The Daily Texan 2017-12-11

Serving the University of Texas at Austin community since 1900

MONDAY, DECEMBER 11, 2017

@thedailytexan | thedailytexan.com

Volume 118, Issue 81

SEMESTER

IN REVIEW

Photo credits clockwise from top left: Juan Figueroa, Gabriel Lopez, Juan Figueroa, Angela Wang

The Daily Texan takes a look back at the Fall 2017 semester.

NEWS

LOOKING AHEAD

OPINION

LIFE&ARTS

SPORTS

Texas Exes hosts celebration for fall 2017 graduates.

PAGE 2

The biggest news to look for in the coming semester.

PAGE 7

Thoughts on the war on Christmas and light pollution. PAGE 4

“Jane the Virgin” releases real production of in-show novel “Snow Falling.” PAGE 11

Texas concluded its season after losing a 3-0 sweep to Stanford in the Elite Eight.

PAGE 10

TECHNOLOGY

SPORTS

FAFSA application app coming to your phone

Texas hires new athletic director, Chris Del Conte

By Maria Mendez Senior News Reporter

For years, college students have applied for financial aid through the FAFSA.gov website, but next spring they’ll get to do it on their phones.

Hoping to facilitate the financial aid application process, the U.S. Department of Education will launch a new mobile FAFSA app and online platform in early 2018.

Department officials unveiled a demo of the mobile app at a November conference. The app will allow students to fill out their FAFSA, send it to selected colleges and get a quick estimate of the pell grants and financial aid they could expect. Students or graduates will also be able to

use the app to manage federal student loans and check their credit scores.

The online FAFSA application located on the FAFSA.gov website will also be moved to the StudentAid. gov website, the department’s main webpage for financial aid information and resources.

Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos said these changes are intended to help students and their families apply for financial aid on whatever platform is best for them.

“This overhaul is long overdue,” DeVos said in a November press release. “Today’s announcement is a significant first step … in bringing

Front Strip; Process color

FAFSA page 3

By Trenton Daeschner Assoc. Sports Editor

Texas has hired TCU athletic director Chris Del Conte for the same position, UT President Gregory Fenves said in a statement released on Saturday.

“Chris has the experience, vision and character that’s needed for Texas to build on the Longhorns’ rich legacy and to continue winning with integrity for years to come,” Fenves said. “He knows the state of Texas, supports student-athletes, understands the media landscape of college sports and is one of the best athletics directors in the country.”

Del Conte departs Fort Worth after serving at

copyright tcu 360, and reproduced with permission

Chris Del Conte, who departs TCU after eight years as athletic director, begins the same role at Texas on Monday.

TCU for eight years and will take over as Texas’ new athletic director starting on Monday.

“The time has come to take on a new challenge,” Del Conte said in a

statement. “After being with President Fenves and hearing his vision for the future of the University of Texas, I couldn’t be more honored to join his leadership team.

I can’t wait to get down to

Austin and meet all the student-athletes, coaches, staff and fans.”

Under Del Conte’s leadership at TCU, the Horned Frogs transitioned from the Mountain West Conference to the Big 12 in 2012. Since then, TCU football has gone 50–27, the men’s basketball team won the 2017 NIT Championship and the baseball team has appeared in four consecutive College World Series.

Del Conte also oversaw numerous stadium and facility upgrades at TCU, including the construction of a new $164 million football stadium and a $72 million renovation to the basketball arena.

ATHLETIC page 3

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Monday, December 11, 2017

UNIVERSITY

Committee addresses graduate student financial burden

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By London Gibson Senior News Reporter

Facing low University wages and potential new taxes, the Graduate Student Assembly created a committee to address the current financial situation of UT’s graduate students, many of whom take on additional jobs to afford living in Austin.

On Wednesday, more than 100 UT graduate students joined a nationwide protest against the proposed tax bill recently passed by the U.S. Senate, which taxes tuition waivers as income. Founders said the new GSA committee will address a larger issue facing UT: the struggle between rising costs of living and small paychecks.

Committee chair Matt Bendure said the committee was primarily tasked with compiling data about current payments and benefits across all departments to present to graduate school administrators in hopes of developing a solution.

illustration by jeb milling jr.| daily texan staff

“UT must pay its workers a living wage,” Bendure said in a Facebook message. “Graduate student workers are the core of educational labor at this University. If the current compensation levels continue, UT will see a precipitous drop in its rankings as it struggles to attract prospective students

Wildflower center glows in annual celebration

UTPD warns students of most common bike theft locations

By Reagan Ritterbush News Reporter

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Families walk through the Luminations exhibit at the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center. To celebrate the holiday season, the exhibit was filled with thousands of lights and luminaries.

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Children ran through the Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center as their path was lit with thousands of luminarias and Christmas lights during the annual Luminations celebration.

The path around the center is filled with 3,000 luminarias, communications director Lee Clippard said. The Center began planning for the event six months ago and started decorating last month.

“We like to say that Luminations is a winter holiday tradition for families, and it’s where you can come out and experience a natural environment during the winter,” Clippard said. “It feels nice to host something like this and have people make holiday memories at the Wildflower Center.”

The Lady Bird Johnson Wildflower Center is a part of UT, and burnt orange lights and a large gingerbread UT Tower replica were a part of the celebration for everyone to see.

“Everything that we are doing is to support the mission of the University and to serve the state,” Clippard said. “I think we are a face for the University.”

This year, the center expanded the number of activities available on the path, including the addi-

tion of a s’mores bar, free hot chocolate, a bakery and other holiday activities, Clippard said. Alicia Cano, mechanical engineering freshman, said she could tell the center puts a lot of effort into the event.

“It was really pretty, and it was fun to see all the families,” Cano said.

“I definitely loved taking pictures with the luminarias and all the Christmas trees that were decorated in lights.”

The event opened Thursday night, and Clippard said he worried families would not come out because of the snow. However, he said the ones that did come had a once-in-alifetime experience.

“There was a girl who came running through the entrance who was so happy she was literally jumping for joy,” Clippard said. “It’s very satisfying to know that she will probably remember that forever and the Lady Bird Wildflower Center.”

Luminations also gave UT students a place to get away from the stress that comes with finals. Neuroscience freshman Mia Rajan said she came to the center to take a step back from studying and to have fun with friends.

“Since I was basically studying all day today, it was a perfect activity to come out to and get us into the Christmas spirit,” Rajan said.

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and astronomy freshman, said he has plans to go to graduate school, but the impending possibility of the tax bill and already-low wages at UT make him worried about his future.

“My current future is kind of in peril,” Guidry said. “There’s this kind of uncertainty. I want to be able to support myself based on the wages given by the University.”

Bendure said many graduate student workers take on additional jobs to cover their basic needs. When he started at the University in 2015, Bendure said his worker compensation barely covered the cost of living and he had to rely on savings and other jobs to cover the gaps.

While the cost of living in Austin is on the rise, UT has failed to compensate by raising wages for student laborers, Bendure said.

“Graduate student labor is critical for a functioning …

University,” Bendure said. “And yet this labor is both publicly invisible and woefully under-compensated here at UT.”

CITY

Sports Writers Keshav Prathivadi, Justin Martinez, Travis Hlavinka

Laura Hallas (512) 232-2212 editor@dailytexanonline.com

who are offered living wages elsewhere.”

The GSA formed the committee hours after Wednesday’s protest. Bendure, an American studies graduate student, said his goal is to propose solutions to administrators in March.

Student workers in the College of Liberal Arts make

$15,074 per school year without tax, which amounts to about $1200 per month, according to a press statement from the organizers of Wednesday’s protest. The current federally defined poverty level is $12,060, but Bendure said there are some student workers who make around $11,000 per year.

“It’s because of lack of external funding,” GSA president Kareem Mostafa said. “Liberal Arts in general don’t have as many external donors … so they work with a small pot of money that UT gives them.”

Allison Kim, an art history graduate student, protested Wednesday against the tax bill.

She said the passage of the bill would be detrimental to graduate students struggling across the country. “(I’m) from the College of Fine Arts, and already we have a very, very modest stipend,” Kim said. “It’s definitely more modest than other departments.”

Joseph Guidry, a physics

“We like to say that Luminations is a winter holiday tradition for families, and it’s where you can come out and experience a natural environment during the winter.”

— Lee Clippard, Communications director

Make sure your bike has extra locks when leaving it around Duren Residence Hall, Jester Residence Hall and the UT Administration Building, the three most common places for bike thefts, according to UTPD Corporal Le’Patrick Moore.

“Because Duren and Jester are huge student housing centers, there is a concentration of bikes there to steal,” Moore said. “(The administrative building) is secluded, making it an easy spot for thieves to get bikes without being noticed.”

There have been 53 reported bike thefts since the end of August, according to UTPD reports.

“Thirty-four of the bike thefts reported happened before the end of September,” Moore said. “We were able to catch one guy stealing bikes around that time, and thefts have gone down quite a bit since then.”

Matt Kumar, computer science senior, said he was surprised by the amount of bike thefts on campus.

“I would have assumed something like bike thefts would have happened less than muggings,” Kumar said. “I don’t often see bikes that are unlocked.”

Moore said students should use U-locks instead of cable locks to secure their bikes because cable locks are easier to cut and steal. He also said that students should put their lock around the frame instead

R l

infographic by mingyo lee| daily texan staff

of the tire.

