DIVERSE ISSUES IN HIGHER EDUCATION -- Emil Guillermo is a veteran journalist and commentator. He is an adjunct lecturer at San Francisco State University. He writes for the Asian American Legal Defense and Education Fund.
“When you teach a course called Diversity in Media, Jussie Smollett provided one heck of a teachable moment.
“As a veteran minority journalist, I use my nearly 40 years as a TV, radio and print reporter to approach the class how a Vietnam Vet might teach the war. I’ve been through all the diversity coverage and employment battles. To add the broader historical foundation, I use News for All The People: The Epic Story of Race and the American Media, by Juan Gonzalez and Joseph Torres, which begins with the first newspaper, Publick Occurrences Both Foreign and Domestick in 1690, and takes us through Jackson, the Trail of Tears and beyond. With that as a backdrop, in class we discuss how the media has tried to be that perfect mirror to capture our ever changing and diverse society. ...
“Was Smollett acting any differently than any other self-respecting narcissist would?
“I tell my class to follow the story. And to expect fallout in other similar type of stories where hate violence is alleged.”