Banner | Vol. 71 Issue 1

e writers’ strike ends after 148 days

BY GABI RIGGIN A&E EDITOR

One of the longest strikes in the history of the Writer’s Guild of America (WGA) has finally ended. WGA began its 148-day strike against the Alliance of Motion Picture and Television Producers (AMPTM) on May 2 and ended recently on Sept. 24. The writers claimed that they would like to ensure they receive fair compensation for the work they contribute to productions, according to Vulture.

This is not the first time the WGA has gone on strike. The guild also went on strike in 1988 to increase cable TV residuals and between 2007 and 2008 because of writing rooms being downsized. Though the 1988 strike lasted 153 days, the 2023 strike had more stipulations.

With the strike ending, they have reached a tentative agreement.

This agreement involves a compromise of 3.5% and 5% and newly negotiated payments in residuals regarding streaming, meaning that writers will now receive bonuses on shows that are trending on streaming services.

They will also receive a guarantee of sta for certain amounts of episodes in a series and employment of at least 10 weeks for shows airing along with AI regulation. The Eastern and Western WGA branches all voted to accept the deal

two days after the agreement, according to the Associated Press.

“After the vote, they declared that the strike would be over and writers would be free to start on scripts at 12:01 a.m. Wednesday [Sept. 27],” according to AP.

Now that the strike lifted, writers may return to work but they will still need to ratify the contract themselves in October, the guild announced.

Hollywood is composed of many guilds and unions, such as the WGA, the Screen Actors Guild (SAG), the Directors Guild of America (DGA), the International Cinematographers Guild (ICG), and the Producers Guild.

According to WGA’s website, the point of these unions is to arrange and administer contracts to protect their creatives within the union. These guilds hold power over many of the jobs in the industry. Within WGA alone, 11,500 people involved in the guild went on strike, according to WGA.

Many in these guilds lost jobs and work due to the strike, which has resulted in the cancellation and postponement of shows and movies. The writers were unsure when they would return as the strike had been ongoing for nearly five months.

Michael Eaton, professor of film studies and film production, works as a director, writer, editor, producer, and

cinematographer who is part of the ICG.

“I do know some writers who are out of work as well as many others who are out of work, such as actors and DPs [directors of hotography]. I have also lost a little bit of work,” Eaton said.

The main reason for the strike is insu cient payment. Back in the days of cable TV, writers initially received payment for writing the story and selling it to someone in the industry to use and possibly get hired to continue writing. Then actors and writers were paid through the box o ce with a percentage or fixed payment, and television writers would earn a certain residual for shows and reruns aired on cable TV.

“The issue is that the way that the television structure for cable television and cable networking was working is how all the contracts and revenue were set up through that. Obviously, that’s not applicable anymore,” said Brooke Donovan, senior film production major Brooke Donovan. Eaton mentions his perspective on why residuals with streaming wouldn’t make as much sense as they did with cable TV.

“Should actors and writers get paid for every single stream on every single platform? I actually don’t think so. Nobody else gets paid that way. Book authors get paid to write the

book and for each book sold, not for each time that book is read. Most people who work on TV shows and movies get paid for their work on those days that they work only and I’m not sure that it’s administratively possible to continue paying actors and writers of these productions for each stream,” Eaton said.

A lack of writers can significantly impact the

Community Life hosts the rst weekend event of the semester

BY ALEXZA BAHNMILLER EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

Community is a big part of the college experience. From late night study sessions to attending sporting games, hitting the cafeteria and all the moments in between, it is the people around us that turn school years into lasting memories. At CBU’s Community Life department, sta ers make it their priority to encourage the fostering of friendships through creative events.

Starting a new trend, Community Life will be scheduling events that include weekend dates this year. The first event of the semester, Pop N’ Paint, took place on the evening of Saturday, Sept. 16.

Sela Thomas, senior Christian studies and behavioral science major, explained the reasoning behind hosting Pop N’ Paint.

“We wanted to do a creative artistic event to bring friend groups, roommate groups, and especially individuals who may not know anyone, together in a

lowkey and chill environment. We figured a lot of people like painting whether they are amazing artists or whether they just do it for fun. We thought it would be a cool opportunity for people to get to know each other better,” Thomas said.

CHRISTIANS IN CULTURE

Professors share the many ways people practice Christianity across different countries.

Faith & Lifestyle, pg. 7

Goodwin, senior elementary education major and Community Life intern, added that it is important for them to start doing events on the weekends.

“We are starting to do more weekend events to get people

DANGERS OF

entertainment industry as they write the stories that lead to film productions.

“Writers are so essential in every aspect of the film industry,” said Hannah Lee, senior film production and screenwriting major.

“Everything you see on screen has been planned and written out by the writers. Everything unique about a show or film begins in the writer’s room.”

While this strike is significant, it is also important to note that the WGA does not represent everyone in the industry. According to Eaton, with the WGA on strike, everyone in the union is not working, but independent writers are still able to.

involved during the weekend. Some people say it gets kind of dead on campus during the night or on the weekends so we just wanted to find ways to get people involved and to bring

INFLATION

Graduates fear for their career as inflation eliminates job opportunities across countless industries.

Business & Tech, pg. 11

NEW TUNES FOR THE FALL

Get cozy and enjoy a pumpkin spice latte while listening to these fresh fall tracks.

Vision, pg. 4

Alexza Bahnmiller | Banner

Kate

Josselyn Guillen | Banner

At Pop N’ Paint, students enjoy sipping on soda and snacking on popcorn, poprocks, and other “pop” themed treats while painting and listening to pop music.

Josselyn Guillen | Banner

Abigail Trestik, freshman radiologic science major, showing off her painting at Community Life’s Pop N’ Paint event.

THE BANNER staff

CBU experiences record turnout during Welcome Weekend event

BY CONNOR RYAN MANAGING EDITOR

Welcome Weekend has come and gone again, but this time, it was bigger and better than ever.

One of the most defining events of the school year, Welcome Weekend encourages the creation of friend groups and core memories, and it sets the tone for the first-year college experience.

Welcome Weekend is one of the year’s most meaningful events as it takes over nine months to prepare, said Gavin Andrew, director of New Student Programs.

“We always want to design events for students that allow them to interact with one another. We want to meet the needs of both introverts and extroverts,” Andrew said. “For example, the movie night on Friday is more designed for introverts. Those who want to relax, take a deep breath, and watch a video can do that, and those who want to keep talking are allowed to do that as well.”

While Friday consisted of settling onto campus and finding one’s bearings, Saturday was chock full of events.

CBU provided breakfasts for both commuters and on-campus students and throughout the day, students

were given several options as to how they spent their time.

“We had all the afternoon activities on Saturday,” Andrew said. “There’s the pool party, there’s the Recreation Center and there’s intramural sports. Then we have some downtime where they can go to the Van Dyne Gym and paint tote bags, listen to live music and drink co ee.”

The men’s soccer game that evening, though, appeared to be the most popular activity. Bethany Hooper, freshman psychology major, expressed how much fun it was to root for her new school.

“It was hilarious watching the people around me cheering and going crazy for our team,” Hooper said.

Andrew shared that this is the first year CBU has had the opportunity to work with Athletics and the student response has been overwhelming.

“We had in our schedule a men’s soccer game, which was Saturday night, and the women’s soccer game, which was Sunday afternoon. We’ve never collaborated with Athletics before, which allowed us to break a new record

attendance record for the men’s soccer game with over 1,500 fan engagements throughout the night. It kicked o with a pregame party and food trucks. It was great, so I hope to continue that tradition.”

As usual, CBU wrapped Welcome Weekend with the campus-wide event Clash ‘n’ Roll. Students are encouraged to throw together the most horrendous outfits possible and enjoy a night of bunco and live music at this whirlwind of a gathering.

“It’s fun to see the smiles,” Andrew said. “It’s fun to see the connecting. It’s fun to see people coming by themselves and still getting connected by the end.”

Beto Espinoza, freshman kinesiology major, did just that. He shared how he came to Clash ‘n’ Roll alone but walked away from the event with several potential new friends.

“Overall, it was good. I had a blast, talked to a lot of random people and became familiarized with others around me,” Espinoza said.

While Clash ‘n’ Roll is, first and foremost, a night of fun for first-year students, it is also a night to remember

for the people who organized it. Andrew first met his wife at Clash ‘n’ Roll during his freshman year at CBU.

“Our first picture together is set at Clash ‘n’ Roll,” Andrew said. “Back in my day, it was Clash ‘n’ Bowl because we went to bowling alleys. Now we’ve outgrown any bowling alleys in the area.”

For Andrew, Clash ‘n’ Roll is not just an event but the catalyst that began his passion for CBU’s inclusive culture. Andrew recalled being a senior and telling the former director of New Student Programs that he wanted to have his job one day.

“God’s sense of humor kept me around,” Andrew said. “Now my three boys get to see Dad do this. They were at Clash ‘n’ Roll, so it would be cool to see if they become [First Year Experience] leaders one day if they choose to go to Cal Baptist.”

Even though CBU has gone through many changes, the warm and inviting quality of the once small and cozy college is kept alive through Welcome Weekend and the passionate sta that organize everything.

“We want students to feel like CBU is home,” Andrew said. “We want a student who doesn’t know anyone to have a group of friends they can call their home base.”

BY ALEXZA BAHNMILLER EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

One of the perks of attending CBU is the opportunity for students to grow in their faith outside of the classroom, through groups such as Spiritual Life, which has introduced new events this fall.

One recent SL event was a new, weekly module called “Spiritual Training.” The twohour events continued for a three-week period, hosted about 60 students and was led by Brian Zuniga, director of Discipleship.

Spiritual Life is designed to “help students come to know that their extrinsic worth and eternal value can be secure in Jesus Christ,” according to calbaptist.edu.

Zuniga outlined the best ways students can get involved and grow their faith this year.

“The best way to find out about SL events is through our Instagram, which is @cbu_sl, in Chapel and [through our] SL app, Spiritual Life @ CBU. That’s a really good way to see what’s going on. On campus, the biggest place we point people to start at is SL groups. Those are communities that happen at all di erent living areas around campus,” Zuniga said.

“For the SL training, we

want to just create a space to help people get some training in di erent ways of following Jesus. Tonight is talking about what it looks like to have conversations about faith,” Zuniga said.

Zuniga added what he hopes the students learn from the evenings.

“I hope that students learn that it’s OK to talk about faith and learn about ways to talk about faith in a way that is tactful and loving,” Zuniga said. “Be open to having faith conversations if someone isn’t a follower of Jesus. We are at a Christian campus and students should have the freedom to say, ‘I’m just not in a place to talk about that right now.’ If you are a follower of Jesus, you should have the freedom to ask if someone wants to have that conversation.”

Marissa Mckinely, sophomore English major, said she has been actively involved in SL events for more than a year.

“I’ve been to a ton of the events, especially SL nights that are out on the lawn. I was introduced to SL by the group that was held at Tower, where I lived my freshman year,” Mckinely said. It’s where I found a lot of my friends and I found a lot of people who had

discipled me so that’s been huge and I wouldn’t have had that if I hadn’t shown up.”

Madi Goulet, sophomore nursing major, also began her experience at Tower.

“We heard about this event tonight, SL Training, through the other people we formed with at Tower. I was a part of an SL discipleship group last year and after spending time doing that, it made me learn that I definitely want to grow in those aspects, which the training helps with. I think it’s a great resource for students to be able to grow in their faith overall and also to learn about what it means to share that faith

with others and to evangelize,” Goulet said.

For students unsure of where to start in their walk with Jesus, Zuniga made some suggestions.

“Just look at the Bible, that’s one of the best places to start. Plugging into a church community is crucial, Zuniga said. “SL is taking some space in student’s lives while they are on campus to give them some training and help them be intentional in their faith, but churches in this area are amazing. I would make

was

trying to

into a

Safety Services revamps parking system

BY CONNOR RYAN MANAGING EDITOR

After years of parking struggles as the university has grown, CBU may have finally cracked the code with its new and improved system.

