Great News from the 4-Ride Front

I have good news for those of us who believe 4-Ride needs to be improved: WRGW News did an interview recently with incoming SA President Jason Lifton, who had this to say about inefficiencies in 4-Ride services:

Lifton also discussed methods for improving campus security, addressing inefficiencies in 4-Ride and general safety concerns around campus.

“I think that the simple solution for long wait time is more 4-Ride vans,” Lifton said in response to many students who have reported waiting upwards of 45 minutes for a 4-Ride van to pick them up. “That said, I’m not sure about the feasibility of that immediately.”

This is good news not only because he agrees that there are efficiency issues with 4-Ride, but also because he offers, coincidentally, a solution also offered on the "Sick of Waiting Around for 4-Ride" Facebook group, one of two campaigns created by GW students who have expressed frustration with the way 4-Ride currently runs.

What he says about the solution's immediate feasability is an important point: vans aren't cheap, and it will take a lot to convince the administration to utilize funds for this purpose.  But change, as we have so often been told, isn't easy: it will take a lot to show the GW administration that there is an overwhelming demand for an expansion of 4-Ride services.

Want to join in the effort?  Sign the petition and join the Facebook group - don't forget to invite all your friends!  We will be presenting the petition to President Knapp once we acquire a sufficient number of signatures.

With your help, we can ensure that future GW students will have an efficient and expansive 4-Ride fleet to keep them safe.

WRGW News-- a go-to GW news source?

We've discussed The Daily Colonial and The Hatchet, but besides getting critiqued on its election coverage, we haven't really pondered whether or not WRGW News is considered a go-to place for campus news.

Sure, many of us may not be big radio listeners and tune into our campus radio station, but why don't we consider WRGW News like we do The Daily Colonial or The Hatchet?

Their website, in blog form, seems to be updated daily, with maybe the exceptions of weekend posts. (Their last post was this past Friday).

But the real question is: what is WRGW News lacking in its appeal to our need for campus news?

It has almost everything one could ask for: a savvy streamlined website, embedded videos (their latest an interview with Student Association President-Elect Jason Lifton), and a varying range of coverage (latest posts cover everything from metro delays to an opera performance at the Kennedy Center).

So then we must ask why WRGW News hasn't been discussed as a news source; is it because it isn't considered a main player in the game? Or has it just simply been overlooked by this blog's contributors?

A Response: "WRGW 'News' Biased & Speculative Throughout SA Elections"

Let's first get my conflict of interest out of the way: my name is Alexander Laska, and I am an Assistant News Director for WRGW News.

Recently, my fellow Assistant News Director, Dan Keylin, was attacked on this blog by Eric Thibault - who worked for Xochitl's Sanchez's campaign - for injecting analysis into his coverage of the Student Association elections.  Now, Dan's a big boy and he can take it, but not only did Mr. Thibault provide a completely fact-free assault on my fellow AND, he also called all of WRGW News as a whole "biased" (just look at the headline), which is appallingly inaccurate.

Now, he had to provide a media critique for his Internet and Politics class, and I don't blame him for choosing WRGW News to pick on: after all, he has been a staff writer for The Hatchet, and one can hardly expect him to critique his own employer.  But let's delve into his claims and see if there is any truth there.

First, he criticizes Dan for calling Jason Lifton (who went on to win the election) the "overwhelming favorite," saying that he had nothing to back up this claim.  Well, first off, we have done several interviews with SA insiders (you can find these interviews on our News In Depth page), all of whom agreed that the race was Lifton's to lose.  Then there was the straw poll we did which, while not scientific, did have a large sample (yes, Eric, I took SMPA 51, too) and backed up Dan's claim.  Oh, and then Lifton actually won the election.  So was there evidence to support the fact that Lifton was the favorite?  Retrospectively, yes.  In fact, when Dan made that assertion, it would have been pretty difficult to say he wasn't the overwhelming favorite in the race, considering the fact that Lifton announced his candidacy two days before Sanchez, the only other candidate in the presidential race, announced hers.  If Lifton wasn't the favorite at that point, I don't know who was.  Maybe Steve Holt?

Eric next critizes Dan's assertion that Sanchez didn't let him into her Facebook group.  But here's the first thing Sanchez's group says:

Per election rules, this group has to remain a closed group. However, if you would like to join my group I will not turn you away!***

But she did turn Dan away.  So, essentially, she lied on her campaign page.  I would argue that this is something worth noting.  As for Eric's respose...

Who the hell cares? That's not news, that's your egotistical commentary.

Real mature, Eric.

From there, Eric goes on to rant about various other things regarding Dan's coverage of the SA.  I'll respond in order:

Make the SA Candidates Hear You

This Friday, February 19th, WRGW News will be hosting the first official Student Association Debate at 7pm in the Marvin Center Ampitheater (3rd floor).  From Director Jared Pliner:

Today, it is my distinct privilege to announce that WRGW News - a division of WRGW/GWRadio - will host and moderate the 2010 WRGW News - Student Association Debate for the very first time in the station's 81-year history.

We are excited for this wonderful opportunity to serve and inform the GW community this election season, and it is my hope that this will become an annual tradition for many years to come.

The debate will be in two parts, the first featuring EVP candidates Jon Binetti, Logan Dobson, Josh Goldstein, and Rob Maxim and the second featuring SA Presidential candidates Jason Lifton and Xochitl Sanchez.  Pliner, along with Assistant News Directors Dan Keylin and myself, will ask the candidates questions in a typical debate format.

But more importantly, we'll be allowing you, the students, to ask questions of the candidates.  They can be about anything: what do you care about?  What bothers you about GW, or the way the SA works?  What do you want next year's administration to do for you?  It is important to make sure the candidates are aware of your stances on the issues so that you can hold them accountable and make them earn your support.

Even if you don't have a particular question you'd like to ask, this debate is still an excellent opportunity to find out about the candidates and their platforms before going to the (online) polls on February 24th and 25th.

And if you can't make it to the debate in person, you can listen live and follow our live blog of the event.

Hope to see you there,

Alexander Laska
Assistant News Director
WRGW News