UPDATED: Please read this letter from the Board of Directors.
To the Boston community and whomever else it may concern,
We at The Daily Free Press want to apologize for the callous and ignorant stories we ran in our annual print-only April Fools’ Day issue on Monday, April 2. Our aim was to publish satirical material about Boston University as a whole, and we did not intend to perpetuate harmful stereotypes or inappropriately make light of serious issues.
Simply put, we should have exercised caution. Our decisions were juvenile and insensitive. We deeply regret our heartless behavior and did not mean to personally offend anyone.
We did not mean to single out or offend any specific organizations that work to improve the BU community, nor to intentionally propagate any misconceptions about BU students or the university. Rather, our intention was to produce material that would be seen as ridiculous and fictitious.
However, we understand that these serious issues should not have been characterized as joking matters.
The BU community has been making great strides to raise awareness about rape culture and prevent sexual assault on and off campus. A number of organizations, including the Center for Gender, Sexuality and Activism, Student Union and Greek Life, have worked tirelessly this semester to build a safer community. It was inexcusable of us to publish this issue and set back the progress these organizations have accomplished.
We want to stress that all of the ill-conceived jokes in Monday’s issue in no way represent the true values of The Daily Free Press or any of its staff members. While we do not support any of the stereotypes that we wrongly spread in the issue, we know that by publishing the material we inadvertently proliferated them. We know that even though the stories were meant to be jokes, simply writing them perpetuated rape culture.
We thank our readers as ever for their passionate input. We aim to learn from our mistakes and to move forward, continuing to strive to serve as the independent student voice of the university in a rigorously balanced and sensitive manner.
Sincerely,
Chelsea Diana
Editor-in-Chief
editor@dailyfreepress.com
This is an account occasionally used by the Daily Free Press editors to post archived posts from previous iterations of the site or otherwise for special circumstance publications. See authorship info on the byline at the top of the page.
“We did not mean to single out or offend any specific organizations that work to improve the BU community, nor to intentionally propagate any misconceptions about BU students or the university. ”
Really…Really? Because that’s exactly what you set out to do and that’s exactly what it resulted in. This apology does nothing. The fact that this issue was written, edited, printed, and distributed proves that there is a serious flaw in the leadership at the Daily Free Press and quite frankly it’s unprofessional, disgusting, and completely uncalled for.
As a BU Student and a member of BU Greek Life, I will be boycotting the Daily Free Press and encourage all to do the same.
agreed! I really don’t consider myself a feminist or activist, and am offended by very little, but after attending Take Back the Night on Friday, I vowed not to take matters like this lightly. Chelsea Diana, you are given extreme power as editor-in-chief and you really let the BU community down. I’m a member of Greek life and have many male friends in fraternities who would NEVER lay hands on a woman without her permission. What you wrote is disgusting. It is a disgrace. It further divides the men from the women, the Greeks from the non-Greeks, the informed from the ignorant. I am SO disappointed. This is why BU is a joke right now, because not even the most respected students take serious matters seriously.
I will never buy this free paper ever again!
here here! I will boycott the FreeP, even though the $75K in its endowment has already been paid for by my tuition money! get real Enraged Student. There are bigger things you should be enraged about, like the money you pay for friends.
Too little too late. This is bigger than just you now. Time to step down.
Chelsea, thank you for your well-written and sincere apology. Now please do the right thing and resign from your position as EIC.
Co-sign. There is no rational universe in which it is either appropriate or humorous to run such utter crap. Back to class with the lot of you. And try not to show up hungover this time.
As if your University didn’t have enough of a PR problem already. Nice work.
I feel that the resignation of Chelsea Diana would mark a true apology and that the daily free press as a whole finds what she allowed to be inexcusable an unacceptable. She has lost full credibility and this is only the beginning of a long line of apologies that will never truly be accepted.
If the apologies will never truly be accepted, then it’s a waste of everyone’s time to be angry about it.
Now that you’ve spent the entire article apologizing to the student organizations you’ve offended, how about you spend more than a single line insinuating that you made light of a woman being brutalized and potentially making any number of assault victims relive the most horrific nights of their lives?
UPVOTE.
Redditor?
Your apology is ridiculous and fictitious. If you were irrational enough to approve these stories in the first place, then you certainly don’t understand now why we’re reacting this way.
Prove to us you’re sincere and resign immediately. It’s all you can do.
Could not agree more. As as survivor of assault, this entire newspaper was offensive. I’ve had issues with them before about their insensitive writers and complete lack of willingness to fix their mistakes. Step down, Chelsea.
Yup, too little too late. What a stupid decision on the part of the editor-in-chief; someone dumb enough to make that decision never really should’ve been editor-in-chief in the first place. save face and resign now.
Beyond disgusted.
I cannot even BEGIN to understand how you could possibly make a decision like this without knowing there would be severe repercussions. There was a blatant theme of women bashing, and as a woman yourself, are you not ashamed Chelsea?
Chelsea Diana,
This apology is ridiculous; the fact that you did not step down is disgraceful. You were ignorant and insensitive enough to satirize personal issues with deep emotional implications. Why do you think that professional journalists (usually) do not publish the names of rape victims? Spoiler alert: it’s because this is a different type of crime.
You have tarnished the name of your paper and the name of Boston University.
Good luck in your job search. General consensus in our newsroom is that you will not work in journalism again.
Good luck getting a job in the journalism field after this….maybe FoxNews will hire you?
Rewrite your original story like this:
BROken egos: BU fraternity suspended for raping young boy and branding black student
Seven frat dwarves were arrested last night after they allegedly drugged and gangbanged a young boy aged 7, and branded a black student with their fraternity letters . . .
“BRO has bro0ed itself out,” said Gaston, the Chairman of the IFC. “No one drinks like the BROs, no one shoots like the BROs and definitely no one rapes like the BROs.”
