The Raritan Journal

Media Ethics Videos

2010-03-25T05:39:00.000-07:00

Matt Reed / Lucas Sullivan

Extra! Read All About It

2009-05-08T11:54:00.000-07:00

Big news organizations are shrinking, but young people's interest in finding out what's happening is not. During the Spring 2009 semester, 21 Rutgers University students in an extra, add-on section (due to overflow registration) of News Reporting and Writing explored a wide variety of topics on campus and farther out into the world. From describing hopes and dreams and activities of classmates--including a compendium of college survival tips, an inside look at a Big East sports team and student reactions to a fatal shootout just off campus--to sorting out what happened at various municipal meetings. From reporting ways that poets and other accomplished speakers convey the essence of complex experiences to how the economic recession has impacted the fashion industry. And with an eye on the future--from exploring how recent college grads and one of the nation's oldest newspapers are trying to attract readers on the Internet to studying how innovative filmmakers draw audiences to tales of harsh struggles in India and Iraq. These and many other articles provide an array of fascinating stories that student-reporters found as they delved into the realm of journalism.

Jagazine: A New Wave of Journalism

2009-05-01T10:35:00.000-07:00

By Jason Scharch

In a time when small journalism businesses are shrinking in number and size, three Rutgers alumni have had the courage to endeavor into the field and make their voices heard.

Jagazine is a monthly magazine published by Rutgers graduates Dan Scharch, Rob Bajor, and Jessica Kizmann that gives their readers the opportunity to contribute. Their mission is best summarized in this quote from their website, jagazineonline.com:
“We might just be crazy, but we’re sick of the same ol’ same ol’. We want to know why the American mass media tells us the same information every day. We want to know why we waste our precious time in our classes and at our jobs. And most of all we want to know why we can’t do anything about it.” The magazine survives as a voice of the underrepresented--the youth culture that is constantly ignored and force-fed their news, entertainment, and information from the media conglomerates--but most importantly it gives the individuals a chance to be heard by their peers.

The magazine has now completed its fourth issue and is working towards its fifth to be released in June. Popular recurring articles include “Adam Blum Reviews Movies He Hasn’t Seen, nor Does He Plan on Ever Seeing,” “Mixtape,” and interviews with celebrities such as G4’s Morgan Webb, and popular “nerdcore” rapper MC Lars.

The magazine readership has been growing based almost solely on word-of-mouth advertising, and other guerilla tactics such as Facebook and fliers, but they hope to begin a rapid expansion for a larger fan base and financial support system. Currently the magazine has a circulation of roughly 200, with yearly subscribers making up one fourth of that group. Dan Scharch, the Editor-In-Chief, said: “The beauty of Jagazine is that the fan base decides the magazine. We, the original Jagazine staff, have a vision of an underground library of content where people could learn from one another. Whatever direction the magazine has to go to get to that goal is fine by us.”

The creators of Jagazine have also teamed up with small companies that they feel have the same vision as they do in order to strengthen their individual efforts. Formatic Clothing and DeezTeez are both clothing companies who have teamed up with Jagazine and expect big things for the future. Formatic Clothing invited the Jagazine team to celebrate the release of their spring clothing line and promote the magazine, at “The Waiting Room” in near-by Rahway, NJ on March 29. Meanwhile, DeezTeez has helped out the magazine in the traditional sense by purchasing advertisement space in Jagazine. Scharch told me, “We are all young people taking a risk in a risky world and believing enough that people will join in with what we got. It may be business but it's not about money. It's a message that anything, at any age, in any industry, is possible.”

For now the creators say their main goal is just to survive, and ultimately thrive in this challenging economy. Scharch said, “Assuming the monetary concerns didn't exist though, our long-term goal is to develop and harness a community that is dedicated and constantly contributing to the Jagazine idea.” Reader and contributor Adriana Lee, a 21 year old student at Brooklyn College, said this about the first issue: “I just read through the first issue, and all I have to say is wow! They did an amazing job, really. They are so talented!” The idea has impressed the groups growing and dedicated fan base, but its independent thoughts and missions still rely on the commercial success with their readers and sponsors. The founders are optimistic about the future, and say that every month is exciting for them to see the new contributions and growing number of readers.

For more information on how to contribute or subscribe: jagazineonline.com

Jason Scharch is an undergraduate student at Rutgers University, studying Journalism and Media Studies, and Visual Arts with a concentration in Video. He has interned for ACM SIGGRAPH, worked as the Public Affairs Manager for Rutgers University Television Network, and is aspiring towards a career in broadcast journalism and television production.

The Local: Is Community News the Way to Go?

2009-05-01T10:30:00.000-07:00

By Kaja Stamnes

They say you can't teach an old dog new tricks. But in a time of decreasing newspaper loyalty and readership, the bubbling blogosphere and 24-hour cable “news,” traditional newspaper formats are going to have to muster up the strength to roll over or else risk being put down.

The New York Times, for instance, has invested a great deal in their website in order to keep up with the current times. One particularly interesting experimental way in which The Times is trying out new ideas is through The Local, a more localized blog-like creature begun in two separate test locations; Maplewood, NJ and Fort Greene, Brooklyn. Will this be the news format of the future? Can a local, anecdotal news blog with participants throughout its community interest the average Joe? Only time will tell.

The Maplewood Blog is spearheaded by Tina Kelley, a reporter for The New York Times. Her reasons for choosing this particular town are exceedingly simple. “The Times wanted me to launch this experiment in New Jersey, and I live in Maplewood. And I knew the conversation here would be rich, fun and meaningful, because intriguing people live here, and for good reasons,” she writes on the website. The blog actually incorporates the two neighboring towns as well—South Orange and Millburn, creating a trifold community on the Internet.

The goal of The Local is to be as citizen-friendly as possible. Tina writes, “The foundation of The Local will be local news, both breaking and simmering... I have my whole work day, plus a press card, to devote to getting answers for you.” The emphasis on “both breaking and simmering” can be seen right away as one visits the website. Often featuring pictures from around the community and soft news stories or reflections, The Local definitely has the laid back, tolerant vibe that emanates from the towns it grew out of. These suburbs, located about 40 minutes away from New York Penn Station on the Midtown Direct Train line, draw young couples from the city to settle, and keep them there with the family-friendly, open-minded attitude and the possibility of escape to the Big Apple whenever the urge is pressing.

The Local features numerous bloggers from the community, writing on an equally numerous array of topics. The various contributors bring their own experience, whether in journalism or from some specific community point of view. Hilding Lindquist, 70, is a longtime writer and recent playwright who calls his blog “The Old Man” and writes about end-of-life issues. As his bio catchily sums it up, “Going into his 70’s on hemodialysis and being evaluated for the kidney transplant list is not what Hilding Lindquist planned, but neither is blogging for The Local.” Other bloggers include Risa Olinsky, a personal trainer and wellness coach who blogs about staying active and healthy while living in Maplewood.

Aside from the highly diverse set of contributors, The Local also encourages submissions from the average Joe or Joanna. Artwork, articles and comments or suggestions are encouraged. There is even a small section called “The Fridge” where artwork from local schools is displayed. This morning there is a Castle drawn in perspective by a fifth grader at Maplewood's Tuscan Elementary School. The site also impresses with its inclusion of a “see.click.fix” box, encouraging people to inform each other of things that need fixing around town. However, it seems the same few problems have been lingering there, neglected in the box (perhaps it really is unused).

The challenge for The Local may be the need to find itself a niche. While it has the backing of The New York Times, a sleek, easy to navigate design and the best intentions, some people still don't get it, or think it has already been done. The first comment, written under the name Jay, reads “I don’t understand what this is supposed to be. I don’t see any solid mechanism to include content related to news items of pressing interest. Are you tied in with The Times and your wire service to dump stories related to our towns in here as blog entries?” Others felt it was The New York Times' attempt to rip off Patch.com, a Jersey-based news blog with similar goals. But others felt more optimistic: For example, John X. Kim of Maplewood wrote, “There are tremendous opportunities for stories here in Maplewood/Millburn/South Orange…stories of local significance but also of national resonance. The unique demographics of Maplewood/SO make the towns a bellweather for larger cultural currents on politics, education, race relations, to name a few.” He continued by professing a hope that The Local would take on some of these more concrete issues and stay away from fluff.

The future of The Local is yet to be determined. The posts keep going up, and under the leadership of Tina Kelley, it will continue to roll out the stories. Whether it will find its one draw, the spark that draws the loyal reader with his cup of morning Joe, will be seen as time goes on and adjustments are made. But at the very least this new project, birthed out of the desire to expand and adapt journalism to the future, has carved out its own little plot in cyberspace. And while that may not be enough in the long run, the fact of contributing and working under the umbrella of The New York Times is enough to satisfy and motivate the people who make it happen.

Kaja Stamnes is a junior double-majoring in Political Science and Journalism with a minor in Italian Studies. In her free time she enjoys the beach, camping and good music in the sunshine.

Hometown Baghdad II: No 'Home Sweet Home' for Iraqis

2009-05-01T09:49:00.000-07:00

By Sylver McGriff

Part II
In Part I of my story, I profiled producer Kate Hillis. This week, I take a deeper look into the lives of the three Iraqi students documented in her Webby Award-winning weblog documentary,“Hometown Baghdad.”

The Middle East. Baghdad. An oasis of palm trees, gold-gilded edifices, a heat with humidity thick enough to veil every view behind a blurred, wavy haze.

Like a mirage.

Saif, a 22-year-old student in his last year of dental college at the University of Baghdad, lives such a mirage. His hazy visual is a tease of a spectacled, eager student studying with enterprising intensity the x-ray of a set of damaged teeth. In this segment of Kate Hillis’ documentary “Hometown Baghdad,” we listen to Saif enthuse in heavily Arabic-accented English about his future. “I will earn my [dental] certificate, and go abroad to study to make higher certificates.”

Three months later, Saif’s future is revealed as a mirage.

A dejected Saif slumps in a chair in his undershirt, barely contained emotions – anger, frustration, helplessness - battling visibly across his shadowed face. “Nobody wants to live here if he feels he can live on the road,” he says in a voice scarcely recognizable as the same one that, 3 months earlier, enthused about his future. “So the government noticed that, and they decided something very, very, very stupid...[they] will not give certificates for doctors or dentists who are new graduated [sic] unless they serve 3 years in Iraq.”

His expression darkens. Behind the anger, there is no mistaking the fear. “They want me to serve 3 years here. I can’t bet on myself to live 3 days here!” His anger and fear fuse. “I will leave this country. I want to live. I’ll go to work in a gas station. I’ll go to work to sell peanuts. I want to live!”

This, from a student of a wealthy family that lived in comfort, nee luxury, before the war began. After the U.S. invasion, millions of wealthy and middle class Iraqi families fled their homeland to live as refugees in countries from Syria to the U.S. in order to escape the violence of daily bombings and gunfire in their neighborhoods between U.S. and Iraqi soldiers. According to UN estimates as of January 2009, this military violence has killed 1.7 million Iraqis, including Iraqi civilians – a statistic that remains unreported in U.S. mainstream media.

Though the term 'refugee' tends to conjure images of malnourished hoards living in tents on destroyed acres of land, Iraqi refugees are its upper and middle-class: doctors, lawyers and judges, scientists and technology specialists, college professors and teachers. It is from this highly educated crop that the “Hometown Baghdad” documentary students come.

"Curfew is 8 p.m. So there is nothing called life here,” laments 20-year-old Adel, a talented rock musician whose musical dreams exploded in the violence of the U.S. occupation. “You have no choice but to lay down, very low, and listen to the symphony of bullets.” This is the title of a disturbing segment of Hillis’ documentary: “Symphony of Bullets.”

In this segment, Adel, preparing to go out to meet fellow University of Baghdad College of Engineering students for a study group session prior to impending exams, is forced to make the decision to stay at home. “I was going to meet my friends at college to prepare for exams, but I couldn’t get out today. The reason is...well, why don’t you just hear for yourself.” In the background, a multitude of rapid, overlapping “Pop! Pop! Pop!”’s can be heard as gunfire explodes around Adel’s home.

Lowering himself onto the floor of his bedroom, he sighs, “I just better lay down, and listen to the symphony of bullets.” Though his voice is monotone and his expression cynical, the sudden beads of perspiration - not visible just moments before the gunfire - belie his attempt at indifference. This boy is afraid. And who wouldn’t be, with bullets whizzing around their head in the ‘safety’ of their own home?

“Unfortunately, American kids are only interested in Brittany Spears and her flat abs,” MTV News & Documentary producers informed Kate Hillis when she tried to pitch her “Hometown Baghdad” project to them. Such is a detrimental example of ignorance masking itself as bliss.

“Sadam is not Iraq. You can’t punish 26 million people for the actions of one!” a tearful, angry Iraqi student informs a group of American students in a “Hometown Baghdad” spin-off documentary in which a group of University of Baghdad students converse via satellite with a group of American students from Kent State University in Kent, Ohio. In response, an American student defends the importance of oil to the U.S. economy. It is an astonishing, surreal exchange.

Ausama, a 22-year-old medical student at the University of Baghdad Medical School, recounts his story in the “Hometown Baghdad” documentary. “I wanna be a good doctor. I wanna get a global degree in medicine...to have a Ph.D.”

On the University of Baghdad campus, one day, he encounters a group of female students. “I wish I could...hang out with my friends,” says one. “But as you know, we see each other only in the college. The situation is very bad, so I'm going to have to stay at home. I can’t do anything. I can’t even go out to the market and shopping, or even go out in a car.” Ausama nods with understanding. “I used to hang out with my friends until 1am...those places

now are destroyed.”

Ausama, it turns out, is the son of the vice president of Iraq before Saddam took power. Ausama’s father was assassinated just prior to Saddam’s presidency, allowing Hussein to place his own choice in the office of vice president. However, Ausama’s feeling about the U.S. invasion is not one of infinite gratitude.

“Their [U.S.] soldiers are arresting [Iraqi] people just because they [Iraqis] have thoughts against the American presence here in Iraq. Iraqis are not allowed to sue for any actions they [U.S. soldiers] do.” He is referring to the fact that his grandmother’s home, in which he resides with her, has been repeatedly broken into, attacked, and nearly destroyed.

In a segment of the documentary entitled “Troops,” Saif ‘s opinion of U.S. troops dovetails with Ausama’s: “I don’t like the American army. I admit that. Because they began a mess...it’s a total mess. I can’t do nothing. No one can do anything. Because they are the man [sic] with the gun.”

Clearly, the clean-cut version of “mission accomplished” perpetuated by the Bush administration is not shared by Iraqis trapped in the crossfire.

Sylver McGriff is a student at Rutgers University with a double major in Journalism & Media Studies, and Middle Eastern Studies and a minor in History/Political Science. She is working toward becoming an investigative international correspondent and photojournalist.

For Part I, see:
http://raritanjournal.blogspot.com/2009/04/hometown-baghdad-no-home-sweet-home-for.html

Bullets Fly in New Brunswick

2009-05-01T09:40:00.000-07:00

By Shaun Van Moerkerken

It is sad to think that in today’s society, bank robberies and gun-related deaths are a daily occurrence in the headlines of our major newspapers. These traumatic events not only affect the people involved, but also change the lives of innocent bystanders who happen to be in the wrong place at the wrong time. On Thursday, March 12 at about 6:30 p.m., four suspects fought a gun battle with police outside St. Peter’s University Hospital in New Brunswick in connection to a robbery at the Bank of America branch on Route 27 and Veronica Avenue in Franklin, New Jersey (www.dailytargum.com).

The suspects drove a green mini van and led police officers on a wild chase through Franklin and into New Brunswick (www.mycentraljersey.com). After trying to lose police, the suspects trapped themselves at a dead end that abuts St. Peter’s Hospital, near the Rutgers University Campus and in a neighborhood where many students live. At this time “one or more” of the suspects began to open fire on police officers, said New Brunswick Police Director Anthony Caputo (www.mycentraljersey.com). No policemen were shot during this firefight. All suspects involved with the chase were wounded by gunfire and immediately rushed to the hospital, police said.

“I can’t believe that this happened. Normally you see stuff like this happen in the movies or on TV and it’s no big deal, but when I heard those gun shots fired, I was speechless,” said Claire Wheeler, a junior at Rutgers University, who lives adjacent the spot where the shooting took place. “I was sitting in my room when I heard the shots and ran to my window and saw this guy fall to his knees, this was the most terrifying experience I have had at Rutgers,” said Wheeler. Other Rutgers students were also upset by this traumatic event. “I thought this was the safer part of town. I quickly realized that I was mistaken,” said Rutgers Senior Eric O’Toole.

The four suspects were identified as James Phillips Jr., 58, of Newark; James Holmes, 54, of East Orange; Sammie Dobson, 52, of Jersey City and Anthony Peterson, 43, of Newark (www.mycentraljersey.com). All suspects were rushed to the hospital to be treated for gunshot wounds, and were later moved to the hospital ward of the New Jersey State prison in Trenton. Phillips died from his injuries and was pronounced dead on April 4 in the hospital ward (www.wnep.com). Authorities say Phillips was one of the men who opened fire on them at the shootout (www.mycentraljersey.com). Phillips was faced with six counts of attempted murder, one count of eluding police, and a weapons charge (www.wnep.com). The other three suspects faced similar counts and are waiting their trial dates.

Several weapons were recovered after the shootout along with the money that was robbed from the bank, said city police Director Caputo (www.mycentraljersey.com). A crowd of onlookers gathered around the scene afterwards to take in what just happen. After this incident, many Rutgers students who live in the area question their safety. “So far in my career at Rutgers, I’ve gotten my car window smashed, my radio stolen, and watched bank robbers get shot right outside my house. I don’t know how much longer I can deal with this,” said Wheeler, who is currently trying to transfer out of Rutgers.

Shaun Van Moerkerken is a junior at Rutgers University. He is a Journalism and Media Studies major and has a minor in Psychology. His career goal in life is to work at an advertising firm or write for sports media.

Rutgers Students and Faculty "Take Back The Night"

2009-05-01T09:39:00.000-07:00

By Kiyanna Stewart

On April 23rd, as late night classes came to an end and dining halls closed their doors, Rutgers students of various academic concentrations participated in the annual “Take Back The Night” march. The group of approximately fifty students and faculty members marched down George and Somerset streets, as well as College Avenue, cheering “Communities unite, take back the night” and “No more silence, no more violence.”

The event has an extensive history, in which women across the globe have participated in projecting an active voice about omnipresent gender-based violence. According to the official “Take Back The Night” website, its “roots may lie in 1877 when women protested the fear and violence they experienced in the night-time streets of London, England.” However, the function of this particular event has grown to encompass international spaces and address the desires of women of various ages, socioeconomic background and cultural context.

Students topped off the eventful night at the Cooper Dining Hall on the Douglass campus, where musicians and spoken word artists performed work reflecting their opinions about violence against women. Among the performers was Rutgers University’s only all-female a cappella group ShockWave, whose member Alice Haefeli says the group believes “in women being stronger.” Angela Marquis, 20, a sophomore in the School of Arts & Sciences, told The Raritan Journal, “it was incredibly powerful to be with not only other women, but men as well, who seemed to be unified around a common cause. It was extremely empowering for me and others.”

“Take Back The Night” is one of many rallies which occurs on college campuses and in towns across the country in protest of domestic violence. However, much has changed since its emergence in the late 1800’s.

According to “Take Back The Night” Treasurer Pratima Munagala, a University College senior, when the event first started, men were not allowed to attend. Over the course of 132 years, male attendance has increased, partly due to an ideological shift within surrounding movements like feminism and human rights. These causes have expanded to include not only the rights of women, but of men as well. A recent article published in the The Register-Herald stated, “Not all aggressors are male, and the number of women arrested for domestic violence has increased, particularly during the last 10 years.” It would only make sense that these rallies would ideologically reflect current behavioral trends.

One of the motives of “Take Back The Night” is to educate citizens and promote awareness about partner violence. “We want to defy stereotypes tonight,” said Livingston College senior Alex Bringham. He later added, “By me being here, I’m making a statement about this issue's importance, regardless of race, gender or interest. This impacts everyone.”

Laura Luciano, assistant director of University Sexual Assault Services and Crime Victim Assistance, helped coordinate the event. She talked to The Raritan Journal about the chances of young women in university settings encountering rape. “What we know about sexual violence is that about one in four college women in their four to five-year college career will be the victim of rape or an attempted rape,” she said. Similar statistics were published in The Daily Targum on April 24th.

According to the front-page article, women ages 16-24 are most at risk to experience intimate partner violence, and about 28 percent of high school and college women will experience dating violence. “The ages of victims of these sorts of crimes are lowering at an alarming speed. It’s horrifying to think that my 16-year-old sister can, at some point, be a victim of violence by a boyfriend. That’s why I’m here tonight,” replied Amina Lee when asked why she participated in the rally. She concluded with, “There are so many reasons, but I really want to be an example for others and for my little sister. I want to show that women are not passive when it comes to issues of social and political importance.”

Kiyanna Stewart is an undergraduate student at Rutgers University, majoring in Journalism & Media Studies and minoring in Africana and Women's & Gender Studies. With plans to work as a Fashion Journalist/Editor, she has been published in Women's Wear Daily, and has interned at reputable fashion labels, Theory and John Varvatos.

The Big East: No One Is Safe

2009-05-01T09:37:00.000-07:00

By Shawn Lopez

The Atlantic Coast Conference is historically known as the most competitive conference for women’s lacrosse. With “old school veterans,” like North Carolina, Maryland, Duke, and Virginia, fans are quick to assume that the national champions will most likely belong to this conference. However, the popularity of women’s lacrosse has been rapidly growing over the past several years and competitors are coming from all over, namely the Big East.

The women’s lacrosse Big East Conference has consisted of six teams for the past few years. These teams include Rutgers, Syracuse, Georgetown, Notre Dame, Connecticut, and Loyola. The addition of two new programs, Cincinnati and Louisville, was made this 2009 season.

Syracuse, Georgetown, and Notre Dame have made names for themselves over the past decade, making NCAA tournament appearances year in and year out. These three teams match up well against the powerhouse Atlantic Coast Conference teams.

Rutgers and Loyola have see-sawed back and forth for the fourth and lowest seed of the Big East tournament leading up to the NCAA’s. The first 3 seeds are most often secured in place. Not this year.

The Big East Conference was extremely competitive this year. The teams matched up very well against one another and there was no powerhouse team. The so- called “upsets” were no longer upsets. They became the norm, and no team’s position in the Big East tournament was safe.

Georgetown and Syracuse tied for the Big East Tournament’s No. 1 seed with matching 6-1 records. Cuse’s sole loss was to its fellow first seed, Georgetown. The No. 3 seed was Notre Dame (5-2). The Irish’s losses were to both Syracuse and Georgetown. This news is standard, almost predictable but here is where things get confusing.

Georgetown’s sole loss was to Loyola. However, Loyola did not even make it to the Big East tournament, with a record of 3-4. Loyola shared this record with Rutgers and Louisville. Despite having the same record, Louisville beat both Rutgers and Loyola and therefore advanced as the No. 4 seed in the Big East Tournament. On top of all this, Louisville was the only team out of the three to lose to the No. 6 seeded team, Connecticut.

Kelly Quinlan, sophomore attacker for Loyola, was devastated when she found out her team was not advancing to the Big East Tournament. “Here we are going out of our minds because we just beat the No. 1 seed and now we come to find out our season is over. It’s just really heartbreaking. This was supposed to be our comeback year.”

Rutgers Head Coach Laura Brand shared a similar response. “It’s hard not to think, ‘if only that one play, that one game, we could have done this or fixed that.’” This will be the first time in three years Rutgers will not be making an appearance in the Big East tournament.

Louisville, on the other hand, was clearly ecstatic about their advancement because it will be their first Big East Tournament appearance. Only a year into the program and the Cardinals beat out four other Big East competitors. Sophomore defender, Melissa Little said, “I’m just so proud of the progress we’ve made. This is quite a feat.”

Clearly, every team in the Big East was beatable, which is extremely rare for women’s lacrosse in general. A two-way tie for first and a three-way tie for fourth makes for a very interesting season for all of the teams.

The Big East Tournament will begin at 5:30 PM on Friday, April 24 in Washington D.C at Georgetown University’s Multisport field when the No. 2 seed Syracuse matches up with the No. 3 seed Notre Dame. Directly after that game, the No. 1 seed Georgetown will compete with No. 4 seed Louisville at 7:45 PM.

The winners of each game will compete in the Big East Championship 1:00 PM Sunday April 26. The Big East Champions will proceed to compete in the NCAA tournament in Towson, MD. It is possible to advance to the NCAA tournament without winning the Big East Championship. Depending on a team’s overall record and toughness of schedule, a team may receive a NCAA bid to advance. I have a good feeling multiple Big East teams will make appearances in the NCAA tournament this year and they might just show the ACC kids a thing or two. Anything can happen!

Shawn Lopez is a sophomore at Rutgers University, double majoring in Journalism and Media Studies and Exercise Science, Sports Management. She is also a member of the Rutgers Women's Varsity Lacrosse team. After college, she would like to pursue a career in sports journalism.

For previous reports on the women's lacrosse season:
http://raritanjournal.blogspot.com/2009/04/maher-over-matter.html
http://raritanjournal.blogspot.com/2009/03/rutgers-looks-to-forward-after-upset.html

Every Writer's Journey: Being Their Own American

2009-05-01T09:28:00.000-07:00

By Maria Monica Abrenica

Immigrants in the United States come from all over the world. Their homes by birth vary and their experiences vary even more. While a majority of these experiences remain private and unknown to many, writers work to tell these stories.

Last Sunday, March 29, the Woodbridge Township Arts Council and Middlesex County College presented a festival of contemporary immigration writing. The event started at 2 p.m. and was held at the Barron Arts Center in Woodbridge. It was the last of the 3-day festival that began on Friday, March 27.

“My New Life, My New Poem,” was the catch phrase used for the event and it was a gathering that celebrated the experiences of 22 immigrants and their award-winning writing. Each writer got up on stage and read their poems. Their voices filled the room illuminated by sunlight going through the stained glass windows all around it. They each spoke with confidence before an audience of about forty people.

Guitarist Chris Marashlian and the Middle Eastern Ensemble played their music before the reading of poems began, during an intermission, and during the event’s closing. Zarouhi Otchy, a professional dance artist, also performed during the event.

Festival Director L.E. McCullough opened the ceremony by giving an introductory speech. He said “My New Life, My New Poem” was inspired by PoetsWednesday, which is a reading series that takes place at the Barron Arts Center every second Wednesday of the month. He added that this open reading at the Center started in 1978 and that it is one of the longest-running poetry series in the nation. "The idea was to extend this local activity into the national and ultimately global realm by gathering New Jersey-connected writers who write about what it means to be and become an American in the 21st century,” said McCullough.

He explained that the writers come from diverse backgrounds. They are of different ages, ethnicity, religion, and writing technique. They all have different experiences, but there is also something that ties them together. McCullough said that this is the fact that each one of them has been on a journey and that their writing has been an instrument to share that journey with the world.

Laura McCullough was the first writer who shared her poems. She began with “Lovely Men,” a poem from her most recent book, What Men Want. She mentioned how she was raised in an “all-boys family.” She grew up with five boys in her family. This, according to her, is the inspiration for the poem. She also read “2 Skulls, 6 Teeth, and 80 Other Bones,” a poem that she dedicates to her mother and her Italian grandmother. In her poem, “What We End Up With,” McCullough raised the subject of stereotypes and racism.

McCullough also talked about being a parent of two children she adopted from Taiwan. She described the transformation of each child, as well as their experiences in becoming a child in America.Laura McCullough is also the author of the poetry collections Speech Acts, The Dancing Bear, and Elephant Anger. Her writing has been published in The American Poetry Review, Gulf Coast, Crab Orchard, The Pedestal, Boulevard, Hotel Amerika, and many others. She received an award for prose and poetry from the NJ State Arts Council Fellowships and was also a Prairie Schooner Merit Scholar. She currently teaches at Brookdale Community College in Monmouth County.

“Whose land this is, is a question, but whose child this is, is not,” read McCullough from her poem, “Flags We Raised."

Maria Mazziotti Gillan followed McCullough’s reading. She has been empowering Italian-American writers through her work and has published nine poetry books. She founded Passaic County Community College’s Poetry Center and is the current Executive Director.

From her book, Italian Women in Black Dresses, Gillan read “Growing Up Italian.” She talked about her childhood and her early observation of physical differences from a young girl’s eyes.

“My aspiration then was to be pale and blond, and beautiful,” said Gillan.

She admitted that in her earlier years, she had been taught to hate her “dark, foreign self” due to the large anti-immigrant feeling in this country. She also read “Nothing Can Bring Back the Dead” from Things My Mother Told Me, a poem she dedicated to her mother who passed away nineteen years ago. “Daddy” was a poem to her father and in this poem, she described how she called him papa, but referred to him as his father or daddy when other people were listening. This was a manifestation of her shame then.

Today, Gillan honors her father’s hard work and her mother’s wisdom. She said that her writing seeks to celebrate the Italian-American self and that is her self. She encouraged everyone to acknowledge the diversity that people offer and that it should be embraced.

Writers Paul Sohar, Sheema Kalbasi, and Basil Rouskas also read their poems. Each one shared a different experience that showed how being an American could never be defined rigidly. Writing, in the words of L.E. McCullough, is “a journey we all take at some point in our life, whether we’ve immigrated to another country or never left our hometown.”

Maria Monica Abrenica is a junior at Rutgers University majoring in Journalism and Media Studies with a minor in Psychology. She transferred to Rutgers in 2008 from the University of the Philippines. She wants a career in investigative journalism and international relations.

Immigrants Unite Through Poetry

2009-05-01T09:20:00.001-07:00

By Diana Curreri

Immigrants and their stories of hardship in coming to America have slowly been forgotten over the years. People born in the United States take for granted the unavoidable struggles their ancestors endured to allow for an easier life for future generations. Woodbridge Township hopes to change this by showcasing immigrants.

About 35 people gathered at 2 p.m. Sunday, March 29 at the Barron Arts Center in Woodbridge, New Jersey for a festival of contemporary immigration writing, “My New Life, My New Poem.” This event joined twenty-two immigrant writers and poets from many countries such as Russia, Italy, Mexico, Hungary, etc.

Festival Director L.E. McCullough led the event and welcomed first the Middle East Ensemble consisting of a guitarist, a violinist, a man on the lute, and a dancer.

Laura McCullough, a poet and professor from Brookdale Commuity College in Lincroft was the first poet to speak. Although McCullough was never an immigrant herself, she adopted two of her five children from Taiwan. The poems “Submission” and “The Flags We Raise” were about the struggle her son, Rutger, had to endure while in America and Taiwan. “When I say Rutger, / I hear Kuan Lu. When I say Kuan Lu, I hear / beautiful boy. When I say beautiful boy, a flag / is raised in my chest that belongs to no country, / but the one all the hostages to fortune live in, one with no borders, which can not be escaped from, / and of which there is no government, only taxes.” Racism was a recurring theme in “What We End Up With” which she dedicated to her father. She also dedicated a poem to the excavation of the bones of 57 Irish immigrants working on a railroad in Duffy’s Cut, PA in 1832, whose identities have never been confirmed.

Following McCullough was Maria Mazziotti Gillan. Born in Italy, Gillan immigrated to America and was raised in poverty. Her poem “Growing up Italian” from Italian Women in Black Dresses spoke of the bullying she encountered in America as a child. Her voice hardened when she spoke of wishing to have “light hair and light eyes” like all the other pretty girls in her class. “It did not take me long to learn / that olive‑skinned people were greasy / and dirty. Poor children were even dirtier. / To be olive‑skinned and poor was to be dirtiest of all,” she said.Yet while being verbally harassed, Gillan believed that no American is really American unless they are Native American.

