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A Statement from the College on Charlie Hebdo publication

Using terrorism to restrict freedom of speech and the movement of information is nothing new to the media industry. The journalists in Paris have experienced what many organizations fear as they continue to tell the stories of the world around them.

As Charlie Hebdo proudly publishes its first edition since the killing of 12 colleagues at its Paris office, the University of Florida College of Journalism and Communications supports the newspaper’s effort to fight this fear by continuing to publish.

“This is a masterful stroke for freedom of expression,” said UF CJC Dean Diane McFarlin. “These storytellers are honoring their colleagues who perished by exercising the rights that undergird democratic society.”

Terry Anderson, adjunct faculty member and a former Associated Press reporter who was held hostage in Beirut from 1985 to 1991 and chronicled that time in the book “Den of Lions,” said: “Freedom of speech and freedom of the press mean nothing if they only protect utterances we agree with. They must also protect those whose words we find distasteful or even offensive.

“There is absolutely no excuse for punishing people for what they say or write, whether it is a government, a group or an individual who is doing the punishing,” said Anderson. “To take umbrage to the point of murder is absolutely wrong, and must not be permitted. “

Clay Calvert, the Brechner Eminent Scholar in Mass Communication and Director of the Marion B. Brechner First Amendment Project at the University of Florida, said: “No matter how offensive or disagreeable some may find the images and words of Charlie Hebdo, those images and words cannot and will not be suppressed by fanatics and terrorists.

“Like the phoenix, Charlie Hebdo rises again and, you can bet, even more people now will pay attention to it than did before,” Calvert said. “The terrorists’ actions thus have backfired, for they have now given Charlie Hebdo a much wider audience.”

The faculty and staff of the UF College of Journalism and Communications take this heartbreaking event seriously as they prepare students to tell stories in the modern world.

“Our colleagues, alumni, faculty and staff stand by the right to free speech and look forward to the positive discussions that will occur as a result of this senseless act,” McFarlin said.

Posted: January 14, 2015
Category: College News
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