Research Blog #7: Your Case

 

The cover-up of the 2011 Penn State scandal surrounding Jerry Sandusky's molestation of young athletes serves as my chief example of the ways in which higher education scandals are concealed in an effort to save the good name of the university's brand. My primary resource for information on the scandal as well as the article that will serve as the basis of my paper is one written by Proffitt and Corrigan in their article Penn State’s “Success With Honor”: How Institutional Structure and Brand Logic Disincentivized Disclosure. In this article the authors discuss the ways in which the "corporatized" university placed self-serving economic motivations over the safety of the individuals harmed.

Using both this article as well as a few of my other resources I have gained a lot of significant information regarding the case and judicial information from the trial. I have created a separate blog posts entitled "Important Information" to compile facts that I've learned about the case from various sources. Feel free to peruse through that information.

Research Blog #6: Visual

I chose this photo because it was released shortly after the Penn State scandal in 2011 and acts to deliberately defame the reputation of the university. This picture works perfectly in sync with my paper topic because it shows the negative branding experienced by Pennsylvania State University after Jerry Sandusky was accused of the molestation of young men. 

Important Info to Keep In Mind for Paper

Sandusky Case: 

• Sandusky was sentenced to 30-60 years in prison for the sexual abuse of ten boys
• November 2011 - everything came to light 
• Key administrators in the case: 
• University president: Graham Spanier
• Athletic director: Timothy Curley
• Head Football coach: Joseph Paterno