At least Tim Russert was the best in his field. “Meet the Press?” Man, that’s legendary. Russert’s a titan. Sure, the conventional wisdom is that he was an awful choice for Commencement speaker, but hey, it could have been worse. It could have been just another pundit who just loves hearing himself speak, like Bill O’Reilly or Chris Matthews. Surely, for my Commencement, I’ll get an inspiring speaker. The administration won’t make the same mistake again (and again).well, shucks.

That the administration actually chose Chris Matthews to be Commencement speaker is astounding. That Chancellor Wrighton actually had the cojones to claim it would be a “privilege” to hear him speak is unbelievable. Unfortunately, the utter lack of respect the administration has shown for the Class of 2008 with its choice is anything but surprising.

Commencement is for the students. There is no equivocating about that.

It’s the Class of 2008′s last day as Wash. U. undergrads. Afterwards, we’re supposed to go on to bigger and better things, and the Commencement speaker is supposed to inspire us and help us on our journey. Past speakers like Julian Bond (civil rights activist), Marian Edelman (children’s rights activist) or Peter Raven (director of the Missouri Botanical Garden) may not be household names, but they have fascinating backgrounds and inspiring stories to tell.

Raven’s address, for example, was titled “Attitudes and Alliances: Shared Dependencies and Responsibilities for the Environment.” This was given in 1993, 14 years before Al Gore won the Nobel Prize. Fourteen years. In 2008, we’re getting just another talking head.

What makes the choice so infuriating is the fact that it seems like every Commencement speaker in the recent past has been political. In 2003, it was Madeleine Albright.

It can certainly be argued, however, that Albright was a worthy choice, given her experience as ambassador to the United Nations and Secretary of State. It started to go downhill from there. Thomas Friedman is an expert on globalization, and when he spoke in 2004, globalization was just beginning to become a major issue. It’s hard to imagine what that speech offered students, however. Then in 2005, it was Dick Gephardt, who may not have been chosen had he still been in Congress. Sir John Major didn’t bring anything entirely different to the table. And now we get the back-to-back punditry of Tim Russert and Chris Matthews. Why can’t there be something new?

Chancellor Wrighton explained that part of the allure of Matthews is that “he is familiar with both Washington University and the pressing challenges that face our society today.” This may be true. But having been on campus shouldn’t be a factor in picking the Commencement speaker. And there are many people who have foresight about today’s pressing issues. Howard Zinn, for example, has written such books as “A People’s History of the United States,” which was written to inform Americans about lesser known events that shaped the country. Surely he would be at least as interesting as Chris Matthews. U.S. News and World Report called Jack Healey “Mr. Human Rights.” I bet he’d have something inspiring to say.

Wash. U. alum and Pulitzer Prize-winning cartoonist Mike Peters could be just as insightful as Chris Matthews and is probably even more familiar with the University. And of course, there’s always Stephen Colbert (who just so happens to be giving the commencement address at Princeton this year). He might not be the most inspirational, but he’d certainly keep everyone’s attention better than anyone else I’ve mentioned.

Someone like Howard Zinn or Stephen Colbert may very well have been unavailable to speak. But what is insulting about the choice of Chris Matthews is that he is the last person students want for their Commencement. He represents the overcharged news cycle and partisan hackery that sullies politics today. He didn’t cause any excitement when he spoke in 2004, and he is even less exciting now.

We don’t want to buy what he’s selling, but it’s being forced on us anyway. Especially in light of this fall’s vice presidential debate, this choice seems designed to help Wash. U. get in that overcharged news cycle, not for the graduating seniors to do so. Hopefully, the Class of 2009 will get a Commencement for them instead of having to join yet another disappointed class.

Daniel is a senior in Arts & Sciences. He can be reached via e-mail at [email protected].

Popularity: 1% [?]

 Print This Post

This entry was posted on Wednesday, April 2nd, 2008 at 12:00 pm and is filed under Forum. You can follow any responses to this entry through the RSS 2.0 feed. You can leave a response, or trackback from your own site.