Monthly Archives: February 2017

The dilemma with ‘alternative facts’

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By AMANDA PRATS

Anyone who considers themselves a fan of 1990s television knows it: The truth is out there. In 2017, however, the truth may be harder to find than it was for the “X-Files”’ Fox Mulder and Dana Scully.

For the past 100 years, since President Woodrow Wilson held the first one in March of 1913, the presidential press conference has been at the very least, credible. If the White House press secretary refrained from saying much, the little they did say was of significant news value to the journalists in attendance.

In one of the first press briefings of the Trump administration, new White House Press Secretary Sean Spicer accused the news media of misinformation while distributing misinformation himself. After the briefing, Kellyanne Conaway, one of Trump’s senior advisors, described Spicer’s blatant lies by using a phrase that has become infamous in the days since: “alternative facts.”

For members of the news media covering the Trump administration going forward, reporting on a White House that disseminates these falsehoods poses multiple major issues.

Since the beginning of his campaign, Trump has fueled the narrative that the news media has an inherent bias against him. If the news media chooses to continue to report on his administration’s lies as they are, he will continue to use it as evidence that journalists are against him. By doing their jobs, journalists will unfortunately encourage his narrative and as it is, much of the public already considers the news media to be biased against the president.

The government collects and reports an incredible amount of data, ranging from mundane to critical. While journalists have had to verify and check government data before, for the most part, journalists have never been in a position where questioning and vetting every piece of information from the government was necessary. However, when the line between fact and “alternative fact” becomes blurred, news organizations may have to rely on their own resources more heavily than the government agencies that they relied on in the past.

As the “X-Files” told us, the truth is out there. Finding the truth while reporting on an administration that completely disregards it, however, may pose a greater challenge than expected.

Nordstrom drops Ivanka Trump products

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By ISABELLA HALILI

Nordstrom is a luxury department store that has removed the Ivanka Trump brand online and in stores. It claims to have made this decision based off the brand’s poor performance in recent months.

Nordstrom hopes that its decision to sell or not to sell Ms. Trump’s brand, now and in the future, is no indication of its political affiliation. It’s all business. If the store keeps buying products that don’t sell, that money just goes to waste.

Poor performance is not the only factor in the ending of Ms. Trump’s brand in Nordstrom stores. The initial move to end the brand’s appearance in stores came from the public. The campaign called #GrabYourWallet made a huge effort in making this possible. This campaign encourages shoppers to boycott any products that have any tie to President Trump or his family.

Shannon Coulter, the co-founder of the campaign, said that supporting certain brands that have ties to President Trump are in turn supporting him.

Nordstrom is not the only business to pull products from its stores. Macy’s is another department store that decided back in 2015 to stop selling President Trump’s dress shirts after he used rude language to generalize about Mexican immigrants.

I don’t think it’s a company’s duty to take a political stance in any situation, but at the place we are now as a country, it’s hard for them not to take one.

Taggart becomes known name in Florida

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By LUIS GONZALEZ

The ink has dried for the class of 2017, but the full court press for juniors and seniors in high school is already in full swing.

Mark Richt (Miami), Jimbo Fisher (Florida State), Jim McElwain (Florida), Lane Kiffin (Florida Atlantic), Butch Davis (Florida International), and Charlie Strong (South Florida) headline the coaches from Florida that are pushing for kids to sign to their schools, but they need to keep an eye out on a school in the opposite end of the country.

Willie Taggart left USF to take the head coaching job at the University of Oregon. But, just because he decided to go does not mean he’s giving up his turf.

South Florida is heralded as one of the most fertile grounds in the country for high school football talent, grounds that Taggart took advantage of as a Bull.

Already in his first recruiting class as a Duck, Taggart has begun to poach out a pipeline to Eugene. He got some help from his new co-offensive coordinator Mario Cristobal, the former FIU head coach and Alabama offensive line coach specialized in helping the Crimson Tide pull All-Americans from Florida to play in Tuscaloosa.

Seven out of their 24 signees were from Florida, three coming from South Florida, and four coming from the Central Florida. Their current roster only has three players from Florida, none south of Lake Okeechobee.

Before and on signing day, local coverage in Miami was focused on coaches from Florida schools battling it out for local talent, but gave a simple brush to Taggart’s staff and the seeds he has planted.

