A letter from the editor: At times, no news is the right news
If you’re wondering where to find the Mirror’s news story on Augustana economics professor Reynold Nesiba, you’ll be looking for a long time.
It doesn’t exist.
It doesn’t exist because I think there is no news to report right now.
If you’re looking for a detailed description of the incident that preceded Nesiba’s Monday arrest and charge of sexual contact without consent, please check out the Argus Leader.
If you want information regarding Nesiba’s future with the Augustana, I have little to share with you. As Augustana President Rob Oliver explained in his Tuesday email to students and faculty, Nesiba requested a leave of absence, which Augustana granted, feeling it was necessary for both sides. His classes will continue and will be overseen by other professors.
Oliver told me Tuesday in an interview that he is waiting for the case to unfold before jumping to any conclusions or making any further decisions.
“I think that’s the best we can do at this point, and it’s the responsible thing to do at this time,” Oliver said.
I think he’s right. No student or faculty reaction would or should have any impact on the incident itself. We know only one side of the story, and just two people know for sure what happened.
I reached out to Nesiba for comment, and, unsurprisingly, he has not gotten back to me. He and those who know him are undoubtedly struggling with confusion and introspection right now.
If you know Nesiba, no student or faculty input is likely to sway your feelings about him—nor should it until the case is resolved. If you do not know him, words in this forum cannot give full testimony to his personality.
Oliver reiterated during our interview that he has little to say until he receives more information, that we know only one perspective on the incident.
The Argus explained that perspective in great detail. Anything I would add amounts to regurgitation, and any student or faculty reaction would be presented with no more legitimate knowledge of the incident than anyone else has.
The only news to report is that, in addition to his leave of absence as a professor, Nesiba has been replaced as advisor to the Augustana Democrats, the Augustana Peace Club and the Augustana Economics Club.
In today’s news environment, timeliness dominates many of the other news values. People want to hear instant responses to the big, important stories. This is one of those stories, and this is the Mirror’s response right now.
Jacob Belgum is a senior
journalism and accounting major from Atwater, Minn.
