Why is the front page of the Linfield Review tearing down a Linfield student? Why is it proclaiming that a rape that happened ON CAMPUS?

My uncle came to tour campus and saw the paper and REFUSES to let my cousin go to Linfield because of that stupid article. She loves Linfield. It was her top choice. But now… The apartments are apparently not safe, walking home from anywhere at night is not safe… How can the hall his daughter gets placed in be any safer than where the girl that was raped is living?

What’s the purpose of advertising the flaws of Linfield on the front page of the paper (that any community member can pick up and see)? With the great school that Linfield is (I’ve spent four years here.)I hate to see an opportunity it gives students to practice journalism through the Linfield Review be the reason prospective students turn away.

I hope Diego doesn’t have a chance to come back to Linfield after this… because that great community that Linfield is KNOWN for won’t welcome him back — even if he’s found not guilty. Yeah, if he did what the Linfield Review says that he did then that should disgust each and every one of us.

But I don’t understand why the front page article is outlining what sexual assault charges he is facing. Couldn’t it be inside the paper? Couldn’t the front page be something that… I don’t know.. Makes Linfield look GOOD? If it has to be on the front page, the article at least could have waited until the investigation is OVER, instead of “The police investigation is ongoing.”

As someone who has been misquoted (twice) in the paper, and tried for four years to give you guys the benefit of the doubt for things like this… Please consider what I’m saying.

I get that it’s a school paper and you want to keep it real and present the actual news. But keep in mind that with a community like ours and with how welcoming our campus is to families and friends and alumni that YOU have the power to destroy all of that. You don’t have to lie or withhold the real news from people… but you could at least make people want to pick up the paper without feeling disappointed or disgusted at a member of our community. This incident isn’t the first time I’ve felt that way and I can only assume it won’t be the last.

You’re all talented writers and have the duty and opportunity to impact Linfield in ways that no one else can. Albus Dumbledore once said “It is our choices, Harry, that show what we truly are, far more than our abilities.” I hope you choose to put out a good paper instead of a mediocre one. I hope you choose to have integrity instead of malice. I hope you choose to strive to make Linfield proud instead of disappointed. I’d say it’s possible… But it’s up to you.

I majored in math and computer science, clearly, so you’ll have to excuse my inability to write like any of you can. But I bet I can write a program to identify, in a list of 800,000,000 numbers, how many palindromes are listed. To each their own. Good luck.

-Kate Shear ‘15