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' f v THEY SAID IT Pa e 7 “You can crus^ a man with j°urnal'sm-" nr j , ^ . i_n -innzi william Randolph hearst Wednesday, October 13, 2004 newspaper publisher - - ■ .. . .. NICK ESARES/THE GAMECOCK Meatball Factory employee Dantonio Hogg prepares a hot dog at the fair Tuesday. Corn dogs and hot dogs are annual fair favorites along with funnel cakes, elephant ears and smoked turkey legs. Journalists’ reputations marred by CBS scandal By ANNA HUNTLEY THE GAMECOCK Mass media have witnessed a 20 percent drop — from 55 to 35 percent — in the number of Americans since 1985 who believe news organizations generally get the facts correct, according to the State of the News Media 2004, an annual report on American journalism. “The media is full of liars,” said Heyward Sims, a fifth-year studio art student. “It’s been going on since media started.” Supporting the report’s conclusion, CBS’ lead anchor Dan Rather presented a brief series of memos on Sept. 8 criticizing President Bush’s service in the National Guard. Reports of the memos’ possible forgery circulated the following day among major news organizations such as the Washington Post. Rather defended the memos’ authenticity for nearly two weeks, leading to media watchdog groups’ criticism of his perceived bias, while several mainstream news organizations could not resist jabs at CBS’ lead anchor. When CBS finally admitted its inability to authenticate the memos, Rather, along with the president of CBS, issued an on-air apology to the public on Sept. 20. “I think it’s important to note that when CBS realized it made such a gross mistake, it came forward to admit that mistake ... and put in a process of what went wrong and why,” said Kenneth Campbell, associate professor of electronic and print journalism. ♦ Please see MEDIA, page 8 THE ASSOCIATED PRESS From right: Dan Rather, Peter Jennings and Tom Brokaw are respected news anchors. Rather has been mired in controversy after his station reported from forged documents. While it doesn’t follow popular diets, fair food gets students’ taste buds tingling By MORIAH EMERALD MCCARTHY THE GAMECOCK The distinct smell of fair food hits you before you even walk in the gate. The smells of frying, roasting, grilling, brewing and baking make mouths water in expectation of the feast within. Try a fried mushroom from Carolina Fresh Farms. The family owned and operated business has been selling their mushrooms since 1980. Their mushrooms, which come from the family farm, are beer battered and deep-fried in peanut oil. It took the owner, John A. Fogle, a few years to perfect his recipe, but it was well worth the effort. rirst introduced in 1VUU at the Ringling Brothers’ Circus, cotton candy is a state fair staple, spun and bagged on site. Justin Emery of Netterfield’s gathers cotton candy on paper cones, creating pastel clouds of spun sugar. Granulated white sugar, powdered flavoring and color are measured into the center sugar well of the cotton candy machine. A coil heats the sugar that melts while being spun rapidly through tiny holes, creating the sticky threads gathered to make this airy treat. They’re salty, smoky, tender and juicy. Smoked turkey legs — another fair favorite — are stunningly huge, weighing in at about two pounds each. Donnie Russell of Carousel Barbecue said his turkey legs get their superb flavor from a two-part cooking process. First, the legs are slowly smoked on aromatic woods, and then grilled over a barbecue pit, creating a flavor that resembles smoked ham. This smoky treat is perfect for sharing, but Russ Zokaites, a first-year music education student, can handle one all by himself. Second-year nursing student Kathryn Palmer professed her funnel cake infatuation. “I just love fried dough,” she said. Funnel cakes and elephant ears seem NICK ESARES/THE GAMECOCK Tiffany Williams makes a favorite dessert, a strawberry shortcake, Tuesday at the South Carolina State Fair. very similar — they are fried, sugared, hot and delectable. You can have yours topped with strawberries, cherries, chocolate and more. You might be wondering what makes one different from the other. Tracy Brewer of Lordy’s Elephant Ear Bakery explained that runnel cakes are made from your basic white cake batter and elephant ears are made from dough. Brewers’s elephant ears are made from yeast dough, which gives them their sponginess. Some elephant-ear makers opt for high gluten flour over yeast dough, creating a crispier dessert. Third-year exercise science student Chris Koutsoukos, who attended the fair Friday, said, “The funnel cake was good, but so big I couldn’t eat it all; and the cotton candy was excellent.” It you are up tor something a little less traditional, saunter over to the fried Oreo stand, ♦ Please see FOOD, page 8 “The funnel cake was good, but so big I couldn’t eat it all.” CHRIS KOUTSOUKOS THIRD-YEAR EXERCISE SCIENCE STUDENT CD REVIEW Shepherd loses Place ’ on new album “The Place You’re In” Kenny Wayne Shepherd ★★ out of ☆☆☆☆☆ BySHANATILL THE GAMECOCK Kenny Wayne Shepherd uses the adage, “Imitation