INSIDE
Fierce awards show fashion ‘Project X’ delivers crazy ride Stop complaining about campus
PAGE 2 PAGE 3
“Undefeated” scores PAGE 3
PAGE 4
FRIDAY
MARCH 2, 2012 FRIDAY High 75, Low 43 SATURDAY High 63, Low 43
VOLUME 96 ISSUE 67 FIRST COPY FREE, ADDITIONAL COPIES 50 CENTS
CAMPUS
Reality shows glamorize stereotypes YOLONDA BATTLE
Contributing Writer ybattle@smu.edu
Photo Courtesy of The DeGolyer Library
The Battle of the Alamo lasted 13 days, finally ending on March 6, 1836. While the battle was waged in San Antonio, Texan revolutionaries officially seceded from Mexico on March 2, 1836.
Texas celebrates its Independence Day TASHIKA VARMA Assignments Desk Editor tvarma@smu.edu Get out your cowboy boots and Texas spirit, because Friday is Texas Independence Day, a holiday marking the day that Texas seceded from Mexico in 1836. “Texans have an immense amount of state pride, more so than they are proud to be Americans,” Alexandra Feldman, a Houston born and raised SMU student, said. “We see ourselves as singular and special, so celebrating our independence reaffirms this.” SMU is joining in on the celebration as well. SMU’s DeGolyer Library has an existing copy of the Texas Declaration of Independence, the document that allowed Texas to officially break away from Mexico.
“Before Texas was independent, it had gone through many different stages of development. So many different countries wanted this land, and for Texas to finally break through from Mexico and become its own entity is a big deal,” senior Elizabeth Zamora said. “I don’t think any other state in the U.S. experienced what Texas did, and that’s what makes it special. It makes us who we are as Texans. We are fighters and are proud of our history.” Sophomore Madeline Buckthal’s family has a connection to the Texas Revolution. One of her ancestors fought in the famous battle at the Alamo. “The fact that such a small number of men were willing to defend this state and fight for their lives and the lives of their future
generations means so much to us,” she said. Buckthal even shares a middle name with this very city — Dallas. Texas Independence Day is a legal holiday in Texas, and many SMU students shared why they love Texas. “The people are friendly, there are tons of things to do and Texas presents so many opportunities for different groups of people,” SMU student and Houston native Jennifer Rogers said. “I love the diversity.” America’s 1776 Declaration of Independence inspired Texans to secede. The declaration claimed that Mexico had “ceased to protect the lives, liberty and property of the people” and committed “arbitrary acts of oppression and tyranny.” SMU senior William Floyd
thinks that every Texan should be celebrating this holiday. “Texans celebrate Texas Independence Day because Texas was its own country and we will never let you forget it. We are proud of our history and heritage and want to let everyone else know how important Texas is to us,” Floyd said. “We want to show that we are different from everyone else and that we are not part of a region such as the Southwest or the South in general, but rather that we are Texan.” The Texas Revolution would later trigger the Mexican-American War when the U.S. decided to annex Texas. The annexation does not stop students from having Texas pride. Sophomore Caroline Morehead is from Missouri but has more Texas
tate lecture
pride than some natives. “Texas is the biggest state in America. It is home to so many people and so many prosperous businesses and historic and cultural traditions,” she said. “I think it is a way to celebrate Texas and the pride that Texans have for their state. There is no other state like Texas with the people like Texans.” The DeGolyer Library will also have a 5,000-photo collection of Texas history ranging from 1846 to 1945. Students can view the photos online. Gabi Pineda, Dallas born and raised, knows why Texas is the only state in the U.S. that celebrates its independence with an official holiday. “Everything’s bigger in Texas, our history and all included,” she said.