Safety Services has reimagined its student parking program, ditching physical stickers and moving entirely to digital identification designed to boost e ciency and security.

Now, CBU will enforce parking regulations through its license-plate scanning technology, an update that Safety Services integrated into its welcome pavilions and patrol vehicles throughout the summer.

According to Christian Dinco, assistant director of Safety Services, the new system’s primary purpose is to improve e ciency. Because of the advanced license platereading software, patrolling parking lots has become quicker and more frequent.

“We have a mobile unit that we drive around that has mobile scanners on it,” Dinco said. “It takes about a second to get the information and it appears on a screen. You can be driving five miles an hour, and it is getting plate reads on each side of the aisle and telling us if they have a permit, if they don’t have a permit and if they’re in the right area.”

As the patrol car passes vehicles in a lot, the system processes plates through two opposite-facing cameras mounted on top of the car. A touchscreen device that operates the software will

Pop N’ Paint

Continued from Page 1

them together, even when they don’t have class,” Goodwin said.

The Pop N’ Paint event included items that fit under the “pop” category, such as PopRocks, pop music, popcorn, and soda pop, as well as, of course, painting.

Students were able to grab their own painting canvas and tools and make their way to decorated communal tables to get started.

Imani Reardo, junior business administration major and residential adviser, came to the event as part of her job duties.

“As an RA, we have to do Take 2 events to events that other programs on campus do, so this is one that I chose,” Reardo said. “I have two other residents with me. I like that these weekend events are helping people to start choosing to stay on campus more.”

Kylie Williams, senior environmental science major, said her decision to attend the Pop N’ Paint event was not preplanned.

“I came just because it was something happening on a Saturday,” Williams said. “I hope I get serotonin out of this event and also, painting is relaxing and something that I enjoy doing, so that’s nice.”

Throughout the events Community Life will host this semester, such as the Barn Dance on Sept. 28 and Boyband Karaoke Night on Sept. 19, the theme of relationship-building is a common thread.

“I hope students have fun activities to do on campus,” Thomas said. “And I hope anyone who comes as an individual is able to meet one other person or a group of other people and continue to build that relationship, whether it’s in classes or recreational stu or Comm Life stu , and that the groups that come together will grow stronger and just have fun.”

release one of three audio cues, indicating whether a car has a permit, a permit for a di erent lot or no permit.

When a parking violation is detected, the data is transmitted to an o cer’s handheld device, which can immediately print a ticket.

“Previously, we’d have to physically walk, look for stickers, find out if they’re in the right zone, and call to find out if permits were updated and current,” Dinco said. “It was a very labor-intensive project to print tickets. We could do it, but we couldn’t clear as much ground.”

Because of the volume of students parking in the wrong lots, many students believe there are not enough spots available.

“Despite having the parking structure, I feel that there isn’t enough parking for us commuters or students in general,” said Michael Meenan, senior software engineering major.

Dinco said he believes the solution requires firmer guidelines.

“The goal is not to print out parking tickets,” Dinco said. “Students pay enough, and we don’t want to hit them with a parking fee. But if we’re going to get people to park in the right spot, enforcement has to be a part of it.”

Vehicle registration is now entirely online, instead of students

waiting in line at the post o ce for a physical sticker. The digital permits also provide Safety Services with precise data that was previously inaccessible. At any time, Dinco can pull up a webpage of statistics detailing how many students have permits in each separate lot and the type of permit each person has: firstyear student, upperclassman, commuter or faculty.

NEWS BRIEFS

WRITTEN BY CONNOR RYAN

U.S. SENDS MISSILES TO UKRAINE

The United States continues to support the Ukrainian war effort after President Joe Biden revealed plans to share ATACM missiles with President Vlodymyr Zelenskyy’s troops. According to the Associated Press, this decision was announced on Sept. 22, the day after Russia led an attack against cities across Ukraine, killing five people. Several U.S. officials told NBC the quantity of missiles is still under discussion.

NEURALINK STARTS HUMAN TRIALS

Elon Musk’s tech company Neuralink announced it has been approved for human trials of its brain-computer technology. An official statement from the company’s blog on Sept. 19 said that paralytic test subjects will test their interface’s ability to communicate with external robots. Neuralink claims the implant will allow people to control keyboards with their minds.

CHINA BANS IPHONES?

Apple’s stock suffered a decline on Sept. 6 after the Wall Street Journal claimed China had banned iPhone use. Following the accusations, Ministry of Foreign Affairs spokesperson Mao Ning denied any prohibition of Apple products. According to an article by CNN, the U.S. government is currently unable to confirm the validity of the allegations.

FUNDS GIFTED TO COVID CLINICS

The Department of Health and Human Services (HHS) recently donated $45 million to clinics researching “Long Covid,”which diagnoses patients experiencing symptoms of COVID-19 long after the two-week period. On Sept. 20, HHS said nine clinics will receive annual $1 million grants for up to five years to develop treatments for those suffering from extended symptoms.

This new information assists Safety Services in indentifying students entering the campus as well.

Adam Alexander, junior business administration major, said that while working night shifts over the summer at the welcome pavilions, he sometimes had di culty identifying incoming vehicles.

“Sometimes people without stickers didn’t understand they needed to stop and would drive past me, or their windows were highly tinted, making it di cult to see the sticker,” Alexander said.

Because of the new “security desk program,” employees

working at the booth can now scan cars coming onto campus after hours and check them with the school database without leaving the booth.

“The overall vision is that each welcome pavilion is scanning the plates and will give the person that’s working the welcome pavilion immediate notice within 1.2 seconds of whether that vehicle is currently registered as a sta , student or faculty and belongs on campus,” Dinco said.

When a vehicle that is not registered attempts to enter the campus during night hours, an alarm will go o , notifying the security worker. Additionally,

students can notify Safety Services of active restraining orders, and Safety Services will update the database to block individuals from entering the school. This also applies to students expelled from CBU.

According to Dinco, the system will be fully operational by October and students should expect a significant improvement in parking accessibility and overall safety.

“We try to have a little oasis here in Riverside, where students and sta can feel safe,” Dinco said. “We want to make sure we are doing everything we can to utilize the technology, good personnel and teamwork.”

Charissa Graves | Banner

A student worker at the Adams Street welcome pavillion waves a car through as its license plate is scanned for a parking permit. Safety Services is introducing a new system that moves away from physical stickers, allowing for more efficiency and security across campus.

“ We try to have a little oasis here in Riverside, where students and staff can feel safe.”

Christian Dinco, assistant director of Safety Services

Psychology gives insight into the online shopping craze

BY OLIVIA COX FAITH & LIFESTYLE EDITOR

Since the birth of the internet in the late 20th century, the capabilities of the online world have grown at exceedingly fast rates. Today, just about anything can be bought online, from clothes to cars. But is all this progress in the online marketplace for better or for worse?

Bryce Cunning, senior psychology major, shared about his spending habits from a behavioral science viewpoint.

“Some of the psychological reasons for this pertain to the anticipation or excitement of buying a product which releases dopamine, also known as the pleasure hormone,” Cunning said. “Some other reasons for this increase relate to the instant gratification that online shopping provides. There is less friction when an individual makes a purchase and more emotional fulfillment."

Additionally, he cited accessibility as a reason individuals may be more motivated to shop online.

“One psychological explanation for the shift from in-person shopping may be product diver-

sity and convenience,” Cunning said. “In addition, there seems to be an increase in anxiety and fear of negative evaluation, which influences people to avoid social interactions, thereby increasing online shopping.”

Though Cunning recognizes the ever-increasing popularity of online shopping, he typically opts to shop in person.

“I like to have face-to-face interactions… shopping in person creates a much more personal experience,” Cunning said.

Hannah Tudor, CBU alumna in public relations, shared what she finds beneficial.

“I do prefer going in and shopping, but I also tend to buy

everything when I do,” Tudor said. “Online shopping has definitely been easier in the sense of getting specific things that I want sooner.”

Tudor explained that online shopping is helpful to her with her busy schedule. She also sees it benefiting her coworkers and family. Her grandma, in particular, is able to order groceries online.

“It comes down to a sense of urgency," Tudor said. “How urgent do you need the item? How important is the item to you to have right now? What way can you buy it? Is it faster to go to the store and pay cash? Is it more convenient to order online?”

Hannah Woods, counseling psychology graduate student, also prefers shopping online.

“I like shopping online be- cause there are more options and more deals online," Woods said. "I think I'm more willing to spend money in person because I don't have to pull up my card and put in my information.”

Woods explained that people enjoy online shopping because it is instant access to items with little e ort.

“I think that's what our

whole culture is about: everything at your fingertips,” Woods said.

Woods pointed out that often sales such as Black Friday or Cyber Monday lead to a spike in sales because buyers believe they are receiving a great deal, whether or not they actually are.

“Your device in which you are searching tracks everything

and can therefore lead you down a rabbit hole of buying more than you need. It’s objectively harmless but there are some tactics that are used to get you to spend,” Woods said. As with many things, online shopping can be used for both our good and downfall. Ultimately, it is up to the consumer's preference.

Students and profs o er advice to commuters

BY NATALIE TANAKA STAFF WRITER

Dorms. Roommates. RAs. Each of these things is often considered a staple of college life. The cramped, close quarters of dorms may not be an appealing part of the freshman experience, but it helps students foster close relationships. But what about students who wake up and go to bed miles away from campus? How do they make connections?

Commuters make up about 50% of CBU students, according to Emilee Thomas, assistant director of campus activities for Community Life.

“The challenges associated with a weekly commute ranging from 35 minutes to an hour primarily revolves around tra c,” said Destiny Jara, sophomore business administration major and commuter. “Tra c condi-

tions tend to vary each day, with particularly challenging days arising when accidents occur or freeways are closed, significantly extending the travel time.”

But travel time is not the only challenge commuters face. Commuters may also struggle to find social outlets, especially since they haven't yet connected with other students.

“Relationships take time to develop, and since commuters have less time on campus, they don’t have as much of an opportunity to grow close,” said Dr. Cynthia Boes, professor of communication studies. "Commuters are likely more comfortable going home right after classes because they don’t have those close relationships on campus already.”

Gerald Bautista, junior nursing major, recognized this di -

culty in his own experience.

“I do believe that being a commuter adds this invisible barrier which could prevent valuable experiences and friendships," Bautista said. "I didn’t talk to a lot of people outside of class when I was a freshman."

The good news is that with a little time and e ort, commuters can find community across the campus.

“One thing they can do is identify any classmates they see as having some similarities to them," Boes said. "Invite those classmates to hang out between classes, get lunch together, study or go to another activity on campus. ... Also, joining a club can be great because it means spending time with other peo-

ple who have similar interests, which can make early conversations easier.”

Thomas recommends similar advice, including attending commuter-oriented events.

“We would strongly encourage students to join the Commuter Club, attend one of our Commuter Cafes, [and] be a part of any and all Community Life events throughout the year. Use the Community Life Lounge as a hangout spot, [and] most of all, just keep putting yourself out there and meeting new people,” Thomas said.

“It’s night and day comparing my freshman year to now,” Bautista said. "Back then, I had one or two friends I would hang out with, but now I talk to most of

my classmates and we even hang out outside of class.”

Clubs have o ered a starting point for many students.

“In the beginning, yes, it was harder to make connections on campus, but as I started to go to more events and get involved in a club, it was a lot easier to talk and connect with others,” said Amanda Salas, senior graphic design major. “It really all comes down to being open to talking to people and connecting with them on a regular basis.”

Fellow commuter Jara wanted to encourage commuters struggling to make connections.

“Get involved through any of the ways that the university o ers," Jara said. "This could include joining clubs, participating in events, joining an intramural, attending group exercise classes at the gym or connecting with classmates. It’s important

not to feel pressured to step too far out of your comfort zone but rather focus on engaging in activities that align with your interests, as this leads to the natural development of friendships.”