The fraternity is known for its rousing parties where the “cocktails flow freely and we rape young children every night,” according to a BU student who wishes to remain anonymous.”
Now, considering that raping a woman is no less traumatic, no less horrible, and no less of a crime than raping a young boy or branding a person against her or his will, tell again me again how goddamn frigging funny your story was.
That sounds even funnier.
Make it your mom, then.
I agree with Chelsea, if they dont want jokes on them, then STOP RAPPING WOMEN !! if that is what you wrote Chelsea, its fine, dont worry, they world is backwards but since you are bold, u will make it !! MEN MUST LEARN TO STOP RAPPING AND TO STOP MOCKING WOMEN, they mock women all the time and NOONE says anything, ITS MORE THAN OK TO GIVE THEM SOME OF THEIR OWN MEDICINE !! BRAVO CHELSEA !!
Rewrite your original story like this: BROken egos: BU fraternity suspended for raping young boy and branding black student
Seven frat dwarves were arrested last night after they allegedly drugged and gangbanged a young boy aged 7, and branded a black student with their fraternity letters . . .
“BRO has bro0ed itself out,” said Gaston, the Chairman of the IFC. “No one drinks like the BROs, no one shoots like the BROs and definitely no one rapes like the BROs.”
The fraternity is known for its rousing parties where the “cocktails flow freely and we rape young children every night,” according to a BU student who wishes to remain anonymous.”
Now, considering that raping a woman is no less traumatic, no less horrible, and no less of a crime than raping a young boy or branding a person against her or his will, tell again me again how goddamn frigging funny your story was.
I wonder if women who have been sexually abused or assaulted would be satisfied by an apology? I think not. The point of rape culture as a concept is to get rid of it, not perpetuate it. There are students here who work hard to spread awareness of sexual assault and who strive to better their school… like the students who volunteer at the Center for Gender, Sexuality, and Activism, members of Greek life, or the women who put on the Vagina Monologues (the proceeds of which were donated to Boston Area Rape Crisis Center).
You and your writers have not only made the entire university look ridiculous, but you’ve also become a part of the rape culture problem here at BU. Chelsea Diana, step down. I do not care what apologies you might make. If you were woman enough to approve those stories, be woman enough to realize what a huge mistake it would be to continue representing this university.
Hope you were planning on switching majors from journalism anyway, Chelsea..
It hurts me to say this but the Daily Free Press is no longer a good publication anymore. And it’s staggering how cheap the editors are.
I agree with others’ assertions that Ms. Diana should step down. Please respect the BU population and take action to really make good. Please resign.
Chelsea,
As a member of BU’s Greek community, I know all too well the frustrating game of public relations. My fellow Greeks and I spend countless hours and literally thousands of dollars each year giving back to our respective communities and philanthropic organizations, only to have our overarching reputation dragged through the mud (often by your paper) every time a few, isolated stupid individuals act inappropriately.
It only takes one moment to ruin an entire year’s worth of terrific work.
I hope you are enjoying your moment.
I 100% agree, there is nothing that disgusts me more than ignorant people who think its cool to rip on greek life when all we are the most passionate group of leaders and caring citizens this campus has ever seen.
I would be disgusted to see anything but Chelsea stepping down happen.
Let’s not toot your own horn too much, especially when it’s undeserved. “…this campus has ever seen”? HA that’s insulting to the true leaders on campus. While these articles were not necessarily in the best taste, Chelsea Is ultimately a
Good editor of a good newspaper, who deserves a second chance. If you think you could do so much better, then you go write and edit. If you have such high morals, take a look at your own lives.
Oh uh didn’t Martin Luther King Jr go here? Pretty sure your Greek organization is in no way the “most passionate group of leaders… this campus has ever seen.”
Idiot.
I don’t get what the big deal is. In an April fools issue of a school news paper is not to be taken seriously. You can pretty much say whatever you want. This apology seems more than sufficient.
As a woman, a member of greek life and a BU student I am personally offended. I find this apology to be a nothing more than a joke to save your ass. What was said was more than offensive to multiple groups on campus who try INCREDIBLY hard to bring spirit, hope and safety back to a campus that has been tarnished by acts that you think are funny, and most importantly it was offensive and dare I say triggering to those who have suffered from the situations you satirize. I am absolutely appalled.
Chelsea Diana,
You are a great editor-in-chief and all humans make mistakes. Stay strong.
All humans make mistakes. This is true. There are also consequences for mistakes and it’s important that these consequences are delivered.
The Daily Free Press should realize that no amount of apologies can correct the abomination of an edition published today. The little credibility, if any, that the Freep had held is now completely wiped out by this outrageous edition published in poor taste. As a supposed representative of BU, the Freep has done nothing but perpetuate the rape culture that groups on campus have been trying diligently to eliminate. Hard working groups such as CGSA and the members of Greek life became a mockery in your articles, to the point that I am ashamed to be attending Boston University. You have now created a picture of BU that will take years to erase. At this point, BU may have a permanent black mark.
More surprisingly, most of the Freep editors and Board is composed of women. Many people have called upon Chelsea Diana’s resignation, of which I fully support. Chelsea, as a woman, you should be embarrassed and ashamed. Did you attempt to justify these stories, thinking that it was ok to publish just because you are a woman? I think I agree with anyone who say that any future career in journalism you may have had, is now a figment of your imagination.
To avoid being repetitive of previous posts that have eloquently stated what everyone is thinking, I will leave my post at this. Chelsea, your resignation should be the first step in attempting to fix the sinking ship that is the Daily Free Press. Thank you for tarnishing what little reputation Boston University has left.
Too little to late. This isn’t the first time that the Freep has attack the Boston University greek community. Your actions are inexcusable and this is clearly an empty apology meant to please us greeks and nothing more. Not only will I be boycotting the Freep, but I will be encouraging all of my friends to do so as well. Shame on you.
