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YoutubeApology from Brian Woods
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RedditAs the writer of this week’s Crime Log, I would like to apologize to the Whit for bringing any negative attention their way. I would also like to apologize for anyone who takes my writing the wrong way. What I am writing is not journalism, it is meant to be opinionated comedy that pokes fun at people in the reports I read.
I realize that the Whit is not the proper venue for what I am writing. These articles aren’t meant for a college newspaper. In the future I will try harder to stick to the crimes at hand and save the style of comedy I use for different writing settings. A newspaper article is probably not the best place to use sarcasm. I would like for this not to reflect poorly on the writers or editors at the Whit. They deal with a lot of pressure putting together a newspaper every week and have to make tough decisions on what to fill it with. The Crime Logs I write do not mirror the rest of the content in this newspaper.
By writing for a newspaper, I have certain responsibilities to write in a journalistic way, and my column is pure opinion. This type of writing belongs in a blog. I am sorry for not meeting the standards a writer for a newspaper should meet.
3:44 pm
The Crime Log comes with a *lot* of latitude. In the past it has been, among other things, written in the film noir style, written in a Boston accent and written entirely in limerick form. The trick is figuring out the balance.
It’s fine for it to be humorous, it just has to be done carefully. I was in your shoes not too long ago, so I know how easy it is to fly off the rails with this sort of thing. My first night as Crime Log writer, Quigley sat down with me and pointed out all of the stupid mistakes I had made in the effort to be funny. They were the first of many I’d go on to make as Crime Log reporter. The kind of heat you take for screwing up when you write the Crime Log is … unique, to say the least. Good on you for writing up an apology.
4:52 pm
Brian,your apology to the Whit is understandable. Your “apology” to anyone who takes the writing the wrong way is insulting and no apology at all. You owe an apology to the RA you trashed. Poking fun at people is one thing,what you did went way beyond that.
5:26 pm
The “style of comedy” you used wasn’t funny at all. For a newspaper or a comedy publication. You have got to work on those jokes, brah.
5:33 pm
What a condescending, insulting, and poor attempt to an apology . SHAME on you and the one who approved , once more, to publish your irresponsible work.
YOU say: “…..save the style of comedy I use for different writing settings.” Nothing funny about bullying. if you honestly believe that “attacking” an RA for reporting to authorities witnessing under age drinking on campus is humorous, maybe journalism is not for you.
6:01 pm
Glad that you apologized to your colleagues at your paper and those you obviously think dumber than you are for not getting your “comedy”. How about an apology to the RA you belitted in your post?
9:26 pm
Unfortunately, Brian, your readers are not too stupid to understand you or to get sarcasm. They’re simply intelligent enough to understand that mocking the victim of a crime is rarely in good taste, and doing so by skewering her religion throws the whole matter completely off the rails — and that holds whether you’re doing so in person, in print, or on the web in any form. Where’s the apology to the RA you belittled? I’m glad you’re sincerely concerned about The Whit and its staff, but the rest was a complete non-apology.
11:42 pm
I fail to understand why this apology was approved. While it was a nice attempt by Brian to try to lessen the negative feedback of his Crime Log, this apology is lame and too much all at once.
The official apologize by The Whit which was published on Thursday night was appropriate and enough. This post, by the author, seems like groveling – and poor groveling at that. It makes no mention of the RA he mocked.
I think Brian doesn’t understand, well, anything about journalism. “A newspaper article is probably not the best place to use sarcasm.” Has he ever read a newspaper? Sarcasm is prevalent through countless opinion pieces, editorials, etc. There IS a place for sarcasm in a newspaper, especially a college one where attention spans are fleeting. There is even a spot for it in Crime Log, as it has been done time and time again over the past 10 years.
The problem is that it’s extremely difficult to write sarcasm WELL. Humor is one of the most difficult styles of writing to accomplish. Unfortunately, I do agree with Brian on one thing: He says, “I realize that the Whit is not the proper venue for what I am writing.” Perhaps, he’s right. Perhaps, good writing is.