For any commuter not convinced, Boes gives one last piece of advice.

“Sometimes it’s just a matter of working up 15 seconds of courage to approach somebody, and once we do that, the hardest part is over," Boes said.

"It’s just a matter of keeping the conversation going from that point. If we show real curiosity about the people around us and ask questions about them and their lives, people tend to respond.”

Fifteen seconds of courage. Real curiosity. Genuine questions. Follow this advice and see where it goes. And who knows? It may be all it takes to create a lifelong friendship.

'The Bridge' illustration brings individuals to faith in Christ

BY OLIVIA COX FAITH AND LIFESTYLE EDITOR

Evangelism is the mission and purpose for every Christian. While the gospel message may be simple in nature, the Bible is deep, expansive and at times confusing. However, it is common for Christians sharing the gospel to feel unprepared and nervous when trying to share.

I personally have seen the e ectiveness and the beautiful simplicity of "The Bridge" illustration evangelism tool through the testimony of my husband, Jared Cox.

"The Bridge" illustration is a drawing that places humans on one side of a cli and heaven at the other side with our sin making a gap between the two. The illustrations walk through Romans 6:23 which reads, "For the wages of sin is death, but the free gift of God is eternal life in Christ Jesus our Lord." (ESV)

Cox grew up attending church. In some seasons of life, he called himself a Christian, but he would now say he was not saved until his encounter with "The Bridge" illustration.

“I heard the gospel and the

love of God many times before but I never really cared too much about it,” Cox said. “'The Bridge' was truly a wake-up call.”

He said that The Bridge revealed for the first time that he could not have one foot in the world and another in the church. Cox realized he needed to be fully committed to a relationship with Christ for his salvation.

“In Romans 6:23, the free gift of eternal life through Jesus is just a monumental thing. Who wouldn't want eternal life? And it's a free gift,” Cox said. “You don't have to do anything. You don't have to work for it because if you try to do it yourself, you're going to fail. It is truly a beautiful, beautiful thing.”

Cox explained that the Bridge clarified that humans are destined for punishment and that one cannot make it to heaven apart from a relationship with Christ. The Bridge

showed Cox that professing the existence of God was not what saved him but that the key was submitting to God’s will and choosing to love him above all else.

Jordan Rodseth, Discipleship sta at CBU, explained that the main purpose of this evangelism tool is to understand our state of sin and the goodness of God to save us from it.

“The cool thing about that is that you can very tangibly see the contrast between what we actually deserve versus God's kindness and extending this gift to us of eternal life of being able to be in relationship with him through Jesus,” Rodseth said.

Rodseth said she appreciates The Bridge for how easy, memorable and engaging it is.

“Usually, I try to make it a conversation with the per-

son that I'm sharing it with,” Rodseth said. “It's not just like me talking at them.” She explained that the illustration can be useful across many di erent contexts and can be shared verbally by walking through the elements of the verse and describing the imagery of two sides of a cli .

“[My friend] who just came to faith — she and I have had many gospel conversations, but she came to faith by me sharing The Bridge at my dining room table,” Rodseth said.

Cydney Cunning, senior elementary education major, shared her personal story with evangelism tools and her experience with presenting them to others.

Cunning shared that the Bridge illustration was ulti-

mately how she was saved.

“When I came to CBU, I definitely wouldn’t classify myself as a Christian,” Cunning said. “I definitely had moments of faith growing up where I’d say ‘Oh yeah, I’d say God is real,’ but I had never committed to following Christ.”

As a teen, Cunning wanted to maintain her own identity and live her own way rather than submit to God.

“Long story short, I ended up making an appointment with the SL o ce, and in that appointment, that was when I would say I was saved, and it was because of the The Bridge," Cunning said.

Cunning said that it was one of her first times understanding the gospel message clearly.

“It was visually clarifying," Cunning said. "It was an open

conversation, where I could point at a drawing, or I could point at something in the verse or I could ask her questions. She was really eager and willing to not make me feel dumb or not make me feel like she was trying to convert me.”

Cunning shared that an acquaintance of hers gave his life to Christ after a long period of reflection due to The Bridge.

“The gospel is simple — we are sinners, Christ died for us, he resurrected, paid the payment we couldn’t pay, died a death we could not die and gives a gift we don’t deserve,” Cunning said.

Cunning said The Bridge provides clarity about the the gospel, but it is crucial that those presenting it do not treat people like projects, but rather love them as individuals first.

"You don't have to do anything. You don't have to work for it because if you try to do it yourself, you're going to fail. It is truly a beautiful, beautiful thing."

Photo by Madison Sardana | Banner Seth Torry, sophomore finance major, and John Gordon, CBU Post office staff, sorts and scans incoming packages as they are delivered.

“

I think that's what our whole culture is about: everything at your fingertips."

Hannah Woods, counseling psychology major

Jared Cox

“ It was visually clarifying."

Cydney Cunning, senior elementary education major

“

You can very tangibly see the contrast... what we actually deserve versus God's kindness."

Jordan Rodseth, lead discipleship staff

"Sometimes it's just a matter of working up 15 seconds of courage to approach somebody, and once we do that, the hardest part is over."

Dr. Cynthia Boes, professor of communication studies

“ The anticipation or excitement of buying a product which releases dopamine, also known as the pleasure hormone."

Bryce Cunning, senior psychology major

“

We strongly encourage students to join the Commuter Club."

Emilee Thomas, assistant director of campus activities

The challenges associated with a weekly commute ranging from 35 minutes to an hour primarily revolves around traffic."

Destiny Jara, sophomore business administration major

Lifestyle Tries: Making a cloud lamp

BY VALERIE LA PONZA STAFF WRITER

In the need of a fix for a dark and drab dormroom?

The cloud lamp is the perfect solution.

Step 1: Gather materials

- Fiberfill/Polyfil stu ng

- Hot glue gun, plus extra sticks of glue

- Fishing line or thicker alternative

- Pointed tool to make holes in the container to hang it up

- Any size clear plastic container

- String lights. I used ones with a battery pack, but string lights with a plug-in will work, too. Remember to cut a hole in the lid for the cord to come out.

Step 2: Cut holes for the string.

Using a sharp utensil, carefully poke two holes into the main body of the plastic container. I put my holes about an inch apart for stability.

Step 3: Begin gluing.

Split the top of the container from the bottom and starting with small lines of glue, adhere the stu ng to the sides of the container shaping as you work. Make sure not to get glue or stu ng on the screwing mechanisms of the top or the bottom of the container. Otherwise, it will not close properly. Keep an eye on the holes you made in the container to make sure they don’t plug with glue or flu .

Step 4: Finishing touches.

Once you are satisfied with the shape and size of the cloud lamp, string the fishing line into the holes and secure the knot. Unravel the string lights and place them carefully. Once the lights are secure, close up the cloud lamp carefully, patching any holes with more hot glue and flu .

Step 5: Hang and enjoy your new lamp!

Expressions of Christian life fluctuate across cultures

BY OLIVIA COX FAITH & LIFESTYLE EDITOR

Culture is often described as the water in our fishbowl. It is what we are surrounded by yet do not always realize. Humans are prone to bring their culture into Christianity because it is so heavily ingrained into who we are.

Grace Nellis, CBU alumna in biomedical science, shared her observations of American cultural Christianity and Christianity worldwide and how these expressions compare to the word of God. Nellis is a former mobilization intern for the CBU Spiritual Life (SL) o ce and served as an International Service Project (ISP) student leader in North Africa and Central Asia.

“In my experience, Christians in America are prone to consumerism regarding their faith," Nellis said. “This would include 'consuming' church rather than being an active member and participant in a church body… it is common to expect to be served by a church instead of serving with a church."

Nellis said examples of this include being sung to by the worship team, sitting in a sermon, being fed communion and then being ushered back to the parking lot. While these are all important church elements, Nellis explained that one must be engaged rather than merely entertained.

“Scripture does not a rm an entertainment-based gathering that emphasizes production and performance,” Nellis said.

In her time overseas, Nellis has observed different expressions of Christianity outside the American church.

“In Central Asia, culture is shaped by their desire to spend time in community,” Nellis said. “Particularly amongst Christians fellow shipping together and those who are witnessing to non-believing friends.”

Nellis described life in Central Asia as community-oriented while life in America is more work-oriented.

“Church is limited to a scheduled worship service on the weekends, whereas, in places I have visited overseas, [they may] hold church multiple days a week," Nellis said. “They may start late and end late and prioritize spending time together laughing, dancing, praying [and] singing. This reflects what they value— community.”

She also shared ways in which worship could become more expansive, including tithing, reflection, prayer, teaching, fellowship and communion.

“I believe that American Churches care for their communities well through outreach events. We know how to throw a good party and invite our neighbors in as a way to bless them and get them connected with the gift of the Church,” Nellis said.

Mikayla McAtee, CBU alumna in intercultural studies, shared her thoughts and observations. As a missionary kid, spending most of her childhood overseas and having missions experience as a young adult, McAtee has a wealth of knowledge pertaining to the global church.

McAtee explained that Christianity has strong cultural ties with America, drawing connections between Roman Catholicism and American Christianity.

“When Rome adopted Christianity as their legal religion, that's when Roman Catholicism began to develop,” McAtee said. “Whenever Christianity becomes cultural, it begins to lose its impact because now people just think ‘Oh I’m a Christian,’ when in reality they never actually gave their life to Christ.”

She explained that many Americans have been weekly church attendees since birth, but they continue to lead their lives rather than letting God lead their lifestyle and decisions.

“They don't recognize the cost of following Jesus and they don't think about the fact that Jesus says whoever is not willing to lay down their life daily, pick up their cross and follow me cannot be my disciple,” McAtee said.

McAtee has seen American consumerism in the church, explaining that some Christians shop for the church they like best. She stated that rather than acting as though the church is there to serve the Christian, the Christian must recognize they are there to serve the church. Additionally, no matter where you are in the world, worship and teaching can be found in every congregation.

“[Church] is being for Jesus what he was for us,” McAtee said.

McAtee discussed the idea of “spiritual multiplication”— Christ’s command that we would engage the world through evangelism, seeking to add true and genuine believers to the body. She

feels American Christians could grow in their evangelism e orts rather than believing that it is a job for their pastor.

“I would say there are so many things that Americans have made Christian that aren't necessarily universally Christian. These aren't necessarily bad things,” McAtee said. "There's things like 'Christian girl autumn' or the way we think we should dress as Christians or the worship set or how when the pastor always comes up and says, ‘hey, can I have the band in the back play the music … Sunday school … VBS.”

McAtee explained that it often makes Americans feel uncomfortable when they see churches in different countries or contexts doing church di erently than they are used to.

“In Southeast Asia … every church service, we had a prayer time where it was a 10, 15-minute prayer,” McAtee said. “We also had a lot of, if you were new, you stood up and introduced yourself to the whole church.”

“Churches in other contexts have to learn how to be really bold in their faith because...here, it's kind of easy to be like half in, half out,” McAtee said. McAtee complimented the American Church in both their teaching and their work toward establishing community.

“When you look at Europe, they've walked so much away from a lot of their faith traditions that their churches and cathedrals aren’t even used as churches and cathedrals anymore,” Meyer said. “It appears that the U.S. is following that pattern.”

She pointed out that many of the southern countries of the globe still have the enthusiasm and energy for their faith that America is slowly losing.

“Whenever I go to [Asia], they ask people, ‘Anybody want to share?'" Meyer said.

“The expectation is that in many places … if you're a guest, you are expected to share in some way.”

Meyer cited a study by the Barna Group that shows many American churchgoers have abandoned Christian orthodoxy.

“They go to church [but] they aren't walking the walk the rest of the week,” Meyer said. “I think what frustrates me sometimes is that people put politics and Christianity together, which isn't what God designed.”

When discussing our strengths as an American church, Meyer cited small groups as a great tool for creating community and fellowship.

