. But the psychic impact of its front page, where this debacle resided last week, is undeniable. The hoary adage that there’s no such thing as bad publicity is simply wrong. I’ve never been as barraged by so many friends and colleagues wondering “what the hell is happening at your school?”
That’s especially so in today’s turbocharged environment of culture warfare run amok — a national phenomenon particularly acute in red-state bastions like Texas and conservative colleges like ours.Administrators say all the right things, then look at their maroon-and-white loafers when culture warriors descend.Consider the latest evidence of political tampering with Aggie academia by state government leaders last spring: A visiting Aggie professor says something a student doesn’t like.
At least in part, McElroy’s downfall also exposes an inconvenient truth: an undercurrent of intolerance in our Aggie DNA. By no means is it dominant, and it’s improving, but, regrettably, it hangs around.I don’t know McElroy, but other Aggie journalists I respect say she was a fabulous choice to revive the struggling journalism program.Actually, she was a card-carrying Aggie, Class of 1981, but not even that pedigree could save her.