Congratulations! You guys won the “media outlet jerks of the day” award!
Thanks for an apology, but this should NEVER have been allowed to run. I assume the editors and staff are a part of the Boston University community, so they have been informed of the recent goings-on regarding sexual assault on our campus. Today, you perpetuated that trope. Today, you triggered, outraged, and upset countless people. Today, you hurt members of our campus with what you called “satirical material”. This wasn’t satire. You made a rape joke, and you should be ashamed. Aren’t you ashamed?
Chelsea Diana, you allowed this article to run. You allowed these things to headline the paper you edit. “We know that even though the stories were meant to be jokes, simply writing them perpetuated rape culture.” But you know what? You should have never included “rape” in something you call a joke. Rape isn’t a joke. And I am angry, and I am disappointed, and you have let Boston University down.
I’ve read the stories published and I couldn’t believe what I was reading. This is a disgrace to everyone who works, teaches, studies, and is an alumnus of BU. The people who are probably hurt the most by this is the people within the Daily Free Press organization who work extremely hard and had nothing to do with this abomination. Chelsea isn’t the only person who should resign. Anyone who wrote or worked on those stories should resign immediately.
I can’t believe that you would think that this year, out of all of the years EVER, you would think it would be funny to publish such an issue. I normally think that your April Fools’ Day issues are ok, but this has been one of the most scandalous years in BU history. Step down from your disconnected ivory tower and let someone sensible take over.
It seems to me that most of the people responding to this are those who are really angry (part of the journalism community and are part of the organizations that were “bashed.”) However, as a woman who has been raped at a point in my past, I kind of appreciate that you can make light of this stuff. And as a normal, run of the mill BU student I think that things have been really serious on campus recently and maybe its good that they tried to get us to laugh about it for once. Just saying, maybe we don’t need to take everything this seriously. We’re in college and we’re all going to make misjudgements, and I think the outrage that certain portions of the student body is showing is probably punishment enough. I am sure that everyone here has made a bad decision before and while I think there should be consequences I don’t think she should have to resign and screw up her life…
Resigning won’t screw up her life. She will be fine. Resigning will be showing that she respects those she wronged and understands the consequences of her actions. She will graduate and go on and be fine. This is not going to ruin her life. Those of us asking for her resignation, me included, are not looking to ruin her life.
As a woman who has been raped at a point in my past, you don’t speak for all rape victims. Not everyone has processed their experience in the way you have and for many, including myself, jokes about rape are not something to laugh about. Instead, they’re very triggering and offensive and trivialize a horrific experience. The people who deserve sympathy are the ones who were hurt by her callous decision to print those “jokes”, not Chelsea for having to step down because she failed at her job and humiliated her university.
Just to respond to your comment that college is the time to make mistakes, it is also the time to learn to take responsibility for your actions. When you are in a public position of leadership you are responsible for the actions of your staff, and I think it shows the strength of character that she did so.
Also, this is not just a BU, or “college” problem. I am a BU Alum who graduated years ago and lives in another city, and I have co-workers asking me about the “rape culture” at BU.
So please realize, this tarnishes the school’s reputation and terriers everywhere. A public newspaper is not just for college consumption.
Anything short of a resignation of anyone who laid eyes on any of the articles in question is horribly insufficient. Retain any semblance of good name this paper still has.
I can’t help but feel a great deal of hypocrisy coming from everyone calling for Chelsea to step down. I understand the issues at hand- proliferation of rape culture, tarnishing BU and Greek Life’s reputations, etc. The joke was unfunny, inappropriate, and in extremely poor taste, but who are you all to tell Chelsea and the DFP writers what that can and can’t find funny, especially based on their gender?
“Chelsea, as a woman, you should be embarrassed and ashamed. Did you attempt to justify these stories, thinking that it was ok to publish just because you are a woman?”
That is a very troubling statement for me and is dangerously close to the sentiment that women are “asking to be raped” when they dress a certain way. Just because a woman wants to dress in a short skirt or revealing top or carry herself in a “sexual” manner does not mean she deserves to be raped and have her whole life shattered. Chelsea has a sense of humor and a set of beliefs about what it means to be a woman that are not in line with yours, but does that give you the right to drag her reputation through the mud to ensure she can’t find employment once she graduates?
I feel that if these same women who are crying out against Chelsea were asked “should a woman act and think a certain way” the answer would be a resounding NO. So please, let Chelsea live her own life, be offended by what she chooses, have a sense of humor about what she wants, and fit into whatever she thinks a woman should be which has absolutely no effect on your life.
If you are offended by what you see in the paper, turn the page. If you don’t like what you see on television, change the channel. Comedy, for as long as it has been around, has been the most effective method of bringing issues into the public eye. Watch any recent episode of South Park to see offensive, touchy, important issues portrayed as raw and brutal as they are in real life- something straight faced news sources are too afraid to do from fear of this exact sort of backlash. Of all the e-mails and notices the student body has been sent that tip-toe around the brutality and weight of rape culture in our community, this little article has probably given us the most honest glimpse into the reality of what we’re so actively fighting against.
Thank you for publishing this stupid joke and pointing out the rigid ideals these supposedly open and forward-thinking activists hold. Thank you for not conforming to what everybody wants you to be and say. I don’t think the apology is sincere because the article is who they are- to insinuate that the people attempting to humorously expose rape culture at BU are supporters or perpetuators of the culture itself is absurd. No apology was necessary.
Chelsea, I hope eventually people in the real world won’t be as closed minded and ready to crucify anyone who disturbs their idea of right or wrong. I’m sure you’ll find a job.
Everyone knock it off. Stop rape culture, not Chelsea Diana.
Well, why are YOU trying to shield Chelsea from the consequences of what she’s done? Don’t you think she’s a big girl? Does she need your big, bad protection?