When looking outside her cultural context, Meyer observed a heavy emphasis on active member participation within church services overseas, especially when it comes to praying for others.

“That whole emphasis on prayer was refreshing and a good reminder that we are to be praying for people all the time,” Meyer said. “[The] hospitality piece that's embedded in their culture, not just the believers but just their culture in general, that's amazing."

Dr. Rebecca Meyer, professor of nursing, shared her knowledge and experience about cross-cultural ministry. Meyer has experience serving overseas with CBU since 2010.

Photo by Josselyn Guillen | Banner

Christianity in America is sometimes viewed as a cultural practice rather than a spiritual one. This can lead people to a depersonalized relationship with the church,, creating an attitude of wanting to be served or entertained rather than one of worship.

Photo Illustration by Valerie La Ponza | Banner

Valerie La Ponza, staff writer, shares the step-by-step process for how to perfectly build a cloud lamp.

“[Church] is being for Jesus what he was for us."

Mikayla McAtee, CBU alumni intercultural studies major

“ Whenever Christianity begins to become cultural, it begins to lose its value."

Mikayla McAtee, CBU alumni intercultural studies

“

That whole emphasis on prayer was refreshing and a good reminder that we are to be praying for people all the time."

Dr. Rebecca Meyer, professor of nursing

e Incredible Race sparks competition

1. At the Incredible Race event on Sept. 26, Team Pandas starts o strong by recreating a photo of the CBU Crazies.

2. The Mammoths attempt to complete the “Honey, I Got 4 Legs” challenge of the race as they battle another team.

3. The Incredible Race teams Eagles and Tigers battle against each another to see who can complete a 100-piece puzzle.

4. The Elks stepped through triangles holding bread, mayonnaise, and mustard to complete the “Honey I got 4 legs” challange.

5. Team Cheetahs attempt to solve the riddle in the “Raiders of the Tomb: Lancer VI” challenge at the Incredible Race, organized by Community Life.

Photos by Madison Sardana

Volleyball team takes the season by storm

BY HANNAH GORDON ASST. SPORTS EDITOR

The CBU women’s volleyball team is unstoppable. With an overall score of 8-4 and a successful start to conference play, our women’s volleyball team doesn’t just play the game. They own it.

They started building momentum in non-conference play at the Santa Clara and St. Thomas tournaments. They went on to clutch back-to-back wins against UCR and at the Western Athletic Conference (WAC) Big West tournaments.

The WAC/Big West Tournament was the final tournament in non-conference play.

“It is the last opportunity to check where our team is at,” said Laura Walewska, junior journalism major and middle blocker for the CBU women’s volleyball team.

Hours of practice and training are put to the test. The team gets into the flow. Just like the first few weeks of school, this tournament allowed the team to get reacquainted with games before the big “finals” of conference games.

“We have been working on many new elements as a team last spring and summer, so this tourney is the last chance to check our skills. I would treat the last pre-season tournament as a ‘dress rehearsal’ before the WAC,” Walewska said.

The players settled into their routine and are focused on the conference play on the horizon.

“With this being the final weekend of the preseason, this tournament is significant for us coming o a 3-0 weekend at home and pushing forward into conference play beginning next weekend,“ said Logan Manley, kinesiology graduate student and middle blocker for the CBU women’s volleyball team.

This semester was not their first rodeo. Some players have a couple of years under their belt and are familiar with the tournament.

“I have been to this tourney twice already. In my freshman year, it was hosted by UC Irvine, and the next year GCU organized it. This year, we are going to Fullerton,” Walewska said.

Many players are returning from last year, excited to see what’s new and reunite with friends.

“This is the 3rd annual WAC Big West Tournament, so it is exciting to match up against

Fullerton and UC Irvine again with a di erent crew than the past couple of years. There are a lot of friendships and deep ties among the teams in the tournament, so we are all looking forward to beating our opponents before heading into conference play,” Manley said.

Among reuniting with friends, there is also a competitive edge going into this tournament, as players have the opportunity to spar before the real fight begins in conference play.

“I am excited to compete with the same teams again because I want to see how we all

look before this year’s season. Fullerton and Irvine are fun teams, so I cannot wait to compete with them,” said Walewska.

Many students enter the new school year with goals like getting straight A’s, being more social or finally finding a significant other. People achieve these goals by working toward them daily, studying, attending parties or talking to a crush. These small wins help them build the confidence to continue working towards those big dreams. The CBU Women’s Volleyball team used their small wins to propel them towards their final goals.

“Last weekend, our team

did great by winning all three games we hosted. The highlight was, for sure, beating PAC-12 team Oregon State. I believe it gave the whole team more confidence and made us see that we can achieve big things if we keep working as hard as we did. My hope for this tournament is that our team will prove again that we can dominate any team we play,” said Walewska.

Preseason tournaments are exhausting and demand a lot from the players. But there is no doubt about the value it adds to their craft and skill.

“Preseason play can be tiring because we play four-weekend tournaments in a row, including cross-country travel and school starting. Participating in these tournaments tests our team’s resilience and stamina so it’s a great way to prep for WAC

conference travel and competition,” said Manley.

Challenges like preseason tournaments or tests in the first week of class force us to figure things out under pressure and go beyond ourselves. Through those challenges, we grow.

Logan Manley, graduate student kinesiology

“Pre-season tournaments are fun and challenging at the same time,” Walewska said. “They are a great way to test yourself before conference games start. However, the tournament format usually has an intense game schedule, where teams must play back-to-back. I feel that these days contribute most to my personal growth

because they force me to step out of my comfort zone. To perform on the highest level every time, I have to figure out how to do it even right after playing five sets.” The challenges and growth leading up to the WAC Big West Tournament resulted in total domination. The CBU women’s volleyball team swept the floor with their opponents and came out as the undeniable victors of the preseason. Now they are primed for success in the WAC, already winning their first game of conference play.

Water polo runs the gauntlet at overnight MPSF Invitational

BY MICHAEL MARKS SPORTS EDITOR

Tournaments are a chance for coaches and their teams to gather valuable experience, size up other teams, practice plays and gain valuable experience.

These were just a few of the many goals the CBU Mens Water Polo team had as they attended the Overnight MPSF Invitational held at UCLA’s Spieker Aquatics Center from Sept. 22–Sept. 24.

The men’s teams had a formidable lineup. Princeton and Stanford were tied for fourth in the Men’s Varsity rankings, both of whom CBU played on Friday. This was followed by No. 19-ranked Santa Clara on Saturday, with one final game against ranked number nine UC San Diego on Sunday. The men’s team came in with a record of 6-4, sitting at rank 14 respectively.

The men’s team would experience great adversity over the weekend as they struggled to find a win. This does not mean the games were wasted.

In fact, in both the UCSD and Santa Clara games, CBU’s team came within one point of winning. As head Coach Kevin Rosa pointed out, every game is as much a battle as it is a learning opportunity,

especially as the team looks ahead to the next set of games.

“We knew that the schedule would be tough early [on]. We need to be mentally strong and withstand adversity and persevere for the games going forward. Everything is to prepare us for our conference games,” Rosa said.

With conference games just on the horizon, a tournament like this may be what the team needs to break through against formidable opponents.

“That is what tournament games are for,” Rosa said. “We want to play good teams and put ourselves in di cult situations to see how we respond. We now know that we can come back from being down late but we need to be able to make the last play to help us win the game. If we can play better in the middle quarters to not be down so late in the game, we can conserve some energy that was expended in those comeback e orts.”

However, this weekend was only a partial loss, as the team experienced many high points over the weekend. For example, the team has a plethora of shooters to choose from and to keep the opponent guessing.

“Our team is very deep. We have multiple guys that can step up and score when needed.

That is tough to stop and hard to defend. There are times when one of those players steps up and gets the hot hand. If that happens, we will cater to him for that game,” Rosa said.

The players also had much to say about the tournament, especially regarding scoring opportunities after ejecting opponents for a 6-on5 o ensive play. These possessions are crucial to edging out the competition.

“The big di erence that could have been made between the Santa Clara and UCSD game was finishing our opportunities. We had many 6-on-5 chances throughout the game and if we were able to convert half of them, we would have won by a few goals each. This all comes down to composure and ball movement,” said Caleb Teraoka, senior nursing major and attacker on the team.

Displaying aggression in the face of adversity is a hallmark of the sport and a testament to

the toughness of these athletes. It also can give the team an advantage, no matter how small. Players like Teraoka can learn and adjust their play by seeing other competitors at higher levels.

“Stanford is a very solid team fundamentally,” Teraoka said. “We need to come out with the same speed and aggression consistently in order to compete at a high level. We need to be mentally sharp, have quick reaction times and ready to attack the rest of the teams on our schedule because the refs are more likely to favor the team who appears to be more dominant.”

Cameron Cullen, senior business marketing major and attacker on the team, reflects on what the team did well when they found their groove. “When we did have a patient o ense this weekend, it was great and we played some fantastic possessions. We just have to focus on having these types of possessions more consistently,”

Cullen said.

Patience is a key virtue in any sport and is especially needed to compete consistently at the top level. Setting your team up for success can often prove more challenging than the shot itself.

“Stanford is a very technically skilled team, and this was definitely reflected in the exclusion ratio. As a team, we have to review the film and understand how they out-positioned us. Once we see the positional mistakes, we can adjust to play more under control and get the exclusion ratio to be in our favor instead,” said Cullen.

Cullen stated that despite how tough the weekend was, he is proud and excited for the team as they move forward.

“We learned some areas of improvement and proved to ourselves we can compete with the best teams in the nation,” Cullen said. “In a one-goal game, it comes down to who is going to execute their game plan the best. In both games, we could have gotten a defensive

stop to keep the game tied and force overtime, but we missed that defensive execution. The team and I will definitely reflect on these close losses and use them as fuel to get better for the remainder of the season.”

This weekend was the catalyst for a much bigger rivalry brewing on the horizon. CBU’s men’s water polo has its first conference game against Santa Clara on Oct. 5 at the Lancers Aquatics Center.

“[Santa Clara University] will be our first conference game,” Rosa said. “We got frustrated on o ense, and that led to giving them too many easy goals in transition. If we can take care of the ball, [and] run e cient o enses against SCU, then I believe we can change the result for the next game.”

With a rematch coming soon and the loss fresh in their minds, it is safe to say the team smells blood in the water.

Photo by Elijah Hickman | Banner

Volleyball players Nicole Mauser [2], freshman business administration major, and Leah Pease [5], a graduate student, square off against their opponents in the Van Dyne Gym.

“

Pre-season play can be tiring because we play four-weekend tournaments in a row.”

“ I would treat the last pre-season tournament as a ‘dress rehearsal’ before the WAC.”

Laura Walewska, junior journalism major

“When we did have a patient offense this weekend, it was great and we played some fantastic possessions.”

Cameron Cullen, senior business marketing major

“That is what tournament games are for. We want to play good teams and put ourselves in difficult situations to see how we respond.”

Kevin Rosa, head water polo coach

Campus-wide ChatGPT guidelines are distributed for sta and students

BY CONNOR RYAN MANAGING EDITOR

ChatGPT continues to be a talking point throughout college campuses, including at CBU. As students began their studies this semester, the university administration released a brief document on Sept. 4 outlining guidelines for the use of ChatGPT. The new policies provided a concise but detailed explanation of how the Artificial Intelligence (AI) system works, as well as the dangers that professors and students must look out for.

According to Dr. Jennifer Tronti, assistant professor of English, one of the main problems that CBU identified in their AI guidelines was the fact that “AI tools do not create original thoughts or ideas.”

“I think at the moment where we’re in the phase of development and usage where ChatGPT is not being utilized in perhaps a healthy way,” Tronti said. “I think if we wholesale adopt it right now, there’s too many people just letting it do the thinking for them. A lot of people have called it ‘outsourcing your thinking.’”

Tronti used the example of thesis statements to illustrate her point. If a student uses ChatGPT to write the thesis for their paper, they are not developing original ideas. Thus, students cannot think critically about literature if they constantly use a computer program to do it.