Also, were these apologies copy edited? If I were an editor I would triple check everything that was going out in relation to this slight upheaval. Shouldn’t the “the” in Whit be capitalized? There are countless other copy editing mistakes in this apology alone, but that one stands out since it is in the sentence I mentioned.
To ask for forgiveness for writing something sloppy…by writing something sloppy seems a bit much don’t you think?
By the way, where is the original Crime Log? Was it deleted and if so, why? Another poor choice.
12:30 am
I have to agree with Jane. Deleting the original post wasn’t the best move. Yes, it was a shoddy piece of work, but there was a dialogue of opinions under it. Deleting it seems like a way for The Whit to cover up any future backlash from the content. The fact of the matter is that the article was published and there’s a proper way to go about fixing journalistic errors. Would any major newspaper delete a controversial post? That’s the question to ask. Journalism is, in many ways, a conversation. Deleting the post along with the 70+ comments, in my personal opinion, seems like a mistake. Don’t get me wrong, I think it’s great that both the editorial staff and Brian posted apologies, but now it’s time to rebuild credibility in the Rowan community.
8:30 am
ThIs isn’t Men in Black. You can’t just delete the post and Have us think it never happened.
^
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Humor.
9:20 am
Obviously the comments written above, once again, prove how this matter is not subsiding. Please don’t think that by deleting the original article the RA and her family are too “stupid” enough to not have printed it out.
Mr. Woods, you SERIOUSLY need to consider apologizing to this young girl. I believe that is the most frightening part of this matter altogether. The fact that you went too far with BASHING an individual on her character, and you still CANNOT apologize to her! You’re lucky that she is a strong individual with great friends, family, and support (but you already know this since I’m sure you have read over the 64 comments that were left on the original article).
Do everyone a favor please, stop apologizing to the readers who continue to “misinterpret” your humor and do the right thing!!!
5:02 pm
Dear Whit Editors, Readers, and especially Mr. Woods:
A Crime Log hardly seems the appropriate place in any publication for one to post what Mr. Woods claims is “opinionated comedy that pokes fun at people in the reports I read”. Crime on a university campus; and, indeed, anywhere, is a very serious matter that the editors of The Whit, its writing staff, and the college community at-large should take extremely seriously. The crime to which Mr. Woods chose to poke fun at is a hate crime, pure and simple.
While it may seem to Mr. Woods and the editorial staff at The Whit that a student’s religious belief can be made fodder for “humor” just because that student if a Catholic, what religion she chooses to practice is immaterial. This country WAS founded upon the very principle of religious tolerance by people who were persecuted for practicing their faith – and, make no mistake – Catholics were among those who fled to this country to escape the religious persecution they faced.
What Mr. Woods fails to understand, even now, is that whether you intend to be a journalist or a comedian, words have meaning and once written they have an impact that cannot be lessened with a mere apology. The student whom Mr. Woods so unfairly attacked did nothing more than her duty as a Resident Advisor on this campus. The job of an RA is sometimes a difficult one and is often judged harshly by fellow students; however it is a job critical to ensure harmony and the successful managing of a college campus. The RA in question should be praised for doing her job to the best of her ability; not the subject of petty mockery and scorn from a puerile writer who even now cannot seem to muster up the appropriate apology to the one person who needs it most.
I would strongly suggest that the editors of The Whit remove Mr. Woods from its writing staff, effective immediately. His sort of yellow journalism has no place and his “apology” is far from acceptable. There are consequences to your words and actions and; in this case, those consequences should be termination. Freedom of speech is a wonderful right, guaranteed to us all by the Bill of Rights; but, abuse of that speech, especially when it descends to supporting a hate crime and belittling the victim of said crime should be unacceptable in any news organization – whether it be the New York Times or the Rowan University Whit. I hope that a sincere apology from The Whit editors is also forthcoming.
And, to the RA who has been subjected to this unfair treatment, I can only encourage you to stay the course, to keep the faith, and to know that your work as an RA and your firm resolve do make a difference. Stand your ground, your faith is an inspiration to others and your work as an RA is needed on this campus.
3:10 pm
This is the saddest “attempt” at an apology. In fact this is no apology at all. You are basically stating that you were misinterpreted, and regardless of if they were, your words were condescending and unintelligent. You should just stop writing all together because clearly you were never taught the right way. Your use of “comedy” was no joke at all but rather harassment and that should not be tolerated. You are a disgrace to writers.