Sure, she and anyone else has a perfect right to “live her own life, be offended by what she chooses, have a sense of humor about what she wants, and fit into whatever she thinks a woman should be.” And other people have a perfect right to criticize her for doing that, to be offended or amused by what she printed, to call for her to step down etc. That’s what’s happening here, sunshine. Free speech does not include the right to be free from criticism.
I understand the outrage, I really do, but this is beyond criticism, you guys are forming a lynch mob here, you seem to be responding to a bad situation with hate, people are reveling in the fact that this may be the end of the girls career as a journalist. Since Chelsea wrote this apology she is clearly already facing consequences, What do you think she is trying to do here sell more FREE newspapers? She made a mistake, a big one, but just a mistake after all, she is apologizing and acknowledging it was offensive and stupid to do. Maybe she should step down and maybe there should be consequences, but why does the mob have to be so goddamn happy to see more misery? And what is with the “sunshine” bs? your condescending tone doesn’t help your argument.
Not trying to offer protection, just my own criticism of everything that is going on. The sentiment here seems to be anti-Chelsea rather than anti-rape culture. I think there’s a difference between criticism and calling on someone to resign if they do something you don’t agree with. Put pressure on the DFP to do some honest journalism to right their wrongs and give us a more appropriate interpretation of the issues BU has instead of starting a witch hunt against someone who at least I personally don’t feel did something resignation-worthy. People are saying that Chelsea is giving Greek Life a bad image for exploiting the “few bad eggs.” Lets take a look at why those bad eggs are part of Greek Life and on a larger scale, members of our community. This is the DFP’s interpretation of the problem- attack the problem, not the interpreters! We’re shooting the messenger, albeit a needlessly vulgar and distasteful one.
It’s not Chelsea the person, it’s Chelsea in her role as editor that is under fire here. Editorships, presidencies, all leadership positions come with responsibilities as well as privileges. If it appears to some that a person cannot handle effectively her responsibilities as a leader, calling on that person to resign is a rational response. You are of course entitled to differ.
And what, pray tell, is the message that the messenger we are shooting at is trying to bring us? Is it really that there are bad eggs in BU? No, because if that were news, the joke itself wouldn’t be funny. And how is making a silly parody of a rape report “interpreting” the problem? Jokes that trivialize rape ARE rape culture in action.
I ask again, what happens if you substitute a crime that ISN’T the subject of a thousand bad jokes and innuendos for the crime of rape in this piece?
Would it be funny if it talked about the rape of an infant?
How about the murder of a homeless man?
How about the rape of an elderly woman?
Do you think people would be calling for a change in editorship if that kind of joke had been made?
The joke is only funny to people who don’t think that the rape of a woman is all that serious in the first place. That being the case, the messenger here IS the message — women’s rape doesn’t count.
Things the current and future staff of the Daily Free Press can do to prove their sincerity and begin working to regain the community’s trust:
-Mandatory sensitivity trainings on issues of sexual assault and rape culture every year (or semester, for new staff)
-Develop clear, rigorous guidelines for reporting in a non-sexist, non-triggering manner by working with health providers, interested student groups, etc.
-Devote some serious journalistic work to issues like intimate violence, consent and sexual health, and the dispelling myths our society has built up around rape and sexual assault. Have in-depth, multifaceted coverage. Not just once a year, but every week or two.
-Most importantly, before you publish any article, ask yourself: Would this make a survivor of sexual violence feel uncomfortable and ashamed? Would it make a rapist feel comfortable and validated? Only when the answer to both of those is a resounding “NO” should you put anything in ink.
This is appalling. Vulgar. Disgusting. There is no possible explanation for this, and no apology will amend for it. I hope you are very, very, ashamed of yourself, Ms. Diana, and that you spend some quality time examining your values, both moral and journalistic. I am actually nauseated that a woman would let this be printed. It’s such evidence of how women are implicit in sexism and misogyny. It breaks my heart.
I quote two sentences from your apology:
“we did not intend to perpetuate harmful stereotypes or inappropriately make light of serious issues.”
and
“We deeply regret our heartless behavior and did not mean to personally offend anyone.”
Unfortunately for you, Chelsea and the staff at DFP, neither of these statements are true. Of course you intended for these stories to be published. Of *COURSE* you meant for someone to take it as an offensive joke (or else none of these stories would have seen the light of day in the first place). Apologies are opportunities to tell the truth, to take ownership, not to equivocate or re-interpret the wrong. By offering a different interpretation of what you did (as if to take all of us readers for fools), you confirm the evil not only in what you did but also in your intentions.
Did you know, before or after your publication, that your writing these stories perpetuated rape culture (again, quoting from your apology)?
You managed to smear the professional resumes of everyone at DFP, and there will be employers and other BU alums who will take note of where and when you were employed on April 1, 2012. Rest assured, we will not stand by and watch as you trample the dignity and integrity of countless victims so that you can print a few more of your sadistic papers.
Too little too late. Your credibility, which was pretty low to begin with, has now been lost completely. Step down as EIC if The Freep ever wants to gain the trust of the BU community back.
Was the FreeP every credible? They always get the simplest shit wrong (i.e. names and class years). Sloppy Journalism is what it is. No one should be surprised.
No, they were never credible. I never paid much attention to The Freep because random Joe Shmo on Twitter was more reliable than they ever were. Making BU look bad.
I would be more concerned with the triggering nature of your “joke” than “offending” people. I hope you consider all the survivors who were harmed by having such a callous representation of a traumatic event so visibly displayed. You know, PTSD flashbacks are rather horrible… Maybe you can make fun of those next!
Resign.
Immediately. Everyone who was involved. Not only is it the right thing to do after perpetuating BU’s rape culture in such a disgusting way, it’ll look better in the long run from a PR perspective.
