# The irony of the Mizzou Communications/Journalism Professor actions at protests. **URL:** \ **Category:** Miscellaneous and Personal Stuff I Must Share\ **Created:** [November 11, 2015, 6:15pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-irony-of-the-mizzou-communications-journalism-professor-actions-at-protests/737310 "2015-11-11T18:15:12Z")\ **Posts on this page:** 18\ **Page:** 3
**Author:** ![Peremensoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ce7236/32.png) [@Peremensoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peremensoe)\ **Post date:** [November 13, 2015, 10:53pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-irony-of-the-mizzou-communications-journalism-professor-actions-at-protests/737310/41 "2015-11-13T22:53:53Z")
> [@mhendo](#): > > The woman in question was an idiot, and i don’t believe that she had the right to block people from moving around on public space, and i certainly don’t believe that she had the right to physically move someone out of the area. But i think, as a matter of principle, that she was being an idiot as an individual, not as an agent of the state. In fact, in my opinion, one of her biggest mistakes was suggesting that, because she was a faculty member, she had authority to control the public space of the courtyard, and that the media should bow to her demands. Being a faculty member does not confer that sort of authority on her. Good post, **mhendo**. I agree. ---
**Author:** ![Magiver](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/4491bb/32.png) [@Magiver](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Magiver)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2015, 4:21am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-irony-of-the-mizzou-communications-journalism-professor-actions-at-protests/737310/42 "2015-11-14T04:21:14Z")
> [@Martin\_Hyde](#): > > The journalist involved says he thinks it was regrettable but he accepted her apology, if he doesn’t want to press charges then that’s probably where it should end legally. As for her position with the university, I’m usually one to not think someone deserves being fired over “their worst day” that gets magnified 1000x because of the internet and social media. She’s a wackjob and has absolutely no business teaching. I can’t imagine what hell she brings down on a student who has the audacity to challenge her ideas. ---
**Author:** ![Ale](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/a/f19dbf/32.png) [@Ale](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Ale)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2015, 2:52pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-irony-of-the-mizzou-communications-journalism-professor-actions-at-protests/737310/43 "2015-11-14T14:52:22Z")
> [@Peremensoe](#): > > That last remains unanswered, to my knowledge. It is particularly curious because the general strategic purpose of a _demonstration_ is to _get_ attention. Having media of various kinds present, taking notes and pictures, doing the work of getting your story out to the world, is the exact point. So what did these people think they were doing, at this moment? The answer to your question, IMO, is that they were looking to play victims of some vague system of oppression. Two journalists show up with cameras? “Oh, fine, we can work with that”. [This video goes into detail over what was the reasons they were protesting](https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=pTeT-H60Snw&feature=youtu.be&a), as I said before, utter BS. One of the demands they had (and succeeding in getting) was: (PDF) [I. We demand that the University of Missouri System President, Tim Wolfe, writes a handwritten apology to the Concerned Student 1950 demonstrators and holds a press conference in the Mizzou Student Center reading the letter. In the letter and at the press conference, Tim Wolfe must acknowledge his white male privilege, recognize that systems of oppression exist, and provide a verbal commitment to fulfilling Concerned Student 1950 demands. We want Tim Wolfe to admit to his gross negligence, allowing his driver to hit one of the demonstrators, consenting to the physical violence of bystanders, and lastly refusing to intervene when Columbia Police Department used excessive force with demonstrators.](http://www.kmbc.com/blob/view/-/36332870/data/1/-/202nsaz/-/-PDF-Concerned-Student-1950-list-of-demands.pdf) In the video I linked to you can see how the student was hit by the car (beginning at minute 14), he actually _walked against it_. By the way, that student, who went on a hunger strike to protest against the systems of oppression against minorities, his father makes 5 million a year… [Oliver Twist]Can I get some oppression please?[/OT] Another of the reasons to demand the resignation of the man was that someone (nobody knows who or why) painted a swastika in feces in a bathroom, now I may be over thinking things a little, but why is it assumed to be an endorsement of Nazism or anything like that instead of exactly the opposite? Call me crazy, but I don’t imagine a Nazi painting the symbol of their ideology in shit. It was funny in Monty Python and the Holy Grail, with the peasant yelling “look look at the violence inherent in the system!” but a man lost his job to placate a group playing out their “social justice” memes, and that’s not funny. ---
