MONDAY SEPT. 20, 2004 Vol. 126, No. 9
Sunny 82° / 61° w w w. s t u d l i f e . c o m
INSIDE
STUDENT LIFE T H E I N D E P E N D E N T N E W S PA P E R O F WA S H I N G T O N U N I V E R S I T Y I N S T. L O U I S S I N C E 1 8 7 8
A tentative ‘yes’ n Campaigns reportedly agree on dates, locations; format still in contention By Kelly Donahue and Jonathan Greenberger News Editor and Editor in Chief
“Que son tapas?” Step out to the “Extremely Titillating” BARcelona in Scene.
Presidential candidates John Kerry and George Bush have tentatively agreed to participate in all three proposed debate events, including the Oct. 8 debate at Washington University, the Washington Post and Associated Press reported late Sunday night. The report comes in the wake of weeklong negotiations in which Bush’s debate team reportedly had initially pressed for only two face-to-face meetings between the candidates. Many speculated that if one of the three proposed presidential debates were to be cut, it would be the one at the University because of its town hall-style format.
Both the Post and the AP reported last night that the town hall format is still the sticking point in the negotiations, and that the entire debate deal is contingent upon resolving the details of the town hall format’s details. Student Union President David Ader said yesterday that he is pleased that the candidates have tentatively agreed to face off at the University. Though Ader expressed reservation about the still-tentative nature of the event, he is excited about the progress in the negotiations. “I’m so relieved and excited,” said Ader. “It sort of puts new energy into what we’re doing now. Our debate preparations have totally new meaning now.” After rumors regarding the Bush campaign’s possible interest in cutting the Oct. 8 debate
from the schedule, Student Union (SU) composed a “Letter of Enthusiasm” that was sent to the campaign headquarters of each candidate along with the signatures of over 1,000 University students. The more than 35 pages of signatures were collected in the span of two hours. Ader hopes that SU’s determination and the support of students were noticed by the two campaign teams. “We certainly would like to think that the petition helped, and we’re hoping that it did get to the campaigns somehow,” said Ader. “I hope that the efforts of the over 1,000 people in this were noticed.” While members of the University community have expressed pleasure that the candidates will face off on campus, Jeff
Students weigh in on confirmation By Sarah Ulrey Scene Editor Despite the lack of official confi rmation on the status of the debate, students are optimistic as the Bush and Kerry campaigns tentatively agree to a full schedule of three debates. The outcome of the debate to be held at Washington University hinges on negotiations over the town-hall format. The Bush campaign was initially hesitant of the town-hall forum because it didn’t trust the process of identifying uncommitted voters, fearing heavily partisan questions.
See STUDENTS, page 3
See DEBATE, page 3
ANALYSIS
PROTEST PREPARATIONS
Campaigns work to spin announcement
PAGE 12
n Media scrambles for
breaking news, sources Rachel Streitfeld
If you don’t remember Friday…relive WILD from years past.
PAGE 12 What’s the real reason for the possible resolution of the debate about the debates?
Contributing Editor
EMILY TOBIAS | STUDENT LIFE
Members of the October 8th Coalition make life-size puppets to be used in their protests of the presidential debate. The Coalition plans to protest even if the debate is cancelled.
University to demolish old dorms; Koenig first to go n Noise and disruption irk
residents of Liggett
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By Nadee Gunasena Contributing Reporter
Calling all kleptos: Roman Goldstein takes issue with faulty bike locks.
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INDEX News Forum Sports Classifieds Scene
1 4 8 10 12
All seems quiet on the South 40 on a given afternoon until one approaches its northeastern corner, where construction of a new dormitory has begun. In August, Tarlton Construction started work on the dormitory that will eventually replace Koenig. The noise created by the building is hard for some to ignore. “I have definitely had residents complain,” said senior and Liggett Residential Advisor Cary Paine. “Especially students in those rooms facing the construction.” The L-shaped building being constructed adjacent to Liggett is part of the University’s fourth phase of construction on the South 40. The end goal is to replace all old dorms with newer, larger counterparts. Construction is concentrated on one wing of the future dorm so that students will have a place to live when Koenig is knocked down next year. The University cannot afford the loss of space required to knock down old housing before constructing new dorms. “The schedule is such that we have to build before we can take away,” said Assistant Vice Chancellor of Students Justin Carroll. “We have to have an adequate number of beds for students throughout this process.” Carroll assures students that all measures are being taken to reduce noise and disruption caused by construction. Although building
EMILY TOBIAS | STUDENT LIFE
Construction recently began on the dorm that will replace Koenig. Both Liggett and Koenig will soon be See DORMS, page 2 demolished to make way for new dorms.
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Though the Bush- Cheney campaign has tentatively agreed to the debate Oct. 8, negotiations over the town hall format will be hot and heavy during the coming days. If negotiators can’t iron out a solution that is palatable to the Bush team, the president could still bow out. “Both political parties are trying to maximize their opportunities and minimize their risks,” said Assistant Professor of History Peter Kastor, adding that the Bush team will need to scramble to spin this new move. “The president will have to do damage control. It will be very hard to make [his change of mind] look good— now they have to make it not look bad.” As the story plays out over the next few days, both campaigns will concentrate on spinning the news, crafting the sound bite and otherwise shaping the decision to their advantage. Late-breaking news When the first story breaks, the media race is on, with reporters across the country frantically scrolling through their speed dials to confirm the scoop. The Washington Post came out with the story first, attributing the scoop to Bush- Cheney officials who “declined to be identified because they were not supposed to be discussing the matter with reporters.” Loren Ghiglione, a Northwestern University journalism professor, said the Post has a step up on the competition. “Clearly the Post is the hometown newspaper,” said Ghiglione. “It probably has a larger group of reporters, is well connected to officials in the city, and is perhaps best positioned to find out this information.” The Post ran the quote even though its source would not go on the record. This put other news media in a bind. Press organizations are loath to attribute information to their competition, instead seeking independent confirmation on stories. In following up the Post’s story, other media had to find a source that would verify the information. The Associated Press (AP) spoke with “a person familiar with the debate negotiations” who “spoke on condition of anonymity since the agreement is not final.” “The AP probably has a responsibility to try to verify,” said Ghiglione. “If it can’t verify it can’t verify. It has to wait until it can.” The AP also quoted a source from the Bush campaign who denied any truth behind the rumors. Let the spinning begin As the story hits the pavement this morning, the political spinning begins. “The president’s critics will say they [the Bush campaign] had to back down because it
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