Susan Rieger heads Columbia University's Office of Equal Opportunity and Affirmative Action, and she has a tough case with Randy Raghavendra. He's an analyst at Columbia's Office of Institutional Real Estate who got passed over for a promotion. The spot went to a younger white woman. Raghavendra, who's a dark-skinned Indian American, accused that "Columbia practices blatant racial discrimination and various deceptive tactics to keep out blacks and other dark-skinned minorities from higher-paying managerial and executive positions of power."

The case's specifics go back and forth:

1. Raghavendra points out that when he interviewed for the promotion, it hadalreadybeen given to the white woman. His interview, therefore, was a "joke," as he put it, "a fake interview." The university answered that the hiring for that post had been handled by an outside headhunting company, which was a common practice at Columbia.

Assume the outside company did engage in discriminatory practices. Does the fact that it's an independent enterprise cleanse Columbia University of responsibility?

Or is the university equally responsible?

Or is it actually worse that they're hiding behind an outside firm?

Justify your answer.