Chelsea, and the rest of the Daily Free Press staff, you messed up in a big way. Rape is not a joke, and in light of recent events here at BU it definitely should not be taken lightly. Today’s paper shouldn’t have made it to print. That being said people are people, they make mistakes and I have no doubt that all of you probably regret what you did a lot right now, especially in the face of this angry mob that seems ready to burn down wherever the hell you work. I have appreciated the Daily Free Press throughout my time at BU and am going to accept your apology because I think it is sincere and today’s issue was just a lapse in judgement on the part of you and your staff.
I agree with #10.
“Rather, our intention was to produce material that would be seen as ridiculous and fictitious.”
Because what? You think rape never happens?
Obviously that’s what they though
“We want to stress that all of the ill-conceived jokes in Monday’s issue in no way represent the true values of The Daily Free Press or any of its staff members.”
Right… Excuse me, but today’s front page absolutely contradicts this statement. And the apology doesn’t change much, to be honest.
This was a bad decision. Chelsea, I am sure you are great at this job and feel terrible. Best thing to do is step aside… You will feel better and your staff can move on. You have plenty of future ahead — put all this behind you and move forward.
Ummm…I would like to point out that prostitution is misspelled in the title. That alone is outrageous.
Right? Also, they spelled “fellatio” wrong. Not quite as disgusting to me as shaming sex workers is (a perfectly legitimate job industry, when held by consenting adults!), but still appalling.
Was the article insensitive? Yes. Was it inappropriate? Absolutely. Let’s remember one thing though, the paper is a STUDENT run newspaper. It was an immature mistake, but college students are inherently immature and make many mistakes. That is what college is: ‘real life’ with some safety net. Chelsea made a mistake – learn from it and move on. If we are going to sit here and cast stones at a young woman in college and tell her because of this one mistake she will never work in her desired field again, what type of society are we?
Well, I can say as someone asking for her resignation, I wish her well. She made a mistake and there are consequences. She should have to answer for them. That being said, she can then move on with her life and she will be okay. Her career will be okay. I wish no ill will for her. I just want her to answer for her error.
This paper represents everyone at BU and when the rest of the world sees the school sponsored newspaper running stories describing in detail a woman being raped it makes them laugh at you when you apply for a job. Everyone makes mistakes, but don’t kid yourself all it takes is one mistake to ruin your life and this girl just did it. This school costs me $50,000 a year for a diploma that might as well have Boston University of Rape written on top of it now because thanks to her that is what people are going to think of when they see it.
Jesus Christ, everyone chill the fuck out. I’m sure Chelsea obvious regrets running the article, but you psychos demanding blood are absurd. Everyone knows BU’s greek life is a joke, just accept the fact and start concerning yourselves with more worthwhile ventures than just boycotting the freep. Fucking psychotic losers.
Amen free speech!
Why are there 50 comments about a not funny joke and NO comments about the student debt article. Interesting priorities.
Statements noting gender affiliation, previous experience of rape or sexual assault, and membership in BU’s Greek community are unnecessary. No need to point them out here; these do not make some opinions and reactions more valid than others – as mere human beings, we can all be equally repulsed by this article and those who permitted it to be published.
Holy crap as a BU grad i cannot believe what pu$$ies you’ve all become. It’s a JOKE people. Big freaking deal. News flash: nobody in the real world cares what happens on campus. You say it will harm BU somehow? It won’t. Have a freaking sense of humor. Since when does BU stand for politically correct humorless nazis telling everyone what they can & cannot say? Silber would have had none of it. It’s a shame what the university has become since he left.
This is a pathetic and ignorant edition of this so-called college publication. Shame on the editors; I believe they should be removed from their posts. Women at them helm, no less! Shameful.
Chelsea Diana, I don’t even know where to begin in my criticisms of you and your staff so I guess I’ll just jump right in. As appalled as I am, I can understand how you could allow a piece like that in the April Fools’ edition to be published. I’m sure that you have no idea what it’s like to be a member of BU Greek life, since you’re probably way to busy sitting alone at your desk imagining what it’s actually like to have friends. Apathy in general can be an ugly trait, and it appears to be one you have in spades. Maybe you should write an April Fools’ article on how dysfunctional the DFP has become, although such an article would seem closer to truth than satire (probably more truthful than most “normal” articles the DFP contains).
As for your insensitivity to the rape culture, I am absolutely disgusted. Once again, it seems as though you feel so insulated, alone at your desk, that you must feel that everyone is as safe as you are. No group on campus takes its role as loosely as yours, apparently, does. As Editor-in-Chief, it’s your job to vet anything the DFP publishes. The right decision would have been to immediately discipline whoever wrote the article and use a different piece, rather than try to be edgy, or worse, funny. In addition to your position of Editor-in-Chief, you’re the President of the Board of Directors, and should have been cognizant of the impact such an article could have on the DFP. You clearly are the wrong person for BOTH positions.
Your half-assed apology is almost as insulting as the article itself. The only comfort I take is in knowing that because you’ve now drawn the ire of the BU community and much more legitimate media outlets than the DFP, your chance at a legitimate journalism career is now minuscule if not nonexistent. Have fun knowing that you’re probably one of the most disrespected people on campus right now. That can’t help your prospect of making friends very much, now can it?
I agree that Ms. Diana should resign from her role as executive editor. However, this attack on her character is ridiculous. I’m amused that the two lines below mentioned by “angry greek” exist within the same post. They are hypocritical. You cannot make any assumption that this young woman has no friends. Nor is it right for you to be on your high horse as a student in Greek life. By judging her character in most of this, and discussing apathy at the end, it seems as if you also have this ugly trait.
“I’m sure that you have no idea what it’s like to be a member of BU Greek life, since you’re probably way to busy sitting alone at your desk imagining what it’s actually like to have friends.”
“Apathy in general can be an ugly trait, and it appears to be one you have in spades.”
