Thursday, September 21,2000
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Corea n presided!
Maxim, Man Show’ should he judged with
inre the ad- its nuhlishers think anneal to the 1 l.
S
incethe ad
vent of
Maxim
magazine in
1997, publishers
have jumped on
the bandwagon
of magazines
aimed at men
ages 17 to 30.
Though constantly under criti
cism for its racy pictures and taboo
subject matter, Maxim has found a
home in the dorm rooms and bache
lor pads of American men, making
it one of the fastest-growing maga
zines in the world.
Even television is not safe from
the newfound liberation of the male
opinion. Comedy Central features
the testosterone-juiced “Man
Show" — a program devoted to the
needs of men in America.
“The Man Show” features an all
male audience drinking beers and
the dancing of the well-endowed
Juggies” — a troupe of scantily
clothed women.
Magazines like Maxim and tele
vision programs like “The Man
Show" are not the sexist publica
tions that critics claim.
They are simply male versions
of the ever-popular Cosmopolitan-
ssque magazines and afternoon
soap operas that have long populat-
d the news racks and television
in Seoul late Tueif 6 ^ of America.
Thailand, whet Looking at the cover of Maxim,
d States and Soul 3ne might be inclined to believe,
imlant against con is many critics claim, that it is a
threats "from th pornographic magazine. Virtually
nt thaw in rein ;ver y > ssue does have a picture of
two Koreas. me or many scantily clad women
elations have ai )n its cover -
ly since their leal l ns ’ ( J e every issue, however, are
;ummitmlunerP e 111081 interesting and well-writ-
oward peace aiK ien art icles on the market. They are
)n ;i , - imaginative, humorous and always
an of easing- strai ght t0 the point. It would seem
nisters of thetw t* lat men really do read Maxim for
d their first talkoii l * ie ar ticles.
md off South Ko Unlike its female counterpart,
1 / Cosmopolitan, one will not find
Z, President Kiir an y s ^ e t* 16 t 1116 ” tJ 1112268 or
Jorth Korea's No celebrity gossip. Instead, Maxim
'lam to visit Seou peuses its attention on things that
prepare for
he North’s leade:
its publishers think appeal to the
male psyche.
Scrawled across the top of
every issue of Maxim are the
words “sex, sports, beer, gad
gets, clothes and fitness.”
These subjects make up the ma
jority of the content found in
every Maxim.
While Cosmo has its makeup
tips; relationship quizzes; and,
in the most recent issue, Kama
Sutra guides, Maxim features
. jokes, fashion, sports, women
and entertainment reviews. One
of Maxim's most popular seg
ments, Circus Maximus, in
cludes short stories and funny
quips.
Another feature of Maxim
each month is the ongoing se
ries of “how-to” articles. These
are not articles on how to build
a deck or make improvements
around the home, but unique
and interesting articles like
“How to Escape a Stuck Eleva
tor” (#30, June 2000) and “How
to Fight a Duel” (#33, Septem
ber 2000).
Thi^ fresh and original ap
proach attracts readers in
droves.
“The Man Show” is much
more blatant in its approach to
what it believes the men in
America want to see. In true
Comedy Central style, each and
every episode must be ap
proached with the same attitude
that would accompany any “South
Park’? episode.
The fact is that this is a comedy
program. “Man Show” hosts Adam
Carolla and Jimmy Kimmel use
their unique form of unabashed
comedy to make “The Man Show”
enjoyable.
The ideas and thoughts por
trayed on “The Man Show" proba
bly offend a substantial segment of
the population.
But, when did American society
become so concerned with its im
age that it can no longer approach
subjects like those found on "The
Man Show” with a little bit of hu-
feason
mor and less indignation?
“The Man Show” is nothing
more than a night out with the
guys broadcast into the homes of
America.
Granted, the language, subject
matter and pictures found in Maxim
each month and on “The Man
Show" each episode might offend
some people.
However, it is nothing more than
an entertaining and humorous look
at the way many men act and feel
when there are no women around.