“Nothing Can Bring Back the Dead” from Things my Mother Told Me was a poem dedicated to Gillan’s mother, who had passed 17 years ago. Already having brought some of the audience to tears, Gillan stated, “the one who makes me furious could also bring me comfort.” The poem reminisced about how she could still remember the noise of the clasp on her mother’s purse that would snap shut after getting a sucking candy when she was young. Her lying father was the theme of a later poem, and although his relationship with her family members left much to be desired, she still loved him. Gillan is the founder and Executive Director of the Poetry Center at Passaic County Community College and has been published in the New York Times

The last poet, Hungarian Paul Sohar, immigrated to the United States in the 1950s and attended the University of Illinois where he received his B.A. in philosophy. He had been touched very deeply by the effects of immigration. Speaking longer then his allotted time, he told stories, read his writings from the magazine The Big Open World, and translated three short Hungarian poems written by other poets. He recounted his trip to America sitting in steerage, being told he had to leave behind his old country, in order to grow in a new one. His poem “The Toe Head” told of his struggle in accepting himself for who he was, and not to be bothered by the abundance of tan, dark haired people that now surrounded him. “Portrait of a Poet as a Young Foreigner” delved deep into the soul of poetry and how it quenches his hunger for comfort in his own skin.

The event was presented by Woodbridge Township Arts Council and Middlesex County College from March 27-29. The weekend-long workshop grew out of PoetsWednesday, a reading series at the Barron Arts Center that takes place every second Wednesday of the month since 1978. L.E. McCullough states PoetsWednesday is the longest running series of its kind in the nation.

In a pamphlet from the event, professional poets and regular citizens would “share the stage and express thoughts about Everything through the medium of The Spoken Word,” McCullough said. According to him, “My New Life, My New Poem” or similar events will continue to take place in the future. McCullough said on the event’s website, “We’re always hearing about immigration from the politicians and the talking heads on television. 'My New Life, My New Poem’ is a chance to hear what people are saying with poetry and stories and songs.”

Diana Curreri is a student at Rutgers University, New Brunswick. She will be receiving her B.A. in Journalism and Media Studies next year.

Students With No Home

2009-05-01T09:11:00.000-07:00

By Russell Booth

At the end of each spring semester, college students must find a place to live for the next term. At Rutgers University in New Brunswick, NJ, students must sign up for a lottery number on the housing website. The web address is housing.Rutgers.edu. According to the housing office and website, this is a fair solution to figure out where students will live for the fall semester. Yet, many undergraduate students detest this lottery.

There are five campuses that host for student dorms. The five campuses are Cook/Douglas Campus, Livingston Campus, College Ave Campus, and Busch Campus. There are currently 40 housing units on campus. Towards the end of the year, students apply for a lottery number, and depending on how low the number is, they could possibly live in the on-campus suites or apartments. The numbers range from one to 10,000. The best number to get is a lower number. All undergraduates with the lower lottery number are capable of living wherever they please. Civil Engineer student Gary White, 21, said, “It should be chosen based on year. People have good lottery numbers and are not old enough to live at certain places they are eligible for.” This is also another major problem with housing on campus. There is a year requirement to live in certain suites across the university. Although a sophomore may receive a low lottery number, he will not have enough credits to park his car in the suite parking lot. A 21-year-old junior, Monique Williams exclaimed, “Housing should be done by seniority.” The way the lottery is set up, any sophomore, junior, or senior could possibly be left to live in a freshman dorm.

The housing process at the University has received much criticism from the undergraduates. The number of students that entered Rutgers over the past two years has been so high that there are not enough dormitories for them to live in. This drastic inflow of incoming freshmen caused Rutgers University to reach out to hotels to accommodate those who were unfortunate enough to receive a high lottery number. The major issue that those living in the hotel have to face is the commute. The Holiday Inn hotel, for instance is located about twenty minutes away from the University, but the shuttles that run from the hotel to campus only come around every thirty minutes. Any student that gets out of class and misses the shuttle must wait thirty minutes for the next one.

However, the University is currently trying to solve the overcrowding problem by informing upperclassmen of off campus housing and also building new dorms on both Livingston and Busch campus.

Over the past two years, many upperclassmen have decided to move off campus rather than apply for a lottery number. The Rutgers housing website on also offers a link that shows all houses and apartments that are available to rent off campus. These off-campus homes are cheaper than living in the dormitories when including utilities. As more upperclassmen decide to move off campus, more dorms open up for incoming freshmen. Rutgers uses the off-campus housing as a way to limit the number of upper classmen that live in dorms. There are also negative aspects that college students must face when living off campus. Landlords are able to increase the rent from 2.5% to 5%, according to one Rutgers University student. It is vital for all the residents of the off-campus housing to have money to pay for cable, phone, Internet access, and food. These facts still do not deter college students from renting apartments and homes off campus, because most of them would rather live on their own rather than rely on the arbitrary lottery numbers given out by the housing department.

Despite the large number of students who have great disdain for the lottery numbers, some feel that it is unbiased. Dom Pickett a 22-year-old senior stated, “I don’t like the lottery, but doing it by seniority would mean that the incoming freshmen would not have any housing.” This statement does hold some validity, because if given the option the upper-classmen would chose to live in dorms and suites, leaving the hotels for the freshmen. The housing department feels that seniority is too biased and unfair for incoming students. So housing lottery remains a controversial, unresolved issue among Rutgers students.

Russell Booth is a junior at Rutgers University. He is majoring in Journalism and Media studies and has an American Studies minor. After college, Russell plans to write for film magazines.

Patriots Without a Home

2009-05-01T09:00:00.000-07:00

By Ezra Dreiblatt

Since the Iraq war began on March 13, 2003, it has claimed the lives of over 4,000 American soldiers. While these soldiers died as heroes and will be remembered as such, there is a larger group of soldiers who survived Iraq and are now homeless. These former soldiers are largely forgotten as the media focuses its attention on the economy, foreign policy, and the everyday goings on in Washington.

According to the National Coalition for Homeless Veterans, there are currently 154,000 homeless veterans on any given night in the United States. Currently, Iraq war veterans make up around 3,000 of the homeless veteran population. While the majority of the homeless veterans served in the Vietnam War, the National Coalition for Homeless Veterans reports that the number of Iraq war veterans who are homeless is growing at a rate equal to the rate of homelessness that Vietnam created.

There are many reasons why so many of our bravest have found themselves on the street after serving our country in Iraq. The majority of our Iraqi homeless veterans are single males. This implies that for the most part, they do not have a loving supportive family waiting for them when they come back. If they do have loved ones waiting for them, many of them are so damaged physically and emotionally that they shun their loved ones and alienate their friends. Another main reason for this serious problem is that many of the soldiers coming back from Iraq suffer from mental or substance abuse problems. Around half of the Iraq war homeless veterans either suffer from post traumatic stress disorder (PTSD) or suffer from alcohol or drug abuse according to the National Coalition for Homeless Veterans. This is due to the fact that the majority of these homeless veterans served for three or more years in Iraq. On top of that, the majority of them served in the field in some of the most dangerous cities in Iraq.

According to Karen Tollin, a representative from the New York branch of the National Coalition for Homeless Veterans, “the main problem is that our Department of Veterans Affairs does not have the funds to help these soldiers who are damaged emotionally.” She went on to say that too often money to help veterans who have PTSD or substance abuse problems is lost in the shuffle on the House floor as the Congress people argue over partisan issues. A representative of the United States Department of Veteran Affairs said that while he could not comment on the goings on in Congress, he could say that money and help is given to veterans suffering both mentally and physically when they return home. However, advocates for homeless veterans say that not enough money and help is given to soldiers returning from war.

While this plight of homeless veterans from Iraq and other wars is a national issue, it is a particular problem in New York City as well as New Jersey. According to Ms. Tollin, there are currently around 500 homeless veterans in New York City and the surrounding area including New Jersey. She attributed this to the fact that many of the veterans coming back to New York and New Jersey cannot handle the “hustle and bustle” and noise that the city provides. She also stressed that many of the soldiers coming from New York City are from lower income households and therefore have even more obstacles in front of them than just their mental or substance problems.

This was backed up by Kris Goldsmith, an Iraq war veteran who travels the country talking about his experiences in Iraq and his struggles with PTSD. While Kris had a supportive family to return to in New York, he said that some of his friends did not have the same financial or familial stability when they returned home.

With the start of a new administration and the recession that this country is in, many small yet important issues have been pushed off the front pages. On cable news, ideology and ego gets in the way of talking about the veterans coming home who are being forgotten by the VA. How is it that an issue that should be so bipartisan still gets caught up partisan bickering? These veterans need the help of the United States Government as well as the citizens of this country so that they can finally get back on their feet.

Ezra Dreiblatt is a sophomore at Rutgers University. He is majoring in Journalism and Media Studies with a minor in American Studies. A native of New York City, Ezra plans to pursue a career in sports journalism.

Veteran Opposition to Iraq War Increasing

2009-05-01T08:50:00.000-07:00

By Joe Bindert

Since the Iraq War started in March of 2003, people throughout the world have been mounting resistance to both the invasion of Iraq and the continued war waged throughout the country. While most Americans are aware that there is a great deal of civilians against the war, many are unaware of the increasing opposition to the war amongst veterans that have returned home from overseas. For a variety of reasons, a group known as “Iraq Veterans Against the War” has formed and is actively opposing the combat operations it was part of.

The primary reason that the group opposes the war is due to the belief that the Iraq War was based on deception by the Bush administration. According to the group’s website, “[The Bush administration] used the false pretense of an imminent nuclear, chemical and biological weapons threat to deceive Congress into rationalizing this unnecessary conflict.” Other criticism listed on the website include the fact that the Iraq War violates international law, the war has cost the United States a great deal of money, the casualties on both sides of the war have been tremendous, and, interestingly enough, the idea that soldiers have the right to refuse to fight in an illegal war. While their website claims that soldiers will most likely be prosecuted if they attempt to refuse serving in what they see as an unjust war, the group stands behind the principle that, in theory, the soldiers should not have to “pay the price for political incompetence [and be] forced to fight in a war instead of having been sufficiently trained to carry out the task of nation-building.”

Since it was formed, the group has called for three major things to be accomplished: First, they call for the immediate withdrawal of all occupying forces in Iraq; Second, reparations for the human and structural damages that Iraq has endured, while also stopping the corporate profiteering in the expense of the war; and third, full benefits and healthcare, including mental health, and other support for returning servicemen and women.

The group boasts 57 chapters in 48 states across the United States, with over 1,500 members currently a part of the group. One of these members, Kris Goldsmith, spoke at Rutgers University on April 7 about his experiences leading up to his involvement in the Iraq War and his time after coming back. Goldsmith recalled the day after the September 11, 2001 terrorist attacks on the World Trade Center and the Pentagon, where he sat in a pizza restaurant after school and talked with locals about how they felt the Middle East needed to be bombed and all inhabitants needed to be killed. Today, after his experiences in Iraq, he reflects on that day and realizes the true severity of his and others statements, noting that advocating genocide was not the way to handle the situation.

Goldsmith joined the military shortly after graduating high school and was deployed to Iraq shortly after, claiming that joining the military had been his life’s dream, with the September 11 attacks providing even more incentives to join. Goldsmith notes on his blog on the Iraq Veterans Against the War website: “By the fall of 2004 I had pretty much figured out that my life's dream had become my biggest nightmare.”

During his presentation at Rutgers, Goldsmith recalled the horrors of the war, including the feeling of being shot at, having to investigate graves of tortured and murdered soldiers, and more. Goldsmith returned home in 2006, and became alcoholic and overly aggressive and violent with many of those around him. While he did not know it at the time, he was suffering from Post-Traumatic Stress Disorder (PTSD), which causes unusual and often unruly behavior in those who have lived through some terrible repeated event. The disorder is most common to veterans, and came to public attention after the end of the Vietnam War. While he was home, Goldsmith was ordered to return to combat near the end of 2007. The day before he was to be deployed, Goldsmith attempted suicide. After this, he was discharged from the military with no pension or benefits that veterans are intended to receive.

When asked how other soldiers feel about Goldsmith telling his story to college students in the area, he explained that while the number of veterans opposed to the Iraq War has been increasing for some time, there were many that were seriously opposed to the idea of Iraq Veterans Against the War. He noted that many veterans feel it undermines the work that was done in Iraq, and that a good portion of them believe that the Iraq War is worth fighting and, moreover, winning.

President Obama announced on February 29 of this year that combat operations in Iraq would end by August 2010. Ending the Iraq War was an essential point on which Obama focused during his presidential campaign last year.

Iraq Veterans Against the War was founded in July 2004 at the annual convention of Veterans for Peace in Boston, Massachusetts. For more information, visit http://ivaw.org/.

Joe Bindert is a Journalism and Media Studies and Political Science double major at Rutgers University. He plans to graduate in May 2010 and work in broadcasting.

Fear, Worry and Investigative Journalism

2009-05-01T08:24:00.000-07:00

By Stephen Yoon

Being a good reporter often means investigating out of the ordinary situations in search of a story. Indeed, the intrepid reporter must journey to places they would ordinarily never venture, as they are a bastion of news, especially in their local communities. Jan Barry, professor of journalism at Rutgers University, has had to deal with many uncomfortable situations and events during his tenure as a news reporter at the Record of Hackensack. In a speech entitled, “Tapping the Grassroots, Unofficial Sources,” Barry reflected on his experiences doing investigative reporting in such disturbing places as a nursing home full of AIDS patients in Wanaque, NJ.

“For many readers, their newspaper is an important part of their life,” said Barry. Indeed, newspapers serve as a primary source of information for many citizens. Barry then went on to emphasize his point by using stories of experiences of readers calling in with proposals for news stories, from deaths to a suburban mayor being arrested by the FBI on bribery charges.

On March 27 Professor Barry his “Tapping the Grassroots, Unofficial Sources” speech where he spoke of the utility of using local citizens as information sources for news reporting, tips that he learned during his tenure as a reporter. “A trade secret of the news media in America is that its major sources include the public—ordinary citizens who call, write, fax, e-mail, or personally deliver an interesting tip or complaint,” Barry wrote in his book, A Citizen’s Guide to Grassroots Campaigns.

Barry went on to say, “Finding good unofficial sources takes patience, persistence, and sometimes luck or fortuitous timing.” He then reflected on his experiences covering a story about young AIDS patients being put into a nursing home ward due to New Jersey’s “controversial policy of consolidating AIDS patients in one place for treatment.” Indeed, he got his tip about this matter from a public meeting in neighboring Pompton Lakes. “Despite my own worry and ignorance about this disease, I wanted to write about the AIDS patients’ experiences of being in a nursing home, where many of them were much younger than the typical nursing home patient,” Barry revealed. His diligence paid off, as he got enough information to write a heartbreaking feature story about young adults in an old-age home withering away from a terminal virus.

After the story ran, Barry got a call from one of the AIDS patients, who explained that the patients might have to leave the nursing home and be separated from one another due to a Medicare funding dispute. The patients were highly opposed to this, as they had formed a strong group of supportive friendships in their time there, and the healthcare was very good. “They were very upset with the idea of having to move and asked for coverage of their concerns,” explained Barry. He complied with the patients’ request, writing multiple articles about the matter and interviewing many people connected to it, such as state officials, nursing home owners and managers, patients, community members, and members of an advocacy group for the patients. Barry learned quite a bit from this ordeal, as he “went from knowing nothing about this health issue to chronicling the short life and death of a controversial program from all sides.” Indeed, he was so moved by the matter that he wrote a short poem about what happened with one of the patients he chronicled in his original story, entitled Bitter Fruit, from his collection of poems: Earth Songs: New & Selected Poems.

He further used his experience attained while doing an investigative series on dangerous chemical herbicides being used by the Rockaway River in Morris County, NJ. Indeed this tip did not come from an environmental organization, but from a statement made by a man at a municipal council meeting. At this meeting Barry learned that the same chemicals were used in Agent Orange, a deadly herbicide used during the Vietnam War. Clearly finding unofficial sources requires effort like meeting with people after municipal meetings or going to homes trying to get information.

When trying to follow up on this information with official sources, Barry ran into a roadblock. “Federal officials, it became evident in reporting that story, preferred to stonewall rather than forthrightly address the implications that the United States government poisoned many of their own troops as well as much of Vietnam and its people,” he revealed.

Barry was then forced to turn to unofficial sources, the best of which turned out to be concerned veterans and independent researchers. Although the process was very time consuming it was beneficial, as these citizens had gotten information from obscure industrial medical journals, military reports, and Veterans Administration files.

“Finding those folks and reporting their decidedly unofficial—but now historic—story took the better part of three months,” commented Barry.

Indeed having a large, even unorthodox network of sources is absolutely crucial to a proactive news reporter. “I also tap an informal network of people I’ve met while hiking, canoeing, in college classes, at conferences and awards dinners. Another trade secret is that reporters trade sources. Sometimes reporters are sources,” Barry revealed.

Although we may think of a typical journalist as a someone who provides news about national or international affairs and major breaking news, that is not necessarily the case. It has become apparent through Barry’s accounts that journalists have the power of voicing concerns of citizens, and increasing awareness and empathy for the issues of today, especially when a reporter gets involved with his/her local community and its citizens. Indeed, a proactive investigative journalist must often report on uncomfortable situations and events, as they assume the role of public voice of the community. “Finding well-informed sources in the vastly bigger, diverse, and diffuse world beyond the statehouse, municipal building or school board offices takes work. It means listening to gabby gadflies at local meetings and afterwards in cold dark parking lots,” Barry revealed. What we can take away from his speech is that although the work of a news reporter never truly ends, the rewards can be great with enough patience and persistence.

Stephen Yoon is a junior at Rutgers University. He is double majoring in Political Science and Journalism and Media Studies with a minor in Music.

A Crossroads Classic Returns: Sheila's Day Comes Back 20 Years Later

2009-05-01T08:20:00.000-07:00

By Alex Guadagno

Sheila’s Day, the South African music and dance celebration which brought the Crossroads Theatre international acclaim, is back—and the timing for celebration at the New Brunswick theater company could not be any better. Plagued by financial woes and a lack of resources near the beginning of the decade, despite winning the 1999 Tony Award for Outstanding Regional Theatre, Crossroads has recently recouped its position as one of the country’s most eminent African American theater showcases. On April 16, the theater welcomed the return of its triumphant daughter, Sheila’s Day, which was created at the Crossroads by South African writers Duma Ndlovu and Mbongeni Ngema in 1989 and directed by co-founder/Artistic Director Ricardo Khan. The show came back to Crossroads after a highly commended March run at the Market Theatre in Johannesburg, South Africa.

Sheila’s Day features an all-female ensemble of gifted musicians who use buoyant gospel, mournful blues numbers and lively Zulu chants to chronicle the lives of two women living in the southern United States and Johannesburg, South Africa during the respective struggles in each country for civil rights and racial integration.

Sheila’s Day’s proud return to the Crossroads is symbolically weighted in light of the theater’s reclamation of its former prominence.

“Crossroads has always had the capacity to do great work despite financial challenges,” says Crossroads’s Executive Director Marshall Jones III. “There were people who thought the theater was too important to let it go,” Jones said, in spite of Crossroads closing its doors for two seasons in 2000. The small theater had nearly $2 million in debt at the time. According to Jones the prestige was always there, but Crossroads needed better artistic management and found it in Richard Nurse, a former board member who became executive director and helped negotiate down the debt.

“Crossroads is a different institution now,” said Peggy McGlone in a 2005 Star-Ledger article. “It's leaner for having spent five years digging out of a fiscal hole, and though its leaders believe they have weathered the worst of the crisis, they admit there's much still to do.”

Jones maintained a relationship with the Crossroads Theatre since his undergraduate years in the mid 80s at the nearby Rutgers University and joined as Executive Director in 2006. After holding executive positions at several prestigious New York City arts institutions, such as Radio City Music Hall and the Apollo Theater, Jones says his decision to join the Crossroads was inspired by the importance of the theater’s mission to create an honest portrayal of African Americans in theater, as well as the challenges of restoring the theater company back to being one of the country’s most prominent.

The theater’s co-founders Khan and Lee Richardson recognized the lack of representation for people of color in theater of the late 70s. They were each only two years out of graduate school when they decided to found the Crossroads, according to Jones—who, as a board member of Alliance for Inclusion in the Arts and the American Conference on Diversity, is a major advocate of diversity and inclusion in theater. “Look at the landscape of 1978—there was no cable, no Cosby Show,” he says. “There was Sanford and Son and Good Times, but if you were black and you couldn’t sing or dance you were playing a pimp or a drug addict. Any culture is more than just a stereotype.”

Despite the uplifting underdog theme that resonates throughout the story of Sheila’s Day returning to Crossroads, the theater’s Director of Press and Public Relations Barbara Martalus experienced considerable difficulty in gaining publicity for the show.

“Here we have this African American theater company that has survived despite a huge economic crisis,” says Martalus. “The anticipation was, particularly after the November election and knowing that Obama was going to be our president, that someone [in the press] would pick up on the historical perspective.”

2008 also marked the Crossroads’s 30th anniversary. To commemorate, Crossroads featured the return of several other of its classics. In September, The Colored Museum by George C. Wolfe returned, and in November, It Ain’t Nothin’ But the Blues—the show that went from Crossroads to Broadway—also returned to the theater. When Crossroads closed in 2000 it was coming off the high of national recognition for It Ain’t Nothin’ But the Blues and its 1999 Tony for best new musical, according to Martalus, who says she was trying to put together a journalistic picture that they had some newsworthy stories, particularly surrounding Sheila’s Day. “To have made it to 30 years, we assumed this would be the angle. But we did not want to draw the conclusions for them.”

Martalus attributes the press’s neglect of this story to the particularly stressful year journalists have been experiencing. Crossroads is learning to explore other outlets to appeal to new audiences, such as its participation in Theater ROCKS!, a program that offers discount tickets to young professionals interested in experiencing theater.

Sheila’s Day will be running at the Crossroads, located on 7 Livingston Avenue, through May 3rd with both evening and matinee performances.

Alex Guadagno is a junior at Rutgers University. She is majoring in Journalism and Media Studies with a minor in Anthropology.
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Photographer: Ruphin Coudyzer

Cast of SHEILA'S DAY ...
Front row - Selloane Nkhela , Mary Twala, Anne Duquesnay
Second row - Thuli Dumakude, Chantal Jean-Pierre, Erin Cherry, Shelley Thomas, Wendy Lynette Fox, Futhi Mhlongo
Rear row - Me'Lisa Sellers, Ashley Bryant

Trends in the Videogame Industry: Street Fighter IV

2009-05-01T08:15:00.000-07:00

By Lucas Sullivan

I can still remember gazing at it in wonder as a very young child. It was the early 90s, and it stood inconspicuously in the lobby of a hotel my family was staying in. In my fascination, I knew that I had to interact with this machine, unaware that this event would spark an interest that would last more than a decade. Having borrowed two quarters from my parents and plunked them into the cabinet, I began playing the game that, unbeknownst to me, was sweeping the nation. The machine was an arcade game, and the game was Street Fighter II.

Street Fighter II, released by Japanese videogame company Capcom in 1991, was a game that launched an empire and furthered an entire genre: the fighting game. It features two-player head to head fighting, using a variety of characters, each with their own unique moves. At the time of its release, Street Fighter II immediately skyrocketed in popularity in arcades across the US and Japan. Dozens of imitators tried to cash in on the game’s success by making similar games of their own; this spawned series such as Mortal Kombat by Midway and King of Fighters by SNK, and later Tekken by Namco. Each of these series has had their fair share of popularity, but they pale in comparison to the reputation of Street Fighter. The game had an incredible number of spin-offs and individual iterations, adding new content and refueling fans’ excitement with each release. Street Fighter II encapsulates a sort of early 90s nostalgia for many gamers ages 20 to 30, and is still played by many thanks to rereleases on current-generation consoles.

Time passed, and in 1997 Capcom released Street Fighter III: New Generation, which would go on to incorporate various game changes and balances and culminate in Street Fighter III: Third Strike in 1999. Unfortunately, by this time, arcades were becoming a dying breed. Cabinets went from being an attraction at the local teen hangout to a relatively niche market with little exposure. Home videogame consoles were becoming more and more powerful, rendering the technology of the arcade machines less revolutionary and allowing the player to stay at home instead of making a trip to the arcade. Despite all this, Street Fighter III enjoyed success with the “hardcore” fans, a community which had been quietly growing since the fighting game boom of the 90s. The central hubs for this community, as well as the majority of highly skilled players, are located in California, though both the east and west coasts have their own star players and hotspots. But as arcades faded away leaving only the most dedicated behind, it looked like the Street Fighter series had run its course and the franchise that established fighting games had come to a close.

Or had it? After confidentially working on it for more than two years, Capcom unveiled Street Fighter IV in Japan on July 18, 2008. A home console release for the Playstation 3 and Xbox 360 soon followed, with North American gamers receiving it on February 18, 2009. Its release was a huge hit, with over 2 million copies of the game sold worldwide, not including arcade cabinets or the soon-to-be-released PC version. Lead producer Yoshinori Ono, who had worked on Street Fighter III and made it a success, headed the game and made sure that it would be a title worthy of the Street Fighter franchise. In an interview with GameSpy.com, Ono said “the whole reason that Street Fighter IV even exists as a project is because the fans demanded it. It's something that the media always told me, what the fans always told me, and what our U.S. branch constantly told me.” On top of strong sales figures, the game also received rave reviews from critics, scoring a 94 on compiling website metacritic.com. With this concurrent success, Street Fighter IV has brought in newcomers and more casual players to be added to the already existing fanbase of hardcore players.

With this influx of new players, the community has seen a flood of people interested in both playing and discussing Street Fighter. Websites such as Shoryuken.com offer a forum where these players can come together and discuss their passion for the game and various tactics that will lead to success. Pillars of the community also take it upon themselves to start up their own website and public events. One such community member is Ryan “Gootecks” Gutierrez, who runs gootecks.com and hosted the well-attended Street Fighter Bar Fights event in California recently. Players like Gutierrez enjoy the game as a competitive sport as well as a hobby. In an interview with beefjack.com, Gutierrez stated that there are two main reasons that he has such a passion for the game: “one is the actual competition of it, because I love the feeling of really beating someone down, so that’s part of it. The other part of it is that since I was a kid I’d read Gamepro or EGM and read about guys like Alex Valle or Mike Watson [two professional players covered in some videogame publications] and I would think: wow, what these guys do is like the coolest thing imaginable.”

Pros like Gutierrez have their own arena to display their prowess to fellow competitors: the Evolution Championship Series, or EVO for short. Held annually, EVO is the pinnacle of the fighting game community here in the US. It is at EVO that celebrities in the community are born, such as Japan’s Daigo Umehara or America’s Justin Wong, both of whom are able to make a living off of their winnings from conquered tournaments. Players gather together at EVO from all corners of the globe to take part in intense matches for thousands in prize money, or just to get together and play a few friendly games.

And what about more casual players, who are discovering Street Fighter for the first time? Dan Woredekal, a Rutgers University junior and newcomer to the game, says that he thoroughly enjoys the “intensity of close matches” when playing. Rutgers junior Alvin Arunkumar says that “there’s a steep learning curve, but you have a real feeling of accomplishment once you get over it. And no matter how many times you may lose a match, you still feel like you could win the next one.”

Aspiring players like Woredekal and Arunkumar can try and prove their proficiency at this year’s EVO, which is taking place from July 17-19. But be you a grizzled veteran of the series or an eager new challenger, Street Fighter IV marks the renewal of a legendary franchise and a sign of more good things to come for the fighting game community.

Lucas Sullivan is a student at Rutgers University in New Brunswick majoring in Journalism with a minor in Psychology.

Showing Off SCILS

2009-05-01T08:12:00.000-07:00

By Alexander Cole

On the first-ever Rutgers Day, the journalism department showcased some of its most prestigious alumni. One of the Rutgers graduates, known on air as Sharon Stone, is a three-time award winner for Channel 7 News. She told the audience at Saturday’s event how she got her start in journalism working on campus with 88.7 WRSU FM. With a smile, she said that despite her work in television, her favorite medium is radio. According to Stone, she would not have gotten to where she is now without the internships she got during her time at Rutgers. One example Stone gave was how with the help of professors in Rutgers’ journalism department, she gained an internship at WCTC in New Brunswick.

Another alumnus in attendance spoke of how he also got his start at WRSU. He spoke of his work with The Fan, a sports radio station, and how it led him to a promising career in the sports media industry. Sitting in chairs on the lawn of the School of Communication, Information and Library Studies building on the College Avenue campus of Rutgers University, the alumni spoke in groups of five throughout the day.

This reporter spoke to Steven Miller, Coordinator of Undergraduate Studies for the Rutgers University Department of Journalism and Media Studies. When asked how SCILS gathered so many alumni in one place, he simply stated that all they had to do was ask. According to Miller, the alumni “want to come back and give to the students of today and help them out. Rutgers is a family, especially in journalism… I’m a Rutgers grad myself. I bleed scarlet and black.” He recalled examples of how Rutgers students have gotten internships and jobs from other Rutgers alumni. Miller believes the reason for this is that the alumni know that “the quality of student that we [the journalism department] produce is as best as one can get.” As evidence for this, he offered that SCILS graduates have gone on to be producers, directors, reporters, and gained many other prestigious titles.

One might find this single lecture series to be impressive enough, it was only one of several events that were being held at the SCILS building that day. Various professors and part-time lecturers spoke on topics such as the history of television, conflict and romance, political cartoons, and conspiracy theories. There were small workshops in which attendees could improve their public speaking skills or learn to be a “Cub Reporter.” Also included in the day’s festivities was a story telling marathon that lasted all day for children and a free raffle.

None of this would be possible were it not for the Event Design and Management course made available to the undergraduate students of SCILS. According to Rich, a Rutgers undergraduate student and journalism major, their job was to “coordinate the planning and running of this entire event.” This reporter spoke to him as he was handing out floor plans and event schedules to those who walked through the building’s doors.

Meanwhile, a colleague of his was standing by the stairs to another floor, guiding people to the various events. When asked how she felt about the SCILS events as a whole, she was very enthusiastic. Annette, another Rutgers undergraduate student, said she felt it was a good community event and that it should have been done sooner. “It’s a good way for the public to see where their public money is going to. Also, SCILS isn’t on the normal Rutgers tour, so this is a great way for high school students to see what we have to offer.” This reporter had a chance to speak to one of these potential Rutgers students. Dan Marley, a high school student visiting Rutgers with his parents, said that his interest in SCILS stemmed from a website announcement about the day’s events. He stated that he’d always loved sports journalism and worked for his school’s newspaper and had a strong desire to learn more about the journalism department at Rutgers.

It is true that all of this took a lot of planning and effort, but even that pales in comparison to the college wide event held that day. Saturday April 25th was Rutgers Day, the first event of its kind meant to open up Rutgers and all of its students and departments to the community. Many parts of the university, from health care, to environment, to various clubs, were involved across all four of Rutgers’ campuses. In the program for Rutgers Day, Richard McCormick, president of Rutgers University, reached out to the community. “We are delighted to share these programs with [the state of New Jersey] as we roll out the scarlet carpet for our first-ever Rutgers Day,” said McCormick. He invited attendees to explore the campuses, as well as meet Rutgers students and faculty, as they experienced the different events that were available.

This reporter spoke to Ashanti Maya Alvarez in the days preceding the massive event. Alvarez, a Rutgers graduate student and staff member, was responsible for much of SCILS’ involvement. “This is the first Rutgers Day ever. We've never done anything like this, on this scale, that encompassed this much of the New Brunswick Campus and involved as many staff and faculty across Rutgers,” said Alvarez. She mentioned that SCILS had to send in ideas for events to the Office of Community Affairs, followed by writing summaries of the events for the Rutgers Day program. She cited the event’s timing, since late April is when many students are wrapping up their classes for the semester and preparing for finals, as another hurdle that had to be crossed. When asked about the volunteers, she credited roughly 12 students from the event management course and another 10 SCILS faculty who agreed to assist. When I spoke to Alvarez before the event, she said she hoped the event would be informative and fun for all ages. On Saturday, from alumni to students to children of alumni and community members, this reporter only found smiles as SCILS showed its colors.