“If you put the lock around the tire, a thief can easily take the tire off and steal the frame, which is the most expensive part of the bike,” Moore said. “I’ve been working at UTPD for three years, and I have only seen one bike stolen with a U-lock on it.”

One of the problems UTPD has with recovering bikes from thieves is they do not have the serial numbers of the stolen bikes, Moore said. Without the serial numbers, UTPD cannot log the bike into their database of pawn shops, which alerts them when the bike is sold.

“People do not know or (don’t) register their bike’s serial number with Parking and Transportation, so we have no way of tracking it,” Moore said. “It’s next to impossible to recover a bike without a serial number.”

Neuroscience freshman Uzair Saleem said when his bike was stolen he had no idea what the serial number was and does not expect he will ever get it back.

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“It’s going to be incredibly hard to spot my specific bike in such a big city without any description,” Saleem said.

The UTPD bike unit has a program called bait bikes where officers put bikes with trackers out on campus and, if they get stolen, the unit can track down the thief. Since the end of September, there have been 12 arrests using this program.

“We look at our crime stats and place bikes at hot spots and wait for criminals to steal them,” Moore said.

“We have had this program for a while, but no one really enforced or monitored it until the bike unit was restored this semester.”

The law places bike thefts under theft charges, meaning the penalty is a monetary fine, Moore said.

“Depending on how much the bike stolen cost, there could be between a $100 fine to a $750 fine,” Moore said. “If someone has been convicted of more than two bike thefts though, the monetary value goes up.”

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Monday, December 11, 2017

CITY

Trail of Lights hosts fourth annual UT Night

d g d e

By Meara Isenberg News Reporter

Math senior Marisa Alonzo looked at a giant, luminous globe where, one by one, Austin, the United States and the entire world were lit up with a burnt orange glow.

This lights display added to the roughly two million lights that lit up the Austin Trail of Lights on Sunday as the event celebrated its fourth annual UT Night at the Trail.

“This is my first time coming to the Trail of Lights,” Alonzo said. “(I’ve gotten) a relaxing evening that took my mind off classes and finals. It allowed me to have fun and enjoy the Christmas spirit.”

The celebration was free and open to the public, and tied the Trail’s traditional holiday spirit together with performances from University groups.

“UT is such an integral part of Austin, Texas,” said Mark Williams, a Trail of Lights

f s t f y

e c e e n g s . n s ,

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Foundation board member.

“This (event) gives a chance for the UT community to come out and be together, and experience something that is an iconic Austin tradition.”

Featuring music performances from UT mariachi group Mariachi Alma de Tejas, Beauties and the Beat a cappella group and more, the night showed the talent that Texas has to offer.

“We take crowd-favorite Christmas carols and we find really fun arrangements and sing our own versions of all of those songs,” said Alexa Devega, Beauties and the Beat event coordinator.

Devega, a mechanical engineering senior, said the group enjoys seeing how the crowd reacts to Christmas classics, such as “Winter Wonderland” and “Sleigh Bells.”

“It’s really nice to put smiles on people’s faces by just singing,” Devega said. “We really love that we get to participate in UT Night, (not only) because

Hundreds attended UT Night at the Trail of Lights on Sunday evening. The night was sponsored by the University.

angela wang daily texan staff

our fellow students will be there enjoying the lights, but also it’s a huge tradition in Austin.”

UT alumna Alexandra Williams visited the Trail for the first time Sunday night for two simple reasons.

“For me, it was an event dedicated to my school that I

ATHLETIC

CITY

continues from page 1

DWI Arrests by Month

600

550

500

Average # of DWI Arrests: 448

450

400

300

Mar. Apr. May Jun. Jul. Aug. Sept. Oct. Nov. Dec. Jan. Feb. Mar. Apr. May Jun. Jul. Aug. Sept. Oct. 2016 2016 2016 2016 2016 2016 2016 2016 2016 2016 2017 2017 2017 2017 2017 2017 2017 2017 2017 2017

SOURCE: APD

350

0

infographic by mallika gandhi| daily texan staff

Rideshares return to Austin, little effect on DWI arrests

y ”

s By Chase Karacostas s Senior News Reporter s - The absence and subse, quent return of Uber and Lyft e had almost no effect on the - number of DWI arrests in 2 Austin each month, according to monthly Austin Police e Department data from March t 2016 to October 2017. s APD Detective Richard . Mabe said it is difficult to m prescribe a specific reason for - most fluctuations. With so d many alternatives to driving, - such as buses, local ride-hailing services or having a dese ignated driver, Mabe said the , only way to determine if Uber a and Lyft effected someone’s decision to not drive while w intoxicated is to ask every sin, gle person that did not get a a DWI if they used the service ” instead of driving.

- “It’s hard for us to advocate f for one (driving alternative) s or another because we have - no way to know, specifically, if one group or the other is actually making a difference,” said Mabe, who works in APD’s DWI’s Enforcement Team.

On average during the 20-month period, APD had 448 DWI arrests per month.

FAFSA

continues from page 1 federal student aid programs into the 21st century.”

Diane Todd Sprague, director of UT’s Office of Financial Aid, said the FAFSA mobile app will benefit incoming students who may lack access to computers. For current UT students who rely on campus computers to file FAFSA, the mobile app will grant them access to FAFSA even after computer labs close.

“Most students have access to a mobile device,” Sprague said. “So this should make it easier for students to have access to filling out the FAFSA.” Shannon Homan, theater and dance sophomore, said she usually files her FAFSA online with her parents, so she probably wouldn’t

could take my dog to,” Alexandra Williams said. “I thought, ‘It’s UT night, I graduated from UT, I can show some pride in my school.’”

In comparison to other events during the Trail’s 15-day stretch, Mark Williams said it’s school spirit that makes UT

The most arrests occurred during January of this year with 510 arrests, and the fewest occurred in August with 337 arrests. From one month to the next, the number of arrests often did not vary by more than 50.

“When there’s fluctuations in our numbers, the other part we have to look at is what’s going on in the city during that particular month that may cause that dip in numbers or that spike,” Mabe said.

The definition of intoxication is loss of normal use of a person’s mental and physical faculties by consumption or use of alcohol, illicit drugs, legal drugs — or a combination of those — or having a blood alcohol content level at or above 0.08, Mabe said.

To discourage drinking and driving, the city recently implemented a policy that lets anyone use their receipts for a ride-hailing company, bus or taxi to waive any overnight parking tickets received. Individuals who got a ticket can file online to have it waived within 24 hours of receiving it.

Lyft also tries to encourage people to avoid drinking

and driving. Every few weeks, they take a glass box around 6th Street, one side with a few dollars lying at the bottom and the other filled with the hundreds of dollars to show the cost of a DWI to demonstrate that the risk simply is not worth it, said Aaron Fox, general manager of Lyft in Central Texas.

“I think this is effective for the people that are able to see it,” Fox said. “Drinking and driving has been a longtime problem in the United States …. It’s great to be a part of the solution.”

Advertising sophomore Madeleine Badinger said she uses Uber frequently to get home after going out for the night. Badginer said for her, drunk driving simply is not an option, but she said having Uber and Lyft around is not going to change the minds of people who believe they can drive because they “only had a little.”

“I think if you believe in not drinking and driving, you’re not going to do it no matter what,” Badinger said. “No matter how much you have to pay (to get home), it’s not worth it.”

use the app. But she said the application could be helpful to students without parental support.

“Maybe the app would be a good way to have more detail or walk people through the (FAFSA),” Homan said. “People who need aid or qualify for aid don’t always have a parent to help them understand things like financial jargon.”

Sahil Bhutani, a marketing and theater and dance sophomore, doesn’t apply for financial aid, but said a mobile app could incentivize students to fill out their FAFSA in their free time.

“It would be cool if when you’re bored you can pull out your phone and work on your FAFSA application instead of swiping on Tinder,” Bhutani said.

But even if the mobile app

offered convenience, Bhutani said he would be hesitant to share his financial information on the app.

“You also probably have to enter a lot of sensitive info like your social security number,” Bhutani said. “I don’t know how secure I would feel about doing that over an app.”

The department faced security concerns last spring when the Internal Revenue Service’s Data Retrieval Tool, which helps FAFSA applicants verify tax records, was rumored to be hacked.

DeVos emphasized that the mobile app would be a secure platform.

DeVos also praised the U.S. Senate’s November proposal to further simplify the FAFSA questions and guidelines, but Sprague said past attempts have been unsuccessful.

Prior to his time at TCU, Del Conte served as athletic director at Rice. Current Texas football coach Tom Herman was Rice’s offensive coordinator and quarterbacks coach in 200708 while Del Conte was athletic director.

“I’m absolutely thrilled that Chris Del Conte will be leading our Athletics Department,” Herman said in a statement. “I’ve known him for several years, worked with him during my time at Rice and have continued to admire his work from afar for a long time. He’s a smart and creative leader who has a great passion for student-athletes and college sports. On top of that, he’s an engaging, energetic and fun person to be around and work with. We’re definitely in good hands, and I’m looking forward to a bright

Night shine.

“We find it to be really special for people from the community to come together,” Mark Williams said. “There’s an important spirit about being a Longhorn, and realizing how integral the University of Texas is to this community.”

future with Chris leading the way.”

Del Conte will replace current athletic director Mike Perrin, who has served in that role since September 2015, when former athletic director Steve Patterson was fired after a tumultuous 22-month tenure.