is the sincerest form of flattery” to full effect on his latest release, “The Place You’re In.” Usually, to portray an artist as copying another carries a lingering stigma, but Shepherd’s mimicry of Stevie Ray Vaughan has been his ticket to the gold laden thrones of electric Gibson reverie. Besides the resemblance to the blues guitar legend, Shepherd fails to live up to the myths of musical prodigy. With all the necessary components to create a true delta-infused rock album, Shepherd settles for a banal, mainstream attempt. Released on Warner Brothers Records, “The Place You’re In” disappoints listeners looking for the revival of true Southern-bred rock. The expectations for Shepherd’s work are extraordinarily high. He has shared the stage with some of the most glorified names in the business. His experiences with legends Bob Dylan, B.B. King, Warren Haynes and the Rolling Stones polished a maturing and authentic sound. After nieeting his idol, Stevie Ray Vaughan, at the age of 7, Shepherd began his endeavor to master the guitar. In a manner similar to Jeaming the art of snake charming, he tailor-made a Vaughan replication that would earn him a record deal before he was 17 years old. Becoming a mainstay at No. 1 on Billboard’s blues charts, Shepherd not only delivered the sound to a younger audience but also built up hope that Southern rock ‘n’ roll could be reborn. Now 20-something, Shepherd leans too close to the ledges of modern rock to achieve the neo-blues sound still missing in a crowded landscape of Nickelback and Staind. What quasi-redeems “The Place You’re In” is Shepherd’s on-target imitations of legendary guitarists. His ability to unleash the unyielding taunts of Hendrix’s best licks, and yet channel the reticence of Vaughan’s steady pummel make the instrumentation the album’s only distinction. Usually led by Noah Hunt on vocals, Shepherd takes his first stab at singing. It’s not necessarily painful, but his vocalization detracts from the soulful swirling of his guitar. For the album’s third track, Kid Rock joins Shepherd for the risque “Spank.” Kid Rock also gains his inspiration from personal interaction with artists who were once the main contributors to a classic sound. Unfortunately, there is no evidence of Kid’s mentor Hank Williams Jr. or Shepherd’s list of influences. The number remains dry and lacks the success the duo surely hoped for. Other tracks on the album serve only as distant reminders that Shephetd holds the key for unlocking a floodgate of Southern-bred, blues-infused rock ‘n’ roll. Relying solely upon the reproduction of artists’ sounds from long ago is simply not enough. Shepherd must push one step further than the triteness of “The Place You’re In” and manipulate what he has already mastered — the writhing snake of the electric guitar — to rejuvenate a much needed resurgence of classic rock and blues fusion. Comments on this story? E-mail gamecockfeatures@gtvm.sc.edu Recent debates spark political interest among students By KELLY CAVANAUGH THE GAMECOCK With just a few short weeks until the Nov. 2 election, the presidential and vice-presidential debates have caught the interest and excitement among students around campus. “I know before the debates 1 wasn’t as interested in politics or the political parties, but now that the debates are on it’s a lot easier to stay up to date and interested,” said Kevin Shealy, a second year music education student. Fourth-year political science student Katie Dreiling said she watched the debates to hear the candidate’s stances on issues that directly affect her. * “I think the topics of the debates, such as the war in Iraq, terrorism and homeland security, make more people interested in what the candidates have to say.” Bob Roller, a graduate student in international studies and a resident tutor in Preston College, helped organize a debate-watching party in Preston for the first presidential debate. He said he hoped the event, which drew about 40 people, would “give the students a chance to see the candidates in a neutral setting and articulate their own opinions without the distortions of advertising.” Roller said he could sense “a lot of tension” among the politically inclined students at the party. Preston is generally a liberal! dorm, and he said he wasn’t ♦ surprised that there wasn’t a 50-50 turnout for candidate support. Third-year English student John Rabon, who attended the debate watching party, said that half of the students that came stayed quiet to hear what each candidate had to say, while the other half wanted to make comments. “The comment that drew the biggest response was when the moderator asked Sen. Kerry, ‘What do you think is the biggest mistake of the current administration?’ and Kerry said, ‘Where do I begii??”’ Rabon said. Rabon said the debates serve to spark discussion among students. “It creates a new realm for which the ♦ Please see DEBATES, page 8 President George W. Bush listens as Sen. John Kerry speaks during the second presidential debate at Washington University in St. Louis, Miss., on Friday. ANDREW CUTRARO/THE ASSOCIATED PRESS ■P