Crisis Talk as Business Strategy: A Review of a Chronicle of Higher Education Mass Email

On July 22, 2025, The Chronicle of Higher Education distributed a mass email promoting an upcoming online event titled “The Path Ahead for Higher Ed”. The message, signed by Deputy Managing Editor Ian Wilhelm, framed the event as a vital opportunity for “higher ed’s business and nonprofit partners” to better understand the current challenges colleges face and how they might “help and provide value.”

While presented as a call for collaboration, the subtext of the message suggests a commercial logic that raises deeper questions about the Chronicle’s position in the higher education ecosystem. The email is not aimed at students, educators, or the broader public, but rather at vendors and consultants — those who stand to profit from institutional volatility.

Key Themes: Crisis and Commerce

Wilhelm identifies a list of familiar problems: demographic shifts, declining admissions, skepticism about the value of a degree, student protests, and political upheaval. These issues are real. According to data from the National Student Clearinghouse, total postsecondary enrollment in the U.S. has declined by more than 10 percent since 2012, with sharper drops among community colleges and for-profit institutions.

A recent ECMC Foundation survey (2024) shows that just 39 percent of teenagers believe education beyond high school is necessary — down from 60 percent in 2019. Public trust in higher education has also declined. A 2023 Gallup poll showed that only 36 percent of Americans had a “great deal” or “quite a lot” of confidence in colleges and universities, down from 57 percent in 2015.

What’s less clear is how a marketing webinar for outside vendors will meaningfully address these structural issues. The Chronicle’s event is positioned not as a public forum or investigative inquiry, but as a networking and insight session for firms involved in “technology, student services, consulting, design, or another function.” The framing shifts the conversation from public good to private opportunity.

The Chronicle’s Role: Observer or Participant?

For decades, The Chronicle of Higher Education has maintained a reputation as a leading source of news and analysis on academia. But it also functions as a platform for advertisers and vendors to access a lucrative market of institutional clients. In 2023, The Chronicle earned an estimated 65 percent of its revenue from advertising and sponsored content, according to industry data aggregated by MediaRadar.

This business model complicates its journalistic neutrality, especially when the publication hosts events that blur the line between reporting and consulting. The July email does not disclose whether the August 13 session is sponsored, or which companies may be involved. Nor does it acknowledge the Chronicle’s role in promoting firms that may contribute to the very instability being discussed — including online program managers (OPMs), edtech platforms, and private equity–backed service providers.

The Missing Voices

Absent from the message are the voices of students, contingent faculty, and debt-burdened alumni — those most impacted by the policies and market strategies shaping higher education. Nearly 70 percent of instructional staff in U.S. colleges are now non-tenure-track, often working without benefits or job security. Student loan debt remains at $1.7 trillion, with over 5 million borrowers in default as of early 2025, according to Federal Student Aid.

These constituencies are not addressed in the email. Instead, the implicit audience is those with the capital and infrastructure to offer “solutions” to the crisis — many of whom have historically benefited from that very crisis.

Chronicle of Higher Ed Business

The Chronicle’s invitation reflects a common pattern in U.S. higher education: the packaging of systemic decline as a service opportunity. Whether the August 13 event delivers meaningful insight or simply reinforces the revolving door between higher education institutions and their vendors remains to be seen.

But the framing is clear. This is not a convening to discuss how to reduce tuition, reinvest in teaching, or restore public trust. It is a pitch to business partners on how to better position themselves in a distressed but still profitable sector.

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Sources:

National Student Clearinghouse Research Center, “Current Term Enrollment Estimates,” Spring 2024
ECMC Foundation, “Question the Quo Survey,” 2024
Gallup, “Confidence in Institutions,” 2023
MediaRadar, “Education Media Ad Spend Trends,” 2023
U.S. Department of Education, Federal Student Aid Portfolio, Q1 2025
American Association of University Professors (AAUP), “Annual Report on the Economic Status of the Profession,” 2024

The Chronicle of Higher Education and the Knowledge Busine$$

As U.S. higher education faces unprecedented challenges—from shrinking budgets and declining enrollment to mounting public skepticism—the Chronicle of Higher Education (CHE) remains a key player in the academic landscape. Since its founding in 1966, CHE has evolved into more than just a news outlet; it is a complex knowledge business that provides employment to hundreds of journalists, editors, and professionals, while serving as an important information hub for higher education stakeholders.

