The Reveille 6-26-23

GEAUX BIG GEAUX OR HOME

LSU falls to Florida 24-4, sets up Game 3

CHOMPED

LSU humbled 24-4 by Florida in Game Two of CWS Finals

BY TYLER HARDEN @ttjharden8

The Tigers were humbled, but a response will be needed on Monday. LSU was punished by the Florida Gators 24-4 on Sunday afternoon, forcing a Game Three of the College World Series Finals. Those 24 runs by Florida set a new record for most runs scored in a College World Series game.

“Really good job by Florida winging the bat, they got great players,” Jay Johnson said. “Have to give credit to them, it was an onslaught of good atbats and barrels, and they’re a great team and they played great today.”

The Tigers will take the field once last time this season, and the stakes are at the highest they’ve been all year. If it wins, it’s national champions. If it loses, it’s runner-ups, and will have come as close as any team could have. LSU and Florida will square off one final time at 6 p.m. C.T. on Monday from Charles Schwab Field in Omaha, Nebraska. The game will be aired live on ESPN.

With the star power Florida has and the power in its lineup, a player that won’t jump out to you on paper had that started it all. In the second inning, Ty Evans homered to tie the game at one. When LSU went back up 3-1 in the bottom of the second, Evans fixed that with a grand slam in the third. In a six-run inning for the Gators, Evans led them to go up 7-3. He finished three for five on the day with two home runs, a single and five RBIs.

Evans led the offense, but its frontier stars also made an impact. As a team, the Gators scored 24 runs on 23 hits, including six home runs.

“There’s a lot to be said, we

obviously swung the bats really well today,” Florida head coach, Kevin O’Sullivan, said. “We can’t take any of these runs into tomorrow. We’re going to have to reset and reboot.”

Wyatt Langford put his talent on full display going five for five with two doubles, a home run, and two singles. He hit a three-run home run into the left field stands to extend the Gators lead to 11-3. Langford hit an RBI double in the seventh, and he doubled again in the eighth inning, which scored two more runs.

Jac Caglianone homered right after Langford in the sixth. He brought a run in on a fielder’s choice ground out in the fourth inning, which also was brought in by a throwing error at shortstop from Jordan Thompson. Caglianone had another RBI in the seventh on a groundout to first, which allowed Langford to score. In the eighth inning, Caglianone homered to make the score 19-3.

Cade Kurland was able to score on the throwing error from Thompson in the fourth, and he went two for three on the day with a double, a single,and a walk. Kurland doubled in the seventh inning to set up Langford to bring him in to score another run.

B.T. Riopelle homered in the ninth to give the Gators a 20-3 lead, and he finished two for five. Josh Rivera went two for six as well, and Colby Halter added a double and an RBI single.

LSU seemed to have control of the game early, but Evans’ grand slam put it in a tough position it wasn’t able to come back from. Dylan Crews led the team going two for three at the plate with two singles. Gavin Dugas went one for four with a double, Tommy White went one for four

with a single and Josh Pearson singled as well. Brayden Jobert homered in the ninth.

The large gap in the score allowed some bench players to get in the game, but it didn’t mean Florida was done scoring runs. In the ninth inning, Matt Prevesk came off the bench and scored an RBI triple. Prevesk scored on a single from Halter right after, making the score 22-

3. Deric Fabian hit a two-RBI single to extend their lead to 24-

3. Off the bench for LSU, Paxton Kling singled.

After Nate Ackenhausen impressed in his first start of the season on Tuesday night against Tennessee, he didn’t have the same rhythm on Sunday. He gave up six runs, only three of them being earned, in 2.1 innings, but struck out five.

Florida’s bats started to hit up when Gavin Guidry came into pitch. While Ackenhausen was charged with the runs, Guidry threw the pitch to Evans where he hit a grand slam. He went 1.2 innings and gave up two runs on two hits while striking out two.

Bryce Collins had even less luck on the mound. In 1.0 innings pitched, he gave up five runs on four hits, which included Langford and Caglianone’s back-to-back home runs in the sixth.

