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I can't help but feel that university admissions officers should stay the hell out of determining the bounds of acceptable discourse for their applicants, since

I can't help but feel that university admissions officers should stay the hell out of determining the bounds of acceptable discourse for their applicants, since their determinations are inevitably going to be loaded with political connotations (especially when the story specifically mentions tracking an applicant "involved in a political cause"). See http://thefire.org/ http://thefire.org/ for copious examples.

Aloha 13y ago
I don't think my education institution, employer, or a place I may volunteer for has any right to ask for my social media information, or use anything they may find on social media in any way. It's an invasion of privacy, because of how ubiquitous social media has become, its a bit like requiring you to submit transcripts of all your interactions with your friends over the last 6 months or whatever.
- Falling3 13y ago
  I agree that they should absolutely not be asking for this information. But how can it be a privacy issue when the information is publicly posted?
crassus 13y ago
It's easy to stay within the bounds of acceptable college discourse by following two simple rules: be progressive, and don't be not progressive. Education colleges explicitly filter out people with non-progressive views[1]: "Someone who provided essential support during my troubles told me a funny story. He was posting information about me on Facebook, and up popped an ad for USC's online Masters of Arts in Teaching program. On impulse, he called the recruiter to see if they had any sort of ideological requirements and (quoting from his note) "asked him if USC enforces belief in specific values like 'equity' or that 'everyone can learn,' and [the recruiter] assured me that one of the admission essays is precisely on this point and that people with unsuitable views are weeded out!" " And Harvard has made it clear that they do not permit questioning certain progressive ideas for which the evidence is not persuasive[2]. In the popular consciousness, you may see these sentiments expressed as "you have the right to speech, but not the right to hate speech" or "you don't have the right to be offensive" or "if you say offensive things, expect consequences". [1] http://www.nas.org/articles/Achievement_Gap_Politics http://www.nas.org/articles/Achievement_Gap_Politics [2] http://www.mindingthecampus.com/originals/2013/11/the_slow_death_of_free_speech_.html http://www.mindingthecampus.com/originals/2013/11/the_slow_d...

Aloha 13y ago

I don't think my education institution, employer, or a place I may volunteer for has any right to ask for my social media information, or use anything they may find on social media in any way. It's an invasion of privacy, because of how ubiquitous social media has become, its a bit like requiring you to submit transcripts of all your interactions with your friends over the last 6 months or whatever.

Falling3 13y ago
I agree that they should absolutely not be asking for this information. But how can it be a privacy issue when the information is publicly posted?

crassus 13y ago

It's easy to stay within the bounds of acceptable college discourse by following two simple rules: be progressive, and don't be not progressive. Education colleges explicitly filter out people with non-progressive views[1]: "Someone who provided essential support during my troubles told me a funny story. He was posting information about me on Facebook, and up popped an ad for USC's online Masters of Arts in Teaching program. On impulse, he called the recruiter to see if they had any sort of ideological requirements and (quoting from his note) "asked him if USC enforces belief in specific values like 'equity' or that 'everyone can learn,' and [the recruiter] assured me that one of the admission essays is precisely on this point and that people with unsuitable views are weeded out!" " And Harvard has made it clear that they do not permit questioning certain progressive ideas for which the evidence is not persuasive[2]. In the popular consciousness, you may see these sentiments expressed as "you have the right to speech, but not the right to hate speech" or "you don't have the right to be offensive" or "if you say offensive things, expect consequences". [1] http://www.nas.org/articles/Achievement_Gap_Politics http://www.nas.org/articles/Achievement_Gap_Politics [2] http://www.mindingthecampus.com/originals/2013/11/the_slow_death_of_free_speech_.html http://www.mindingthecampus.com/originals/2013/11/the_slow_d...