On National Signing Day, The Miami Herald had three stories on its website that mentioned Taggart’s name. All three bylines were from Associated Press writers.

When next recruiting cycle comes around, Taggart’s staff will look to get more athletes and mentions when he tries to get more Ducks flying north to play football in Eugene.

Black History Awareness Month begins

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By CHELSEA LOVELL

Wednesday marked the beginning of Black History Month. The University of Miami celebrates this month as “Black Awareness Month.”

Black History Month is an annual celebration of black Americans and a time to reflect and recognize all of the achievements African Americans have made in United States history.

This celebratory month was originally known as “Negro History Week” created in 1926 by Carter G. Woodson. Starting in 1976, it became a month-long celebration.

United Black Students (UBS) coordinates all of the events for Back Awareness Month under the University of Miami Multicultural Student Affairs. These special events memorialize the historical achievements and contributions of the African Diaspora.

These events range from All Black Lives Matter to Black Artist Showcase, even Throwback Karaoke.

These are fun ways to bring to black community together to commemorate their history and even learn new things they didn’t know before. UM is a very diverse school, however, minorities do appreciate the special events and times that the university hosts for each culture.

Black Awareness Month is not only informative for the black community but also for other cultures to learn about African American greatness.

The last day of Black Awareness Month is February 28 where there will be a closing carnival ending this jubilant month off with a laid back and exciting final community gathering.

Get smart about the HPV vaccine

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By CHANTAL ALBA

Hey guys! So it’s time to drop some knowledge on you for your sexual health. I’m going to be telling you guys about HPV, otherwise known as the human papillomavirus. HPV is the most commonly sexually transmitted infection (STI).

How common do you ask? Well, so common that nearly half the people who are sexually active will contract the virus at least once during some point of their lifetime. There are different types of HPV too, some cause warts and others can cause cancer. That is why it is so important to get vaccinated.

HPV is spread when you have vaginal, oral or anal sex with someone who has the virus. Sometimes, when a person is infected with the virus, they may not even realize it because they can show no symptoms and may not even show symptoms until years later.

Typically HPV goes away on its own and doesn’t cause any health problems. However, if the virus doesn’t go away, it can cause genital warts or cancer. If you have the virus that causes warts, you experience things like a small bump or a group of bumps, that can be small or large, raised or flat, or cauliflower shaped in your genital area. If you have the type that causes cancer, then you are at risk of getting cervical cancer, cancer of the vulva, vagina, penis, or anus, and oropharyngeal cancer (cancer in the back of throat, base of tongue or tonsils).

It’s a pretty scary virus to think about ever having, especially since most people will have it in their lives. But there are ways to prevent yourself from being a statistic. Make sure you get vaccinated, if you aren’t vaccinated yet.

You usually receive the vaccination around 11-12 years old, but there are “catch-up” vaccines available for women under the age of 27. Currently there is no test that can determine if you have the virus or not. So most people do not know they have it, until they have warts and, for women, if they have an abnormal Pap test result.

So If you are sexually active, make sure you are using a condom, the right way, every single time you have sex because it can lower your chances of getting the virus.

Carter family grows by two

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By ERYKAH DAVENPORT

The queen of breaking the internet just recently revealed her pregnancy via Instagram. Although it was posted on a reliable source, it didn’t become breaking news until reported by CNN, The Huffington Post, Time Magazine, and Us Weekly in the celebrity mom’s section.

Billboard.com made it known that the unleashing of such news generated a record breaking number on the amount of like on one picture as well as over half a million tweets in just an hour.

Billboard also included some congratulatory posts made by some fellow celebrities. CNN also covered this story describing Beyoncé as the new queen of Instagram.

She also released a plethora of images from her maternity shoot on her website in an album titled I have three hearts, implying that she is having twins. Once news sources got a hold of these remarkable photos, they made it their priority to release them ASAP. The music industry as well as fans felt a sense of attachment to the celebrity since she was sharing this with the world and more specifically her fans.

There has also been talk about how she has two performances coming up and the 2017 Grammy Awards and at Coachella. People are worried she may not perform even after they have already purchased tickets.

My assumption is that she’ll still perform, but her show will have to be a lot more conservative and mellow. It wouldn’t be a surprise if the expecting mother takes this opportunity as a album dropping outlet. She would definitely draw the attention of millions as she’s done already.