Alexander Cole is an undergraduate student in journalism at Rutgers University, specializing in reporting on radio. He has worked as a news editor in the News Department of 88.7 WRSU FM.

Special Friends Day 2009

2009-05-01T08:10:00.000-07:00

By Jaclyn Mandelbaum

Smiling faces warmed the hearts of many as a young child said, “This is the best day of my life.” On March 1, over 100 children with developmental disabilities filled the Cook/Douglass Recreation Center for a day of fun organized by the Rutgers Recreation Advisory Council (RAC). At the annual Special Friends Day, the children were “buddied up” with over 200 Rutgers students who served as their “special friends.” Each child had two buddies.

Many children are students of the Douglass Developmental Disabilities Center in New Brunswick, New Jersey, although admittance is not limited to just those students. Any parent wanting to bring their child to the event is welcome. The large majority of children who attend Special Friends Day have been diagnosed with Autism Spectrum Disorder or quadriplegia, although each child’s handicap varies tremendously.

The event has been running for the past 19 years. Organizers come up with a new theme each year. This year’s theme was board games. With the help of various sponsors and volunteers the recreation center was transformed to fit the theme. The decorations featured life-sized Monopoly pieces, Candy Land décor, Twister displays, and much more.

Rutgers sophomore and decorations chairperson Amanda Griglak said, “I really hold this event so close to my heart. It took months of preparation, but me and the rest of the RAC were completely determined to give the recreation center a total transformation. We wanted to make it like a paradise or an escape. We also wanted the decorations to be interactive and come to life. I think it came out pretty well.”

The event included a variety of activities and entertainment for the children. Organizers were conscious to include many things that children confined to wheelchairs could participate in as well. The day featured a dunk tank, clowns, jugglers, face painters, and two “moon-bounces.” Twenty-four clubs and organizations from Rutgers set up tables with a variety of arts-and-crafts and games. One organization set up a picture-frame-making station, while another provided children with material to create their very own crowns, for example.

Recreation Advisory Council President Michael Daley said “It is really nice for children to be ‘buddied up’ with college students. There is an older sibling feel to it, and it’s awesome to have that kind of comradery. It is also nice for parents to relax and get a day for themselves knowing their children are in good hands.”

The Red Bulls professional soccer team also made an appearance. A lot of children gravitated to them and the team immediately taught them how to do some soccer skills. The Seeing Eye Puppy club from Rutgers brought many of their dogs and puppies to play with the children. For Christina, an attendant of Special Friends Day, playing with the Golden Retriever’s was the highlight of her day according to her mother.

“DJ Mike” played music and games with event-goers. He has been the disc jockey at the event for the past several years. Many children were fascinated by the equipment he brought with him. He allowed them to spin their own music. Charlene Nobleza, a RAC executive board member, said “I thought that it was really cool of DJ Mike to let everyone spin their own music. I know a lot of DJ’s get really protective of their equipment but he was totally great about it.”

Only minor glitches seemed to occur throughout the course of the day. One of the inflatable moon-bounces deflated a few times. Within a few minutes the moon-bounce was up and working. The Mounted Patrol was also supposed to come by with a few horses for pony-rides. An unexpected snow storm prevented this activity from occurring.

When Paul Fichbach, professional staff advisor of RAC, was asked about the event he was eager to share some of the reactions he received from parents. In a letter he received, a mother wrote, “What can I say? Brittany thoroughly enjoyed another ‘special’ day with her friends at Rutgers! Her buddies, Annie and Fufa befriended her the moment she walked through the front door. She had a blast crafting and swimming and seeing the big dogs, chatting about girlie stuff and swimming yet again.” The letter continues, “I asked her if there was anything that could have made her time greater and she simply replied, ‘Today was the best day of my life!’”

When Special Friends Day Chairwoman Corrie Payson was asked if the event will run again next year her reply was, “Absolutely. As long as Recreation Advisory Council is existing, so will Special Friends Day.”

Jaclyn Mandelbaum is a Rutgers University junior. She is double majoring in Journalism and Media Studies and Environmental Policy, Institutions, and Behavior. She aspires to do environmental public relations.

A Group that Chose to Give Back

2009-05-01T08:02:00.000-07:00

By Travis Drobbin

The Pike Rutgers Outreach Program (PROP’s) can be best summed up with one word: inspiring. That is because it shows what a group of people can do when they put their minds to bettering the community. The organization was founded to teach mentally and physically challenged kids to play sports, as well as to have an overall fun day. This goal has attracted many members to the student group’s quickly growing roster.

“People have been very interested in what we are doing with PROP’s. When people see a good opportunity to help the less fortunate, they jump at the chance,” said John Eibelheuser, 20, a Rutgers sophomore and the president of the organization. PROP’s was recognized by Rutgers as an organization in the beginning of the 2008/2009 academic year. The organization took part in Cook College’s Special Friends Day, which occurred on March 1.

Sponsored by a number of campus organizations, Special Friends Day is an event held on Cook Campus, which children with mental disabilities partake in different activities with 100 Rutgers students’ assistance. PROP’s came out in full force, with a number of dedicated volunteers. The organization had a table set up were they organized soccer games with the kids, and as a prize the children got a temporary tattoo. The children really took to the temporary tattoos and came back numerous times to the table. Everyone was very pleased with the introduction of the organization to the Rutgers community. The most appreciative of the people were the parents of the children. These parents saw their children experience a day of nothing but fun.

The Pike Rutgers Outreach Program started because of one individual. John Eiebelheuser felt the need to bring a program to Rutgers that would bring a positive addition to the community. “I figured that it would be great having just pledged a fraternity to bring something positive to the Greek community at Rutgers. I thought that my personal fraternity would find this organization not only beneficial to the reputation of the fraternity, but it would also give fulfillment to the members involved,” Eibelheuser said. PROP’s was started from an organization called Hunterdon Outreach Program (HOP’s). Eibelheuser was a volunteer for HOP’s and felt it was the perfect sort of organization to bring to the Rutgers community. The Hunterdon Outreach Program, started in Hunterdon County in the spring of 2003, serves to promote and develop different sports for children in the community who are physically or developmentally disabled. Eibelheuser wanted to bring the same mentality to the Rutgers organization.

“When I was part of the Hunterdon Outreach Program, I realized that the kids were having a genuinely good time. But even more than the kids, the volunteers were enjoying themselves. They all felt a sense of fulfillment after the event,” Eibelheuser stated. HOP’s programs currently include soccer, basketball, baseball, and tennis. They strive to introduce kids to new sports that they would normally not be recruited to participate in.

PROP’s has big plans for the future; it plans to schedule one more event before the semester is over. “We want to have a carnival in Buccleuch Park, where the kids can enjoy the nice weather and enjoy the activities we have set up,” said Eibelheuser. The organization seems to be taking a positive step forward in achieving their goal of having an event every two weeks. Next year seems to be the time when the organization really makes a push to become one of the more influential programs on the Rutgers campus.

Travis Drobbin is a Journalism and Media Studies major at Rutgers University. He plans to work in the film and music industry.

The Electronic Cigarette: A Better Alternative to Smoking?

2009-05-01T07:39:00.000-07:00

By Tiffany Y. Hsia

Electronic cigarette smokers have begun to rally together as the Food and Drug Administration placed a ban on e-cigarette importation in the United States.

Originally launched in 2006 by the Ruyan Company in China, the electronic cigarette has been creating controversy around the world in recent months. When it first arrived onto the market, the new invention was lauded by smokers and health professionals as a breakthrough in health technology. Even the World Health Organization conceded that, “it does not discount the possibility that the electronic cigarette could be useful as a smoking cessation aid.”

“I was a smoker for more than 10 years and suffered from many of the side effects of smoking…After three days of using the e-cig, I haven’t touched a normal cigarette since. It’s been almost a year and I lost my smoker’s cough, my lungs are open and clear and I never have to clear my throat anymore” said Sunil Rao,27, of Edison, N.J.

However, as the technology has grown in popularity and thousands have joined the ranks as e-smokers, the tide is beginning to turn as it attracts the attention of its fiercest competitors, the pharmaceutical and tobacco industries, and the federal government.

So what exactly is an e-cigarette? In essence, the electronic cigarette is an alternative method of nicotine-replacement therapy. It is an electronic device that replicates the smoking experience. It is composed of three parts; a battery with a LED indicator light, an atomizer and a cartridge/mouthpiece.

As a person inhales on an electronic cigarette, the LED indicator lights up and the atomizer vaporizes the nicotine liquid inside the cartridge, producing an odorless water vapor that resembles smoke. The nicotine satisfies cravings, the ritual of smoking satisfies an addict psychologically and because the body absorbs the nicotine inhaled, the exhaled vapor is not dangerous like secondhand smoke.

For all intensive purposes, it looks like you’re smoking a normal cigarette and it feels like you’re smoking a normal cigarette, but you avoid almost all of the negative aspects of smoking a normal cigarette.

The high price tag on electronic cigarettes sold at mall kiosks like Smoking Everywhere may dissuade many cigarette smokers from testing out the new technology but smaller companies like http://www.freshsmoking.com/, a New Jersey based online retailer of e-cigarettes, offer electronic cigarette starter kits for as little as $50, significantly less than the price of a carton of cigarettes.

An electronic cigarette sounds like a godsend for the millions of smokers out there. So why is there controversy surrounding it?

Opponents of the e-cigarette question the safety standards of the product, which is mainly produced in China. Since China’s track record on product safety hasn’t had too many glowing reviews lately, it seems inevitable that the tarnish has been slated onto the electronic cigarette, despite its benefits.

The major focus of the opposition isn’t to the technology itself -, especially since Philip Morris, the grand daddy of cigarettes, has developed its own electronic drug delivery device, the Aria Inhaler, as well as their newest invention, developed by Altria group to be released in 2009, the Smokefree Innotec Rauchless, but rather the nicotine that is contained in the cartridges. Currently, most of the nicotine cartridges and liquid refills are produced in China, where regulation standards are not as closely enforced as they are in the United States. The nicotine allows the e-cigarette to fall under the jurisdiction of the FDA, which regulates the use of nicotine in smoking cessation products.

One of the most vocal protesters against the electronic cigarette is New Jersey’s own Senator Frank R. Lautenberg. Lautenberg recently wrote a letter urging the FDA to remove electronic cigarettes off the market until they are proven safe. Lautenberg has a history of “protecting” Americans from the harmful effects of smoking and is known as an anti-tobacco crusader. He authored the law that banned smoking on airplanes, as well as in buildings that house federally-funded facilities that serve children.

What is a bit hypocritical about “the anti-smoking champion,” is that he is also currently supporting legislation that would protect standard tobacco cigarettes, which are scientifically proven to kill and has killed millions of people around the world. The Waxman Bill would authorize the FDA to regulate labeling, marketing, transport, content and sale of tobacco products. Another unsettling fact about the Waxman Bill that Lautenberg is supporting is that Philip Morris USA supports the legislation as well.

According to an open records search done by the Ashtray Blog, not only did Senator Lautenberg openly receive more than $126,000 in 2008 alone for his political campaign from pharmaceutical companies but he also has close ties with the Robert Wood Johnson Foundation, which was established by Johnson & Johnson, a pharmaceutical company that makes billions of dollars selling nicotine-replacement therapy. The question arises to Senator Lautenberg’s true motivations. Are they heart felt? Or possibly pocket lined? A reply to these statements went unanswered by Lautenberg’s press office.

Dr. Michael Siegel, a professor at the Boston University School of Public Health, stated that the success rate of current smoking cessation aids is at less than 10%. He also recently stated in an article, “How special that a public policy maker who touts himself as being a champion of the public’s health as well as some of the leading national health advocacy organizations are demanding that we ban what is clearly a much safer cigarette than those on the market, but that we allow, protect, approve and institutionalize the really toxic ones.”

Another defender of the electronic cigarette is Representative Cliff Stearns of Florida. Rep. Stearns, who has been seen openly smoking and demonstrating his own electronic cigarette at the cafeteria in Capitol Hill, has sent electronic cigarettes to House Minority Leader John Boehner of Ohio and to President Obama. According to an article in The Hill, Stearns stated, “There is no evidence that the device is harmful. Before the FDA takes any immediate action, it should put forward scientific evidence that these products are harmful or unsafe. These e-cigarettes are smokeless and do not produce carcinogens.”

While perusing through a popular e-cigarette forum, the general consensus was that responsible electronic cigarette vendors do not promote e-cigarettes as a smoking cessation product; the ones that do have been branded as interested in soley profit and are responsible for garnering the unwanted attention from the FDA.

The largest and most well-known of these vendors, Smoking Everywhere¸ filed a lawsuit against the FDA on April 28, 2009 stating that the FDA overstepped its authority and did not follow procedures as required by the Administrative Procedure Act in its banning of the importation of electronic cigarettes. They are also requesting that the electronic cigarette be classified as a tobacco product under which the FDA would have no jurisdiction. The lawsuit was prompted by a large shipment that was recently confiscated by customs under the FDA import ban on electronic cigarette products.

The lawsuit, if approved can only be seen as a short-term solution for electronic cigarette vendors. If the FDA gains the right to regulate tobacco under the Waxman Bill, then the protection that Smoking Everywhere seeks will become moot. Not only that but it can further harm the electronic cigarettes road to full and legal acceptance.

This lawsuit raises even more questions in the electronic cigarette’s short and traumatic life. If electronic cigarettes are categorized as tobacco products then wouldn’t they also fall under the same restrictions that currently ban tobacco use as well as face additional taxation and restrictive advertising laws? Perhaps an alternative route would be for electronic cigarette products to have its own separate classification that does not tie them in with tobacco or medical products.

The battle of the electronic cigarette versus everyone else is rooted in power, control and money. The mere existence of this new technology has already proven to be a threat to Big Tobacco with thousands of cigarette smokers converting to electronic cigarettes around the world according to eSmokers of the US. Big Pharma has also been hit with a loss in nicotine replacement therapy revenue. Even the government has lost revenue on tobacco taxes in the short-time the electronic cigarette has been sold. Will the e-cigarette, a product with the potential to help millions, eventually be outlawed? It definitely will if the FDA, Big Pharma and Big Tobacco gets its way.

Tiffany Y. Hsia is a second bachelor’s degree student in Journalism and Media Studies at Rutgers University and hopes to pursue a career in entertainment public relations and broadcast journalism. She completed her first B.A. in History and Geography from Rutgers University and graduated with honors.

The World's Obsession with Starbucks

2009-05-01T07:37:00.000-07:00

By Kara Jordhoy

Starbucks, a national phenomenon, has influenced our lives by becoming a daily visual. As I was driving down the street last week, I noticed that some workers were building a new shopping center. When I looked at the signs to see if I recognized any of these places that were about to be built, I noticed a particular name that our community and world have grown to love: Starbucks. How did we all become so obsessed with this franchise?

Now I admit that I am guilty of this pricey pleasure myself. I believed we are all unknowingly obsessed, as there are more than 10,000 Starbucks around the world. There are two in New Brunswick and a couple in surrounding towns such as North Brunswick and Edison. Two years ago, I went to Florida over Christmas break and I could not find a Starbucks anywhere. It had been one week and I was about to rip my hair out. I felt exhausted, irritable and even freaked out on my parents a few times. I longed for the taste of a delicious latte specifically made for each of my taste buds. However, I did not care for just any average cup of joe. I wanted Starbucks. When I finally located one, I asked how many there were in the city. The person answered, “One.” Having heard this surprising news, I felt so SPOILED. Due to growing up in The Woodlands, Texas, a big community with an addiction to coffee, I have always had a Starbucks within a close proximity. Yet these realistic reasons did not stop me from gulping down my white chocolate mocha with great pleasure.

I never realized how much our area is fixated on Starbucks until that trip. It seems like everywhere I look, there is yet ANOTHER green circle with that angelic woman in the center, begging me to fork over three bucks for the sweet taste of caffeine. In places like New York City, there is literally a Starbucks on every corner. Even small towns in the South are becoming just like the Big Apple. When will enough be enough? Isn’t the South known for regular food and simple living? And why must we have so many Starbucks?

According to the official Starbucks website, it all started in 1971 when Jerry Baldwin, Zev Siegel and Gordon Bowker, who all loved exotic spices, founded a coffee and tea shop in Seattle. Howard Schultz, the future CEO of Starbucks, noticed that their coffeemaker sold more than Macy’s own brand. After tasting Starbucks’ coffee, Schultz became hooked and instantly sought to help the business spread. Though much persuasion needed to be used in order to pursue Schultz’s visions for Starbucks, he eventually led the business across domestically and internationally. The idea was that this certain brand of coffee was fresher and better because they used dark-roasted nuts to make their drinks.

After many years of selling coffees, cappuccinos, lattes and teas, Starbucks has not just become a coffee shop, but an experience by itself. Its image is classy, yet friendly, and always a treat, like an ice cream shop for adults young and old. Starbucks has clearly captivated the taste buds of any who come close to it. The franchise represents finer taste and the arts, so that it will gain more sales. Though business has boomed for Starbucks, it has also increased conformity, for many people will now only drink Starbucks coffee and refuse to try other brands.

Though there are Starbucks cafes around the world, Europe does not seem as addicted to them as the United States is. For example, I met a French girl at a Christmas party just a few months ago. She told me that they had one Starbucks in Paris because they think the sizes are too big. They enjoy sipping little cups of coffee. Needless to say, I felt like a typical American pig.

Obviously, America’s obsession with Starbucks has helped make the obesity rate grow more. We do not have to walk far to get to yet another Starbucks; one can go merely two blocks before finding another coffee place to go to. How did America become so obsessed? These money-making monopolies are slowly taking over the entire world, with the façade of delicious coffees to delude the latte-addicted people of our country.

Not only is Starbucks an expensive treat, but it also does harm to our environment. Employees waste an estimated 23 million liters of water a day (One News) by merely leaving the water tap on. With economical and social reasons like these, how can we really support Starbucks as a business?

So yes, our privileged communities and many others rely excessively on the joys of Starbucks. We do not need all of this coffee brewing in our home. When I go out into the real world, I will have to learn to live without these wonderful drinks unless I want my wallet empty. My family and I waste much of our money on this luxury because it tortures us with its smell everywhere we go. The sad and hypocritical part of this story is that none of these emotionally disgusting details will stop me from going down to Starbucks and purchasing a double tall caramel macchiato with extra whip cream tomorrow.

Kara Jordhoy is a student at Rutgers University. She plans on double majoring in communication and social work, with a minor in dance.

"Don't Drink the Water"

2009-05-01T07:30:00.000-07:00

By Aliyah Finney

Fluoride has been marketed for years as a beneficial nutrient that helps to strengthen teeth, but there are many who believe that this is claim is a lie, marketed by the American government so they can continue selling this deadly compound.

What is Fluoride?

Fluoride is the reduced form of fluorine, an element used to produce uranium and other compounds. In the 18th and 19th centuries the fluoride’s impact on bones and teeth was studied and eventually the chemical was incorporated in dentistry. Today among toothpaste and drinking water, fluoride is found in infant formula, processed cereals, juice, soda, tea, wine, beer, mechanically separated chicken, seafood, Teflon, cigarettes and anesthetics. Fluoride is unique in the fact that it is the only chemical added to drinking water that does not purify or help clean and make the water safe for human consumption. The fluoride in drinking water is provided by “an industrial by-product from the phosphate fertilizer industry.”

Over the years the level of fluoride ingestion, due to its every growing includeance in many products and foods, has risen steadily and health concerns have grown as well.

Opposition

Recently those who are against fluoride usage have rallied together and become much more vocal about their goals. One of the most prominent and well known groups is The Fluoride Action Network (FAN) who is determined to inform the public of the “the toxicity of fluoride compounds and the health impacts of current fluoride exposures”.
The FAN have listed some a total of 50 reasons to oppose fluoride on their website, fluorideallert.org. Here are just a few:

- Fluoride is not an essential nutrient (NRC 1993 and IOM 1997). No disease has ever been linked to a fluoride deficiency. Humans can have perfectly good teeth without fluoride.

- Fluoridation is not necessary. Most Western European countries are not fluoridated and have experienced the same decline in dental decay as the US (Data from the World Health Organization has confirmed these reports)

- Fluoridation's role in the decline of tooth decay is in serious doubt. The largest survey ever conducted in the US (over 39,000 children from 84 communities) by the National Institute of Dental Research showed little difference in tooth decay among children in fluoridated and non-fluoridated communities

- Despite being prescribed by doctors for over 50 years, the US Food and Drug Administration (FDA) has never approved any fluoride product designed for ingestion as safe or effective.

Although there is substantial arguments for the ineffectiveness fluoride, Amy Jonson, who is a spokeswoman for American Academy of Pediatric Dentistry, reported that, as of 2000 “$10 billion is spent nationally on children's dentistry. Of the total, about 8 percent, or $800 million, is spent on topical fluoride treatments. Most dentists charge about $30 for fluoride treatments.”

Health Threat?

Too much fluoride exposure in children commonly results in a condition called dental fluorosis, which occurs when a child has been exposed to too much fluoride during the development of their teeth. In the most common forms, mild, white streaks appear on the teeth, but in more severe cases brown, permanent stains are apparent. Either way the enamel is affected, sometimes rough, pocked, and hard to clean.

Fomon SJ, Ekstrand J, Ziegler EE had this to say in 2000 “Based on this review, we conclude that fluoride intakes of infants and children have shown a rather steady increase since 1930, are likely to continue to increase, and will be associated with further increase in the prevalence of enamel fluorosis unless intervention measures are instituted." (Journal of Public Health Dentistry 60(3):131-9)

Hydrofluorosilicic acid, the fluoride in drinking water, is unlike the fluoride “used in toothpaste. Hydrofluorosilicic acid is not pharmaceutical-grade quality. It is an unpurified, industrial-grade, corrosive acid which has been linked, in several recent studies, to increased levels of lead in children’s blood.” It is also highly recommended that babies and those with kidney disease do not ingest fluoride due to sever health risks including bone disorders and brain defects.

Another threat and concern is the researched link between fluoride ingestion and cancer. The National Toxicology Program, an organization dedicated to furthering the research and evaluation of toxins, has listed fluoride as a mutagen; a compound that is found to cause genetic damage. Some even claim that high fluoride intake lowers intelligence. The Environmental Health News reported on findings in China in which children who drank well water, high in fluoride levels, scored much poorer on standardize test than those who did not.

“524 children (exposed and controls) aged 8 to 12 years old in China's Shanxi province for fluoride exposures [were examined] in relation to intellectual functioning and growth. The families were exposed to naturally occurring high concentrations of fluoride through well water. The children were compared to control children who were recruited from three nearby villages with uniformly low concentrations of fluoride in well water. All children lived in areas with similar geography, cultural conditions and socioeconomic development. “

According to the Fluoride Action Network, “the research on fluoride and the brain has been fueled by 18 human studies from China, India, Iran, and Mexico finding elevated levels of fluoride exposure to be associated with IQ deficits in children. Conclusion: High fluoride burden has a definite effect on the intellectual and physical development of children." (Wang S, et al. (2005). Effects of coal burning related endemic fluorosis on body development and intelligence levels of children. Journal of Applied Clinical Pediatrics.)

History

So how does a chemical like fluoride, with all of its supposed negative qualities, become labeled as “healthy” and even become an additive? It is believed by some that the American government is well aware of the adverse effects of fluoride, but continue to support it because of the revenue it creates for them. Some suggest the tactic began decades ago way back at the end of World War II.

"At the end of World War II, the US government sent Charles Eliot Perkins, a research worker in chemistry, biochemistry, physiology and pathology, to take charge of the vast Farben chemical plants in Germany. The German chemists told Perkins of a scheme which they had devised during the war and had been adapted by the German General Staff. The German chemists explained of their attempt to control the population in any given area through the mass medication of drinking water with sodium fluoride, a tactic used in German and Russian prisoner of war camps to make the prisoners "stupid and docile"(Stephen 1995).

“The ‘dental caries prevention myth’ associated with fluoride, originated in the United States in 1939, when a scientist named Gerald J. Cox, employed by ALCOA, the largest producer of toxic fluoride waste and at the time being threatened by fluoride damage claims, fluoridated some lab rats, concluded that fluoride reduced cavities and claimed that it should be added to the nation’s water supplies.

“Despite growing evidence that it is harmful to public health, US federal and state pubic health agencies and large dental and medical organizations such as the American Dental Association (ADA), continue to promote fluoride.” It is commonly believed that the government profits from fluoride production and use, which is why they are so advent about it’s positive properties.

Advocates

There are still those who stand behind the positive effects of fluoride. There are news articles dating back to the 1940’s, the time when fluoride was first to be added to drinking water, laden with opposition and debate.

Advocates of fluoride then and now claim to have testing that contradicts all of the points discussed by their opponents. For example, the National Cancer Institute studied 2.2 million people for a 15 year period and states “the researchers found no indication of increased cancer risk associated with fluoridated drinking water.” They also claimed that “the researchers found no indication of increased cancer risk associated with fluoridated drinking water. They also adamantly adhere to the belief that fluoride benefits teeth, a grave contradiction to the claim that there are not help benefits to the chemical what so ever. Supporters tend to be tied with the US Federal government, while the opponents are predominantly independent organizations.
Some dentists do not recommend cutting fluoride out of a child’s diet, despite the threat dental fluorosis, but rather to just monitor their intake.

There seems to be some concern about the government’s end for in 2003 the Water Act was passed, “which has made it impossible for water companies to undergo civil or criminal hearings as a result of adding fluoride to public water supplies.” Ultimately, water companies could not be held liable for any adverse health effects as a result of their drinking water.

Townships have the choice of whether or not to include fluoride in their water, and over half of the nation chose to do so. The Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) has allowed fluoride to be included in drinking water in order for due to its supposed aid to teeth health. “EPA has set an enforceable drinking water standard for fluoride of 4 mg/L (some people who drink water containing fluoride in excess of this level over many years could get bone disease, including pain and tenderness of the bones). EPA has also set a secondary fluoride standard of 2 mg/L to protect against dental fluorosis.”

The EPA seems to stand in the middle grounds, in which they attest that fluoride is beneficial in moderation, though even this claim has come under fire.

What Now?

With such contradictory research analysis and claims from both ends of the spectrum, the fluoride debate shows no signs of cooling down. Its usage and inclusion in food and other products is higher now than ever before. It seems that all that can be done is to educate the public, of which the majority is unaware that there are even issues surrounding fluoride, and let them draw their own sound conclusions.

Aiyah Finney is a sophomore at Rutgers University. She is double majoring in Journalism and Media Studies, as well as East Asian Studies with a concentration in Japanese. She is also perusing a minor in Linguistics. A native of Piscataway New Jersey, Aliyah plans to pursue a career in the marketing and management of foreign movies in North America.

Healthscope Series: Understanding "Chest Pains"

2009-04-24T20:29:00.000-07:00

By Maria Monica Abrenica

Chest pains are one of the most misdiagnosed symptoms in medicine and people immediately get alarmed when they experience the symptom and associate it with a fatal heart attack. This is the issue that the American College of Physicians (ACP) raises and seeks to promote heightened public awareness on. In order to deliver a greater understanding of chest pains, the ACP produced a 25-minute film, Chest Pains, as part of the Healthscope Series. Like earlier Healthscope films in the series, Chest Pains features real doctors with their patients in order to bring audiences accurate and understandable health information.

According to the ACP, many people are still unaware that experiencing chest pains does not necessarily signify a heart attack. There are a multitude of other conditions that cause chest pains, says ACP. They can be categorized as cardiac and non-cardiac causes and among them are the following:

Cardiac Causes

Angina. Cholesterol and other substances that build up in the arteries of the heart restrict blood flow. This causes recurrent episodes of chest pain—angina pectoris, or angina.

Pericarditis. Viral infections can cause inflammation of the sac surrounding the heart. This often causes short-lived chest pains.

Coronary Spasm. Coronary arteries, arteries that supply blood to the heart, temporarily restrict blood flow. This can be triggered by the intake of nicotine and caffeine and causes episodes of chest pains.

Non-cardiac Causes

Hiatal hernia. Chest pains may occur when the upper portion of the stomach protrudes into the chest cavity through an opening of the diaphragm called the esophageal hiatus

Heartburn. Stomach acid that washes up from the stomach into the esophagus can cause a painful, burning sensation behind the breastbone.

Panic attack. Experiencing intense fear can be accompanied by chest pains, rapid heartbeat, and rapid breathing or shortness of breath.

Lung conditions. A collapsed lung and high blood pressure in the arteries carrying blood to the lungs and asthma also can produce chest pain.

Sore muscles. Chronic pain syndromes can produce persistent muscle-related chest pain.
Injured ribs or pinched nerves. A bruised or broken rib, as well as a pinched nerve, can cause chest pains.

Gallbladder or pancreas problems. Gallstones or inflammation of the gallbladder or pancreas can cause acute abdominal pain that could include chest pains.

The American College of Physicians is a national organization of internists—physicians who specialize in the prevention, detection and treatment of illnesses in adults. ACP is the largest medical-specialty organization and second-largest physician group in the United States.

The Healthscope Series is a collection of films produced by the ACP to alert people about common and significant symptoms and to prompt them to seek appropriate medical attention. There are currently 12 films in the series today.

For more information: www.acponline.org

The Benefits of Mobile Communications in Japan

2009-04-21T23:10:00.000-07:00

By Lucas Sullivan

Cellphones are now such a common accessory for the typical Japanese student that many view them as “part of their ego,” a medium through which they can broadcast their interests and personality. On Wednesday, March 25, Mito Akiyoshi, a professor from Senshu University in Japan, gave a lecture in the SCILS Building at Rutgers about the trends in mobile communication that she has observed in Japanese society. She made the argument that although mobile devices are considered to be a threat to the productivity of children in Japan, cellphones have important social utility that should not be overlooked.

There were a little less than a dozen attendees at the lecture, with the majority of them being of Asian descent. All but one of the attendees was either a graduate student or a faculty member from the Communications department here at Rutgers. The environment was very casual, and chatting amongst Akiyoshi and her audience was encouraged. Akiyoshi was accompanied by her colleague Jeff Boase, whom she had been conducting similar research with and had worked with him on publishing a variety of scholarly articles. Though she teaches in Japan, Akiyoshi received her PhD from the University of Chicago, so publishing in English is not at all a problem for her.

Akiyoshi began her lecture by explaining that many adults in Japan have the perception that the mobile phone is “evil,” and how the former prime minister of Japan, Yasuo Fukuda, suggested that children be kept away from all cellphones and similar devices. This view isn’t completely unfounded; there are various problems that arise when kids are given free reign over the use of mobile devices. In the first 6 months of 2007, 600 children used online dating services via their phones; these were mostly adolescent girls attempting to trick men in their 30’s into buying gifts for them. There are also problems with bullying, a common problem in children’s society, that carried over to harassment and degradation through mobile communications. Other concerns are that students may become distracted by or even addicted to texting, which can intrude on class time and productive activities quite heavily.

But what about the benefits of owning a mobile phone? Akiyoshi noted that in 2000, mobile phone ownership in Japan was about 20% higher than computer ownership. Unlike PC’s, almost anyone can easily get a mobile phone in Japan. Akiyoshi displayed data she had collected over the past 5 years that demonstrated how genders adapt to mobile phones at an equal rate. This was in contrast to the fact that men were quicker to adopt PC’s, mostly due to middle aged men using these computers for their business purposes.

Many students “feel the need to decorate their phones” with miniature keychains, stickers, whistles, trinkets, and even toys as large as the phones themselves. To these students, the phone is “not just an instrument, but an extension of the [self],” Akiyoshi said. One of the grad students chimed in, saying that while she could not speak for Japanese culture specifically, this practice of adorning one’s phone with various ornaments was a common practice for Korean students as well, mostly for teenage girls. The phone also serves as a great way to “not only build, but maintain” personal networks.

