Dan MacAlpine Visits Gordon

By Stuart Knechtle

Wenham, MA—When Dan MacAlpine came to Gordon on Thursday he brought with him a lifetime of experience to share with journalism students. His main objective was exhorting the students to use clear and concise language that could pull an audience in, instead of putting them to sleep.  

Peace In The Midst Of Conflict

Stuart Knechtle

            During the 1960s to be a black citizen in the U.S. took courage and an understanding that God wrote the law, no county or government. The legislated law at that time said that if your skin color was darker than white, there were many things you could not do. Today it is unfathomable to think that just a few decades ago you could be jailed for not sticking within the parameters that your race was assigned to here in the U.S. Change would need to be made, and it would come from the unlikeliest of activists. Young adults in their early 20s or teens (many even younger) stood up to the mainly older white, racist authority that sought to suppress the entire race.

            Similarly to how communism fell in the 1980s in Europe and at Tiananmen Square, apartheid also would crumble in South Africa due to young men and women taking a stand. Those in Birmingham Alabama started this dauntless trend that became contagious. The first day the fire hoses, dogs, and clubs came pouring down on these activists in Birmingham, a masterpiece for media was created. In one block you could witness the horror of white, racist bigotry towards the nonviolent young blacks that would fill up newspapers across the country. This incredible stand for peace in the midst of violent hate would wake people up to what was going on around them. Although Martin Luther King Jr. only saw signs of the “promised land” he predicted his people would enter even though there was a good chance he would not be going with them.

Gordon College Alumni Offer Advice to Next Generation

By Stuart Knechtle

Wenham, MA—Students at Gordon College flocked to try and hear words of wisdom imparted by successful alumni this past weekend. Mariwyn Light, a Communications Major from the class of ’09, spoke to a journalism class at Gordon about the drug wars in Mexico and how Americans’ addictive natures are fueling the entire volatile situation there. “Now that I am at grad school in El Paso Texas, I see how much Gordon helped me in my writing to set me up so I can help change this situation” she said, “but journalism and writing will also help you in whatever field you go into.” She encouraged the class to write as often as they could and seek advice from the talented professors at Gordon.

John Phelps, a 2008 Communication Arts major, had spoken a week before Marilyn. He stressed the importance of writing for either a local paper or applying for an internship that could help jump start a possible career. He pushed the students to work hard because “once you enter the real world things only get more competitive and you begin to see that a good night’s sleep is very tough to come by.” Phelps’ exhortation to work hard seems to be a model that each of the alumni live by.   

Trevor Peterson was another grad who was on Gordon’s campus this past weekend. He was a standout student athlete when he was at Gordon College as he received all conference honors in lacrosse and graduated with honors in the field of Economics in 2008. “Gordon helped me understand critically what my faith was and should be” he said, “I would encourage any current student to join some kind of ministry that he or she could attend with consistency.” Peterson said that Gordon helped nourish and groom his faith as it set him up for the deep growth he experiences now.

Peterson also spoke about the importance of having a diverse group of friends when you are at college so you can see life from different perspectives. By finding the right group of people at Gordon they can help you “get involved with something deep so you can see where your gifts and talents really lie” Peterson said.  

International Day of Peace Inspires Hope Everywhere

By Stuart Knechtle

            Wenham, MA—What if you could free those who are utterly stifled by fear? The International Day of Peace is part of a growing effort to do just that. Gordon College celebrated September 21^st, the day that was declared by the U.N. to honor and respect peace everywhere. Throughout the day there were talks given by people such as Dr. David Steele to help Gordon students get a better understanding of what the day stands for and how we can help promote peace everywhere.

            A movie was played at the end of the celebration called Little town of Bethlehem. In the movie we see Palestinian and Israeli citizens trying to bridge the chasm that has separated the two ethnic groups for so long. “The movie pulled in interesting facts that most people who knew a little about the situation didn’t fully know about yet” said Stephanie Goethner a senior communication arts major. Dr. David Steele said that by learning more about the situation we will become more hopeful for the future.