I agree with “student” below. As someone who went to another area university, and as a journalist in the field, I do agree that it was not disciplined or in good taste to publish this article. However, to call it “disgusting”, is merely injecting your own opinion about the character of the writer. The thought of you drawing comfort in the ire of the BU community this young woman is receiving is appalling in itself.
Insensitivity to rape culture is apparent, and as someone who has dealt with assault in the past, I get that. But for you to attack her character? You’re no better than the self-important “Greek,” that she may have thought you were. Take the high road and learn something from this.
People need to refocus on what this is really about and not about lambasting the character of a young woman.
Was the newspaper today tasteless? No question. Was it offensive and ill-conceived? Absolutely. Is the backlash its receiving warranted? Yes. Should there be some form of consequences for their actions? Of course.
With that said, this doesn’t need to and shouldn’t turn into a character assassination. Turning this into an anti-Chelsea Diana or anti-DFP argument will accomplish absolutely nothing. She and the rest of the staff clearly made a terrible mistake. Attacking their character on a personal level only perpetuates further negativity and frankly, misses the point.
This was an ugly incident, but by responding to it in turn with angry personal attacks and blaming them for “tarnishing Boston University’s reputation” takes this discussion in the wrong direction. Anger is fine, but make it constructive. This is, and needs to remain about the topic of rape culture. Quite frankly, whether the DFP is a reputable newspaper is a topic for another day. And a far less serious and important topic at this moment.
The editor in chief is a woman? That makes this so much worse. I hope you’re truly ashamed of yourself. I don’t know why anyone, especially another woman, would think sexual violence is a joking matter. It’s pathetic that that kind of “joke” would make it to print.
What a sensitive, timely, insightful piece in the most appropriate place possible. It makes me proud to be a member of this fine institution when I see that the campus newspaper enlightening me on the finer details of the seven dwarves “gang banging” Snow White. This is a great example of the sort of ethical journalism that we should expect from the students of Boston University. Have the editors of the FreeP lost their goddamn minds?
http://jezebel.com/5898425/heres-the-funny-sexual-assault-parody-boston-universitys-student-paper-doesnt-want-you-to-see
Jezebel picked up the crap you put out there. I hope it will intensify the backlash that you all deserve.
I do not buy this apology. There is a difference between being sorry for being called out and being sincerely sorry for your mistakes. The latter does not seem to be the case.
While there are people calling for Diana to step down I’m more curious of the culture within the DFP that allowed this tasteless paper to be published. The fact that not one person stepped up to stop or say “wait a minute!” concerns me. Have we been allowing an environment that promotes rape jokes to represent us in DFP? God, how horrifying.
http://jezebel.com/5898425/heres-the-funny-sexual-assault-parody-boston-universitys-student-paper-doesnt-want-you-to-see
Jezebel picked up the crap you put out there. I hope it will intensify the backlash that you all deserve.
I do not buy this apology. There is a difference between sorry for being called out and being sincerely sorry for your mistakes. The latter does not seem to be the case.
While there are people calling for Diana to step down I’m more curious of the culture within the DFP that allowed this tasteless paper to be published. The fact that not one person stepped up to stop or say “wait a minute!” concerns me. Have we been allowing an environment that promotes rape jokes to represent us in DFP? God, how horrifying.
Chelsea,
I respect that you can admit your mistake and appreciate the public apology. But that you allowed this to happen should prove to you that right now, you’re incapable of calling the shots for a major publication. Don’t resign out of embarrassment — resign because you can’t be an editor if you’re this oblivious to editorial standards or good taste.
I hate to see one decision derail a ton of hard work, but when the decision is this bad, it’s inevitable.
Give it a rest. It was an April Fools joke. Are we that PC? I enjoy the DFP articles. Carry on!
“To the Boston community and whomever else it may concern,”
That should be to every woman/man and person affected by sexual assault, victims of rape, harassment, and every single bloody feminist out there now that Jezebel picked up the story.
All the blame seems to be falling on Chelsea but I think the whole Free Press should be shouldering it as well. The whole paper was tasteless and it’s almost unimaginable that not one single person voiced against it being published. Though independent, the DFP still has a responsibility in representing BU and it chills me to the bones that a group that tolerates tasteless rape jokes (they weren’t even funny!) are doing so.
how dare you say that the article “no way represents the true values of The Daily Free Press or any of its staff members.” that is both insulting to my intelligence and my participation as a member of the community of students at boston university. if people do not resign over this, i will make sure that complete and utter destruction of the daily free press organization happens. HOW CAN AN EDITOR APPROVE THIS GARBAGE AND PLAY IT OFF AS AN “OOPS WE DIDN’T MEANT TO BE OFFENSIVE.” honestly i hope that everyone involved in this has to resign their posts and leave the university, because this is a disgrace. an utter disgrace. JUST BECAUSE YOU CALL IT A JOKE DOESN’T MAKE IT ACCEPTABLE. if i were currently on campus, i would be burning copies of the freep in protest. how dare you make a mockery of this topic. any legitimacy you tried to claim in the past has just been destroyed, and i hope you all pay for this for the rest of your said, pathetic lives.
To say that this episode is shameful and that the attempted humor was tasteless and ignorant merely displays a commanding grasp of the obvious;
I will be more impressed with the followup to this apology.
Diversity, sensitivity or antiharassment training for the entire staff would be a solid start.
Declaring an end to the boozy effort each year to churn out an April Fools issue would be a great next step. Not sure those issues were ever all that funny to begin with.
Then, get back in the game of high quality student journalism. Why not do a poignant series on assault cases on your campus? Why not examine the issues faced by accusers? Maybe also look at the accused. What does the BUPD say about the number of assault calls they get versus the number of charges actually filed? There is great work that can be done here.
That’s not all. There’s a great observation that there are zero comments on a story about spiralling student debts. Has anyone ever done a series on the BU administration and its inability to control expenses in a meaningful way? How much do duplicate and competing academit department empires cost each year on a per-student basis, paid for by your tuition? What of the upkeep costs of older buildings? The waste that’s all around you should be obvious. It’s odd to consider that a genuinely funny April Fools story would have been an announcement of a tuition decrease following a year of responsible expense reductions by an accountable administration.
