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| Running low on material, the paper turns to this one for ideas. |
The original Register story, published August 23, 2011 as "Jimmy Fund Plans Walk of Shame," documented the ongoing efforts to raise awareness for cancer by marshaling regretful students.
The second piece, which appeared in Monday's issue of The Classic, is entitled "Charity walk of shame draws big support" and can be found here, at the bottom right corner of the page.
Additionally, The Classic has made threatening gestures to The Register before. Their comment:
"BC Register,
You have been warnnnnned. There's only room for one satirical publication at this Jesuit, Catholic institution.
The New England Classic."
When pressed, the Classic provided this link of the earliest possible story on this concept, admitting that they at least survey a wide range of publications when considering stories. Marcel Proust, a famous English author, definitely does not count among his friends a few freshmen at Sewanee: The University of the South.
For readers to draw their own conclusions, select portions of each story are included, side by side, below:
Register: "All missing $20 bills, Veteran's Taxi cab fare, and priceless moments of intimacy will go toward saving lives."
NE Classic: "All proceeds from concessions and merchandise sales will be donated to purchasing better walking shoes for campus sluts." and "The money will be used to fund gonorrhea research on campus."
Register: "Entrants must wear the outfit they put on the previous evening. For girls, completing the 8 a.m. walk in stilettos and an ass-flattering skirt is encouraged, though participants may also opt for the subtle 'morning mascara' or 'sex hair' looks."
NE Classic: "“When we saw all the girls walking down Comm Ave every Sunday morning, heels in hand, we saw an unorganized pack of stray puppies, just looking for a home,” said Aaron Kettlehorn, who put the event together with his roommate. “They looked like they could be easily manipulated.”"
Register: "Fans who do not get laid will have the opportunity to cast judgment on those who do as they pass through the Mods, up the Million Dollar Stairs, across O'Neill Plaza and the former Dustbowl, to the probable finish line at Cheverus."
NE Classic: "Families of the walkers were thrilled by the show of charity."
Dear BC Register,
ReplyDeleteHere at The New England Classic, we pride ourselves on our contribution to the BC community by entertaining the student body with our "occasionally humorous satirical pieces." While we are not perfect, we work hard to maintain journalistic integrity and take any accusation of plagiarism very seriously.
To classify the article, "Charity walk of shame draws big support", as "blatant plagiarism" grossly degrades the term. While it is unfortunate that you find similarities in these articles, no plagiarism was intended or exists.
It is true that some of the cited passages use similar words, such as "of" and "the". Quite frankly, we didn't know you still existed. In the future, feel free to contact us directly at thenewenglandclassic@gmail.com before making such bold, attention-grabbing accusations.
Regards,
The New England Classic
The Register appreciates your feedback and clarification. We would just like to stress that any accusations of plagiarism are themselves satirical. Our hope is that the ludicrous nature of a spat between satirical newspapers would encourage readers to take a more critical glance at forms of campus media which take themselves seriously with dubious journalistic practices.
ReplyDeleteMr. Proust, I think it would be fair of you to end this incident by informing your readers that the New England Classic didn't plagiarize your article. We did find it amusing how the passages you chose bore only the vaguest of similarities to our own articles. In the future we would be more open in participating in experiments like this if we were informed first. Otherwise we tend to be quite defensive of our little paper. Joke theifs are scum.
ReplyDelete