5:07 pm
While I already made my two cents apparent on the two other pages, it’s also become quite clear that several comments are going overboard here.
Jane: “I think Brian doesn’t understand, well, anything about journalism.”
Michael: “I would strongly suggest that the editors of The Whit remove Mr. Woods from its writing staff, effective immediately.”
Eric Nelson: “You should just stop writing all together because clearly you were never taught the right way….You are a disgrace to writers.”
C’mon people, really?
Let’s look at this with an even head right now. Brian’s mistake here is thinking that his wish for the RA not have any friends is “poking fun” at people. That sentiment went beyond “poking fun.” Nothing more, nothing less. However, that doesn’t give anyone the right to start insulting Brian back.
Do any of you know Brian as a person? Don’t treat him like trash because of one mistake. I would love to see how each and every one of you are perfect people. (I see can the Biblical allusions already.)
That’s why when I said my piece, I never insulted Brian personally, nor anybody on The Whit personally. Although I’ve been in the same class as Brian and know people he knows, I’m not qualified to judge Brian as a person. What then makes anybody here qualified?
Before we know it, the pot is going to start calling the kettle black. Ironically, we’re almost to that point where a light jab about how Jesus forgives would be appropriate.
End it here. Brian made a bad mistake, but there’s been worse mistakes made by journalists and basic human beings alike. Now it’s time to be fair and leave Brian be.
2:15 pm
Hmmm…interesting point Adam. Although, it does look like the crime log altogether puts people down for making a “mistake”. Isn’t that what the crime log is all about? Continuing to “make fun” of someone for something they did wrong? Why have the crime log at all then? The crime log is showing us that if you make a mistake at Rowan, you are only going to be “put down” for your “wrong-doing” once again by entering the crime log. Liekyou said, “However, that doesn’t give anyone the right to start insulting Brian back.”….does that mean it gives Brian the right to insult anyone on the crime log then??????
And as I’m sure you now know, this RA was the VICTIM! Not the perpetrator!!!! So for her to be BASHED by Mr. Woods shows that he is doing more than “insulting” her.
3:39 pm
I have now read both apologies printed by the Whit and I’m still wondering where the apology is to the individual that was really the victim here, someone who was simply doing their job. Unfortunately, in today’s Twitter world of instant access we often forget that we are talking about real people. I hope the staff realizes that that was their real mistake.
6:52 pm
You all need to get a sense of humor and stop bashing on someone who just stated his personal opinion in an article designated for OPINION. Rather than commenting on what an awful article you thought Mr. Woods wrote, focus on the fact that he is attempting to write something humorous for everyone to enjoy, and if your one of the people who believe and apology was necessary, be happy an apology was issued at all. People are poked fun at everyday in the media for their personal actions and in most cases apologies are never issued. For those of you assuming that their is a victim in this story, please attempt to join the real world. Besides, if you really dont like the writing that much, JUST DONT READ THAT SECTION OF THE PAPER. No one has a gun to your head forcing you to read the crime log…. yet
10:25 pm
PM…you obviously don’t have caring bone in your body if you think the RA wasn’t a victim! But that’s just my OPINION!
11:53 pm
First, Brian should not have to apologize because he did nothing wrong. He did his job for the Whit.
Second, get a sense of humor. The article could not of been written better.
Third, if anyone has learned anything from this it should be to not use your power unjustly and to not write on other people’s bulletin boards.
That is all.
1:02 am
Dee, having your whiteboard written on with some form of profanity happens numerous times in ones college career. If that qualifies as being victimized, then maybe I should make a phone call to the authorities. Again just my opinion and obviously Mr. Woods as well
4:14 am
First of all, have any of you ever watched late night television? Jay Leno, Conan, Tosh. O etc. They all poke fun at people all the time. Brian should not have had to write an apology to anyone, the Whit staff are the ones who ran the piece not Brian. I find it a little bit over top the by saying that the RA was bullied, look up the definition for that I bet it does not even compare to this. It is ridiculous that you people think that he should be sued for slander and or harassment. Maybe all of you should read the Constitution because its obvious that you know nothing of the 1st amendment.
