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Editorial: Implications of the meaning of ‘progressive’

By Gaveliers, The Gavel Media Team, on February 27, 2010 6:36 PM

The Gavel presents itself as “the progressive news source of Boston College.” What do we mean by “progressive news source?” How does our definition of “progressive” shape the presence and role of our publication? These are some of the questions we hope to answer for readers and in so doing assert ourselves as a new, independent campus media organization.

The Gavel is first progressive in the political sense of the word. The Progressive movement of the early 20th century sought electoral reform in response to corruption, trust-busting, and environmental protection, among other issues. After his tenure in the Oval Office, Theodore Roosevelt formed the progressive Bull Moose Party and challenged then-President William H. Taft.

Even though Roosevelt’s campaign was unsuccessful, and despite the desire of many middle-class progressives to undermine the suffrage of immigrants and African-Americans, the movement evolved over time.

Today, the progressive movement incorporates the traditional emphasis on conservation to a slew of concerns including a noninterventionist foreign policy, civil rights, distributive justice, marriage equality, universal healthcare and the abolition of the death penalty. The College Democrats of Boston College (CDBC) provides some funding for the newspaper because we share the goal of incorporating a multiplicity of viewpoints into contemporary discourse.

The Gavel remains editorially independent – the views of our editors are not necessarily those of CDBC, and vice-versa. While we may advocate for progressive causes in our editorials, we are committed to unbiased, nonpartisan journalism with a clear demarcation between factual reporting and opinionated commentary. Unlike 24-hour cable news networks and activist blogs, the newspaper has always been a space where readers can easily differentiate content that represents objective fact from that which is the view of a writer or a group of writers.

The Gavel also receives funding from the Center for Campus Progress, a group that facilitates Web-based journalism. This leads to the second meaning of progressive technologically progressive. While The Gavel acknowledges the tradition and importance of the printed newspaper, we also realize that economic concerns have made this a declining possibility. Our newspaper embraces new technology on our Web site, www.bcgavel.com, where one can find not just our printed content but daily news, additional columns, regularly updated blogs and streaming video. Readers can view video interviews of the Presidential and Vice-Presidential candidates for the UGBC, post comments, view photos, and submit letters to the editor. We feel that the breadth of our online resources set us apart from other campus newspapers and provide a complementary source of information. In several weeks, we will launch a new, revitalized Web site to increase the number of photos and videos we can post and will add new features like ongoing opinion polls, a reorganized archive system, and staff biographies.

The combination of political and technological progressivism allows us to enfranchise the marginalized and unheard voices of BC. Traditional sources initially overlooked the dispute between the University and its unionized service employees, so we covered the story. Traditional sources highlighted UGBC elections, but only The Gavel put the videos of candidate interviews online. We will continue to cover breaking news on campus, but we will also seek out the stories that fly under the establishment radar, with a greater emphasis on investigative journalism and in-depth news analysis. While students or professors might view The Gavel as a liberal response to The Observer or a threat to The Heights, we hope to progress beyond these characterizations and present our institution not as one that conflicts or competes with others, but one that cooperates and complements to the greater benefit of our readers.