“In literary studies, I want you to read [material] and I want you to respond to it with your own ideas,” said Dr. Berniece Alspach, professor of English. “In creative writing, I don’t want you to rely on it even for generating ideas. I’d rather

you generate ideas with your own experiences, your own writing process and your own voice.”

If ChatGPT should not be used for academic writing, the question remains whether it should be used at all. According to Audrey Smith, senior creative writing major, AI has opportunities to assist new writers as they learn grammar and mechanics.

“I do think ChatGPT can be used to help beginner writers,” Smith said. “Sometimes looking at the blank page is terrifying and seeing what their paper could look like is motivating. But hopefully, the response becomes ‘I can write something even better than this, now that I have an idea,’ as opposed to ‘Why would I write something on my own, now that I have

this?’”

This relates to the most challenging aspect of discussing ChatGPT: Drawing the line between using it as a tool versus as a crutch.

“It’s a hard line, but it’s the same line that’s been there for years,” Tronti said. “If you go to a tutor and you have a rather involved and overeager tutor, and they change your sentences for you, we can step back and say no, the student has to do the work or the writer has to do the work.”

Another problematic outcome of using ChatGPT is its tendency to pull information from various sources without citing them. When someone uses ChatGPT, the software takes data from all areas of the internet, which could result in a student potentially plagiarizing

legitimate sources without even knowing.

“There are some other unethical kinds of ways that they have fed this beast,” Tronti said. “It’s gobbled everything up. I think it’s heavily problematic in terms of how it is building its information.

“What you’re getting when you’re using AI in an academic context are things and materials that are easily accessible. What you can do in terms of your research on the web, you can do a lot but it is not the same as what you can do with an academic library.”

However, just because ChatGPT has been used dishonestly does not necessarily mean it will antagonize English professors forever.

“When new things come out, a lot of times people get afraid,”

Alspach said. “So we’ve had some really good conversations among the faculty, just saying don’t be afraid. New things evolve and it’s OK. It’s not going to ruin education forever.”

Tronti said she believes the heart of the issue is whether the tool is being used as a shortcut. Students should be pushing themselves to do better and to improve their skills.

“While I think it has some potential to help a developing writer jump to a new level if it’s used in a responsible, healthy and ethical way, I fear it’s going to discourage us from taking the next step, from thinking hard things and doing hard things,” Tronti said.

Though ChatGPT continues to grow and expand, it has a ways to go before it becomes a su cient tool for academic use.

California agriculture booms with technological advances

tors. That’s one new innovation: going from tractors that emit air pollution or need expensive gas to electric,” Lanphere said.

“[With AI now], for example, you can upload a picture of your farm and then you can ask artificial intelligence or some platform to optimize the water distribution on that field or optimize what plants can be grown in that environment and then artificial intelligence can tell you based upon season and soil type, it can give the answer really quickly.”

Lanphere said that although there would be fewer workers needed in the fields, it would be beneficial overall.

“Now, people would be needed to run the software. It could be even better on humans instead of actually needing to be in the field all the time and exposed to the elements, even when you’re not feeling good or feeling sick,” Lanphere said.

Williams said. “When you make these pest-resistant crops or genetically engineered plants, there is always a chance of backfire from the environment because it adapts. Yeah, using new technology could boost crop production and then sales, but you’re diminishing the quality of harvest and a ecting all of the land around it. I’m personally a hand-to-the-plow type of person.”

Jacob Trinidad, senior environmental science major, said he thinks the pros outweigh the cons.

“Technology such as AI should definitely be used in agriculture. I believe that these technologies would have a massive e ect on the growing process of crops and other plants,” Trinidad said. “AI has been shown to have tremendous benefits in other sectors like math, programming, sciences, etc., so

BY ALEXZA BAHNMILLER EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

Although California is famous for hosting the film capital of the world, an often overlooked sector of California employment is farming. According to the latest 2022 Census of Wages and Employment, agriculture employs 419,582 individuals in California. In comparison, California’s film and television employment reached a peak in 2016 with 215,144 individuals, according to the California Film Commission.

For an industry responsible for employing so many and providing more than a third of the country’s vegetables and

three-quarters of the country’s fruits and nuts, according to Government Technology, increasing technology is continuously being manufactured and implemented to make the job easier.

Dr. Jacob Lanphere, professor of environmental science, said technology can remove human error and human limitations.

“We’re seeing right now, even with the United Auto Workers strike, when you have people involved there are problems, because they want more pay and more benefits, but if you have machines, technology can run and operate without

demanding things so it can actually be more cost-e ective when you implement technology into your systems,” Lanphere said. “Technology is more eco-friendly because drones, for example, are able to observe crops to see which crops are potentially being impacted by invasive pests, and then they could go target that one specific part of their property that is being bombarded by something like cabbage caterpillars. Then, they wouldn’t have to apply pesticides or herbicides to the whole field.”

Some examples of new agricultural technologies are robotic harvesters (moisture sensors

monitored by drones and robotic delivery of hormones essential to cows’ milk production), gene editing techniques such as CRISPR/Cas9, food growing directly from cells in a laboratory and water recycling technologies. These technologies have allowed farms and ranches to increasingly generate more revenue, as an 8.8% increase from 2021 to 2022 occurred, totaling $55.8 billion in cash receipts, according to the California Department of Food and Agriculture.

“Every year in Bakersfield, there’s a fair of technology products and last year they were highlighting electric trac-

“You would be able to operate it remote from a nice place in Yosemite on a computer. It would be better on your health because you wouldn’t have to drive in. You would be able to take care of your kids at the same time while you’re working at home. And then he customers, can have a product where they don’t have to pay as much, too.”

However, Kylie Williams, senior environmental science major, is apprehensive about CRISPR-type technology.

“A lot of new technology seems to be genetically enhancing crops. Personally, I don’t think that’s best for the environment or the crop itself,”

I think implementing AI would be beneficial. With the overall use of technology, we could advance agriculture. Like drones, which are able to help watch over the crops, give an aerial view so farmers can see the whole field.”

As technology continues proving to be useful, many see agricultural technology startups as wise investments. In California, startups claimed half of all venture capital (VC) funding for US companies in 2022, according to AgFunder’s Investment Report 2023. The startups earned $5.3 billion last year. According to a report by Precedence Research, the AgTech market is projected to reach $43.37 billion by 2030.

I think if we wholesome adopt it right now, there’s too many people letting it do the thinking for them.

A lot of people have called it ‘outsourcing your thinking.’”

Dr. Jennifer Tronti, assistant professor of English

Photo by Madison Sardana | Banner

Improvement in agurcultural technology has proven helpful to farmers throughout California.

Photo illustration by Josselyn Guillen| Banner Clarice Rumahlewang, sophomore graphic design major, uses the AI platform Chat GPT on her laptop.

Prepping for graduation amid in ation

BY ARIANNA BULTSMA ASST. B&T EDITOR

The U.S. inflation rate for 2022 was 8%, an increase from 4.7% in 2021, according to the Pew Research Center, and surging even higher in 2023. The impacts of rising inflation can severely a ect the average person.

Graduating college is a giant leap into adulthood and experiencing this vast life event during inflation adds another level to the complexity of the next chapter in a student’s life.

Finding a job after graduating college has never been the easiest task. The number of opportunities can be high or low depending on the type of job and the state of industries. When inflation has a negative impact, job growth will be slower and there will be a higher number of unemployed workers.

“The economy runs in cy-

cles, so periods of inflation are usually followed by periods of disinflation or decreasing prices,” said Dr. Adele Harrison, professor of finance.

Even though it is a normal part of the economy, it still can be nerve-racking to experience inflation.

“Inflation does at times stress me out when [I’m] thinking of how I am going to support myself once I’m done with school,” said Brianna Pulido, freshman social work major.

However, there are things students can do to lower the stress of inflation. One good tip for undergraduates is to become more knowledgeable about finances now. There are no downsides to taking the time to build skills such as budgeting and saving.

“The biggest thing a new graduate could do to help man-

By: Alexza Bahnmiller

Features:

age this cycle is to set up their spending plan to have some margin and build some savings,” Harrison said

Khloe Lemon, freshman kinesiology major, said that she is trying to see what else the effects of inflation may reveal in her life.

“I try not to stress because whatever opportunity that God presents me with is all a part of his plan,” Lemon said.

Harrison understood the pressure inflation can introduce into students’ lives as they work to establish their finances, housing and more. She o ered a Bible verse, 1 Peter 5:7: “Cast all your anxiety on him because he cares for you.”

“Your first job out of college is just a starting place,” Harrison said. “God can do so much when we surrender our little struggles into his care.”

AI and Blackboard collab

BY ARIANNA BULTSMA ASST. B&T EDITOR

on features

Artificial intelligence (AI) has taken the world by storm. The internet and technology are essential parts of the average person’s life and AI is now a part of that.

Many platforms have an AI feature, and Blackboard is now included in that category. Blackboard’s new AI feature, called “Anthology,” allows professors to use AI to help build their courses. Some students are hesitant the integration of AI into Blackboard, while professors are aware of AI’s challenges but are looking for positive applications.

Some students are concerned that their connection with their professors will change. When a professor creates courses independently, students can see aspects unique to each professor, and AI could potentially minimize those distinctive elements.

“My biggest concern is that if professors get comfortable using AI for all their courses, there will be a massive disconnect between not only the professors and students but between people and their professions,” said Megan Romero, sophomore psychology major.

Some students are similarly concerned about professor and student connections. Dr. Ted Murcray, associate professor of education and director of the Teaching and Learning Center, is hopeful that by spending less time creating courses, professors will spend more time forming connections with their students.

“The goal, of course, is to increase productivity by o -loading certain types of work to an AI,” Murcray said. “If that creates more time and space for faculty members to engage more with students and develop even better content, then it will be a win for everyone.”

Blackboard released its own statement on the new feature.

“Our trustworthy AI approach has ‘human control’ as a core pillar,” the statement reads. “Instructors maintain full control over their courses.”

It is vital to see this issue with an open mind and let it play out before choosing a side. AI cannot capture human experience, but it can allow professors to invest more time into building their lectures. Students will never know the outcome of Blackboard’s new AI feature if they do not test it out, beginning in the classroom.

Big tech, lawmakers reject bill aimed at social media safety

BY ALEXZA BAHNMILLER EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

The newest bill calling for tech companies to take responsibility for the impact social media has on consumers was rejected Sept. 1 by California lawmakers.

Senate Bill 680 was proposed in hopes of “holding social media platforms liable for promoting harmful content about eating disorders, selfharm and drugs’’ but was ended after “California’s influential tech industry, including TechNet and Netchoice, worked for months to defeat the bill,” wrote Queenie Wong in a Los Angeles Times article.

Similar hearings have occurred previously, such as a bill that attempted to pass in 2022 that would “allow local prosecutors to sue social media companies for knowingly using features that can cause children to become addicted,” but was denied by California lawmakers after TechNet and Netchoice lobbied against the bill, according to Adam Beam in a Los Angeles Times article.

Dr. Mark Kim, assistant professor of computing, software and data sciences, explained why technological companies such as TechNet and Netchoice would rather not see bills like this one pass.

whatever they want. Plus, they currently can’t get sued and don’t want to get sued for doing so - so they’ll kill the bills.”

Tech company executives have long been questioned about the responsibility they hold in ensuring healthy and safe experiences in the digital world.

In 2021, a Senate hearing involving executives from Youtube, TikTok and Snapchat was prompted after a Wall Street Journal article detailed how internal Facebook research showed that Instagram can make body image issues worse for some young people,” wrote Cecilia Kang in a New York Times article.

created that throw out certain things. We want that transparency with these tech companies.” Kim noted, though, that consumers are accountable as well.

