From Indiana Daily Student, Jan. 23, 2009

The premise that a public lecture be off-the-record stuns me. ELW

By Elvia Malagon, IDS

A lecture scheduled for Tuesday night in the Indiana Memorial Union was canceled after the speaker began feeling ill and after questions arose about the legality of requiring a public speech to be off-the-record.

Meghan O’Sullivan, former deputy national security advisor to President Bush, was sick to her stomach, said Gene Coyle, faculty adviser for the Student Alliance for National Security, the group that sponsored the event. The lecture, which was set to begin at 6:30 p.m., was delayed because of O’Sullivan’s sickness and legal issues surrounding her speech.

Adam Newman, assistant director of the group, said the lecture was going to be about what students can learn from the country’s experiences in Iraq and what to anticipate in the future.

At about 6:45 p.m., Coyle announced to the crowd of about 70 that the lecture was being delayed until the group leaders discussed the situation with the Indiana Daily Student. According to a press release from the group, the lecture was supposed to be off-the-record. However, because the event was free and open to the public, the IDS refused to agree to the speaker’s off-the-record stipulation.

O’Sullivan said she has given many speeches off-the-record and can only give off-the-record speeches.

“(It is) a common practice for people who leave the government,” O’Sullivan said. “I have spoken widely off-the-record and it has been respected.”

At about 7 p.m., Coyle officially announced that the lecture was being canceled because the speaker was ill. Coyle also said another reason for the cancellation was the question of whether it was illegal for someone to have an off-the-record speech in a public venue.

Coyle said there have been off-the-record speeches at IU, but gave no examples. Newman said he did not know of any other speeches at IU given off-the-record.

One audience member stood up after the announcement and questioned Coyle on whether there have actually been any off-the-record speeches at IU.

Graduate student Dan Yurovsky said he was sad he was going to miss the speech, but was also confused about the legal concerns that surrounded the issue.

The canceled lecture cost about $5,000, Newman said. The IU Student Association’s Assisted Inter-organizational Development department had approved the group for $3,000, which covered the basic fee for bringing O’Sullivan to IU, said IUSA Treasurer Alex Gutmann. Student Alliance for National Security provided an additional $2,000, which paid for a dinner after the lecture and for the speaker’s gift, Newman said.

IUSA AID Director Kellen Hubert said IUSA hadn’t given the group the $3,000 yet. However, Newman said he knows the Student Alliance for National Security will not have its $2,000 returned because O’Sullivan’s contract stipulated that she could only speak off-the-record.

O’Sullivan told group members she was going to give her lecture in a private setting to Student Alliance for National Security members. Newman said although they would like O’Sullivan to return at some point, right now there are no plans for her to do so.

At a dinner after the event, attendees – which included professors, campus leaders and Student Alliance for National Security members – were able to ask O’Sullivan informal questions, Newman said.

www.idsnews.com