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| February 8, 2000 |
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In
Our Words...
The Deterioration of Journalism Who's Who Without Naming Names The Forum Unity can be found through athletics department Appalachian State University is known for its commitment to its student organizations. We have been blessed with fantastic resources, like the Plemmons Student Union and Center for Student Involvement and Leadership, that enable us to be actively involved at ASU from the moment of our inception as Mountaineers. Club Council is there to answer questions about starting a club or keeping one in existence. Everyone can find a place at Appalachian, whether they are in SGA or Beta Beta Beta. What is troubling, however, is that it seems like many of our school’s major organizations pit themselves against other major organizations, resulting in a rocky “Appalachian Family” relationship. These are generalizations, but the fact remains that the effects of this lack of unity, however unspoken disjointedness, are felt throughout campus. There is a lack of inner support among student organizations, but now we have the opportunity to come together for a great cause. The Athletics Department has taken the initiative to bring Appalachian together in the Appalachian Family style. (They have also appealed to our sense of competition.) Our newest challenge is to make a banner under the theme of “Going Out in Style” to commemorate the years of play that Varsity Gymnasium has seen. The winner of this competition receives $200, second place receives $100 and third gets $50. It will be judged by Coach Buzz Peterson. What could be better to draw the students in every student organization together to support our basketball team in its endeavor to go to the Big Dance? The game is against Western, who everyone loves to beat, and it is Feb. 26 at 1 p.m. in Varsity Gym. We, as members of every student organization on campus, need to let our commitment to Appalachian be made known, just as Appalachian shows its commitment to us. We challenge all the organizations on this campus to come together in a little friendly competition for a good cause: ASU basketball. See you at the game. The deterioration of Journalism Gerald Witt Local television news is crap. What passes for news stories on the 6:00 broadcasts proves this. Take these average news story leads: A man was shot today, reportedly over a drug deal, or if you prefer, The victim bounced three times across the road before meeting her death at the front of this pickup truck. Sounds like real “hard-hitting local coverage,” right? Well, to
me it is not. Often, the lead story is about a death of a person that affects the community as a whole in no real way. The television show is attempting to gain viewers with these juicy stories in order to attract more advertisers and generate higher revenues. Television news is no different from any other television programming, in which the goal is to make money. Important, relevant news is shoved to the back of the broadcast, where only those few with long attention spans are likely to pick it up. If you want to know how your tax dollars are being allocated (yes, we in college pay taxes also), your best bet is to just show up at the city council meeting yourself. When a news broadcast does actually report one story of relevance, it is often incomplete, like most lead stories about whomever just died. The information reported may be true, but it has key elements missing. I had the unfortunate misery of having to sit through 15 minutes of local coverage at my house this weekend. The top three stories were, respectively, about a drunk driving death, a drug-related shooting investigation and truck that had jackknifed on an on-ramp. These would actually be decent (for a slow news weekend), except that the reporting did not even answer the basic questions of journalism: who, what, when, where, why and how. All you typically get is what happened, who it happened to and if you’re fortunate, where it occurred. Turn on the television for 15 minutes of local news if you don’t agree. See for yourself if any lead story is worth reporting, and if so, if it’s actually complete. Then, if you want an extra kick, check for a bias. Chances are, you will catch one when the story originates from “the other side of the tracks.” I like to group this argument in with my crappy journalism theory, which says that American journalism is slowly (unfortunately) deteriorating. Television news is just one facet of the problem. If I want to hear about who died yesterday, I’ll check the obituaries.