Heat are the hottest team in the NBA

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By JIHAD SHATARA

Just three seasons ago, Miami was in its fourth consecutive NBA Finals against soon to be champions San Antonio Spurs with the “Big 3” still fully in tact.

Fast forward to 2017 and Lebron James is playing in Cleveland, Chris Bosh is nearly forced to retire with blood clots and the impossible happened when Dwyane Wade left Miami this past summer to play in Chicago. In all honesty, this season has been miserable for Heat fans. This season was drawing many parallels to 2008 when Miami started to “tank” by trading key pieces and trying their best to lose in order to gain a top pick in the draft.

This season was not far off from that awful 2008 season. There were rumors sputtering about Miami trading starters Goran Dragic and Hassan Whiteside. Miami was just 1-10 in one 11-game stretch and things were going south. But one staple that Coach Erik Spoelstra and team President Pat Riley really hammer into their players is the “Heat Culture.” No matter how bad a Miami Heat roster may be, the team always seem to compete.

Miami is on a nine-game win streak at the moment. Noted draft bust Dion Waiters is playing like a super star right now averaging 20 points a game during his last 10 games. He has hit clutch shot after clutch shot, including the game-winning buzzer beater against the best team in the league, the Golden State Warriors. Other role players like Willie Reed, Wayne Ellington and James Johnson have stepped up as well. Miami is doing this all without young starters Josh Richardson and Justise Winslow.

Miami is now three games out of a playoff spot in the East. This might not be the best thing for Miami considering the team would more than likely be a first round exit if it did, in fact, make the postseason, but Miami Heat fans should definitely enjoy this ride while they can.

Haute couture becomes political

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By SHELLIE FRAI

Protests, bans, inequality and violence. Those are a few of the things that we as citizens of America and the world have witnessed since the year began. Protests in airports and in the streets of the world’s most popular cities. Multiple shootings where innocent people have died for being at the wrong place at the wrong time and an exponentially-growing divide between the nation’s political parties.

In the midst of this chaotic environment, one of the most opulent and lavish events took place: Haute Couture Fashion Week. Haute couture is synonymous with high-end fashion. The clothes are custom-made using only high quality fabric and with extreme attention to detail. Haute Couture Fashion Week has been a part of the fashion industry since the mid-nineteenth century.

This year, the shows took place in Paris just a week after the Women’s March, where thousands upon thousands of men, women and children marched through the streets in cities around the world to protest President Trump. Thus, to have something so glamorous and over-the-top right after a worldwide protest seemed inappropriate and unnecessary to some.

However, the beautiful fabrics and glittering silhouettes was how the fashion industry took part in the protest. The designers created clothing that gave the audience a feeling of optimism and hope for the future of our world.

Elie Saab, debuted a collection of golden, beaded dresses and silky skirts that the designer, Saab, said was inspired by the turn of the 20th century in Egypt.

During that time the people in Egypt were able to freely express themselves in a progressive and cultural hub. Saab used that idea to embroider his dresses with pictures of city skylines and boats sailing along the Nile River.

The dreamlike dresses gave the audience a sense of wonder. The collection served as a reminder that while the present is chaotic, there is always something to look forward to on the horizon.

Valentino, showcased a collection that depicted a pure and classic aesthetic that is reminiscent of Grecian goddesses and architecture. The smooth lines and flowing cloaks reminded me of the popular saying “less is more.”

The simplicity of the collection was a direct contrast to the complexity of our reality. It served as a much needed simple distraction to the disarray that is so apparent in our daily lives.

The Vetements show was a praise to one’s unique and individualistic attitude, something that seems to be at risk in this political climate. The inspiring collection was modeled by people of different ethnicities, races and ages.

They walked down the runway wearing eccentric ensembles including all leather outfits, long fur coats and silk dresses over hoodies.

Imprinted on some of the outerwear were saying like “Not Your Resident,” which mirrored the popular saying against President Trump, “Not My President.”

While these are just three examples of the way designers used the uneasy political mood as a major theme in their haute couture collections, many other fashion houses did the same like Maison Margiela, Jean Paul Gaultier and Chanel.

The designers took advantage of their stature, the large audiences and publicity of the week to make a statement. That statement being: there is a light at the end of the dark tunnel.