The Optimist (Abilene, Tex.), Vol. 83, No. 45, Ed. 1, Friday, March 24, 1995 Page: 1 of 8
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ABILENE CHRISTIAN UNIVERSITY
ABILENE TX 7SW9
i
Keep alert stand firm in
your faith be
courageous be strong.
Let all that you do be
done in love.
2CORINTHIANS16:13
LlIIllSL
ACU Department of Journalism and Mass Communication
yolume 83 Number 45
Friday March 24 1995
Popular culture critic reveals Hollywood lies
By AMY DAUGHERITY
MANAGING EDITOR
More than 600 students faculty and
community members crowded
into the chairs aisles and floor space of
Mart Auditorium Mondnv In lienr
Michael Mcdvcd speak about Holly-
r wood's Three Big Lies.
iviLuvtu is uiu ti lit i iiiiii criuc lor inc
New York Post co-host of the weekly
PBS television program Sneak Pre-
. views and the author of seven non-fic-
f tion books.
nicuvuu saw "I'copic don t take the
impactof popular culture seriously."
Mcdvcd said his purpose vas to pre-
sent "Hollywood's Three Big Lies so
tie audience might be prepared to deal
with those lies "as citizens as con-
sumers and as builders of the Ameri-
can community."
The first lie was that Hollywood "just
entertains people doesn't influence
them."
Mcdvcd said "Even people who arc
in the heart of the entertainment indus-
try don't believe it ..."
He told of a CBS vice president who
declared "no conclusive scientific evi-
dence has ever been deduced to suggest
that televised imagery impacts real
world behavior in any way Mcdvcd
said quoting directly from the vice
president's speech.
If that is the case Mcdvcd said the
network should refund several billion
dollars in advertising revenue. "So how
can they ... say 30 seconds can change
people's behavior but the 30 minutes
of programming surrounding the 30
seconds of advertising ... has no
impact?"
Mcdvcd's said "We have to affirm a
very simple truth: ... Messages matter."
Lie No. 2 was Hollywood docs not
shape reality it just reflects reality.
"The world on television and the
movies just shows America as it is" he
said.
With this lie Mcdvcd said "Holly-
wood can let themselves off the hook
for any responsibility for what they do
and at the same time ... bash America."
Mcdvcd's said "The terrible part
ubout this lie is that it Icads-tojthis
overwhelming pessimism abotft the
world wc live in. The fact is America
is a hugely better place than popular
culture suggests."
Mcdvcd s Lie No. 3: It is always easy
to avoid the influences of Hollywood
which just gives the people what they
want.
Mcdvcd said"Popular culture is part
of the air wc breathe. And saying that if
you don't like it you can just turn it off
is exactly like saying if you don't like
the smog then just stop breathing. You
can't do it."
Mcdvcd said you can't turn the cul-
ture off but you can turn it down.
He suggested people make a resolu-
tion to watch less television scheduling
which shows to watch since most of
the television watching is "uncon-
scious" he said.
The audience gave Mcdvcd a standing
ovation and sang "The Lord Bless You
and Keep You" to him. Mcdvcd greeted
audience members afterward.
Gail Rathbun senior elementary edu-
cation major from Detroit Mich. said
"He gave me something to grab hold
of."
In his 1992 book Hollywood vs.
America Mcdvcd challenged the
morals of popular culture and was
instantly criticized even called
stupid and repellent.
But two years later Medved's book
was praised by England's Manchester
Guardian: "Just occasionally a book
seems to change the way the world
thinks. Michael Medved's Hollywood
vs. America is such a book."
Mcdvcd was the second speaker in
the Distinguished Speakers on Commu-
nity Scries sponsored by the Center for
Advancement of Community.
Dr. Gary McCaleb executive director
of the Center for Advancement of
Community said of Mcdvcd. "This is a
man who is making a difference."
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Habitat for Humanity House nears completion
By ALYSSA WAITT
STUDENT REPORTER
L T?our faint handprints can be
JU seen in the concrete on the
front porch of the nearly com-
pleted house at 5459 N. Ninth
St.
i These little handprints
belong to the girls who with
their mother soon will move
into their new ACU.Studcnts'
Association sponsored Habitat
for Humanity home.
JyAndrco Swanncr and her
lour daughters decided to put
the girls' handprints in the
concrete "to make it our
own."
Thc house will soon be
theirs thanks to the dedication
of ACU students and commu-
nity members who worked on
tlic house during spring break.
Swanncr said she did not
expect this much dedication
from college students.
"I am very very proud of the
students" Swanncr said.
Sladc Sullivan senior
human communication major
fcfrom Abilene and co-chair of
the Habitat for Humanity
committee said he and six to
seven other ACU students
worked on the house during
ing break.
High school students work
ing to gain community service
hours and members of High-
land Church of Christ also
contributed to the construc-
tion he said.
Sullivan said workers com-
pleted the roof interior dry-
walling and the exterior siding
during spring bicak. This
work made it possible to keep
the construction on schedule.
Swanncr said the construc-
tion on the house during
spring break and work this
weekend will allow her fami-
ly to move in April 3.
Alan Dimmitt senior busi-
ness management major from
Hurst also worked on the
building site during spring
break. He has worked on
Habitat for Humanity projects
in the p:lst but said this pro-
ject was especially rewarding.
"This has been one of the
most beneficial causes I've
been involved in during my
college career" Dimmitt said.