The mobile phone is also a part of the business world. Not only does it facilitate communication between employees who no longer have to be near a landline, but it also presents job opportunities for the everyman. Akiyoshi revealed a website designed to make use of the GPS capabilities in many phones. Using this website, an employer can find job seekers in their local area as quick fill-ins for jobs; an aspiring worker can also see where his services may be needed. One of the professors asked Akiyoshi how often people upgrade their mobile phones – she explained that this usually occurred based on the provider’s contract, much like in the US. Students choose mobile phone providers based on what their families have, so providers gain a generation of consumer loyalty.

Akiyoshi closed her lecture by stating that while phones are most often used for leisure, they can also be used for “purposes that really matter.” For this reason, it may be wrong to try and force mobile phones out of the classroom and replace them with PC’s. Akiyoshi described mobile technology as the “great equalizer” in Japanese society, and concluded that naysayers of its practical use need to be careful to consider the roles of the mobile phone in the “social psychological aspects” of the region.

Hometown Baghdad I: No 'Home Sweet Home' for Iraqis

2009-04-21T23:08:00.000-07:00

By Sylver McGriff

Part I
The first of this multi-part report focuses on producer Kate Hillis, and the elements surrounding the production of Hometown Baghdad. Future segments will look more deeply into the characters and content of the acclaimed documentary.

Kate Hillis. Tiny woman. Enormous vision.

“I wanted to do something bigger. But not in the Hollywood sense,” she explains, revealing the modus behind the courage it took for a mainstream producer living securely on a successful career of producing programming for such media giants as ABC, MTV, VH1, HBO, FOX, and CNN to stretch her talented tentacles beyond U.S. borders into a region of the so-called “Axis of Evil” - Iraq - just before, during and after the 2003 U.S. invasion.

Did I mention that she was pregnant at the time? Or that in her ninth month, FBI agents unexpectedly showed up at her home for a visit? “I waddled around stashing my files,” she recalls. “Then buzzed them in.” Such is the life of this daring producer of Hometown Baghdad, a series which documents the dangerous reality of the daily lives of three young Iraqis struggling to survive before, during, and in the wake of the U.S. invasion of Iraq.

On March 10, Prof. Samiha Matin, a Russell Teaching Fellow and professor of such Rutgers University Journalism and Media Studies courses as Intro to Digital Media and Media Essay, presented “The Writers House Media Group: A Conversation with Kate Hillis” in the University’s Murray Hall. Here, nine Rutgers Journalism students learned first-hand about daily life in U.S.-occupied Iraq.

Hillis herself attended Syracuse University, receiving a degree in Business, after which, she quips, “I worked at the Grammy’s, fetching tuna sandwiches for Gladys Knight & the Pips.” Her Business degree was not wasted, however, as she eventually started her own non-profit production company in which she parlayed the diverse talents of Whitney Houston, Lauryn Hill, Mother Theresa, and then-President Clinton (to name just a few) into a non-profit arena.

At the Rutgers Writers House Media Group event, Hillis showed clips of her successful documentary, "Hometown Baghdad." In the opening segment entitled “Brains on Campus,” Adel - a University of Baghdad College of Engineering student, and one of the main characters of the documentary - describes in heavily accented English what Iraqi student life was like during the U.S. invasion.

“Our college were [sic] attacked by a missile, and a couple of students were killed. One of them died right here,” he recounts, pointing to a tiled-over section of concrete ground. “His brain is right underneath there. They tried to wash it away but it just couldn’t get off, so they put that [tile] just to cover it.” Taped to a wall inside the college hang graduation certificates for other students who have been killed. “One of my friends lost a kidney,” Adel says soberly. “And another friend lost a leg.”

Initially funded by Cheryl Leech, the woman who created Barney the purple dinosaur (“She’s been our angel,” Hillis said), and produced by Hillis’ own Chat the Planet production company, "Hometown Baghdad" premiered on March 19, 2007 to acclaim in media across the globe. However, Hillis could not garner a concrete deal for the documentary to air on U.S. channels. Instead, "Hometown Baghdad"’s U.S. acclaim came slowly in a word-of-mouth process for the Webby Awards-winning documentary. In 2008, it won for the categories of Reality, Best Political/News Series, and Public Service & Activism.

Webby Awards are given by the International Academy of Digital Arts and Sciences - a diverse organization with such renowned members as David Bowie, Arianna Huffington, ‘Simpsons’ creator Matt Groening, and writers and editors from publications such as The New York Times, Vibe, and Elle magazine - to honor excellence on the Internet. Soon after this win, the Sundance Channel took notice and on March 19, 2009 aired Hometown Baghdad, for which the documentary received a five-star rating by viewers.

“Now, if I can only get a U.S. channel to air it,” Hillis said.
“Good luck with that,” an audience member chuckled.

Iraq is just one of the countries in Hillis’ “Hometown” documentary series; other countries include Israel and Iran. “We try to make them [our documentaries] like a vitamin, hide it in your sugar pops [cereal] so it’s entertaining and also good for you.”

Maher Over Matter

2009-04-21T21:30:00.000-07:00

By Shawn Lopez

After their loss to the Hofstra Pride, Rutgers Women’s Lacrosse team stared a disappointing 3-6 record in the face midway through their season. This was an especially disappointing blow for the Scarlet Knights because they had no problem beating Hofstra and several other teams, including Denver and Cornell in prior years. With grueling 3-hour practices 6 days a week, strict rules off the field, team dinners, and pregame rituals, Rutgers was left slightly dumbfounded at the losses. Head Coach Laura Brand turned to sport psychologist Dr. Charles Maher for encouragement.

Maher has worked to mentally prepare several professional teams including the Cleveland Browns, Indians, and Cavaliers. Rutgers football and women’s basketball teams are also lucky enough to have him at their disposal.

Maher visited the 27 members of the Rutgers Women’s Lacrosse team on Wednesday March 25th, just two days after their loss to Hofstra. Upon his arrival in the Women’s Lacrosse locker room, located in the Hale Athletic Center on Busch Campus, Maher retrieved a dry-erase marker from the closet and began writing an acronym on the board. The board read, “WIIFM .” “Does anybody know what this stands for?” The room fell silent. “It stands for what’s in it for me.” He then wrote, “WIIFT.” “And what about this?” We guessed it: “What’s in it for the team?” “If you are solely concerned with what you can get out of your athletic career here, you will bring your team down. This is selfishness. The opposite of selfishness is teamwork, buying into something larger than yourself. If you don’t leave yourself as a person, you’re going ride an emotional rollercoaster on the field,” he said.

Maher went onto explain how our personal choices and attitude affect the outcome of our games. There are simple reasons for why individuals lose focus. “Staying up drinking at the ‘Magic Moon Lounge,’ eating a late dinner at IHOP, or even staying up half the night studying, all affect how focused you are,” said Maher. He writes another acronym on the board, “PPT.” “This stands for the people you should be with, the places you should be, and the things you should put into your body.” He reminded the team that effort, how hard a player works during a game, is not the only thing that is important. Ethic, the way an athlete goes about preparing, is just as, if not more important, he added.

All of this is pretty straightforward; get a lot of sleep, eat right, and follow the coach’s rules. The physical preparation is a no-brainer but how does an athlete mentally prepare? You may have heard of “being in the zone.” This is what Maher likes to call a “cocktail party phrase”- something athletes use in casual conversation but never really think about it’s meaning. You can’t just say to yourself, “Ok I’m going to prepare by visualizing what I’m going to do next or what I need to work on. ““This will not help you,” said Maher. He then wrote yet another acronym, “MAC,” on the dry-erase board. The M stands for “mind in the moment.” If an athlete can focus on what is in front of him/her step by step, play by play he/she will have a lot of leverage. The A stands for “accept what is there, don’t judge.” An athlete should not think about the mistakes he/she has just made. Lastly, the C stands for “commitment to the play.” This refers back to embracing the moment. An athlete should be solely concerned with what is going on in front of him/her.

After the dry erase board was covered with challenging insights and countless acronyms, Maher concluded his speech. “Now ask yourself, are you competing with your opponent or yourself? Once you have conquered any mental distractions you may have, everything else will fall into place, and victory will come easy.”

It should be noted, the Rutgers Women’s Lacrosse team went on to beat Loyola College (no. 13 in the nation), in a Big East conference game the following Friday.

The Cosmic Kaleidoscope

2009-04-21T21:27:00.000-07:00

By Kaja Stamnes

Hilding Lindquist, a local blogger and playwright, opened the doors to his creative mind, inviting others to join on Sunday, March 30 at the Ethical Culture Society in Maplewood, NJ. Speaking on the subject, “Our Creative Imagination: The Cosmic Kaleidoscope,” Mr. Lindquist described his existential views of the world, aiming to engage the audience in a conversation about their own ideas. The talk was part of an ongoing lecture series at the Ethical Culture Society, which describes itself as a “Humanist and Ethical movement inspired by the ideal that the supreme aim of our lives is to create a more humane society,” according to the website.

Mr. Lindquist put forth his unique, existentialist view of the world and the place we as human beings occupy within it. He defined his terms to clarify his explanation, using “Universe” as “that what we already know and understand of our environment;” “cosmos as everything” and finally, “world” as in “my world,” “the time and space continuum in which I live and act.” The relationship between these variables is of special interest to Mr. Lindquist, and the afternoon focused on the idea of engaging one's mind and creative imagination whether through thought or discussion, to better understand one's own “world.”

An interesting point made by Mr. Lindquist was the view of human beings as all occupying their own “world” of awareness and understanding, yet universally being connected at the same time. He explained, “one of my basic ideas is that we are all wired the same way, we have the same music score as it were embedded in our DNA, guiding our awareness ... we are able to recognize the truth about our world ... if we are open to the truth ... but then truth is not a fixed marker to be discovered. It is more like the surface of a balloon, ever expanding as we seek more answers, attempt to connect more dots.”

Mr. Lindquist continued by describing his biological understanding of human life, rooted in three tenets: We are tribal animals, we are hunting animals, and our awareness takes different forms—all that are linked—using here the metaphor of an orchestra, different instruments sharing the same musical score.

The existentialist and transcendentalist views that Mr. Lindquist holds places creativity and awareness at the centerpiece of the question of human existence. While religion can play a role in this existence, it is not the stage upon which these other factors are set. Quoting Dr. Stanley Wayne's A Book of Ethical Wisdom, Mr. Lindquist said, “Societies experience religion as a conversation through the ages.” This experience of “religion” as a “conversation” reveals the perspective Mr. Lindquist has about awareness: not only does it precede experience, but it is continually evolving through the metaphorical and actual conversation of human consciousness.

Guatemalan Women's Activist Rallies Support

2009-04-21T20:58:00.000-07:00

By Kiyanna Stewart

Women’s rights activist Maria Lucrecia Vicente Franco revealed the harsh realities of women living in Guatemala to a group of Women’s & Gender Studies students on March 25 as part of Rutgers University’s celebration of Women’s History Month.

Vicente Franco is a psychologist and an active member of the Guatemalan women’s rights organization, Nuestra Voz (Our Voice). She presented a screening of the acclaimed documentary, “Killer’s Paradise,” released in 2006, which reveals the socially normalized violence against women in Guatemala, as well as the unresponsive government, which takes no initiative to find or prosecute murderers.

“Killer’s Paradise” documents the story of Claudina Isabel Velasquez, a 19-year-old law student murdered in the summer of 2005, as her family urges the authorities to investigate who killed her. Velasuez is one of more than 6,000 women who have been murdered in Guatemala since 1999. According to Franco, 665 women on average are killed every year.

Last year, of the six-hundred women killed, not one case was solved by Guatemalan authorities. In 2005 alone, 640 women, nearly two a day, were killed at the hands of domestic violence, gang violence and largely, “femicide”, which she calls a fairly new term for a historically-prevalent trend. Femicide, is used to characterize the murder of women specifically because the victim is a woman, and is increasing alarmingly in developing countries with high levels of poverty and illiteracy.

Franco described typical cases, in which, women may first be abducted, subjected to severe beatings, rape, sexual mutilation, perverse torture, or dismemberment then killed and subsequently deposited in public areas. “These are young women who don’t fit a traditional mold. They are mothers working to support their children, young girls putting themselves through school and many of them, professional and independent” she told The Raritan Journal, later adding, “Because they assert themselves into public spaces, they’re specifically being targeted.”

Like Velasquez, 17-year-old Andrea Fabiola Contreras was also gruesomely murdered. Her body was found in a dump in Jocotenango, Sacatepequez with the word “vengeance” carved into her right leg with a knife. Her hands were tied in a plastic bag, which had been thrown into a ditch used as a trash dump. Her throat had been cut, she had wounds and cuts on her face and chest and she had been shot in the head at close range. Contreras had been raped, with her sandals, white blouse, and underclothes were found next to her body, recalls Franco.

“It was tough to hear that this is a reality for some young women not only in Guatemala, but in other parts of the world. We leave our houses and dorm rooms never expecting to be murdered by our ex-boyfriend, father or even our current boyfriend,” said Rutgers Junior Natalie Lenxton. Some argue that the way in which these crimes are unacknowledged adds a double layer of oppression.

According to “Killer’s Paradise,” Guatemalan authorities, who do not keep statistical data, are simply not interested in investigating the disappearances. For the most part, they assume that the woman has run off with a boyfriend, and if they happen to find a body, claim that she must have been a prostitute or actively involved in gangs and therefore, not worth opening a case file for.

Nevertheless, Franco feels that by communicating the extent of violence against women to a global audience, she can mitigate geographical, socioeconomic and cultural boundaries, which foster ideas of separatism while comparing violence. She ended by saying, “I am here [at Rutgers], to show a side of domestic and gendered violence that most don’t ever see. Hopefully by spreading a message internationally, and pressuring the Guatemalan government, we can finally put an end to these inhumane acts of violence.”

The Savvy Real Estate Agent Produces Results

2009-04-21T20:53:00.000-07:00

By Tiffany Y. Hsia

Les Newlands strode into the conference room. Dressed in an impeccably tailored suit with matching cufflinks and a stylish coif of swingy salt and pepper, he immediately sat down and looked around the room. His gaze was intense and his presence was supremely confident; this man meant business. Welcome to Real Estate Sales Skills 101.

Les Newlands believes that you can sell anyone anything if you use the right techniques. He believes this because he has done it for years. And now because of his years of expertise, he passes his skills off to various companies and individuals in seminars such as this one with the byline, ‘Those who have the most skills make the most $$$$.’

“Your attitude needs to be energetic, positive and motivational,” Les said while speaking to the intimate coterie of 20 in Brooklyn, N.Y. in March 2009. “Never over promise and under deliver; under promise and over deliver and your clients will think you go above and beyond. You must always have and maintain a sense of urgency. Use silence often and use it as a tool to force people to answer,” spouted Les.

Les has worked in the real estate world for over 20 years, so he’s well versed in his knowledge. Formerly the Senior Vice-President of Sales & Training at the now defunct Foxtons, Les also owns his own consulting firm, Newlands Sales Consulting and has been the Vice-President of Sales & Marketing for Group Ten Builders since 1995.

While demonstrating some of his various sales techniques, Les went from a saccharine sweet smile and honeyed tone of voice to a deadly serious and coercive no crap mode in two seconds flat. It was mind-boggling how a person could switch gears so quickly. His was a method of sales without the obvious hokey sales pitch; it was surprisingly effective.

Before the demise of Foxtons North America, Foxtons had won several awards, including the Stevie Awards from the American Business Award foundation and had some of the highest producing individual sales agents in the industry, according to the National Association of Realtors Magazine. Each and every salesperson that worked at Foxtons had passed through Les’ Buyer Agent Training Program.

During the seminar, Les provided the group with speeches to memorize when confronted in specific real estate situations. Methods such as the ‘Savvy Buyer Story’ were meant to empathize with an upset seller while also assuring them of their real estate agent’s competence. ‘Fish or Cut-Bait’ was a planned confrontation with a picky buyer who had seen multiple homes and was hesitant to buy. The tactic was meant to either firmly coerce them into making a decision sooner rather than later or to cut them off to focus on buyers that were ready to make a purchase quickly.

With a mix of savvy knowledge and psychology, Les’ techniques are incredibly productive. Invaluable information was presented during his seminar and his speech concluded with rousing applause. A particularly poignant tidbit from his speech that was simple yet resoundingly true was, “Give people your time and they will give you their money.”

Newlands will be conducting several other seminars throughout the month of March in Brooklyn for the company, Agent Dashboard.

John Waters Talks Trash at the 92nd Street Y

2009-04-21T20:43:00.000-07:00

By Alex Guadagno

The neck is instantly recognizable, but something is conspicuously missing. “I use photography, but I’m no Ansel Adams,” says filmmaker John Waters as a series of movie stills he calls Sophia Loren, Decapitated appears on a Powerpoint presentation behind him. The series features Loren in some of her most poignant scenes, minus her head (which appears to have been haphazardly cut out of each frame with safety scissors). Waters’s current art exhibit, Rear Projection, opens April 3 at the Marianne Boesky Gallery and will contain stills from other classic films presented in a righteously bizarre new light.

“People don’t remember movies they saw. They remember the stills used to promote them,” said Waters. Through editing or rearranging certain images, Waters explained how a new narrative was born. “I’m trying to think of every way to get inside a movie that is not really how you’re supposed to watch it.” He spoke at the 92nd Street Y on Lexington in New York City on March 31, offering attendees a preview of his exhibit and the self-professedly “filthy” mind that created it.

Waters explained that "Rear Projection" is derived from the antiquated film technique where foreground action is combined with prerecorded background action: for example, an actor drives a car as the previously recorded landscape appears to roll past the vehicle’s back window. Taking the term to its literal new level, Waters presented some stills of classic rear projection scenes – with the projection edited to actually fit on someone’s anonymous rear end. “You have no idea how much porn my assistants and I had to watch to find rears with just right sizes and shadowing,” he said. The 92nd Street Y audience, approximately 150 members strong that night, consisted of Upper East Side art connoisseurs, gender-bending club kids, and everything in between. The crowd swelled with appreciative laughter as Waters earnestly scrolled through his works featuring famous faces and superimposed posteriors.

“Waters uses an insider's bag of film tricks and trade lingo to celebrate the excess of the movie industry,” says a press release. “These one time classic, respected, even honored movies are now assaulted, elevated, subtitled and startlingly altered into a new kind of equality; a cult film that only needs one viewer – John Waters himself.”

Though Rear Projection may seem derisive of the works it features, Waters’s vision for his newest exhibit truly sprung out of a love for cinema. “There’s no such thing as a bad movie,” said Waters in his talk. “If you’re bored, just watch the lamps. You get obsessive and you look for the details.” This obsession is apparent in some of his works like Dorothy Mallone’s Collar, which features Mallone in various films, collar always upright. Waters explained how he began watching Mallone’s films just to make sure that her collar was indeed up, foregoing any period movies since he knew there was no chance she’d wear a collared shirt.

His love of all things cinema extends to what Waters calls the “sad, pitiful side of show business, when you’re sitting in some tiny office judging the success of your movie by counting up the popcorn receipts.” Rear Projection not only recognizes this side of the business that many filmmakers deny, it celebrates it. Waters has made his name in film by glorifying the depraved side of human nature in films such as Pink Flamingos, Female Trouble, and Pecker. It is in this same vein that he uses this exhibit to broach the topic of a life in show business.

Waters’s movies solicit laughs from a shared understanding of life on the fringes of mainstream culture. “Rear Projection necessitates a certain degree of insider knowledge too, and that’s what it’s about,” he said. “As well as how depressed normal people must be not to be in on the joke.”

A Cup of Talent

2009-04-21T20:42:00.000-07:00

By Alexander Cole

A small crowd of about 30 gathered in the Demarest Dorm’s main lounge last Thursday. Demarest is located on the College Ave campus of Rutgers University. Damian Kulikowski, a tall and imposing figure, grabbed the mic and announced, “Hey guys, we’re Headlock Jukebox, and we’re a Christina Aquilera cover band with a death metal twist!” Some in the crowd sat in silent confusion while others laughed at the joke. The drummer, Pat Kulikowski, started off the song with a fast-paced snare beat, heavy on the bass drum. Damian, the lead singer and guitarist, jumped in with Mark Norton, the bassist. The band played improvised heavy metal for a half hour, to the delight of some and horror of others.

As Rutgers sophomore Kara Zola said while she watched a few expressions, “Metal isn’t for everyone, I guess.” Shortly after the music faded away and the band packed up, another performer took the stage. Why were people gathered to sit in the main lounge and listen to performances they might not even like? They were attending the Demarest Dorm’s second Coffee House event of the semester. The Coffee House is an open-mic talent show in which anyone is able to attend or perform. Damian told this reporter that the word “performers” is preferred, as not all of the people involved simply sing and play instruments. There is spoken word, poetry, sketch comedy, and music of many genres based on who wishes to participate during each individual event. There are usually several of these events each semester and they typically run from 7 p.m. to 11 p.m., although sometimes later if the crowd is large enough and there are enough performers. As per its name, each Coffee House also provides free coffee, soda, and light snacks. Each time the event is organized, publicity is handled through word of mouth and Facebook.

Although during some of these events the room is packed to capacity, the average number of attendees is about 20 to 40 people, including those who run the event and the performers themselves. One might wonder, with such a small turnout, why anyone would attend to showcase their abilities. Pat, a School of Arts and Sciences student, also volunteers his drumming ability to those who wish to perform but have no percussion. When this reporter asked him why he plays at all, let alone for others, one thing became obvious. For these and other Coffee House performers, the enjoyment of their craft far outweighs the number of people listening. “I play coffee house because it’s the best way to show unique music,” he said, “and because it’s a good medium that Demarest and Rutgers students in general can use to show their talents.”

After his set, I asked Damian what kind of performances I could expect. He simply smiled and nodded towards the stage as the next performer started. Sean Battle, a poet and member of the group “Verbal Mayhem,” proceeded to fill the room with his powerful words, including one of his more popular pieces, “Crash.” Afterwards, 100% Cotton, an acoustic soft rock group, performed various original and cover songs with great skill. Still later a Rutgers student who had walked in during Sean’s performance approached one of the Demarites (the title for residents of Demarest) and asked for a time slot. Those in attendance were delighted by her original and cover songs with acoustic guitar accompaniment. Throughout the night this reporter would witness performers across many art forms, all of different races, majors, and ages. Raymond Dib, a soft-spoken Rutgers College Philosophy major described it not as a show per se, but as a release from ordinary college life. “Oh,” he commented with a modest smile, “and I play, too.”

Dr. Gleick Proposes the Soft Path to Water

2009-04-21T19:53:00.000-07:00

By Maria Monica Abrenica

Water is a human right, but millions of people around the world still have no access to this right. People worry that the day will come when water will no longer be available for us, but an expert believes this is not the case. There are bigger things we must turn our attention to.

These are the points Dr. Peter H. Gleick emphasized in his speech about water and its relevance to various aspects of life last Thursday, March 26. The talk started at 5:30 in the afternoon and was entitled, “How Access to Water Affects Gender, Security, Environment and Human Rights.” It was held at the Scholarly Communication Center in Rutgers University’s Alexander Library, where about fifty people attended.

Dr. Gleick is the president of the Pacific Institute in Oakland, California. He has a bachelor’s degree from Yale University as well as a master’s degree and Ph.D. from the University of California in Berkeley.

He began with an overview of the world’s water crisis and discussed it in terms of three major dimensions. He then closed his talk by providing plausible solutions to the problems surrounding water issues.

“Water is a very big topic. It’s connected to everything,” said Gleick.

Before proceeding with his speech, Gleick said that water and the issues surrounding it must not only be thought of as a scientific concern. “It’s an issue of culture,” he said. According to him, water and water issues are not just the concern of scientists and environmentalists. It is every citizen’s concern and responsibility. He emphasized that water is a human right.

He identified the human, environmental, and political dimensions as three main areas that help us understand the reality of the world’s worsening water crisis. According to Gleick, forty percent of the world’s total population do not have access to safe drinking water and about 2 million deaths every year are caused by water-related diseases that could easily be prevented. He acknowledged that the demands for water have only kept growing throughout the years. This fact, Gleick argued, is not the main issue. The real problem, he believes, is the way humans have kept taking from nature without thinking about the implications. This is the reason why our ecosystems are devastated, he said.

“You can’t deal with water unless you deal with politics,” Gleick said.

Gleick also believes that the world is faced with a worsening water crisis due to the disconnect between water laws and human rights. He traces the origin of setting political boundaries by watersheds to the story of John Wesley Powell, “the first man to go in the Colorado River.” Gleick said that “we are governed by 19th century politics” and that we seem to be stuck in it.

"Population is growing where water is scarcest.” Gleick said that this reality, along with disagreements about what to do with water and inadequate programs, causes the worsening water crisis throughout the world. He also said that the crisis is worse today because we have delayed dealing with the issue.

Having covered the truths about the world’s worsening water crisis, Gleick then proposed ways by which we can work to solve it. In a nutshell, he suggests that we take the “soft path.” Instead of exhausting all our financial resources on building new infrastructures, taking the soft path entails practices and solutions that complement infrastructure that we already have. Gleick said that if we must build new infrastructure, we must build it to a different standard.

“Absolute scarcity is not the real problem."

Gleick said that we are a rich world, but the problem is that riches are unevenly distributed. He believes that those who get more should also acknowledge a greater responsibility. According to him, this is only an initial step in working to solve the water crisis. He also promoted the use of low flow toilets and drip irrigation systems. Finally, he said that fair pricing for water must be implemented because this is the only way basic human needs can be met.

Dr. Gleick encourages everyone to practice a willingness to explore new ideas that will help us solve the water crisis. His speech was one of the events sponsored by the Office of International Programs at the School of Arts and Sciences. It celebrates the 60th anniversary of the Declaration of Human Rights.

The Struggles in the Bayou

2009-04-21T17:26:00.000-07:00

By Ezra Dreiblatt

Hurricane Katrina slammed into the southern coast of the United States over three and a half years ago, leaving the city of New Orleans and a large part of the Gulf Region devastated. Today, through the help of volunteers, private money, and the federal government, New Orleans has slowly started to get itself back on its feet. However, even as the Gulf region has disappeared from the headlines and consciousness of many Americans, there is still much work to be done in the poorer parts of New Orleans and in the surrounding area. Liz McCartney, the head of St. Bernard Project, said as much when she spoke to a large group of university students in New Orleans during the spring break in March. Rutgers Hillel, along with Rutgers’ Engineers Without Borders, provided about twenty of the 2,000 students from around the country who traveled to New Orleans for their spring break to help in the rebuilding of the region. As head of St. Bernard Project, McCartney welcomed the groups by laying out how much her organization appreciated the help, all the work that needed to be done, and how important the tasks of the students were.

Ms. McCartney began her speech to the students by asking if anyone recognized her. When few people raised their hands, she jokingly conceded that she was now a minor celebrity as she had received the “Hero of the Year” award from CNN on national television in recognition of all the work she has done in New Orleans since the storm hit. Ironically, while very few of the volunteers knew of this fact, McCartney acknowledged that the exposure had been very helpful in getting volunteers of all ages, ethnicities, and religions to come down to help rebuild the city. McCartney went on to tell everyone a few facts about the St. Bernard Project. She emphasized that the organization has no religious affiliation and that it is only named after the parish in which it resides. She also stressed that the organization is currently rebuilding thirty houses with their full time staff and that any influx of volunteers means that the organization can begin making a dent in the waiting list they have of people seeking new houses or for their houses to be fixed. One important point McCartney wanted everyone to hear is the difference in her mind between a house and a home. As she eloquently put it, “Some of you (volunteers) will be working in houses and in communities that don’t seem as devastated as other areas of the city. What you must understand is that there are people living in lower income neighborhoods whose fences were destroyed, whose porches were torn off. For these people, fixing that fence or porch helps return the house they’re currently living in into a home they can live in.” For many of the volunteers from Rutgers, this statement struck a chord. Pam Slifer, a freshman with the Rutgers Hillel group, said, “I had never really thought of the distinction before; it’s crazy how a natural disaster like Hurricane Katrina can totally reshape your conception of what makes a home.” McCartney’s words seemed to strike similar chords with all the students. While she spoke, many of the students could be seen nodding while others had determined expressions on their faces, as they could not wait to begin working the next day.

McCartney finished her speech by thanking everyone who was there but also stressing that there would still be a lot of work to be done once the week of community service was over. She acknowledged that this type of work might not be for everyone but urged every person in the room to tell their friends back home about their experience. “Word of mouth is our best recruiting tool,” she stated, “and me being on CNN,” she joked. McCartney made it clear that the rebuilding of New Orleans and the Gulf Region Is not possible without volunteers. She said she hoped everyone would have a productive and fun week but also that everyone would take some time to learn a little about the city as a whole. For all the students in attendance who were jetlagged and tired, McCartney’s speech was the perfect pick me up. By clearly outlining the work that needed to be done, as well as challenging everyone to do their best, she had given everyone a shot of energy for the week ahead.

Support for Bergen County Academies Faculty

2009-04-21T16:39:00.000-07:00

By Jason Scharch

For eleven months the teachers at Bergen County Academies, located in Hackensack, New Jersey, have worked without a contract. The Academies, as the school is often called, is ranked among the top academic high schools in the nation and often attract highly ranked professionals to teach at their facility. When the students realized that the situation with their teachers’ contracts was not improving they decided to speak out.

Approximately thirty-five students attended the Bergen County Freeholders meeting on March 18, wearing red and showing their loyalty to the faculty at the Academies. This silent statement had been made before during school days, starting with the teachers coordinating wearing red clothing to show their protest, and continuing with the students starting their own coordination of clothing.

Wednesday’s meeting was a chance for students and alumni alike to speak out to the Freeholders, who appoint the Board of Education members at the county-financed school. The Board of Education has met with the teachers fifteen times to discuss contract negotiations, with no resolution so far.

Brian Barone, showed his gratitude to the freeholders for their support but encouraged their intervention in the contract process. “We as alumni would like to thank you for your continued support, monetary and otherwise over the past years,” Barone continued, “ however our educational experience would not have been nearly as special to us without the faculty who are currently working without contracts.” Brian graduated from the Academies, an alumnus from the Academy for Visual and Performing Arts in 2007, and went on to study classical guitar at the Peabody Institute for Johns Hopkins University.

Eric Levin, an alumnus from the Academy for Business and Finance in 2007 said, “I am proud to say that I can flip through my cell phone and find at least a dozen of my past teacher’s cell phone numbers, I am not only proud to call them my teachers, but I feel privileged to call them my friends.” Eric is currently continuing his studies at New York University.

After the public’s time for open statements was over, most of the Freeholders took the time to express their gratitude for the involvement that the students showed in their high school. Their positive remarks included an optimistic view on the contract negotiations and promises that they would continue to work diligently on the subject.

Levin’s view on the meeting was expressed when he told The Bergen Record, "Will they listen? I'm sure they will. Will they respond? I guess we'll have to wait and see." To date the teachers are still without contracts, however students and alumni say that they will be continuing their support in whatever way possible.

“Writers at Rutgers” Kicks Off National Poetry Month

2009-04-21T11:58:00.000-07:00

By Joe Bindert

Wednesday, April 1st was the first day of National Poetry Month, and to celebrate, Rutgers University hosted another chapter in its “Writers at Rutgers” series, which brings famous writers from across the country to speak about their work in front of anyone who wishes to participate. To go with the National Poetry Month theme, the writers, who spoke to around fifty people in the Rutgers Campus Center, were Mark Doty, Tina Chang, Brenda Shaughnessy, and Tracy K. Smith, all of whom write poetry. Chang, Shaughnessy, and Smith all met in a class taught by Doty at Columbia University during their undergraduate years.

The first topic put up for discussion was the idea of how and when one discovers when they know they are a poet. Shaughnessy, Smith, and Doty couldn’t exactly come up with a specific time when they realized they were poets, but Chang claims she developed a sense of it when she was in Doty’s class, although another professor at Columbia told her not to throw her work out into the world too soon for fear of getting negative reactions toward her work and killing her “naïve confidence,” as she put it. While the other speakers didn’t have one moment in mind, they reaffirmed their love of reading to the audience and stressed how important it was for each of them to become immersed in the world of books. “I thought I would be considered a poet closer to the end of my life… Not this soon,” remarked Smith.

