Engler scraps MSU alumni magazine focused on Nassar, replaces with MSU-friendly fluff
A special edition of the MSU alumni magazine, Spartan, was planned this summer. It was supposed to be a full retrospective of the Larry Nassar saga from a wide array of sources, including a special cover, an editor's note laying out the issue and its importance, as well as essays written by sexual harassment victims and items such as Title IX implications and what needs to be learned. Sounds great?
John Engler scrapped all that in favor of MSU propaganda. Replaced all of the symbolic teal with Spartan green. Took the woman off the cover and replaced it with a quote of his own. Scrubbed and sanitized the editor's note. Bragged about all the accomplishments of the school while breezing over anything related to Larry Nassar.
I shouldn't be shocked by all this but somehow I still am.
https://statenews.com/article/2018/08/original-alumni-magazine-leaked
August 24th, 2018 at 1:41 PM ^
I don't know what kind of reaction that I will get on this, but is anybody else a little tired of discussing all of this shit on here? This is getting a little ridiculous. People are just searching anywhere possible on the internet for stories to be outraged about and then posting them to see who wins the outrage contest. I know it is "not my blog" etc. etc. and I don't get to decide what is posted, but does anybody else think it might be time that we stop raging for a while?
August 24th, 2018 at 1:44 PM ^
I agree. Tbh it comes off as whining. There's nothing we can do about this so what is there to talk about? The season is a week from tomorrow and we've hardly talked about our own team.
August 24th, 2018 at 1:46 PM ^
Perhaps silence is how these institutions continue to operate with impunity.
August 24th, 2018 at 1:56 PM ^
Pithy and true.
But not on a football blog from another university.
August 24th, 2018 at 2:09 PM ^
I don't disagree at all, but these stories don't gain much meaningful traction because a rival blog has a bitching session about them.
August 24th, 2018 at 1:45 PM ^
I mean I didn’t really seek it out. It was retweeted into my Twitter timeline and I thought it pertinent being that we’ve been discussing systems of power enabling this sort of behavior to continue.
if you don’t want to discuss this on MGoBlog, perhaps you could personally choose not to discuss this on MGoBlog.
August 24th, 2018 at 1:46 PM ^
Thanks. That is exactly what I suggested above so I am glad we are on the same page.
August 24th, 2018 at 1:46 PM ^
Yes but it's offseason so it's either that, politics or baseball.
To OP - I saw the article somewhere and had similar thoughts so I see why you posted. But it's just more of the same so I thought why bother.
August 24th, 2018 at 1:59 PM ^
Vetting - Darkstar
August 24th, 2018 at 1:46 PM ^
Yes. Worn down from all the discussions about how poorly our rivals are behaving. While I entirely agree, I don't know why we need a separate thread for every new outrage.
I suppose it's a Friday, but we are one week from Football and this is when board quality is supposed to drastically improve, like this. I mean, I did see one returning poster come and just deliver an amazing thread (which I now can't even find), the likes of which I haven't seen since basketball season.... but it was quickly covered in x tweeted y omg posts.
August 24th, 2018 at 2:00 PM ^
I agree there might be some outrage for outrage sage with some of these posts, but (a) you don't need to read them if you don't care to, and (b) it's still a big deal. The fact that people are sick and tired talking about systemic sexual assaults at major universities is part of the reason they keep happening and, seemingly, with little consequences for the guilty parties. I like to think most people here can root for Michigan while also recognizing that the sport they like is full of people who don't seem to have particularly strong moral objections to belittling and pushing players until they die, welcoming rapists onto their teams, or covering up years-long domestic assaults because your buddy is the grandchild of your mentor.
It isn't a race up outrage mountain to me; I'm just tired of seeing shitty people treat others horribly and nothing happening to anyone except the victims.
