{"id":4814,"date":"2025-05-30T09:57:53","date_gmt":"2025-05-30T13:57:53","guid":{"rendered":"https:\/\/sites.ohio.edu\/library-archives-blog\/?p=4814"},"modified":"2025-05-30T09:57:53","modified_gmt":"2025-05-30T13:57:53","slug":"jour4130aldenpostcivilrights","status":"publish","type":"post","link":"https:\/\/sites.ohio.edu\/library-archives-blog\/2025\/05\/30\/jour4130aldenpostcivilrights\/","title":{"rendered":"Rewriting the Narrative: Vernon Alden, The Post, and the Lack of Black Perspective at OU during the Civil Rights Movement"},"content":{"rendered":"\r\n

By<\/span><\/span> Jadyn Carpenter, Communications Studies <\/span>\u2019<\/span>25<\/span>, for JOUR<\/span> 4130 Gender, Race, and Class in Journalism and Mass Media with <\/span>Victoria LaPoe, Spring 2025<\/span><\/span><\/em><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

\"A<\/a>\r\n
Vernon R. Alden, Ohio University\u2019s 15th President.<\/figcaption>\r\n<\/figure>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
\r\n
\r\n

During the spring 2025 semester, the staff of the Mahn Center for Archives and Special Collections worked intensively with Victoria La Poe\u2019s JOUR 4130 class, Gender, Race, and Class in Journalism and Mass Media. The students explored, selected, and researched materials from the collections, then worked in small groups to prepare presentations. The students had the option to then expand their research into a blog post like this one for their final project.<\/p>\r\n<\/blockquote>\r\n<\/figure>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

Civil Rights Coverage<\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

Papers from the Ohio University Presidential archives and published student newspaper reports indicate that Ohio University’s 15th President, Vernon R. Alden (1962-1969), promoted the Civil Rights Movement of the 1960s, supporting Black rights and equality at Ohio University and beyond.\u00a0Alden met with Black activists,<\/span> spoke to the injustices facing Black students, and used his platform<\/span> in his attempts to educate and uplift those around him. This understanding is illustrated very well by The Post<\/em> which was the campus\u2019s major student newspaper throughout<\/span> Alden’s term as OU\u2019s president.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

\r\n
\r\n
\"\"<\/a>\r\n
Students from Ohio University join the March from Selma to Montgomery, The Post<\/em>, March 19, 1965.<\/figcaption>\r\n<\/figure>\r\n<\/div>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
\r\n
\"\"<\/a>\r\n
President Alden\u2019s statement praising the efforts of students towards equality, The Post,<\/em> April 7, 1965.<\/figcaption>\r\n<\/figure>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<\/div>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

In March of 1965, when thousands of people marched with Martin Luther King Jr from <\/span><\/span>Selma to Montgomery<\/span><\/span><\/a>, many students from Ohio University joined the cause. Risking<\/span> backlash from some of OU\u2019s stakeholders and from the general public,<\/span> President Alden quickly and openly applauded the students, praising them for their involvement in Civil Rights matters.<\/span> From this point on The Post<\/em><\/span> covered national events<\/span> relating to Civil Rights<\/span> often by focusing on the movement through the lens of President Alden. This instilled the idea that the racial climate was a progressively<\/span> regarded issue on campus, at least from the perspective of The Post<\/em> and the President (Bennet, 2016).<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

For example,<\/span> in <\/span>spring <\/span>19<\/span>68, <\/span>following the assassination of <\/span>Dr. Ma<\/span>r<\/span>tin Luther King <\/span>Jr.<\/span> understanding and acknowledging <\/span>the importance of Dr. King<\/span> and of this moment in history, President<\/span> Alden<\/span> ordered the<\/span> canc<\/span>elation of classes for the day<\/span> and <\/span>delivered<\/span> a <\/span>powerful, <\/span>detailed <\/span><\/span>eulogy<\/span><\/span><\/a> to <\/span>the OU community.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

