ATHLETES SHOULD LEAD THE WAY
‘Dogs get smashed by Ole Miss, 55-38 The most important meal of the day
The Collegian’s editorial explains why Fresno State athletes should be held to a high standard
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MONday Issue SEPTEMBER 27, 2010 FRESNO STATE
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Journalists speak on Middle East Robert Fisk and David Barsamian visit Fresno State By Andrew Veihmeyer The Collegian Fresno State hosted two acclaimed jour nalists who discussed the media’s effect on the misconceptions Americans have of the Middle East. R o b e r t F i s k & D av i d Barsamian spoke during the event called “Middle East Fantasies and Myths,” held at the Alice Peters Auditorium. Fisk is a British best-selling author and jour nalist who’s lived in Beirut for three decades, serving as a Middle East correspondent for “The Independent,” a British newspaper. He has received more British and Inter national journalism awards than any other foreign correspondent. Barsamian is an American radio producer, jour nalist, author and lecturer, and holds the 2003 ACLU Upton Sinclair Award for independent journalism. “Another decade has passed
career. “There are very few correspondents [like Fisk] in this age of drive-by-journalism.” “As jour nalists, we have failed you,” said Fisk, referring to the insensitivity and inaccuracy of the media’s coverage of Middle Eastern conflicts, particularly with the U.S. Fisk mentioned several words that are common among media writers in war-related stories that are structured to slant an issue that favors their own side regardless of facts or what actually occurred. A spike is a term used to characterize violence that increases for a moment and drops back down again, and it’s quick to be used even when it’s not the case, said Fisk. A surge, however, is typically used when that particular side is weakened and needs reinforcements. “[These are] reheated Vietnam phrases and you lost in Vietnam. [And] we are los-
“T
hey like that sense of journalistic responsibility because then we can present war as a bloodless sandpit.” — Robert Fisk, Journalist, author
where peace is still elusive,” opened Barsamian. A roadmap is in place for peace, he said, but as far as results, there have been little. In his introduction to Fisk, he emphasized the first-hand experience Fisk has had in his
ing the war in Afghanistan.” W h e n a Pa l e s t i n i a n i s throwing a stone in response to his land or country being threatened, that makes sense in context, he said. But Fisk, a self-proclaimed pacifist, said that when journalists phrase
Ana Mendoza / The Collegian
David Barsamian (left) and Robet Fisk (right) discuss the way media influences our perceptions on the Middle East, often not accurately. The media says our enemies are violent but Americans “only use force”, said Barsamian.
their news stories in a way that simplifies an individual’s struggles, a stereotypically violent Palestinian is created in their writings. “[Jour nalists are] using words deliberately designed by their originators to mislead us and you.” Many readers are blinded, he said, and not given the full picture of what war really is. It’s even more of a problem on broadcast television, where stricter rules are in place regarding violence. “They like that sense of jour nalistic responsibility because then we can present
war as a bloodless sandpit,” Fisk said. Fisk has been living in Beirut for decades and has c o ve r e d m a j o r b r e a k i n g news events, reporting on the bloodshed and hardships in Lebanon, Afghanistan, Iraq and beyond. He’s also interviewed many well-known figures like Osama Bin Laden b e fo re t h e S e p t e m b e r 1 1 attacks. During the discussion at Fresno State, he criticized figures who have stepped into roles of authority regarding the Middle East like Tony Blair, a man that Fisk said
has not experienced the inner workings of the region. America is an intelligent nation, he said, and despite the recession, there remains a “treasure-house” of information in American universities compared to many European institutions. Many universities he’s visited in the U.S. have had Middle East, Islamic, Arabic and Hebrew studies. Khan Shadid, a four thyear Fresno State student and entrepreneurship major, said it’s important for America to change its image and how See MEDIA, Page 3
‘Sin City’ park poses threat to students By Elizabeth Thomasian The Collegian
Angela Salinas / The Collegian
Alpha Gamma Rho members are hosting a fundraiser for an electric gate to try to prevent further crime from affecting them.
When students attend Fresno State, their primary worries might consist of an upcoming test, balancing a job and schoolwork and when the next big party will happen. However, some students are forced to live with a much more grim problem affecting their safety as well as the security of their property. El Dorado Park, or more commonly known by students as Sin City, is considered one of the more dangerous places near campus. Spanning from Shaw Avenue to Barstow Avenue and Sixth Street to Fourth Street, this area of multi-family residency has high amounts of criminal activity.
El Dorado Park neighbors Greek fraternity and sorority houses on Millbrook Avenue. Multiple student apartment buildings and parts of the athletic complex are down Bulldog Lane. This area is where thousands of students live, work and reside. “I avoid the general area just for safety,” said Becca Barnes, a liberal studies student. “I don’t drive down Bulldog Lane past Millbrook Avenue because of the fear of theft and potential harm to my vehicle, myself and other passengers. I moved out of the apartment complex because I did not feel comfortable living in that area due to crime.” Other students continue to live in the heart of El Dorado Park. Alpha Gamma Rho (AGR) and Kappa Sigma fra-
ternities are located on Sixth Street. Incidents of crime are common on the property of AGR. “Anywhere from seven to 10 vehicles are broken into in our parking lot every semester,” said New Member Educator of AGR, Frank Roche. University Police Department assigns one officer to the athletic complex, fraternity and sorority houses and El Dorado Park. “University Police officers are being proactive,” said Amy Armstrong, the public infor mation officer for the University Police Department. “Officers are patrolling and protecting the area as well as being visible.” On a daily basis, the See PARK, Page 3