Harvard Campus Reform reporter speaks out after school protests paper over ICE article
Campus Reform correspondent Christopher Colby spoke with "Fox & Friends" about the backlash that occurred after the school newspaper reached out to ICE for comment.
More than 700 Harvard students signed a petition protesting the school's newspaper, The Crimson, for reaching out to ICE for comment on an immigration story.
In a petition, the students claimed the student journalists' actions were akin to tipping off the government and selling out the university to a federal agency.
Campus Reform correspondent and Harvard student Christopher Colby appeared on "Fox & Friends" Thursday to discuss the fallout and criticized the university for being close-minded, and going against its own policy of inclusion.
"The Crimson is known to be liberal and is being attacked by groups who usually share their beliefs," he said.
"This is a classic liberal college situation," he added. "It's actually quite funny on campus because The Crimson, as far as newspapers go on campuses, it's fairly liberal. So, it's interesting that them just asking for a comment from ICE is enough to provoke this other liberal group on campus... they're asking for them not to do it. It's interesting how they are going up against each other."
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Part of the petition read: "We are extremely disappointed in the cultural insensitivity displayed by The Crimson's policy to reach out to ICE... in this political climate, a request for comment is virtually the same as tipping them off."
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The petition was originally started by a student immigration group named, "Act on a Dream" earlier this month. They took issue with The Crimson requesting comment from an ICE spokesperson for its Sept. 13 article, “Harvard Affiliates Rally for Abolish ICE Movement.” The article was about a Sept. 12 protest hosted by "Act on a Dream" and used quotes from several students who criticized ICE.
The Crimson released a statement addressing the issue and said their readership has a right to the facts and claimed that reaching out to all sides is a basic pillar of good journalism.
"Our readers have the right to be informed about the place where they live, work, and study," the statement read. "In pursuit of that goal, we seek to follow a commonly accepted set of journalist standards... Foremost among those standards is the belief that every party named in a story has a right to comment or contest criticism leveled against them."
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"We live in a cultural and legal system that prides itself on free speech," Colby added.
"They might have problems with ICE, and they might want to have that dialogue. But they don't even want our school newspaper -- our very public, very communal school newspaper -- to have any perspective whatsoever on what ICE is thinking."