\r\n
\r\n
\"\"<\/a>\r\n
Excerpt from President Alden\u2019s Eulogy for MLK Jr. delivered on April 7, 1968.<\/figcaption>\r\n<\/figure>\r\n<\/div>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
\r\n
\"\"<\/a>\r\n
Excerpt from President Alden\u2019s Eulogy for MLK Jr. delivered on April 7, 1968\u00a0<\/figcaption>\r\n<\/figure>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<\/div>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

Alden stated,\u00a0<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

\r\n

\u201cAs we mourn the loss of this great man, we must rededicate ourselves to the fulfillment of the ideals he held. No longer can we be passive\u2014obedient only to causes.\u201d<\/span> (Alden, “Eulogy,” April 7, 1968, p. 4<\/span>).<\/p>\r\n<\/blockquote>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

He continues<\/span> by<\/span> saying,<\/span><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

\r\n

\u201cFrom the extinction of the light of his life must grow the blossoming of his cause. The ray of hope he gave us must shine on all men.\u201d<\/span> (Alden<\/span>, “Eulogy,” <\/span>April 7, 1968, p. <\/span>5<\/span>).<\/span><\/p>\r\n<\/blockquote>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

In December of the same year, 1968, The Post<\/em><\/span> cover<\/span>ed<\/span> an instance whe<\/span>n a group of Black students handed Alden <\/span>a<\/span> list of demands<\/span> for changes to be made in OU’s culture and curriculum<\/span>.\u00a0<\/span> We know that Alden\u2019s effort towards reducing racism <\/span>on campus <\/span>was very<\/span> well <\/span>documented<\/span> by<\/span> The P<\/span>ost<\/span><\/em>, which <\/span>considered itself <\/span>to be<\/span> a neutral force<\/span>; <\/span>often in its pages <\/span>providing constructive criticism to those who diverge<\/span>d<\/span> from fairness<\/span> and<\/span> equality<\/span> (Whitten-Woodring, 2009). <\/span>However, it sho<\/span>u<\/span>ld be noted that since <\/span>response<\/span>s<\/span> from <\/span>Black<\/span> students <\/span>were often lacking in The Post<\/em> narrative, at least one side of the developing story was not being <\/span>offered by The Post<\/em><\/span>.<\/span><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

\r\n
\r\n
\"\"<\/a>\r\n
A list of demands that were presented on behalf of Black students to President Alden, The Post<\/em>, December 3, 1968.<\/figcaption>\r\n<\/figure>\r\n<\/div>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n
\r\n
\"\"<\/a>\r\n
Alden\u2019s response to these demands as detailed through The Post<\/em>, December 5, 1968.<\/figcaption>\r\n<\/figure>\r\n<\/div>\r\n<\/div>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

Breaking it Down<\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

The efforts of both The Post<\/em> and President Alden were necessary forces that helped shed light on the ongoing issue of <\/span><\/span>Civil Rights in the 1960s<\/span><\/span><\/a>. However, it is also important to understand how underrepresented groups tend to lose their voice in the media. Under Dr. LaPoe this semester we have delved deep into how the media often shapes the perceptions that we use in evaluating the state of the world around us. Through outside research and concepts from course material, we will explore this further.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

Framing theory<\/span><\/span><\/a> is the first concept that allows us to analyze the coverage of the Civil Rights Movement on campus. Through the framing of a white university president and white students, Ohio University <\/span>seemed to be<\/span> a very progressive and safe space for African Americans during the civil rights movement<\/span>.<\/span> Realistically, the mass amount of <\/span>predominantly <\/span>white<\/span> coverage during the Civil Rights movement makes it <\/span>very difficult<\/span> to find any firsthand accounts by <\/span>Black<\/span> students<\/span>, giving us no real material gauge <\/span>for <\/span>success <\/span>or lack thereof <\/span>in the eyes of <\/span>OU\u2019s Black<\/span> s<\/span>tudents.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

