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E-mail: editor@dailyemerald.com
Online Edition:
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Thursday, January 10,2002
Editor in Chief:
Jessica Blanchard
Managing Editor:
Jeremy Lang
Editorial Editor:
Julie Lauderbaugh
Assistant Editorial Editor:
Jacquelyn Lewis
Editorial
Nothing’s
sexy or cool
about CNN’s
sexist ads
In a brazen attempt to attract atten
tion to Paula Zahn’s new CNN
morning show, the channel aired
racy commercials touting the an
chor’s sex appeal. The sultry advertise
ments come at an inopportune time.
The 24-hour news cycle and the Inter
net have increased the number of me
dia watchers and the forums for them
to debate journalists’ credibility more
than ever. Selling serious news — and
Zahn’s show is not the usual entertain
ment package — has reached a new
low of desperation when anchors are
promoted for their sex appeal rather
than intellect.
The 20-second commercial featured
a male announcer asking viewers:
“Where can you find a morning news
anchor who’s provocative, super-sexy,
oh yeah, and just a little sexy?” Then,
in bright red letters, the word “sexy”
appeared while an image of Zahn came
onto the screen.
How are women supposed to be
taken seriously in the patriarchy of
broadcast journalism when advertis
ers promote them as sexual objects in
stead of serious intellectuals? CNN
quickly pulled the ad, and company
executives released a statement con
demning the spot, saying the adver
tisement didn’t get the necessary final
approval from them. However, no
amount of backtracking will counter
act the integrity issues now facing
both Zahn and CNN.
An aging demographic and glossier
competition are sinking ratings for
the original cable news channel. And
to increase ratings, CNN has been
roped into using sexist tactics to get
viewers to tune in and “turn on.”Fox
News Channel fired Zahn in early
September for breach of contract, and
CNN quickly snatched her. Now it
seems CNN is trying to keep up with
the sexier, glossier Fox News with
low-brow tactics.
There is no word on whether Zahn
knew of the advertisement or its con
notations. Now CNN executives will
be stuck finding ways to apologize for
the debacle, Zahn will have to defend
her reputation as a serious anchor and
viewers will have to second guess
whether they’re going to watch “Amer
ican Morning with Paula Zahn” be
cause it’s informative or because she
looks hot. Either way, everyone comes
out feeling a little dirty.
Editorial Policy
This editorial represents the opinion
of the Emerald editorial board. Responses
can be sent to ietters@dailyemerald.com.
Letters to the editor and guest
commentaries are encouraged. Letters
are limited to 250 words and guest
commentaries to 550 words. Please
include contact information. The Emerald
reserves the right to edit f or space,
grammar and style.
Rage against the sports machine
Like it or not, football seems to be a
big part of college life. Eugene resi
dents and University students can't
escape hearing the latest about the
Autzen Stadium expansion or donations
from Nike CEO Phil Knight. And it's no dif
ferent at many other schools, especially
those vying for a national sports ranking.
Fiesta Bowl news ran throughout the
break. But behind the glory of the Heisman
Trophy competition, the controversy of the
Bowl Championship Series rankings and
tales of extraordinary road trips to the big
game, a darker tale goes almost unnoticed,
and so far, unpunished.
On Dec. 7, more than three weeks before
the big game, a Colorado University student
alleged she was gang raped while attending
a party thrown for football recruits, accord
ing to Associated Press reports. The party
reportedly consisted of approximately 15
high school recruits and a half-dozen Col
orado University football players, all of
whom were drinking heavily.
You’d expect to hear that the police are
investigating and that there have been
repercussions against the aggressors, but the
police weren't called.
Instead, campus police
are handling the investi
gation, despite the fact
the crime happened off
campus. And surprise,
surprise, no players
were suspended from
the Fiesta Bowl for the
incident, and no arrests
have been made even
now, as investigations
are “ongoing.”
Few newspapers ran
the article, and those
Columnist Who did used the same
AP story. No one has
questioned the fact that the underage re
cruits were allegedly drinking with their
CU football hosts. The athletic department
spent more than $5,000 in food, rental cars
and entertainment — not counting hotel
or airfare — to host the 15 recruits for
three days, according to a Boulder, Col.,
newspaper.
The athletic department and the football
team hosts used this wining and dining to
show the recruits what could “be theirs” if
they became college athletes. Did this dis
play reach beyond food and liquor and con
stant attention to encompass women —
willing or unwilling?
Gang rape is not a new phenomenon, but
today, it’s exclusive groups that are commit
ting these violent crimes. The highest num
ber of gang rapes is committed by fraternity
groups, followed closely in number by ath
letic teams, according to a study by psycholo
gist Chris O’Sullivan, Ph.D., of Buckness
University. Of athletes, it’s football, basket
ball and hockey teams who are most prone to
rape, according to a study by Bernice Sandler
of the Association of American Colleges.
As these groups complain that they are
the victims of unfair stereotyping involving
rape, the statistics continue to support the
facts. The origin of this violence is men who
have developed a subculture based upon
privilege and aggression, often leading to
the scapegoating of women.
It’s horrifying that the combination of elit
ism and power among men somehow pro
duces a mentality that allows these crimes
to happen in the first place. It’s even scarier
that most of the athletes accused escape
with little more than a slap on the wrist, de
spite the growing awareness of the phenom
enon. I’m angry that athletics really isn’t the
problem here, but a culture that elevates
athletes to a demigod status, where any be
havior is permissible.
E-mail columnist Rebecca Newell at
rebeccanewell@dailyemerald.com. Her opinions
do not necessarily reflect those of the Emerald.
Hydrogen equals clean energy
As we enter into these early
years of the new millennium,
especially in these recent
times of political and econom
ic turmoil, we should take the opportu
nity to reflect on some of the factors in
fluencing recent events and perhaps
formulate strategies to move forward.
Essentially, America is a petroleum
based economy. We extract (or mine)
oil resources from the earth and bum
them at an astonishing rate, in order to
live a life of relative comfort compared
to the rest of the world.
Half of all humans have never
spoken on a phone, never had clean
running water nor safe power in
their dwellings, never used ma
chines to help with physical labor
nor easily traveled long distances.
In our own culture we enjoy, as if
second nature, “the highest standard
of living” on the planet. It begs the
Guest Commentary
Frederick
Cable
question and observation: Are we
slaves or masters of our “modem
standard of living”?
As the natural petroleum reserves
dwindle, do we have a backup plan?
Will all humanity enjoy our standard
of living, or we will we return to the
“dark ages” as “free market” forces
drive up the costs (and profits) of the
ever decreasing energy supply?
Fortunately, there is a technology,
more than 100 years old, that is 100
percent pollution free, 100 percent
renewable and very easily obtained.
It can heat our homes, cook our food
and be used with our current trans
portation technology, even those
large SUVs that we love to hate. Hu
manity can be both a consumer and a
producer of this energy source.
This is the answer that a hydrogen
based economy can deliver. Hydrogen
is the most common element in the
universe, and it is a fuel that an inter
nal combustion engine can use with
negative emissions. The air coming
out of the exhaust is cleaner than the
air entering the engine. Imagine an
SUV cleaning the air as it is driven!
On Nov. 10, Roy McAlister, presi
dent of the not for profit American Hy
drogen Association, gave a lecture on
“Hydrogen 101,” the basics of hydro
gen use, conversion and production.
As a student member of the AHA,
I extend an invitation to all in our
community to learn about the future
of humanity — the hydrogen-based
world economy.
Frederick Cable is a junior pre-business rYihjorr