STATEMENT

The j word: journalism at Michigan

BY EMILY BLUMBERG, STATEMENT CORRESPONDENT

Design by Erin Ruark

The debate of the college major is an endless uphill battle; you can ponder and argue and make all the decisions you want without ever truly knowing if you’re making the right choice. It is impossible for a major to guarantee personal success, yet choosing one can feel like closing yourself off to only a select few career paths. The majors that are most valued by academic institutions constantly change as society shifts its priorities and goals.

If I had known what I wanted to do before entering college, there is a good chance I would not have ended up at the University of Michigan. I have always been a writer and wanted to pursue that in some form, but my work with The Daily opened up my love for journalism. Since realizing what I wanted to pursue, I have buried myself in deciding what major and classes are the “next best thing.” History, communications, sociology and psychology are only a few of the phases I’ve gone through just in this past semester. The University’s lack of a journalism major has made me wonder whether or not I necessarily need to major in it at all.

For students interested in journalism like myself, the debate of practicality versus academic value for undergraduate majors becomes even more concentrated. A major in journalism can offer plenty of benefits: direct writing and reporting training, a specialized curriculum and access to professors who have had work experience in the news sphere. However, a journalism degree could be too specific and prevent students from experiencing a more theoretical, well-rounded education.

In a report from the Knight Foundation, a non-profit committed to keeping journalism alive through investment and grants, Carnegie Corporation President Vartan Gregorian puts it bluntly:

“Journalism schools are teaching journalistic techniques rather than subject matter. Journalists should be cultured people who know about history, economics, science. Instead they are learning what is called nuts and bolts. Like schools of education, journalism schools should either be reintegrated intellectually into the university or they should be abolished.”

Here at the University, they have chosen the latter. After a complicated, century-long revamping of what is now the Department of Communication and Media, the original journalism program at the University was eradicated. Although it’s unclear why this choice was made, many opponents of the decision saw it as an elitist way of weeding out students interested in a vocational education.

Professor Derek Vaillant, who is also associate chair of undergraduate studies within the Communications and Media department, explained the combination of numerous extinct programs (Journalism, Speech, Theater, Cultural Studies, etc.) into the department we know today.

The committee that chose to shut down the journalism program, Vaillant says, was charged by many faculty and students for being elitist and condescending. Many argued that the University’s journalism program “lacked national impact.”

“(Saying ‘lacked national impact’) is a sort of a way of saying: it’s not very prestigious, it’s not very good,” Vaillant said. “Was it not very good for training professional journalists? I’m not sure. Was it not very good in the way that it seemed kind of vocational and like something that state schools do to pay the bills? Maybe that’s closer to the truth.”

In an attempt to stay true to being the “leaders and best,” the University removed a program with consistent student and faculty interest. Prioritizing the liberal arts and academic thought over vocational training is a staple in America’s most selective universities, such as those in the Ivy League. Other highly ranked public schools such as the University of California, Los Angeles, University of California, Berkeley and the University of Virginia also utilize this liberal arts approach. By abolishing our journalism program, the University is seemingly leaning into the identity of an elite institution rather than the large public university that it is.

Beyond the fact that few journalism courses exist here to begin with, many of them reside under aliases such as “immersion writing,” “creative nonfiction” and “public writing.” The word “journalism” has become somewhat of a four-letter word to academics who prioritize abstract ideas over practical skill training. We hear very little of what Peabody award winner and visiting professor in the Department of Communication and Media, Robert Yoon, refers to as the “J word” within U-M academics.

Undergraduate journalism degrees, with a few possible exceptions from top-tier universities such as Northwestern University and the University of Southern California, seem to be associated with lucrative job training rather than academic thought. By diluting these journalism courses into the English and Communication and Media departments, the University strives to associate itself with top-tier academia rather than career preparation.

“Especially if you look at the English department, there are all these kinds of creative writing programs and (the euphemism “long form reporting”) is one of the genres,” Vaillant said. “I think (the English department) has incorporated some of this form of education, but it’s done very carefully because they don’t want a perception of overemphasizing vocation at the expense of this more idealized life of the mind, humanities sort of ideal, which is the ideal of the modern university.”

Although I understand the University’s desire to remain a place of higher learning rather than of vocational training, this sentiment represents faculties’ disregard for students’ interests. The decision to eradicate the journalism program was made by faculty even though hundreds of students continue to be involved in student publications. Instead of focusing on teaching what students are most passionate about, this decision seems to have been made in order to ensure that every U-M program was deemed better than the rest.

Michigan to travel to Seattle for NCAA regional Beaubien’s perfect game highlights doubleheader sweep

PAUL NASR Daily Sports Writer

The D-1 Softball Committee revealed on Sunday that the Michigan softball team will travel to Seattle in the NCAA regional.

The Seattle regional is a double-elimination bracket consisting of the home team in No. 16 Washington, Michigan, Western Athletic Conference champion Seattle, and Big Sky

Conference champion Portland State. Michigan will face Seattle to open its regional battle on Friday night.

Although Washington was ranked 16th by the committee, securing the final regional host site of the tournament, its resume suggests that they are a far-stronger team than that. The Huskies were ranked No. 5 in the nation entering the final weekend of the season. They went 41-11, and will pose a serious challenge for the Wolverines.