Learn from your mistakes and move ahead. There is a ton of good work yet to do here. It will be more impactful with a mantra that today’s bad decisions will never be repeated.
Onward.
Laugh it up, you imbeciles. It just will not be as funny when you or your little sister are the victim of date rape. Furthermore, you are ruining edgy humor for the rest of us.
In the story about cinderalla first is says she was caught by an undercover FBI but then it says she was caught by Boston PD. Can anyone clear this up for me?
Dayum. I’m pretty sure she stepped down ten minutes ago btw. The chick ended her career before graduation. GROOOODDDYYYyyyyyyy
I agree. Everyone who wrote an article should be let go.
How about those who actually WROTE the articles? This isn’t all Chelsea’s fault.
Did not expect to see the FreeP making mainstream news this way.
Perhaps the intentions were otherwise, but one needs to know where to draw the line, and this really is an insensitive approach to April Fools. I am a big fan of the day but all written jokes must pass two prerequisites – not to aggravate painful experiences and be written in such a way that would obviously constitute as a joke (i.e. changing the paper’s name to Daily Pay-Per Press).
Making light of a flaming issue in a way that perpetuates other stereotypes is poor taste in its own right. Doing so at a time when sexual assault is an extra-sensitive subject due to the recent hockey players nonsense and when there is a simultaneous article that covers raising awareness the same topic speaks volumes for not only the staff’s lack of consideration but also the poor editorial decisions they made given the two articles are counter intuitive.
It is difficult for someone to resign especially when there are no constituents (assuming advertisers are not arms in air over this) to answer to, but it would be taking a strong moral stance in what has otherwise been a disappointing segment. It isn’t just the chief editor that needs to take responsibility but also those that participated with her in the process. It would be incredibly unfair to pin this all on one person for two reasons – first, it likely required collaboration as editing and writing are not a single person’s responsibility; second, it would open an opportunity for others to get away scotch-free and potentially become the next EiC.
My advice – don’t just resign – go a step further. Make a point and have a fundraiser or a promotional event that raises awareness on the subject matter. Who cares if there was one already, do it in a way that is unique at a location that is different. Irrespective of how many people participate, that would be a genuine way of showing your understanding because you are going out of your way to accommodate and acknowledge your readers’ sentiments. Besides, anybody can apologise after he/she is caught.
Great guys! now that you have focused the issue entirely on one employee of the Daily Free Press, Chelsea, and attacked her character and wished her failure in her career, the Daily Free Press has taken the opportunity to succumb to your demands and placed the blame completely on her and called for her resignation while at the same time not acknowledging any fault on anyone else’s part! Mission accomplished! just like the Iraq War! Only this time Saddam is actually just a girl who made a stupid decision and is probably crying in her dorm right now!
SERIOUSLY. i love the trolls around here…especially the “We Are Greek Life” brigade.
I also love the moron who posted a picture of Chelsea. Oh! I’m sorry! You were the one saying SHE went too far by getting personal…I guess it’s OK for YOU to go too far, though!
Hypocrites.
An editor is not just “one employee.” An editor is supposed to be a leader; she has CHOSEN a position that requires responsibility and trust. An editor is supposed to take responsibility for her publication.
You are the one insulting Chelsea by implying she isn’t tough enough to face the responsibility of her position and reducing her to a girl crying in her dorm.
True, an editor is supposed to be a leader and it was Chelsea’s responsibility in the end to prevent this story from going to press, but my point is there is clearly more than one person with a guilty conscience in all of this. I am not trying to say she can’t handle responsibility by saying that she could be crying in her dorm I am trying to say that beyond being the former editor of the free press she is also a human, one that made a mistake and has now done the responsible thing by apologizing and even stepping down. She just lost her job, is currently being publicly shamed on Fox, Huffington Post and Jezebel and probably has seriously damaged her chances of a career in journalism, even the Daily Free Press has taken the opportunity to place all the blame on her shoulders. I would be crying in my dorm and I just don’t think that one girl being crucified is the appropriate response to all of this.
The issue is that it goes well beyond humor. I don’t go to BU, I don’t care about BU’s future in any way, but as a rape victim I found this absolutely disgusting. Belittling victims of a horrible crime has NOTHING to do with being politically correct, so you can get down off of your soapbox. Free speech is well and good, but this trash does not reflect the First Amendment either. People outside of this campus do in fact care about this, because why the fuck should I (or anyone else for that matter) have to browse a social media site and be made to recall the worst experience of his or her life, as portrayed through goddamn Disney characters? The editor should resign for allowing it, and the author most definitely should be fired. This is a disgrace all around, and not even to just members of the BU society, it makes college students everywhere look bad.
As a member of BU Greek Life, I obviously do not agree with many accusations and assumptions the Freep constantly makes about the community as a whole. However, the main issue I have with the April Fool’s issue goes much further than poking fun at fraternities and sororities. We at BU are already having enough of a difficult time to clear up our reputation these past few months and this issue went way too far in so many different ways. Nothing about rape, drug dealing, or prostitution rings are funny in any way no matter what satirical or fictional characters you substitute in. I am beyond disappointed with this article and the Freep once again; it’s supposed to be a student run newspaper that sheds light on positive things happening on campus, not creating more issues for the University to have to defend. This apology does nothing more than try to back track what has already been released not only to BU but to other universities as well and unfortunately will now be seen as another setback for BU’s reputation. I will always be proud to call myself a Terrier but will certainly not be picking up the Freep ever again.
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Why not pull some April Fool editions from the ’70s and weigh those against what was published in 2012, to give this some perspective. I recall a mid-’70s edition that was all April Fool’s, with briefs that included a meeting of the Spartacus Youth League, a campus Communist organization, that degenerated into a fight with baseball bats. It’s been a tradition, sometimes embarrassing, but a tradition none the less.