Ian Hutchinson
The presidential race is heating up and things are getting interesting. Last week’s New Hampshire primary was definitely a defining moment which surprised many. I originally thought it was inevitable that it will boil down to Mr. Roboto and the Snowman, but now that may not be, which makes me feel better already. The last thing I wanted was to waste my vote on one of two candidates who I didn’t like. Now, Mr. Roboto has a few things going for him, although I can’t remember a blasted thing he did over the last seven years as vice president. Until last fall, I wasn’t even sure the android was able to blink, much less move. Now, he’s suddenly bilingual and has a minimal level of enthusiasm. True, the economy may have flourished under his estranged pal, but then, that doesn’t mean his buddy really had much to do with it. I think all those guys opposite of progress had a little something to do with the economy as well. True, he may have partaken plenty of the happy herb in his college days, which may get him many pro-happy herb supporters. On top of all that, everyone knows Mr. Roboto’s name. After all, Styx made a song about the guy. All the donkeys seem to really like the guy and Styx. Then there is his chief rival, the Snowman. Now, he’ll deny he’s ever been a snowman or was ever one in college. But for the purposes of this column, he’s the Snowman. The Snowman was a good governor over the state of Austin 3:16, which is really impressive for a place that doesn’t get much snow (at least that’s what I’m told). He’s supposed to be a really nice guy, and his dad even got to live in the nice big house several years ago, but I haven’t heard much else about the guy. Now, many folks liked his dad and they seem to like him as well. In addition to that, there’s a British rock band and a beer company that share his name, so his name is very well-known as well and the elephants really are getting behind the guy. I don’t really like either of them very much, but the guys behind them are ones I’m pulling for. Who are these guys? Well, one is a POW and the other is a shooting guard. I like these guys, and I hope they continue to do well. The POW can be blunt at times, and has been unfairly categorized as mean by some. I’d like to have a president that was blunt, it’s better than having a president who is a kiss-up or someone who blows smoke up your, you know ... Then there is the Shooting Guard. I’ve gotten some good impressions from the guy. First of all, we know he can move, which is more than we can say for the android. Plus, he has not appeared to be as oil-slinging as Mr. Roboto, who slings oil because he is programmed to. So where do these guys stand on the issues? Well, I did some research and visited their campaign websites and was subsequently bored to death. They’re all for improving education. Some want tax cuts, some want a balanced budget, more health care issues, gun control ... blah, blah, blah, yada, yada, yada ... The Shooting Guard and Mr. Roboto share common ground on many issues. Interestingly, Mr. Roboto is also campaigning to improve the steel industry, which leads me to believe he may just running so he can get replacement body parts. The Basketball Guy would like to limit the use of projectile objects, which I agree with, because it was really embarrassing when the Snowman’s dad threw up on that foreign leader. One of the big issues for the Snowy One is the stupid economy. But unlike his father, I don’t think he’s telling folks to read his corn-cobbed pipe, button-nose and two eyes made out of coal. The POW would like to keep special interest groups away from politics and fund-raising, sort of like that boa-wearing professional wrestler. I agree with this, because the last thing you want is a presidency that is controlled by stamp collectors and people who still like Craig Kilborn and Carson Daly. To say the least, things are heating up, and I’m just glad a shift had taken place and that voters aren’t just going for the familiar names right now. I’m also glad to see that Paranoid Conservative Midget dropped out, because who wants a president who can’t flip pancakes? I think Americans at least deserve a president that can do that.
