Tuesday, September 26, 2006 - The Michigan Daily - 7
PANEL
Continued from page 1
the University of California at
Berkeley, said she welcomes the
debate that arises from contro-
versial articles because it creates
dialogue between the student
community and the newspaper.
"I try to encourage my staff
not to shy away from contro-
versy when they cover diversity
issues," Hsu said. "But I do ask
them to remember that they have
to consider their work carefully
and sensitively."
The panelists agreed that
student journalists sometimes
make mistakes that offend cer-
tain groups, often because of a
lack of training.
Student newspaper staffs are
constantly changing, as are their
contacts and sources in campus
groups, which can lead to mis-
understandings when writing
about complicated issues, sev-
eral panelists said.
Last December, campus
groups criticized The Michigan
Daily for printing two editorial
cartoons that addressed affirma-
tive action using what they con-
sidered simplistic, stereotypical
depictions of black students.
Some students took the car-
toons as an attack on whether
they deserved to be at the Uni-
versity, said Donn Fresard, the
Daily's editor in chief.
The University's chapter of the
NAACP called for the Daily to
retract the cartoons. The cartoon-
ist resigned over the protests.
Fresard said in some cases a
controversial article or cartoon
can lead to productive discus-
sion when people use it as a cat-
alyst for debate.
"I've always found that the
most productive thing is having
people who are upset come in
and meet with us," Fresard said.
"The problem tends to come
when people get so upset with us
that they won't even come in or
write in."
Both Fresard and Hsu said the
lack of minorities on their news-
papers' staffs also negatively
affects their coverage of minor-
ity issues.
The lack of minority journal-
ists is not limited only to cam-
pus newspapers.
In many national media out-
lets, minorities who choose
to become reporters are often
actively and subtly discouraged
from covering issues relating to
a specific ethnic or racial group,
said Catherine Squires, an assis-
tant professor in the communi-
cations department.
Because of these problems,
minority students sometimes
don't trust campus papers as a
credible news source.
"There's a consensus that The
Michigan Daily does not repre-
sent the needs of black students
on campus," said audience mem-
ber Sarah Jackson, a Rackham
graduate student in communica-
tions, adding that she prefers to
get her news from a blog focused
on issues in the black commu-
nity.
No matter what, the media
will always receive criticism
from those who feel its cover-
age is biased or offensive, sev-
eral panelists agreed. But is it
important to take risks in order
to fully inform the public of
controversial issues?
"The question is not whether
the press offended," Cose said.
"The question to me is whether
it is doing its job."
Emily Barton contributed
to this report
ALEX DZIADOSZ/Daily
Newsweek columnist Ellis Cose speaks at the "Can You Print That?" conference at the Michigan League yesterday afternoon. Ellis, who began his
career at the Chicago Sun-Times at age 19, was the keynote speaker for the symposium.
PREACHERS
Continued from page 1
dent from drawing pictures of stick
figures engaged in anal sex on the
back of Lemieux's shirt, said he was
appalled at the behavior of the mob
on the Diag.
"I have a strong disagreement with
what they are saying" Speaks said.
"But the crowd's reaction is despicable.
They should not be shoving him and
taunting him - he has every right.to be
on the Diag."
Borovitz said it was hard to not take
action.
"He is saying hateful things" Boro-
vitz said. "And I do not believe I have to
standby and watch him preach hate."
Other students stood by silently
watching the spectacle unfold.
"You learn a lot just sitting here,"
Business sophomore Eric Jarrett said.
"You learn a lot about different views
and a lot about how people behave."
Venyah, who drove into town
this morning in a camper with the
license plate "SIN NOT," said he
works full-time as a preacher. He
and his wife jointly hold the title
to Soulwinners Ministries Inter-
national, a business registered in
Lansing.
Last winter, Venyah gained
notoriety for preaching at Michi-
gan State University.
He and his wife both attended
MSU in the early 1990s according
to reports by the State News, the
campus paper.
Ashley Hajski, an LSA junior who
identified herself as a Christian and a
member of New Life Church, ques-
tioned Venyah's aggressive methods.
"I just wonder what his turnover rate
is," Hajski said. "It doesn't really help to
tell people they are evil."
Venyah said he has a 100-percent
success rate.
"Everyone that is here today now
knows they are living in sin," Venyah
said.
Venyah said that he and his cohorts
will be back.
"Because you are all so ignorant and
hell-bound, we have no choice but to
come back tomorrow;" Venyah said.
He said he plans to be on the Diag
today from 11 a.m. to 4 p.m.
OBAMA
Continued from page 1
sonal assistants.
He said the personal assistants often gather
to trade stories about their jobs. Colvin always
has a story to tell.
In his short time with the senator, Colvin
met Muhammad Ali, dined with U.N. ambas-
sadors and talked on the phone with Stevie
Wonder. He saw Obama mobbed by admirers
in Kenya and at political rallies nationwide.
But the public face of Obama isn't the only
one Colvin knows.
Instead, Colvin revealed an Obama who
jokes with him in between press conferences,
trading friendly jibes back and forth.