In an era when many campus newspapers have shuttered and independent reporting has become scarce, CHE offers comprehensive coverage of policy shifts, labor disputes, campus culture, and academic research. Its newsroom employs writers and editors who specialize in the intricacies of higher education, providing analysis that is often essential for faculty, staff, and administrators trying to navigate rapid change.

Beyond journalism, CHE generates jobs in content marketing, event planning, data analytics, and consulting services targeted to university leaders. Through initiatives like Chronicle Intelligence, the organization supplies customized research, white papers, and executive education designed to help institutions manage enrollment, compliance, and strategic planning amid financial strain.

CHE also hosts conferences, webinars, and networking events, creating platforms where university administrators, policymakers, and vendors can exchange ideas and strategies. These gatherings not only generate revenue and jobs but foster a sense of community and shared problem-solving during turbulent times.

However, the Chronicle’s increasing involvement in sponsored content and consulting has raised important questions about its role. While it continues to provide valuable information and insight, it also serves as a marketing channel for vendors and a consultant to the very institutions it covers. This dual role complicates its editorial independence and shifts some focus toward solutions that emphasize branding, compliance, and managerial efficiency.

The promotional emails sent by CHE in mid-2025, for example, encouraged universities to “redesign research infrastructure” and tackle faculty burnout with new tools and processes, often linked to private vendors. These efforts highlight the Chronicle’s role in shaping how institutions respond to their challenges—but also reveal a tendency to prioritize market-friendly fixes over structural reforms.

Nevertheless, in a time of shrinking media coverage and growing complexity in higher education, the Chronicle remains a vital resource. Its ability to employ a dedicated staff of higher ed specialists and provide a steady flow of reporting and analysis is a significant contribution to the sector.

As colleges and universities continue to grapple with financial pressures, political conflicts, and social change, the Chronicle of Higher Education occupies a complex position: both a mirror reflecting higher education’s crises and a business offering pathways to adaptation and survival. Balancing these roles with editorial rigor and independence will be essential if CHE is to serve the broad range of voices and interests within American academia.

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Sources:

Shaulis, Dahn. The College Meltdown series, Higher Education Inquirer
The Chronicle of Higher Education promotional emails, July 2025
Chronicle Intelligence product descriptions, chronicle.com
Bousquet, Marc. How the University Works: Higher Education and the Low-Wage Nation. NYU Press
Newfield, Christopher. The Great Mistake: How We Wrecked Public Universities and How We Can Fix Them
Slaughter, Sheila and Rhoades, Gary. Academic Capitalism and the New Economy. Johns Hopkins University Press

The Untimely Disappearance of Investigative Reporter Mike Vasquez

Michael Vasquez, a veteran investigative journalist known for his dogged reporting on the for-profit college industry and higher education corruption, appears to have been quietly laid off by The Chronicle of Higher Education in 2024—even though he is still listed on their website as a senior investigative reporter.

Vasquez's last byline for The Chronicle appeared in August 2024, with no public announcement of his departure from the publication. His silence since then has raised questions among media observers and watchdogs who followed his work. Given the importance of his investigations—often exposing powerful institutions that exploit vulnerable students—his absence is conspicuous and troubling.

Before joining The Chronicle, Vasquez led education coverage at Politico and served as a longtime reporter at The Miami Herald. His career has been marked by award-winning investigations into fraudulent colleges, political influence in higher education, and the failings of accreditation and oversight systems. In a time when public interest journalism is shrinking, his work stood out for its rigor, clarity, and impact.

That Vasquez was laid off in a year of wider cutbacks and financial uncertainty in journalism is hardly surprising. But his continued listing on The Chronicle's website could reflect an industry practice of obscuring layoffs to protect institutional reputation, or a lack of transparency about the ongoing hollowing out of serious investigative reporting.

His departure comes as the for-profit college industry appears to be regaining political momentum under a second Trump presidency, and as student borrowers, whistleblowers, and contingent faculty face mounting challenges. Without voices like Vasquez’s, the public may lose one of its fiercest advocates for truth and accountability in U.S. higher education.

If Michael Vasquez has moved on to other work—or has been pushed out by institutional pressures—he hasn’t said so publicly. But the silence speaks volumes.