Perrin, an attorney from Houston and a former linebacker for the Longhorns who played under legendary Texas coach Darrell Royal, was originally named Texas’ interim athletic director.

Perrin’s interim tag was eventually removed in December 2015, however, it was widely thought that Perrin was not going to be a long-term fixture as Texas’ athletic director.

During Perrin’s short stint as athletic director, he was charged with making two critical hires for the University — a new football and baseball coach. He hired

David Pierce from Tulane after legendary baseball coach Augie Garrido was let go following the 2016 season.

Immediately after the 2016 football season, former head coach Charlie Strong was fired, and Perrin hired new coach Tom Herman from the University of Houston.

Under Perrin, preliminary plans for the location of a new basketball arena on campus were also announced by Texas.

“Mike has been a trusted partner and friend and will forever have my gratitude and the gratitude of Longhorn Nation,” Fenves said.

Del Conte will be introduced as Texas’ new athletic director in a joint press conference with Fenves on Monday at 11 a.m.

Details of Del Conte’s contract will be revealed once the UT System Board of Regents has approved it.

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Monday, December 11, 2017

COLUMN

COLUMN

Reclaiming queer empowers us

By Carlos Devora Columnist

illustration by weatherly sawyer| daily texan staff

Don’t politicize Christmas

By Sam Groves Senior Columnist

“Guess what?” exclaimed a jubilant President Donald Trump at the Values Voters Summit in October. “We’re saying Merry Christmas again!” And with that, he resumed his annual crusade against the so-called “war on Christmas,” an imaginary effort by some equally imaginary secular cadre to, uh, destroy Christmas or something.

Though he routinely derides the pedantry of political correctness, Trump can be as sensitive about word choice as anyone on the left. He just has different ideas about what we should and shouldn’t be allowed to say. For example, he seems to think that merely uttering the words “radical Islamic terrorism” will obliterate the Islamic State from the face of the Earth and gets so deeply offended when football players protest racism during the national anthem that he says they should be fired for their activism.

He also has some ideas about the politically correct way to greet people during the holidays. It turns out “Happy Holidays” won’t cut it — nor will “Happy New Year.” If you don’t wish people a Merry Christmas, you’re shaming Christians.

He affirmed this belief at the lighting of the White House Christmas tree last week, where his Interior Secretary introduced him as the man “who brought ‘Merry Christmas!’ back to our nation’s capital.” Later the president tweeted, “it is my tremendous honor to finally wish America and the world, a very MERRY CHRISTMAS!” And a headline on the White House website informed readers that Trump had revived the “religious spirit” of the tree lighting tradition.

The whole notion that public celebrations of Christmas have declined is absurd.

Trump regularly implies that president Obama shunned the holiday when nothing could be further from the truth — the 44th president attended all eight tree lightings during his administration and wished Americans a merry Christmas on dozens of different occasions.

Moreover, even if there were such a decline, what would be the problem? There’s nothing wrong with acknowledging America’s religious diversity. Not everyone celebrates Christmas, so why should everyone be greeted as if they do? It’s common courtesy not to make assumptions about strangers, but the “war on Christmas” crowd wants to politicize common courtesy — and this could be Trump’s real intention in taking up this ridiculous cause.

The president hardly seems like a religious man, but he’s proven time and time again that he knows how to leverage cultural controversy. In this case, he’s doing it by creating an environment in which people are perceived as having an agenda no matter what they say.

If someone wishes you a merry Christmas, they’re a brave culture warrior fighting back against secularism. If someone wishes you happy holidays, they’re attacking your religion. Everyone has to pick a side, but what matters is that you’re on the right one, because the president says so.

Groves is a philosophy junior from Dallas.

The term Queer has become a complex discussion point for many people in and out of the LGBTQ community. Despite the term’s negative connotation throughout history, many people in the LGBTQ community have reclaimed the term to empower themselves. “(Since) it was once a derogatory term, identifying as queer is kind of a ‘fuck you’ to those who seek to stamp us out or not even acknowledge us as being valid in our sexuaility,” said communications studies senior Madison Baker.

However, the question following the statement “I’m queer” is still often “what does that mean?” — which I’ve received from both members of the LGBTQ community and straight people. There is untapped power in the term queer, and LGBTQ individuals should begin explicitly using the term more often because of its inclusiveness and potential to unify the community and break down normative boundaries.

I and many others use queer in two specific ways: as an umbrella term that houses all LGBTQ identities and as a stand alone identity that encompasses my sexuality, feelings and mindset. The word is an identifier of not just my sexuality, but my entire being.

Sexuality and gender are fluid and non-binary, which made defining my identity confusing and riddled with anxiety. I felt that since I was attracted to men, I had to label myself as gay or bisexual. However, I later realized that my sexuality and identity isn’t fixed, but is malleable and changeable throughout the course of my life. In this way, identifying as queer broke down binaries for me. I believe it has the power to do that for other people who might be struggling with their identity.

illustration by mel westfall | daily texan staff

Dahlia Lopez engineering sophomore, who identifies as queer, believes that ‘queer’ is easiest to utilize as an umbrella term. “Gay used to be my go-to term, but I think that has been more specified as a term for homosexuality than it is for being LGBTQ”, Lopez said. “A lot of the time I don’t really know how to describe my sexuality, and the variety of terms in the LGBTQ community can sometimes be confusing, so queer has been the term that best describes how (I) identify in the simplest form.”

Queer as an identifying term can unify people in spaces where they feel safe, protected and comfortable. This is important so that people who haven’t defined their identities are accepted in queer spaces. “(Queer) can be unifying for everyone, and if we started talking about

queer more it would be good way for people to explore themselves, because that’s what it did for me,” said freshman Micaela Garza.

There’s this really big push on people to label themselves as one sexuality because of heteronormativity. People want to know exactly what you are, but it doesn’t have to be that way. However, it still has a while to go before the ambivalence of the term dissipates in LGBTQ circles.

“I think everybody in the LGBTQ community should be putting their best foot forward with ‘queer,’” Garza said. “It shouldn’t just fall on the people who identify as queer to use it more and push it forward. It starts with us.”

Devora is a journalism senior from Mesquite.

COLUMN

We can do more to combat light pollution

By Jeff Rose Columnist

As we near the winter solstice, the days are growing shorter and nights are growing longer. Our beautiful city is darker now than ever. The stars are out more often — if only we could see them.

It’s time to shed light on light pollution.

Light pollution is excessive light escaping into the sky and surrounding areas. Anyone who’s ever been to a concert where people use their phone flashlights knows how much light can scatter and easily light up an entire room or auditorium. Lights left on throughout the night essentially do the same thing, contributing to the pollution.

Light pollution can block starlight, waste energy and money, disrupt ecosystems and have harmful health effects. Like other cities, this type of pollution is excessive in Austin. The Light Pollution Map displays a gradient of colors which show amounts of light that ranges from gray to the most-polluted whitish pink. Austin is one of many splotch of pale pink, fading out to red until Dripping Springs, which has

much lower light pollution.

Back in 2012, the city of Austin reportedly spent $15 million in reducing light pollution, installing downward-facing LED lights that would reduce the amount of light scattering towards the sky. However, light pollution rose 2.2 percent globally between 2012 and 2016.

The city’s initiative was a great start, but almost six years later we need to reassess our progress and current light output.

Light pollution spikes during holiday season. NASA can actually see from space satellite imagery the sudden boost from Christmas lights around Austin. So it’s even more vital now than ever for businesses, buildings administrators and the city to consider light output if we want to be responsible citizens of this earth.

An Austin city ordinance states that certain lighting should only illuminate an area or object and not shine onto roadways, surrounding properties or scatter light skyward. Many businesses and buildings still leave lights on during the night, and they need to be shut off. While many of the them may not shine onto other areas, it can

still create dangerous glares and distractions when driving and also waste electricity and money.

Some will argue that business lights need to be on for safety purposes, such as preventing theft or allowing early-morning/late-night employees to see. However, installing higher-security systems and night-vision cameras with plenty of warning signs around the building will do the same job.

Similarly, employees concerned about navigating their stores safely can use flashlights on their phones until they get to light fixtures, or businesses can install light switches near entrances that only employees can use with ID cards or keys.

With the rise in light pollution combined with Austin’s rapid growth, we’re bound to be putting out more light than ever, despite the city’s efforts to reduce the pollution. It’s sad that 99 percent of the United States can’t see the stars at night.

Let’s work toward darkening our city, so that our skies can be illuminated once again.

Rose is an English sophomore from The Woodlands.

GALLERY

LEGALESE | Opinions expressed in The Daily Texan are those of the editor, the Editorial Board or the writer of the article. They are not necessarily those of the UT administration, the Board of Regents or the Texas Student Media Board of Operating Trustees.

illustration by yulissa chavez | daily texan staff

SUBMIT A FIRING LINE | Email your Firing Lines to editor@dailytexanonline.com. Letters must be more than 100 and fewer than 300 words. The Texan reserves the right to edit all submissions for brevity, clarity and liability.

RECYCLE | Please recycle this copy of The Daily Texan.

Place the paper in one of the recycling bins on campus or back in the burnt-orange newsstand where you found it.

EDITORIAL TWITTER | Follow The Daily Texan Editorial Board on Twitter (@TexanOpinion) and receive updates on our latest editorials and columns.