The second topic discussed was what the authors looked to for inspiration. Chang commented that she doesn’t really like to think of any one particular thing that inspires her to write. She prefers to live her life normally, and when something comes to her that she feels like writing about, she does it. Doty remarked that he kept a notebook during his younger years in which he kept track of what he called “random thoughts and scribblings to basically prevent myself from going crazy.” Shaughnessy agreed with both of those responses, stating that she had a similar notebook, but also that she did not go out of her way to look for material to write about and preferred to write spontaneously.

The third topic brought up was the writers’ opinions on how poetry affects people on a physical and visceral level. Doty claimed that the rhythm and the breathing involved in the words and structure used in poems had a great effect on how poems affect both readers and listeners. Chang expanded that a bit, claiming that the vocabulary and choice of words used by the reader can also have a great effect. She mentioned a specific point during Doty’s class in which he read a variety of poems describing how narrator’s body felt during sickness, stating that the language used in the poems “can translate the bodily experience in a way like no other.”

The remainder of the conversation with the speakers included audience members asking the authors specific questions about their work. After the conversation was finished, audience members were encouraged to come back later for a poetry reading by the authors.

Mark Doty is the author of Fire to Fire, a collection of poems that won a National Book Award, and he will be joining the Rutgers English Department faculty starting in the fall 2009 semester. Tina Chang is the author of Half-Lit Houses, a finalist for the 2005 Asian American Literary Award, and she currently teaches at Sarah Lawrence College and Hunter College. Brenda Shaughnessy is the author of Human Dark with Sugar, winner of the James Laughlin Award from the Academy of American Poets, and she currently teaches creative writing at Princeton University and Eugene Lang College at the New School. Tracy K. Smith has had poetry published in various journals, including Boulevard, Callaloo, and Post Road, and she currently teaches at Princeton University.

Defining the N-Word

2009-04-21T11:55:00.000-07:00

By Aliyah Finney

Nigger, perhaps the most controversial and contradictory word in the English language, was the topic of a recent speech. For years many have used the term and the response has spanned form public uproars and boycotts to shrugged shoulders and apathy. A single word has the possibility to rise up a crowd in some instances, or can be heard in lyrics and make millions.

Who’s allowed to say it? Under what conditions is it okay? If I’m just reciting a song, is it racist? Questions like these have been asked to help clear some of the fog surrounding the term. Typically, and unfortunately, the rule of thumb seems to be: If you’re black than it’s okay.

One woman challenged the semantics and appropriateness of the word “nigger”. A talk was given mid January 2009 at Mount San Antonio College in Walnut, California. Marlita Hill, a professor at Mount San Antonio, presented her personal views, along with some history, of the term.

She began by asking the audience to take a deep breath, making fun of the intensity of the word. She quickly flashed a card with the word “nigger” spelled out for all to see, and the class laughed.

Her tactic is creative. She down played the emotional hold that the term has on the students by making her speech entertaining, fun, while remaining quite informative.
She give a brief history of the word, “… in the 1700’s ‘nigger’, along with ‘boy’, were used to avoid calling blacks by their surname. A technique of disrespect. Though both equal in offence ‘nigger’ ended up with a bad rap while ‘boy’ escaped relatively cleanly.”
“Could you have imagined if the two had been reversed? Then we’d think nothing of hearing stuff like ‘The Backstreet Niggers’…” and so on.

She humorously accounted the more modern definitions of the term, quoting Webster’s 10th dictionary edition.

“Nigger” she read “a black person usually to be taken offensively.” But Hill wondered if this was an accurate definition. “…NAACP, 2 national Protestant organizations, and The National Scrabble Player’s Association” are some of the groups looking to either amend or abolish the word entirely.

On the other end of the spectrum, Hill noted an incident where on “May 28th, 1998” after a popular Los Angeles radio station bleeped out the word “nigger” from the songs they played “the LA censor bill [a write up of request and complaints reported to the FCC by the public] actually had hundreds of kids calling in saying that they had the right to be called nigger”.

She examined the word’s use as a term of endearment, noting the confusion it causes. “Perhaps once if it most confusing, though affectionate uses is that by black women who express their love to their man by telling them ‘you my nigger’”.

Such inconsistencies leave one scratching their head. Oprah wants the word banned. Spike Lee, who frequently uses “nigger” in his films, publically criticizes fellow director Quentin Tarentino for doing the same. The drawing line, again, seems to be race.
“The Detroit News of 1995 said that more whites are adopting the dress, manner, music, and slang of black culture. But when the follow the black example of using the n-word the results aren’t always too favorable.” Hill then proceeded to demonstrate a scenario where a white person calls her a “nigger”, and though it was said with no malice, the situation was funny due to its uncomfortablity.

“…the Michigan Chronicle June 30th 1998 asked ‘isn’t this the height of hypocrisy?’ and I say yes.”

“But in all fairness we [black people] don’t always use it in an endearing way. For instance comedian Chris Rock, whose been accused of ‘black on black’ racism for making a differentiation of blacks and niggers.”

Hill was referring to Rock’s skit “I Hate Niggers,” in which he claims that black people hate the same things that white people hate about black people, though more so. He refers to these hated blacks as “niggers” and clearly draws a line between ignorant black people and every other black person. “I love black people, but I hate niggers boy. I wish they’d let me join the Ku Klux Klan,” Rock said during the skit.

Hill goes to say “On the whole this is not just a confusion between blacks and whites, blacks and blacks, rich and poor. Hell, everybody’s throwing up their arms about this one.”

“It’s a confounding situation.” And she’s right. OJ Simpson was acquitted for the murder of his wife Nicole Simpson and her friend Ronald Goldman. It is believed that Detective Mark Fuhrman, who was assigned to the case, frequently used the word in a derogatory manner. It is speculated that this was a determining factor which lead the jury to vote not guilty. Two people’s lives were lost and the jury’s ruling may not have been based on the facts, but rather the emotional turbulence surrounding the word “nigger”.

“And nobody knows what to do about it. Except me.” Hill said “So first , what not to do; The Jacksonville Free Press of July 15th 1998 says that ‘the Pennsylvania chapter of the NAACP is lobbying to ban books. Classic books containing the word ‘nigger’. Like ‘Song of Solomon’, ‘Huckleberry Finn’, ‘I Know Why the Caged Bird Sings’.

“This gag approach is the most absurd thing I have ever heard of.” A word has never, in America’s history, been banned or deemed illegal to use, most likely due to its lack of effectiveness and violation against the First Amendment which guarantees freedom of speech to ever American citizen.

“The Michigan Chronicle of 1997 said that ‘it would be foolish to refrain from using the word’ as if its absence will make it and all the hated behind it magically disappear.”
Such is the magnitude of this word that Hill herself confessed that she was torn as to whether to say it or not during her presentation. “So what’s my simple solution? Say it if you need to. It’s an important enough issue guys, but we should be able to talk about it, without hyphenating, asterisking, blushing, whispering, or avoiding it all together.

“Just one rule! Don’t direct it at anybody unless you know they’re okay with it. Right nigger?”
The audience once again laughed though it was clear that the message sunk it. A completely logical and sensible approach to dealing with the n-word was presented.

The Transformation of Journalism

2009-04-21T11:36:00.000-07:00

By Travis Drobbin

“Journalism is not dying, it’s merely transforming.” That is the view of Nick Bilton, who spoke at Rutgers on February 2 in front of a crowd of two hundred. Bilton is a research and development specialist with the New York Times as well as the creator of Shifd.com. Bilton discussed a lot of the new technologies that will be introduced to the world in the coming months and years. Bilton noted how the narrative is constantly changing. From cave drawings, the alphabet, illuminated manuscripts, the printing press, and television to the internet. People are beginning to be scared by this change, because media is having a difficult time acclimating to the Internet. The New York Times, on the other hand, is trying to stay ahead of the curve by developing new technologies and implementing them as soon as possible, he said. Bilton went into detail about the Times experiment with something called the CustomTimes. The CustomTimes is a digital take on the traditional street newspaper boxes that take quarters, and in return a person is able to take a newspaper. The Times is now testing a new take on that; the CustomTimes looks like a newspaper box with a computer monitor on it. The consumer would be able to choose the sections that they would want to read, and the machine would print out a copy of their very own custom freshly printed New York Times.

Bilton also brought the crowd’s attention to the idea that consumers are the new editors, as editors to their friends and peers. People are now posting news articles on various social networks, which they believe are important to everyday life. Bilton said these people are being editors because they are choosing the content that people focus their attention on. This is a very important change in the world of newspapers, because people are now taking into their own hands what the people around them read.

Sensors are also on the forefront of news reporting, according to Bilton. Sensors are mechanical devices that are sensitive to light, temperature, radiation level, or the like, that transmits a signal to a measuring or control instrument. These sensors would allow easier and more accurate reporting for any reporter. The amount of time that could be saved using these sensors would be absolutely enormous. The sensors can deliver news instantaneously as it occurs. This is a huge breakthrough in the news world, because the quicker the news can be reported, the more successful the industry will be.

The most sobering information Bilton presented was the continuation of print media. Bilton, said he believes that there will always be a print version of the New York Times. The need for a credible news source will always be needed, and therefore the big news institutions will always be around.

Uncovering the News That Has Yet to Be Discovered

2009-04-21T11:14:00.000-07:00

By Diana Curreri

Good journalists do not simply wait for stories to happen. They are the ones who are out to find the newsworthy people, places, and events. That’s the point Rutgers University professor Jan Barry made when he spoke during his lecture to his News Reporting & Writing class on March 27.

Barry told of the long hours and far commutes necessary to get stories. There are numerous people, including fellow reporters, that serve as sources to help report on what is happening.

News stories can happen when you least expect them to, he said. When Barry attended a municipal council meeting in Morris County, New Jersey, a man stated that the same chemical that was used during Agent Orange in Vietnam was also used to kill vegetation under power lines that crossed the Rockaway River. While investigating this story, Barry said he learned that “The best sources turned out to be concerned veterans and independent researchers who dug out details from obscure industrial medical journals, military reports and Veterans Administration files.”

Barry realized he could write a book about well informed citizens. Their stories were worth further investigation and these people served as “local grounding and reference points, which are invaluable in doing comprehensive reporting anchored in a local beat,” Barry said. A few people Barry had met eventually were elected to school boards or municipal council and served as timely references in gathering information that otherwise could have taken weeks to gather from Open Public Records Act.

Sometimes looking for a story can be scary, and while researching one story, another story could be found. Barry told of his experience visiting a ward full of AIDS patients. The event revealed the heartbreaking truth of young people dying in an old-age home from this disease. After his article printed, Barry received many phone calls from patients who had read the article. He found that many were also suffering from their Medicare funding as well.

Barry has also received phone calls from strangers looking to get their stories heard. He heard from a father whose son died in an automobile accident, a veteran who is now going crazy after health problems due to the Gulf war, and “a housing developer who wanted a feature story on his controversial plans,” Barry said, “who called another time to talk about a relative who died of a self-inflicted gunshot wound—and a property tax watchdog with a tip that a suburban mayor had just been abducted (turned out he was arrested by the FBI on bribery charges).”

Barry ends his speech by stating, “So there you have it. And in New Jersey, that’s at least 8 million stories—just waiting to be reported.”

Tapping the Grassroots of Sources

2009-04-21T09:38:00.000-07:00

By Shaun Van Moerkerken

Too often in today’s society, news reporting is viewed as a job rather than a civic duty to keep American citizens informed about government and their surroundings. When reporting the news becomes a source of revenue, cost effective techniques such as the use of experts are used, which blurs the reality of the news. “Finding well-informed sources in the vastly bigger, diverse and diffuse world beyond the statehouse, municipal building or school board offices takes work,” said Barry. On March 27, Jan Barry a professional journalists and Rutgers University Professor spoke to a group of young upcoming journalist about tapping the grassroots of journalism and the use of unofficial sources. He started off his speech with a quote from his book, “A Citizens Guide to Grassroots Campaigns” “a trade secret of the news media in America is that its major sources include the public-ordinary citizens who call, write, fax, e-mail, or personally deliver an interesting tip or complaint.” This quote may seem controversial to news stations today that rely on the use of politicians and “experts” to convey what is news worthy.

He went on to explain that good reporters don’t just sit back and wait for a tip to come their way, they must search out people who are saying interesting things. When news is not reported in this way, news becomes the hearsay of political figures and societies elites. “The official sources find you,” Barry used a quote from Gary Baehr’s talk on this topic. People in powerful positions don’t want to leave their public images in the hands of news reporters and everyday American citizens so “experts” and public relation workers seek out reporters to make sure the news displays them in a positive manner. The problem with this is “they spin their version of reality to the exclusion of all other versions,” Barry said. The use of experts in the news today is a very popular way for news stations to obtain news because it is cheap and cost effective.

Barry has found himself on many occasions getting down and dirty trying to get the truth behind an important lead. On one occasion, Barry did an investigative series on health concerns over the use of Agent Orange near the Rockaway River, a Morris County water supply and in the Vietnam War. The best sources on this topic turned out being concerned veterans and independent researchers who dug up details from various sources. Finding these folks was not an easy task, but the angle on the story was perfected due to these unofficial sources, Barry said.

Another instance where unofficial sources paid off for Barry’s reporting career was when AIDs patients had been denied access to parts of a town and were even being petitioned to leave the town. The reason the townspeople wanted the patients to leave was because of the fear of catching the deadly disease from them (This was at a time when AIDs awareness was not popular and people were unaware of how to contract AIDs). To find his unofficial sources, Barry went to a nursing home ward full of AIDs patients, which is one of the scariest places he has ever gone looking for a story. “I was glad to get out alive and write a heartbreaking feature story about young people dying in an old-age home,” said Barry. After the story was printed, patients called in with information that sparked breaking-news articles on a Medicare funding dispute that created another crisis for these folks. “Citizens with a hot tip or a cool observation on public affairs are as crucial to American journalism as politicians whose careers flare or flameout in blazing headlines. So there you have it, and in New Jersey, that’s at least 8 million stories-just waiting to be reported,” Barry said in closing.

Rutgers University Professor Extols Virtues of Active Citizens

2009-04-21T08:42:00.001-07:00

By Stephen Yoon

“For many readers, their newspaper is an important part of their life,” said Jan Barry, a professor of journalism at Rutgers University. Indeed, newspapers serve as a primary source of information for many citizens. Barry then went on to emphasize his point by using stories of experiences of readers calling in with proposals for news stories, from deaths to a suburban mayor being arrested by the FBI on bribery charges.

On March 27 Professor Barry presented a speech he had previously given in 2005 called “Tapping the Grassroots, Unofficial Sources.” Barry spoke of the utility of using local citizens as information sources for news reporting, tips that he learned during his tenure as a reporter at The Record of Bergen County in Hackensack, NJ.

“A trade secret of the news media in America is that its major sources include the public—ordinary citizens who call, write, fax, e-mail, or personally deliver an interesting tip or complaint,” Barry wrote in his book, A Citizen’s Guide to Grassroots Campaigns.

He used his experience attained while doing an investigative series on dangerous chemical herbicides being used by the Rockaway River in Morris County, NJ. Indeed this tip did not come from an environmental organization, but from a statement made by a man at a municipal council meeting. At this meeting Barry learned that the same chemicals were used in Agent Orange, a deadly herbicide used during the Vietnam War. Clearly finding unofficial sources requires effort like meeting with people after municipal meetings or going to homes trying to get information.

When trying to follow up on this information with official sources, Barry ran into a roadblock. “Federal officials, it became evident in reporting that story, preferred to stonewall rather than forthrightly address the implications that the United States government poisoned many of their own troops as well as much of Vietnam and its people,” he revealed. Indeed, members of the government and their press corps are well versed in putting a favorable spin on stories relating to them.
Barry was then forced to turn to unofficial sources, the best of which turned out to be concerned veterans and independent researchers. Although the process was very time consuming it was beneficial, as these citizens had gotten information from obscure industrial medical journals, military reports, and Veterans Administration files.

“Finding those folks and reporting their decidedly unofficial—but now historic—story took the better part of three months,” commented Barry.
Indeed having a large, even unorthodox network of sources is absolutely crucial to a proactive news reporter. “I also tap an informal network of people I’ve met while hiking, canoeing, in college classes, at conferences and awards dinners. Another trade secret is that reporters trade sources. Sometimes reporters are sources,” Barry revealed.

Barry’s connections extend even to his experiences serving in Vietnam. As a founder of a Vietnam veterans’ organization, he has been interviewed in print, radio, and television about various stories. Through this organization he was connected to Democratic Presidential Candidate John Kerry, another member of the organization. Due to this he was constantly tapped by reporters at national news organizations for stories about Kerry.

Barry went on to say, “Finding good unofficial sources takes patience, persistence, and sometimes luck or fortuitous timing.” He then reflected on going into a nursing home ward full of AIDS patients, stating that it was one of the most frightening places he had tried to find a story. His diligence paid off, as he got enough information to write a heartbreaking feature story about young adults in an old-age home withering away from a terminal virus. Barry got more stories after the original article ran, as patients followed up with information about a Medicare funding problem that had arose in the nursing home.

“Finding well-informed sources in the vastly bigger, diverse, and diffuse world beyond the statehouse, municipal building or school board offices takes work. It means listening to gabby gadflies at local meetings and afterwards in cold dark parking lots,” Barry revealed. What we can take away from his speech is that although the work of a news reporter never truly ends, the rewards can be great with enough patience and persistence.

Ordinary Citizens Making News

2009-04-20T16:42:00.000-07:00

By Russell Booth

In order to find good stories and news sources, journalists have to go the extra mile. Rather than staying in statehouses, municipal buildings, or school board offices, journalists must venture out into the world to find good stories. According to Jan Barry, a retired staff writer for The Record, “It means listening to gabby gadflies at local meetings and afterwards in cold dark parking lots, returning heated phone calls from furious readers fed up with your newspaper, knocking on doors in strange neighborhoods sometimes late at night…” On March 27 in the SCILS building at Rutgers University, Barry delivered a speech to his News Reporting and Writing class. The speech he delivered to the class was the one he gave after being named Journalist-in-Residence in spring 2005 by the North Jersey Media Group Fellowship. His speech, entitled “Tapping the Grassroots: Unofficial Sources-the News-Making Role of Ordinary Citizens,” was about some of journalism’s trade secrets. Some of the trade secrets he spoke about were also mentioned in his book, “A Citizen’s Guide to Grassroots Campaigns.” Following some of these secrets can help lead to a successful career in journalism.

The first trade secret Barry revealed was that citizens were major news sources for media outlets. In his book Barry stated, “A trade secret of the news media in America is that its major sources include the public-ordinary citizens who call, write, fax, e-mail, or personally deliver an interesting tip complaint.” He continued saying that good reporters do not just wait for tips, they go out and find people that are saying and doing interesting things. Barry said journalists that do not go out and search for stories convey “official speak.” These official sources spin their version of reality while excluding all other versions. Barry stated that officials are media savvy and their sources will find you. He said, “Elected officials and government administrators, or their press aides, have perfected the news media game, feeding the media maw with press releases, press conferences, exquisitely timed political tidbits, and provocative public speeches.” All of these sources have planned responses and will only feed information and news stories that put them in a good light.

Barry gave a personal example of how citizens can be reliable sources. He stated that a health story on the effects of the chemical Agent Orange came from a person’s remark at a municipal council meeting in Morris County. At the meeting a man stood up and claimed that the same chemical herbicides that were in Agent Orange were sprayed to kill vegetation under power lines that crossed the Rockaway River. Barry stated, “That man, a local environmentalist was right. He’d done some research.” This is a perfect example that shows how citizens can sometimes be the best sources. By the end of this health story Barry concluded that the best sources were concerned veterans and independent researchers.

Barry said that the next trade secret is that reporters often trade sources. For some stories, the information in the stories come from other journalists. He told the audience, “I also tap an informal network of people I’ve met while hiking, canoeing, in college classes, at conferences and award dinners.” It is very important for journalists to network with each other because networking increases the chances of a journalist finding a good story. According to Barry, citizens that have good tips are crucial to American journalism. He concluded his speech stating, “So there you have it. And in New Jersey, that’s at least 8 million stories-just waiting to be reported.”

Reporters and Unofficial Informants

2009-04-20T13:27:00.000-07:00

By Kara Jordhoy

As an investigative reporter, Jan Barry found that sometimes the most reliable source is the ordinary citizen. At public meetings, well-informed men and women often are the first to speak up about the issues that needed to be addressed in town. Barry, a retired reporter for The Record (Bergen County, NJ), gave an in class speech at Rutgers University on Mar. 27 about how average citizens can be the most reliable and finest sources for a journalist.

“A trade secret of the news media in America is that its major sources include the public—ordinary citizens who call, write, fax, e-mail, or personally deliver an interesting tip or complaint,” Barry quoted from his book, A Citizen’s Guide to Grassroot Campaigns.

A few years ago, Barry was doing an investigative series about the use of Agent Orange in the Vietnam War. At a municipal council meeting in Morris County, a man had stood up and stated that some of the same toxic ingredients used in Agent Orange were sprayed to kill vegetation by the Rockaway River, which is a water supply stream. The man turned out to be correct, startling many who had been drinking that water for years.

Barry said that the official sources usually find the journalist to report the story they want revealed to the public. Barry had founded a Vietnam veterans’ organization that John Kerry had been a member of. When Kerry was nominated for president, Barry received many phone calls from national news organizations.

Clearly putting an emphasis on how anyone could be a source for news, Barry relived stories of how people have called him in the past, wanting him to put something in the paper. He has received phone calls from many local citizens, including a Gulf War veteran who had health issues after serving his country and a father who wanted to tell people about how his son died in a traffic accident.

Barry talked about one of his more scary experiences: walking through a nursing home full of AIDS patients. He said he was glad to get out of there when he finished finding his sources. Barry also went to a town meeting, where people screamed about AIDS patients being brought into the town.

“I was glad to get out of there alive,” Barry exclaimed, shaking his head. AIDS is a sickness that is not contagious from casual contact, something that many of the citizens did not seem to realize.

He then wrote a story about young people who were dying of this terrible virus, pulling the heartstrings of readers. However, Barry then received notice that Medicaid had a funding dispute over these patients, and that everyone with AIDS in the nursing home had to be moved out. Though this story was heartbreaking, Barry found that many critical people in the community decided to volunteer at the hospital, including the chief of police. “News reporting helps to explain something scary and give advice on how to help,” Barry concluded in his speech. His passion for journalism truly stands out through his stories and experiences that all fervent future reporters can look forward to.

Unofficial Sources: The Key to a Great News Story

2009-04-20T09:25:00.000-07:00

By Jaclyn Mandelbaum

“A trade secret of the news media in America is that its major sources include the public—ordinary citizens who call, write, fax, e-mail, or personally deliver an interesting tip or complaint”, revealed Professor Jan Barry, referring to his book, “A Citizen’s Guide to Grassroots Campaigns”. On March 27, the Rutgers professor addressed his News Reporting and Writing students and revealed fascinating tips regarding the use of various types of unofficial sources in the journalism field. Barry is a seasoned reporter having written for The Record, and is the author of two books including “Earth Songs: New & Selected Poems” and “A Citizen's Guide to Grassroots Campaigns.” Barry has quite a bit of experience in the industry, and was able to shed light on the use of citizens as helpful and necessary sources in writing a well researched and thought out piece.

Barry provided the class with multiple examples of ways in which common citizens sparked and perpetuated various investigations in his career. He explained how when a resident at a Morris County municipal meeting voiced a concern, an investigative series was born. A local environmentalist was disturbed to find out that the same chemical herbicides that were used in Agent Orange in Vietnam War were being used to kill vegetation along the Rockaway River.

Further research by Barry confirmed that the citizen was indeed correct. According to Barry, the best sources in his investigation turned out to be concerned veterans of the war and independent researchers who extrapolated vague and ambiguous details from medical journals, military reports, and Veterans Administration files. As more discoveries were made, the series of articles was investigated for about three months.

Barry revealed that when he had a discussion with Guy Baehr, a former Star Ledger reporter and Rutgers professor, Baehr said, “The official sources find you.” Elected officials, government administrators, and press aides feed journalists information that they want to be conveyed in a certain manner. They have “perfected the news media game,” as Barry said, and only reveal which news they so chose to reveal. Great journalists should, and could, dig deeper if they want to avoid this “official speak,” as in “official said” sort of journalism, he said.
“Finding well-informed sources in the vastly bigger, diverse and diffuse world beyond the statehouse, municipal building or school board offices takes work. It means listening to gabby gadflies at local meetings and afterwards in cold dark parking lots, returning heated phone calls from furious readers fed up with your newspaper, knocking on doors in strange neighborhoods sometimes late at night, shooting the bull with armed hunters and barbed-hook-flinging fisher folk, consoling distraught relatives and other survivors at fire scenes and funerals, consorting with wary suspects and hyper-talkative lawyers, tracking down people who were once in the news and don’t ever care to be again,” Barry explained

Barry’s journalism students seemed to have taken away a great deal of information from his presentation. They learned that although finding and using unofficial sources could take much patience, persistence, and perhaps some luck or good timing, the results often are worth it. With this knowledge, hopefully these future journalists will dig deep, follow their instincts, and provide the public with fascinating and previously untold news stories.

Welcome, Rutgers University Freshman!

2009-04-03T19:45:00.000-07:00

By Jaclyn Mandelbaum

We’ve compiled a comprehensive guide to make your transition to Rutgers as smooth as possible… Just a few helpful pointers!

Roommate Drama
For many of you, it is the first time you will be living in the same room as another person – let alone someone who you’ve never met. To avoid sticky situations, make a “room contract” with your roommate. It is great to lay out all of your expectations so there are no surprises. Many of your RA’s will make you do this anyway!

Bus Transportations
Most freshmen will have to take a bus from one campus to another at some point in time. Take a few minutes to look up which buses take which routes. You can visit the transportation website at http://parktran.rutgers.edu/. Don’t get on the wrong bus!

Campus Centers
The campus centers here at Rutgers allow students many opportunities. Most labs have free printing (with a generous limit per semester). Take advantage of this service! It helps to print out lecture slides before class. Campus centers also have places for students to study quietly, and even grab a bite to eat. Make good use of these facilities!

Stay on Top of Your Work!
There is generally A LOT of reading in college. It is so much easier to stay on top of all of this work as the semester progresses. Although most students tend to fall behind on their work, they quickly learn that keeping up is the best route to go. Attending class (and paying attention!) makes work so much easier. Don’t slack or fall behind – you will just create more work for yourself in the end.

Get Involved
Find your niche here at Rutgers. The University provides such a large and diverse selection of clubs, intramural sports, and job opportunities. Take advantage, for if you do, Rutgers will feel like home in no time

The Time of Your Life
Keep up with work, make new friends, try new things. You will have the time of your life and gain an invaluable education here at Rutgers. Enjoy!

Rutgers University 101: Every Freshman's Best Friend

2009-04-03T17:03:00.000-07:00

By Maria Monica Abrenica

The University welcomes the Freshmen of Fall 2009!

The transition from your local high school to a big university such as Rutgers can be overwhelming, but it does not have to be a discouraging experience. The more time you spend on campus, the more you will learn about it. A list of the basic information and things you will need to know in order to make your first few days more enjoyable is a good start for learning.

How to Survive Everyday

Bus System. Getting from one campus to another is made easier with Rutgers' bus system. All you have to do is wait at designated bus stops and hop on the one that will take you where you need to go.
Dining Halls. Studying can work up your appetite and it is always important to fuel the mind by eating on time. A dining hall is available in each campus and a variety of meal plans that meet the diet needs and habits of every student is available.

For more information, call the Rutgers Dining Services at (732) 932-8469/8470.

Computer Labs. You may have your own laptop, but you might just prefer not to lug it around with you all day. Computer labs are available at your convenience.

Information Source: 5 Online Sources of Useful Information

1. https://my.rutgers.edu

This is the University Portal for updates and information. Your e-mail account can also be accessed here.

2. http://www.nextbus.com

This site saves you time by giving updates on the arrival time of buses.

3. http://www.dailytargum.com

This is the website for the University paper, the Daily Targum. Keep yourself aware of what is going on around.

Q: What are the campuses in New Brunswick?

A. Busch, College Avenue, Cook, Douglas, and Livingston

Each campus has its characteristic atmosphere. You might have difficulty finding a location during your first few days on campus. This is normal and there is no need to stress out about it. Maps are available for your use. It is always good to seek someone's assistance too. Do not be afraid to ask.

It is normal to feel anxious about your transition to life at the University. You might be overcome by the jitterbug or butterflies in your stomach. It's important not to let fear get the best of you. Look ahead with a positive attitude and embrace this new journey you are beginning at Rutgers University.

A Few Tips

Be on time for your classes. Set task priorities. Study. Interact with people. Give yourself time for extra-curricular activities. Meet new people. Learn. Ask questions. Have fun. Grow.

College Survival Tips 101

2009-04-03T09:04:00.000-07:00

By Tiffany Y. Hsia

Were you the nerdy type in school? A band geek? Maybe, you were one of the most popular kids at school? Well guess what? This is college and all bets are off! Everyone starts school with a blank slate, even at a state school like Rutgers where many of your former high school classmates may go. You have the power to determine what kind of experience you will have and what sort of person you will become. College is an overwhelming (but very exciting and fun!) experience, especially when you attend a large university like Rutgers . Here’s a few tips to help you navigate the waters!

If you plan to dorm, contact your roommate before you get to school.

There is nothing worse than being squished into a room the size of a tin can with too many belongings. Make contact with your roommate before you get to school to determine who will bring what items that can be communally shared. If you don’t want them using something of yours, ask them to bring it themselves. This is also a great time to build a relationship, you don’t want to start off on a bad note and have a nightmare roomie!

Make a budget and stick to it! Credit cards are eeeevil!

Credit card companies prey on college freshmen like sharks prey on blood. Yes, it’s easy and tempting to splurge because of your newly found freedom but in the long run you can become burdened down with debt you can’t handle and ruin your credit score for years!

No major? No worries!

Take classes you have an interest in to determine what you’d like to do in the long run.

Rely on yourself.

College isn’t like high school where you are closely monitored. If you don’t go to class, no one will care, but your grades may be another story. Regularly speak with advisors to make sure you are on the right path in your college career. You determine how effective college is for you.

Internships are critical.

Internships make you a more viable candidate for employment and we’re in college to get a job, right? You will get real world experience and if you really rock it out, you may even land a job from an internship!

Get involved on campus.

There are a slew of great activities at Rutgers to get involved with. Joining activities helps you explore your interests and make new friends. These friends may become life long pals and help you to expand your potential work network. It’s a win win situation!

Be safe, healthy and wise.

It’s always safer to travel in pairs or packs in the evenings. If you plan on drinking while socializing, have someone who will look out for your welfare. The best decisions aren’t always made when inebriated.

Tips For Rutgers Freshmen

2009-04-03T08:21:00.000-07:00

By Lucas Sullivan

As an incoming freshman attending Rutgers, you might be overwhelmed by having to learn the ins and outs of such a large school. These tips should help you get your bearings as you start the year and assist you with three critical resources: transportation, food, and laundry.

Campuses: There are five main campuses at Rutgers here in New Brunswick – Busch, Livingston, College Avenue, Douglass, and Cook. To see where buses are, which campuses they travel between, and how much time you have before they reach your stop, check out www.nextbus.com.

Dining Halls: Once you’ve located the dining hall on your campus, you might want to know what’s on the menu ahead of time so you don’t miss out on your favorite foods. To see the menu for any dining hall, go to http://dining1.rutgers.edu/foodpro/location.asp. All you need to know is the name of your dining hall and you’re good to go.

