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About The Battalion. (College Station, Tex.) 1893-current | View Entire Issue (Sept. 21, 1999)
A" The Battalion A GGIELIFE Page 5 » Tuesday, September 21,1999 !an m«IBC’s racial slur SaSpngers Hispanics . .I LOS ANGELES (AP) — View- »ll| tflrs taking part in this week’s His- P An | anic boycott of major broadcast c ™'Betworks, dubbed a “brownout,” 'arte B re P rotest >ng the new season’s ^Ickof minority characters. rthrlauhnB ^* iat means they’ll miss - ^ Jonight’s premiere of “Will & race” on NBC, for which they light be grateful. In a scene that plays with star ing insensitivity, tart-tongued haracter Karen Walker notices hat her Salvadoran maid has |aused for a conversation. “Hey, you’re on the clock, lamale. Get to work,” snaps aren (Megan Mullally). “Oh, no,” Federico Subervi, a Jniversity of Texas media profes- or, said after hearing the sitcom xchange. “It’s an ethnic slur — I on’t know what it is with these criptwriters. What’s in their eads? “The writers and the network xecutives, the ones who have he final word, they don’t get it. hey really do not get it. When .atinos and others are saying in- rease our numbers, it does not lean increase our stereotypical epresentations.” The verbal sparring between osario Salazar and her boss on Will & Grace” is not a fair fight, case of tit for tat. Rosario re ponds to Karen’s very person- barb with a weak “Listen, ady, I’ll squash you like a ormy apple. ” Asked about the use of the kvord “tamale,” which was in cluded in a preview tape of the episode distributed by NBC, se ries executive producer David Ko- han said a longer version of the scene called Karen to task for her ignorance. It was edited for time. Although no offense was in tended, he was not minimizing anyone’s objections to the scene, Kohan said. Rosario and Karen have a prickly but caring relationship, one that which will be demon strated in the future, he added. trips tofj ■xt montt sr. o cutbao mgs abotj tosalynna y long me 1 on Chuid: Wedm (409)731.1 liori NOT ay! ?r Paci:I Hill I’m ready for my closeup Inflated sense of self an important trait for newscasters to showcase JACOB HUVAL Romeo thought his love was dead. Thomas Edward Dewey believed he had defeated Truman for the presidency. And John Bobbitt lost face. These three men learned valu able lessons the hard way. Had they been properly informed of the world around them, however, they would have been spared death, disap pointment and detachment. To successfully compete or even survive in a society that is constant ly on the move, one must be ade quately informed of fast-breaking de velopments. Hence, the friendly local television news serves the bumbling masses. Local television news pro grams are designed to: 1) Inform the public of significant events and developments that are global and local in scope 2) deliver news in a coherent manner, avoiding technical errors and repetitiveness 3) foster the news anchorperson’s insa tiable vanity 4) deliver news in a co herent manner, avoiding technical er rors and repetitiveness. I know what you’re thinking — “Foster? Insatiable? Vanity? Where do these words fit in with my local news crew? And how buff you are, Mr. Hu- val! May I wash your car?” To that comes the reply, “Local news an chorperson’s do, in fact, harbor a tremendous ego that is only inflated by appearing thrice a day on televi sion. You may scrub the fenders, peasant.” Local anchors undergo extensive training and learn to nurture and flaunt their vainglo ry. Triue, we all know many people who do just that and who are not at all news anchors. But what makes anchors special is their abil ity to glorify themselves in the precious few minutes they are on camera. They must har ness the skill of sneaking in subtle references to self and masking the vanity behind a vari ety of news stories. A / * mm V ERIC ANDRAOS/The Battalion For example: “Unfortunately, their star pitcher was cut. And coincidentally, Mike, I got a haircut!” “The space shuttle rocketed upward just like my career!” And, “Speaking of Jimmy Carter, I think 1 like ham!” If there is one thing local news anchors hate the most, it is being mistaken for some one else in public, or simply not being recog nized at all. As a service to these brave men and women, here are just a few indications that the person gloating next to you is a local news anchor: their cleft is bigger than their forehead, they wear sports jackets with shorts, they drive cars with mirrors on both sides of the visor, they laugh too hard at their own jokes and so on. In step with vanity is the second of the two main ingredients of the hearty stew of local news: sentimentality. Not only must the an chor endlessly promote themselves, they must also express the appropriate emotions for whatever news story they happen to be read ing. Anchors will affix happy expressions when dealing with happy stories and head lines like “Scientist backs into hemorrhoid cure,” and “Students excel on exams; speak ing of which, my physical went great!” And conversely, anchors will put on their sad faces for sad stories such as “Doggy ran over on highway,” and “Businesses petition to keep strip club out of community. ” It is a well-known fact that most local news anchors would love to have the opportunity to be a national news anchor. This, in their eyes, is true stardom. Like the swampland leech, na tional news anchors start from the bottom and work their way up. Reputable anchorpersons like Mike Wallace, Barbara Walters and Wal ter Cronkite, after having spent years perfect ing the ability to spout vanity, are reaping the benefits of fame. The king of them all, Dan Rather, is an idol to local news anchors. He is the founder of vocal sentimentality — which makes one sound sincere. “The storm...left them...without...a home.” The minute pauses in speech create emotion al and engaging gaps, drawing listeners into the story. There is a hefty price to pay for this easy shot at fame, however. After shamelessly pro moting oneself and feignipg emotion for weeks on end, it is not unusual for workplace conduct to permeate into the anchor’s per sonal life. This makes the anchor’s life difficult. With out rehearsal time to prepare subtle comments about oneself, anchors struggle and flounder to sell themselves. Simple conversation be comes a trial while mere observations are cou pled with overstated sentimentality. Me: “Did you know that sweatshops were found in Vietnam?” Anchor: “Speaking of which, look at this neat wallet! Its an import!” Me: “Want to grab some lunch?” Anchor: “Mexican food...gives me...gas.” Jacob Huval is a sophomore English major. 21 dofldq iday I itionC ilacW (lease i96 Ads 169 jAds Another Deloitte Consulting Difference ’G- ■ w * THEM Get a life. DELOITTE CONSULTING: Got a life. As a consulting professional, you are looking for challenging and rewarding opportunities to work beside extraordinary people solving complex business problems. You also are looking for that balance between your work and your personal life. At Deloitte Consulting, you can work with bright, committed people on exciting client engagements while maintaining that critical balance. We have proved an employee who is fulfilled both professionally and personally - ultimately does a better job. If you're intent on joining a firm that understands the need to balance career goals and quality of life... get in touch. It just might change your life. Join Deloitte Consulting for an Information Session September 22nd 7:00pm - 8:15pm Rudder Tower, Room 601 Visit our Web site: www.dc.com/careers Deloitte Consulting A very different approach. For very different results. FORTUNE ©1999 Deloitte Consulting LLC Deloitte Consulting refers to Deloitte Consulting (Global) LLC and related entities. Deloitte Consulting is an equal opportunity firm. We recruit, employ, train, compensate and promote without regard to race, religion, creed, color, national origin, age, gender, sexual orientation, marital status, disability or veteran status.