When it comes to classifying a
magazine like Maxim and programs
like “The Man Show,” one must
take into account the joking tone
with which they ap
proach every topic.
As a society, people must accept
magazines like Maxim in the same
way they have accepted Glamour,
Allure and Cosmopolitan.
Subscription, sale trends and
rating make one thing obvious:
Maxim and “The Man Show”
have successfully outlined (he
desires of their targeted demo
graphics.
In turn, both — and products
like them — are here to stay.
Marcus White is a sophomore
general studies major.
FT :
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•lebration
2000, 6-7:30pm
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$60 *
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college
Importance of SAT, ACT
entrance exams should be weighed less
hen it comes to col
lege admissions, it
seems less emphasis
has been placed on entrance
exams and more on stu
dents’ overall abilities and
experiences.
Students have learned
that one test will not predict
their future, but a combina
tion of their overall achievements will help
shape their lives after high school. The
American College Test (ACT) and
Scholastic Aptitude Test (SAT) are not the
only keys to college admission.
Before 1997, high SAT and ACT
scores were essential for college ad
mission. Many students’ scores
;'were not extremely high, so stu
dents, teachers and administra
tors looked for ways around the
'“.single test” mentality.
! Students soon learned that
scores improved as the test
Was taken more times. But
this got out of hand when stu
dents began taking these tests
as early as seventh grade to
assure them a place in college
emee the time came.
► The Talent Identification
Program (TIP), sponsored by
Duke University, recruited sev
enth-grade students to take the
SAT and identify talent.
• Teachers also put their students
ifrider too much pressure to get into col
lege. At many high schools, they began
teaching to the tests and neglected basic
studies necessary for college admission.
; Taking this analysis into account, it is clear
college entrance should not be determined by a
single test score but rather by a student’s abilities
and experiences.
With less emphasis on SAT and ACT scores,
teachers and students can focus on other important
factors that encourage success in college. These
college entrance scores have been relied upon, but
they are not accurate predictors of success.
Average overall tests scores have drastically
increased because the point system was altered,
students began retaking the tests, and teachers re
vised their entire curriculum to revolve around
SAT and ACT preparation.
Two prominent politicians are good exam
ples of people who have achieved great success
regardless of standardized tests that supposedly
reveal intellectual ability.
Governor George W. Bush scored a 515 on
the SAT verbal test and Democratic Sen. Bill
Bradley scored a 485.
Although these scores are oma slightly differ
ent scale compared to today, they are relatively
low for two intelligent and successful people.
Bush went on to attend Yale University despite
his verbal score. Bradley was accepted to Prince
ton University where he graduated with honors
and became a Rhodes Scholar.
With less emphasis on these tests, students
are less vulnerable to a single measure of abili
ty. Students and teachers can now avoid the
pressures and tension involved with taking
these exams.
Politicians have even helped play a part in
redirecting standards for college admission.
For instance, a Texas law now grants any stu
dent graduating in the top 10 percent of his or her
high school class automatic admission to all pub
lic universities, including Texas A&M. This law
has helped many students who did not excel on
a particular entrance exam but instead ex
celled in high school.
A study by the University of Texas-
Austin found that students who were
granted college admission on the
basis of their top 10 percent rank
in high school tended to have
higher grade-point averages
than those who simply scored
well on a standardized test.
With less emphasis on SAT
and ACT scores, teachers and
students can focus on other
important factors that encour
age success in college.
Students are becoming
more active and more in
volved in other activities they
have realized will also be im
portant to colleges. This is the
way it should be.
Students can now rely less on
their SAT and ACT scores for col
lege admission and more on their
overall achievements and experi
ences.
These tests are misconceived as a predic
tion of college success. A single test cannot pre
dict college accomplishments.
To survive in the real world, there is not just
one test.
Instead, there are series of trials and tribula
tions that help create character, and this is what
determines success.
Cayla Carr is a junior speech
communication major.
Page 7B
Crashing the party White House
criticism of IOC drug policies questionable
/ f\ the face
of what
the
Olympic
Games are
meant and
strive to be,
they are in
evitably
tainted. With
so much to gain, many athletes
try to gain unfair advantages in
competition by using perfor
mance-enhancing substances.