Blake Money stopped the bleeding in the sixth, but he let another run score, although it was attributed to Collins. He gave up one more in the seventh. Money pitched 1.1 innings and gave up two runs on three hits. Christian Little was next up, and at this point, LSU was defeated. In 1.2 innings, he gave up four runs on four hits and walked two. Sam Dutton came in the bottom of the ninth, and Florida hit him as well. In 1.0 inning, he gave up five runs

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on five hits.

Florida’s starting pitcher, Hurston Waldrep, came into Sunday’s matchup posing the biggest threat for the Tigers. His three-pitch mix has allowed him to thrive all season, but he struggled to find the strike zone. He went for just 2.1 innings, gave up three runs on four hits and walked six.

Blake Purnell came first in relief for Florida and got the Gators out of a bases-loaded jam in the bottom of the third, where the tying runner was at the plate. He pitched 1.2 innings, but walked two. Nick Ficarrotta was next in line, and he went 5.0 innings and gave up a run on three hits.

Both teams are forced to give it all they have on Monday. LSU will need to have a short memory after Sunday’s loss. It’s one thing to lose, but to lose by 21 runs in a crucial game would have lingering effects on any team. It’s most definitely not insurmountable, but a 21-run loss will take a lot to come back from, mentally and physically.

“Everybody in the locker room already forgot about it really,” Crews said. “Going to do what we need to do to get our bodies right tonight, and be ready to go for tomorrow.”

The key is for the Tigers to remember how they got there. But with Florida now in a rhythm and with momentum, it will be doing the same thing.

“There’s a lot on the line,” Caglianone said. “But as long as we keep playing our game, I think the cards will fall really well.”

Monday’s matchup will come down to who can play their Agame when it matters most, and whose A-game is truly better. Both have had it, but never at the same time. On Monday, both will need to bring it.

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CORRECTIONS & CLARIFICATIONS

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ABOUT THE REVEILLE

The Reveille is written, edited and produced solely by students of Louisiana State University. The Reveille is an independent entity of the Office of Student Media within the Manship School of Mass Communication. A single issue of The Reveille is free from multiple sites on campus and about 25 sites off campus. To obtain additional copies, please visit the Office of Student Media in B-39 Hodges Hall or email studentmedia@ lsu.edu. The Reveille is published biweekly during the fall, spring and summer semesters, except during holidays and final exams. The Reveille is funded through LSU students’ payments of the Student Media fee.

JOHN PETERSON / AP Photo

LSU’s Hayden Travinski (25) is forced out as Florida first baseman Jac Caglianone (14) covers the bag during the eighth inning of Game 2 of the NCAA College World Series baseball finals in Omaha, Neb., June 25. (AP Photo/John Peterson)

DEAN DRAMA

Manship interim dean violated policies, ‘dismissed’ faculty input

BY CLAIRE SULLIVAN @sulliclaire

The interim dean of the Manship School violated college policy and shut out faculty input at several turns in his push to lower admissions standards for the college, a Faculty Senate investigation concluded.

Josh Grimm, interim dean of the Manship School of Mass Communication, framed his plan as an effort to bolster diversity in the college. It would remove the preference for 3.0 GPAs, reduce credit hour requirements and admit highachieving students straight from high school in an effort to recruit and retain students.

The Manship faculty passed the plan in September in a contentious 16-12 vote, but an investigation by the Faculty Senate Adjudication Committee says the vote should be thrown out and the process vetting the policy redone. The adjudication committee is made up of faculty and hears complaints alleging violations of policy and procedure; it does not rule on the merits of policies.

The committee found Grimm repeatedly strayed from faculty governance norms and policies. He dismissed faculty concerns over the plan, created a special committee against university bylaws and stacked with those who reported directly to him, and held a vote over the proposal that violated the college’s policy, the committee found.

The committee spoke with five members of the Manship

CULTURE

School who witnessed relevant points in the process and compiled dozens of documents during its investigation.

