WBAL.com

The editor-in-chief of the Towson University student newspaper, The Towerlight, has resigned after a controversial column was published.

Carrie Wood’s resignation comes after her decision to run an anonymous authored opinion piece about masturbation.

Click here for the column in question.

WBAL.com also has Wood’s statement:

It is with great regret and with a heavy heart that, as of October 2, 2009, I am resigning as editor-in-chief of The Towerlight. Following recent events revolving around the weekly column “The Bed Post,” I feel that this is the most appropriate course of action and will produce the most positive results in the long run.

On the morning of Wednesday, September 30, I received an e-mail in my personal Towson student e-mail account from Towson University President Robert Caret. I felt the e-mail was written in an intimidating, patronizing and bullying tone, and it was copied to TU’s chief of staff and the University’s lawyer for them to see as well. Seeing this e-mail pop into my personal inbox right after I had woken up sent me into somewhat of a panic, and I responded out of feelings of fear and of being threatened. In my response, passages were worded in such a way that made it look as if I was throwing my staff under the bus and pushing the responsibility for the column on them. In no way was this my intent; however, I realize that perception is reality and that such a response makes The Towerlight look bad in the face of the University community.

I understand that my e-mail was just one of several poor decisions made by me regarding “The Bed Post.” Hindsight is 20-20, and, if I ever had the chance to do this all over again, I would have never run the column in the first place. I should have had the foresight to realize what “The Bed Post” would do to the paper and the reputation of both the paper and of Baltimore Student Media.

I sincerely hope that my resignation will help reduce tensions between The Towerlight and the administration. And, though I realize that apologies are only words, I also hope that everyone involved in this incident is able to feel how truly sorry I am that we are in this situation. Never in my life could I imagine something like this would happen. Though I am resigning as editor-in-chief, I have been granted the opportunity to continue writing as a regular reporter for The Towerlight.

I am so sorry that things turned out this way for everyone involved, and I apologize to all whom have been offended by the content of “The Bed Post” that I allowed to run. Thank you all so much for allowing me the chance to act as editor-in-chief.

Sincerely,

Carrie Wood

Statement from The Towerlight

As of Friday, Oct. 2, The Towerlight’s editor-in-chief, Carrie Wood, has resigned. Her explanation and statement is on page 5. The Towerlight’s editorial board has elected a new editor-in-chief, who will be announced online at thetowerlight.com later this afternoon.

Meanwhile, we wish to address the recent controversy regarding “The Bed Post” column and its author, “Lux.”

We collectively feel that it was a mistake, and a break with Towerlight tradition, to allow an anonymous writer to address such a sensitive topic. Except in very rare and serious situations, The Towerlight policy has been to insist that all stories, letters, opinions and columns in our print edition have a byline.

“Lux” wishes to remain anonymous. Therefore her column will no longer appear in the print edition of The Towerlight. Her blog may continue online.

We do not apologize for the sexual content of the column. We wish it had been written less provocatively, and we realize that many readers were offended or simply felt it was inappropriate content for these pages.

However, many other readers did enjoy the column. And we believe it was not out of context on a campus where the administration delivers free cable pornography to some of its residence halls, celebrates “condom tasting” and “I <3 female orgasm” at public events, and profits from the sale of sexually-oriented magazines and posters at the University Union.

We reserve the right to print articles on any subject and in any style that the editors feel is appropriate for our audience. We will continue to welcome and encourage critical feedback and to correct mistakes when we make them. We will also continue to defend our rights to free speech.

We are students. We publish The Towerlight for the entire community, but our content is aimed primarily at our fellow students, who deserve open access to their own independent media source on campus. We intend to continue in that role to the best of our abilities, providing news, entertainment, and a forum for the exchange of ideas and opinions. We ask our readers to continue to support us.

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