Unintended consequences of NUIG’s chilling legal letter

Bradley Bytes – A sort of political column by Dara Bradley

More rumblings of discontent over at the Quadrangle.  As if NUI Galway hasn’t enough bad publicity on its plate, this week it was confirmed its legal eagles sent a missive to an American-based host of a campaigning, often critical, blog.

NUIG has threatened to sue for defamation, Automattic Inc, the company that owns WordPress.com, which is the providers of the blog michelinesthreeconditions.wordpress.com.

The ‘three conditions’ campaign is supported by some students, past and present, as well as some current and former staff.

It seeks to highlight gender discrimination issues at NUIG and offers three solutions as to how the third level institute could clean-up its act in relation to the promotion of women staff members.

It has the backing of Micheline Sheehy Skeffington, a former lecturer who won an Equality Tribunal case against NUIG for gender discrimination.

The blog highlights her case. And it also supports five more women who were short-listed and deemed eligible but who, like Sheehy Skeffington in 2009, were not promoted.

This ‘famous five’ are pursuing the matter, with the help of Sheehy Skeffington’s €70,000 damages.

You’ve probably already guessed it but for the avoidance of doubt the blog is not very complimentary of NUIG or its management and by association its president, Dr Jim Browne.

NUIG is a sensitive institution that doesn’t like criticism, regardless of whether it’s for its own good in the long-run and in the public interest.

You’ll recall two months ago there was a censorship hullabaloo made by NUIG’s Students’ Union president, Phelim Kelly.

He said he was “extremely frustrated” with university authorities, who put obstacles in the way of the organisers of the Secret Cartoonist exhibition the SU was organising.

It contained close-to-the-bone satirical cartoons that poked fun at a fictional university president and gender inequality issues.

But even allowing for NUIG’s reaction to the exhibition, and taking into account that it gets prickly when less than complimentary things are said about it, it is still a surprise NUIG has decided to pursue the legal route to remove one particular blog post, which it says includes remarks which are “clearly seriously damaging” to the institution.

Skeffington Sheehy is said to be “horrified” by the “ludicrous” legal proceedings.

NUIG protests it is protecting its reputation. Supporters of the blog and campaign say the university is attempting to shut them down.

Universities are supposed to be guardians of free speech. One consequence of this High Court defamation threat could be the chilling effect it will have on NUIG’s critics.

But there are always unintended consequences. And so not only has NUIG’s legal threat been highlighted in media this week, publicity it would prefer to do without, it has also inadvertently increased awareness of michelinesthreeconditions.wordpress.com.

And it’s emboldened the campaign – if NUIG’s actions do close the blog, its supporters have vowed to take to social media to continue spread their gospel.

McNelis kiss of death for leadership hopefuls

While we’ll stop short of calling Labour Party City Councillor Niall McNelis a ‘loser’, he sure does know how to back one.

When the knives came out for Labour leader Eamon Gilmore, McNelis, and his then colleague, Galway West TD, Derek Nolan, were busy backing Alex White to take over.

McNelis backed the wrong horse. Joan Burton won that particular heave.

And when the knives came out for Joan, and she stepped aside, after a disastrous general election for the party, McNelis was rowing in behind deputy leader, Alan Kelly, to replace her, as our photo shows.

McNelis backed the wrong horse again.

Brendan Howlin took the hot-seat, leaving Kelly humiliated, and throwing a tantrum.

Given Howlin’s below-bar performance since taking the hot-seat, it probably won’t be long before Labour dumps him too. Maybe then McNelis will be lucky the third time, and actually back the right leader.

For more, read this week’s Galway City Tribune.