On Jan. 23, The Lanthorn, Grand Valley State University’s student publication, posted a Q&A with the football team’s new offensive coordinator, Morris Berger, in which he stated he would like to dine with Adolf Hitler.
Kellen Voss, Sports Editor at the Lanthorn, posed the question, “If you could have dinner with three historical figures, living or dead, who would they be?”
“This is probably not going to get a good review, but I’m going to say Adolf Hitler,” said Berger. “It was obviously very sad and he had bad motives, the way he was able to lead was second-to-none. How he rallied a group and a following, I want to know how he did that.”
On Saturday, Jan. 25, an unnamed representative from GVSU’s Athletic Department, contacted Voss requesting that the Hitler response be removed from the story. At first, they listened and removed the comment.
“Our Sports Editor received a call from a representative from the athletic department, who he’s worked with in the past, and said it would make his life a lot easier if we would just remove the Hitler quote,” said Nick Moran, The Lanthorn Editor-in-Chief.
Moran stated they acted like students, rather than student journalists. After removing the comments, as an editorial staff they decided to restore it as “quickly as they felt comfortable doing.” He said the Hitler comments were restored to the Q&A about 16 hours later.
Voss wasn’t doing media interviews, so Moran reflected on how he would have felt if he was in the position of the sports editor.
“I think in any situation, if I were in his shoes I would have felt pressure,” said Moran. “That student-part of your brain is going to kick in first, to listen to administrators or leaders around you. It’s a knee-jerk reaction.”
Moran said they didn’t expect this reaction when they posted the article.
“When we posted it on Thursday it was supposed to be a fluff piece,” said Moran. “It was meant to have genuine interest in his coaching background, his direction, his influences. It was never meant to be anything close to an exposé.”
Between Saturday and Sunday, The Lanthorn reported that Voss received five phone calls from GVSU Athletics, ranging from appreciation to trying to make them feel guilty for their actions.
Berger resigned Jan. 30 following his suspension.
“Over the last 11 years I have taken great pride in the responsibility and privilege of being a teacher, coach, mentor and a valued member of the community,” said Berger in a statement released by Grand Valley. “I was excited and proud to be at Grand Valley, and am disappointed that I will not get the opportunity to help these players in 2020. However, I do not want to be a distraction to these kids, this great university or Coach Mitchell as they begin preparations for the upcoming season.”
GVSU’s coach Matt Mitchell accepted Berger’s resignation and stated, in a news release, that it was the best decision for the team and university.
“This has been a difficult time for everyone,” Mitchell stated in a news release. “I accepted Coach Berger’s resignation in an effort for him to move on and for us to focus on the team and our 2020 season.”