He was touched he said to
hear about one of the Swanner
girls sharing pictures of her
new house during show-and-tcll
at school.
She told her class about the
nice people at ACU and how
they were helping build her
house he said.
Swanncr and her daughters
came to the site during spring
break. Dimmit said "getting to
sec the little girls the sparkle
in their eyes" made the work
worthwhile.
Jenevievc Holton junior
biology major from Vienna
Va. also worked on the house
during spring break. She said
students should take advan-
tage of the last weekend to
work on the house. "You don'.t
have to know anything about
construction" Holton said.
Work will continue Friday
from 1-5 p.m. and Saturday
from 8:30 a.m.- 5 p.m. at 5459
N. Ninth St.
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Bird's eye view
Slado Sullivan senior human communication major fiom Abilene and co-chairman of the Habitat
for Humanity Committee works on the roof of the ACU sponsored Habitat for Humanity house.
Michael Medved -"
ISCC committee
to review social
club policies
By KIT MORGAN
SENIOR STAFF WRITER
Dr. Charles Trevathan vice presi-
dent of' student services is giving
students the opportunity to influence
the upcoming changes in social club
policy.
"It's up to them to tell me what they
thfnlc" Trevathan said. "I will take into
consideration whatever they suggest."
Trevathan enlisted Inter-Social Club
Council president Jamie Garner senior
food nutrition and dietetics major to
head up a review committee that will
suggest improvements in the social
club system to Student Services.
Garner said the committee will con-
sist of three ISCC officers and three
ISCC members. ISCC is a studenU
organization comprising two represent
tatives from each social club and
advises Student Services on decisions
concerning social clubs.
Trevathan said he wants a report
from the committee by April 15.
Garner said she is actively seeking
input from students and faculty. She
said she began by circulating question-
naires concerning policy changes to
most of the social clubs.
Cynthia Cooke dean of students said
she imagines pledging will be a major
issue that the committee addresses.
Trevathan said he wants to encourage
communication between the Faculty
Senate and the review committee.
"One aspect of the plan is to have the
faculty interact with social clubs
directly" Trevathan said.
Garner said she docs not foresee Stu-
dent Services placing further restric-
tions on the pledging process.
"I don't think they can clamp down
on it more than they already have"
Garner said.
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Spring Break Campaigns uplift cities students
By HEATHER BOHANNAN
STUDENT REPORTER
Spring Break Campaigns reached
across the nation last week. Now
that the break has come and gone
many students have returned to ACU's
campus eager to share their exciting
experiences.
Bert Reynolds chairman of the
Spring Break Campaign committee
said "I think the campaigns were huge-
ly successful. There's a lot of ways you
measure success: the outreach the ser-
vice the people we go to administer to
and just the affects on the campaigners
themselves."
Elizabeth Heistand junior biology
mujor from San Antonio went on a
campaign to Long Beach Calif.
The students on the campaign worked
with three different homeless shelters
specializing in different needs. The
shelters served unwed pregnant
women street people looking for basic
needs and people seeking refuge Heis-
tand said.
Campaigners organized clothing
cleaned painted held dcvotionals and
fed and visited with the people at the
shelters.
Heistand said "I learned that I serve a
limitless God."
She said "Throughout the week I was
totally amazed by the power of God
and his love for all people. I was hon-
ored to serve him by helping others."
Another group of campaigners went
to St. Louis where students attended
Bible classes in the morning in prepara-
tion for what they were going to do that
day.
Chris Welch sophomore biology
major from Hurst said "Basically wc
studied the Bible in the morning and
applied it in the afternoon."
The campaign taught the campaigners
how to react outside of their comfort
zones he said. The campaigners then
worked with children in the inner-city.
Rachel Dawes sophomore psycholo-
gy major from Sweetwater went on a
campaign to Nashville.
The Nashville campaigners minis-
tered to people in the inner-city. They
arranged Bible studies and prayer meet-
ings and performed Bible theatre shows
for the children each night.
Dawes said.'i think the one thing that
was unique about our group was the
harmony. It was amazing the unity and
closeness we had with such a large
group."
Paul Wood freshman business man-
agement major from Los Almos went
to Santa Fe N.M.
The students led the church services
Sunday and Wednesday worked with
the children's Bible class and conduct
ed Bible study groups in a detention
center.
"It surprised me that they knew so?
much about God and were so willing to-
study God's word" Wood said. :
In Portland Ore. students worked
with Linwood Church of Christ teach-
ing classes and working with shut-ins. I
Michael Kinsey Bible major front
Houston said "Being able to help:
those people enabled me to get my spir'
ilual focus back"
Another group of students went to
Atlanta where they stayed in the pro-
jects and worked with un inner-city
ministry These students led Bible stud-
ies played with children and worked ut
a cafe for the homeless.
Bethany Lewis sophomore interior
design major from Stephenville said
"I feel like I grew spiritually and I
wonder if 1 got more out of the cam-
paign than the people we went to help."
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The Optimist (Abilene, Tex.), Vol. 83, No. 45, Ed. 1, Friday, March 24, 1995, newspaper, March 24, 1995; Abilene, Texas. (https://texashistory.unt.edu/ark:/67531/metapth99629/m1/1/: accessed July 17, 2024), University of North Texas Libraries, The Portal to Texas History, https://texashistory.unt.edu.; crediting Abilene Christian University Library.