Laundry: You’ll probably end up doing your laundry every two or three weeks, but you’ll want to avoid doing it on certain days due to crowding. Try to avoid doing laundry on a Saturday or Sunday – if you go on a Tuesday night, you’re likely to have more than enough open washers and dryers. To see which machines are in use in your area’s laundry room, go to http://rutgers.esuds.net/RoomStatus/showRoomStatus.do. All you need is the name of the laundry room closest to your building.

Five Useful Tips for Freshmen:
1) Go to sleep on time – you’ll thank yourself in the morning.
2) Don’t forget to eat healthy every once in awhile.
3) Don’t be afraid to ask a teacher about any concerns – most are very understanding.
4) Skipping class leaves you behind later down the line; better to just not skip at all.
5) Want to meet more people? Join a club or on-campus group!

Rutgers Looks Foward After 'Upset'

2009-03-24T05:56:00.000-07:00

By Shawn Lopez

Saturday February 28^th, the Rutgers Scarlet Knights Women’s Lacrosse team fell to Cornell’s Big Red (ranked no. 17), in quadruple overtime at Schoelkopf Field, in Ithaca, New York. Rutgers started off the game with a 4 goal lead in the first half. Cornell began gaining ground on the Lady Knights, ending the half 5-2, Rutgers. After last year’s 10-6 loss against the Big Red, Rutgers poured out of the locker room at the end of half time with one thing in mind, revenge.

However, little by little Cornell’s offense chipped away at Rutgers seemingly solid defense. The clock ran out with a score of 7-7 sending the game into overtime. After a valiant effort from both teams, the game ended in its fourth overtime when Cornell scored the winning goal with 2:10 left in the game.

“This was a huge upset but in a different sense. We were the underdog but we were the better team. We can’t lose leads like that. We gotta get up and stay up,” Rutgers Coach Laura Brand-Sias told the Lady Knights in the locker room after the game. Brand claimed groundballs, draw controls, and a lack of urgency were the key reasons for Rutgers breakdown. Cornell had 18 to Rutgers 16 groundballs, and 11 to Rutgers 9 draw controls. With these statistics alone, it is clear the game was a competitive match-up.

“We folded,” said Brand. “None of the teams we’re going to play are going to be easy wins, we have to rise to the challenge.” Brand and the Lady Knights are now looking to their next game against the Princeton Tigers (no. 7) but with their loss to Cornell in mind. “Don’t forget the way you feel right now,” said Brand. “That way you will take whatever means necessary to keep from feeling this way again.”

The Scarlet Knights are scheduled to play the Tigers Wednesday March 4^th on Rutgers newly remodeled turf field. The Knights have not beaten the Tigers in the history of Rutgers Women’s lacrosse. This Wednesday will not only give Rutgers a shot to redeem themselves for their recent loss but also a chance to prove themselves as true competitors in the NCAA.

They Still Have the Right Stuff

2009-03-23T22:31:00.000-07:00

By Tiffany Y. Hsia

After a 15-year hiatus, New Kids on the Block are back and yes, they still have the “Right Stuff.” Though many of the “kids” are now in their mid to late 30s, they still have the ability of turning scores of grown women into hysterical, screaming fanatics, as witnessed at the NKOTB Reunion tour on September 27 in Atlantic City.

Over 2,000 women and yes, even some men, filled the Borgata Event Center on the evening of the concert. This time around, things were a little bit different. Instead of thousands of screaming pre-pubescent teenagers in NKOTB T-shirts milling around, the concert mainly consisted of women between the ages of 20 and 40, downing cocktails in provocative club wear, euphorically re-living their childhoods by scream-singing lyrics to some of NKOTB’s biggest hits.

This is the first tour for NKOTB after 15 years and it has been selling out so quickly that the boys from Boston - that’s Donnie, Danny, Joe, Jordan and Jonathan for the uninitiated - have had to schedule three go-arounds just across North America alone. This concert at the Borgata was the eighth stop on the first leg of their North American tour and the show featured their greatest hits and songs from their new album called “The Block,” which has already been certified Gold and debuted at # 1 on the Billboard Top Pop Albums Chart.

The feeling in the room was electric as the concert opened with a montage of the ‘kids’ earlier music videos on the bi-leveled stage’s jumbo screen. The screams became deafening once the strains of their current single, aptly titled “Single,” started thumping through the speakers. The vocal chords on these grown women were definitely in working order as NKOTB appeared from beneath the stage on a moving platform to the top of the stage while singing “For the next couple hours…Imma gonna be your boyfriend,” which provoked roars of a hormone-surging frenzy.

It’s always been known that NKOTB weren’t superb vocal performers, but these men put on a supremely entertaining show. It was obvious that they were having as good a time as the audience as they laughed, smiled and danced around the stage. After going through a medley of some of their greatest hits, Donnie Wahlberg, the traditional NKOTB emcee, stated “You’re already louder than the crowd at the Izod Center and you are three or four times smaller,” which produced even louder screams, to his amusement.

After the concert, the fun continued as two members of the group, Donnie and Joe, partied with concert goers at the Borgata night club, The Mixx. The duo arrived around 1 a.m. and performed two additional songs, “Full Service” and “Put It On My Tab,” karaoke-style, from the VIP area.

Set List:

“Single”
“My Favorite Girl”
“(You Got It) The Right Stuff”
“Didn’t I (Blow Your Mind This Time)”
“Valentine Girl”
“Please Don’t Go Girl”
“Grown Man” (With Nicole Scherzinger)
“Games”
“If You Go Away”
“2 In the Morning”
“Dirty Dancing”
“Tonight”
“Twisted”
“Baby I Believe in You”
“Give It To You” (Jordan solo)
“Stay the Same” (Joey solo)
“Cover Girl”
“I’ll Be Lovin’ You (Forever)”
“Click, Click, Click”
“Summertime”

Encore:

“Step By Step”
“Hangin’ Tough”

Town Meeting

2009-03-23T20:06:00.000-07:00

By Aliyah Finney

The Piscatway, New Jersey township council meetings usually consist of a handful of middle-aged to elderly adults, and more rarely completely uninterested children dragged to the hall by their parents.

Tuesday’s night audience was an exception.

Boy Scouts from troops 6, 20, and 106 were present that night for a ceremony. There were about 30 Scouts and Troop Leaders in all. The mayor, Brian C. Wahler, came in, apparently unaware of the ceremony, and excitedly spoke with the scouts, as well as handed out his business card after a firm handshake. After which the Troop Leaders rallied their boys in the hallway in order to line up. The women in the council room began to buzz elatedly and one even positioned herself for pictures.

The councilmen entered and the chatter died as they took their respective seats. Chairman Michael Griffth banged his gavel and the meeting was called to order. The Council consists of Mayor Wahler, Kenneth Armwood, Mark Hardenbburg, Loretta Keimal, Steven Cahn, Gabriel Cahill, Michele Lombardi and Griffith.

The Scouts entered through both openings of the room and recite the Pledge of Allegiance. They were quiet and almost mumbling; a stark contrast to their previous animated dispositions. The Scouts Oath, said right after, was presented in the same tone. They seemed nervous but did not falter. Two scouts then approached the podium and informed everyone of some of the many community services they were involved in, form the Acme Food Drive to volunteer work at animal shelters. They also discussed some of the trips and field events that took place over the last year, which included a ski trip to Pennsylvania.

Additions to the Eagle Scouts, the highest rank a scout can obtain, were also mentioned. It was impressive to know that the national average of Eagle Scouts is 4%; while the Troops of Piscataway had over 10% of their members at Eagle Scouts. After the boys were finished, and the applauds subsided, Rich Ellis took his turn. Ellis, the leader of troop 20, presented two checks totaling over $2000 to the scouts so they can continue to serve their community.

The boys were visibly excited and clapped and beamed at the great news. Truly a welcomed change to the average town meeting.

Small City, Big Problems

2009-03-23T12:20:00.000-07:00

By Ezra Dreiblatt

The New Brunswick city council meeting on the night of February 18 started out like any other council meeting, with a roll call followed by the pledge of allegiance. In a wrinkle reserved for wartime, there was a moment of silence for troops killed in Afghanistan and Iraq. After City Council President Elizabeth Garlatti finished taking attendance, focus shifted to the first important item on the docket. The matter at hand was closing a loophole that allowed a resident of New Brunswick to claim two places of residence on their tax forms. William J. Hamilton Jr., the attorney for the city, said that one reason the loophole needs to be closed is so that landlords cannot claim that a house where students live is a primary place of residence. Basically, the city wants to make sure that the only place of residence citizens list is where they are not only sleeping but also performing basic living activities. In response to this proclamation, residents in attendance at the meeting were concerned that the city would go too far in checking if a resident was performing “basic living activities” at a place of residence. As one woman said, “It seems intrusive to check where people are eating.”

After an intense discussion, one man in the back stood up and asked to be heard. He went on to tell the council and the public that they needed to pay attention to Assembly Bill 3709 as well as Assembly Bill 3648. In Assembly Bill 3709, the man claimed, the state is considering putting fluoride in the drinking water. He went on to say that fluoride could potentially affect the brain, sterility in men, as well as possibly cause cancer. Having captured everyone’s attention, he went on to say that Assembly Bill 3648 would make it easier to eliminate a paper trail when it came to voting in the gubernatorial race as well as senate and local elections. Unfortunately, this same man went completely off track and decided to bash the suggestion that George Street in New Brunswick be renamed Martin Luther King Jr. Street. He started raving about crimes of infidelity that he said King had committed and completely undermined every point he had made before. He also managed to make everyone in the room visibly uncomfortable.

The meeting continued with residents bringing up problems that affected their everyday lives. One man said that he constantly saw cars with license plates that are obscured by decorations. Neither the council nor the police captain present seemed to take his concern that seriously. Another person wanted to know why it was so hard for residents of the city to get parking permits. City officials replied that limited parking space meant there had to be an arduous process to receive a parking permit. At this point it seemed the meeting was coming to an end when a group of people wearing shirts with the message, vote yes on wards, began to make their complaints public. According to Sean Monahan, a young resident of New Brunswick, the current system of representation in New Brunswick does not sufficiently represent the city. He went on to say that three of the five members of city council live in Ward 1. Not coincidentally, he added, that is the most affluent part of the city, as well as the ward where the only two non-failing public schools are located. Monahan believes that the current council is obstructing true democracy and that the city council needs to be enlarged from 5 to 9 members with each ward represented. He indicated that the city attorney, Mr. Hamilton, who lives in Ward 1, is the key opponent against ward representation. Unfortunately, Mr. Hamilton was not available for comment after the meeting. The issue is currently being argued in court with both sides arguing the merits of their cases and holding a referendum. The meeting eventually dissolved with the city council president, Garlatti, looking increasingly agitated while the pro-ward crowd heckled the council. Clearly there is a lot more going on in New Brunswick than just issues concerning Rutgers; it would be wise for students to take notice.

So Close, Yet So Far

2009-03-20T18:18:00.000-07:00

By Travis Drobbin

Many of the seats were empty and many fans were seemingly disinterested. This was the scene when the Rutgers University men’s basketball team took on West Virginia University at home on February 21. So far the season has been quite harsh for the men’s basketball, which is struggling at 1-13 in Big East play. “It’s very hard to still come to the games, considering there is little chance to see a Rutgers win,” said Alex Silagi, 21. Many students and fans alike have lost interest in a team that has given little promise for a win. The Louis Brown Athletic Center (RAC) has barely reached half capacity this season, and has failed to sell out any games so far this year.

Rutgers showed little glimpses of hope throughout the game against West Virginia. The Mountaineers of West Virginia started the game on a 23- 7 run and never let up. Though the Scarlet Knights of Rutgers showed times of promise and cut the lead to four with 6:58 to play. The Mountaineers quickly responded and easily pulled off the 74-56 victory. West Virginia went on an 11-1 run in the last 4:24 of the game. This was a time when Rutgers needed baskets to keep their hopes alive. Rutgers shot just 0-7 from the floor in the last 4:24 of the game, and made two key turnovers in the late West Virginia run.

Rutgers coach Fred Hill Jr. expressed his thoughts on the game, “I thought we got some really good looks and I wish we could have got to the rim a little bit more. Anthony [Farmer] got some good looks, Corey [Chandler] got some good looks and we threw the ball inside and got some good looks, but didn’t convert. We shot 44 percent, which isn’t bad, but we need to get to the lane a little bit more,” he said as reported by The Daily Targum. Farmer finished the game with 7 points and 2 assists, while Chandler finished the game with only 4 points. Mike Rosario, who has been the Rutgers basketball team’s season MVP, finished the game with 15 points and 1 assist. Rosario is the first McDonalds All American to attend Rutgers, and is widely looked at as the future of Rutgers basketball. “Rosario is the real deal, and he makes everyone on the team better, and makes games more exciting to watch,” said a fan, Steven Gard, 20, a junior at Rutgers.

Even Rosario couldn’t stop a potent WVU offense that responded to every one of Rutgers’ runs. Leading the Mountaineers in scoring was freshman Devin Ebanks with 14 points. Da’Sean Butler, Wellington Smith, and Alex Ruoff each scored 12 points. The Mountaineers are currently 19-8 (8-6) and looking for an NCAA Tournament birth. The Scarlet Knights are 10-17 (1-13) and are looking to end the season on a positive note going into next year.

Freehold Regional Residents Angered Over Superintendent Actions

2009-03-19T12:17:00.000-07:00

By Jaclyn Mandelbaum

At a January 26 Freehold Regional High School District Board of Education meeting, angered residents spoke out about the various cost that the community has been incurring due to what they believe is poor monetary decision-making skills on behalf of Dr. James Wasser, the district’s superintendent. The Freehold Regional High School district is comprised of Marlboro, Manalapan, Freehold, Freehold Borough, Colts Neck, and Howell Township.

Residents questioned the appropriateness of Wasser’s car of choice, provided to him by the district. He has been supplied with a leased luxury sports-utility-vehicle to use for business. Angered residents spoke out at the January meeting, and said that Wasser has already deprived several townships of enough money to begin with.

Residents found out in prior months that Wasser was using tax dollars to obtain a doctorate degree from an online degree-mill. Angered by this happening, residents demanded that Wasser return the money that they believe, should have been put towards the various high schools. He declined this request, and legally is not obliged to return the money.

The new vehicle was just the icing on the cake for resident Gloria Close. She demanded to be informed of the total cost that Wasser has inflicted upon citizens. Between tuition costs, salary adjustments, adjustment to his pension, and now a brand new car, Freehold Regional residents are still waiting on a total figure, Close said.

Another meeting attendant argued that in the state of our current economy, a less expensive car would have sufficed. She questioned whose interest Wasser is looking out for. She said that his behavior is selfish, considering the district just incurred large budget cuts. The money that is going to Wasser’s automobile could be used to reinstate programs that had been cut from various schools, due to lack of funding, she argued.

Michael Fishman spoke out about an additional cost to the district, due to the degree-mill controversy. Board of Education members felt public meetings are now “high risk” because of the large turnouts of disgruntled residents. The board hired two police officers to attend all meetings. Fishman said that this is yet another “unnecessary cost” that could have been put towards school programs.

Any monetary expenditure that the board makes is being looked at under a microscope. Outspoken citizens for months have been reprimanding Wasser for his admitted wrong-doings.

While such topics were up for discussion, Wasser got up from his seat and exited the meeting for a short period of time. At the conclusion of the meeting he addressed everyone and said, “I sat here for 8 months listening to people come to the microphone about the same things over and over again and I understand your concern. I don’t agree with you totally. I don’t like to be yelled at or defamed in public, but I think I have done a fair job of accepting it.” In regards to the future, he continued, “I will finish my contract. I made an obligation and obligation to this board. I have other things I would like to do before I leave. This is a great school district, and when I leave it will be great. Stop what you are doing. We have things to do and we are listening to the same thing about the superintendent.”

Career Success Strategies

2009-03-13T14:53:00.000-07:00

By Russell Booth

On Monday, February 9 there was a program called “Career Success Strategies…Your Link to the Future,” which took place in the Busch Student Center at Rutgers University. The meeting attracted about seventy students. The host of the event was Toi K. Tyson, the assistant director of Rutgers Career Services career and interview center. Tyson presented a very professional PowerPoint presentation that shows students how to build a resume, do well in interviews, and be prepared for the real world.

Tyson began the meeting with information regarding Career Services and their mission, which she said is to help prepare students and alumni for applying to internships and life beyond Rutgers. It also helps to develop academic and career interests, as well as short and long-term career goals through individual counseling and group counseling. Some other services include “Resume critique hours, alumni career network, career/job search seminars, and assessment testing.” Tyson told the audience that it is very important to establish a game plan, gain experience, and seek out leadership activities. During this point of the presentation she presented a website called http://online.onetcenter.org/, which is an occupational website where anyone can seek jobs based on their personal set of skills or search for a specific company. Tyson told the audience that these are the kinds of websites that are important for students to use in order to network.

Once a student finds a company they wish to work for, they need to have the required skills to get the job. According to Tyson, some of the skills that employers look for are “Critical thinking, problem solving, written and verbal communication, presentation skills, creativity, resourcefulness, and community and pride.” She explained that the purpose of the resume is to introduce yourself to employers and to promote your skills, abilities, and accomplishments. Think of things that are expected of you and things that enhance your resume. Tyson also provided handouts to the audience, a page that showed two resumes. One resume was the standard kind, while the other was a plain text/electronic resume. Tyson said these two are the ideal resumes that students should work to create. She mentioned that it was very important to have an electronic resume just in case an employer wants you to send it online. She also showed a slide about things you should not do on your resume. Some of the resume no-no’s, she emphasized: Don’t list a reference section, don’t include dates available, don’t use first person references, don’t include personal information, and never send out a document without getting it critiqued.

The last part of her presentation focused on creating a strategy and things to do after you have been hired. Networking, she said, is a very important strategy. She had audience members practice this by getting up and introducing themselves to other members of the audience. The objective of the presentation was to inform students on methods that would increase the chances of getting an internship. The skills taught the meeting can be used when interviewing for jobs. When asked about the meeting, 20-year-old youth counselor Jason Stafford stated, “It was real informative and has potential to be very effective and beneficial for people who implement it properly.” Jason said he learned a great deal about applying for an internship and tips on how to do well in an interview. The meeting was well received by the audience.

Bitter Tension in New Brunswick's City Council Meeting

2009-03-13T08:45:00.000-07:00

By Shaun Van Moerkerken

The City Council met on Wednesday, February 18 to discuss housing and street name changes being made to the New Brunswick community. The main topics for discussion regarded an amendment the council passed that would prevent landlords from declaring multiple properties as their primary residence, and the proposed renaming of George Street to Martin Luther King Street. The meeting began at 6:30 pm and was full of uneasy citizens ready to speak their minds to the council.

The first issue is a problem not only for residents of New Brunswick, but also affects Rutgers students who rent houses. The problem is that some landlords own multiple houses in New Brunswick and claim more than one of them as their primary residence. “This will prevent the landlord from trying to claim that house as a principle place of residence in addition to another place he lives,” said Department of Economic Development Director Glenn Paterson, as quoted in The Daily Targum. When a landlord rents out a house that he has labeled one of his primary residences, they are not required to abide by the city’s rent control regulations which are there to protect the renters of the house. These rent controls regulations, which consist of how much your landlord could raise rent after a given year, how many occupants are allowed to live in the house, and more.

What’s happening now is landlords are renting out their houses labeled as primary residences to Rutgers students and putting more than the legal occupancy load in the house, a student in the audience said. The landlord then charges each student a lower price than the legal price, but since there are more people in the house the landlord makes more profit off of his investment. “I think I am a victim of one of these landlords, there are currently six people in my house, which is no bigger than a four person home. It’s pretty messed up landlords pack tenants in these houses just to make some extra cash,” said Dan Wills a Rutgers Student. With the passing of this new amendment, landlords will only be able to claim one house as their primary residence and must fill out a written application proving their residence in the home.

The second issue was more debated by the audience than by the city council. A New Brunswick citizen stood up and claimed that Martin Luther King was unworthy of having a street named after him in New Brunswick and the street should be named after a real American hero; John Peter Zenger. The speaker went on to explain why MLK was unworthy of such an honor, “Martin Luther King Jr. has plagiarized many of his speeches, has committed adultery on countless occasions, is a communist, and he rejects the catholic religion,” the New Brunswick man said, while being interrupted by laughter from people who did not share his point of view.

In response, a long time New Brunswick resident paced the room and delivered a rebuttal that left him in tears. “There is no street in New Brunswick that could reflect the true beauty that Martin Luther King represented, but I see no better street in this town that’s worthy of his name,” the man said. The city council did not render a final decision on this topic and will consider it at a later date.

Civil Rights Activist Bernice Johnson Reagon Speaks To Rutgers Students

2009-03-13T08:40:00.000-07:00

By Kiyanna Stewart

Internationally-renowned Civil Rights activist, singer, and scholar Bernice Johnson Reagon is a woman who believes in the power of song as a medium to bring people together for a common purpose.

At a recent visit to Rutgers University- The State University of New Jersey on February 18 in conjunction with the English department's ongoing "Writers At Rutgers Reading Series," she proudly announced, "The very first time I experienced music as a means to articulate the needs of our community was during the Civil Rights Movement,” she told her audience. “I knew that as students, we could bring about the transformation of a culture. So, I decided to move myself against racism.”

Students of various academic concentrations gathered in the Rutgers Student Center to hear the self-proclaimed, "song talker" expound on her history as a member of SNCC (Student Non-Violent Coordinating Committee), as well as offer life-altering advice on how to navigate through a world engulfed by capitalism, racism and sexism.

Reagon is also the founder of an all-African American a cappella ensemble, established in 1973, called Sweet Honey in the Rock. The Grammy award-winning troupe has traveled the world over the past three decades, spreading awareness of the importance of singing in oral traditions.

"The songs are only a vehicle to get to the singing," professed Reagon. She later added, "Singing is not an organizing element, it's an organizing experience.”

Christine Awe, Rutgers Junior and Women's and Gender Studies major, said, "It was important for me to be there and witness what this living legend has to say. After all these years, she remains relevant to social, political and artistic issues. I'm honored to be here."

Reagon began her lecture, "Notes from the Cultural Autobiography of a Freedom Singer: 1961..." with a song which originated during American slavery, called, "Come and Go With Me To That Land." Students and faculty in attendance listened to her sing the traditional Negro Spiritual, soon catching on that they were supposed to join her. By the end of her lecture, the audience sang in harmony, confident in the, for some, newly-learned lyrics.

Rutgers sophomore and Africana Studies minor, Therese Eggleston told reporters "This was a truly liberating experience - To begin singing in a room with people you don’t know, and not care. It was moving and unlike anything I've ever experienced.”

Reagon not only sang. She focused her lecture around several formative moments in her life - being thrown in jail during college for protesting the arrest of five African American Albany State College students for buying train tickets at a “Whites Only“ teller, finding her identity and passion in a world that continuously imposed its own demands on her, as well as her discovery of music as a political and social statement used to incite change.

Students were not the only attendees who expressed gratitude for the scholarship Reagon has performed throughout her lifetime. Adjunct Professor Bill Davis teaches courses in the Africana Studies department, and told The Raritan Journal, “Bernice Johnson Reagon asked some very difficult questions tonight. Not only did she question social and political institutions, known for perpetuating racism, but she asked of the individual as well. This lecture, I’m sure, was the catalyst for change in someone." Reagon did in fact ask thought provoking questions, which left many students and faculty questioning the very fabric of their identity.

Edward Steele, a Rutgers freshman and Biology major, recalled her suggestion “that one will lose themself if they don’t do something catastrophic to find themself. This is just what students need to hear, as motivation during rough times.”

Photo Source

The Signal's Source

2009-03-13T08:37:00.000-07:00

By Alexander Cole

One of Rutgers University’s two radio stations is 88.7 WRSU FM. While many people listen to the various programs available during various times of the day and week, most take the music itself for granted. What gets on air is picked during weekly music meetings. The purpose of these meetings is to decide what would go into the station’s music playlist from the new music that had been sent in all week. Open to anyone with an interest in radio or music, the meetings take place in the WRSU radio station on the fourth floor of the Rutgers Student Center.

Before the meeting last Sunday began, I spoke with Lisa Uber, the Music Director of the station. According to her, the music comes in the form of CDs or individual files that get mailed or e-mailed in to the station. “We get ‘em from promoters, record labels, and individuals,” says Uber. This music is gathered over the week and stored in bins based on what genre it is. Geoff Pape, Community and World Music director, commented, “The ones that don’t fall into Urban, Metal, or Radio 200 lists are left out of the meeting and go straight through me.”

When it came time for the music meeting, it all started with a call to the pizza place. Once the food arrived, the first CD was brought out and put into the CD player on a small desk. The air became one of tension and suspense as the eight people in attendance waited for the CD to play. As the first notes of the song floated through the air, all seriousness was shattered as someone loudly stated, “I’m already feeling pretty s***ty and this [song] isn’t helping any.” As everyone laughed, Zach Huff, a DJ on the radio show Oh, The Shenanigans, looked at me and asked, “You thought we were going to be that serious about a song?”

One might say the people who have the responsibility of selecting the music that gets aired to thousands of people weren’t doing a very good job, but this is the opposite of the truth. This is how it went for the rest of the meeting. Of the 100 CDs played, 62 wound up being added to the station’s playlist. In a later discussion Uber mentioned that the amount of CDs listened to that day was average compared to what comes in each week. Jared Migden, former Music Director for the station, told me that it is actually better for the people at the meeting to have a casual attitude.

The reasoning behind that is that the people at the meeting have to judge whether or not the music will actually get played by the DJs at the station. If they let CDs in randomly, Huff opined, they would quickly run out of room for them and might be left with artists that no DJ wants to use anyway. By acting as if they were choosing songs for their own personal collections, the DJs, officers, and attendees of the meeting act as a sample audience for the radio station. When asked why they would volunteer one to four hours of their time for such a cause, Huff’s response sums up the general feeling of those in attendance. He smiled and said, “First, to decide what I’m going to play during the week. I’m kind of a music snob. However, it’s cool to know that I’m deciding what others hear on their radios.”

Empower Our Neighborhoods Continues Stand Against City Council

2009-03-10T09:14:00.000-07:00

By Joe Bindert

At the February 18 News Brunswick City Council meeting, members of the progressive-activism group Empower Our Neighborhoods continued to take a stand against the city council officials on their refusal to adopt the ward-based election system.

Created in 2007 by Rutgers University activist group Tent State, Empower Our Neighborhood’s ward-based election campaign seeks to establish a system in which New Brunswick City Council members are elected by city ward as opposed to at-large as they are now. Each of the six wards would have its own elected member of the council, and three more members would be elected at large for the whole city, making a total of nine member. Empower Our Neighborhoods argues that this system will be more democratic, as those running for the council seats will have smaller areas to focus on, allowing individuals with less establishment support and less money to compete more fairly for election. The current system, according to the group, favors those connected to the local Democratic Party and keeps lesser known candidates from running.

Last September, the New Brunswick City Council denied a motion to include a question about the ward system on the November general election ballot. Despite this, Empower Our Neighborhoods has not stopped attending city council meetings and making their voices heard. The February 18 meeting was no different, as three members of Empower Our Neighborhoods made their voices heard to the council and the people of New Brunswick at the meeting. Charles Kratovil, 23, also attempted to hand out literature written by the group during the meeting, but City Attorney William Hamilton denied him from doing so, telling him to do it after the meeting.

The motion to get a ward system in place is currently tied up in a legal battle as a result of it being turned down for the November elections. The cost of the legal proceedings was raised during the meeting when a concerned citizen asked about getting a traffic light installed at a dangerous intersection by her home. Empower Our Neighborhoods member Xavier Hansen, 34, spoke up and told the council that the city could have installed the traffic light she requested with the money the city have wasted trying to fight the ward system in court.

The group also shows no signs of letting up with their cause. “We will never give up”, Hansen told the city council during a heated discussion. When questioned after the meeting, each member of Empower Our Neighborhoods claimed that they would be attending future city council meetings as well.

Empower Our Neighborhoods will be having their next meeting on Tuesday, March 17 in the New Brunswick Free Public Library.

Inaugural Rutgers University Concert Provides Great Chance for High Schoolers

2009-03-10T08:45:00.000-07:00

By Stephen Yoon

Rutgers University hosted its very first Mid-Atlantic Honors Wind Band Festival recently, giving top high school wind ensembles a groundbreaking and amazing chance to perform on a university stage. The Verona High School Concert Band led by Erik Lynch, the Randolph High School Wind Ensemble led by David A. Aulenbach, and Bridgewater-Raritan High School Wind Ensemble led by Lawrence D. Markiewicz and Gary A. Myer displayed their talents for a fully packed audience at Nicholas Music Center in New Brunswick, NJ on February 25, 2009 with the Rutgers University Symphony Band closing out the concert. This concert also included a special performance by Mason Gross faculty member Stephen Arthur Allen, the professor of euphonium at the Mason Gross School of Rutgers University.

Organized primarily by the student-run Rutgers chapter of the MENC, the National Association of Music Education, this concert was quite an ambitious undertaking by Rutgers MENC Instrumental Coordinator Ryan Jameson and the president of Rutgers MENC, Kristen Conrad. The MENC chapter at Rutgers is made up primarily of students majoring in Music Education, and they were clearly very dedicated to the task. Coordinating a concert comprising of four separate bands is certainly no small task, and they did a wonderful job as the event went off without a hitch, much to the spectators’ delight.

“A special thanks goes to Ryan Jameson for his expertise, dedication, and untiring efforts to coordinate this event,” said Rutgers Symphony Band Conductor Darryl Bott. “Also, to the entire undergraduate membership of Rutgers MENC, Kristen Conrad, president, for their support and efforts to make today’s event a success.” The Verona High School Concert Band, which has received consecutive Gold/Superior ratings at the New Jersey State Concert Band Festival, Music in the Parks, and North American Music Festivals, performed a John Phillip Sousa march, The Fairest of the Fair as well, as Flight of the Years by Patrick J. Burns. Their rousing performance started the concert well, as both pieces featured an up-tempo, driving beat.

Randolph High School’s Wind Ensemble was next, performing Pageant by Vincent Persichetti and The Nature of the Beast by Julie Ann Giroux. They have also received numerous Superior and Gold ratings at festivals, and have performed at the Annual State Gala Concert every year since its inception in 1998. They displayed their versatility by following the solemn, regal Pageant with the dark tones of The Nature of the Beast.

Bridgewater-Raritan High School Wind Ensemble was the last out of the invited high school groups to perform, and they capped it off in an impressive manner. This Gold and Superior voted band has performed in such prestigious settings as the New York Wind Band Festival in Carnegie Hall, and their experience and talent certainly showed. They displayed a preference for a more traditional repertoire, starting us off with a conventional piece in Divertimento by Vincent Persichetti and finishing with the lively English tune of Shepherds Hey by Percy Aldridge Granger.

Finally the Rutgers Symphony Band took the stage to serve as a finale. The seventy seven member band, comprised mostly of undergraduate instrumental music majors led by Professor Darryl Bott did not disappoint, putting on a fantastic show consisting of three extremely difficult and technically challenging pieces. They began with the stately Fanfare and Allegro by Clifton Williams. This was followed by the faculty guest solo, a tradition at Rutgers University Symphony Band concerts. This particular solo was Napoli, Canzona Napolitana con Variazioni by Herman Bellstedt, performed by Dr. Stephen Arthur Allen on euphonium in a sublime rendition of a classic piece. Indeed, Dr. Allen displayed the strength of Mason Gross School of the Arts’ instrumental faculty, putting on a performance that was both technically astounding and musically brilliant. The Symphony Band did a great job of carrying the momentum, capping off the concert with the very intense and ominous Symphony No. 2 by John Barnes Chance. Despite the garden variety title, it is an extremely modern piece with eclectic harmonies that cause an almost palpable tension in the listeners, which the band delivered resplendently.

Overall the event was a very successful one that set the standard for future Mid-Atlantic Honors Wind Band Festivals to come. This groundbreaking event will give other stand-out high school bands a chance to experience a performance on a bigger stage and give future musicians invaluable experience. Indeed, the Rutgers chapter of the MENC and Mason Gross School of the Arts are creating an invaluable event for the today’s young musicians.

