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opinion:
letters
Cunningham leaves
international impact
I was very sad to
read the news of Professor Ben Cunningham's death in the Daily
Forty-Niner. As a 1973 journalism graduate of Cal State Long
Beach, the knowledge that today's generation of journalism students
will not be personally acquainted with his passion for the field
poses almost as much regret as the grief of his passing.
As the Washington,
D.C. correspondent for the Lebanese Broadcasting Corporation
International, every aspect of my work has been shaped by
"Mr. C." -- as he was affectionately known to us
-- in those heady days in the early 70s.
The passion and
principles he instilled in students like myself, an international
student, extended his influence beyond our national borders
as we carried back to our countries the principles of news
reporting in a democratic society.
I came to CSULB
from Lebanon in 1969 as a foreign student. As English was
a second language for me, I was very aware of the difficulties
that lay ahead and worried about how I would make it through
the hardships of trying to adjust to a new country and new
academic challenges.
Then I met professor
Cunningham. He was at once a tough, demanding professor and
protective mentor. To inspire and encourage me in my work,
he would give me academic credit for the articles I would
write in Arabic for the newspaper in my hometown, even though
he could not read them.
He knew that I
needed to recognize and acknowledge my own productivity as
a budding journalist, as well as strive for achievement in
my professor, as it translated into my country and culture.
Mr. C's expectations
were very high. He made it clear to us that he wanted the
Forty-Niner to be the best paper in the country, and provided
daily critiques of the content and production to achieve that
end.
As students of
journalism during the Watergate era, he made sure we had televisions
in our classroom, and made us practice reporting from the
television, covering breaking news and up-to-the minute events.
While production
quality was important to Cunningham, he was devoted to ethics
in journalism and constantly challenged us to examine the
role of journalism in society. He was a strong advocate of
the First Amendment -- but at the same time he reminded us
that we had a responsibility for ethics in journalism.
His passion on
this topic left in h is students a flame that forever flickers
across the habits of our daily work. Later in my career, I
came to know the wisdom of his words, when I witnessed loss
of life as a direct result of reckless reporting that disregarded
the larger truth that only a society's context can provide
for a story.
Had Mr. C's ethics
and responsibility code been universal, I believe much of
the conflict and suffering prevalent in the Middle East today
could have been averted.
Mr. C understood
how to nurture budding journalists. Before his days as NBC's
national anchor, when Tom Brokaw was the "local anchorman"
in Los Angeles, he visited the CSULB campus as a guest lecturer.
During Brokaw's
tour of the journalism department, Mr. C made a special effort
to introduce me to him. Mr. Brokaw shook my hand warmly and
asked if I was related to Ralph Nader, which I truthfully
replied, "No." Brokaw smiled and replied, "No?
-- you should say yes -- it may help you in this country!"
Good advice --
but the fact that Mr. C saw foreign students as a source of
pride in his department went far beyond the impact of any
well-known name in propelling me into this career.
Mr. C's accomplishments
stand as a beacon for all that teach and partake of learning
in the field of journalism. I wish for today's students --
tomorrow's journalists -- that same glint of ethical commitment
in the professor's eye, and the productive encouragement that
only a master teacher can bequeath upon a student.
It is all you will
ever need to achieve true success in this field.
Thank you, Mr.
C.
-- Samir Nader
Read the On-line
49er story:
Academic leader Cunningham dies
Submit your
comments about Professor Cunningham in the On-line Forty-NIner
Lounge: CSULB
remembers Professor Ben Cunningham
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