What's in a name?
In the world of journalism, a lot.
The Chronicle announced last week that from now on the author of Monday, Monday will be named at the end of the weekly humor column. As of today there will be no more anticipation, speculation and placing of bets about who the mystery writer(s) are.
I want to take this opportunity to explain and provide some historical context for the reasoning behind the "outing" decision. It was not a decision we approached lightly, nor was it prompted by this semester's Monday, Monday writer.
The major problem with our humor column-long a staple in this newspaper-is not that it makes jabs at student organizations and administrators or that it uses stereotypes to mock stereotypes (a difficult, satirical, Swift-ian art to master).
Rather, it is the anonymity of the writer(s) that is troubling.
It really is just about a name.
It is about putting a name on editorial work to make sure that those writing it are held accountable for their comments. It is about putting a name underneath a few hundred words to ensure that those words are fairly credited to someone.
And, believe it or not, it is about putting a name to a column to expand the columnist's ability to express himself.
Many people may perceive the decision to reveal Monday, Monday's identity as one that restricts free speech. On the contrary, it will allow the writer(s) to say what they want to say more freely than ever.
In past years, drafts of Monday, Monday have passed over editors' desks wrought with humorous but potentially upsetting remarks or ad hominem statements that would cause any ethical journalist to raise an eyebrow. Lots of those statements have made it through the editing process and generated both laughs and ire. But there are plenty of comments that have not survived-and the main reason for that is accountability.
Not having a name attached to the column has forced editors to be perhaps overly cautious about what runs in the space because there is no "real" person who can be held responsible for the statements. By adding a name in italics at the bottom of column, the writer(s) will have much greater freedom to say what they want to say because accountability allows us to print all sorts of material that we otherwise, in the name of ethics and integrity, might not be able to.
We did not make this decision as a form of punishment for any comments made in this semester's column. Nor was it made out of fear to protect ourselves from liability. This decision was made in the middle of the semester because as soon as The Chronicle realized there was a better way to present humor, we felt obligated to act.
In short, this decision was made in the name of defending and ensuring free speech-and free humor-on these pages.
The column will continue to run, and it will continue to be written in a persona-whether that persona is Jack Bauer's Bidet, Milli and Vanilli, Sir Elton, Ramona Quimby, Tommy Seabass or any other name that comes along.
As such, it should not be read as an absolute reflection of the writer's opinion. Rather, it should be read as the writer's attempt to comment on the Duke world and community in a unique, thought-provoking way.
Indeed, Monday, Monday will continue to push the envelope, using humor to develop keen commentary.
The only difference will be the name in italics at the end of the column.
Just a name.
And hopefully, with that name, will come new degrees of accountability, humor and good reading.
Seyward Darby is editor of The Chronicle.
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