I attended Point Park College during its pre-halcyon existence in the 1990s. The school, not yet a university, seemed to operate in a constant state of anxiety, unsure if it would remain independent and open. And yet, its professors were top notch, creating a hands-on environment where students learned by keeping their heads down and working hard at whatever craft they had chosen.
The college was foundational in my career. I was a contributor to the Globe and Pioneer Magazine, an editor of the Cavalcade, a DJ at WPPJ and served as the radio station’s general manager, program director, music director, production director and sales director. My career has spanned the landscape of local journalism and communications. I was the production director at KQV, an account executive at KDKA, produced programs at WTAE, WDSY and several other local stations. I’ve written for both the Pittsburgh Post-Gazette and Pittsburgh Tribune-Review, have had pieces published in literary journals around the world and won both local and national journalism awards. I am currently a senior staff writer at the Pittsburgh Jewish Chronicle and a bestselling author.
None of this would have happened without the learning opportunities I received at Point Park College. Despite its size, the school maintained the highest standards and its newspaper and radio stations were operated like professional organizations.
It is for this reason that I was pained to have read several stories in The Globe that were filled with factual and grammatical errors and paid no heed to the industry standard “Associated Press Stylebook.” These pieces ignored the most basic journalistic standards, showing a clear bias toward one opinion.
“Students for Change meets in Solidarity with Palestine” (Feb. 2) is illustrative of the errors I found. As an example, the first sentence reads: “Last Monday, the Point Park Students for Change (PPSC) held their first club meeting.” As I’m sure you are aware, the use of “their” is not correct in this sentence. The club is a singular thing and not a person, so “it” should be used. The story is littered with other examples or writing contrary to AP style, such as spelling out “ten” rather than using the figure 10.
A larger problem occurs when the writer reports that Robert Ross has left for “occupied Palestine.” “Occupied Palestine” does not exist. I suspect this descriptor was written under the direction of Ross. The Palestinian territory is not a state and should not be classified as one, according to the AP style guide. A territory known as Gaza does exist. “Occupied” hasn’t been a correct adjective for the region since 2005, when Israel pulled its troops and residents from the territory.
Just as troubling is the lack of context given to any or all of Ross’ statements. No history professor, of which PPU has many, was interviewed. Rather, Ross, a professor of social justice studies and community engagement, is given the import of someone trained in discussing the nuances of Middle Eastern history. He has not earned that distinction.
The story also quotes a student who says there is an “Israeli occupation” but does nothing to question what that means. Nor does the reporter discuss the cease-fire that was in place before Oct. 7, 2023, and which Hamas violated.
The paper’s editorial, published Feb. 7, “The Globe’s Point: We stand with Palestine,” also contains factual, journalistic and grammatical errors that should be addressed in the paper’s newsroom, if not in the form of a published clarification
or correction.
The first error is fairly simple and innocuous. It appears in the second paragraph, calling Israel’s war to wipe out the Hamas terrorists that invaded it a “mass conflict.” I’m not sure what that term means but the current operation is in no way a “mass conflict.” It is between one democratic state and a terrorist organization that has governing power over the Gaza territory. “Mass” would seem to imply several different nations involved in a regional, or larger, conflict.
The editorial lists several figures, some reported from the Hamas-controlled Health Ministry, others from the United Nations. It, however, provides no context for those numbers. It doesn’t report or explain that Hamas often surrounds itself and its arms with Gazan citizens, most of whom are women and children. Nor does it explain that many of the men living in Gaza are fighting against Israel and are being hid in underground tunnels and bunkers, keeping them safe — something Hamas could do for its women and children, but purposely doesn’t.
The column ends with a call for a cease-fire, stating that The Globe’s staff aren’t experts on geopolitical conflicts. Indeed, they are not. They certainly don’t seem to understand that prior to Oct. 7 there was a cease-fire. It was broken by Hamas. Israel, the United States and several other countries have proposed multiple cease-fire plans. They have all been rejected by Hamas. Better to not write an editorial about something of which the editorial board knows little than to get a column so wrong.
These types of stories make Jewish students on campus less safe. There have been studies by the Anti-Defamation League supporting this opinion. More than that, I have interviewed victims of antisemitic attacks since Oct. 7 and can talk of the harassment experienced by local students, all of which are given cover by these and similar stories.
I have also witnessed the horrors and atrocities committed by Hamas on Oct. 7, on video footage recorded by the terrorist organization. This is not a war of oppressors versus the oppressed. This is, instead, a war for the very existence of the Jewish people living in Israel and around the world.
Point Park College, now University, has a history of professional-level journalism created by its students. It is my hope that this tradition will reassert itself this semester and that the basic tenets of journalism will be reinstated to the stories that are published by The Globe. If not, it isn’t simply the school, its Jewish students, larger student body or Pittsburgh that will suffer. Instead, it will be the entire field of journalism, as the Globe’s staff finds employment in publications across the city and country.
