The Chronicle T h e i n d e p e n d e n t d a i ly at D u k e U n i v e r s i t y
FRIDAY, FEBRUARY 4, 2011
ONE HUNDRED AND SIXTH YEAR, Issue 90
www.dukechronicle.com
Baker gives Pres tells students to ‘think hard, play well’ analysis of Pres. Obama by Maggie Spini THE CHRONICLE
The way the public views a presidency is shaped not only by an administration’s policies, but also by the people who stand on the sidelines of history and document it. Peter Baker, The New York Times’ White House correspondent, relayed his experiences as the interface between government and citizens Thursday evening. Journalism is about illuminating issues and holding people accountable, Baker told a large audience of students and faculty gathered in the Sanford School of Public Policy. For Baker, this assertion comes from comprehensive experience. Before joining The New York Times in 2008, Baker was a reporter for The Washington Post, for which he covered both the Bill Clinton and George W. Bush administrations. In the lecture, which was formatted as a conversation with Peter Feaver, Alexander F. Hehmeyer Professor of Political Science, Baker spoke extensively on President Barack Obama, particularly with regard to his foreign policy approach. See Baker on page 6
chris dall/The Chronicle
In an open forum, President Richard Brodhead and other top administrators answered student questions, discussing campus life and administrative decision-making. by Matthew Chase THE CHRONICLE
Students got the rare opportunity to question top administrators about campus culture, scandals and decisions that take place behind administrators’ closed doors. Much of the discussion at the hourand-a-half open forum Thursday night,
however, came back to what students themselves do behind closed doors—especially what happens when those actions quickly spread beyond campus walls. “At the end of the day, there are things that you have to learn in college... and one of them is the appropriate use of freedom for yourself and for those you love,” Presi-
Athletic facilities undergo facelift by Laura Keeley THE CHRONICLE
tracy huang/The Chronicle
Jack Coombs Field, which had major drainage problems last year, is one of several Duke facilities to undergo renovations in recent months.
On April 26, 2008, the department of athletics published its first-ever strategic plan, boldly titled, “Unrivaled Ambition.” It detailed plans establishing an endowment for athletics, updating several facilities and “changing the entire culture” of the football program to name a few. Then the U.S. financial system nearly imploded, triggering a global credit crisis. Needless to say, the University’s “Unrivaled Ambition” was held in check. Almost three years later, though, the athletic department has managed to complete nearly all of its immediate facilities priorities. The recent renovations of Jack Coombs Field for baseball, the Rod Myers Training Center for both golf teams and the start of construction on the multi-purpose fieldhouse, to be used by the football team as well as intramural sports, have all taken place within the past six months. But it may be quite some time before any other construction crews come rolling down Whitford Drive, unless donors resume giving large gifts. The University is considering reducing its annual subsidy to athletics, which is currently around $14.6 million, down from $15 million two years ago, said Executive Vice President Tallman Trask. “We’ve weathered most of the problem, but it puts us in a place where we don’t have a lot of new money for new things,”
dent Richard Brodhead said at the event, which drew more than 100 students. “It seems to me that a school has to allow freedom to students to give them the space to become responsible, and [the school has] to work with students to accept that responsibility.” Although her name was never explicitly stated in the forum, much of the discussion centered around the negative publicity nationwide that came after a salacious PowerPoint produced by Karen Owen, Trinity ’10, spread to far more than the three friends to whom she initially sent it. In addition to discussing Owen, students raised questions about fraternity “progressive” parties and social e-mails, Tailgate and the gay, lesbian, bisexual and transgender community. The panel—which consisted of Brodhead, Vice President for Student Affairs Larry Moneta, Steve Nowicki, dean and vice provost of undergraduate education, and Dean of Students Sue Wasiolek—spent a large portion of the forum addressing the media’s “negative perception” of Duke. “I think it’s very simple how we change that,” Wasiolek said, noting the viral nature of the media. “We have complete control over our behavior... and if we choose to behave in a particular way and someone chooses to capture that and then spread it all over the world, we have the ultimate control over that. If that’s the way we are going to behave, that’s the way we are going to be perceived.” Although many students in the audience enjoyed the opportunity to hear administrators speak about controversial topics— especially the campus social scene—some audience members voiced concerns that in focusing on the negative media attention
See facilities on page 11 See Brodhead on page 6
ONTHERECORD
“You could... watch a movie if the squids were able to project it...”
—Sonke Johnsen on patterns squids can make on their skin, See story page 5
Keohane discusses her legacy at Duke and new book, Page 3
Number of job recruiters on campus increases, Page 4