Reality television shows like “Khloe and Lamar,” “Basketball Wives,” “The Bachelor” or “First 48” have made huge waves across television channels since the early 2000s, ousting scripted shows like “One Life to Live” and “All My Children” off the air. Since reality TV’s universal takeover, people have questioned the messages some reality shows are sending and the impact it is making on younger audiences. The Multicultural and Student Affairs Department decided to tackle this topic by hosting a forum Thursday. in the M Lounge asking students how reality TV has made its mark on their lives. “We wanted to create and establish a dialogue on campus and get people talking,” said Creston Lynch, the new Multicultural and Student Affairs Director. “We felt reality TV is something everyone could relate to.” Real Talk: Reality TV is one of a number of series the Multicultural Student Affairs
SeeTV page 6
BIG E AST
Men’s basketball poised for huge jump in new conference BILLY EMBODY Contributing Writer wembody@smu.edu
SPENCER J EGGERS / The Daily Campus
Micheal Pollan athor of “Food Inc.” spoke to SMU in part of the Tate Lecture series Thursday night.
Pollan talks food simplicity RAHFIN FARUK News Editor rfaruk@smu.edu Bestselling author Michael Pollan brought grocery bags onto the stage at the Tate Lecture Series Thursday. The healthy food activist showed a shocked audience the truth behind many family favorites. “A cereal full of sugar is being sold as medicine for parents and as candy for children,” Pollan said. “The food industry is always a step ahead of us.” Pollan criticized many of the manipulative tricks of processed food companies. “Whole grain is the number one ingredient in a box of
Cinnamon Toast Crunch but the next four ingredients are different types of sugar,” Pollan said. The Oxford educated journalist contends that after World War II, America experienced a food revolution that brought more processed and refined foods to the marketplace. “There were many changes in the American system and the real change took place in 1977 with the government-mandated low fat campaign,” Pollan said. In 1977, the government believed that a dramatic rise in national rates of heart disease were largely due to animal fat. When establishing policy, legislators followed dangerous precedents that would affect food for the next three decades.
“Food legislation went from being written in clear to obscure language. But, the biggest problem is that we have gone from talking about familiar food to talking about nutrients,” Pollan said. “And that’s the real issue. We’ve reduced all food thought into a narrow framework.” Nutritionism — a term coined by critiques of the current food system — has shaped how the American media, public and experts perceive consumption. The concept is based around four main tenets: the key to understanding any food is based around the nutrient, experts are critical to food advice, a binary between blessed and evil nutrients
SeeTATE page 6
A new era is coming to SMU Athletics beginning in the 20132014 academic year with SMU’s departure from Conference USA to the Big East conference. A lot of attention has been given to the football team because of this move, but one of the other main beneficiaries is the men’s basketball program. New streams of revenue, better competition and a bigger spotlight are going to be coming into the program along with the pressure of playing on national television numerous times a year. “We’re excited,” Head Basketball Coach Matt Doherty said. “When you get to play a Georgetown, a Villanova, a Louisville night after night it is exciting.” After a recent win to snap the Mustangs losing streak, Coach Doherty made it clear that the student-athlete experience will be better. The move to the Big East will mean fewer classes will be missed and more amenities will be provided that will help the team during the long grind of the season. “Having chartered flights and a better training table on the road will slow down fatigue
SPENCER J EGGERS / The Daily Campus
SMU men’s basketball will face new challenges and rewards when it heads to the Big East conference with new rivals, games and a remodelled stadium.
on the team and ultimately will mean a better student-athlete experience,” Doherty said. Moody Coliseum will be undergoing $40 million in renovations soon and the home court advantage it will provide will be a recruiting tool for the Mustangs. Moody was opened in 1956 and according to Coach Doherty, the design is comparable to Cameron Indoor Stadium at Duke because of its very steep angle of the seats. The angle makes it seem like the fans are right on top of the court. Coach Doherty made it clear when SMU was deciding how to improve SMU’s facilities that
he did not want Moody torn down because due to today’s building code, the angle of the seats could not be that steep. So plans were made to improve the concourses, meeting areas, premium seating and install new audio and video systems throughout the coliseum. Students have traditionally come out to the bigger games on the schedule, but not in the numbers that you would see at a traditional Big East school. Games with nationally recognized names in college basketball are expected to bring out a large majority of the student body.
See BASKETBALL