Administrators at New York University, one of the few colleges in the area reopening for in-person learning, had to step in after one of its professors allegedly told his students that masks were not effective in mitigating the spread of coronavirus.
"It pains us to comment in any way on a faculty member’s comments, and we do so advisedly now; however, we do not feel we have a choice," school administrators said in an email reminding students that masks are required. "The matter is too important to your health and the health of those around you."
The comes after a student, Julia Jackson, wrote on Twitter that Mark Crispin Miller, a professor of media, culture, and communication, recently told students that "wearing masks doesn't prevent the spread of COVID-19":
The email, sent on Monday, was addressed to Miller's students from NYU's Steinhardt School dean, Jack Knott, and Dr. Carlo Ciotoli, who leads the school's COVID-19 response. It reads, "Amid reports that your professor, Mark Crispin Miller, has been saying that masks are ineffective in checking the spread of COVID-19, we refer to the most authoritative public health guidance, which recommends wearing a mask as an effective way to reduce the spread of COVID-19. The evidence backs it up. And we remind you that wearing a mask is required at NYU," with links to the CDC's website and NYU's mask guidance.
Miller is known for his controversial views: He was included on a conservative watchlist of radical professors, for allegedly comparing President George W. Bush to Adolf Hitler, and has suggested the 9/11 attacks were an inside job (his departmental chair, at the time, said in 2017 that he was "entitled to his views").
On his website, Miller called his student's tweets "venomous" and insisted he never specifically told his class not to wear masks.
"Here’s the thread that prompted NYU to email my students, referring them to the CDC’s 'authoritative' position on face masks (that is, the one the CDC now takes, having said the opposite before April), and reaffirming NYU’s strict mask mandate (which I never urged the class to violate)," Miller writes. "I’ve been teaching propaganda (how to study it, not do it) for years now; and while there’s always disagreement, and resistance—both good things—I’ve never had anything like this happen."
Jackson, though, argued in her Twitter thread, that there's a public health emergency:
"The safety of the NYU community, as well as the New York City community, is our top priority," NYU spokesman John Beckman said in a statement to Gothamist. "Mask-wearing is a requirement at NYU for all students and faculty; we communicate it repeatedly to students and employees. Amid the reports about this online class, we have communicated directly with the students in it to remind them of the guidance from health authorities, the evidence supporting it, and that everyone on campus has to wear a mask and follow the other rules, such as maintaining social distancing and being tested regularly. We are pleased to report that the NYU community has embraced this guidance, and we have seen a high degree of compliance with our health rules."
Last week, an NYU dorm was put under lockdown after four students tested positive for the coronavirus. According to the school's COVID dashboard, for the seven-day period between September 12th and September 18th, there have been 53 new cases from almost 12,000 tests, for a positivity rate of 0.43%.
