While the subject of whether or not Dan Savage should be here and how he(and the producers) are handling their business on campus is right or wrong has been beaten and discussed to death with no definitive answer, I have questions about Dan Savage and the Rhodes Administration and a sense of hypocrisy that might arise from this situation. While this project is different from Dan's It Gets Better project, i think it is safe to say that he would wholeheartedly agree that he stands by the morals and ideas presented in that separate endeavor. The It Gets Better project is for LGBT teens, among others, who have faced bullying for their views and practices, and tries to tell them that it does, in fact, get better after coming out or living openly.
That being said, I find that Dan might run into some problems in his show. If, which very possibly could happen, someone gets portrayed in a manner which is not truly representative of their views or practices, and leads to them in fact getting bullied or and/or shunned by the Rhodes community and their peers and leading them to cause harm to themselves or others, or possibly transfer. Is the publicity Rhodes would receive from this show for the greater good than the individuals that might be negatively impacted by the show? This seems a rather utilitarian view by the school, and I find it hard to believe that the school, founded on Christian principles and affiliated with the church, is going to take this stance. Furthermore, I feel like if a single person is harmed or bullied to an extreme amount, or something ridiculing them on national television does get aired, it completely goes against Dan Savage's other work and is extremely hypocritical of him. While I would not put it past MTV to portray people however they wish regardless of consequences (which they already do and are known for doing, in shows such as 16 and Pregnant and My Super Sweet 16, among others), I do not think Dan Savage would do this, but his pairing with MTV puts this into questions and worries me.
What do you think? If someone in the Rhodes community gets harmed by the show, is it worth it as long as the school gets some positive publicity? Do you think the school is looking at this from a more utilitarian standpoint than anything else? It seems as if they are. Also, how would it effect Dan Savage's other messages in terms of their meaning if he creates something that goes against his previous messages?
Because I was not directly involved with the protest or with talking to the administration I am not sure what Rhode's reasoning was to invite Dan Savage to film a show here. I'm sure though that their reasoning wasn't solely publicity, at least I hope it wasn't. I hope that they considered the possibility that individuals or the community as a whole could be harmed by the making of the show. At the same time though, I can't help but question Rhodes students reason for protesting? Are we protesting to protect the campus as a whole or are we worried about ourselves. By this I mean are we worried what are friends and family will say about Rhodes after this show is aired. How badly could Savage portray the school? What reputation exactly are we worried about getting here?
ReplyDeleteI agree with Allycia, I do not think that the administration only wanted publicity. I am not exactly sure what their reasoning was exactly, but I am pretty positive that they did not mean to impose any harm on the student community. Also, I am a bit confused about when some of my classmates were expressing their concerns about the "repuatation" Rhodes will have now after the show is aired. I do not see anything wrong with the student body being interviewed about relationships, sex, etc. If anything, we should be flattered that our school was chosen. I think the main problem here is a huge misunderstanding between the student body and the administration.
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