The
Appalachian is neither fair nor aaccurate
The Appalachian is neither fair nor aaccurate To the Editor: I am writing this letter in response to the editorial that was published in the Feb. 3 issue of The Appalachian. This editorial is another classic example of why The Appalachian has acquired their current reputation of a paper that students can’t rely on for “fairness, accuracy and public service.” This editorial confirms the belief that many people have had all year about the amount of research that has been done for the articles that are printed in each issue of the paper. If the student government office would have been called or if someone would have walked less than 15 feet across the hall to research the Student Discount Card issue then they would have been informed that the cards have been in the post office since last week. Students have been receiving these cards in their boxes this week as soon as the workers in the post office can catch up on distributing all the other mail that comes in daily for students. Personally, it is more important to me to receive my paycheck or my bills before they become overdue rather than expect the post office to put everything on hold to put a discount card in my box that might save me 50 cents on a $5 meal at Los Arcoiris. Next, I would like to provide you with a little accurate research on the Student Discount Card. The student discount card has been distributed on this campus on and off for many years. In 1996 the card was reintroduced as something SGA could do to benefit the students at Appalachian. Each year the Student Government Association can decide whether or not to distribute the Student Discount Card and each year they try to change the card to make it better. This year the External Affairs Committee decided to distribute the card after students returned from Christmas Break and extend the expiration date until Jan. 15, 2001.In the past the card has typically been in students’ mailboxes at the end of October and expired in August of the following year; this new system makes the discounts available to students for a whole year as opposed to 10 months. The choice of adjectives and general writing of this editorial leaves a lot to be desired. Since Sam Searcy, president of SGA, is indeed a political science major, I find it offensive as the only female elected officer of student government that I was referred to as a PTA mother in need of a resume filler. Since I became a student at ASU in the fall of 1996, I have been very involved on this campus and ran for the vice-president of SGA because I hoped to help make a positive difference on this campus - not to create a student discount card. Had I been looking for “resume fillers” to help me pursue my perceived goal of a “PTA mom” I would have chosen something that would better appeal to my fellow PTA mothers. I would also like to point out that it is very sad that you are relying on the distribution of a discount card to predict how much we have done this year. Throughout the fall semester we have received compliments from you all in your “accurate” paper on things we are doing but now you contradict what you have been saying all along. If we, as students at Appalachian, took the same approach, we would have stopped reading the paper a long time ago because of all the mistakes and inaccuracies. This article seems to me to be the ranting of someone that has nothing else to write about, especially since this is the second time since November that you all have chosen to criticize us about the same issue. I, too, could have filled my letter with sexism and perversion but decided not to lower myself to the level of journalism (or lack thereof) that has been portrayed by the paper so far this year. I would like to challenge you all to become a paper that every student can depend on for “fairness, accuracy and public service” and if you need any help with research on SGA matters please come across the hall, we would be more than happy to help you. Kiley Costner
ASU Basketball: you don't know what your missing To the Editor: In case you missed it (and judging by the attendance, you probably did), ASU beat Davidson in a head-to-head basketball match-up Tuesday night, 73-66. It was an extremely exciting game, especially since ASU had to bounce back from an 18 point deficit to win it. It was a shame that so many people missed this game, which is right up there with some of the most exciting games I’ve seen since I’ve been at this school, along with ASU’s victory over ranked UNC-Charlotte a couple of years ago and ASU’s victory over conference rival Davidson last year. I guess the difference between those games and this one was that they were men’s games. This one was the women. It seems like not many people here realize that a women’s basketball program exists at this university. Besides the band and a few fans scattered through Varsity Gymnasium, there was nobody there. And it really is a shame. The ladies showed a lot of heart in being able to come back from an 18 point deficit as they did. I don’t think I’ve been as proud of the team since, oh, last year. Remember last year? When the women swept their way through the Southern Conference Tournament and wound up in the big dance? Oh yeah ... it’s all coming back now. Our women went all the way to the NCAA tourney last year. Sure, they were the first round victims of women’s basketball powerhouse Tennessee. We lost 113-54. But we showed just as much heart in that game as we showed against Davidson Tuesday night. The score of the Tennessee game was 53-19 at halftime, and we could have easily packed up and gone home. But we didn’t. The ladies kept fighting, and were able to improve as the game went on. Tuesday night, we could have given up as well. But we didn’t. And we won. I feel like our women’s team deserves a lot more attention than they get. The men have the Mountaineer Maniacs. I did see one Maniac at Tuesday’s game, which is a start, but not quite enough. Wouldn’t it be great to have the same kind of support for the women as we do for the men? Those of us at Tuesday’s game know how good crowd support can help a team get back into a game and get an opposing team out of it. Yes, even in women’s basketball. What am I trying to say? Hooray, ladies, for overcoming almost certain defeat and being able to win. And to everyone else - maybe you should come out and see what they’ve got going. After all, you don’t know what you’re missing until you see it for yourself. Jesse Hickle
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