Additionally, <\/span><\/span>Standpoint theory<\/span><\/span><\/a> informs us that t<\/span>he <\/span>largely white<\/span> audience and student body shaped the general <\/span>perception<\/span> of the Civil Rights movement impressions on OU\u2019s campus<\/span>, with the media coverage co<\/span>vering<\/span> their standpoint or p<\/span>erspective<\/span>. This standpoint <\/span>likely differs<\/span> from <\/span>th<\/span>e views <\/span>of <\/span>Black<\/span> students <\/span>at this time<\/span>.<\/span> While this theory <\/span>originates<\/span> through feminism, it is <\/span>widely applicable to other marginalized groups <\/span>(<\/span>Helpern<\/span>, 2019).<\/span><\/span><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

While The Post<\/em> did use <\/span><\/span>Resonance<\/span><\/span><\/a> [OHIO login required]<\/span><\/span>, covering stories that held value to their audience, the lack of coverage from the Black perspective and over coverage of white support. This is cemented further in instances like seen below where a Black student wrote in response to the Mr. Page column, criticizing the performative coverage of \u201cBlack problems, which will be solved by Black people.\u201d<\/span><\/span><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

\"\"<\/a>\r\n
Black Students respond to the coverage of their experiences through White journalists<\/span>, The Post<\/em>, February 27, 1969.<\/figcaption>\r\n<\/figure>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

Highlighting Black Voices<\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

The Post<\/em><\/span><\/span><\/a> has been the voice of students since 1939. However, as previously mentioned, it is a historically white student paper. In the wake of the Civil Rights Movement this became increasingly troubling as Black voices continued to be only heard in the background if at all. The Black Press was instrumental in providing an outlet for Black individuals to voice concerns and have their voices heard.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

To better understand this, we can look to the work of Dr. Jinx<\/span> Broussard and Dr. Benjamin LaPoe<\/span>. In their work together they <\/span>state<\/span> that<\/span> \u201c<\/span>a<\/span> central motivation for the Black press\u2019 formation was to correct misinformation, fill holes by providing visibility, and become a voice to the oppressed and ignored<\/span>\u201d (<\/span>LaPoe & Broussard<\/span>, 2018, p. <\/span>140<\/span>).<\/span><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

However, throughout most of the 1960s, and, certainly during the Alden years at OU, there were no designated Black press<\/span> outlets on campus from which we can gauge Black student perspective during the height of the Civil Rights Movement. It was not until the inclusion of a Black Studies Program in Ohio University’s academic curriculum\u2014which was one of the demands Black students had handed to President Alden\u2014that Black voices could be heard across campus as the Afro-American Affairs Newspaper<\/a><\/em> began publishing regularly at OU.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

Nevertheless, we can see that providing a platform through which Black perspectives could be published<\/span> and read in the OU community was already on the minds of OU’s Black student population even before the introduction of the Black Studies Program.<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

\"\"<\/a>\r\n
The Post <\/em>shared the SACCs plans to release The Black Bull, November 12, 1968.<\/figcaption>\r\n<\/figure>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

This statement alone further reinforces the idea that Black students <\/span>needed<\/span> an outlet<\/span>, free of the <\/span>middleman<\/span>. <\/span>Black<\/span> students wanted <\/span>a <\/span>vehicle which would<\/span> give<\/span> voice t<\/span>o Black<\/span> concerns<\/span><\/span>.<\/span><\/span><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

The Black Bull<\/em><\/span><\/span><\/strong><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

\"Cover<\/a>\r\n
The front page of The Black Bull<\/em>.<\/figcaption>\r\n<\/figure>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

The first documented attempt at a Black publication<\/span> on Ohio University’s campus was The Black Bull<\/em>, produced in 750 copies. The paper detailed feelings toward the university, national events, poems by both students and prominent Black activists, and songs, depicting experiences shared by the Black community.<\/span> The Black Bull<\/em> represented most importantly a space where Black students could speak freely for themselves instead of relying on The Post<\/em> or the University President to speak for them.\u00a0The publishing of The Black Bull<\/em> allowed them to see that their experiences, no matter how they differed from the news as it was presented by The Post<\/em>,<\/span> were okay to talk and write about.<\/span><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