And as was witnessed in the
all-too-recent past, some will
seek to gain unfair advantages
by using questionable means to
secure their chances for hosting
the games.
With the fallout from recent
Olympic scandals, the 2000 Sum
mer Olympic Games in Syndey,
Australia, have been placed under
the magnifying lens.
The world will be watching
as the athletes and the nations
involved seek to have a success
ful Olympic experience, restor
ing some of the dignity to the
Games.
Unfortunately, the United
States dropped a very untimely
this press release are suspect. Two
days prior to the White House’s
press release, related information
was released that suggests the
IOC’s ability to self-regulate is
quite competent.
On Sept. 6, China announced it
was cutting 40 of its own athletes
from its roster. Among them were
athletes trained by famed coach
Ma Junren.
Six of the seven athletes Junren
expected to take to Sydney, in
cluding former 5,000-meter
world-record-holder Dong Yan-
mei, were also cut.
“It’s because of bad blood tests.
They were above normal,” he
said, justifying the cuts. The seven
runners cut from the roster failed
blood tests for the endurance
boosting drug EPO, said IOC offi
cials in Sydney.
“I’m very pleased,” said IOC
president Juan Antonio Sama
ranch of the drug-related with
drawals.
“It shows the new system for
detecting doping substances will
work very well. The objective is to
have clean Games.”
The removal of the Chinese
athletes was largely due to a new-
The validity and motives of this
press release are suspect. Two days
prior to the White House's press re
lease, related information was re
leased that suggests the IOC's ability
to self-regulate is quite competent.
and deliberate bombshell that sent
shockwaves through the Olympic
community.
In a White House-financed
study released on Sept. 8, the
International Olympic Commit
tee (IOC) is accused of ap
proaching, the fight against drug
use with a passive and lack
adaisical attitude.
“The aura of secrecy in which
these bodies squirrel test results
invites public cynicism about the
integrity and the meaning of
record-breaking Olympic perfor
mances,” reports Joseph Cali-
fano Jr., president of the Nation
al Center on Addiction and
Substance Abuse at Columbia
University:
Released exactly one week be
fore the Sydney Olympics, the
107-page report points to large
sums poured into the Olympics
by corporate sponsors and con
flicting priorities among sports
federations.
It also said there was no effec
tive policing system, creating an
“environment that encourages dor
ing anything - including doping to
win.”
The report suggests creating an
international organization inde
pendent of the IOC that would be
responsible for drug testing and
banning substances.
Although the problem of drug
abuse among Olympic athletes is a
problem needing a continuing ef
fort to curtail its prevalence, the
seemingly deliberate timing of the
announcement, coupled with a
hint of vengefulness, speaks very
poorly of the White House’s eti
quette.
The validity and motives of
ly introduced combined blood and
urine test for EPO at the Sydney
Games.
Until the IOC introduced this
test, the use of synthetic EPO was
virtually undetectable.
The IOC began out-of-compe
tition testing for EPO in Sydney
and elsewhere in Australia last
week. According to the Associated
Press, the IOC expects to conduct
400 or more EPO tests throughout
the Games.
The conclusion that can be
drawn is quite simple. By taking
the initiative to step up anti-dop
ing enforcement itself, the IOC
has clearly demonstrated its ability
and dedication to fight drug use in
the Games.
Also, the fact that China com
plied with the IOC’s last-minute
policy is indicative of the respect
the IOC commands.
One is left questioning only the
legitimacy of the White House
press release that implicitly stated
the “IOC does not do enough to
fight drug use.”
It could be the White House is
trying to sling some mud in the di
rection of the IOC, so the blame
for previous scandal is associated
entirely with the IOC and not the
nation with a host city — Salt
Lake City in 2002, for instance.
Poor timing and the evidence
that these statements are false cer
tainly lead one to believe that
there was an ulterior motive in
volved when the White House de
cided to try to taint the games be
fore they started.
Luke McMahan is a senior
industrial engineering major.