I’m sure all of you are just so perfect that you have never talked about someone, made fun of someone, or laughed at someones expense, right? Stop acting like he attacked this RA. All of you are attacking Brian, so should all of you be sued for slander and or harassment also? The RA needs to grow up, develop tougher skin, and get on with her life and stop making such a big deal about it. If you can dish it out then you better be able to take it. The RA should be lucky to only have WWJD and sometimes FU written on her whiteboard. She should not have been running to police over something so silly, well for one without any proof and for two the police have better things to do then listen to a whiney girl talk about she’s being harassed by people writing WWJD on her whiteboard. Its called an eraser. Lastly, most of you probably do not know Brian personally so none of you have the right to bash him the way that you are. You should know that he simply read the police and wrote his OPINION about it in humorous way not anything more serious than that. You all need to learn how to take a joke.
8:57 am
Mr. Woods writes, “I can say, while still feeling good about myself, that I really hope this girl has no friends, and if she does then I hope her friends are just her friends because she has an awesome house and a hot mom and they don’t really like her.”
Is this funny if it was written about someone who already was offended from a situation?? Mr. Woods should’ve been a bit more whitty in writing his “humor” and should’ve “poked fun” of the residents that caught drinking in their dorm room. Not bash and insult an RA for doing her job.
According to the NJ Anti-Bullying Law, the acronynm is HIB: Harrassment, Intimidation, and Bullying. I know I am not alone when I say that this and the RA’s situation prior falls under one of these three categories.
10:58 am
As I recall the point of the Crime Log was to make witty comments about the people who actually committed the crime instead of the victims? Bring THAT crime log back, not these trashy tabloid articles. Is that a better place for this sense of humor that is too smart and sarcastic for the typical college aged student?
Also, to those saying Mr. Woods should not have to apologize for anything, you are wrong. I am incredibly supportive of freedom of speech, however speaking and publishing are two completely different mediums with two entirely different laws. I was convinced the Whit had been hacked when I got through the second paragraph and started reading the ridiculousness that has already been discussed.
Now, I am not attacking Mr. Woods or defending him, I’m just making a plea to the Whit.
Can we please just have one decent story at some point this year? Don’t be lazy or careless. Step up your game.
5:56 pm
Tell that RA to stop being a bitch
12:55 am
As an incoming transfer student to Rowan, I find that the idea of someone getting bullied for doing their job is disgusting. I do appreciate the apology, however insincere it was, because although it does not appear to be meant, it is still an apology. Having to write the apology in the first place must have made Mr. Woods feel at least a little bit embarrassed at having done something so wrong in the first place.
In regards to the RA, I applaud her for doing her job. Having come from another school where the rules on underage alcohol consumption were lax, I myself had to deal with a roommate who enjoyed getting drunk, getting sick, and getting even more drunk afterwards. She ended up going to the hospital, all because our RA did not do her job. At my former school, they were lenient on the alcohol policy if the students were not getting out of hand or doing anything reckless (driving, over-drinking, ect.). Many younger college students do not understand what can happen when you add alcohol. A friend of mine was only 19 when he was drunk driving and got into an accident. He now has rods in his left leg, his right leg from below the knee down is artificial. He had to spend his 20th birthday in the hospital. The reason the drinking age is where it is at is because the younger kids do not understand the responsibilities that come when drinking. The RA was doing them a favor.
As for the “humor” that was used in the Crime Log, it was inappropriate. There is no place for THAT kind of humor. Yes, some things can be taken as funny, but why do the people who are trying to help others the ones that are targeted for harassment, rather than the ones who were actually in trouble? This is showing the readers that what the kids did (underage drinking) is a good thing, and that doing your job and trying to help someone is bad.
If this is the way things are, then it is a sad world indeed.
3:25 am
this brian guy is really not funny. I feel like only assholes would find what he said funny. His style of wrting is terrible. And this was the crappiest apology I ever heard. Its one of those lame “sorry you don’t like my work” apoligies. It mostly consits of words that make it sound like he’s apoligizing.