The Internet: It's Not Just for Coaches Anymore

We have seen more than our share of Coach getting up in front of the ole booster club and saying something he shouldn't have. Lo and behold, it's out there on the internets.

Meet Catherine E. Watt. Ms. Watt presented a paper at an academic conference, and made some interesting observations about techniques being used by Clemson to improve its standing in the US News and World Report annual college review.

All the gory details on the educantese battle over what she accused Clemson of doing is at The Chronicle and other on-line media. What catches my attention is another great example of no matter where you speak, you are on the record. From The Chronicle:

She acknowledged that she might have chosen her words "more carefully” if she had known beforehand that reporters would attend the session, which took place at the annual conference of the Association for Institutional Research. “Someone gave me the comment that I was pulling the covers off this issue," she said. "I think I was just discussing publicly what we all say privately.”

You reckon? Hey, Christine, your colleagues were in the audience. Did you not think they would blog about your ideas? Not Twitter a few key notes? Text a friend or two that "OMG! CU is fxn data"?

Please always remember, and never forget: When more than two people know something, it's no longer a secret -- or you really can't discuss things publicly you want to be private.