“There’s a symbiotic relationship with technology. Companies get data but we get things such as Google Search for free,” Kim said. “There’s disclosures on all apps that collect data and that is the consumer’s responsibility to understand when you download something, you are accepting conditions. But there is progress being made in transparency because before we didn’t even have disclosures. Now we do.”

more resources for educating people on how to use technology and social media, especially for educating parents, because a lot of parents don’t understand what’s going on so they can’t educate their kids or help them.”

Who

Dr. Mark Kim, assistant professor of computing, software and data sciences

ifornia was AB 587, a law requiring social media companies to publicly post their content moderation policies, according to adl.org.

Although Gov. Gavin Newsom signed the bill into law in 2022, there continues to be pushback. X, previously known as Twitter, began a lawsuit on Sept. 8 against the state of California over the law, claiming that “it has the e ect of pressuring companies to remove and demonetize constitutionally-protected speech,” wrote Clare Du y in an article for CNN. Netchoice also opposes the law, according to their website.

“These companies are trillion dollar monopolies because they have all this data. They have all this data and insight into areas that are generally categorized as private,” Kim said. “They want to monetize that data and take no accountability about potential misuses of it because they have no obligation for policing the internet. They already have all the power and all the data so they can sell

According to Kim, the people creating the algorithms are the ones who bear the responsibility.

“Algorithms scrub things all the time. For example, misinformation is scrubbed. Who writes the rule as to what gets scrubbed? That’s the great question and that’s what people want to know,” Kim said. “We want to see the rules. We want to see the keywords that are

Shannon Turpen, senior health science major, also said consumers should take responsibility for themselves, too.

“I don’t know if there’s a point to these bills because no matter what, people will find a way to search or find what they want to find online,” Turpen said. “I don’t think tech companies should be able to control what you can or can’t see at all. A more e ective tool would be

Arsema Te eri, senior health science major, agreed with Turpen.

“At the end of the day, tech companies can’t control what people say, so it’s up to people to maintain their own responsibility. People thrive o rule-breaking so they’ll find a way to see what they want no matter what,” Te eri said. One bill that did pass in Cal-

Although the ongoing debate between tech companies and the legislature has yet to conclude with a definitive answer as to what the future of tech safety may look like, consumers have the choice to protect themselves by choosing what content to download, follow, read, subscribe to and partake in.

The best way to take action is to become informed and mindful.

Photo illustration by Charissa Graves | Banner

As inflation rises, life gets more complicated for recent college graduates seeking housing

and jobs.

Dr. Mark Kim, assistant professor of computing, software

ARTS & ENTERTAINMENT

Musical artists head for the big screen with concert docs

BY GABI RIGGIN A&E EDITOR

Mainstream musicians have made a trend out of going on tour and releasing documentaries shortly afterward documenting the tour, which could perhaps compensate for their concerts’ skyrocketing ticket prices.

Taylor Swift, Beyonce, Lil Nas X, Blackpink and more are have all recently filmed while on tour for upcoming documentaries. This trend is not new, as artists such as Katy

on tour allow fans to explore the backstage and get behindthe-scenes footage. Though these artists have released documentaries in the past, these projects are being released at a faster rate while, in some cases, tours are still ongoing. The reasoning could be due to lost revenue.

“Spotify notoriously pays very little to the artist per song played, and artists primarily get paid through their concerts and other live performances,” Eaton said. “I think the documentaries of concerts are primarily a way to increase revenue from the concerts by fans who didn’t see the concert or even fans who did see it.”

While they can be viewed as a way of making money for larger artists, tour documentaries can have multiple applications.

reasons or simply because tickets to see major acts have become di cult to secure.

“I think both are worth it. Concerts are fun to attend with family and friends. Sometimes we’re just not able to get tickets to a concert for whatever reason, including the fact that Ticketmaster is not an e cient system for purchasing tickets and it often takes hours of your time to secure tickets for concerts such as Taylor Swift,” Eaton said.

Perry, Justin Bieber and Ariana Grande have also released films, in addition to the many iconic music documentaries of decades past.

‘Taylor Swift: The Era’s Tour” will be released on Oct. 13. So far, no set date has been announced for the other artists, as many are in early production.

“It’s often a behind-thescenes look at the artist and how they make their music, or what goes into producing engaging concert experiences for audiences. In some cases, it can give fans a better perspective on who the artist really is, in the eyes of God, so to speak,” said Michael Eaton, professor of film studies and production. “From a filmmaker’s perspective, there is a long history of compelling documentaries being made about musical artists by major filmmakers.”

A documentary aims to bring awareness to a broader audience and tell important unknown stories. Documentaries about artists

Writer’s Strike

Continued from Page 1

people not familiar with the industry is that there are many people like me who are still working and who do projects outside of the union system,” Eaton said. “The Writers Guild, SAG, and the DGA have famously tried to force their members to never work on

“I think it works as a money grab and a way to include fans who couldn’t make it to the concert or who joined the fandom later and want to see a show they never could without it,” said Brooke Donovan, senior film production major.

“I think most things in any entertainment industry do things that have multiple intentions and can guarantee revenue, so I believe it serves multiple purposes.”

Documentaries and live music are arguably di erent experiences.

However, some would say it is worth seeing the documentary instead of the live performance for financial

Concerts are known for the adrenaline rush one feels from seeing one of their favorite artists live. But the cost of when resale tickets skyrockets as high as it has for major tours, it becomes harder for potential concert-goers to prioritize the joy of sharing that immersive experience with their friends. The most expensive resale ticket to see Taylor Swift during her Eras Tour was $11,000, according to the Los Angeles Times.

“The concert is also about more than just the artist. It is about all the fans and people you meet and the things that happen before and after the show,” Donovan said.

“Those are the best parts of a concert experience, all of the interactions and memories you make surrounding the show.”

Joanna Medina, senior public relations major, has been to approximately 25 concerts

within the past six months. She has experience seeing artists and smaller bands in smaller venues, and she said the experience is more personal.

“No, I don’t think [larger tours are] worth it. If I had the money, then I would go,” Medina said. “Because of the experience you’re going to get at a smaller venue. This is my mindset, and you’re only going to see them [in person] one time.”

A documentary, though, can be rewatched.

“The thing with the

documentaries is that I feel it’s too soon. It’s way too soon because the artists are still young. I go back to a lot of these live concerts with the artists who are dead,” Medina said. “[Take] this band called Soundgarden — they don’t exist anymore. When they filmed their documentaries, in a way, it kind of feels like my serotonin.”

Medina said she enjoyed watching a documentary featuring one of her favorite grunge bands because she knows she will never see them again and that feeling was

their services,” Eaton said.

non-union productions, which I believe should be illegal. The Writers Guild also famously tries to keep people out of its guild. It is somewhat of a closed system.”

Eaton explained that the guild contributes to the industry’s competitiveness and believes those in the guild do not realize how easily replaceable they are. Eaton believes they should be more open to giving non-union writers more

BY ALEXZA BAHNMILLER EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

Marking Matt Johnson’s o cial third low-budget feature fi lm, “Blackberry” is pure gold, with comedic timing that takes the edge of the otherwise grim topic of the rise and fall of the beloved Blackberry cellphone.

Premiering at the 73rd Berlin International Film Festival, “Blackberry” follows the success of Johnson’s “Operation Avalanche,” which premiered at 2016 Sundance. Similarly mockumentary style, “Blackberry” follows the creators of the Blackberry. Mike Lazaridis is played by Jay Baruchel (“How to Train Your Dragon) and and co-founder Douglas Fregin is played by the director, Johnson.

The fi lm begins with Lazaridis and Fregin pitching the phone idea to businessman Jim Balsilli, played by Glenn Howeron (“It’s Always Sunny”). Instantly, the character’s personalities are clear. Fregin and Lazaridis stumble through the pitch with Lazaridis quietly murmuring to himself and Fregin excitedly displaying the phone prototype. Balsilli, clearly unamused, ends the meeting quickly, suggesting the two go elsewhere with their pitch. Fregin and Lazaridis return to their o ce,

opportunities because they are equally talented.

“There will always be a marketplace for compelling cinematic storytelling, whether in movies, documentaries, TV shows, or other media and on whatever platform,” Eaton said. “ I would encourage my young students just to keep focused on telling compelling stories that glorify God and that engage the hearts and minds of viewers, and the money will

Research in Motion (RIM), which is a messy space composed of random electronics fi lled with other men who also wear graphic t-shirts, headbands and play video games during work hours.

It is clear that the two need someone professional to handle the businessa goal accomplished in the following scene when Balsilli calls back to set up a meeting with them. At the meeting, Balsilli, still the only one wearing a suit, o ers to join their business venture, if only they give him a position as CoCEO. Initially resistant, the two agree after they fi nd out the Department of Robotics scammed them $16 million by claiming prototypes they sent a year prior came broken. With the agreement, RIM is never the same, as Balsilli is able to get Blackberry sold with the genius of Fregin and Lazaridis, and before long, the company is worth upwards of $3 billion. For a story that audiences already know the ending to, Johnson is a gifted fi lmmaker in understanding the draw to keep watching has to come elsewhere.

Unlike “The Social Network,” which focuses primarily on Zuckerberg’s journey, “Blackberry” is about relationships. About 20 minutes into the fi lm, Lazaridis is about to get in the car with

come if you can keep doing that to the highest level of quality that you are able to.” For a union-heavy industry, Eaton said this event has struck meaningful conversations about providing just compensation for writers’ work.

“It’s critical only in the sense that it’s an important conversation and negotiation about what constitutes just compensation for

Balsilli to go to a pitch meeting when he explains to Balsilli that he needs Fregin to come because he’s “his best friend.” Five minutes later, he establishes to Balsilli that he will only work with him if he will “promise never to lie,” a moment that also foreshadows the climax of the fi lm. During the midpoint of the fi lm, Balsilli cancels on a pitch meeting and Lazaridis reluctantly asks Fregin to join him. Moments like these illustrate how much the characters are changing . Almost every moment of the fi lm feels expertly crafted, from the technique in the fi lmmaking (think “The Office” style), to wardrobe, script writing, casting and all the elements sprinkled throughout. However, the best scene occurs in act one.

Balsilli and Lazaridis are heading to their fi rst pitch meeting and viewers are on the edge of their seats as the two are running late. Once they make it to the o ce, viewers only have a moment to catch their breath before Lazaridis announces he forgot the prototype.

Balsilli yells at Lazaridis and Lazaridis quickly leaves, much to the confusion of Balsilli. Balsilli, alone, goes into the pitch room, where he fumbles to explain the phone and the businessmen remark

“Hopefully, the viability of these industries will be preserved for future generations who make compelling content, whether it is union shows and movies or non-union shows,” said Eaton.

While the changes can a ect CBU students heading into this field, they also allow aspiring writers to make a di erence.

Lee discussed the impact she would like to have when she begins her career.

“bittersweet.”

Documentaries and live music are two completely di erent worlds. Both Medina and Donovan said they would look back on newer documentaries for memories of concerts they attended or older films to see a band that is no longer around.

Listeners are faced with a trade-o . One may be a coste ective experience, while the other is an intimate, in-person, immersive experience. The choice is ultimately up to the listener.

“I want to make a di erence with my voice and tell unique stories that inspire,” Lee said. “I hope I will also be a voice for other writers as well.”

This breakthrough in contracts has ensured a sustainable living for many union writers. With a win for the writers, the fight continues as they are still encouraged to walk with their fellow actors in SAG who are still on strike.

to him that he “clearly is not a tech person,” and that he “got scammed by a bunch of nerds.” In this moment, Balsilli realizes he might have gotten everything wrong. As a viewer, I also wondered if Balsilli was getting scammed. Up to this point in the fi lm, there is no validation of Lazaridis and Fregin actually knowing what they are doing. Purposefully, we only know a prototype of theirs ‘didn’t work.’ Despite everyone in the world knowing Blackberry worked, Johnson is able to suspend that belief for a moment - an insanely brilliant move. Just then, Lazaridis runs in with the prototype and begins explaining why the Blackberry is di erent, talking more confidently than the audience has ever seen him. It’s as if we are the businessmen in the room, being just as shocked by this change in character presentation. It is one of the best executed scenes in a fi lm.

