Historical Newspapers of South Carolina

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THE GAMECOCK ♦ Wednesday, November 14, 2001 hit mty —■ ' J m/ ■ B /% GEORGE CHAPMAN: “Young men Story ideas? Questions? Comments? B B B J I W B I / ^ think old men are fools; but old Writeusatgamecockmixeditor@hotmail.com B B ^ A f ■ B m men know young men are fools.” WELCOME TO... I BY KAMILLE BOSTICK THE GAMECOCK The Teen Forum Show is the first of its kind, and it’s setting the pace for teens throughout South Carolina and the Southeast. Produced by second-year USC student Mike Thomas and hosted by teens from many backgrounds, the show is an outlet for the teen voice. Call-ins are welcomed, commentary is informed and the show is definitely going places. Thomas began the show when his father, Andy Thomas, gave him 90 minutes of airtime during his popular Andy Thomas Show. The nation’s only teen talk show, The Teen Forum Show is a real discussion for an audience age 14 to 20. The show started slowly with only one host and a run every other week but in the past year has grown to become a weekly with more participants and a larger audience. The Teen Forum now has eight teens representing area high schools and colleges on the air, and is heard in four states on 11 stations. Designed to represent a variety of opinions, the show has a panel of diverse personalities who voice their opinions on issues that affect and interest them and others like themselves. Topics include things such as school dress codes, alcohol, sex, drugs and politics. The roundtable format, with the opportunity for call-ins from listeners, makes the show exciting while still being informative and has helped it gain popularity. Teen Forum Show reaches thousands of people each time it airs. Not only do teens tune in, but their parents also tune after hearing an announcement on the Andy Thomas Show saying to listen with their children. While listening to the show, the lines of communication are opened as parents are able to hear the thoughts and of their children and diverse listeners share in each other’s knowledge and common experience. "We get to tell parents the truth during our show. It is a circle of informative family communication,” Thomas said. The Teen Forum broadcasts twice a month on location at area high schools and universities and sponsors advertising campaigns to promote its audience’s healthy living and behavior. A trip to USC is being planned. Working for the Teen Forum Show is as rewarding as it is demanding. Between finding topics that are as relevant as they are engaging and gaining listeners and sponsors, working behind the scenes is as much a learning experience as being on air. Liza DeRose, a first-year USC nursing major, has been with the show since June. She was selected from several hundred Where to listen: The Teen Forum Show Wednesdays 4-5:30 p.m. 620-AM http://www.teenforumshow.com applicants. She finds her co hosting job an enjoyable learning experience. “I’ve learned a lot from being on the show. Everyone is different, but it’s a lot of fun. It’s a good experience,” she said. With so many views being expressed about the same subject, conducting the discussions can be a challenge. The conversations can get heated, especially with topics like sex or politics, but the panel knows where to draw the line between on-air and off. ♦ TEEN SHOW, SEE PAGE 9 ...AND HERE’S YOUR HOST, USC first-year student Liza DeRose, co-host of The Teen Forum Show, I ■ -y » r"\ r— 1""% was selected from more than 100 I \ I III- rr I 1 I— applicants. PHOTO SPECIAL TO THE GAMECOCK La I b>/ 1 L_ | \ L_ PROFESSOR PICKS WILLIAM J. TINNEY Instructor (GTA) Dept, of Sociology 4 BOOKS YOU SHOULD READ The Degradation of the Democratic Dogma Henry Brooks Adams The Conservative Movement Paul Gottfried None Dare Call it Education John A. Stormer MONSTER: The Autobiography of an L.A. Gang Member Sanyika Shakur a.k.a. Monster Kody Scott 4 FAVORITE BOOKS The Counte of Monte Cristo Alexandre Dumas The Division of Labor in Society Emile Durkheim Race, Evolution and Behavior: A Life History Perspective (3rd Edition) J. Philippe Rushton Twilight of Authority Robert A. Nisbit Renowned concert pianist to perform at Koger Center BY ERIC SUTTON THE GAMECOCK World-renowned concert pianist Awadagin Pratt is performing with the University of South Carolina Symphony at 7:30 today at the Roger Center. Donald Portnoy will be conducting Schumann’s “Piano Concerto in A minor,” “Short Ride on a Fast Machine” by John Adams and Tschaikovsky’s “Symphony No. 5.” But Pratt is not your average concert pianist; he comes complete with dreadlocks and informal stage attire. Pratt broke into the international scene at age 26 when he won the coveted Naumburg Competition in 1992. The competition scheduled 20 concerts for its’ winner that year, but by the end of the next day Pratt had already been offered 40 concert dates. Additionally, he has USC Symphony with special guest Awadagin Pratt Wednesday, 7:30 p.m. Koger Center Students, $7; public, $15. been awarded the Avery Fisher Career Grant. This award honors the most promising talent among concert artists. Pratt took his first piano lessons at age 6. Both he and his sister were given piano and tennis lessons. This meant getting up at 6 a.m. for two hours of tennis drills, going to school, more tennis drills after school, weekly music lessons on the piano and violin, plus at least one hour of music practice a day. After finishing high school, Pratt had a decision to make. Having been offered both tennis and music scholarships for the violin, he opted for the violin and enrolled at the University of Illinois. Pratt stayed only a few years before transferring to the Peabody Conservatory of Music in Baltimore, where he became the first student in the school’s history to receive performer’s certificates in piano and violin as well as a graduate performance diploma in conducting. Besides live performances, Pratt has a successful recording career. His first CD, A Long Way From Normal, was released in 1994. It contained Liszt’s “Funerailles,” which he performed en route to winning the Naumburg competition. Also appearing on the CD are pieces by Brahms and Franck and the Bach/Busoni composition “Chaconne.” His second CD was Beethoven Piano Sonatas, and ♦ PRATT, SEE PAGE 9 Awadagin Pratt wears informal clothes and dreadlocks when he performs. p>Q>to special to the game£ock