Recession Takes Toll on 2009 NYC Fashion Week

2009-03-06T13:48:00.000-08:00

By Diana Curreri

Fashion Week or similar events where designers show their new collection to the public in a runway-style manner have been taking place annually in New York City for approximately fifty years. This year, despite the economic climate, the ritual continued.

In tents or rented out rooms or floors of vacant buildings throughout the city, designers like Calvin Klein, Nicole Miller, Michael Kors, and Carlos Campos presented their fall 2009 collections. Fellow fashion designers, PR representatives, actors, models, and lucky guests were present for these invitation only events that took place Feb. 13-20.

Lining the inside of the tent built in Bryant Park were booths for companies sponsoring the events. Tresemme had sectioned off an area for hairdressers to style hair. MAC, American Express and Havaianas also had booths set up selling products.

“There are perks to being a sponsor,” said Robert Di Mauro, lifestyle commentator and Chairman of the Advisory Board of the High School of Fashion Industries, “Famous people come in and wear their product when on the runway.” He explained that when a celebrity wears a certain brand, it shows the brand’s validity. This in turn develops and strengthens brand loyalty with new and old customers. Since the professionals trust and wear the brand, why shouldn’t everyone else?

The models presented fall 2009 fashions in several different ways. In contrast to years before, not every designer decided to present their collections using the most popular technique, on a runway.

Instead of having models strut down the catwalk, designer Benetti has his models silently stand and pose. Then the models would slowly walk in a clockwise fashion and simultaneously pose after every several steps. This allowed better viewing of the clothing on display. However, seats were set up in an “L” shape. Depending on where you sat, it might have been difficult to see everything, since at least four models would be presented simultaneously for about a minute.

The other type of presentation was a bit odder. Tim Hamilton had his models stand on two levels of platforms for several hours straight while guests stared back at them. However, the models were allowed to converse with one another, did not have strict poses, and drank beer. This created a more relaxed scene, yet because the models were not moving as much, it was impossible to see outfits in their entirety.

Anne Szutek, senior writer for findingDulcinea.com wrote that the fashion industry has clearly been affected by the worst economic crisis since the Great Depression. “Some established designers, such as Carmen Marc Valvo, Vera Wang and Betsey Johnson, did not have full fashion shows…Betsey Johnson and Vera Wang displayed their fall 2009 collections on mannequins rather than live models.” She also explained that by having two companies share the same stage and make joint shows, designers were able to save 40 percent in show costs.

Designers are always looking for the most eye-catching color, the hottest new accessory item, or a new twist to put on an otherwise simple item. This year, the theme that held true for almost all designers was a return to the 80s - of course with a 2009 twist.

The most frequently asked question after these shows is what color is “in” this season. Orange and brown for fall, or light pastels for spring are the norm. However, no designers showed a recurring theme of one specific color. For many, gray seemed to be most popular, however when outfitted with another color, no two designers picked the exact same shades.

Designer Binetti paired his gray women’s fall/winter 2009 line with mainly purple and deep blue shades. However, Carlos Campos paired grey with brown, white, and metallic shades of black for both his men’s and women’s lines.

Tim Hamilton’s line for men focused on two simple colors; black and white. He paired striped sweaters or black turtlenecks with knee-length capris and trench coats with thin, almost sheer, loose fitting gray leggings.

People have been taking well to the return of the basic black turtleneck. By layering this simple piece under a bright color, it “adds drama and depth to outfits that might otherwise look flighty, out of season, or just too optimistic,” said a trend report from content.coutorture.com.

By creating a fashionable piece that could double as two different items for the price of one, designers found a sure crowd pleaser. Convertible style trench coats could unbutton to become a blazer perfect for the spring. Presented by Phillip Lim and Karen Walker, convertibles were the answer for those trying to get the most out of their money.

Despite the economic crisis causing this year’s Fashion Week to have the lowest budget shows in decades and demanded designers to make clothes more wallet-friendly, the contemporary 80s look of Fashion Week 2009 was a success. Mercedes-Benz hosted this year and last year’s shows in New York.

The Business of Blogging: Online Publishing Discussion at Rutgers

2009-03-06T08:57:00.000-08:00

by Alex Guadagno

Rutgers journalism students found out on Wednesday, Feb. 25 that there is much more required for prolific online publishing than plopping down at the keyboard each morning and dishing unbridled witticisms, pajama-clad and coffee-cupped, à la Perez Hilton. This vision, presented by Ed Silverman of Pharmalot.com, may be how Hilton writes his snarky celebrity gossip blog, but this particular fantasy was dismantled for some would-be bloggers when Silverman spoke at a talk hosted by the Rutgers Chapter of the Society of Professional Journalists at the New Brunswick campus. "How to Become a Successful Online Publisher” also featured panelist Cameron Barrott of Blogcorp.com.

According to Silverman, the potential to make money in online publishing rests on the blog’s ability to attract a demographic that is interesting to advertisers. It’s not simply a matter of laying out the material and waiting for the advertising revenue to roll in—an enterprising blogger must actively pursue both the audience and the advertiser.

Silverman’s blog, Pharmalot.com, was the “go-to destination for news and discussion concerning the pharmaceutical industry” before he decided to shut it down last month, according to Silverman’s goodbye post. Even though it may seem like a very specific market, Pharmalot boasted of more than 11,000 independent hits per day near the end. Silverman, who covered pharmaceuticals for ten years at the Star Ledger, saw the potential for this type of online presence and established his Pharmalot blog. “A web site represented not only a next step in gathering and disseminating information, but also an opportunity to get ahead of the curve and move on to another stage in my career,” said Silverman.

Silverman suggested that making money in blogging may mean tailoring the content to the desired audience, which can quickly become a balancing act between putting forth the kind of material you want and appeasing the readers—as well as the advertisers who are paying you based only on your ability to get these readers coming back. “It’s a really noisy world,” says Silverman. “And it’s going to get noisier.”

Does this have to mean compromising one’s voice or integrity? “There’s that old-fashioned wall between advertising and editorial. The question is: do you want to reach that wall?” Silverman posed. “The answer is: you have to.”

This may be discouraging to budding bloggers who are drawn to this medium for its apparent separation from the more structured business world of print media. But Silverman, a self-proclaimed “content person,” maintained: “Like it or not, that business consideration is paramount everyday. Maybe not every minute, but every day.” He suggested that other “content people” develop a partnership with someone more adept at business matters, which would free up the journalists’ hands for more creative pursuits.

Cameron Barrott of Blogcorp.com spoke next. Blogcorp advises organizations on setting up successful blogs to meet their business needs. While Silverman focused on the writing and journalistic aspect of the business, Barrott delved into the dirty details of the technical side to blogging. This was at the expense of losing more than half of the student audience when the topic of Web 2.0 was breached, as one moderator jested when students began filing out of the room.

But Barrott’s attitude seems to suggest that taking the sort of risks that may cost you half your audience is part of the niche-carving and name-building process. “You have to fail at something before you can succeed at anything,” said Barrott. When it comes to blogging, “failure is the best teacher.”

And failed he has: Barrott shared with the audience an anecdote about how one disparaging comment he made on a blog followed him around for the past 8 years. But even Barrott, with his live-and-learn-and-then-get-libel-insurance attitude, suggests that advertising is the most direct way to profit in the blogging world. One audience member suggested subscription-based niche marketing, but Barrott insisted that even this is not the best route unless you have a clearly defined group pegged.

Barrott insists that bloggers must make themselves an indispensable part of the audience’s day by providing readers with something that cannot be found elsewhere. He gave the example of Daringfireball.net, a text only blog by John Gruber.

“People read it because they’re afraid not to read it,” agreed Ron Miskoff, who is a former news reporter and currently a lecturer at the Rutgers School of Communication, Information and Library Studies.

The theme of the evening and the message from speakers to students was evident: blog about what you know, carve out a niche, be edgy if you have to, and do whatever it takes to stick out and be heard.

Empower Our Neighborhoods vs. City Council

2009-03-06T08:54:00.000-08:00

By Jason Scharch

Rent control, traffic light cameras, and icy sidewalks were all addressed at the city council meeting on February 18. But one thing that was not was the recurring efforts of the civic group named “Empower Our Neighborhood.” The group, which is formed mainly of Rutgers students, is fighting for a ward system that will allow different sections of the city to elect their own representatives for city council. The current city government has successfully avoided the implementation of such a system, and the tensions showed the straining relationship between the individuals involved.

Charles Kratovil, the Co-Campaign Manager of Empower Our Neighborhood, or EON, took an active role at the meeting, bringing questions from members of EON to the meeting and taping the responses. The group handed out flyers during the meeting explaining their goals, and how others can help.

The antics of the EON were only tolerated for so long, as the council members quickly lost their patience when attempts were made to debate during a public meeting. When asked about why the council meetings could not be video taped for cable, and archived online for all to see. Council President Elizabeth Garlatti responded in a sarcastic reference to the topic of cameras at streetlights, “Maybe we’ll set up a picnic table at the intersection with the camera and take care of that.”

EON is having a hard time gaining respect from the city council, partly because most students are only temporary residents. The two organizations are in a legal standstill currently. Mayor Jim Cahill expressed to The Daily Targum his concern about whether their petition was signed by students who had a full knowledge of its purpose. Cahill said, “The petition should have contained a clarification that it was the intended purpose of this petition to place on the ballot two questions calling for two different kinds of government: one by ward and one at large, both consisting of nine council members.” Additionally the city council expressed concern that signatures were located on the back of the petition, and did not clearly display the purpose.

Stress levels are high on both sides of this struggle, seeing as how it has moved to the legal system for settling. According to Sean Monahan, another EON representative, the city has spent over $50,000 on the current legal battle, fighting the petition presented by EON. Monahan disagrees with the action the city has been taking, “It just doesn’t make sense, they are using the taxpayers money to pay for their lawyer who is fighting against a system designed to work for the taxpayers.”

The meeting was rushed to a conclusion before more representatives from the Empower Our Neighborhood group could continue their barrage of questions. The straining of professional relationships was seen on both sides in a meeting full of unanswered questions. Afterward the council members rushed out of the room, while the EON representatives stuck around to talk and answer questions from all of those at the meeting.

Maplewood Environmental Advisory Committee Meeting

2009-03-06T08:51:00.000-08:00

By Kaja Stamnes

At the monthly Maplewood Environmental Advisory committee meeting, the hottest topic was the debate over what to do about Earth Day. The meeting, held this Wednesday at 7:30 p.m. in the Maplewood Library had an agenda that began with a run-through of newly created sub-committees, and moved on through more important topics of environmental concern. While Earth Day played a starring role in the event, another issued included the continuing debate over the type of field to be used in the recently confirmed make-over of DeHart Park and Recreation Center. Also, defining the roles of the subcommittees in relation to the Township committee was discussed. The general purpose of the meeting was to address the tasks the committee would need to take on in the next few months..

The Environmental Advisory Committee consists of 10 people, appointed by the local Township Committee. The Official Town Website of Maplewood lists the EAC's responsibilities as “[T]o advise [The Township Committee] and the municipal government on environmental/green issues including climate change, recycling, clean air, clean water, and protection against health threatening contaminants. The Committee is also responsible for coordinating the annual celebration of Earth Day and developing educational programs for the community.” The Chairperson, Robert McCoy, led the meeting and Deputy Mayor, Fred Profeta, was there to represent the Township Committee.

The main topic was the Earth Day Event. The committee tentatively set the celebration of this day which technically occurs on Wednesday, April 22, for the following Saturday, April 25. The most important part of this day is the Rahway River Clean-Up, an annual community event. The discussion of Earth Day was driven mostly by the desire to expand it into a week-long event this year, following neighboring Millburn Township's example. The EAC seemed to think that doing so would be possible with publicity from sponsors, and additional events and contests to get more of the community involved. They decided to appoint two people to head the Earth Day-Week conundrum.

A lengthy discussion centered on the EAC's opinion on which approach to take to the DeHart Park reconstruction. The members seemed to agree that an organic approach to the field would be better in the long run and more sustainable. Profeta, however, pointed out that the Township Committee's opinion on the matter currently would result in a 3-2 vote against the organic method. They agreed that the need to distill and present the basic factors which make the organic turf the most desirable and affordable option is very important to convince the Township Committee and other residents in its favor. Many residents were in favor of a synthetic turf field, and some EAC members acknowledged the fact that such residents might simply oppose any other efforts. That field maintenance must accompany the changes, regardless of the selected method, was also determined.

The four subcommittees that were created at the last month's meeting were quickly given a run-through to decide what issues they would address. The categories were Climate Change, Open Space, Recycling, and Municipal Ordinances and Planning. The last category posed somewhat of a challenge as Mr. Profeta was prompted to ask about the effects of having a “Municipal Ordinances” committee to the Township Committee. He seemed concerned that an ordinances with an environmental aspect would be held up and subject to the subcommittees review. The issue was resolved as EAC member and Convener of the Open Space Subcommittee, Dirk Olin, expressed his comfort with the flexibility of what he said “should be an ad-hocracy” emphasizing the group's ability to adjust to change, and play the role as an advisor to help the Township Committee, not a bureaucratic obstacle.

The EAC is hosting a “Green Drinks” fundraiser March 26th at the Maplewood Women's Club. Price is $10 per person, all the beverages will be organic.

Economist Discusses Past, Present and Future

2009-03-06T08:48:00.001-08:00

By Lucas Sullivan

This past Wednesday, economist R. Glenn Hubbard gave a speech at the College Avenue Student Center at Rutgers concerning our current economic situation, the lessons to learn from the past, and what to look out for in the future.

Hubbard is the Dean of the Graduate School of Business at Columbia University, and has a prestigious history in economics: he was the chairman of the Council of Economic Advisors from 2001 to 2003, the chairman of the Economic Club of New York, and very nearly took the place of Alan Greenspan as chairman of the Board of Governors of the United States Federal Reserve.

Attendees at the lecture numbered around forty or fifty, including some Rutgers Economics professors such as Neil Sheflin. Hubbard started his speech proclaiming that his goal was to “take something that works in practice and prove it can work in theory.” He then reminded the audience of the tough times we are in, stating that “the forecast is presently grim…continued job shedding is very troubling.” Overseas, the situation is not much brighter: economic growth in China and India is “slipping,” and Japan is currently in a recession. “Humility is in order,” said Hubbard, who asserted that we need to shake up the system in order to bounce back out of the slump. “Currently,” said Hubbard, “we have a banking panic…the instinct is to run for cash.”

How did we end up in this situation in the first place? Hubbard noted three main causes: low interest rates, lax monetary policy from 2003 to 2005 (which led to inflation), and the capital requirements to make transactions being too high. Hubbard suggested that the path to recovery requires confidence and a “principled policy of response” to economic troubles, as opposed to an “ad-hoc” reaction that will be too late in correcting a problem. His main proposition for the future was that instead of hiring more regulators, we hire better ones; doubling the number of poor regulators will do us no good, Hubbard concluded. We should also try to weed out the good banks from the bad ones, or eliminate the bad banks and bad assets altogether; this would provide protection from loss that would be a comfort to the consumer.

Hubbard also discussed the recent stimulus package signed by President Barack Obama. He claimed that it didn’t have enough “bang for the buck,” and that we will not likely see it add significantly to GDP in the next 12 to 18 months. Also troubling was Hubbard’s prediction that the package “may necessitate higher taxes in the future.” The package did have its upside, however, as it will bolster the supply side in the US and keep structural productivity high, according to Hubbard.

Near the end of the lecture, Hubbard fielded a few questions from the audience. One student asked for Hubbard’s opinion on the future of some of the currently competing banks; Hubbard stated that he believed many of the struggling midsize banks will fail in 2009 and 2010. The biggest issue, Hubbard emphasized, was focusing on the long term. Hubbard closed his lecture with a humorous quote he had found in a fortune cookie that he said is analogous to our current economic situation: “riding a flying tiger is easy; it’s just landing that is difficult.”

Six Flags, More Flags, More Jobs

2009-03-06T08:42:00.000-08:00

By Maria Monica Abrenica

Six Flags Great Adventure in Jackson, New Jersey hosted a job opportunity fair last Saturday, February 21. Applicants came with a lot of patience and their biggest smiles.

Returning employees from previous seasons as well as hundreds of aspiring employees kept the company’s Human Resources Department occupied and the Employment Center packed throughout the day. The company is offering numerous employment opportunities for all ages.

The job fair started at ten o’ clock in the morning and lasted until four in the afternoon. It was a challenge squeezing between all the people in order to make it through the section of departments and their inviting display of work information. Among the most popular hiring departments are Merchandise, Games, Entertainment, Loss Prevention and Security, and Ride Operations.

Twenty-six-year-old Katherine Tytko of Howell, New Jersey is coming back for her seventh season with the Security Department. She said that what makes her keep coming back is the comfort and familiarity with the demands of the job. She also works as a Medical Technologist at the Monmouth Medical Center, but is looking to earn extra income. This season, she is determined to come back in order to double her payments toward student loans.

“The pay is not incredibly high, but you can get so many hours that you still bring home a decent paycheck,” Tytko said.

Rhonda Callahan, 21, of Mount Holly, New Jersey will be returning for her fourth season with the park’s Merchandise Department. She said she enjoys meeting new co-workers each year and being around park guests. She also said that the money she earns pays for college books and clothes.

“Six Flags is a happy place and the money is good too,” said Callahan.

Unlike most other companies, Six Flags provides employment for minors too. The amusement park accepts applicants as young as the age of fourteen. Senior Supervisor Mayra Zayas said that this is a great venue for young people to learn the value of hard-earned money and to develop responsibility. She estimates that about 2,000 people came to this job fair and while she was unable to give an exact number of how many people will get hired, she said that departments are aiming to maximize staffing. In an NBC local news report, it was said that Six Flags Great Adventure is among the biggest seasonal employers in New Jersey. The report said that approximately 4,100 positions are available.

“I live two minutes down the road and I need the money,” said fourteen-year-old Michelle Long.

Long was standing in a corner enjoying the free food and beverages at the fair while anticipating for her name to be called out by an interviewer. She is looking to work in Merchandise and said that she chose Six Flags because it is known for being a fun place to work.

Mothers waited patiently for their kids to finish their application and interview. Kayla Schonyers, 15, and Diandra Schonyers, 18, are sisters who were attracted to the fair by a promotional flier that their mother had brought home from work.

“I am not forcing them to work, but I want them to learn the value of money, especially during these hard days,” said the Schonyers’ mother.

Karen Coryelle, a mother of two from Bricktown, New Jersey, was waiting outside for her fifteen-year-old son to come out from his interview. When asked what job her son was looking for, she replied saying “Anything!” and then laughed. She said that being choosy is not an option at a time when so many people are getting laid off and having trouble finding decent jobs.

Seasonal employment does not discourage people from seeking a job at Six Flags and this is evident in the number of people who went to the job fair last Saturday. “Six Flags has so many jobs within the company that it can fit into anyone’s needs,” Zayas said. “There’s something for everyone.” She also said that the benefits of competitive pay, flexible hours, and free park tickets draw more and more people each year.

The park is still accepting applications and anyone is welcome to visit the Employment Center from 1 p.m. to 6 p.m. on Mondays through Fridays and 9 a.m. to 5 p.m. on Saturdays. A list of available seasonal positions and more information about employment are also available online at www.sixflags.com/greatAdventure/jobs.

Hijabs, Yarmulkas, and Bare Heads...Oh, My!

2009-03-05T12:43:00.000-08:00

By Sylver McGriff

Photos by Sylver McGriff

It was a sight to see: Muslims, Jews and Christians all together in one room, praying, conversing, questioning. Quite a sight - especially in light of America’s recent history with the Middle East, and unfolding events in Israel and Palestine. The unlikely religious gathering on February 18th in the College Avenue Graduate Student Lounge at Rutgers University in New Brunswick - dubbed “Trialogue: A Search for Understanding; Muslims, Christians and Jews in Conversation”- threw together students from various faiths - including a lone atheist - to ask questions of each other. Among the questions provided in a pamphlet handed out to each participant were: “Is Islam under attack right now?", “What stereotypes do you have of different religions?”, “If you had to convert to another faith, which would you choose?” And, as war rages in Israel and Palestine, “Where is the Holy Land, and who has claim to it?”

The event was sponsored by the Catholic Center, Episcopal Campus Ministry, Hillel, Lutheran Campus Ministry, Office of Muslim Chaplain, Rutgers Protestant Campus Ministry, and the Wesley Fellowship, and funded by grants from the General Board of Higher Education and Ministry, and The United Methodist Church. Both undergrad and grad students of many cultures were in attendance.

“I grew up having to pray the Lord’s prayer and recite from the Koran.” says Amytza, a Rutgers SCILS senior of Hispanic-Indian heritage reared by a Muslim father and Catholic mother. Leah, a Jewish graduate student in the field of social work, shares, “I just recently visited my family in Israel, which really solidified my faith.” Across the room, a Caucasian student with blue hair wearing an off the shoulder top above a micro-mini skirt sat beside a fully sheathed Muslim student with only her face and hands exposed. Within minutes, the two were in deep conversation. Present also were a priest in collar, a nun in habit, and a female rabbi; the only missing representative of religious authority was a Muslim imam.

To begin, two students from each faith stood before the gathering to share information about the beliefs of each of their religions. Male Jewish students wearing colorful yarmulkas recited a prayer from the Torah in Hebrew, followed by Christian students, heads bare, reciting the Lord’s Prayer, culminated by a Muslim male and female student - the girl wearing a black hijab (the traditional headcover worn by Muslim women) - who recited passages of the Koran in eloquent Arabic. All spoke of love, peace, and an adherence to their chosen beliefs.

Rabbi Esther Reed, Associate Director for Jewish Campus Life at the university, then divided everyone into small groups. “The focus of the small group is to open your mind and heart to other faiths, ideas, religious practices, and prayers,” quotes the green pamphlet handed around to each group; it is a passage from “The Faith Club,” a book by Ranya Idliby, Suzanne Oliver and Priscilla Warner from which the structure of this Trialogue group is borrowed.

Following the 9-11 attacks, a Muslim mother of two who lived in New York City decided to educate her children about the common ground between Muslim, Jewish and Christian faiths. This decision ultimately led to the writing of a children’s book with two other mothers - Suzanne Oliver, a Christian, and Priscilla Warner, Jewish. The result was “The Faith Club: A Muslim, A Christian, A Jew - Three Women Search for Understanding.” It is the premise of this book on which the Rutgers Trialogue was designed.

As the Rutgers students began forming their Trialogue groups, Rabbi Reed calls out, “If you look around your group and see that everyone is from the same background as you, raise your hand and we’ll come around and switch people up a little bit; the idea is to have a trialogue with those from different religious backgrounds than ourselves.”

This instruction leads to amused return call-outs of, “Too many Jews over here!”, and “We need to switch out some Muslims!” With each call-out, laughter ripples through the room, but not the nervous kind. It is instead a genuine mirth about hearing such things voiced so openly without fear. Everyone here seems to recognize that they are in a ‘safe zone’, an environment in which diversity and humor may coincide.

Within the groups, serious discussion begins. “I thought there were only 2 kinds of Jews,” a Christian says. “The kind that wear beards and black hats, and the kind that don’t.” Two Jewish girls giggle. “No, we come in all kinds of flavors!” one answers. Everyone in the group laughs at this. “There’s Orthodox, Conservative, Reformed, and Reconstructionist Jews - and just about every kind inbetween,” the other Jewish girl clarifies. “In terms of differences, it’s more [about] the levels of practicing.”

An atheist poses a question, “Is it like that with Muslims?” A Muslim responds, “In Islam, there’s Sunni and Shi’a. But [it’s not like] the different kinds of Jews because it’s not about levels of practice. It’s about whether or not there is a belief that the first three khalifs [Islamic religious leaders] who led Islam after the Prophet [Muhammed]'s death had blood relation to the Prophet. Sunnis believe they did, and Shi’as believe they didn’t.”

In another group, a Christian is questioned by a Muslim. “Why do you believe that Jesus was the son of God? What historical proof do you have of that?” The Christian answers, “Well, Jesus performed miracles. Neither the Prophet Muhammed nor Abraham - or whoever Jews believe in as a prophet...wait, what exactly do Jews believe?” Everyone laughs uproariously, after which a Jewish student answers, “Let me educate you, o uninformed Christian!” More laughter. The laughter is genuine glee in the excitement and safety, within this supportive setting, to question, challenge, and learn about varying religious beliefs.

Most interesting about this Trialogue gathering was the underlying feeling of

willingness: each student seemed genuinely interested and open to views that go completely against all which they believe to be true. In fact, the students at this gathering seemed to welcome an opportunity to absorb new insight about things previously shrouded in mystery. The challenges were respectful, the inquiries were of sincere interest. That, in itself, was a beautiful thing to see.

The Wrestler Knocks Down the Audience in Triumph

2009-03-05T11:18:00.000-08:00

By Kara Jordhoy

Randy ‘The Ram’ Robinson beats his nasty opponent to the ground and raises his arms in victory for an extremely small crowd surrounding the ring. He leaves his fans, who mistake his heavy breathing for victory, not defeat. After being cared for by nurses in his dressing room, Randy collapses to the ground. This beginning shows not only his exhaustion from the deadly battle, but also his fight to keep his life in order.

At the New York City Regal Union Square Stadium 14 premiere of The Wrestler on Jan. 30, many showed up to see the much talked about film that got actor Mickey Rourke nominated for an Oscar. After being invited by a New York University film student, John Schlirf, we sat and watched the movie eagerly with many others. Fortunately, this movie was engaging and moving; however, it was emotional in a way that depressed most of the audience.

“It’s a kind of movie that you can experience alongside the actor,” Schlirf said. “Mickey Rourke brings along his experiences as an actor that makes him even more believable.”

In The Wrestler, Rourke (Sin City) makes a come back by playing Randy, an old, washed-up fighter from New Jersey who constantly screws up with the people he cares for most. Directed by Darren Aronofsky (Requiem for a Dream), this movie had a documentary-feel to it, with shaky, hand-held cameras depicting Randy’s days after fame and fortune had ended. Obviously once on drugs, Randy tries to fix his broken life by making amends with his daughter Stephanie, played by Rachel Evan Wood (Across the Universe), getting a job in the deli section of a grocery store and forming a relationship with a stripper. This classy lady named Cassidy, played by Marissa Tomei (The Sopranos), is not the classic stereotypical depiction of a pole dancer. A single mom who yearns for a better life, Cassidy is also attempting to improve her life alongside Randy. While his efforts are admirable, Randy soon finds that it is much harder to keep up with responsibilities and relationships than it is to wrestle.

“The story has a very slow, deliberate pace to it that makes the film seem more like you’re following this guy around through his life,” Schlirf said. “It seems like there’s no barrier between you and the character.”

Written by Robert Siegel (The Onion Movie), The Wrestler is a moving, heart-wrenching tale; one that moved the audience and touched the lives of many. The acting was phenomenal, especially that of Tomei, who was nominated for the Academy Award’s Best Supporting Actress. Her willingness to be nude in multiple scenes, plus actually doings the tasks of a real stripper presented her ability as an actress. Also, Rourke’s talent as an actor was shown through Randy, because he played basically himself: a prior drug addict who is trying to reach for the fame he once had. Once on his way to stardom, Rourke ruined his chance by being rude to his coworkers and tarnishing his good looks by taking heavy medications. After people refused to work with him, Rourke decided to get his career back together again. Happily, Rourke has succeeded, winning a nomination for the Academy Award’s Best Actor.

“Rourke deserved to win because of the sheer amount of self he put in the role,” Schlirf said. “But he lost because he made so many enemies in his past.”

All in all, The Wrestler is a brilliant film, though somewhat depressing. Most of the audience left the theater with glum or sad expressions. While it can be inspirational to some, others may find no hope from it at all.

Peer Interview: Lucas Sullivan

2009-02-23T20:10:00.000-08:00

By Aliyah Finney

Rutgers University, New Jersey’s state school, is extremely diverse and offers countless opportunities for profession path and social networking . This was one of the determining factors in me choosing to apply and eventually enroll at this particular school. One such student, who was attracted to the same aspect, is 20-year-old Lucas Sullivan.

Like myself Sullivan attended a small high school of a limited racial diversity; the complete opposite of the Rutgers community. Sullivan went to Newerk Academy, a prep school with a graduating class of 100. It is a prestigious school, though Sullivan thought it “too preppy… All that changed when I came to Rutgers however, where cliques seem not to exist.”

Now here, Sullivan, like many a student, had some trouble finding himself. Being of European and Japanese decent, Sullivan had the opportunity to travel to Asia and

England

. This shaped is aspirations as he enjoyed the time he spent abroad, “I feel very fortunate to be able to have made so many trips in my life.”

For the first year and a half of his college life Sullivan was not exactly sure what he wanted to major in, though enjoyed testing the waters. “Maybe it's just college itself, but it seems that at Rutgers, you can have a good time with any group of people as long as you're outgoing and friendly.”

Though now it seems as though Sullivan has finally become grounded and found a set path towards his future. Considering that he is currently a junior, and has just changed his major to Journalism and Media Studies Sullivan is a little beyond the typical journalism student, though his case is anything but unique. He, like thousands of other students, will spend at least four more years in school in order to obtain his degree.

But the most important fact is that Sullivan has become comfortable with his current major. “In terms of my future, I know that I'd like to write for some publication,” Sullivan is worried though, “I'm not sure how well print media will be doing whenever I graduate.” Print media purchases and therefore jobs have all been declining steadily over the years. Though there the medium itself will never become obsolete, with al of the downsizing getting into the industry has become more competitive now than ever.

Despite this Sullivan is sticking with it. “With any luck, jobs will have opened up by the time I'm fully trained in journalism and ready to put myself out there."

Sullivan has also chosen Phsychology as his minor. He does not necessarily intend to use this degree in association with his future occupation, but just finds the subject interesting. “I took a couple of classes in High School and thought, why no?”

Hopefully Sullivan will continue to enjoy his Rutgers experience and add to the number of notable Rutgers alumni.

The Mentality of a Boy Scout

2009-02-23T15:47:00.000-08:00

By Ezra Dreiblatt

“On my honor I will do my best to do my duty to God and my country and to obey the Scout Law; To help other people at all times; To keep myself physically strong, mentally awake, and morally straight.” At first glance to many people under the age of twenty-five, this seems like something out of the army manual. To nineteen-year-old Jason Scharch from Lyndhurst, New Jersey, it is the Boy Scout Oath that he stated countless times during his twelve years in the Boy Scouts of America. For Jason, the Boy Scouts played a large part in defining his pre-adolescent and teenage years. His troop of roughly 30 boys from his town provided him with camaraderie and a sense of purpose from a young age. For Jason’s parents, it was an opportunity for their son to learn essential outdoor skills while at the same time teaching Jason certain values that would serve him well later in life. The emphasis on honesty, responsibility, and leadership is one of the main reasons the Boy Scouts is still an important part of American culture.

Jason started out at the age of five in a Cub Scout Pack of fifteen boys from his town. The Cub Scouts are the youngest subdivision of the Boy Scouts and allow young boys an opportunity to be active and have fun. They also gave Jason an idea of what the Boy Scouts structure would be like. While all Boy Scouts are made aware of all that they can achieve within the organization, very few go all the way and achieve the rank of Eagle Scout. Of the nineteen boys that Jason began the journey with, only he and one other put in the work and dedication necessary to become Eagle Scouts. From an early age in the Cub Scouts, Jason and his troop were taught outdoor skills such as lighting fires, creating shelters, and tying knots. More importantly though, the Boy Scouts began to slowly shape Jason into what they defined as a “physically strong, mentally awake, and morally straight” man. All the important aspects of being a Boy Scout, such as the stating of the oath, the wearing of the uniform, and the acquisition of outdoor skills were molding Jason into becoming the type of man that the Boy Scouts had been churning out for a century. As a young boy, these aspects of the Boy Scouts did not resonate with Jason. The closeness of the troop as well as the competition to acquire badges was what drove him early in his time with the Boy Scouts.

