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The Badger Herald

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The Badger Herald

Independent Student Newspaper Since 1969

The Badger Herald

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Chancellor online: PR guru or genuine Twitter extraordinaire?

This Monday, in a not-at-all out of character message, Biddy Martin tweeted “@alison1690,” “I like the opportunity to learn about and communicate with students in a medium you find appealing.” The next day, our chancellor held an impromptu discussion with student protesters occupying Bascom Hall. Coincidence? Political savvy? Biddy being Biddy?

Even if you’re opposed to the chancellor’s plan to split the University of Wisconsin-Madison from the UW system, you ought to be impressed with her communication abilities. For example, one moment Martin’s standing before a crowd of hostile graduate students, diplomatically responding to critiques of her New Badger Partnership proposal, and the next she’s typing furiously on her iPhone to partake in some digital chit-chat.

The cynical 20-year-old in me wants to attack her Twitter as a devious public relations ploy. After all, it’s probably not a bad idea to ingratiate yourself to the students whose tuition you plan to raise. Combing through the archives of Martin’s laudatory and gracious tweets leaves the impression of a propagandist chancellor who has finally discovered how to use the Internet.

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But ever since comedian Conan O’Brien’s late night farewell speech, I’ve made a conscientious effort to honor the idea that cynicism “doesn’t lead anywhere.” Suddenly, the chancellor’s neck-deep immersion in student-friendly social media seems less like an underhanded attempt at courting public opinion.

UW Life Sciences Communication professor Dietram Scheufele, a scholar of political communication, agrees with the more positive characterizations of Martin’s web presence.

“In all honesty, I think part of her success is that she’s not remaking herself, but that she’s actually really genuine in the way she [uses Twitter].”

Scheufele, in an interview early last week at his office, also commended the effortlessness with which the chancellor moves between her academic role as a university president and her political position as a savvy communicator capable of reaching various constituencies through all the appropriate channels.

The chancellor’s relentless cultivation of a strong Internet presence should set a precedent for other university leaders, who so far have been largely hesitant to embrace digital forms of communication (aside from email) as a means of reaching out to their student bodies. In addition to tweeting news and opinions regarding her tenure-defining proposal, Martin has also responded to “twitter-cism.” Messages to Martin such as “Please suspend NBP efforts, UW cannot be reorganized via deals with an illegitimate government,” and “Chancellor, you need to dust off the Wisconsin Idea – NBP is anti-Wisconsin,” have been directly addressed with polite denials.

Of course, her increased visibility and availability serve to defend a proposal that has come under fire from student groups, politicians and other UW System presidents. The communications push also supplements UW’s national reputation. Because college rankings are dependent on the opinion of university officials, Martin’s heightened publicity stands to earn UW a more favorable assessment from its peers. If Martin’s motivations for the New Badger Partnership may be questionable, her desire to sow prestige at the Wisconsin flagship is completely apolitical.

Lest her Twitter campaign prove too insubstantial, the chancellor has also dispatched a steady stream of informative emails to the student and faculty bodies. Subject headings such as “Update on the New Badger Partnership,” “Academic freedom and Open Records” and “State Budget” point to a chancellor committed to meaningful discussion. Students have critiqued the length of these emails, but we should applaud our leader for not condensing vital information into meaningless PR dribble.

So, is the Internet version of Biddy Martin a carefully constructed image designed to deflect criticisms of her ambitious New Badger Partnership? Probably not. It’s just Biddy being Biddy. How many university presidents would willingly participate in a mostly unscripted “Teach me How to Bucky” music video? Not many. Hopefully, our chancellor releases a “Teach me How to Tweet” instructional in the coming months.

Eric Carlson ([email protected]) is a junior majoring in journalism.

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