**Author:** ![Jackmannii](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/jackmannii/32/311_2.png) [@Jackmannii](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Jackmannii)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2015, 4:20pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-irony-of-the-mizzou-communications-journalism-professor-actions-at-protests/737310/44 "2015-11-14T16:20:08Z")
A university that receives federal funding and does not ensure Constitutionally-guaranteed freedoms on its campus is already on very shaky legal ground. When one of its agents (in this case, a faculty member) tries to trample on First Amendment rights, it’s placed itself in an even worse position. Thankfully, voices on the left are increasingly recognizing how intolerable this situation is on campus ([Nicholas Kristof](http://www.nytimes.com/2015/11/12/opinion/mizzou-yale-and-free-speech.html?_r=0)had a pretty good column on the subject this past week). We need to start seeing “Take Back The First Amendment” rallies (as in, not allowing right-wingers to hijack the issue any longer). ---
**Author:** ![hajario](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/hajario/32/171_2.png) [@hajario](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/hajario)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2015, 5:39pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-irony-of-the-mizzou-communications-journalism-professor-actions-at-protests/737310/45 "2015-11-14T17:39:50Z")
> [@Jackmannii](#): > > A university that receives federal funding and does not ensure Constitutionally-guaranteed freedoms on its campus is already on very shaky legal ground. When one of its agents (in this case, a faculty member) tries to trample on First Amendment rights, it’s placed itself in an even worse position. > > Thankfully, voices on the left are increasingly recognizing how intolerable this situation is on campus ([Nicholas Kristof](http://www.nytimes.com/2015/11/12/opinion/mizzou-yale-and-free-speech.html?_r=0)had a pretty good column on the subject this past week). We need to start seeing “Take Back The First Amendment” rallies (as in, not allowing right-wingers to hijack the issue any longer). Even the protesters realized that they screwed up and didn’t dig in. The next day there were signs that said, “Reporters welcome.” ---
**Author:** ![Peremensoe](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/p/ce7236/32.png) [@Peremensoe](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Peremensoe)\ **Post date:** [November 14, 2015, 10:02pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-irony-of-the-mizzou-communications-journalism-professor-actions-at-protests/737310/46 "2015-11-14T22:02:29Z")
> [@hajario](#): > > Even the protesters realized that they screwed up and didn’t dig in. The next day there were signs that said, “Reporters welcome.” Yeah, this is the take-away. One faculty member was properly exposed as an idiot, and she will have no further role to play. The student organizers, who will, have learned a key lesson. ---
**Author:** ![2gigch1](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/2gigch1/32/3313_2.png) [@2gigch1](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/2gigch1)\ **Post date:** [January 26, 2016, 2:06am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-irony-of-the-mizzou-communications-journalism-professor-actions-at-protests/737310/47 "2016-01-26T02:06:28Z")
Update: [she’s been charged with assault.](http://www.kansascity.com/news/local/news-columns-blogs/the-buzz/article56443200.html) > [@](#): > > COLUMBIA - Melissa Click, the University of Missouri communications professor who garnered widespread scorn for trying to physically remove a student reporter from a campus protest, was formally charged with assault Monday morning. > > A spokeswoman for the Columbia prosecutor’s office said Click was charged with third-degree assault, a class C misdemeanor that carries a possible 15-day jail sentence. > > “This is a very bad situation for us all,” interim Chancellor Hank Foley said at a university news conference Monday afternoon,. He also apologized to the students involved in faculty attempts to block media from documenting a campus protest on Nov. 9. > > Click was caught on video calling for “some muscle” to remove a student reporter from an area on the campus where protesters had gathered. ---
**Author:** ![Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/e/7cd45c/32.png) [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Elendil_s_Heir)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2016, 1:51pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-irony-of-the-mizzou-communications-journalism-professor-actions-at-protests/737310/48 "2016-01-27T13:51:20Z")
Here’s CNN with a First Amendment lawyer’s take on it: [http://www.cnn.com/2016/01/26/opinions/professor-charged-missouri-student-protest-randazza/index.html](http://www.cnn.com/2016/01/26/opinions/professor-charged-missouri-student-protest-randazza/index.html) ---
**Author:** ![Johnny\_Bravo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/johnny_bravo/32/493_2.png) [@Johnny\_Bravo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Johnny_Bravo)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2016, 2:23pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-irony-of-the-mizzou-communications-journalism-professor-actions-at-protests/737310/49 "2016-01-27T14:23:58Z")
Good. She’s a thug. I can’t believe she’s still up for tenure, personally. ---