Due to Seattle being the 16th and final regional host in the tournament, Michigan will most likely be forced to travel to Norman, Okla. to face the No.1 Oklahoma softball team, should it survive the difficult Seattle regional.

The selection comes after a strong season for the Wolverines. They partook in a conference-only schedule in the Big Ten, posting a 36-6 record, and winning its 22nd conference title. The Wolverines’ resume is highlighted by key series wins against Northwestern and No. 23 Minnesota, the two other teams representing the Big Ten in the NCAA tournament.

Michigan enters the NCAA tournament hot, winning 15 of its last 16 games. Matching up with Washington on its home field, however, will most likely be the team’s most difficult test of the season.

In a meeting with reporters following the selection, Michigan coach Carol Hutchins voiced her displeasure in the committee’s decision to send the Wolverines to Seattle, in a regional housing a top five team in the nation, as

opposed to hosting the regional at Alumni field after her team produced a successful season in the Big Ten.

“(The committee) absolutely did not do a very good job,” Hutchins said. “They disrespected our entire conference … I’m not very pleased with (them) at all.”

Last season’s NCAA softball tournament was canceled due to the COVID-19 pandemic. In the last installment of the tournament in 2019, Michigan hosted a regional in Ann Arbor, where they fell to James Madison University.

Michigan has reached the NCAA tournament in every season since 1995. In that span, it has advanced to the super regionals 18 times, and continued to the College World Series 12 times. It won the national championship in 2005.

The Wolverines have failed to advance to a super regional in their past three attempts, marking the longest such stretch since their NCAA tournament streak began in 1995. They will look to end their dry spell this weekend, with regionals beginning on Friday.

Rutgers pinch hitter Megan Herka walked to the plate ready to play spoiler.

No. 18 Michigan had denied the Scarlet Knights a spot on base all game. Now, marking the potential last batter of the day, it was Herka’s job to ruin senior left-hander Meghan Beaubien’s perfect slate.

It looked like Herka was going to do just that, as she took three straight balls to start her plate appearance. The game wasn’t on the line, but a career milestone was. Facing a tough count, Beaubien kept her composure.

“If I threw another ball, I was gonna walk her anyway,” Beaubien said. “So I’m just staying loose and telling myself that if I stay loose and I throw this pitch, then it’s going to be a good one and trusting that they’re not going to hit it.”

Feeding Herka a strike and forcing a foul tip, Beaubien worked Herka back into the corner the Scarlet Knights had been stuck in all game. The final pitch careened toward junior catcher Hannah Carson and nestled itself in the well-worn leather of her glove.

Ball game.

Perfect game.

As Beaubien leapt into the air to celebrate an achievement that most pitchers can only dream of, Michigan celebrated an 11-0 win that could only be described as dominant in every measurable way.

A key part of that was the Wolverines’ defense. Out of 15 batters, 13 were put out by the field. As much as the perfect game is an accomplishment for Beaubien, it also speaks to Michigan’s ability to back up its pitchers.

“I give a lot of credit to the defense today,” Beaubien said. “I didn’t have a lot of strikeouts, but the defense is making some great plays so I think that was a really big team effort and proud of my outfielders and I think everyone did a great job.”

Part of that team effort came from freshman catcher Keke Tholl, who made a spectacular catch on a foul ball in the fourth inning. First baseman Gabrielle Callaway tipped the ball in the air toward the first base line. Tholl popped out of her stance and chased it, diving forward to make the play.

The outcome suggests Rutgers’ at-bats were lackluster all game, but hitters were able to put the ball in play, sometimes deep. Every time that happened, though, they couldn’t find the gap and the Wolverines made an out.

No matter what the fielders could do to help her, the perfect game came down to superb pitching from Beaubien. The Scarlet Knights couldn’t get comfortable at the plate, and the edge that she had gained in Friday’s win meant she was attacking everyone that stepped in the batter’s box. Rutgers was forced to deal with poor pitches that left them empty handed.

Often, those led to quick, easy outs. Beaubien’s two strikeouts over the five innings is an uncharacteristically low count considering she averages around 9.88 strikeouts per seven innings. She didn’t need to get many, though, because the Scarlet Knights did the work for her.

In fact, the biggest challenge for Beaubien to overcome may have been keeping focused on the game itself rather than the upcoming milestone. That meant returning to the methodology that has guided the Wolverines all season.

“I was just trying to focus on one pitch at a time,” Beaubien said. “I didn’t want to get too excited about that possibility. The second you get too excited and start thinking about that, that’s when you’re most likely gonna give it up.”

Beaubien’s perfect outing was a fitting way to end what could be the last home start of her career. As the NCAA Tournament looms and Michigan focuses on winning its upcoming regional, this game proved that Beaubien’s not done yet.

“I tell you, there’s some things I want from Megan Beaubien that are bigger than that,” Michigan coach Carol Hutchins said. “I want her to play on the biggest stage. And I want her to help take us there.”

JULIA SCHACHINGER/Daily Michigan will travel to Seattle for the NCAA regionals.

CONNOR EAREGOOD

Daily Sports Writer