer in particular is leading that charge into frivolity.

I'm sure you all remember Dewey "Feminism is Hard" Mullis from several weeks ago. His controversial article concerning his ambivalence towards feminism inspired outrage among a large portion of the student body. While the topic of discussion was certainly worthy of writing about (however stupid it may be), the lack of substance is what really made it an unforgivable piece of trash. You can't just hide behind the platitude of "well that's just my opinion" when you're writing for a newspaper. An opinion without any sort of supporting facts is just a rant. And ranting is fine.....if you're not writing for a newspaper.

I am not entirely up to date on journalistic ethics as of late. But I would hazard a guess that any paper worth its salt would agree to the assertion that an opinion must be A) a topic worth discussing and B) backed up with some amount of cold hard facts. As for the former, it's hard to gauge what a worthy topic is in this day in age. But even in our frivolous and downright stupid society, I still imagine that someone who is going to take the time to read a newspaper might be slightly miffed to find a fucking listicle about sidewalks within its pages.

Other examples of Mullis' inanities can be found in his several meta articles in which he muses on confirmation bias and what it means to write an opinion. Interesting stuff if you're, you know, an opinion writer. But for the rest of the population, it takes up space that could be dedicated to more relevant issues. The latter article does grant us a peek inside the mind of Mullis, however. He makes a great point: "There are things opinions should and should not be." If only he could follow his own advice.

But, I understand that Mullis is merely one of three regular opinion writers on the desk (though, it's worth noting that he has the most articles under his belt at this point). The other two, Lindsey Chandler and Kevin Griffin, seem to do a good job at writing meaningful opinions, however. Why Mullis doesn't take his cues from his peers is beyond me.

The Appalachian can claim that opinions are solely of the author all day long, but that excuse doesn't really fly these days. If tomorrow The New York Times hired a guy that thinks the earth is flat, everyone would lose their minds. Admittedly, The Grey Lady services a much larger audience, but I would like to think that The Appalachian has more respect for its readers than it's currently demonstrating. Certainly, an opinion held by a writer does not reflect the opinion of an organization as a whole, but the continued employment of that writer definitely reflects its standards.

My suggestion to The Appalachian? Get your shit in gear. Stop pulling stunts like that fucking PSA about cat costumes. It demeans the organization and, in doing so, demeans this campus. Furthermore, stop hiding behind excuses. We don't care who wrote it and who put it in the newspaper. Own up to a mistake and take responsibility. Otherwise, you just look petty.

And as for Mullis, I offer this bit of advice: Either stop writing articles about stupid shit or, if that's too hard, stop writing entirely. You have some worthy articles under your belt so I know you're not entirely incompetent. Prove that you can be taken seriously as an opinion writer and stop embarrassing the newspaper you work for. We here at The Daily Wit will be keeping an eye on you.