As an alum I can not understand how someof the students are so casual about this issue of respect for woman. I am far from some liberal woman’s libber but have always respected woman and have defended them. I noticed this casual attitude when I read the blogs about the hockey situation. The players in question were defended by many and I can now understand how coach Parker talked about the culture that he can not change. THIS MUST STOP IS BU IS TO REGAIN IT’S RESPECT IN THE COMMUNITY. All in all I am taken back by the actions and attitude of today’sstudents . How is it at other colleges? I don’t know.
what about the people who actually wrote the articles?
Wow…nice. The Freep makes a mistake…sorta. Lighten up! GET OVER YOURSELVES. You’re all holier than thou, and yet you’re the same ignorant idiots that are throwing the parties that gain you the reputations you gain. Did they go too far…yeah maybe…but it’s a SPOOF! THAT’S WHAT SPOOFS DO. If you’re too dumb to realize that they’re going to try to up the antie every single April Fool’s then maybe you shouldn’t be attending this university.
Rape is not something to be made light of no…but their goal was not to make light of it in ANY type of reality. The scariest part is you morons are the same people who will later be helping to lead our country.
Look, here’s the bottom line. They made a few bad jokes. You all decided you didn’t like that joke. Now you all are attacking them as though they are scum of the Earth for making said jokes. Get off your freaking high horses and realize that you are in fact no better than the people you’re attacking.
And as far as Chelsea goes…are you freaking serious? Do you know how many Universities publish papers that go unread. Do you know that the part of the reason you’re SOOOO offended (aside from being ignorant idiots), is that you actually read the thing? You read it because the Freep has been a good paper for a while now. Hmmmm…I wonder why that is. And if you haven’t read the article…then go comment somewhere else.
Last point…those of you saying the apology is somehow bad. What the heck are you talking about? Is there any words they could write in apology that you would be ok with? … No? Then SHUT UP! It can’t be lies and garbage if no matter what they wrote you wouldn’t be ok with! I swear, I’m tired of dealing with such stupidity on campus…can you please go find somewhere else to attend?
Daily Free Press…thank you for giving me something funny on Sunday!
Everyone on their high horse should perhaps work as an editor of the Freep for a while. Let’s see how long it takes you to make your first major mistake. And when you do, I shall be the first one calling for your head.
It’s truly amazing how many people criticize without ever being in the same situation, with no desire to even take on the challenge in the first place.
Can someone summarize what was written for me? This just popped up on my FB wall today, so I’m completely out of the loop.
“I will always be proud to call myself a Terrier but will certainly not be picking up the Freep ever again.”
Then you are not really “proud to be a Terrier” now,a re you?
I would like to state that I did NOT think the article was that bad. Especially not as an April 1st joke.
Let the freep go free, don’t force anyone to step down (though I believe that damage may have been done).
Rape is not to be made light of, but given whats happened recently I don’t think this article steps to far over the line. It is criticizing a part of BU culture that has, besides BUs lack of culture, stepped itself to the front.
At this moment, I am proud of the Freep. I am not proud of biddies and bros. I am proud of those willing to try to make a joke. I am willing for those trying to bring satire to this situation.
Always remember and never forget: It is easier to ask forgiveness than to ask permission.
I don’t believe the apology. I don’t think you can write a humor peice making fun of rape and not think rape is a joke and funny and not a serious issue. I just think those two things are entirely incompatible.
I am interested to see the firestorm of response to the satiric April Fool’s edition of the FreeP. Articles about the actual sexual assaults and drug use of students gets practically no reaction. Perhaps that is the value of satire; it allows the paper to take the opposing view to such an extreme that it exposes the flaws of thinking any assaults are ever acceptable. A good newspaper gets the community thinking and talking about the issues of the day. The April Fool’s edition certainly did that. Chelsea should be supported by her Board and privately counseled how to avoid the excesses, but she should not be forced to resign.
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BU should know better than to trust people with 2 first names…
Dear Daily Free Press. Here is my own editorial on this topic:—
Vermont Diary, Wed April 4th
Scarlett Letter in Boston?
Next: Rape. A Free Boston paper put up an April first joke involving sexual abuse and Disney Characters. On Facebook commentaries ranged from bad taste, to appalling ignorance, especially since a female editor wafted this article into print. The remarkable thing about the Facebook exchanges were how many people in a limited forum got after the subject in just 60 minutes.
I am aware that I publish the only weekly column on rape of any general periodical in the USA, and that this is a generally taboo subject, thereby. I mean, this is still a Victorian American attitude to ‘in the closet’. A few days ago the columnist said to me it is no use getting it out of the closet then putting it into another one, what we need to do is take off the closer door.
And sure she is right, no use blaming this hapless editor at BU. Better not talk in euphemisms at all, and thank her for inadvertently raising a topic much suppressed.
Dear reader, think of what I have said here. This editor has subconsciously done more to surface this topic than all the conscious intent in media in the entire country. This is not an idea, I am saying that on the evidence of what the rest of us have done, this incident has done more.
Don’t make her wear a Letter.
Take a look at this column which has not to do with blaming, but with education. Here is the page URL
http://web.me.com/vermontviews/vermontviews/Rape.html
Phil Innes, Publisher, Vermont Views Magazine
As an alum of the Daily Free Press from the 1990s, I am deeply embarrassed by this entire episode. The paper is no longer well-run and clearly is in need of guidance from alumni editors. The April Fool’s edition is clearly symptomatic of much deeper issues at the Freep. The editor in chief should not take all the blame, the board shouldn’t have fired her– there are plenty of students working at the paper and someone should have had the common sense to pull the plug on this edition. The whole thing is a disaster for the Freep and I certainly hope the paper is able to recover.