Discretion, Social Media, and Higher Ed Teaching

I am currently fulfilling an administrative role at my college.  It is interim, and I do not know my future other than I will be at that institution for a little while longer.  I enjoy it very much, although the two aspects of teaching I liked the most--the students and my teaching colleagues--are not as large a part of my life right now.

Between finishing my doctorate and stepping into this role, I have to admit to a different self-view and more reticence about what I put on my blogs.  Many things I would like to sound off about I realize it's best not to "go there."  At least while I am "assistant vice president," I will censor myself about
upcoming Supreme Court decisions
the fact that I got a solicitation from the Bill Clinton Foundation today (they want MY money?)
the democratic presidential candidates
The current president
Amtrak accidents
Affordable Care Act
murderers at the Boston marathon

But anyone who reads this can probably figure it out.

All that said, I have been following the brouhaha over the Boston University faculty member (actually, she's not actually there yet, but coming in the fall) who tweeted about white male college students.  Free speech aside, I think college faculty should just put away the tweet machine.  It is just too easy.  The medium is the message, and tweets simple cannot allow anything but potshots that are too easy to take out of context, too quick to go viral, and that lack the nuance of academic discourse. 

I have only gotten in trouble for something I blogged or Facebooked one time, and I learned my lesson.  I was being completely honest at the time and meant no harm, but it seemed so.  This is all so contextless and impersonal!

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