**Author:** ![Chimera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Chimera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chimera)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2016, 3:03pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-irony-of-the-mizzou-communications-journalism-professor-actions-at-protests/737310/50 "2016-01-27T15:03:58Z")
> [@Frylock](#): > > She apologized? I’m not seeing information about that. She didn’t really apologize. The whole thing was deflection and victim blaming. ---
**Author:** ![mhendo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mhendo/32/3159_2.png) [@mhendo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mhendo)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2016, 5:07pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-irony-of-the-mizzou-communications-journalism-professor-actions-at-protests/737310/51 "2016-01-27T17:07:05Z")
> [@Elendil\_s\_Heir](#): > > Here’s CNN with a First Amendment lawyer’s take on it: [http://www.cnn.com/2016/01/26/opinions/professor-charged-missouri-student-protest-randazza/index.html](http://www.cnn.com/2016/01/26/opinions/professor-charged-missouri-student-protest-randazza/index.html) I’ve said all along that i think this woman is an idiot, and if she suffered some employment-related consequences as a result of her actions, i think she would probably deserve it, especially given that a communications professor should show some understanding of the rights of the media. But i also tend to agree with what the author or your linked article said: > [@](#): > > I wish I could say: “It serves her right.” She deserved strong repercussions, but a criminal prosecution takes it too far. While her actions were reprehensible for an educator, in the grand scheme of things, nobody is ever actually prosecuted for such trifles. Let’s face it, how many videos can you find on YouTube of a cop or a security guard doing the same thing to a reporter? Unfortunately, Click’s brand of “rights for me, but not for thee” is exactly what she is facing now. > > The prosecution, like Click’s behavior, is politically motivated. She isn’t being prosecuted because of what she did, she’s being prosecuted because of what she represents. Now we have one disproportionate response met with another. We have a situation where disrespect for basic liberties, once unleashed, is out of control. There are probably literally thousands of physical confrontations worse than this one in the United States every day that don’t get prosecuted. I’ve seen police come to bar fights and traffic conflicts where actual punches were thrown, and walk away after giving everyone a stern warning. ---
**Author:** ![Nars\_Glinley](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nars_glinley/32/8177_2.png) [@Nars\_Glinley](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nars_Glinley)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2016, 5:11pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-irony-of-the-mizzou-communications-journalism-professor-actions-at-protests/737310/52 "2016-01-27T17:11:07Z")
> [@mhendo](#): > > But i also tend to agree with what the author or your linked article said:There are probably literally thousands of physical confrontations worse than this one in the United States every day that don’t get prosecuted. I’ve seen police come to bar fights and traffic conflicts where actual punches were thrown, and walk away after giving everyone a stern warning. While this is undoubtedly true, isn’t that because both parties are equal participants? In this case, the reporter was absolutely doing nothing wrong. ---
**Author:** ![mhendo](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/mhendo/32/3159_2.png) [@mhendo](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/mhendo)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2016, 5:30pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-irony-of-the-mizzou-communications-journalism-professor-actions-at-protests/737310/53 "2016-01-27T17:30:00Z")
> [@Nars\_Glinley](#): > > While this is undoubtedly true, isn’t that because both parties are equal participants? In this case, the reporter was absolutely doing nothing wrong. As to your first question, the answer is probably, at least in some cases. I completely agree with your second sentence, but i still think that lawyer is right that the prosecution here is almost as much of an over-reaction as the idiot professor’s behavior. It’s not the end of the world, and i’m certainly not going to head off and join a protest to support the professor. She made her own bed here. My bet is that, given the circumstances, she’ll probably receive some very mild sentence that involves no incarceration and maybe a small fine, if that. Probably nothing more than a suspended sentence or probation. Maybe it will be a salutary lesson for her; maybe not. It will probably end up doing nothing more than using up courtroom resources and providing more fodder for the writers of opinion pieces. ---