August 24th, 2018 at 2:11 PM ^
What I am saying is that this is becoming something other than MGoBlog. It is becoming a chat room where people link bad stories about bad people and say bad things about them. I think that Meyer's actions with regard to Zach Smith were clearly unacceptable and that the punishment OSU handed down was insufficient, but does that mean we have to re-live every portion of the Nassar scandal as well? This post, and others like it, aren't even labeled OT anymore. And there will be another one in like 10 minutes.
And OK, you're right, I can just leave the thread and not read it, I will do that.
I'm just saying. Michigan v. Notre Dame a week from now. Big game. Fun times. Let's do that for a while.
August 24th, 2018 at 2:34 PM ^
While I think we've probably beaten the OSU scandal to death, I actually found this bit of news interesting and disturbing. As transparent as the OSU BoT was in rationalizing keeping Urban Meyer on as head coach, it pales in comparison to Engler's brazen attempts to sweep the whole Nassar episode under the rug. It's almost Stalinist in how relentlessly he's worked to try and preserve MSU's reputation at the expense of showing actual contrition for the terrible things that happened there over the past 20 years. Engler really has taken shamelessness to a whole new level.
August 24th, 2018 at 2:38 PM ^
"Almost Stalinist" - interesting take.
August 24th, 2018 at 2:50 PM ^
It’s fairly accurate. Communism isn’t known for tolerating dissent.
As to the original post and the “burned out” response. I agree that it can get tiring and old to read negative posts regarding other schools. But let me say two things in response.
1.) If you would rather see better content, feel free to post up more football related items.
2.) the fact that MSU is whitewashing this as well as the stuff with Izzo, Dantonio, etc., should not be ignored.
August 24th, 2018 at 3:22 PM ^
I'm all about MSU bashing, but you might want to read up on 'ol boy Stalin before bandying about "almost Stalinist" regarding anything not tied to the murder of millions and millions of innocent people. But that's just my take.
August 24th, 2018 at 4:37 PM ^
Oh I have. Not to get too sidetracked, but it's amazing how people will point at Hitler but essentially ignore Stalin and Mao who slaughtered at least as many people, if not more, than the National Socialists did.
That being said, while I get your point about the wording being too extreme (and don't necessarily disagree entirely), the comparison, while harsh, is not entirely baseless. The body count aside, it's very Communist to shut up dissention and gloss over everything for the sake of appearances.
Back on topic, I have to think that Dantonio and Izzo are wiping their brows over this glossover.
August 24th, 2018 at 4:01 PM ^
Double post
August 24th, 2018 at 2:51 PM ^
It sucks, but our two rivals were involved in the two biggest collegiate stories and scandals of the offseason. Every other national college football website or podcast has been talking about the Urban Meyer story the last 24 hours. Why would you expect it would be different here?
My issue usually relates to the type of post. If there is actually some new news or development, I am on board with a new thread. But people starting new threads about their feelings, takes or personal unanswered questions on a story, that should be either just a comment in an existing board post or a diary.
August 24th, 2018 at 4:44 PM ^
It's actually related to college sports in our conference. What important threads are being pushed aside by these posts? The Friday drinking thread? The "what's the best season of Star Trek" nerd-jerk thread? Don't read it if you don't like it.
August 24th, 2018 at 8:58 PM ^
Yeah, I mean, this is tragic and all, but it's not the tackle situation at U of M....
Some things are worth being outraged about, like people who care more about football than people's lives who have been ruined to justify athletic success.
August 24th, 2018 at 1:49 PM ^
This was posted at the end of the Unverified Voracity front page post two days ago...
August 24th, 2018 at 1:49 PM ^
My mistake I missed that. Please delete moms.
August 24th, 2018 at 1:58 PM ^
You're good, this is different. The freep article from UV a couple days ago didn't have a copy of the actual original magazine, like the one you posted does. Personally I think this was a good post, props to MSU's student newspaper for getting ahold of this and for the alumni/editors who wrote it originally.
