The Plumbline

"The Plumbline" [http://mes.mcmaster.ca/publications/the_plumbline.html] is a humor publication of the [http://mes.mcmaster.ca McMaster Engineering Society] (MES) of McMaster University. Popular among the students of McMaster Engineering, "The Plumbline" is famous for publishing everything from obscene sexual innuendos to informative articles. "The Plumbline" was started by a group of Engineering students in 1969, and began as a single sheet of 8.5x11 paper. In 1971, the editors decided to turn the newsletter into an 8 page tabloid format newspaper.

By the early 1990s, it was clear that student and administration acceptance of sexist and xenophobic content was reduced. In this climate, "The Plumbline" reformatted, dropping the drooping penis from its masthead, developing the satirical and parody genres of humor and abandoning misogyny as fodder for comedy.

Some in the McMaster Engineering community feel that the Plumbline is unfairly targeted by the remainder of the campus for its controversial content and potentially offensive subject matter, and that it is subjected to a harsher, more restrictive standard than other on-campus events (such as the misogynistic lyrics of Choclair who performed on campus) and publications organized by other groups (like the campus wide newspaper The Silhouette).

It is important to note that although "The Plumbline" is a publication of the MES, the material contained within it is not in any way affiliated with McMaster University, and does not express views or opinions shared by all, if any, students at the University.

Content

*Engitorials: Similar to a regular editorial, written by the Plumbline editor(s)
*Shines and Moon: A thumbs up, thumbs down section where events and/or people are approved or disapproved of.
*Onions and Opinions: A section similar to regular newspapers where readers can submit opinions and complaints.
*News Briefs: Humorous news clips, most often fictional and absurd.
*Nuts and Bolt: Various games and activities such as crosswords and connect-the-dots.
*Plumboscopes: A humorous horoscope written by a Plumbline 'astrologer'.
*Arts Matter: A section devoted to numerous comic strips, including those drawn by contributors.
*Shafts and Gears: Page containing 'nerdy' or 'sick' jokes, usually inappropriate and/or technically obscure.

The Plumbline also contains featured articles, usually pertaining to current events around McMaster and Engineering, as well as pictures and clips submitted by readers. The Plumbline is heavily dependent on reader-submitted content and as a result appeals to much of the regular student body.

Controversy

In late 2005, publication of The Plumbline was temporarily suspended because of allegations from the McMaster Coalition for Equitable Social Change that the paper promoted hate-speech and sexist attitudes. The Coalition saw the newspaper as a key element in a larger problem of intolerance within the faculty of Engineering. They argued that this is evident in many of the faculty's traditions and "welcome" practices for first year students. According to them, the newspaper legitimized this culture of intolerance. On the other hand, advocates of The Plumbline argued that the depictions were wholly satirical in nature and protected under free speech. Some argue that the opposition was a form of moral panic in response to an alleged rape of a McMaster student within the Engineering faculty.

After a brief period of debates and arguments including review by the Executive of the McMaster Engineering Society, the Dean of Engineering, and the Human Rights Office, The Plumbline returned to shelves. There were a number of changes suggested to the content and a series of sensitivity training sessions took effect. Currently the online version of the newspaper is still available but password protected, and its hard-copy is distributed in restricted areas of the university.

Current status

*Volume 39
*Monthly 1000 issue circuit exclusively to engineering students
*Production team of 10 engineering students (including editors)
*Review board of 11 engineering students, including the Publications chair and Editorial Review Committee
*Distributed from the McMaster Engineering Society's Bob Loree Undergraduate Engineering Lounge, room 121, John Hodgins Engineering Building at McMaster University

Editors

*2008-2009: Justin S, Jon Huber
*2008 January - March: Josh Campbell, Justin S
*2007 April - December: Josh Campbell, Kevin Tanaka
*2006-2007: James Spackman, James Morris
*2005-2006: Ashkan Eshaghbeigi, Mike Everson
*2004-2005: Emery Finkelstein, Cam Farrell
*2004: Jackson Wiegman, Andrew Tataj (two issues)
*2003-2004: Peter Kostanski, Andrew Tataj
*2002-2003: Matthew Bigness, Chris Ness
*2001-2002: Andrew Hill
*2000-2001: Cam Hodgkins
*1999-2000: Cam Hodgkins
*1998-1999: Duncan Forster

References

* [http://www.thesil.ca/article.pl?sid=06/01/12/2316245] Engineering side of the 2006 Controversy
* [http://www.thesil.ca/article.pl?sid=05/11/24/2042228] Opposition side of the 2006 Controversy
* [http://mes.mcmaster.ca/publications/the_plumbline.html] MES Plumbline Archives under password protection