A member of the adjudication committee, sociology professor Ed Shihadeh, said what happened at Manship was unlike anything he had seen in his 30 years at the university.

“I don’t know of a precedent like this that has ever happened,” Shihadeh said in an in-

terview, noting that he is new to serving on this specific committee but has spent decades at LSU as faculty.

Grimm defended his handling of the admissions proposal in a rebuttal included in the adjudication committee report and in a statement Friday.

The proposal had split the Manship School faculty from the start. Members voiced concerns that lowering standards

without increasing academic support would hurt students. Some said the plan implicitly reinforced negative stereotypes.

But it wasn’t the policy itself that launched the investigation: It was the process that preceded it. Two Manship faculty, professors Len Apcar and Jack Hamilton, wrote a scathing complaint in January that kickstarted the review.

“The vote not only symbolizes a deeply-divided faculty but is the culmination of a process that was so rushed and biased that it crushed every tenet of faculty governance,” Apcar and Hamilton wrote in a letter addressed to Faculty Senate President Inessa Bazayev.

They felt a consensus resolution could have been reached among faculty had the interim dean acted differently.

“Our concern here is not the admissions policy or goals that the interim dean wished to achieve, but with the methods by which he did this,” they wrote in a March letter to the adjudication committee. “Had he worked toward a consensus, he could have avoided a divisive vote.”

If Manship’s policy not allowing absentee votes had been followed, Grimm’s plan would not have passed. The vote among those present at the virtual meeting last fall was 12 yes, 12 no and one abstention. A tie would mean the plan fails.

But Grimm said, after the vote of those on the Zoom call, there were four absentee votes in favor of the proposal. These votes, the adjudication committee found, were in violation of college policy, which does not allow absentee votes on policy matters.

The committee pointed to Manship’s policy, included in the handbook distributed to staff just a month before the vote: “Except for personnel

Juneteenth celebrated with history, food and music by AACC

BY COLIN FALCON @nestingnests

The African American Cultural Center hosted an openinvite Juneteenth celebration complete with a live DJ, food provided by LSU dining and an address from both the cultural center’s director and the Office of Diversity and Inclusion’s executive associate vice president on Friday.

The event began at noon, but mashups of Beyonce songs could already be heard coming from the plaza in front of the campus Barnes & Noble 20 minutes before the first guests arrived, setting the scene for the celebration.

The AACC estimated 215 people attended the event, not counting those that neglected to sign in.

Later in the afternoon, attendees broke from conversing and enjoying the food to listen to the AACC’s Director, Percy Jackson, talk about the history of the holiday.

He explained how on June 19, 1865, Union General Gordon Granger landed in Galveston, Texas and officially announced that the Civil War was over, and all slaves were free. The Emancipation Proclamation had been given two years prior, but didn’t have any tangible effect on southern states due to the lingering presence of confederate rebels. Juneteenth or “Freedom Day” was the beginning of real freedom for African Americans, Jackson said.

“The Juneteenth celebration

MATTHEW PERSCHALL / The Reveille

The Journalism Building rises into the night sky on Sept. 13 on Field House Drive in Baton Rouge, La.

COLIN FALCON / The Reveille Lunch at the African American Cultural Center’s Juneteenth celebration on June 16.

MANSHIP, from page 3 matters specified in PS-36, all faculty voting shall be done in person or virtually. There shall be no proxy voting.”

Grimm rebutted this and “claimed that such absentee voting was widely known and was practiced extensively in the past,” the adjudication report read.

The committee rejected that claim. “The committee heard from several members who were not aware of this non-

JUNETEENTH, from page 3 was a time for reassuring each other, for praying and for gathering with remaining family members,” Jackson said. “That is why this holiday is very important for our culture and very important for us as a people, so we want to make sure we celebrate it for many many years to come.”

Jackson then handed the microphone to Jan Barker-Alexander, the Office of Diversity and Inclusion’s executive associate vice president, who asked “How many of you all learned about Juneteenth in school?”