Jason’s last four years with the boy scouts was when he says he learned the most and was finally able to apply the skills and values he had learned as a young scout. For example, at the age of fifteen he moved up in rank from just being a member of a troop to being a Senior Patrol Leader. This brought on a test of his leadership and communication skills because some members of the troop were older than him. It turned out that this wasn’t as big of a problem as even Jason thought because as he put it, “I wasn’t doubting my own abilities, and once they saw that, they didn’t wither.” In his junior year of high school, Jason decided that he would attempt to achieve the highest rank the Boys Scouts offered, the rank of Eagle Scout. According to Jason, “this had been something that I had always wanted to achieve but I had never thought I would actually stick with the Boy Scouts for that long.” To achieve this commendable rank, Jason had to lead his troop in building a hockey shed for his town. Receiving no assistance in terms of coordinating, it was Jason’s responsibility to contact the lumberyard, assemble the materials, and organize his helpers into groups in order to keep the operation as smooth as possible. His success in this venture proved that while the Boy Scouts may have lost some of their luster, they are still molding fine gentlemen every day.

Life After High School

2009-02-20T08:44:00.000-08:00

By Shaun Van Moerkerken

There comes a time in every teenager’s life when they are faced with the difficult decision of deciding their future upon the abrupt end of high school. In some cases, this decision is an easy one; a career path and college choice is already in mind, but this is not true for all cases. My classmate Travis Drobbin, age 21, had much to say on this topic and could relate with students who were faced with this tough decision. “I felt like I was in a prison and could not relate to anyone," Travis had to say about his first semester of college.

Travis said that upon the completion of high school he had narrowed down his choice of colleges to 2 finalists; Rutgers University or Monmouth University. At first, Travis was leaning more towards choosing Monmouth University for the economical reason of receiving scholarship money to attend their institution. Even with the money Monmouth was offering him, Travis turned down their offer because ever since childhood, Travis wanted to be a scarlet knight, “I was already very familiar with the campus and really felt comfortable making it my new home.” When accepted to Rutgers, Travis was unaware that Rutgers at the time was broken up into 6 different schools and you were accepted to that specific school. Travis was accepted to University College, which little he knew was known for transfer students and adult night time students, which is not a great atmosphere to make new friends and start your college career.

Upon arrival at Rutgers, Travis was assigned to dorm at the Livingston Campus, which is not a crowd favorite among students here at Rutgers University. Even though he originally wanted to live at College Avenue, he decided to make the best of his situation, which only got worse from this point. He soon found out that he and his roommate were the only freshmen on his floor in Quad 1 and under the age of 21. This is a bad situation for a freshman because cliques have already formed among former students and it is difficult to make new friends. To make matters worse, Travis and his roommate did not get along either due to their differences in lifestyles.

Winter break arrived and Travis was never more happy to see home. After his long month break, the woes of Livingston Campus life had left his mind but were quickly remembered upon his return. This is when Travis realized that something had to change. The first idea that crossed Travis’s mind was transferring out of Rutgers and reverting back to his other choice, Monmouth University. He met with his parents at a restaurant and talked with them about transferring out of Rutgers, and had convinced them.

The following day, Travis received a phone call for a dinner invitation to rush the fraternity Pi Kappa Alpha. He had been selected because his brother in-law had once been a brother of the same fraternity. Even though he was thinking of transferring, he reluctantly accepted the dinner invitation. After attending many rush events he received a bid to join the fraternity. After that day, Travis decided not to transfer out of Rutgers and found his niche of friends that he feared he might never find at Rutgers University. These tough decisions that teens face of finding a close group friends almost made him make a life changing decision. “I know now that I made the correct decision and have never been happier here at Rutgers University.”

State University Dean Rubs Policy With U.S. Presidents & Presidential Candidate

2009-02-17T15:08:00.000-08:00

By Sylver McGriff

Photo by Sylver McGriff

One man tapped for policy guidance by 2 U.S. presidents. Add a vice president, and a presidential candidate to the mix, and you have a veritable presidential magnet. His name is Jorge Reina Schement.

He wears a baseball cap. Which, as dean of Rutgers’ School of Communication, Information and Library Studies, no doubt makes students feel comfortable shooting the breeze with him. He wears a bow-tie as well, which may occasionally reel in the easy smile that plays at the corner of his mouth. “It’s an absolute pleasure working for Dean Schement,” his assistant, Kathy, enthuses. “...he has a gift of really relating to students, faculty, and staff.” And, apparently, to Presidents as well.

“I don’t really know why they chose me,” Schement muses modestly about being selected to work with the Obama Transition Team. “My research is in an area of policy called Universal Service Policy....an area encompassing the Federal Communications Commission...the White House and the Congress [which] attempts to make sure that as many Americans as possible can have access to the telecommunications network of the United States...[which] now includes broadband and internet access. Over the years, I have published widely in this area...about those groups that have not had as complete access as others, and how we can expand our policies to make sure that they have access.”

Schement’s books include such titles as: “Between Communication & Information,” “Encyclopedia of Communication & Information,” and “Tendencies & Tensions of the Information Age: The Production & Distribution of Information in the United States.”

During the last administration, Schement was a member of President Bush’s Presidential Technology Advisory Committee (PTAC). And he advised presidential candidate John McCain on telecommunications for Native Americans. “As a Senator from Arizona, McCain was very interested in that,” Schement recalls.

How is it that Schement is able to cross party lines in his advisory capacity? “It isn’t the case that we don’t cross lines and are completely partisan. I think [there is] an important service to provide regardless of who is in government. They may not be interested but that’s not my concern. My concern is to present what I know.”

As for Schement and Vice President Joseph Biden, they rubbed shoulders as well as policy talk for over a year on weekly Amtrak commutes to Washington during the time when then Delaware Senator Biden was chairman of the House Judiciary Committee. “I came away with a sense of him as being a very smart guy.” Schement commented.

An impression that also applies to Dean Schement, himself.

A Life Changing Experience

2009-02-17T10:48:00.000-08:00

By Russell Booth

Karen Andriamoasy is from central New Jersey and is a 20-year-old junior at Rutgers University. Karen is a journalism and media studies and East Asian studies double major. Her concentration in the East Asian studies major is Japanese. She first discovered her interest of Japanese culture when she had to do research on the country. Exploring the history of Japan allowed her to discover what she wants to do in life. When she was younger she became interested in marine biology after watching a documentary about sharks. She soon realized that becoming a marine biologist was not something that she wanted to do. Karen began to take up an interest in music and literature. At the age of 7 Karen began to take piano lessons. Afterwards she joined the school band and sang in the school choir. She is also able to play the saxophone and is currently learning how to play the guitar. Karen is a fan of all music genres and has written several songs, which were about her personal life experiences.

Her interest in Japan first started when she was working on an assignment in her computer class. The assignment was to create backgrounds using images of different countries; Karen began to read about Japan and Tokyo. After reading she became captivated by the country’s history and culture. The more she learned about Japan, the stronger her adoration became. Karen began to read Japanese books and listen to Japanese music. One of Karen’s favorite books is the Japanese novel Norwegian Wood by Haruki Murakami. The novel is about a man named Toru Watanabe, who is narrating the story and reminiscing about his freshman college year in Tokyo. Toru develops relationships with two different women through his reminiscences. The reason why she likes the books is because “the story is more about language, detailed, and graphic.” Another novel that Karen likes is Truancy by 15-year-old New York City high school student Isamu Fukui. This novel is about a city ruled by the mayor and educators. The main character Tack is leading a student rebellion known as the Truancy. Karen prefers Japanese literature to western literature. She states, “I prefer Japanese lit to western lit because it’s more insightful and engaging.”

Karen is currently taking classes at Rutgers University to learn how to read, write, and speak Japanese. Since music has always played an important role in Karen’s life, she started to listen to Japanese music. Some of her favorite bands are the groups Uverworld, BoA, and Utada HiKaru. All of these singers perform different genres of music. Karen plans to visit the country very soon. She also plans to combine both of her interests after she is done college by publishing in Japanese. Learning about Japan’s history and its culture had a very important impact on Karen’s life. Her research allowed her to find something that is very important and influential in her life. She has become so fascinated with Japan that she desires to have a career that can combine her interest in Japan with her interest in writing.

Raised in Radio

2009-02-17T08:25:00.000-08:00

By Maria Monica Abrenica

“I was always told, like most kids I know, to do whatever I wanted to do,” said Alex Cole.

For nearly two years, Cole has been serving the Rutgers community of New Brunswick through his volunteer work at 88.7 WRSU-FM (New Brunswick, New Jersey, New Music). He became part of the student-run station during his freshman year in the fall of 2006 and started in the News Department. As of today, Cole produces and hosts “Oh, The Shenanigans,” a music program that broadcasts from two to four on Tuesday afternoons.

Cole was born in Monmouth County, New Jersey on August 3, 1988 and was raised in Keasbey, N.J. He is currently residing in Menlo Park Terrace, which is part of Metuchen. He was raised by his father, Brian Cole, who has always been into computers and by his mother, Carol Cole, who works in the legal department of the gasoline company, Hess.

When asked how he got involved in radio work, Cole responds in a manner reminiscent of his childhood and says that his parents and the environment he grew up in had a lot do with it. “For the majority of my life, I wanted to follow in my dad’s footsteps,” he said. Cole recalls that he felt fairly privileged in having access to the latest technological gadgets due to his father’s line of work. His face lights up as he recollects how his parents were instrumental figures in the process of radio influencing his early years. “When in my mother’s car, the news would be on. With my father, it was always 89.5 FM WSOU, the metal radio station of New Jersey.” While the fascination he had for technology kept growing, the “future of a nine-to-five job in a cubicle,” as Cole describes it, wasn’t something he found appealing. Since he already had the love for music and attentiveness to what was going on in the world, Cole decided to look into radio when he entered Rutgers. He simply hoped then that it would make an interesting extra-curricular activity, but it only took about two weeks from his first time on air before he realized that a career in radio is what he wants to pursue.

Cole’s flexibility as a broadcast journalist is reflected in the way he puts time and effort into volunteering at WRSU. He describes the nature of work involved in both news writing and broadcasting and in music program production. For news, the inspiration for most stories are taken from the Associated Press wire and are carefully covered by the writers and reporters in their own words. The university portal, https://my.rutgers.edu, is also a source for news, but entirely original stories are more than welcome. Cole says that a ten-to-fifteen minute broadcast requires a minimum of an hour and a half of preparatory work, but “of course, original stories require more prep-work and are usually pieces that have taken anywhere from a few days to a few weeks to complete.” The 20-year-old radio enthusiast is now in his fifth semester at Rutgers pursuing a bachelor’s degree in Journalism and Media Studies and a minor in Criminology. He is also an active brother of the Alpha Phi Sigma fraternity.

The music show that Cole produces and hosts is a lot easier for him to prepare for, but he also says that its flow varies from one DJ to another. Usually, three songs are played in succession and then a microphone break comes. “I pretty much play whatever music I want then I’ll come on mic and talk for a bit with my co-hosts about the songs and about anything we deem necessary at the time.” Zach Huff, an English Major in his junior year at Rutgers in Newark, and Danny Mullins, a junior majoring in Journalism and Media Studies at Rutgers New Brunswick, host the music show with Cole.

As of today, Cole is not involved with WRSU’s News Department, but says that he will definitely get back into it soon. It is his music program today that he is most passionate about because it not only communicates who he is, but broadcasts the power to share a creative outlet with his listeners. “It’s a great feeling. It’s an even greater feeling to know that people are listening and requesting songs. Who knows? Maybe a person was having a really tough day and you played a song that makes them feel better.”

5...6...7...8

2009-02-17T08:22:00.000-08:00

By Diana Curreri

“Wow. Um, well… I don’t really have one,” replied Kara Jordhoy when asked to explain a significant event in her life. “Honestly, I’m a pretty boring person.” I knew this could not be possible; there had to have been at least one life altering event in the past nineteen years of her life that stuck out more than any other. “Oh! I’ve been dancing since I was four. I love to dance.”

Kara Ann Jordhoy was born in Seoul, Korea on November 25, 1989. She was adopted at five months by the Jordhoy family from Chatham, NJ. At age two her family moved to Houston, TX and by age four she was put in dance classes for jazz, ballet, and tap. When her parents signed her up for dance classes, little did she know that this would be one of the most significant events of her life. It would also be just the start of her lifelong dancing career.

“It didn’t really start to get serious until sixth grade,” she recalled. In sixth grade, a girl on her school bus told her about the tryouts for the dance team. She competed against 200 girls to be picked for the following year’s junior high dance team. Only sixty girls would be chosen for the chorus line style dance they would perform. This was the first time dancing changed from a fun sport to a competitive one for her.

Just a year and a half later in eighth grade, Kara again found herself competing for a spot on the junior varsity dance team. Not only did she make the team, but she received officer position. In this position, she was responsible for choreographing entire dance routines, teaching the dances to the squad, and it allowed Kara to fix and change moves depending on the dancers’ abilities. This team competitively danced against other teams in the same category on local, state, and national levels. She also choreographed dances for football games and parades.

When high school came around, Kara knew dance would take up much of her time. In fact, she was on the varsity dance team all four years of high school and during her junior and senior years, she was given the title of captain.

Currently a freshman at Rutgers, she is double majoring in communication and social work with a minor in dance. Although she is not competitively dancing anymore, she is still practicing for a recital with the Rutgers Performing Dance Company, whose performance is at the end of the semester on Douglass Campus. “I do this because it is fun, I have such a love for it, and I’m really too busy with school to compete anymore.”

When looking back on her accomplishments with dancing, Kara stated, “Dance has taught me how to take criticism from other people. This has helped me motivate myself into trying harder and succeeding not only in dance, but in school as well.” Through dance, Kara clearly has the drive and motivation necessary to succeed wherever her future takes her.

Opening the Lid on Agent Orange: Barry Helps Direct Investigation of Veterans' Health Problems

2009-02-17T07:33:00.000-08:00

By Alex Guadagno

The impact of Jan Barry’s investigation was not immediate, but it was significant. For the first time, the right questions were on the table and the framework was laid for further exploration of Vietnam veterans’ health problems and whether or not they could be attributed to the US government’s use of defoliant Agent Orange during the Vietnam War. Over the course of the next ten years, agencies would be founded to seek justice for afflicted veterans; lawsuits would be filed against major players in the production of Agent Orange; the efficacy and candor of government organizations such as the Environmental Protection Agency would be seriously called into question.

“It pointed the investigation in the right direction,” said Barry of his Morristown Daily Record series and role in the ensuing events. “It helped [other reporters] focus on where to ask the questions.”

Barry’s series of articles was printed in the Daily Record (Morristown, NJ) in 1980 over the course of four days. He had been working as a reporter since 1976, but this was his first in-depth investigative report.

Barry, age 66, is a Vietnam veteran, and first worked as a columnist and researcher at CBS News. However, his journalistic career essentially began at The Record (Bergen County, NJ), where he worked as a fact checker. It was there that Barry was able to develop a flair for asking the sort of questions that would later produce such provoking reports.

According to Barry, who never saw the effects of Agent Orange firsthand, his own experience in Vietnam did not give him much of an edge on the investigation. “It did provide an network and helped in that I could talk to other people who had been in Vietnam,” said Barry, who recalls being slipped a few memos by Veteren’s Administration headquarters employees trying to sidetrack the investigation.

After receiving the green light for the investigation from his editor at the time-- who was a GI in the war himself-- Barry didn’t even have to make a physical return to Vietnam in order to substantiate his evidence on the lingering health hazards of Agent Orange. Shortly after the Morristown Daily Record articles, it was discovered that dangerous levels of dioxin were still present in a Newark chemical plant, Diamond Shamrock, which had manufactured Agent Orange during the Vietnam War. It was a researcher in Puerto Rico who shed light on the concern that New Jersey journalists had previously been ignoring.

In his 1983 New York Times follow-up article, Barry admonished New Jersey news people for not getting to the story first. “Why did it take three years for the lid to be opened?” Barry asked. The follow-up article also recapped some major developments that three short years had brought forth after his initial investigation: a University of Medicine and Dentistry dermatologist confirmed he had been treating Diamond Shamrock workers for chloracne (dioxin-related skin disease) since 1964; The National Institute for Occupational Safety and Health reported high cancer-death rates and chloracne in employees of plants like Diamond Shamrock where dioxin was present; a class action suit was filed in Superior Court against Diamond Shamrock; The New Jersey Agent Orange Commission was formed by veterans and scientists to conduct its own health study when the EPA’s research stagnated.

One article in Barry’s landmark Daily Record series focused on challenges to the dependability of a health study conducted by the Veteren’s Administration on Vietnam Veterans’ health. The VA estimated the comprehensive health study could take up to a decade. “For some veterans concerned to see a thorough health study done as soon as possible, the VA is the wrong agency, with the wrong approach, at the wrong time,” reported Barry.

The New Jersey Agent Orange Commission closed down in 1996, though only after it backed groundbreaking research on the harmful effects of Agent Orange and played its part in winning Vietnam veterans their 1984 settlement of $180 million, reported the New York Times. The settlement included Diamond Shamrock, as well as Monsanto and Dow Chemical.

Journey to Israel Affects a Life

2009-02-16T21:51:00.000-08:00

By Joe Bindert

Jaclyn Mandelbaum took a trip to Israel this past winter break, a trip which she says helped her appreciate her own culture as well as the Israeli contemporary lifestyle. She had the opportunity due to the fact that her natural Jewish heritage provides the “birthright” principle – the idea that every Jewish person should be allowed to visit Israel at some point in their lives. The trip was completely free for forty young adults, all between the ages of 18 and 26. They spent ten days in various locations throughout the country. Jaclyn says she will likely be friends with the people she met for the rest of her life. “The highlight of my trip was having the chance to interact with Israeli peers,” she says. “I learned so much from them. I hope to remain in contact with them forever.”

The trip included a variety of activities, including hiking before dawn, a journey through Jerusalem and Tel Aviv and other various locations throughout the country. She claims the lifestyle is also very different there. Soldiers patrol the areas constantly, and are always carrying various weapons to protect themselves and others, due to the high levels of violence that occur in some parts of Israel and the Middle East in general. The fact that suicide bombings can occur in the country randomly was also very unsettling for the travelers as well, and it has become such a threat in general that even places like shopping malls have to have metal detectors outside in order to prevent suicide bombers from entering.

On a different day, Jaclyn stated that the group met with five Israeli soldiers – all of whom shared different life stories and experiences with her and the others. The stories included accounts of missiles making an impact on local bus stops, the dangers of living in the Gaza area, and tips on how to spot a suicide bomber. One important tip the soldiers shared with the group was to watch for people wearing long sleeve shirts on buses during the summer months, as that is a sure sign that someone is a suicide bomber. Another interesting thing to think about that the solders shared with the group is the fact that enemies of Israel often do not have very current technology in their weapons systems, and therefore are more prone to hitting civilians than vice-versa.

Jaclyn was pleased overall with how the trip worked out. “Israel was a life-altering trip. I have a new appreciation for the country. I would recommend to any Jewish teenager to take advantage of the amazing opportunity that we are given. I am so grateful for the generous philanthropists and the Israeli government who make this trip possible.” She said that the trip gave her great insight into the Israeli culture and way of life that she never would have fully understood had she not been able to see it for herself.

Jaclyn is a 20-year-old Rutgers junior from Marlboro, NJ majoring in Journalism and Media Studies.

Finding Fulfillment at Rutgers

2009-02-16T20:46:00.000-08:00

By Lucas Sullivan

When asked about what she thinks of college so far, Aliyah Finney will tell you that she is very content with her current selection. “Originally Rutgers was going to be a safety school for me, and I was going to go to UPenn,” said Finney, who is currently a 19-year-old sophomore attending Rutgers University in New Brunswick. “I even planned on transferring, but once I got here I really liked Rutgers.” Before arriving at Rutgers, Finney attended Dunellen High School, located in Dunellen, N.J. She noted an interesting piece of trivia about Dunellen: the first ever QuickChek convenience store was established there. Finney wasn’t terribly satisfied with the high school itself, however. “Dunellen has a pretty bad reputation,” she said with a laugh. “There were drugs and even a pedophile at our school, and the building just sat on a street corner.” Aside from the questionable activities of some of her peers and teachers, Finney was also displeased with the relatively small size of the school. “Our graduating class had only 73 students in it,” she recalled. “And it seemed that the school in general disliked our class. We had the highest number of teen pregnancies, and some seniors would come to class high on drugs, pills, whatever.”

Luckily, Finney would find much more contentment and gratification at Rutgers. Taking on the difficult task of double majoring in Linguistics and Journalism with a minor in Japanese, she seems very pleased with her Rutgers experience thus far. “In the end, I’m glad I came to Rutgers. It wasn’t high on my list, but it’s close to home and offers such a large mix.” For Finney, part of the appeal of the college is its bigger size. “The larger classes are definitely a plus,” she said. “Also, it’s definitely a lot more diverse than my high school.”

Originally, Finney planned on majoring in Marketing, but it proved not to be what she was looking for. “I wanted to get a job promoting foreign movies, so Marketing seemed like a good choice. But the classes dealt more with statistics, which I wasn’t at all interested in.” While Finney is not absolutely positive on what specific classes she wants to take, she is confident that as a sophomore there is plenty of time remaining to pursue her interests. Though she previously had a job working at the Rutgers Telefund, the “nation's highest revenue-generating university phone program since 2002,” according to their website, she was forced to temporarily quit her job in order to keep up with her workload. “I’ll work there again over the summer,” she said, “but for now it was just too much work.” In terms of residence life, Finney had lived in Morrow Suites on Busch Campus, but found them cramped and uncomfortable. She now lives off campus with 2 other residents, and finds it more to her liking. “It’s nice. We’re all in relationships, so they mainly just keep to themselves.” All in all, Finney feels fulfilled attending Rutgers. Student life thus far has been enjoyable, and she knows that there is a lot more that the school has left to offer. “I definitely want to get more involved here,” she concluded, “and seeing as I may take five years to graduate like many students, I should have plenty of time!”

More Than the “Bear” Minimum, One Fan’s Dedication Stands Above the Rest

2009-02-16T19:13:00.000-08:00

By Stephen Yoon

Meeting a famous celebrity is something that most people can only fantasize about, much less meeting your favorite celebrity. People often do crazy and outlandish things to try to meet a famous person, but Tiffany Hsia of Edison, New Jersey took a much more creative approach to getting her favorite celebrity’s attention. Hsia, a 25 year old journalism and media studies major with already completed bachelor’s degrees in history, political science, and geography, has a hobby of making personalized teddy bears for friends and family, and decided to extend that hobby to one of her favorite people—Josh Groban.

It is a common tactic to get to talk show studios early in order to catch a glimpse of the visiting celebrity of the day, which Hsia employed when Josh Groban appeared on ABC’s popular daytime show, The View on May 29, 2002. Even though she got to the studio where the taping was being held at 5 AM to wait in line to see him, Tiffany felt that she needed something else to separate herself from the rest of the pack. Luckily for her, she had come prepared. In a stroke of inspiration she had prepared a personalized teddy bear of Josh Groban, using felt to create the pants and turtleneck sweater and doll's hair to emulate Groban’s curly black hear. Indeed, she even went as far as to make a miniature version of a microphone Groban would use out of pipe cleaners.

When asked why she went through so much effort to get someone to simply notice her in the big crowd, she replied that she was a “huge Josh Groban fan, and I wanted to do something to get his attention.”

Luckily for Hsia, it worked as Groban’s publicist Liz Rosenberg noticed the very familiar looking bear and commented on how much he would love it. These words rang true as Groban immediately spotted the bear and gushed over how much he loved it. Tiffany immediately gave him the prized bear as he was rushed into the studio, and she was later approached by Rosenberg in the audience, who mentioned that Groban wanted to meet Tiffany for her efforts. I asked Tiffany how meeting Groban lived up to her expectations and she replied that, “In person Josh was a lot more attractive, but he was very witty, funny, and nice.” Despite the humorous reply she was clearly very excited, and became even more enthralled when Groban brought the bear out on stage and the camera focused on her to highlight the bear and the effort she put in.

After the show Tiffany and her friends went to meet Groban, who thanked her again for the bear and the support which he said helped him throughout his performance on the show. Indeed, her bear became so popular that she was later on asked to remake the bear for the Josh Groban foundation. Hsia has not stopped her hobby of personalized bears, and has in fact gone on to make bears for other celebrities like Michael Buble, Jane Monheit, and Matthew Morrison.

Tiffany Hsia has taken that stereotypical children’s fantasy of meeting a celebrity and made it a reality through her creativity and determination. She commented that, “These bears gave me the ability to meet my favorite celebrities so it was worth the time and effort in the end.” Tiffany demonstrated that with a novel approach that makes one stand out of the pack, people can perhaps get closer to their aspirations of meeting their favorite celebrity.

Shoulda, Woulda, Coulda

2009-02-16T18:58:00.000-08:00

Shaun Van Moerkerken reflects on his high school football days.

By Travis Drobbin

High school football in the town of Hopatcong, New Jersey has been historically known as being sub par. This was definitely the case for 20-year-old Shaun Van Moerkerken’s first three years on the football team. Shaun played sparingly his first three years on the team. Shaun played primarily both an offensive and defensive lineman. As the final game of his junior season approached, his coach told the players that everyone who didn’t see much playing time, but still stuck with the team would play. All the reserves got very excited about the possibility of some real game experience. These few minutes of playing time would be vindication for all the early morning workouts, and the summer days spent on the football field. These minutes would provide the reserves with a reward for all their hard work. As the game quickly approached the players were getting even more excited at the upcoming playing time. Shaun waited on the sidelines for the coach to call his number. The halves of the football game came and went, while Van Moerkerken was stuck on the sideline dumbfounded by the coach’s empty promise. He was so disappointed by the broken promise that he questioned his dedication and willingness to play the following year. He came to the conclusion that football was not worth it, and the following day he informed his coach that he would not be returning to the team the next year.

The summer came and went, and Shaun tossed and turned over the decision he made the year before. He even considered coming back to the team to play his senior season. Shaun decided to stick with his decision to forego his last year of high school football. He felt that the practices were too difficult, and the team was consuming too much of his time. The team was not predicted to be any better than the year before, and was expected to finish the season below .500. The Hopatcong Varsity football team won their first game of the season, but lost their second. Shaun felt vindication for his decision, “I made the right choice, because teams not that good. There isn’t any way they will win it all.” Shaun spoke too quickly; as the team then went on to win every game after that leading up to the state championship game. With Shaun sitting in the stands the team went on to win the game, and in turn be the state champions. “I was happy, but at the same time I was sad. When everyone was dancing and crying on the field, I was in the stands.”

Even though Shaun was not on the field to celebrate the victory with his teammates, he was there to celebrate as a dedicated fan. Shaun and a few of his friends began the group called the “Chiefs Line,” which was a group of students who painted their bare chests to spell out chiefs. Regardless of the temperature, or the distance they had to travel the line was at every game cheering on their beloved football team.

Get a Job: A New Life-Changing Phrase

2009-02-16T14:01:00.000-08:00

By Kara Jordhoy

Like most middle class teenagers, Diana Curreri was forced by her parents into getting a summer job. However, unlike the majority, that single job at a major clothing store influenced her decisions regarding school and employment for the next six years. The typical parental phrase “get a job” can now be regarded as inspiration towards a possible future career.

“My mom forcing me to get a job changed my life forever,” Curreri said. “I only saw it as a summer job, but it was way more than that.”

Born on a rainy Wednesday in Brooklyn, New York on March 18, 1986, Curreri was an average child growing up in the Tri-State area. She attended school, played sports and had many friends. When Curreri was eight years old, her family took her and her younger brother Dean to live in Marlboro, New Jersey. While still living how they did in Brooklyn, Curreri’s mother had different plans for her once she turned sixteen.

“She told me to go to a group interview at Old Navy,” Curreri said. “I was so against it, but she was tired of paying for things that I needed.”

Much to her dismay, Curreri dragged herself to the group interview on June 12, 2003. There she met six other people applying for the same job, but only her and another girl obtained the positions. Old Navy supplied them with uniforms: a collared shirt and a name tag, and were given a schedule. Then summer began.

“I liked getting an income every other week,” Curreri said. “Then I just decided to continue working there.”

By working at Old Navy, Curreri was able to get flexible hours that went perfectly with her high school workload. She started out as a regular part time employee; one that helped customers and worked the register. However, something happened that Curreri did not expect: she started to like her job. Soon that “summer job” became a full time position.

“After a year I was given more tasks to do at work,” Curreri said. “I had numerous positions at Old Navy, including working in management.”

Once Curreri graduated from Marlboro High School, she decided to keep her job and attend Brookdale Community College for two years. After getting her Associates of Arts degree, she took a year off of school to concentrate on working full time. She then realized that she needed a Bachelor’s degree to pursue her career even further, so she transferred to Rutgers University- New Brunswick. She then decided to live closer to the school and work at Gap, a division of Old Navy, in East Brunswick. From there, Curreri has worked at the Gap in numerous malls in towns including Freehold and Monmouth.

“I want to stay within the company, but do something bigger than just being inside of the store, like layouts or human resources,” Curreri said. “I plan on moving to San Francisco to work in cooperate at the Gap there.”

Curreri is looking to graduate from Rutgers University in the fall of 2010. She is currently majoring in Journalism and Media Studies, and hopes to maybe write newsletters for Gap Incorporated, or for retail in general in magazines.
“I love the Gap,” Curreri said. “I can’t wait to embellish my career there.”

NJSTARS: A Smooth Transition

2009-02-15T19:38:00.000-08:00

By Jaclyn Mandelbaum

Just the thought of transferring from a small community college to a large university certainly may be nerve-wracking to many people. Joe Bindert, age 21, reflected upon his transition from Ocean County College to Rutgers University. Certainly, Joe has encountered a very different life-style here at Rutgers University than he had been previously accustomed to. He has expressed how he has adapted to this change, and has given his opinion about the whole process.

After graduating from high school, Joe, resident of Forked River, NJ, had the prestigious opportunity to partake in the NJSTARS program. NJSTARS is a scholarship opportunity that is available for high school graduates in the top 15% of their class. This program covers the tuition of all 19 community colleges in New Jersey. If an appropriate grade point average is maintained after completing an Associate’s Degree, participants qualify to have their Bachelor’s Degree paid for at any state college. This is the path that Joe chose to take.

Joe described the immensely different atmospheres that Ocean County College and Rutgers University take on. He said, “The biggest change is the size of the school. Rutgers is enormous compared to my community college". He explained how peculiar it is that the whole community college is smaller than any one of the five campuses at Rutgers. Certainly, accompanying large campuses are large classes. Lecture halls with hundreds of students were a new and interesting experience for Joe as he adapted to his new environment. Joe came to Rutgers as a Junior, without a friend accompanying him. He said that he “felt almost like a freshman because everyone else already knew each other”. However, was not long before Joe befriended a decent amount of people and fit right in.

Rutgers University is home to people of a variety of interests, backgrounds, and hobbies. The wide-range of people and open-minded attitude provides the University with a rich culture. Joe is enjoying this attribute that he felt Ocean County College lacked. He described his experience there simply as “going to class”, and not much else.

In addition, Joe is enjoying the reality that there is always something to do on the Rutgers campus. No matter what day of the week, or what time of the day it is, people are always outside doing something. He described how it is not everywhere where you can order food to be delivered at 5:00 AM.

Content living on the Busch campus in the McCormick dorms, Joe is in no rush to move. He is thriving in his new atmosphere and said, “When I got to Rutgers, I wasn't sure how well I would adjust, but it seemed pretty natural after awhile, and I met a lot of great people". He believes that his transition from community college to Rutgers University was for the better. “It was the right choice”, he said. Joe recommends that Rutgers is a good decision for transfer students who are looking for a big-school feel.

You can learn more about the NJSTARS program at http://www.njstars.net/.