5

Monday, December 11, 2017

Managing editor fights perfectionism, ekes out goodbye

By Michelle Zhang Managing Editor

Editor’s note: A 30 column is a chance for departing permanent staff to say farewell and reflect on their time spent in the The Daily Texan. The term comes from the old typesetting mark (-30-) to denote the end of a line.

To prepare for writing this column, I put on my special playlist of melancholy music and scrolled through old 30 columns for inspiration. I read through ones of people I admired for the lucky semesters I got to work in this musty basement with them, and those of people who never even knew my name but whose presence I was in awe of when I was just a nervous sophomore working in the copy department.

And yet I was still stuck. Like with everything else in my life, I want my 30 column to be absolutely perfect. Tearjerker. Heartwarmer. Pinnacle of all 30s.

But if there’s one thing the Texan has taught me, it’s that perfection is overrated.

It’s the late nights when we weren’t perfect that I remember the most.

I remember the collective anguish whenever InDesign crashed half an hour before deadline. I remember spending valuable 9 p.m. time to investigate a possible possum nest in the ceiling. I remember our front-page infographic that got 20k upvotes … on /r/shittydesign.

I remember the really hard days.

Staying in the office until 2 a.m. talking

photographer gabriel lopez| daily texan staff

Michelle Zhang was a copy editor, associate copy desk chief, associate managing editor and managing editor.

She hates hugs but might be willing to dole some out on her final night in the office.

about the awfulness of Haruka Weiser’s sexual assault. Rushing into the basement to get to work amid bomb threats and terrifying rumors. Those days, I admired management for their poise, dedication and behavior under pressure. Thank you to Amy, Jackie and Akshay for being my forever role models.

The more I worked here, the more I fell for this ruckus of a basement. The magic of the Texan comes from the nights spent surrounded by people who love to be here despite exams, papers and all the other drama of being a fulltime student.

Kirsten, Ryan and Taylor — you’re all rock stars. Can someone please

FILM

POST

Community Cinema shows movies under the stars, connects Austinites

photographer anthony mireles| daily texan staff

Ed Travis, Mobile Loaves & Fishes Cinema director, attempts to plug in an audio cord to the soundboard of the mobile movie projector this past Friday at the Community First! Village amphitheater in East Austin.

By Andrea Tinning Senior L&A Reporter

Every Friday night, Austinites cozy up with blankets and gather ‘round as a huge projector screen lights up the outdoor theater in the outskirts of the city.

Partnered with Alamo Drafthouse, Community Cinema screens classic movies on the lawn of the Community First! Village amphitheater. They invite members of the Austin community to not only enjoy watching a free movie on the lawn, but to support formerly homeless members of the community.

“This place was born out of the idea of raising somebody off the street and getting them housing,” said Ed Travis, Community Cinema director.

The 27-acre Community First! Village is home to about 160 formerly homeless residents. Mobile Loaves & Fishes, the location’s parent organization, began when parishioners of St. John Neumann Catholic Church in Austin started delivering meals to the homeless from a minivan. The project quickly expanded when Alan Graham, founder of Mobile Loaves & Fishes, decided to provide them with housing opportunities and created the Community First! Village.

Residents have the opportunity to make money by maintaining the amphitheater and other attractions around the village. Although Travis said he pays licensing for the movies screened at the Community Theater, the location is able to stay financially stable through food sales, donations and private event reservations. Travis intends to keep Friday screenings free for this purpose, since it gives residents the opportunity to earn an income through concessions and maintaining the space.

“Number one, we’re trying to create dignified income opportunities for residents,” Travis said.

“Every time we have a movie night event, we’re hiring residents to work. The other goal is welcoming the public and bringing them out here to see what Mobile Loaves & Fishes is doing as a whole.”

According to Travis, another benefit of having free Friday screenings is that they welcome mem-

bers of Austin into the community and help residents make connections.

Complete with a garden, animal livestock, community kitchens, a blacksmithing workshop and an artisan market, the village provides residents with several opportunities to grow their skill sets.

Residents like glassblowing artist Earth Drum are able to showcase their talent whenever the venue hosts events.

“I was one of the chronically homeless a year ago,” Drum said. “My life is much better (now).

Instead of running around trying to figure out where I’m going to stay each night I’m making connections with people and feeling really good about life.”

Since moving into the village, Drum said he has more opportunities to expand his area of expertise.

“I’m an artist and I get bored,” Drum said. “I make soap, ceramics and clay, glass and leather, and I work in the blacksmithing. I get to do all kinds of stuff.”

Last Friday, Austin resident Mollie Burpo attended a movie at the Community Cinema with her children, but she said the main attraction isn’t necessarily the venue, but the people who live there. “(My children) actually love coming to visit one of the residents, whose name is J.R.,” Burpo said.

Burpo said she regularly brings her children to the playground on the property near where J.R. lives. “(He will) come out with those long popsicles that you cut and bring everyone a treat. They made him Christmas cards and he hung them in his house and they were really excited to come out and wish him a Merry Christmas.”

For Travis, seeing other people interact with residents is the reason he’s committed to free movies. Not only do the screenings provide income opportunity for residents, but they also unite Austinites with people who have not always felt like members of a community.

“Every Friday night it’s open for anyone in the public to come watch a movie and we’re doing it throughout the winter,” Travis said. “It’s going to be a year-round deal.”

check us out

ONLINE

keep Ryan in check once I’m gone?

Bella, you’ve been such a spark of energy ever since you joined my copy team, and I’m glad you befriended me even though you found me intimidating.

Sunnie and Mallika, I always look forward to working with you because we talk about everything and anything.

stories videos photo galleries thedailytexan.com

continues from page 11 Meryl Streep: Well, I would like the fellas to talk about this.

Steven Spielberg: Well, I think that the script was written by a 31-year-old woman named Liz Hannah, who had never sold a script before. She wrote this on spec. Sold it to Amy Pascal, who sold it to 20th Century Fox, who gave me the script and then we invited Tom and Meryl into the partnership.

MS: Stacey Snider, who’s also…

SS: And Stacey Snider who’s also the head of Fox, was the one who got me the script with Amy Pascal. And the important thing about all of this was, this is a very women set up. I got two women producers on this, I got Kristie Macosko Krieger, I got Amy Pascal.

You know, this is a very women-centric story, this is my second movie about feminism. My first being “The Color Purple,” and that was 1985. That’s a long time between feminist statements, but I was raised by a powerful, strong mom and a great dad. I had great women in my life, three of whom ran my film company for 30 years, and Laurie MacDonald and Kathleen Kennedy and then Stacey Snider. And I am much more comfortable in the company of women and I always have been, so this was for me a no-brainer to jump headfirst into

Rena, you’re one of the most talented people I know. I can’t wait to be hip artistic ingénues with you.

Ellie, I couldn’t have handpicked a better news editor. You’re going to kill it no matter what you do. Juan, my Sagittarius twin — are we friends yet? Please be my friend.

To my AMEs, Natalia and Matthew, thanks for putting up with me. I know I can be anal-retentive — still going to try to crunch the numbers on that deadline Excel sheet — and a mess at the same time, so I appreciate your help more than you know.

To Peter, I know we both hate sentimentality, so I’ll just say this: I couldn’t have gotten through the semester without your guidance. I’ll miss your unique ability to be awkward in almost every situation.

And of course, Laura Hallas. We’re the perfect Harold & Maude pair, and I’m worried I’ll never find another partner in crime as complementary to me. I’m still mad about the matching bangs.

This column is far from perfect. In fact, I have a strong urge to hit ctrl + A and backspace, but I think design would strangle me because this is already overdue and if I don’t submit this then I’ll never submit anything. So I’ll part with what seems like the most apt farewell from a nostalgic, grateful managing editor: All right. Let’s go make a paper.

the story.

Later in the interview, The Daily Californian writer Arjun Sarup asked Hanks and Streep about the process of working together.

The Daily Californian: Mr. Hanks, you said that with Mrs. Streep that you’re working with somebody who is not trying to railroad you into a specific moment, she’s trying to find the moment along with you. Could you guys elaborate on that and what is was like working together?

Tom Hanks: Well I think making a movie a lot of times is a hot house atmosphere, where you have a limited amount of time in order to put across your ideas and your agenda for your performance.

I think we have both worked on a couple projects and I know I have on occasion myself not really been paying too much attention to what the other person was saying to me in a scene because I was so busy trying to gage out how I was going to deliver what I thought were my beats, that were specific to my character.

At the end of the interview, Steven Spielberg had a message for journalism majors at UT and beyond.

“You journalists, stick with journalism,” Spielberg said. “We need you!”

NEWSCAST Tune in on Fridays at 5 p.m. at soundcloud.com/thedailytexan

6232/McCombs School of Business; Process color

6

Monday, December 11, 2017

TOP STORIES

Semester

IN REVIEW The Daily Texan takes a look back at all the events that unfolded this semester.

Hurricane Harvey Many students’ semesters were stalled when Hurricane Harvey struck the Texas coast in August. For more than 17,000 students who came from hurricane-affected counties, the first week of classes were drenched with worry. Gone to Texas and Horns Up Night were canceled, and when Moov-In weekend fell during the heart of the hurricane rains, many students drove down early or moved in late.

A&M Rivalry Game Student Government scored a win this semester when they secured student support for bringing back the UT and Texas A&M University rivalry game. In a campus-wide vote in September, 97 percent of students voted in favor of the game. SG plans to move forward with the plans next semester, but both schools’ non-conference schedules are booked for several years, and the game might not become a reality until 2025.

