Penn State and Paterno

Upon reading the tweets about Paterno and Penn State, most can agree that the whole situation is heartbreaking and sickening – or is it? The tweets concerning the Penn State controversy were on both ends of the spectrum. Some people were Tweeting their support for the coach and team, yet others were criticizing not only the coach, but the whole institution. One tweet that was particularly interesting and was able to capture both sides of the story was written about a link to a story written by Gregg Doyle called “The Real Penn State? In Room 206, Plenty of Heart to be Found.” This article did what most people need to do before commenting on situations and that is to listen openly to others’ arguments and opinions. Mr. Doyle went into a classroom with his mind set about being disgusted by the Penn State situation, and not understanding the student protest; however, upon leaving the room the students broke him down little by little and forced him to see their reasons behind the protest.

Another common thread throughout the Tweets was the propensity to criticize the entire institution, students included, for the acts of a few university administrators. This is no shock since blaming a minority for a majority’s mistake happens regularly. It immediately brings to mind the stereotyping and fear of all Muslims for the acts on 9/11 by one terrorist group. Similarly, it does not make sense to blame all of Penn State University for deeds they were unaware of - it is not right to label the whole student body, faculty and staff as “Pedophile State University” because of the cowardly acts of few.

Social media, such as Twitter, is able to perpetuate stories instantaneously and thoughtlessly. Because of the anonymous persona that the internet allows, it is extremely common for people to feed the drama that follows stories, not just the popular celebrity spectacles, but the real life scandals that happen outside of Hollywood. Being nameless allows people to continue the thoughtless comments that are often written but would never be said in real life. Social media also tends to influence people dramatically depending on who they follow. Frequent Tweeters are apt to following friends and celebrities who they respect and would not want to disagree with or who they revere and base their opinions off of what those people say. The instant access and 24hour availability of these social media sites keep drama going longer than necessary.

The Penn State story is also a good example of how doing what is “right” is not always what is easy. The whole situation would not have been avoided had action been taken when the abuse was first reported, but far less people would be involved and guilty of allowing such an awful crime to occur. However, instead of protecting future children and bringing justice to those who had already been victimized, the administration who knew about the situation chose to look the other way. They chose the fame and glory of sport over the morally and ethically right thing to do. In sport, as well as life, it is most important to say and do what is right whether or not it is known by others or not.

- Katie T

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