Good Night, and Good Luck (practicing ethical journalism)

When I watched the movie Good Night and Good Luck, I saw the assiduous efforts of honest reporters present their audience with news that they needed to know. Edward R. Murrow lead the way as he put his job on the line in order to remain faithful to the truth. Even though he would eventually be demoted to Sunday afternoon show time (in which he chose to leave CBS instead of report on Sundays) he left an indelible mark on his viewers because he did not see the ends of his reporting justifying the means.
Edward R. Murrow was able to leave CBS with a clear conscience and a dignity that was built on “being loyal to the audience.” Instead of being agenda driven, and having a political bias, he took the hard way out and reported the news that every reporter was too timid to report. Even when Murrow’s boss said, “We don’t make the news Ed, we report on the news,” Murrow knew that although this was true, it is also the reporters duty and obligation to report all of the facts to his audience in order to let the audience decide on the matters themselves.
In Elements of Journalism we read about comprehensiveness and the importance of not leaving out important details. Murrow did just that as he uncovered Joseph Mcarthy’s ploy to slander against those who he accused as communists. In Murrow’s farewell speech he talked about journalism as an instrument that shouldn’t be used to simply entertain but that it should teach and inspire. He went on to say that this can only be done though “when people have the determination to use it towards those ends, otherwise it is only wires and a box.”

Christopher Samuel Finds New Opportunities at Gordon College

By Stuart Knechtle

            Wenham, MA—When Christopher Samuel received his letter of acceptance to Gordon College, a lifetime of dreams had finally been fulfilled. Samuel, 18, a freshman Biblical Studies Major, was the third in line behind his grandfather and father to migrate over to the U.S. from Bangalore, India. Just like his grandfather and father, ever since Christopher was a young boy he had aspirations of getting a fine Christian education in the U.S. so he could help spread the gospel throughout his homeland.

“Although I had never seen Gordon before, my dad had taught at Gordon-Conwell and Gordon scholars had come to my house for missions work when I was younger. We became close friends and I learned much about what it would be like to go to Gordon College.”

Upon arriving to Gordon, he immediately saw cultural differences. He could not believe when he saw a Gordon student acting chummy with his dad. Samuel said that this would’ve definitely been seen as a major sign of disrespect if it was done in India. “Never in my life have I even hinted jokingly at calling my dad by his first name.”

Samuel already has a reputation around campus for having flawless dance moves and a superb talent for cooking Indian food. “I saw him try out for Sweaty Tooth and even though he didn’t know any particular moves, he tore up the dance floor. He also makes the best Indian food I have ever had even though it leaves quite the scent around here” said freshman sweet mate Luke Miller, 18.

Samuel has also been immersing himself in extracurricular activities around campus. “It was nice seeing Chris, not only as a freshman but also as an international student, getting involved with the student body. It was the first meeting for the Idiom to see who was interested in working on this semester’s first publication” said senior Christian Brink, 21, an English Major at Gordon College. Samuel looks forward to getting involved even more at Gordon in the future.

Jody Hassett Sanchez on Journalism

Stuart Knechtle
I was lucky enough to listen three times to Jody Hassett Sanchez when she came to Gordon last week and it didn’t take long for me to understand why she has had such a successful career as a journalist. One of the very first points she made during her talk on Thursday was giving people news that hits them directly in the heart. Films or stories like this make people want to move away from passivity towards action. She said that this takes “compelling characters and good stories.” She went on to say that you can’t just stop there though, but that you also have to help your reader or audience feel like they are relating to the characters. Specifically, she said that in her film she wanted her viewers to meet the children, not simply give them an idea or statistic about them. This point ran right alongside her starting point on Friday when she said, “How do you show faith in Journalism and not just talk about it?” She was sounding the call for us as Christian journalists to get out there and make things happen by living out what we believe. Sanchez said that even though our news universe has splintered through decentralization, we as journalists can still make a difference for good if we keep God as our boss and never feel like we should assume his position by judging others.