Only one hand in the crowd went up. Barker-Alexander then emphasized the importance of education, calling the crowd to

procedural voting practice, and at least one such faculty – who arrived about fifteen minutes late to the Zoom meeting – was denied a vote,” the report said.

The committee also couldn’t find any instance of absentee votes being used in the past for policy matters. And even if such votes had been allowed in the past, the committee reported, those would be in violation of the college’s policy, too.

Ultimately, the adjudication committee recommended in April that the college redo its

teach about the holiday in their homes and with their friends.

“There is a purpose to us coming together today, which is to acknowledge that this is a central, key part of American History,” Barker-Alexander said.

Rounds of applause and supportive shouts from the crowd followed the speeches. Shortly after the clamor died down, the music returned and a three-person line dance to the Cupid Shuffle broke out, quickly becoming a near 30-person dance.

Iriel Nunnery, a graduate assistant at the AACC and one of the leading event organizers, said striking a balance between having fun and celebrating progress while still

vote and the process that preceded it—a charge it did not issue lightly.

“The [Faculty Senate Adjudication Committee] determined that such a recommendation could only be made if there were serious, recurring divergences from procedures when the vote was conducted and/ or during the events leading up to that vote,” the committee wrote.

“The vote clearly did violate Manship’s own policy on voting,” Shihadeh said.

understanding the significance of African American history in America was a key goal for the event.

“I hope people gain the importance of the holiday. That they know this is something we want to celebrate. We want to have a good time and enjoy the fact that we’ve progressed so much,” Nunnery said.

She also stressed the importance of the LSU community in making the event possible. The university’s human resources department played a massive role in spreading the word and recruiting volunteers, the athletics department donated a couple boxes of merchandise for the event’s raffle and LSU dining donated all the food, Nunnery said.

Grimm declined to be interviewed for this story and offered a statement instead.

“I respect the Adjudication Committee’s decision, though I was disappointed more context was not provided in the report,” he wrote in an email.

“It’s unfortunate that faculty votes were suppressed due to an interpretation of a policy and procedure that have been in place for years, but I look forward to voting in favor of more inclusive admission policies as a faculty member.”

“All of our close sponsors have been amazing. Just talking to them and coordinating with them and them just genuinely giving their time and investing in our event has been amazing,” Nunnery said.

Many attendees said the AACC succeeded in putting on a great celebration.

“I’m just happy to have been around so many people who also support Juneteenth, especially since it’s not really taught,” said 23-year-old LSU graduate Calvin Bridges as he left the event, still dancing to the music. “I’m leaving here happy.”

Carianne Asberry, a 21-yearold interdisciplinary studies senior and former student government member, said she ap -

Grimm did not respond to follow-up questions asking for further elaboration on faculty votes being suppressed or the committee reporting it could not find instances of absentee votes being used for policy matters.

It’s a tense end to Grimm’s term. He became interim dean after Martin Johnson died in September 2020, and he will be replaced in July by permanent dean Kimberly Bissell, an administrator from the University of Alabama.

preciates the progression of Juneteenth at LSU more than anything. During her time as a member of the Black Caucus in student government, Asberry said she helped fight to get the holiday recognized by the university.

“Seeing it go from not even on the school’s calendar to this big community event is great,” she said.

Asberry felt lucky to have even attended. She said she wasn’t aware the celebration was happening but happened to hear music while walking near the Union and decided to investigate. She said she was pleased with what she found.

“If you just follow the music on this campus,” Asberry said, “You’ll always find something.”

Dylan Crews wins the 2023 Golden Spikes Award over Skenes

BY TYLER HARDEN @ttjharden8

On Sunday afternoon, Dylan Crews received the 2023 Golden Spikes Award, an award given to the top amateur baseball player in the country.

Crews won the award over Paul Skenes and Jac Caglianone. Coincidentally, all three finalists are playing in the College World Series Finals, as Caglianone is Florida’s starting first baseman and also pitches.