DACA

In October, a 30-year tradition ended when the Texas Exes eliminated the annual torchlight parade from the Texas Fight Rally because organizers felt the image would be too similar to the white nationalist march in August on the University of Virginia campus.

On Sept. 5, Trump rescinded with a 6-month delay of the Deferred Action for Childhood Arrivals program, which was created by an Obama-era executive order to protect from deportation the 800,000 immigrants brought to the U.S. illegally as minors. Trump then said Congress has until March 5 to sign its own version of the program into law. Since September, there has been little movement in Congress to create a new version of DACA.

The minimum cost for a woman’s annual health exam tripled for uninsured students in the past year, increasing from $36 last fall to $126 this August. The recent hike pushed UT to have one of the most expensive women’s exams offered by the state’s top 10 largest schools, second only to the University of Texas at Arlington. Jamie Shutter, Women’s Health Clinic director, said she will work in the coming months to bring the cost of the exam down.

carlos garcia| daily texan staff

Of the 10 largest public universities in Texas, UT is one of two schools that charge for counseling sessions, at $10 per session.

English sophomore Hollie Cira launched a petition to make the services free for students in November, which has since received more than 4,000 signatures. Students expressed concern with the charges and Student Government declared a mental health crisis in hopes of making mental health care more accessible on campus

Speedway Bricks In October, several months worth of work on the Speedway Mall project was ripped up because the bricks laid down did not meet strength requirements. All of the bricks installed on Speedway from Jester Circle to 24th Street will be replaced before the spring, creating additional construction in the area until March. Students reacted strongly to the news and took their thoughts to the internet. Some of them took to pulling up bricks from the ground for a quirky souvenir.

HOUSE; Black

brooke crim| daily texan staff

UT graduate students stand in protest on Wednesday over the new proposed tax bill. The bill would tax the students’ tuition wavers as income.

Tax Bill House Republicans passed a tax bill in November that will remove tax exemptions for tuition waivers graduate students receive in exchange for teaching or research at universities. Graduate students around the country and at UT protested the bill, which could potentially double or triple their income taxes. The Senate also passed its own version of the bill, and it does not include this provision. Both houses of Congress must go through reconciliation and vote again on the bill before it makes its way to the president’s desk.

brooke crim| daily texan staff

Trump’s motorcade arrives to the Texas Department of Public Safety’s Emergency Operations Center in Austin on Aug. 29. President Trump visited the Texas Department of Public Safety in Austin to discuss the damages and a path to a recovery.

Trump Visits Austin Days after Hurricane Harvey finished wreaking havoc along the Texas coast, President Donald Trump visited Austin for a briefing on the damage with Gov. Greg Abbott. A crowd of hundreds lined up around the Department of Public Safety’s Emergency Operations Center to await the president’s arrival. Most of the crowd was there to protest Trump’s presence, but a select few showed up to applaud the president for showing support during such a tumultuous time for the state.

stories in review by news reporters will clark, london gibson, chase karacostas, maria mendez, forrest milburn, reagan ritterbush

Out of the 32 cases filed over the past five years, the city of Austin has not once taken the side of someone discriminated against under its nondiscrimination ordinance, according to an analysis of city data by The Daily Texan. One student we spoke with, a transgender woman who was kicked out of a bar for trying to use the restroom, called the city’s ordinance “toothless,” one that doesn’t protect those like her who face discrimination in public accommodations and the workplace.

Sexual Assault Lawsuit In November, the University settled a lawsuit involving a student who was suspended for sexual misconduct. The settlement resulted in the suspension being lifted for the student, who claimed he did not experience due process in the University’s disciplinary process.

Women’s Health Exam Cost Triples

The new bricks on Speedway are being replaced due to their lack of strength and failure to meet the requirements set by UT’s Capital Planning and Construction. The finished project is expected to be pushed back till March 2018.

Counseling Charges

Non-Discrimination Ordinances

Protestors on Main Mall

In early November a group of protesters, some masked and carrying torches, was removed from Main Mall by UT police. UT spokeswoman Cindy Posey said they left campus without conflict when asked. The group was found to belong to a white supremacist organization, and UT President Gregory Fenves condemned the act in a campus-wide email.

carlos garcia| daily texan staff

Confederate statues were removed from the Main Mall in the middle of the night Aug. 20 on President Gregory Fenves’ orders.

North Campus Rape Austin Police Department is still searching for the man suspected of kidnapping and sexually assaulting a woman around the Hyde Park area on Nov. 29. According to the victim’s report, she was hit from behind and knocked unconscious near the 900 block of Duncan Lane. When she regained consciousness, she was inside an unknown person’s apartment where she was sexually assaulted, APD said.

Confederate Statues Just a few weeks before the start of the fall semester, President Gregory Fenves announced the four statues that lined the South Mall would come down in the middle of the night on Aug. 20. These monuments included depictions of three Confederate leaders — Robert E. Lee, John Reagan and Albert S. Johnston — as well as former Texas Gov. James Hogg, who had no ties to the Civil War.

HOUSE; Black

The details of the settlement are not known, but the lawsuit claimed Fenves was biased for political and financial reasons. It also claimed Fenves misapplied the school’s sexual misconduct policy. Questions still linger about the suit’s impact to University policy.

Presidential Power An investigation by The Daily Texan found that Fenves has more power to decide the outcome of sexual misconduct cases than presidents at other universities. At UT, the president is the final appellate officer, whereas at other schools, the president is usually not involved at all. At schools where the president is involved, there are usually multiple levels of appeal whereas at UT the president’s office is the first and final stop. University officials could not explain the reason for this policy other than the practice has been in place since the 1970s.

UT System Leadership The UT System Board of Regents governs all 14 UT universities and health institutions and faced some leadership changes this year. Regent Sara Martinez Tucker replaced Regent Paul Foster as chairman in September.

Chancellor William McRaven will continue leading the UT System as CEO in 2018. His contract’s expiration this month raised questions about his future, but he’s staying put without the contract.

DeVos Shakes Up Title IX Secretary of Education Betsy DeVos rescinded former President Barack Obama’s Title IX guidelines for sexual misconduct cases on college campuses in September.

DeVos has put in place temporary guidelines, which allow universities to use a higher standard of evidence than Obama’s preponderance of evidence standard, and promised a complete overhaul in the next months.

7

Monday, December 11, 2017

UT Competing For Los Alamos Lab

TOP STORIES

What to

EXPECT

The UT System will submit a proposal to run the historic Los Alamos Nuclear Laboratory today. The lab in New Mexico is renowned for its nuclear research, and winners of the management contract will be announced in the spring. The Board of Regents has invested $4.5 million to create a management contract proposal.

Here’s what to look forward to in the upcoming semseter.

Student Government

Senate Bill 4

Campaigns for Student Government positions will take place in the spring as candidates announce their intent to run at the start of the semester and continue until voting takes place in March. Until then, current Student Body President Alejandrina Guzman and Vice President Micky Wolf will continue work on their major platform points, and other SG members will focus on mental health and representation on campus.

Federal Judge Orlando Garcia is expected to make a ruling on the constitutionality of the “anti-sanctuary cities” law, Senate Bill 4, sometime in the spring. Days before it was originally to go into effect, Garcia blocked the law while lawsuits were litigated. In late September, the Fifth Circuit Court of Appeals, allowed parts of the bill to go into effect. Most prominently, the court temporarily ruled that local jurisdictions could not put a blanket prohibition on cooperation with federal Immigrations and Customs Enforcement requests.

March Primary Elections The filing deadline for candidates planning to run for a state office in 2018 is today.

Gov. Greg Abbott faces several Democratic challengers, vying for their party’s nomination, including Dallas County Sheriff Lupe Valdez and Andrew White, son of former Gov. Mark White, will be vying for the Democratic nomination in the gubernatorial election. Look for movement in the state attorney general election. Justin Nelson, UT law adjunct professor and Democrat, is running for the office against Republican incumbent Ken Paxton. Early voting runs from Feb. 20 to March 2, and Election Day is March 6.

Kendrex White Trial Kendrex White, who was indicted on first-degree murder charge and three counts of aggravated assault by a Travis County grand jury in connection with the May 1 UT campus stabbing attack, has no set trial date. UT student Harrison Brown was killed, and three others were injured in the incident. During his pretrial in September, the prosecutor’s second request for a mental health evaluation of defendant Kendrex White in the case was denied.

illustration by mel westfall| daily texan staff

Possible Tuition Hikes On The Horizon The UT System Board of Regents will decide the future of UT’s tuition in February. UT President Gregory Fenves officially proposed 2 percent tuition increases for the next two years last Monday. Under the proposal, tuition would increase in both the 2018 and 2019 fall semesters by about $100 for in-state undergraduates and by about $370 for non-resident undergraduates. Instate graduate students would pay about $90 more both years, and out-of-state graduate students will pay $180.

6600/Church of Scientology; Black

Meechaiel Criner Trial

Construction With the removal and replacement of the majority of bricks laid down on Speedway Mall, the area will continue to be a maze for students in the upcoming semester. Work surrounding Welch Hall will create additional obstacles. Last week, the city also released a list of recommendations for how to improve the Guadalupe Street corridor. The changes will first have to be approved in the spring by the City Council and funding will need to be appropriated for the 2016 Mobility Bond.

