Local college cancels Mike Daisey commencement address

There’s more fallout for Mike Daisey after the
embarrassing admission the former Seattle performer
fabricated large parts of his popular stage show about
working conditions at an Apple factory in China.

Seattle’s Cornish College of The Arts says Daisey won’t be
the commencement speaker at the school’s graduation as
previously planned.

The school released a statement announcing it will not
award Daisey with an honorary degree to the prestigious
arts college.

“Since its founding, by Nellie Cornish in 1914, Cornish
College of the Arts has educated and prepared students to
contribute to society as artists, citizens, and
innovators. One essential principle of that education is
the importance of professional integrity. Because of that
foundational value, Cornish will not award an honorary
degree to Mr. Daisey. Cornish and Mr. Daisey have
mutually agreed he will withdraw from commencement,” the
school said in a statement.

In a pointed response on his blog, Daisey blasted school officials
for what he called “Cornish’s choice to grandstand on my
back.”

Daisey said he agreed in March with Cornish’s president to
withdraw after “This American Life” was forced to retract
its story with Daisey about his show.

“A graduation is a day for the students who are stepping
out into the world as artists in their own right. I would
hate to see anything distract from their day, and so I
respectfully withdraw from Cornish’s graduation ceremonies
this year. My best wishes to the young artists- I hope to
see you out in our culture, making works that shake and
stir us, and I hope you have a fantastic graduation,”
Daisey wrote.

He said he doesn’t know why the school waited two weeks to
announce it, and “I applaud their embrace of ‘professional
integrity’ -it’s unfortunate that they didn’t exercise
that integrity in this case.”

A Cornish spokeswoman refused further comment.