In 2022, Crews was a semifinalist for the Golden Spikes Award. But this season, along with the Golden Spikes Award, Crews won the SEC Player of the Year and has been a unanimous All-American.

Last season, Crews won SEC Co-Player of the Year, was a consensus first-team All-American, and was a member of the U.S. Collegiate National team.

Crews leads the team with a .418 batting average. He had 104 hits this season with 16 doubles, 18 home runs and 69 RBIs.

The accolades won’t end for Crews any time soon, as he is projected to be a top two pick in this upcoming MLB Draft.

Paul Skenes makes history, breaks McDonald strikeout record

BY TYLER HARDEN @ttjharden8

Last Thursday, Paul Skenes made LSU history. He broke the school record for most strikeouts in a season with 203 strikeouts.

The record was formerly held by Ben McDonald, who had 202 strikeouts in the 1989 season. The record is also an SEC record.

Skenes has already had a historical season for the Tigers, but breaking a school record was the icing on the cake. The accolades he holds in this season alone speak for themselves.

Most recently, Skenes won the 2023 Dick Howser Trophy, which is given annually to the most outstanding player in all of Division 1 baseball. He received the award on Friday while in Omaha.

Along with that, he is a First-

Team All-American, according to both Collegiate Baseball and the National Collegiate Baseball Writers Association. He was also awarded the SEC Pitcher of the Year, and was a finalist for the Golden Spikes Award, along with Dylan Crews. The Golden Spikes award is given to the top amateur baseball player in the country.

Skenes winning awards is nothing new, as he received many accolades last season while at the Air Force Academy. At Air Force, he received the John Olerud Award, which is given to the top two-way college baseball player in the country.

In addition, he was also a First-Team All-American in both the 2022 and 2021 seasons. He was the Mountain West Conference Co-Pitcher of the Year in the 2022 season, and the 2021 Collegiate Baseball National Co-

al Team.

Freshman of the Year in 2021. In 2021, he was selected to the USA Baseball Collegiate Nation-

Jell-eaux: LSU breaks CWS Jell-O shot competition record

BY JAYDEN NGUYEN @jaydenguyen_

LSU fans did not throw away their shot in the Rocco’s Pizza and Cantina College World Series Jell-O shot challenge.

After an intense five days, Tiger fans broke the record for most Jell-O shots purchased..

Ole Miss held the previous record, shooting back 18,777 shots at last year’s College World Series. The Rebels ended up

winning the 2022 series, contributing to the superstition that the school that wins Rocco’s Jell-O shot competition takes the win for the series as well.

LSU broke more than the all-time team total number of shots record. Fans also helped the university break the all-time overall total, according to the downtown Omaha restaurant’s Twitter account for the challenge.

But the record-breaking

achievement could not have happened without one key Baton Rouge native: Raising Cane’s CEO Todd Graves.

Graves purchased 6,000 shots for LSU, adding up to a total of $30,000. His purchase helped the team capture the win (before Graves’ contribution, LSU was at a total of 12,836 shots bought).

“When I got to Omaha, I went to Rocco’s before the Saturday game and got caught up in the

spirit of the challenge, which is all in good fun,” Graves said. “Fred’s bought $1,000 worth of shots and Uncle Earl’s bought $1,000 worth of shots, so I wanted to do my part.”

Graves broke the Guinness Book of World Record for shots purchased by one person. The previous record was set in 1983, when musician Merle Haggard bought 5,095 shots for an entire bar.

Rocco’s donates a portion of

the money made from the JellO shot competition to charity. Proceeds from every shot sold will go to the Food Bank for the Heartland in Omaha and local food banks for all eight schools that competed in the competition.

“I realized it went to charity, so I thought it was a no brainer,” Graves said. “It was a lot of fun and for a good cause.”

LSU fans have now purchased over 50,000 shots.

Paul Skenes will be a household name in LSU baseball, but

with this school record, he’s officially stamped his name in the history books.