Meechaiel Khalil Criner’s trail is set to begin Feb. 26. Criner was indicted last June on a charge of capital murder in connection to the death of UT dance freshman Haruka Weiser by a Travis County grand jury.

The indictment accused Criner of sexually assaulting Weiser and killing her by strangulation, as well as other offenses including attempted kidnapping and robbery. If convicted, Criner will automatically be sentenced to life in prison with the possibility of parole after 40 years.

Classifieds; Black

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8

Monday, December 11, 2017

Editor’s note: A 30 column is a chance for departing permanent staff to say farewell and reflect on their time spent in the The Daily Texan. The term comes from the old typesetting mark (-30-) to denote the end of a line.

Associate photo editor says farewell to the basement

By Gabriel Lopez

By Daisy Wang

Assoc. Photo Editor

Three consecutive upsets.

Down went Ellie, Trent, then Peter. Last night was the last time I would play ping-pong in the office, one of the many things the Texan has introduced to me over the years.

Five semesters ago, a Facebook post brought me, a second-year student interested in photography, down the dark, musty basement steps everyone always has to mention in these things. Not sure if it was Daulton’s incredibly welcoming and cheerful demeanor or my eagerness to shoot that made me want the gig. If you’ve met Daulton, you know the answer. All jokes aside, I’m forever grateful he took me on even if most of my takes as a tryout consisted of a measly 8 to 15 photos.

Rachel took a chance on me and reached out to make me a senior photographer. Josh kept me around and strengthened the department. Zoe made me an associate photo editor and really made it feel like family around here.

I’ve shot baseball games alongside Roger Clemens. I’ve sang “The Eyes of Texas” with Kevin Durant. I’ve photographed former vice president Joe Biden, ran up and down the sidelines of DKR while questioning Texas’ play-calling with Quan Cosby, pushed by riot shields and charging horses while covering protests.

I’ve experienced the madness of NCAA basketball in March watching Northern Iowa escape defeat with a half-court buzzer beater…

Yeah, in the thousands of photos I’ve shot for the Texan,

Associate L&A editor/Carly Rae Jepsen enthusiast wonders what to do with all this free time Assoc. L&A Editor

juan figueroa| daily texan staff

Gabriel Lopez served as associate photo editor and double coverage photo editor for Fall 2017. Any faults can be taken up with the copy department.

and roughly 800 published, there are so many memories.

However, they all pale in comparison to the memories and relationships I’ve made in the office. In the last five semesters, The Texan has become a home with a great family that has made my college experience worthwhile. As each semester went by, I told myself it’d be the last, but the people always brought me back.

Josh, Zoe, Cano, Mary and Rachel: I hate each of you for deciding to leave at the same time, but thank you for being such an integral part of making The Texan my home. I couldn’t have asked for a better staff to work alongside with.

Photo doesn’t feel like photo without you all.

Trent, Keshav, Drew, Dalton, Matt and Alex: Thanks for the jokes, the ping-pong, the great assignments, and mostly thanks for giving me something to look forward to every Sunday morning by playing pickup.

Ellie: Thanks for being such a pleasure to work with these last two semesters while I’ve been

an associate. I’m excited to see where you end up. There’s an office of people looking up to you and I’m sure you’ll excel in everything you do.

Juan: Thank you for carrying the heavy load as photo editor this semester. I know it wasn’t easy with everyone leaving, but you still rocked it.

Trust your gut and you’ll do great!

Vanessa, Alex, Steven and Kirsten: Thanks for being such great friends this semester, and being my targets whenever I just felt like being sarcastic.

I’ll miss our hangouts, and I’ll definitely miss all of the video games.

Peter: Thank you for the goods and the ping-pong victories. It seems it was all I ever got.

Alexandria: Thanks for putting up with me living at the office, randomly becoming unavailable because I picked up an assignment and not hating me too much for not being in the stands to cheer Texas on with you.

Thank you to The Daily Texan.

When I first applied to join the Texan, UT-Austin was the last place I wanted to be.

New York was supposed to be my new home. Instead, I was at UT as an undeclared freshman, brimming with feelings of insecurity and inadequacy.

I wondered if I was capable of stringing together words in the way many of my idols seemed to do so effortlessly and beautifully.

It only took one semester for The Texan to convince me I could.

At first, everything about reporting felt foreign and terrifying. Before my tryout piece, I’d never written a true journalistic piece in my entire life. Still, I couldn’t help coming back each week, absorbing my editors’ advice and continually pushing myself out of my comfort soon.

Man, was it worth it.

The Texan brought people in my life who I’d only dreamed of meeting. I spoke with Ansel Elgort, Jon Hamm and Edgar Wright on a SXSW red carpet. I interviewed gems such as a girl who was stranded in the New Zealand wilderness, a local food truck turned-restaurant-owner and more — all of whom taught me to believe in the power of stories

and the words that could be used to tell them.

But even then, nobody taught me more than the people surrounding me in the dingy, rodent-infested basement.

Elizabeth, Katie and Cat: Though I was initially incredibly intimidated by you all and the seemingly endless wisdom you exuded, I owe you three so much for helping me rebuild my confidence bit by bit, story by story. Thank you.

Charles: You’re the most stubborn and pretentious person to edit with — besides Chris — but I have to give you credit for making my first time covering SXSW a hell of a lot easier.

Thanks for teaching me the ins and outs of the festival and navigating the late night bus routes back to West Campus.

It wasn’t until my second and third semesters when I’d meet the three people I’d share countless times of stress and laughter with: Mae, Morgan and Justin.

Mae: You, Morgan and I jumped into our reign over L&A with absolutely no clue as to what we were doing, but I can’t think of anyone else who could’ve taken on the role of head editor that semester as efficiently and diligently as you. You’re my Chinese soul sister and the produce princess, always.

Justin: I’m envious of how easy it is for you to craft webheads and make the dullest articles humorous. Even on the most stressful editing days, I know I can count on you to blast “Cut to the Feeling” and Taylor Swift or place Porg faces anywhere you can. The sexy fish man/ woman debacle won’t ever be forgotten.

Morgan: I never would’ve thought that going to our first DT party together would result in such a lovely friendship. I am so incredibly grateful to have had you by my side through our two semesters running the section together, growing as writers, editors and individuals. I have yet to meet someone who can create ledes as effortlessly as you or who has as much tenacity after pulling consecutive all-nighters as you. It’s going to be a real, tearful shit show saying goodbye to you and the section.

Peter: Thank you for being a guiding light and a fountain of wisdom for us all. I don’t know what we would do without you.

No matter how much I rag on The Texan, I can’t help but reflect on how much it has given me. While it was stressful, and I pushed myself to limits I never had before, The Texan never quite seemed like a workplace. It was a home.

Life&Arts Senior Reporter leaves basement home for the thrill of a new adventure

By Acacia Coronado L&A Senior Reporter

The second week of my first semester at the University of Texas School of Journalism, I walked into a basement that changed my life forever.

The stairs looked like the scene in any scary movie where the audience yells at the main character, “Don’t go down there,” but, as always, I left common sense behind and chased adventure. Nevertheless, I opened the big, metal door. Instead of finding fear, I found a home.

The first time I heard about The Daily Texan I was 10 years old, on a rainy UT Explore afternoon, when I was handed a flyer as I sought refuge from the rain on my way to the science school. Needless to say, I never found my way there.

On a warm August afternoon almost a decade later, I was ready to join without a clue of what to expect and a shaking fear. But that all went away when Elizabeth came and assured me this was my place, even after my first story turned into a manhunt for sources and an unreadable blur of edits.

Elizabeth, Cat and KT — my first editors, mentors and journalism role models. Thank you for taking a chance on the terrified 18-year-old girl who walked in with dreams of journalism.

The next few semesters, Life&Arts showed me a world of opportunities that reshaped my goals and checked my bucket list a thousand times over. As a senior reporter, each week of 2017 held two new adventures, at least six new friends and more stress than I could have ever imagined.

juan figeuroa| daily texan staff

Daisy Wang served as a L&A issue writer for Fall 2016 and associate L&A editor for two semesters.

juan figueroa| daily texan staff

Acacia Coronado served as a L&A reporter for Fall 2016 and senior reporter for last two semesters.

The Texan allowed me to interview my favorite bands, artists and authors, understand the beautifully weird Austin community through its citizens and celebrate the history and milestones of the University of my dreams. I traveled the world through the eyes of professors and believed in love through the stories of Longhorns in love.

But above all, I found a community — a fellow group of misfit writers that shared the same goals and passions but with entirely different and compelling stories. I was always told it was hard to feel at home at a university with 53,000 people, but I did.

Mae: You made my first stressful semester of senior reporting the most rewarding experience. Thank you for always supporting me.

Morgan: Thank you for always taking my calls, on off days, week days and everything in-between and having patience with this amateur reporter and her late stories.

Daisy: You are the sweetest, kindest editor I could have ever asked for, so thank you.

Justin: Your edits always

made my day. I will miss the memes and all the laughs in between.

Peter: Thank you for teaching me to take critiques, learn from my mistakes and become better.

And to all the friends I met along the way, especially my Life&Arts family, thank you for always inspiring me. Collyn, it only took one semester of writing together and a day of you nursing me back to health so I could go to work for our last day of writing together in Belo to feel surreal. Alex, thank you for talking me into applying for Life&Arts that day after FIG, encouraging me through every story and believing in my writing more than me.

