DN|Blog

To be blunt …

Posted April 20th, 2006. By Dave Studinski. In From the Editor.

Today is April 20, 2006. It’s 4.20, or depending on how you see it: 420, 4/20, 4-20 or just *giggle.*

We’re not naive at the Daily News, nor should we pretend to be. The staff is well aware of what today’s date signifies to many people, as if the surplus of four-twenty advertisements in our paper today aren’t a strong enough hint. It’s the so-called “International Pot Smokers Holiday.

Some debate went into today’s front page package on salvia and whether we were sending a negative message by publishing the story on 4/20.

“Would we be better off running it one day before or after?” I asked the staff. “No - we’re not ignorant. We know what 4/20 means.”

It’s true - we do. Although the DN staff as a whole may not necessarily agree with the basis for 4/20, it doesn’t mean we collectively disagree with it, either. We’re a mixed group of people, similar to any other sample of students. While we are share a common interest in journalism and news, we still have our own opinions about what’s right and wrong.

We’re not trying to promote 4/20 beyond it’s newsworthiness on a college campus, but we’re not going to play foolish, either. If there’s a most topical day for salvia to be discussed, today is surely that day.

The DN editorial board does agree on one thing, though - ending apathy. Today’s editorial illustrates a more collective feel of the staff, encouraging people on both sides of the drug debate to get involved and express their opinions respectfully and peacefully.

Whichever side you sit on, don’t be afraid to light up the conversation with your thoughts.

Was today the right day to run the package on salvia? Leave us your thoughts below in the comment area.