MATTHEW PERSCHALL / The Reveille

LSU baseball junior outfielder Dylan Crews (3) watches the ball June 10 during LSU’s 14-0 win against Kentucky at Alex Box Stadium in Baton Rouge, La.

MATTHEW PERSCHALL/ The Reveille

The LSU baseball team high-fives junior pitcher Paul Skenes (20) as he returns to the dugout on April 28 during LSU’s 8-6 win over Alabama at Alex Box Stadium in Baton Rouge, La.

C l a s s i f ieds

ENTERTAINMENT

KOK Ratings: Does KOK Wings and Things live up to the hype?

BY WILL NICKEL & JAYDEN NGUYEN @WilNickel & @jaydennguyen_

ting a good taste of everything KOK offers. Our order is below:

Receipt

Editor’s note: It has been brought to my attention that some of the wording in this story sounds inappropriate. KOK is pronounced kay-oh-kay. Please don’t pronounce it the way it’s spelled when reading it.

KOK Wings and Things, better known as KOK, opened its Baton Rouge location in May and has been satisfying customers left and right.

We decided we would try KOK to see how it tastes, and it did not disappoint. We had so much KOK we were struggling to walk afterwards.

We ordered our food to go because of the long wait to get into the new, popular restaurant. We recommend this method of scheduling your KOK appointment if you want to avoid the wait time, since the Baton Rouge location has officially started operating its to-go orders full time.

We decided to get a variety of items to make sure we were get-

1 KOK Chicken Sandwich (BBQ) - $9.99

1 Small Loaded Fry (Ranch, Sum Serious) - $3.99

1 Fish Sliders with Regular Fries - $11.99

1 Boneless Wings, 5 piece (SIN) - $10.99

Total: $26.97

I (Jayden) had the chicken sandwich with BBQ sauce. If you’re like me (a baby) and don’t have an affinity for too much spice, going with one of the sweeter sauce options like BBQ is definitely the way to go.

Will and I also split the loaded fries. We are both really big

fans of cheese fries, which is what we were expecting when we ordered this.

To our disappointment, the loaded fries do not have cheese on them. Instead, they were covered with the “Sum Serious” sauce that we chose and ranch.

I (Will) would recommend getting something with a little more spice, but Jayden insisted on ranch because she was scared that KOK would be too hot for her to handle if she ordered one of its other sauces. The fries were still good, but definitely not as good as poutine or cheese fries.

The regular fries that came with the fish sliders were better than most fries you get at restaurants. They were seasoned well and not just potato sticks with a little bit of salt on them (looking at you Cane’s).

The fish sliders were also way better than we expected them to be. Fish can be pretty easy to mess up, and the last thing you want when eating a sandwich is a gross, fishy taste in your mouth. The meat KOK used was thick and juicy and didn’t have that off putting fishy taste some fish does. The buns

were also fluffy and delicious.

We would recommend getting them with a sauce of some kind though. The sliders themselves are just fish on a bun and could use a little more of a kick. Overall, the fish might have actually been better than the chicken.

The wings were pretty good, but nothing special. I (Will)

think bone-in wings would have been better than the boneless though. The SIN sauce had a nice kick to it, but I would need to try the other KOK sauces to find out which is best. For this being our first time, KOK was pretty good. While it may not be life changing, a mouthful of KOK can certainly make for a fun night out.

Devi from ‘Never Have I Ever’ is the best TV show protagonist

BY MOLLY TERRELL @keenryanti

We need more main characters like Devi Vishwakumar in our lives.

“Never Have I Ever” just finished its fourth and final season, and it was harder to say goodbye to than I would’ve thought. The show is funny and lighthearted, but that alone doesn’t warrant the emotions I felt when I was done following Devi’s journey.

The more I thought about it, the more I realized that it was because of how refreshing Devi was as a protagonist.

She made many mistakes that hurt her friends, family and significant others, but she grew throughout the series and allowed viewers to grow with her, which makes the ending feel like saying goodbye to one of your friends.