I know people here are tired of stories about our rivals' scandals, but I think MSU students/alumni deserve some credit where credit is due.
August 24th, 2018 at 2:37 PM ^
Agreed. It's really laudable that the MSU student body truly seems to embrace the concept of contrition and to move forward and insist the administration does better in the future. This stands in stark contrast to John Engler's reprehensible conduct in trying to preserve MSU's reputation at the expense of everything else.
August 24th, 2018 at 3:01 PM ^
My bad, thought this was the original article based on your headline. Carry on :)
August 24th, 2018 at 1:58 PM ^
And amongst all that is happening, the biggest criminal of them all in E. Lansing operates BAU.
Where is the Title IX investigation?
August 24th, 2018 at 2:08 PM ^
The emphasis on Title IX enforcement ended with DeVos' confirmation.
August 24th, 2018 at 4:41 PM ^
I was thinking with Bill Clinton. Same difference.
August 24th, 2018 at 1:58 PM ^
I hadn't heard about this move by Engler prior to seeing this post.
Having worked on a wide variety of big and small publications for various schools and units at U-M and two other P5 institutions, I'm particularly attuned to editorial policy in academia. I'm not remotely surprised Engler did this, and it simply continues the horrible PR he's been putting out there.
August 24th, 2018 at 2:01 PM ^
I would love it but I doubt it. Nothing else has to this point.
August 24th, 2018 at 3:36 PM ^
The initial news about this came out some months (2-3, maybe) ago. New details with this article, in particular, is the original story that was quashed by Engler.
I'm also appalled and saddened at the comments by unviersity mouthpiece Emily Guerrant. I don't envy her position, but it is weak justification for why Engler, himself, pushed to have the issue changed.
August 24th, 2018 at 1:59 PM ^
I would have been shocked if Engler hadn't scrapped this issue.
Literally everything he does is a cover up of one sort or another.
August 24th, 2018 at 2:10 PM ^
Proverbial nothing to see here.
August 24th, 2018 at 2:09 PM ^
The guy is just an all-around terrible person.
August 24th, 2018 at 2:10 PM ^
Why am I not surprised? Just like I am not surprised that the B1G agrees with the "punishment" served to UM and GS.
Big Ten statement on Ohio State: "We support the findings of the investigative team led by Mary Jo White, the recommendations of the Board of Trustees & the decision made by President Drake in consultation with the Board.” The B1G had no further comment
August 24th, 2018 at 2:11 PM ^
I used to laugh at people who suggested Michigan should remove itself from the B1G...
August 24th, 2018 at 2:46 PM ^
I wish the plantiffs in the lawsuit didn't settle. They should've forced MSU to offer their students free tuition at the state school of their choice and bankrupted the school.
August 24th, 2018 at 2:58 PM ^
Hat tip to State News for putting this out there.
August 24th, 2018 at 3:25 PM ^
Here is a prediction.
MSU will conduct a very thorough search and investigation of this situation to determine who it was that leaked this magazine issue to the State News.
That person or persons will be summarily fired.
August 24th, 2018 at 4:03 PM ^
There will be plenty of time to dredge these things up again after losses to MSU & OSU. Thats the best time to play the we're still better card.
August 24th, 2018 at 4:16 PM ^
Will there be a basset hound on the cover of the magazine?
August 24th, 2018 at 4:25 PM ^
Don Canham said not to turn a one day story into a two day story. I wonder what he would think about turning a a one day positive story, MSU making an honest effort to come to terms about what happened, into a two day negative story of censorship and whitewashing.
August 24th, 2018 at 6:07 PM ^
I don't know how/why any parent, especially of a daughter, would let their kid go to school there.
Between this crap and the water in Flint, I hope the voters are galvanized to make some changes so that this shit is no longer enabled.
August 24th, 2018 at 6:24 PM ^
He just sinks lower and lower and lower and lower
August 24th, 2018 at 8:09 PM ^
I have no UGH's left to give.