“Blackberry” received outstanding critical acclaim. For a fi lm made for under $5 million, Johnson proves that fi lms created by people who genuinely care about the craft can succeed, even without the fi nance and marketing from major studios.

“When they filmed their documentaries, in a way, it kind of feels like my seratonin.

Joanna Medina, junior public relations major

“

In some cases, it can give fans a better perspective on who the artist really is, in the eyes of God, so to speak.

Michael Eaton, professor of film studies and production

“

The concert is also about more than just the artist. It is about all the fans and people you meet and the things that happen before and after the show.

Brooke Donovan, senior film production major

‘Barbenheimer’ fuels theater engagement

BY SARAH MURPHY ASST. A&E EDITOR

On July 21, people flocked to the movie theaters dressed head-to-toe in one of two colors: black or pink.

A person’s outfit made their choice clear in the heavy debate that circulated during the summer months — whether one would see “Barbie” or “Oppenheimer” first. The stark contrast between “Barbie,” a musical comedy centered around the nostalgic fashion doll and “Oppenheimer,” a drama that follows the physicist who created the atomic bomb, caused an explosion among internet users when they were set to release on the same day. This cultural phenomenon became known as “Barbenheimer.”

Interestingly, the release date for the films was not a coincidence. Christopher Nolan, the director of “Oppenheimer,” previously worked with Warner Bros. while directing his previous movie, “Tenet.” When the film finally came out, Warner Bros. immediately released it on streaming services. According to Screen Craft, this provoked Nolan to end his contract with Warner Bros. and instead direct “Oppenheimer” with Universal Studios.

Hannah Lee, senior film production and screenwriting major, anticipated the release of “Oppenheimer” due to Nolan’s acclaimed filmmaking.

“After the box o ce fail for ‘Tenet,’ fans have been eager for a new Nolan project, and the damaged psyche of the figure of Oppenheimer is a perfect playground for what Nolan does best,” Lee said.

A year after its showing, Nolan announced the release date of “Oppenheimer.” However, three weeks later, Warner Bros. announced “Barbie,” which so happened to have the same release date. Some fans speculated that Warner Bros. did this to spite Nolan by distracting audiences with “Barbie,” according to Screen Craft.

However, Warner Bros’ attempt to prevent moviegoers from seeing “Oppenheimer” had the opposite e ect, as the competition between the two movies only added to the movie’s appeal.

The competition was not the only thing that beckoned audiences. The set designs for “Barbie” had an absurd amount of pink and realistic-looking doll houses. The “Barbie” logo was also in its font from the 1980s.

Dr. Natalie Winter, professor of management and marketing, recognized how this sentimentality attracted audiences.

“The movie tried to capitalize on the nostalgia of Gen Xers and Millennials who played with Barbies growing up,” Winter said.

Alyssa White, senior double major in creative writing and film, said she thoroughly enjoyed both films.

“It was like “Barbie” is just a big party and everyone’s invited,” White said. “Because the Ken dolls are in there, it can appeal to the men and how the movie is talking about masculinity. And then women are going for the message of women empowerment.”

Greta Gerwig, the director of “Barbie,” addressed feminism by detailing the experiences women have had over the past century while reflecting progressive attitudes toward gender roles.

“There are too many problems, too many expectations, too many thoughts. It’s overwhelming,” Lee said. “But I think the way that Greta approached the reflection of those themes was most important.”

For “Oppenheimer,” lead actors Cillian Murphy, Florence Pugh and the remaining star-studded supporting cast attracted several di erent fanbases.

For “Barbie,” Margot Robbie as Barbie and Ryan Gosling as Ken were the defining elements of the film. The idea of casting two well-known actors for a

film that was unusual for them to star in only added to its popularity. These two actors spent countless hours attending interviews and red-carpet events.

“Press engagement is generally key for movie promotions as are movie theater previews,” Winter said. “Movies are also promoted through social media advertising and word-of-mouth marketing.”

The “Barbenheimer” trend may be the most viral movie phenomenon to occur on social media. Internet users created memes, fan art and TikToks to flaunt ‘Barbenheimer’ outfits.

“Without even trying, they were also promoting the movies,” White said.

The rise in accessibility of streaming services at home has taken a toll on movie theaters, according to The Huntington News. However, thanks to “Barbenheimer,” audiences

have poured into theaters once again, providing hope for the future of movie theaters.

The two movies may have received less attention without this competitive element. Due to this, film companies are attempting to recreate “Barbenheimer” by releasing polar opposite movies on the same day. Whether or not this will fly with moviegoers, the success of “Barbenheimer” has been encouraging for production companies and theaters alike.

“There is a long history of big summer blockbusters competing with one another,” Lee said. In 2008, the ABBA musical “Mammia Mia” and Nolan’s “The Dark Knight” came out the same day. “‘Barbie’ and ‘Oppenheimer’ just happen to be the first to be released in an insane tech world dominated by social media to further advertising.”

Concerts spark conversations about safety

BY SARAH MURPHY ASST. A&E EDITOR

Live music is electrifying. When a band or artist performs, the act of coming together to hear music creates a high-energy environment that allows a unique connection with others. Concerts are the prime spot for this experience.

“I am a concert junkie, and I have a very big passion for music. A lot of these artists have shaped the way I am as a person,” said Joanna Medina, a junior public relations major who has recently attended more than 25 concerts and music festivals. “When you hear that song [later], you always play and physically see the artist play that song. It is a di erent type of happiness.”

In recent years, increasing safety concerns at live music events — from poor crowd control to weather events trapping attendees onsite for days

with limited supplies — have prompted questions about how to best navigate the live music landscape and other art-related events integral to Southern California.

It is important that festival-goers, especially students who may be attending for the first time, are aware of their surroundings.

“If you’re like me and go to a lot of general admission shows, be stern and have an open mind because people are very rough,” Medina said.

Safety is crucial when it comes to festivals, from proper hydration in the heat to anticipating overloaded wifi networks.

Friends can also be a great asset when it comes to protection. Using the buddy system when going to the bathroom or leaving with a group can deter potential dangers.

According to RAINN and the Department of Justice, safety items like pepper spray (when legal) and personal alarms can also help protect attendees in dense crowds and while walking to and from events.

Tania Brooks, sophomore film major, recently attended a local music festival with her friends, who took the time to plan for the unexpected ahead of time.

“We made sure when we moved around we held each

other’s wrists. Before arriving at the event, we shared our location with someone not at the event for an emergency,” Brooks said. “Phone cellular connection was not very good, so my group had a meeting spot if we did get separated.”

Treating fellow attendees with respect is vital to enhancing the festival experience, Medina said. Many problems arise simply from a lack of consideration for others’ space.

“Be a decent person, have manners, and, overall, enjoy the experience,” Medina said. “With that, you’re going to survive anything regardless if it is a calm or crazy concert.”

Concerts bring together diverse groups to celebrate culture and music, allowing strangers to bond over shared passions. Taking the necessary precautions to ensure protection is essential. By making safety a priority, live music continues to be a source of joy in the community.

Photo by Madison Sardana | Banner

A Regal Cinemas marquee displays upcoming movie times. “Barbie,” released in July, was still playing in September. Earning more than $1.3 billion at the global box office, it has become the highest-grossing movie of the year worldwide, according to Variety.

“ We made sure when we moved around, we held each other’s wrists. Before arriving at the event, we shared our location with someone not at the event for an emergency.

Tania Brooks, sophomore film major

Soccer looks ahead to repeat greatness

BY HANNAH GORDON ASST. SPORTS EDITOR

As of Sept. 20, the Lancers hold a record of 2-4-1. However, they are not intimidated by living up to their success last season and look forward to returning to the field.

“It’s not intimidating coming back after a winning season,” said Leo Mendez, senior finance major, striker and wing for the CBU men’s soccer team. “I am very excited for this season and the group that we have. We do have pressure on our back after last season but we mainly see it as motivation and standard for CBU men’s soccer to do better every season.”

Most players are excited to return to the field but for Nolan Premack, senior biomedical science major and goalkeeper, it is also a return to his passion.

“I am most excited to be back on campus and playing games at CBU Soccer Stadium. Also, I am returning from injury, so getting back onto the field and playing the game that I love is always a great feeling,” Premack said.

The Lancers have exciting games coming up, including the Crosstown Showdown at UC Riverside that will conclude the non-conference schedule. Conference play kicks o on Sunday, October 1, against GCU at the CBU soccer stadium.

Last year, CBU men’s soccer had a dynamite season that culminated in victory at the WAC Championship.

“Winning the WAC was exciting as it is but being able to share that experience with our fans and the CBU population was very special,” Premack said.

Building that momentum takes time, especially early in the season when most teams try to find their rhythm.

“Personally, I think our mo-

ments of greatness were overcoming adversity early in the season and coming together as a unit and turning our season into a winning season,” Mendez said. Fans would have witnessed all the ‘moments of greatness’ in between as the soccer team began building its momentum. The men’s soccer team did something truly amazing that season, setting a precedent in their Division I era with their success this past season. With such an inspiring story behind them, they can move forward confidently.

Thomas Beecham, senior biomedical engineering major and center-back on the team, shared, “I think the highlights for me were winning the WAC championship and being the first team in the school to play in the NCAA tournament. Although we lost to UCLA, the support throughout these games and after the season from everyone was unreal and really special.”

The key to the men’s soccer team’s success is their commitment to excellence and personal responsibility. As student-athletes, they know their success depends on more than just wins.

Premack described greatness as “achieving at a very high level” and pursues that ideal in all areas of his life.

“I try and maintain greatness throughout my life by

consistently pushing myself to be the best I can be. Athletically, that looks like extra work on the field, extra reps, extra film sessions and studying film. Academically, that looks like sometimes sacrificing my social life to ensure I am prepared to succeed in the classroom and I am setting myself up for success. In my opinion, greatness is achieved by being in a relentless pursuit of excel-

lence in whatever aspect of life you are focused on,” Premack said.

Beecham shares that his responsibility as captain influences his pursuit of greatness.

“To me, greatness is being able to achieve something special and the ability to inspire and improve others along the way. I always try to progress daily towards short-term and long-term goals on and o the field, and I try to surround myself with people who help push me in the right direction to achieve this. Being a senior and captain of the team, there is more responsibility for me to

get the most out of all my teammates and I think this also helps hold me accountable to lead by example and set the right standard to help the younger guys grow in the same way.”

Achieving greatness is not easy and requires dedication and hard work.

“Greatness does not come overnight,” Mendez said. “There’s a lot of things that you must sacrifice to achieve your goals.” While back-to-back titles will not be easy to achieve, the team is capable. The Lancers will surely deliver this year on the reputation they’ve built.

Weight lifting broken down to build up stronger

BY MICHAEL MARKS SPORTS EDITOR

The gym can be scary and challenging for new or inexperienced people interested in weightlifting or general fitness. Oftentimes, it can get confusing. From di erent lifting methods to cable machines and dumbbells, it is easy to see how people can feel lost. Strength and Conditioning Coach David Herd helped break down fitness and the best approaches when it comes to building strength.

He began by explaining that while there is much debate between full-body workouts versus isolating and training a specific muscle, one is preferable in managing soreness.

“If you keep it to full-body every single time you do a workout, it tends to relieve some of the soreness that you experience,” Herd said. “You could capture [a full body workout] in four workouts throughout the week. You’re never gonna go overboard on one specific group of muscles. You’ll still feel it, but it’s not like, “Ah, I can’t move.”

Working to prevent soreness

will allow for more e ective training sessions in the long term.

use actual free weights where you have to target a lot of muscles, even the small ones, to maintain control of the weight is gonna get the most work out of it,” Herd said.

While training is important, no one can train the same way forever, as you will plateau. The science behind why this happens is just as important as changing your workout routine.

form is not just important; it is essential.

line back and forth,” Premack said.