Thank you to all of the incredible people that allowed me to tell their stories — my writing would be nothing without your experiences and I do this for you.

At the start of the semester, I had no idea it would be my last. But as my mom once told me, the only permanent thing in life is change. So it’s time for the next terrifying adventure.

Through God, I know I won’t find fear, but hope.

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Monday, December 11, 2017

Crossword; Black

SUDOKUFORYOU

Today’s solution will appear here next issue

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5 9 6

7 5

8 4 1 9 7 4 5 2 8 8 9 5 2 6 3 2 9 7 5 4 9 8 7 3 5 8 6

5 2 6 4 3 1 7 8 9

9 3 4 7 8 6 2 1 5

8 7 1 5 2 9 6 3 4

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10

MICHAEL SHAPIRO SPORTS EDITOR

@texansports

Monday, December 11, 2017

VOLLEYBALL

Texas advances to Elite Eight, falls to Stanford Texas drops Utah, 3-2, in Sweet 16 matchup

By Justin Martinez Sports Reporter

Exhale.

Texas survived a 3-2 nail-biter on Friday in Palo Alto, California, fending off Utah in an elimination match to advance to the Regional Finals.

Both teams entered the match with something different to gain. The Utes were looking for the program’s first-ever trip to the Regional Finals. The Longhorns were looking for their 11th straight.

After splitting the first two sets, both teams came out swinging in the third. The two sides fought neck-and-neck, unable to claim a lead of more than two points through the first half of the set.

Utah finally created some separation, taking a 20-17 lead. But the Longhorns responded, going on a 3-0 run for the score.

Texas had an answer every time the Utes tried to pull away. First, it was a kill by junior outside hitter Yaasmeen Bedart-Ghani, who made her first appearance on the court since Nov. 8, to tie the score at 21. Then, it was a strike down the middle by junior middle blocker Morgan Johnson to tie the score at 22.

But the Longhorns couldn’t claim a lead down the stretch. A back-breaking kill by Utah’s freshman outside hitter Dani Barton secured the 26-24 victory, giving the Utes a 2-1 set lead.

With their season on the line, the Longhorns found their rhythm in the fourth set, exploding to take a 7-3 lead fueled by a pair of kills

by Bedart-Ghani.

Texas played its most complete set of the match, hitting a game-high .444 and recording just one error as the Longhorns forced set point, 24-19. A short Utes rally came to an abrupt end with an untimely error, giving Texas a 25-21 and forcing a fifth set for a trip to the Regional Finals.

“Something about this group is very resilient,” senior middle blocker Chiaka Ogbogu said. “Our focus regardless if we’d won the point before is the next point and how we can get it.”

Every point was a battle in the fifth frame as both teams fought for another day. After a back-and-forth fiasco, Bedart-Ghani ignited the Longhorns with a crucial kill to take a 14-13 lead and reach match point. Utah responded, though, as junior middle blocker Berkeley Oblad landed a kill from the side to tie things up.

With the score tied, Bedart-Ghani came at the Utes again, this time with a soft tap that landed just out of the reach of the outstretched defender, bringing Texas to a second match point.

After a bad set by Utah that led to a free ball for Texas, freshman setter Ashley Shook lobbed the ball in the direction of Bedart-Ghani.

She elevated, cocking her hand back for one final swing.

With a thud that echoed through the arena, Bedart-Ghani sent a bullet towards the right corner of the court. Utah had no chance. The ball bounced off a Utes defender and hit the ground, giving Texas the 16-14 victory.

The Longhorns bench spilled onto the

angel ulloa| daily texan staff

Senior outside hitter Ebony Nwanebu and senior middle blocker Chiaka Ogbogu block a spike from Abigail Buckingham, TCU redshirt freshman outside hitter, on Nov. 8.

carlos garcia| daily texan staff

The Longhorns huddle together following a burnt orange point. Texas concluded its season in a 0-3 sweep by Stanford on Saturday in the regional finals of the NCAA Tournament.

court. Freshman outside hitter Lexi Sun, who’d been benched for Bedart-Ghani for most of the match, was one of the first players to embrace her.

Bedart-Ghani finished with 12 kills and a service ace to top it off. Shook delivered dimes the whole way through, posting 50 assists in a win that pushed the Longhorns to their limits.

“We realize that it’s not going to be an easy clean sweep from now on,” Bedart-Ghani said.

“It’s about finding a way to regroup and bounce back. We weren’t concerned with the score. We were just focused on how do we get better the next set and prevent a loss from happening.”

With the win, the Longhorns advances to a Saturday match at in Palo Alto, where they’ll take on the winner of No. 3 Stanford and Wisconsin for a trip to the Final Four.

Texas will play on less than 24 hours of rest, but the Longhorns say they are up to the task.

“The tournament is about surviving and advancing,” head coach Jerritt Elliott said. “Our focus is to get rested and put a good game plan together for tomorrow night. We know we’ll need to battle and find a way to win.”

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Sports Reporter

It first happened last year in Columbus, Ohio but last night it happened right at the doorstep of the Final Four in Palo Alto, California.

As redshirt senior Merete Lutz elevated for the game clinching kill, it felt like deja vu all over again for the Longhorns.

Stanford dispatched Texas from the NCAA Tournament with a 3-0 sweep on Saturday night, advancing to the Final Four for the second straight year. For the Longhorns, this is the second consecutive year in which their season was ended at the hands of the Cardinal.

“Tonight was a very challenging night for us,” head coach Jerritt Elliott said. “We grew, but sometimes you can trip up, and that was

Longhorns falter against Tennessee in Knoxville, suffer first loss of season

By Drew King

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Longhorns fall to Stanford in Elite Eight

our match tonight.”

The Longhorns opened the match with a 5-0 lead, quickly taking advantage of Stanford’s mistakes. But as the set went on, Stanford slowly chipped away at the lead, and eventually retook it towards the end of the first set. The Cardinal took care of business 25-21 to grab the early 1-0 lead in the match.

The second set saw more of the same from the Cardinal. They grabbed the lead early and never looked back, eventually taking the set 25-21. Despite a spirited Longhorn effort to hold off four set points, they fell into the 2-0 hole.

“We could never get our serve and pass game going at a high level,” Elliott said. “We couldn’t do it for prolonged periods of time.”

Freshman outside hitter Kathryn Plummer, the Pac-12 Player of the Year, caused all sorts of problems for the Longhorns, tallying 16 kills through the first two sets to propel Stanford to the early advantage.

Stanford’s attacking game proved to be one that Texas was not ready to handle.

The Cardinal consistently created chances from both at and behind the attack line, forcing the Longhorns to play defensively for most of the game. Texas’ defense could only hold its own for so long before the Cardinal broke through time and time again.

“Our inability to control the ball (really hurt us),” Elliott said. “It was the reason the wheels came falling off.”

The third set was heavily contested, with both teams playing to a tie at 17. But the Cardinal closed out the third set on a 9-4 run to take the set and match.

Saturday night was the last time seniors Chiaka Ogbogu, Cat McCoy, and Ebony Nwanebu donned the burnt orange. While a crushing defeat to go out with, this senior core showed the leadership needed of a team to stay afloat.

Ogbogu delivered seven kills throughout the match, even until the last point, showcasing why she earned Big 12 Player of the Year honors. Her partner Ebony Nwanebu also turned in a team high eight kills, finding any gap she could in the Cardinal defense.

Despite their efforts, they fell short of the win.

“Tonight we didn’t play out best volleyball, which was unfortunate,” McCoy said. “But there’s nothing we can do about it.”

It was a bitter end to their careers, and not the way any of them had envisioned it.

But their growth in a Texas uniform for the past four years turned out just the way they thought it would.

“We grew up a lot as young women,” Ogbogu said. “Just being able to grow and learn (from the coaching staff) has really been rewarding.”

Despite Saturday’s defeat, the future of Texas Volleyball is in good hands. With freshmen Lexi Sun and Ashley Shook looking to take the reins along with seniors Yaazie Bedart-Ghani and Morgan Johnson, there’s a lot to look forward to for the 2018 season.

“We have a very talented team,” Elliott said.

“Probably the most talented team, physically, that we’ve had at Texas from top to bottom.”

With a lineup like this in place for next season, the Eyes of Texas will surely be upon them. Until then, it’s going to be a long plane ride back to Austin.

A layup from senior guard Ariel Atkins with 2:07 remaining in the fourth quarter left Texas down 73-69. After a free throw from Tennessee freshman guard Anastasia Hayes, Atkins hit a jumper to cut the lead to three with 1:41 on the clock.

The Longhorns couldn’t keep the momentum.

Atkins took a hard screen early in the fourth and was helped off the court and to the locker room. She returned in the last three minutes to help spark a near comeback, but fell short as Texas suffered its first loss of the season to the No. 11 Lady Volunteers, 82-75.

The Longhorns’ rally was stagnated by a sudden lack of depth. Junior forward Jordan Hosey suffered an injury in the third quarter and did not return. Transfer junior forward Jatarie White, senior forward Audrey-Ann Caron-Goudreau and senior guard Brooke McCarty all fouled out in the fourth.

In minutes, Texas was left with a short bench and without four of its top seven leaders.

“We went small for a little bit, and that’s not something

that we’ve worked on very much,” head coach Karen Aston said. “We have some players that had not been in this situation before and were asked to do some things they’ve probably never done, or haven’t been asked to do here at Texas.”

