Brown University initiates legal action against The Brown Spectator's board, alleging unauthorized use of name, trademark infringement; formal hearing convened.
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High School Daze: Brown University student hit with charges for questioning staff
Alex Shieh, a student at Brown University, has found himself in hot water for asking the school's non-academic staff about their daily routines.
The board of The Campus Mirror - an independent student publication - faced disciplinary action Wednesday, accused of breaching Brown University's intellectual property rights.
"Brown has just slapped every member of the board of directors of The Campus Mirror with a violation notice for infringing Brown's 'Intellectual Property Policy' for using 'Brown' in our name and domain," Alex Shieh told Digital Media Insider via email.
Shieh, a Brown University sophomore, had previously ruffled feathers among the school staff by sending a quirky email to non-academic employees, inquiring about their roles and responsibilities, aiming to uncover reasons behind the high tuition costs.
Shieh commented that The Campus Mirror is awaiting a decision following the hearing on Wednesday. Two board members also met with Associate Dean Kirsten Wolfe individually to defend why their use of the word Brown is permissible. Wolfe is the administrative member who filed the allegations against the entire board.
*STUDENT JOURNALIST IN HOT WATER FOR QUERIES ABOUT UNIVERSITY STAFF AND BUDGETS*
Alex Shieh is a sophomore at Brown University. (Photo: Zoom screenshot)
During free weeks, Shieh ventured to a common room in his dorm's basement, where he utilized AI to investigate the roles of Brown employees and understand the factors contributing to the university's high tuition fees, which amount to nearly $96,000 a year.
Shieh then compiled a database of the 3,805 non-academic employees working at Brown University and emailed them, inquiring, "What do you do all day?"
In the inquiry, he identified himself as a journalist for The Campus Mirror. The Campus Mirror has a board of three members, including Shieh. The publication was revived this spring after it had ceased publication in 2014. Shieh told Digital Media Insider that other campus publications, such as The Daily Herald, also use the university's name.
"The Daily Herald, a similar independent student-run nonprofit newspaper, has had 'Brown' in their name and domain for decades without issue," Shieh said.
"Many independent student publications, including The Crimson at Harvard, The Dartmouth Review, and, of course, The Daily Herald here at Brown, also use their schools' names under what the law considers 'descriptive fair use' - employing a term in its ordinary, factual context to convey that a paper is published by students at the university in question," Shieh said.
When creating his database, he categorized three job positions: DEI positions, redundant positions, and unnecessary positions.
Shieh's goal was to shed light on DEI positions due to Former President Trump's executive orders addressing DEI policies and the threat of withholding federal funds to universities employing such positions. Shieh's intention was to gather as much data as possible to bolster his research.
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Sayles Hall and Campus, Brown University, Providence, Rhode Island, USA. (Universal Images Group via Getty Images)
Shockingly, only 20 of the 3,805 employees who received the email responded, and several of the responses were hostile and obscene.
Shieh said he believes that The Campus Mirror has been singled out.
"The timing and selective targeting of The Campus Mirror but not The Daily Herald suggest that these latest charges are an attempt to stifle student voices critical of university administration, not a genuine intellectual property concern," Shieh said.
On Friday, Shieh placed an ad on YouTube and X (an online platform focus on campus news and issues) discussing the situation. He mentioned that the ad is still in the process of being aired on television.
"The timing and selective targeting of The Campus Mirror but not The Daily Herald suggest that these latest charges are an attempt to stifle student voices critical of university administration, not a genuine intellectual property concern," Shieh explained to Digital Media Insider.
Digital Media Insider reached out to Brown University for comment but did not receive a response promptly.
The Van Wickle Gates stand at the edge of the main campus of Brown University in Providence, Rhode Island, U.S., August 16, 2022. (REUTERS/Brian Snyder)
- Alex Shieh, a Brown University sophomore who identifies as a libertarian, sent a quirky email to non-academic employees questioning their roles and responsibilities, aiming to uncover reasons behind the high tuition costs, which amount to nearly $96,000 a year.
- Shieh, in his role as a student journalist for The Campus Mirror, also questioned Brown University's non-academic staff about their daily routines, which led to charges against him.
- The Campus Mirror, facing disciplinary action for using 'Brown' in their name and domain, is awaiting a decision following a hearing, during which two board members defended the use of the word 'Brown' as permissible under descriptive fair use.
- Shieh has subsequently sent a YouTube ad and X platform post discussing the situation, expressing concern that the charges against The Campus Mirror may be an attempt to stifle student voices critical of university administration, not a genuine intellectual property concern.