There are many ways to weight train and while each way helps to build strength effectively, certain techniques prove to be more e ective than others.

“Using free weights and trying not to rely too much on machines too much, you’re gonna get the most bang for your buck. Anything where you can get away from machines and

“Our bodies always want to maintain homeostasis. It wants to stay comfortable with what it’s doing. So initially, when you start a workout program, your body becomes alarmed by it. As long as it keeps receiving that stimulus, it’s going to wanna adapt and adjust to it so that it’s comfortable again. Once your body becomes comfortable with those stimuli, you then have to introduce a new stimulus to it for it to be alarmed again,” Herd said.

One last aspect to consider when lifting is form. Oftentimes, people lift too much, which could have a negative impact on their goals or risk injury. Starting with the correct

“We always start by making sure the form is right. People fall into a trap where they see a video on social media of someone doing a perfect exercise. It’s perfect, everything is right, its textbook form, but not everyone’s body is set up to have the same movement and the same form,” Herd said. “You always wanna make sure you have good form first and then get stronger in that form and range of motion as you move on.”

Nolan Premack, senior biomedical science major and player on the men’s soccer team, shared some of the ways that he maintains fitness in and out of season.

“Early on, a lot of our cardio is just purely running-based and fitness test-based. However, during the season, most of the cardio comes with a ball at our feet in practice. That is my favorite way of working on cardio because it is a lot more fun to improve cardio while working on di erent skills rather than just running in a straight

By making exercise fun, anyone can find their groove and become successful in their fitness journey.

“As someone who is extremely driven, I am always wanting to do extra work, get extra reps in training, and push myself to the max,” Premack said. “I have learned that I need to be smarter with this so that I do not burn myself out for practice the next day.”

With such a demanding workload between practice and the weight room, managing soreness and physical exertion can be tough, even for the most seasoned athletes. By learning to workout smarter, it is easier to avoid burnout and prevent injuries in the long run.

Rachel Lunney, senior early childhood studies major, shared some of her favorite aspects of the gym.

“The specific lift that I enjoy doing is Roman dead lifts. These lifts are important because in golf, it requires a lot more upper body strength than lower

body. On the course, we are not always given the opportunity to have a golf cart. Therefore, we are sometimes someone else’s caddies. Doing Roman dead lifts allows the strength of the posterior muscles to get stronger. They also require similar motions to prepare for a golf swing,” said Lunney..

Whether you are training for an event, looking to take your training to the next level, or just general fitness, these tips can help anyone take their training further.

Photo by Elijah Hickman | Banner

Adolfo Pino, junior nutrition major and member of the men’s soccer team, runs down the field with the ball during their game against San Diego State University on Aug. 18 to continue their winning streak.

“ I am most excited to be back on campus and playing games at CBU Soccer Stadium.”

Nolan Premack, senior biomedical science major

“There’s a lot of things that you must sacrifice to achieve your goals.”

Leo Mendez, senior finance major

“ If you keep it to full-body [workouts] every single time you do a workout, it tends to relieve some of the soreness that you experience.”

David Herd, Strength and Conditioning coach

“

I have learned that I need to be smarter with [working out] so that I do not burn myself out for practice the next day.”

Nolan Premack, senior biomedical science major

BY ALEXZA BAHNMILLER EDITOR-IN-CHIEF

Taylor Swift is one of the biggest names right now. Against my will, I am aware of this. It seems no matter where you go online, Taylor Swift is there. Even if you don’t like Taylor Swift, the algorithm seems intent on making you feel as though you should. This then translates to the real world, where liking Taylor Swift has become a badge of honor worn by nearly everyone. And if you don’t agree, you are either “too good” to fit into this class of superior beings or you just don’t have good taste.

I want to begin by establishing that I have tried to enjoy the world of Taylor Swift. At some point or another, it dawned on me that maybe I should just become a fan of hers and then it won’t bother me so much every time I go through my social media. So I did my research on Ms. Swift. There must be some reason that people enjoy her so much and I was deadset on finding out this secret that I seemed to not be in on.

The first thing that I discovered is people think she’s a great artist. I remember when “Anti-Hero” came out and everyone was so excited over one line, “I’ll stare directly at the sun but never in the mirror.”

Not to come o as arrogant, but this is a basic, first grade-level of writing. Also, the hype with “All Too Well?” “I’m a crumpled-up piece of paper lying here.” How in the world is this songwriting Grammy nomination level?

Along with the lyrics, her clues are supposedly another great part of her artistry. But

Taylor Swift triggers me

these clues aren’t anything crazy, either. If Swift wears black nail polish, that’s a clue that she’s releasing “Reputation” next. It is as if the things she does are so overly hyped that you believe she really must be a genius. But when you strip away the hype, sometimes it’s just nail polish.

This leads me to my next point. If Taylor Swift is an overhyped singer, why are people so dedicated to defending her?

People say that it is because they’ve “grown up” with her. But then why her and not Katy Perry? I’m pretty sure the same fan base that listened to “Fifteen” listened to “Firework” and “Roar.” If it’s because she’s consistently released good music, I don’t think that’s a good argument as, in comparison, her newer albums, “Lover,” “Folklore” and “Evermore,” sold a minimum of 2 million copies fewer than her older albums, according to USA Today. Swift is probably aware of this, which is why she’s recycling old material in order to tour, i.e. the Eras Tour. Tactfully, this tour is able to market and disguise itself as a tour that isn’t just doing just that but is instead part of a narrative — the Eras Tour is Swift’s bold statement as she rerecords her old music.

However, there is one thing that I’ll give Swift: her ability to build a persona that keeps her fan base loyal and feeling connected to her despite the fact that she is far removed from them. According to Forbes, Swift is the 2nd richest woman in music and 34th richest woman in America, with a net worth of $740 million. Additionally, Swift owns eight homes valued at $150 million (according to Vulture) and a $40 million private jet, (according to Simple Flying). Swift does not live a relatable lifestyle but a luxuri-

ous one that depends on keeping a heavy stream of income flowing. An example of her being oblivious to modern world problems was during the 2023 Grammys when Swift was questioned if her fans could get the price of eggs to drop. She responded (seeming confused), “There’s really nothing they can’t accomplish.”

People pointing out her reaction online were met with a swarm of fans eager to defend their queen. Somehow, fans are convinced that they must defend because Swift understands them. Understands them — because she also experienced a breakup? Because fans have also felt like a crumpled-up piece of paper? But maybe that’s why the lyrics are so basic. So everyone can feel like they are being related to. I get that lyrics are meant to connect, but I can connect with lyrics and not feel the need to defend a person I have never met for no real reason. It kind of sounds like brainwashing, doesn’t it? Or am I not allowed to say that because it is triggering for fans that are totally-not-brainwashed?

I don’t hate Taylor Swift. I just don’t think the level of success she has is because she’s a great artist but is instead due to a combination of the team she has around her, such as her PR team and her commitment to presenting a perfect image of herself that fans buy into so much that they become a huge unpaid marketing team themselves, shutting down bad rumors and continuing to build the hype among each other. In total, these elements leave her practically untouchable. As someone who tried and failed to understand the Taylor Swift excitement, my lingering question to Swift-loving readers is still — why?

Video games outdo movies

immersion that is impossible in film.

BY CONNOR RYAN MANAGING EDITOR

The line between video games and movies becomes more blurred every year. Over the past 20 years, the technology used to make video games has become so advanced that many high-budget games are almost photorealistic. Also, the budget of AAA games often rivals the current blockbusters. For instance, the gaming studio CD Projekt Red stated in a financial report that Cyberpunk 2077 cost $174 million to develop. Countrywide, in 2022 the U.S video game industry earned almost $350 billion, according to Statista. As video games have crept toward mainstream entertainment, using A-list actors as voice actors has become a regular occurrence, such as Keanu Reeves starring in “Cyberpunk 2077” and Giancarlo Esposito in “Far Cry 6.” While these are significant factors in the rising popularity of video games, the main reason they are flying o the shelveis their ability to facilitate a level of

According to a study by presentation design agency Bu alo 7, about 67% of people prefer the stories of video games over movies. One of the main reasons video games often have better plots is because they can get away with telling a story that occurs over 20 to 50 hours of gameplay. Unlike with movies, gamers have no qualms about playing video games for long periods of time, allowing for more character development. Additionally, character development in video games is further en-

long-lasting consequences across all three games. Thus, every person’s experience with the game will be unique, and their role in guiding the characters along on their journey causes players to not only feel invested but responsible for these characters. Even completing the game itself is highly fulfilling. While many movies have inspiring or thought-provoking story arcs, no one feels as though they’ve accomplished something as they get up to leave the theater. Conversely, video games, especially harder ones, require a player to possess a certain skill level to progress through the narrative. The ending of a video game is extremely rewarding, as it represents an individual’s mastery of mechanics. Players must earn the conclusion to the narrative through their individual skill, which makes it more meaningful as it is a product of their hard work.

hanced by one’s ability to control the main character. Playing as a character rather than just watching them on the silver screen creates an intimate connection between the player and the story. Since players are directly responsible for moving the story forward, they are more likely to feel like they are a part of it.

One game that does this well is the “Mass E ect” series. The story, set in a futuristic outer space setting, follows Commander Shepard and his crew as they take on galactic threats. The most engaging aspect of this story is that the player’s decisions impact the outcome of a given scenario and have

Thus, video games are often more impactful than films. Video games possess a unique ability to connect to people through personalized narratives. Players’ ability to interact with the narrative through the characters allows them to feel like they are contributing to the story, something that movies are incapable of facilitating. Video games also challenge people, making the conclusion of the narrative both a destination and a reward. Overall, the medium provides opportunities for unique and immersive storytelling in a way that surpasses the limits of cinema.

Cities need to embrace pedestrian-friendly designs

ting people outdoors and away from their stressors.

Creating more and safer sidewalks would encourage more feet on the ground and fewer tires on the road, leading to less tra c and cleaner air.

BY VALERIE LA PONZA STAFF WRITER

exercise and health. These improvements not only decrease the risk of chronic illnesses such as obesity, diabetes and asthma but can also boost mental health by get-

While this is not sustainable for everyone, for anyone who lives close to their work even a train or subway station can help reduce tra c, leading to shorter travel times and improved air quality.

People won’t often explore their city because of the constraints of sticking to already mapped out streets and highways and the heavy focus on car infrastructure. However, there

are shops and experiences one would not usually go to unless they walked the streets. When a city is so car focused, there is little room for citizens to explore their city on foot, leaving many rather remarkable landmarks, small hole-in-the-wall shops and otherwise unrecognized places to fall o the map.

If there is less tra c caused by cars trying to get through crowded intersections like in downtown Riverside, there will be a decrease in greenhouse gas emissions.

In addition, creating more greenery and tree-lined streets for people to walk along will help combat global warming

and clear our air for a more sustainable future.

A pedestrian-friendly city leads to more people interacting and fosters community. Increased foot tra c on city streets benefits small and holein-the-wall businesses, leads to a resurgence in street performers and attracts citizens to museums and galleries.

When cities become pedestrian-friendly, it is a step towards bettering the lives of people in the communities and instilling di erent forms of transportation rather than increasing profits and e ciency.

Other countries, such as in Europe, are already pedestri-

an friendly and have reaped the same benefits of safer city streets, healthier lives and a brighter cultural atmosphere. Ultimately, transforming more cities to be pedestrian-friendly can only benefit us.

With a host of mental, physical, economic, spiritual and environmental benefits, creating a pedestrian-friendly city should be our future. While cars, trucks and other vehicles help the world go around, there is no reason to push aside the benefits that a walking society can have based on the needs of consumerism. It’s time to step forward into a pedestrian-friendly world.

“Character development in video games is further enhanced by one’s ability to control the main character.”

“Every person’s experience with the game will be entirely unique, and their role in guiding the characters along on their journey causes players to not only feel invested but responsible.”

Cartoon by Lauren Vincent