LMU has been and will undoubtedly continue to be referred to as a gossip-infested campus. Our University has been called "Loyola Marymount High School," a claim entrenched in the minds of many.
Every student at LMU may not be a gossiper, but it is safe to assume most students are aware of the social networks on our campus that generate gossip. Site statistics on JuicyCampus.com would lead us to believe that schools eight times our size have five times less "juice" than LMU.
Maybe it's a common thread that strings smaller campuses together. However, the LMU community cannot deny the side of our campus that the site has revealed. A reflection of our community that was met with disgust and appall by some and unsurprised shoulder shrugs by others. One thread on the site has received over 2,000 hits. Indeed, the Juicy allure has attracted significant numbers of LMU students. In fact, out of the eight schools the Web site serves, Duke is the only school in the country that has taken to the site more than LMU.
Pointing fingers at the creator of Juicy Campus is much too simplistic of a response to a highly complex issue. We believe any unfavorable or unwanted language, insinuations, slander, etc. is in fact the fault of members of the LMU community. In turn, it portrays a side of every one of us that may not be consistently accurate, but remains incredibly real. In this sense, what is so horrific about Juicy Campus is that it represents LMU in a very simple and straightforward way.
Efforts to shelter or protect students is probably natural for the University. It is natural for LMU to feel the need to respond to the Web site, however, responses that respond to the Web site itself treat the symptom only, not the root cause. It is crucial not to forget that the central problem resides in gossiping in general. There is much to be said about LMU being located just past the shadow of the Hollywood Hills. By the same token, America's obsession with gossip culture has also impacted our bubble's gossip permeability. Why we crave the "juice" is a very important question.
As far as the possibility of LMU regulating access to Juicy Campus, we urge the LMU community to take an introspective look at itself before criticizing the Web site itself. Its anonymity is no different than RateMyProfessor.com and although much of the content is disturbing, it is no less disturbing than some of the content that can be found on Facebook, for instance.
Instead of rushing to fascist-style censorship suggestions, we should be capable of reasoning through or around the site and its burgeoning popularity. Alarmist, reactionary decisions regarding Juicy Campus might seem like a quick fix, but they are likely to be ineffective and even counterproductive, with the possibility of giving Juicy Campus the heightened allure of seeming naughty. It will be these separate, independent answers to the Juicy question that will map out the site's future.