One of the most commendable things about “Never Have I Ever” is how grounded the characters are despite the outlandish nature of the show. The show balances relatability and whimsicalness well and depicts authentic romantic drama through Devi.

Devi’s love life is messy, and she doesn’t have a clear path in deciding who she’s meant to be with.

All four of her love interests play a vital role in her character development, and with her main love interests, Ben and Paxton, there wasn’t an obvious choice for who she needed to end up

with. They’re both good for her in different ways, and they both helped her grow as a person.

The dynamic between romantic leads is only as solid as the leads’ personalities. Love triangles are one of the most hated tropes in media, but that’s only because most are done wrong.

Most of the time, the female protagonist being chased by two men is often just an indulgence that allows the consumer to put themselves in her shoes and choose whichever boy they prefer.

With Devi, she has a commanding personality that never really shifts depending on the boy she’s with. She forces the watcher to consider her in the relationship and not just which boy is more desirable to the audience. It raises the stakes of the romantic drama and enriches the show.

As well as romantic drama, the show has many heartwarming family scenes between Devi and her female relatives. It also thoughtfully depicts the grief of Devi’s father and how his impact

affects Devi’s motivations and actions, and not always in a productive way.

One of the best things about Devi is that she is deeply flawed. She hurts people she cares about because she can be very selfish, and she often acts without thinking. This nuance as a lead is refreshing because protagonists are usually even man-

nered in personality, and the crazy antics are left to the side characters.

The personality that “Crazy Devi” has is even more important when considering her Indian culture and the way Westerners can view Asian women as more docile. Devi flips all these stereotypes with her abrasive and impulsive hijinks.

She’s never afraid to go after what she wants, even if she makes a fool out of herself along the way.

As an audience, we could all learn from Devi. She took risks throughout the series, and although she wasn’t the most palatable protagonist, that makes her stand out among the crowd of cookie-cutter female leads.

OPINION

Letter from the Editor: The Reveille will not misgender people

BY WILL NICKEL @WilNickel

Recently, The Advocate published a letter to the editor that claimed the gender-neutral pronouns used in the obituary of 17-year-old Belle Adelman-Cannon were “baffling.” The letter repeatedly misgendered Adelman-Cannon.

The Advocate quickly took down the story and issued a brief apology, but this story never should have been published in the first place.

The Advocate also published a response to the letter from Adelman-Cannon’s family. I would like to send my condolences to the Adelman-Cannon family. I am incredibly sorry you have to deal with something like this being published during such a difficult time.

I am saddened and disappointed that The Advocate decided to publish the initial letter to the editor and would like to clearly state the Reveille’s stance on gender identity: We will never misgender, deadname or use otherwise bigoted language to address any person, nor will we ever publish any

writing that does.

Using they/them/their as a singular, gender-neutral pronoun is grammatically correct under AP Style, a style guide of journalism

rules used by newsrooms worldwide. Deliberate deadnaming and misgendering of people by Reveille employees is a fireable offense.

News publications are meant

to serve as watchdogs for their communities and represent every person in those communities. This includes LGBTQ+ people.

Publishing something that is

deliberately hurtful towards any groups of people will never be appropriate. Misgendering any person should never be tolerated.

I know it’s incredibly difficult to see the largest news organization in the state publish something like this. I also know that the Reveille is far from perfect. In our over 130 years of existence, the Reveille has certainly published content that was inappropriate and never should have been given a platform. We cannot change the mistakes we have made, but we can do better. We must do better.

I know The Advocate will work to fix this mistake. We will also work to ensure we provide coverage to every group on LSU’s campus and the Baton Rouge area.

The Reveille is meant to provide important, timely and sometimes silly/entertaining stories to everyone. We do not want any member of the Baton Rouge community to feel disrespected or forgotten.

We will work hard to provide better and more fair coverage, especially towards members of the LGBTQ+ community. You deserve better from your news organizations. You deserve better from us.