"A lot of people wouldn't get in a car with
Barack Obama and tease him back," Colvin
said.
The meat of Colvin's job is in these "in-
between" moments in the car on the way to the
next events.
A lot of the time, Colvin and Obama
just talk.
Often, Colvin said, he and the senator have
heart-to-heart conversations. Topics cover
family history, what shaped Obama's beliefs
and political actions and even Michigan foot-
ball.
"He was pretty enthusiastic about Michigan
beating Notre Dame," Colvin said
Obama went to school at Columbia and
Harvard universities, so Colvin said they spend
a lot of time talking about the finer points of a
large school.
"I explain to him about Rick's and Score-
keeper's and football games,"he said.
Colvin said Obama has an eclectic taste in
music, listeningtoeverythingfromIndonesian
flute music to OutKast to Motown.
Colvin said he never expected to hold such a
high-profile job. Just a few months ago, he was
interning in Washington in the office of U.S.
Rep. Carolyn Cheeks Kilpatrick (D-Mich.).
He spent his time there on a mission: net-
working with as many people as possible.
At the University, Colvin was a political sci-
ence major with a minor in African-American
studies. The native of Ionia said he did well in
his classes and was on a path toward law school
and possibly a career in politics.
It was over the summer, however, that he
realized he might have to put his plans on
hold. Through one of the contacts he met
while interning, he landed an interview with
Obama's office. He sat down in front of the
senator's entire staff and went through the
interview process with each member observ-
ing him closely. After a short waiting period,
he got the call: The staff wanted him to come
back and meet the senator. Colvin and Obama
sat down and talked for 45 minutes, he said,
and they "basically just hit it off."
Soon afterward, he got another call, the one
he'd been hoping for. He was asked to join
Obama's staff.
He had his choice between two available
positions: staff assistant or the senator's per-
sonal assistant. Colvinjumped at the opportu-
nity to be Obama's personal assistant.
Though he knows he wants to go to law
school, Colvin said he is not sure about his plans
for the future. One thing is certain: He wants
to embody what Obama means to him - not
for the prestige or the political power, but for the
good, humble person he said he sees everyday.
"I don't want to be U.S. Senator Barack
Obama," he said. "I want to be Barack
Obama"
Obama, one of the rising stars in the Dem-
ocratic Party, has drawn speculation over
whether he will run for president or vice presi-
dent in 2008.
Colvin's take?
"He's flattered by the attention," Colvin
said, adding that Obama is just trying to do his
job right now. "A lot of people never thought
he'd be a U.S. senator;"
Attacks on women seen
as perverse motherhood
SPRING BREAK 2007 Celebration
20th Anniversary w/ Sun Splash Tours.
Free trip on every 12 before Nov. 1.
Free Meals & Parties, Hottest Deals
Ever. Group Discounts on 6+. Hottest
Spring Break Destinations. Call
1800-426-7710.
www.sunsplashtours.com
SPRING BREAK W/STS to Jamaica,
Mexico, Bahamas & Florida. Sell
Trips, Earn Cash, Travel Free! Cali for
group discounts. Info/Reservations
e 800-648-4849. www.ststravel.com
For Tuesday, Sept. 26, 2006
ARIES
(Mach 21 to April 9)
Take care of red-tape details with
insurance matters, wills, inheritances
and other people's wealth or property.
You might feel quite intensely about
something today.
TAURUS
(April 21 to May 20)
Conversations with partners and close
friends might be more emotional than
usual today. You might also feel parental
or nurturing to someone.
GEMINI
(May 21to June 20)
Work hard to accomplish much at
work today. Attend to details. Co-
workers are supportive. Go anything that
hselps you feel you're more organized in
your life.
CANCER
(June 21 to July 22)
This is a playful, prankish day.
Activities with children, plus liaisons
with romantic interests, are a top prior-
ity. Enjoy the arts, catch a movie or
.watch some sports.
LEO
(July 23 to Aug. 22)
Home, family and real estate matters
are your top priorities today. Family dis-
cussions in particular will be significant.
Talk to parents if possible.
VIRGO
(Aug. 23 to Sept. 22)
This is a good day to run around tak-
ing care of errands, shopping and many
little tasks. Short trips are likely. Expect
conversations with siblings and rela-
tives,
LIBRA
(Sept. 23 to Oct. 22)
Check your bank account today. Stay
on top of your finances. This is a good
day for shopping, minor business and
commerce. Ignore criticisms from oth-
ers.
SCORPIO
(Oct. 23 to Nov. 21)
The Moon is in your sign today. This
makes you feel more emotional about
things. For a brief time, in the middle of
the day, you might feel a bit down.
Fortunately, this passes quickly.
SAGITTARIUS
(Nov. 22 to Dec. 211
Work behind the scenes or by yourself
if you can today. You need some rest and
relaxation. At the very least, you need
some solitude.
CAP'RICORN
Rec. 22 to Jan. 19)
A, conversation with a female friend
might be important today. Give this per-
son your undivided attention. Perhaps
someone needs to share his or her pain or
joy witht you.