Prior to Sunday’s matchup, Texas ranked second in the nation with 93 points per game.

The Longhorns were also 11th in the nation in field goal percentage at just under 50 percent, but shot just 36.8 percent from the field against the Lady Volunteers.

Atkins led the team with 21 points and added four rebounds and three steals. She was complimented by junior guard Lashann Higgs, who tallied 15 points on seven of 15 shooting. But the inexperienced small-ball lineups struggled against Tennessee’s physical play.

Texas labored to box out defenders and stop the Lady Volunteers from getting easy buckets inside the paint. A number of miscues during inbound plays also made up a large chunk of the Longhorns’ 16 turnovers.

“I just think we need to get tougher,” Atkins said. “We

need to get stronger personally, just my opinion. I would say, both physically and mentally.”

The Lady Volunteers shot over 40.3 percent from the field and led or tied Texas in almost every category. Tennessee was led by senior wing Jaime Nared, who had 23 points to go along with 13 rebounds. She was helped by redshirt senior center Mercedes Russell, who had a double-double with 15 points and 12 rebounds.

“I will say that, as a team, we have a lot to work on,” Higgs said. “Tennessee was just tougher today. We just have a lot to work on. We have to get

back in the gym, keep working and try to fix our mistakes.”

Texas entered the Thompson-Boling Arena in Knoxville as the No. 2 team in the country with a 7–0 record. The loss marks the first time since 2013 that the Longhorns have lost to Tennessee. The Lady Volunteers lead the all-time series over Texas, 25–14.

Tennessee improved to 10–0 and will likely receive a boost in next week’s AP Poll.

Texas takes the floor next on Wednesday night in a home matchup with Northwestern State. Tipoff is slated for 7:00 p.m. at the Frank Erwin Center.

angel ulloa| daily texan staff

Senior guard Ariel Atkins looks for an open teammate around McNeese State senior guard Dede Sheppard on Nov. 15. Atkins led the Longhorns on Sunday with 21 points.

11

MORGAN O’HANLON LIFE&ARTS EDITOR

Monday, December 11, 2017

@thedailytexan

BOOK

‘Snow Falling’ brings ‘Jane the Virgin’ book to life

By Acacia Coronado L&A Senior Reporter

For three seasons, fans of the CW’s “Jane the Virgin” witnessed Jane Gloriana Villanueva, played by Gina Rodriguez, struggle to achieve her dreams of becoming a writer. She’s faced obstacles only believable in a telenovela, but now Villanueva’s dream has finally come true — on and off the screen.

The show follows the romantic ups and downs of Villanueva, a pregnant virgin caught in a love triangle between her fiancé, Michael Cordero, and Rafael Solano, the father of her child. Also prominent in the show are the mysterious crimes surrounding the Marbella, Rafael’s Miami hotel.

While the love triangle of Jane, Michael and Rafael only exists in the fictional world of the show, the book that Villanueva spends both seasons completing has now been published in the real world. On Nov. 14, the book ghostwritten by Caridad Pineiro, was released

by Simon & Schuster, the real-life equivalent of Villanueva’s fictional publisher Lorden + Gregor.

“Snow Falling,” a reference to Villanueva and Michael’s first kiss, follows

illustration by channing miller| daily texan staff

a plot which parallels the events of the show, but is set in the early 1900s. Though the book does an accurate job showing a deeper look into Villanueva’s thoughts and feelings throughout her complicated romances, it also doesn’t offer many surprises.

While Villanueva does a thorough job recreating the story in terms of the

1900s robber baron era, the characters only differ from the show’s with minimal name changes, such as Martin Cadden for Michael Cordero and Rake Solvino for Rafael Solano.

Additionally, the plot of a young, chaste woman — which works well in the TV version because it’s unusual today — doesn’t resonate in the book because women in

that time period were culturally encouraged to wait until marriage anyway.

The book can also be quite confusing for anyone who is not familiar with Villanueva’s televised story, as it includes appearances by the show’s well-known and strongly opinionated narrator. Though it is nice for fans to read commentary in his voice, his cam-

eos can also appear out of place.

But for those who have religiously watched the show on the CW, or bingewatched on Netflix, “Snow Falling” provides an inside look into Villanueva’s troubled romance with Michael.

It also further explains her complicated feelings for Rafael, and the thought process behind some of her

Q&A

MOVIE REVIEW | ‘THE SHAPE OF WATER’

Del Toro’s ‘The Shape of Water’ shines as fantastical romance masterpiece

By Charles Liu L&A Reporter

Not any movie can make you believe a lady and a frog can fall in love, but “The Shape of Water” does. Thanks to strong writing and direction by Guillermo del Toro, this picture is a stirringly intimate fairy tale and is a powerful and relatable humanistic masterpiece.

At its center is the mute Elisa Esposito (Sally Hawkins), a janitor at an aerospace research facility during the 1960s.

She goes about her day-to-day life with childlike wonder, but her outward innocence belies her sexual nature, expressed only through her daily masturbation in a bathtub.

Deprived of one of an actor’s most important tools, a voice, Hawkins delivers a purely physical, and instantly likable, performance. Her expressive face and wonderful use of sign language to express emotion contribute immensely to the film’s most euphoric, as well as its most heartbreaking, moments.

Elisa’s ordinary life turns extraordinary when she meets the facility’s latest asset: the Amphibian Man (Doug Jones).

This aquatic creature has been captured by the tyrannical Colonel Richard Strickland (Michael Shannon), and the facility’s scientists believe studying his biology will be essential to breakthroughs in space travel technology.

Jones’ character has a voice, but it is little more than an incomprehensible screech. Instead, Jones and the phenomenal production team combine a physical performance with state-of-the-art costumes and special effects to bring the Amphibian Man to life.

While Strickland can only see how he and the Amphibian Man are different, Elisa sees how she and the creature are the same. She sneaks into his chamber to feed him hard-boiled eggs, play records for him and teach him sign language. In turn, the Amphibian Man does not see Elisa has incomplete — he sees her as she is.

Over time, the two characters develop a friendship that believably evolves into romance. Del Toro uses Elisa’s costumes to symbolize this change, slowly adding more red to her wardrobe until, at the very end of the movie, she’s clothed entirely in it. The boiled eggs Elisa shares with the Amphibian Man come to serve as familiar comforts as the world around the two characters darkens.

On the page, this love story might seem ridiculous — how could a princess and the frog narrative be taken seriously when the princess is supposed to end up

with the frog? Del Toro sticks the landing because Elisa and the Amphibian Man are thoughtfully written and cast, and it is actually quite easy to see why both these spirits are drawn together in spite of their differences in species.

Unfortunately, Elisa and the Amphibian Man’s relationship is running out of time: Strickland plans to kill the creature and vivisect him. Before this can happen, Elisa, a fellow janitor, Zelda Fuller (Octavia Spencer), a closeted commercial artist, Giles (Richard Jenkins), and a scientist, Dr. Robert Hoffstetler (Michael Stuhlbarg), steal him away from the facility. But Strickland is close on their tail, and he threatens to recapture the Amphibian Man before they can bring him to the sea.

Shannon is supremely scary as Strickland. He’s a God-fearing military man who is capable of great violence and cruelty, but he’s not a one-dimensional monster. He wants the promotion and the perks that will come from his contribution to the American space program.

He hates the Amphibian Man for being a supposed affront to God. “The Shape of Water” is empathic to all its characters, the heroes and the villains, and that’s why it is special. It illuminates a world beyond Elisa and the Amphibian Man, showing us the personal lives of each character and lending each of them motivations easy for us to identify with.

Del Toro embraces the magic possible in fantasy, but he grounds it in the reality of the human condition.

most romantic decisions.

The book gives sweet and passionate descriptions of Villanueva’s encounters with her love interests, fully living up to it’s romantic fiction genre. The third person narrative also follows Detective Cadden’s investigative journey, Rake’s criminal activities and the unconditional love they share for Villanueva.

Though the plot and ending offer few new details, this book serves as an unconventional refresher for fans who await the next episode following last week’s mid-season finale. It also serves as a more dramatic and passionate telling of Villanueva’s story — unlike the show, she isn’t modest in her imagery of her romantic encounters and dramatic scenes.

As far as marketing goes, this idea from Simon & Schuster is as unique as it is effective. Throughout the third season, audiences waited with Villanueva for her book to be completed as on-screen pop-ups teased a real-life publication date.

The time has finally come for Villanueva to fulfill the dream she once confided in Rafael over grilled cheese sandwiches, and now audiences too can relive the fond story and pay homage to the late Michael Cordero.

Streep, Hanks, Spielberg discuss new journalism film, ‘The Post’

By Justin Jones Assoc. L&A Editor

Three of Hollywood’s most powerful individuals are collaborating on one superfilm. Meryl Streep and Tom Hanks star in Steven Spielberg’s “The Post,” a movie about The Washington Post during the public leaks of the Pentagon Papers in the early ‘70s.

The extremely relevant film drives home the need for a free press — something we tend to agree with — and delivers Oscar-worthy performances from

Streep and Hanks, two of Hollywood’s best. Along with other student newspapers across the U.S., The Daily Texan spoke with the three filmmakers via Skype, learning more details behind the making and power of “The Post.”

The Daily Texan: How important was it to y’all to include such an inspiring, powerful female role, especially in today’s society, that a powerful woman would help to shed light on powerful men?

POST page 5

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