Don’t let comparison be the thief of joy, love your life instead

A 94 is a great grade to receive, until you compare it to your friend’s 97.

satisfied with the 94? Graduating in five years? A vacation?

As I sat down to write this column, I could not help but compare it to the ones before it.

For every sentence I typed on the page, many were deleted because I felt that they were not as good as what I have previously written.

This is version nine of this article.

Theodore Roosevelt once said that “comparison is the thief of joy.” The quote may be deemed a cliché, but it still holds an immense amount of truth in it.

This column is something I have come to find great joy in writing, but as I compared it to my previous work and the work of others, this joy quickly morphed into stress and this particular column became a mundane task.

A piece of my joy was taken by comparison. It’s something we all have experienced at least once in our lives.

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Will Nickel Editor-in-Chief

John Buzbee News Editor

Graduating college is a huge accomplishment and something to be proud of, but when you realize it took you five years and someone else did it in three years, your joy quickly fades.

You enjoyed your time on vacation, but were soon unsatisfied with it when you compared the things you did to all the things you did not do.

The pattern continues.

In 1954, social psychologist Leon Festinger proposed the social comparison theory, which suggests that people determine their personal and social worth by assessing how they compare to others.

If we develop our self-worth through our comparison to others, we are bound to develop negative associations either toward ourselves or toward those we compare. In most cases, the joy in situations is taken away as soon as we compare ourselves to those around us.

If we were to take comparison out of a situation, focusing just on what we have, would we still be un-

On the other hand, comparing the price of a product at two stores allows you to buy the cheaper one.

Comparing yourself to the person you were years ago, and how much you have grown, is reaffirming.

Comparing two outfits you feel confident in to wear for the evening is beneficial and a part of getting dressed.

These are healthy comparisons, and it’s beneficial to learn the difference.

When we get so wrapped up in the practice of comparing our lives to others, constantly acknowledging the negative parts of ourselves, when are we living outside of our heads? When are we experiencing the world around us instead of the created one in our minds?

The society we live in places ample opportunities in front of us that lead to comparison. Social media intensifies it. The thing we must do is recognize when we start down a comparison spiral.

It will not always happen immediately, but once we recognize this

pattern, we can change the way it affects us.

Instead of feeling bitter about being single while you scroll past a friend’s engagement post, job promotion, etc, recognize that their path is not yours. You are not them, as much as you like to compare yourself to them.

What is meant for you will find you, even if it found someone else first. Just because someone else has

already done it, does not mean you are not able to do it too.

Compare yourself and your life to others to inspire and motivate you, not hinder you. Do not let comparison take away your joy because joy is a birthplace of all things good, and you are worthy of good things.

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The Reveille (USPS 145-800) is written, edited and produced solely by students of Louisiana State University. The Reveille is an independent entity of the Office of Student Media within the Manship School of Mass Communication. Signed opinions are those of the author and do not necessarily represent the views of the editor, The Reveille or the university. Letters submitted for publication should be sent via e-mail to editor@lsu.edu or delivered to B-39 Hodges Hall. They must be 400 words or less. Letters must provide a contact phone number for verification purposes, which will not be printed. The Reveille reserves the right to edit letters and guest columns for space consideration while preserving the original intent. The Reveille also reserves the right to reject any letter without notification of the author. Writers must include their full names and phone numbers. The Reveille’s editor in chief, hired every semester by the LSU Student Media Board, has final authority on all editorial decisions.

“Our time is limited, so don’t waste it living someone else’s life.”

Steve Jobs Apple CEO 1955 —

2011

Lauren Madden is a 22-yearold mass communication senior from Mandeville.

COURTESY OF GREG LAROSE/ Louisiana Illuminator

A transgender Pride flag is covered with the words “Hands Off Trans Youth.” Hundreds of people gathered March 31 at Washington Square Park in New Orleans for a march to mark Transgender Day of Visibility.

GRAPHIC BY MADDIE FITZMORRIS

Managing Editor Jayden Nguyen

Opinion Columnist Lauren Madden