AQUARIUS
(Jan. 20 to Feb. 18)
You might do something that briefly
calls attention to you today. (In fact, it's
likely.) Be aware that others will notice
you, because you might be setting an
example.
PISCES
(Feb. 19 to March 20)
You feel restless! You want to escape
from your routine, day-to-day work. You
want to learn something new or travel
somewhere different. If you can do this,
by all means do so!
YOU BORN TODAY You have a per-
severing nature, which serves you well.
Many of you have highly developed
technological skills in a particular area.
You're a perfectionist: You strive to mas-
ter your craft. You have a logical mind,
and you're hardworking. Peoplelose
your humor and wit. Many of you have
other skills or jobs that are secret or
unknown. You will learn something
valuable and important this year. Stay
alert!
Birthdate of: Julie London, singer;
Linda Hamilton, actress; George
Gershwin, composer.
(AP) - It's a crime so monstrous
as to surpass comprehension. Yet
its passion takes root in some of the
most tender ground of human expe-
rience: pregnancy and motherhood.
What drives a handful of women
to slice open the bellies of others to
steal their newborns?
Researchers have uncovered
hints. "You can describe it as sort
of the maternal instinct run amok,"
says psychiatrist Dr. Phillip Resn-
ick, who had written about this kind
of crime.
In East St. Louis, Ill., an inno-
cent plea was entered yesterday for
Tiffany Hall, a 24-year-old woman
charged with killing a woman and
her fetus; investigators believe she
cut the mother open with a pair of
scissors. Authorities say Hall also
told police she drowned the wom-
an's three other children.
Such crimes are exceedingly
rare in a country with more than
4 million births a year. Previously,
only eight similar cases have been
documented since 1987 by the
National Center for Missing and
Exploited Children. Yet they are
frequent enough to have acquired
a clinical-sounding name: new-
born kidnapping by Caesarean
section.
It is a variety of the more common
crime of simply snatching an infant,
experts say. Attackers are women of
childbearing age who typically have
lost a baby or can't have one, mental
health professionals say. They feel
empty and fiercely long for a child
- or another child - to cement a
shaky love relationship.
"They look at these pregnant
woman and say, 'Look at all the
attention they're getting. They're
complete," says N.G. Berrill, a New
York-based legal psychologist. The
attackers often fake their own preg-
nancy, take part in baby showers,
and prepare nurseries at home.
However, at some moment they
cross a boundary and descend
almost to Shakespearean depths of
tragedy. "The meaning of being bar-
ren for some women is just extraor-
dinary;' says Resnick.
Fashioning elaborate cons, they
may trick a stranger into letting
down her guard, or they may set
upon a close friend without warn-
ing. The raw violence may vent a
gusher of rage or jealousy directed
at the pregnant victim.
In 2004, a Kansas woman alleg-
edly drove to Missouri, strangled a
pregnant woman with a rope, then
cut out her baby with a kitchen
knife. She awaits trial.
In 1987, in New Mexico, a mar-
ried woman kidnapped a pregnant
woman leaving a prenatal clinic,
forced her into a car with a fake gun,
strangled her,and deliveredthe baby
with a set of car keys. She was sent
to prison for at least 30 years when
found guilty but mentally ill.
The assaulted women nearly
always die, sometimes bleeding
to death. The attackers then claim
the newborns as their own, even
if only as stillborns to be buried.
However, the newborns often live
and eventually return to surviving
family when the crime is solved.
At least two attackers later killed
themselves.
U -
Ramadan sullied by violence
BAGHDAD (AP) - Iraq's feud-
ing ethnic and sectarian groups
moved ahead Monday with forming
a committee to consider amending
the constitution after their leaders
agreed to delay any division of the
country into autonomous states until
2008.
As legislators formed a 27-mem-
ber committee to begin talking about
amending Iraq's constitution, official
observances of Ramadan werepunctu-
ated with violence around the country.
British forces reported they had
killed Omar al-Farouq, a top militant
leader, identified by Iraqi officials as
an al-Qaida leader who had escaped
from a U.S. prison in Afghanistan
and returned to Iraq.
Shiite, Sunni Arab and Kurdish
political leaders in parliament formed
the constitutional committee, which
will take about a year to review any
changes and get them approved.
A separate Shiite-sponsored fed-
eralism bill will be read to the legis-
lature Tuesday and then debated for
two days before parliament breaks
for the Iraqi weekend. The legisla-
tion would be read again, with any
changes made by legislators, Oct. 1.
A vote would come four days
after the second reading, with the bill
needing a simple majority for pas-
sage. If approved, it would be imple-
mented 18 months later - in 2008
- according to the deal made by the
parties.
The deal was a victory for Sunni
Arabs, who had been fighting the
federalism bill proposed by Shiite
cleric Abdel Aziz al-Hakim, the
leader of the United Iraqi Alliance.
They fear that if not amended, it will
splinter the country and deny them
a share of Iraq's oil, which is found
in the predominantly Kurdish north
and the heavily Shitte south.
2006 King Features Syndicate, inc.