**Author:** ![Nars\_Glinley](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/nars_glinley/32/8177_2.png) [@Nars\_Glinley](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Nars_Glinley)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2016, 7:18pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-irony-of-the-mizzou-communications-journalism-professor-actions-at-protests/737310/54 "2016-01-27T19:18:31Z")
> [@mhendo](#): > > As to your first question, the answer is probably, at least in some cases. > > I completely agree with your second sentence, but i still think that lawyer is right that the prosecution here is almost as much of an over-reaction as the idiot professor’s behavior. > > It’s not the end of the world, and i’m certainly not going to head off and join a protest to support the professor. She made her own bed here. My bet is that, given the circumstances, she’ll probably receive some very mild sentence that involves no incarceration and maybe a small fine, if that. Probably nothing more than a suspended sentence or probation. > > Maybe it will be a salutary lesson for her; maybe not. It will probably end up doing nothing more than using up courtroom resources and providing more fodder for the writers of opinion pieces. Considering that the maximum penalty is 15 days in jail, I agree that it’s likely that she get no time. A stern “Don’t ever do that again” from a judge is probably enough. ---
**Author:** ![Chimera](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/c/8e8cbc/32.png) [@Chimera](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Chimera)\ **Post date:** [January 27, 2016, 9:46pm UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-irony-of-the-mizzou-communications-journalism-professor-actions-at-protests/737310/55 "2016-01-27T21:46:51Z")
If only the Judge would read her non-apology before deciding the sentence… ---
**Author:** ![PastTense](https://sea3.discourse-cdn.com/straightdope/user_avatar/boards.straightdope.com/pasttense/32/14550_2.png) [@PastTense](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/PastTense)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2016, 3:43am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-irony-of-the-mizzou-communications-journalism-professor-actions-at-protests/737310/56 "2016-02-26T03:43:39Z")
> [@](#): > > Melissa Click, a professor who gained national notoriety during the protests at the University of Missouri, has been fired. Click made headlines when a video of her pushing a reporter away from protesters went viral; she could be heard calling for “muscle” to toss out reporters trying to cover the news… > > The board of curators voted Wednesday night to terminate Click, an assistant professor in the communications department. The vote was 4 to 2, with curators David Steelman, Donald Cupps, Phil Snowden and Maurice Graham voting in favor of termination. [https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/grade-point/wp/2016/02/25/mizzou-professor-who-pushed-reporter-away-from-protesters-is-fired/](https://www.washingtonpost.com/news/grade-point/wp/2016/02/25/mizzou-professor-who-pushed-reporter-away-from-protesters-is-fired/) ---
**Author:** ![Starving\_Artist](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/s/aeb1de/32.png) [@Starving\_Artist](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Starving_Artist)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2016, 4:12am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-irony-of-the-mizzou-communications-journalism-professor-actions-at-protests/737310/57 "2016-02-26T04:12:34Z")
Good call. However, as Rep. Jones said in the linked article it should have happened months ago. Instead it looks like she was let go simply because the university eventually came to feel it had no choice due to Missouri state legislative budget cuts to the university in the wake of Click’s actions, and declining enrollment which is suspected to have resulted from Click’s behavior. ---
**Author:** ![Martin\_Hyde](https://avatars.discourse-cdn.com/v4/letter/m/47e85d/32.png) [@Martin\_Hyde](https://boards.straightdope.com/u/Martin_Hyde)\ **Post date:** [February 26, 2016, 4:54am UTC](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-irony-of-the-mizzou-communications-journalism-professor-actions-at-protests/737310/58 "2016-02-26T04:54:47Z")
It’s interesting that the faculty is so up in arms over this. Apparently they are mad the Board of Curators chose to decide directly to fire her, instead of involving the faculty council which is the normal process. Except the faculty has overwhelmingly indicated they would not vote to fire Click. She assaulted a student, and she agreed with a prosecutor to do community service to get the prosecution deferred/dismissed upon completion. That’s essentially accepting she had committed an illegal act. I wouldn’t have necessarily thought firing was the only punishment, but the faculty has no real place in shielding itself from consequences for committing assault against a student. Several twits in a faculty meeting apparently were upset and said they don’t feel they have First Amendment rights, and want to know “what they can’t say?” Since they are now afraid they can be fired for saying certain things. Well, the answer is simple, when what you say constitutes criminal assault, you cannot say that. That isn’t just university policy, that’s the law. The first amendment doesn’t cover assault. [Previous page](https://boards.straightdope.com/t/the-irony-of-the-mizzou-communications-journalism-professor-actions-at-protests/737310.md?page=2)