This is appropriately depicted on page 3 of The Black Bull<\/a><\/em> when writer Larry Deering states,<\/span><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

\r\n

\u201cAfter talking with one of the soul sisters on campus, and taking a deep soul-searching look at myself, I finally came to realize that I was so much like many of my Black brothers and sisters on campus who believed that what is not written according to the status quo (that being the white man’s media) was lewd and atrocious.\u201d<\/span> <\/span><\/p>\r\n<\/blockquote>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

Deering continues by saying that,<\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

\r\n

“I wasn’t taking into consideration that what is said and how it is said in this paper typifies the way our Black masses speak.<\/span><\/span>“<\/p>\r\n<\/blockquote>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

According to Deering, Black members of the community were primed to feel their depictions of reality were too harsh for the general public to read and digest <\/span>(Dixon & Maddox, 2005)<\/span><\/a> [OHIO login required].<\/span> The consumption of The Post<\/em> and the voice of President Alden unintentionally had promoted the general perspective and attitude on OU\u2019s campus that the Civil Rights activism was all going swell and that OU\u2019s Black student population\u2014indeed the Black population of the country\u2014had no grievances. However, with The Black Bull<\/em>, community members were able to see past the efforts of priming and speak to their true convictions.\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

The ability for Black students to do this was absolutely instrumental to having a true sense of a voice. While The Black Bull<\/em> publication did not last, it laid the groundwork for future publications like The Afro-American Affairs<\/a><\/em>, opening up a larger space for genuine experiences.<\/span><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

Putting it Together<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/strong><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

President Vernon R. Alden\u2019s leadership during the Civil Rights Movement <\/span>served as a<\/span> beacon of hope<\/span> during<\/span> a troubling time<\/span>. <\/span>His activism was absolutely crucial in <\/span>shedding light on the racial injustice not just on campus but <\/span>around the country<\/span>.<\/span> Furthermore, The Post<\/em><\/span> reflected the power of Alden\u2019s position, framing successes through his eyes. However, <\/span>if <\/span>we<\/span> look <\/span>at this time <\/span>with a critical eye it is important to recognize <\/span>that <\/span>the <\/span>voices <\/span>unintentionally <\/span>brushed aside in the process were those of OU’s Black student and community members.\u00a0D<\/span>espite <\/span>the fact that<\/span> it was the Black population who were living through these experiences, their stories were told through the lens of white institutions and voices.<\/span><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

When we listen to <\/span>and amplify <\/span>marginalized voices we can <\/span>support the telling of authentic narratives. The true experiences had by <\/span>Black members of society <\/span>were<\/span> one<\/span>s<\/span> of perseverance and <\/span>strength<\/span>. It is a narrative that deserves to be heard<\/span> as<\/span> they are the heroes of their stories. It is not those who <\/span>attempt<\/span> to do it for them, only <\/span>doing<\/span> them <\/span>an ounce of justice. <\/span>It is publications like The Black <\/em><\/span>Bull<\/span><\/em>,<\/span> and, after that, The Afro-American Affairs<\/em> newspaper t<\/span>hat<\/span> have <\/span>displayed the true nature of the Black experience and <\/span>have <\/span>created a<\/span> space where <\/span>Black <\/span>voices are not filtered. <\/span>When we allow<\/span> marginalized communities <\/span>to <\/span>freely <\/span>express<\/span> their own <\/span>voice<\/span>s,<\/span> we help pave the way for genuine expression and a more <\/span>equitable<\/span> future in <\/span>media<\/span> and beyond.<\/span><\/span>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n

References<\/span><\/span><\/strong>\u00a0<\/span><\/p>\r\n\r\n\r\n\r\n