Advertisements are never endorsements.

It is with this firm belief that I approved an advertisement from the David Horowitz Freedom Center to run in The Hatchet’s Sept. 29 issue.

We seldom reject ads at The Hatchet because we are committed to an open conversation on campus. As journalists who press for transparency, openness and the ability to foster dialogue, The Hatchet does not believe it has the right to stop Horowitz’s ad from running just because his opinions may be hurtful.

That commitment to open conversation means we will run letters to the editor and op-eds that counter Horowitz’s message when we receive complete submissions.

Horowitz, a controversial conservative author, took out a full-page ad claiming, “It is true that the Arabs of the West Bank and Gaza are suffering. But they are suffering because of sixty years of Arab aggression; sixty years of rejecting peace and sixty years of Arab wars to destroy the Jewish state.”

This opinion may be offensive to many, but it is Horowitz’s alone and not a reflection of The Hatchet’s feelings.

Lauren French, a senior majoring in journalism, is The Hatchet’s editor-in-chief.