Tweets on offense Twitter accounts walk fine line between humor and offensiveness vol. 101, no. 12
wednesday, october 3, 2012
Features Page 5
1 SECTION, 8 PAGES
INSIDE NEWS Widlcat Reign getting students excited about sporting events Page 4
NEWS Adams Center undergoing changes under new management Page 3
NEWS Balloon Fest canceled because of weekend downpours Page 3
OPINION Twitter defamation should not be encouraged
page 6
SPORTS Tennis players sweep regional tournament over weekend Page 8
photos by mandy lambright chief Photographer Bryce Jones, sophomore accounting major from Shawnee, Okla., joins his fellow Gobs in Sub-T 16 pledging activities outside the Onstead-Packer Biblical Studies Building during Bid Night.
All but one club see decrease in pledges
SPORTS Volleyball team loses again, falls to 1-6 in the conference
Page 7
katie greene page 2 editor
NEWS David Moses named director of ACU Camps Page 4
NEWS Orchestra string section participates in master class Page 4
ONLINE NEWS Voting registration booth set up in Campus Center on Wednesday acuoptimist.com
PHOTOS Go to our Flickr page for more photos from Bid Night
Nearly all social clubs are fostering a smaller number of pledges this year, partly because of the small size of the sophomore class. The number of pledging Sibling Austin Ray, sophomore biochemistry major participants has dropped from Allen, “relaxes” with his Gamma Sigma Phi pledge Squig Breanna Barrow, sophomore education major from North Richland Hills, and Sibling from 371 last year to 294 brothers in the amphitheatre during the social club’s Gabe Guerra, sophomore psychology major from Edinburg, play in the Sigma Theta Chi/ this year. Most clubs were watermelon activity, a tradition of Bid Night. Gamma Sigma Phi dodgeball event in Bennett Gym during Bid Night. unable to have a full pledge class because of this smaller number. Pi Kappa is the only club this year that managed to have an increase in forecast, so we made a rain McMath said GATA ble. I grew stronger with my the number in their pledge marissa jones plan ahead of time in case pledges were allowed to pledge brothers because we class, going from 12 last managing editor we needed it,” McMath said. change clothes after an ac- were all in it together. It was year to 14. “Since we were prepared, we tivity outside left everyone the most fun I never want to “We had a lot of guys Rather than letting the rain were ready to give the girls wet and muddy from the have again.” who were interested bedampen their spirits, social pledging just as good a Bid rain. Ko Jo Kai pledge Mara cause they knew guys in club members and pledges Night if not better than othMcMath said, “We didn’t Fleet, sophomore graphic the club and by word of said the rain made Bid Night er ones. All of the activities want anyone to get sick from design major from Abilene, mouth,” said Robert Hull, Pi a more memorable experi- were done, some just had to being wet and cold.” said she heard several girls Kappa president and junior ence. be relocated.” Frater Sodalis pledge and lost their heels in the mud piano performance major The five-week pledging McMath said the rain did brat president Seth Mont- when running from activity from Riton, Calif. process began on Friday not create negative attitudes gomery, sophomore engi- to activity. Pi Kappa had three night at 5 p.m. and ended throughout Bid Night. neering major from Abilene, “The rain definitely made pledges in the fall of 2011, on Saturday at 5 a.m. ac“The girls pledging didn’t said his Bid Night experi- Bid Night messier,” Fleet nine in the spring of 2012 companied by four inches know what to expect, so ence was made more diffi- said. “I was ankle deep in and 14 this fall. These of rain. Bailey McMath, their spirits were high even cult by the rain. puddles all night. When I got pledges will join the 12 acsenior speech pathology though it was raining,” Mc“By the end, I was soak- home, I found that mud had tive members this semester, major from Missouri City Math said. “We were still ing, cold and muddy,” soaked through my shoes.” and Pi Kappa is hoping to and GATA Pledge Mom said able to have fun. For some Montgomery said. “The rain continue this trend of growGATA planned around the activities, the rain made made it hard and kind of ing numbers in the upcomcontact jones at weather. the experience even more miserable, but it also made mnj10a@acu.edu see pledges page 4 “We saw the rain on the memorable and enjoyable.” it so much more memora-
Rain creates wet Bid Night
student life flickr.com/acuoptimist
VIDEO See the Ken Collums Show, featuring our sports staff’s roundtable
acuoptimist.com
Freshmen, families gear up for Follies
“
This is my first performance at ACU, so it’s exciting.”
in the show. Many students participating in Freshman Follies expressed enthuVarious groups of freshsiasm about their experimen across campus have ence thus far. Edison Zhu, been busy preparing edison zhu freshman ESL student freshman esl student from from Hong Kong, said the for this year’s edition of hong kong vibe was full of exciteFreshman Follies, a traditional ACU musical variment. ety show. bears witness to one of “This is my first perforThis year marks the the largest groups of par- mance at ACU,” said Zhu, 40th performance of ticipants, with more than who is a part of a chorus Freshman Follies. It also 200 freshmen taking part group. “So, it’s exciting.”
josh garcia
staff reporter
Abilene Christian University
Freshman Follies features hall acts, a large chorus, specialty acts, dance troupes and spiritual acts, among others. Amy Sloan, one of the cochairs of this year’s Follies, said the large number of participants has allowed her to make many new friends. “I’m so glad I got involved. I’ve met so many new people,” said Sloan,
freshman advertising and public relations major from Spring. “It’s also brought halls together, and it’s just so cool to see everyone bonding over this one event.” The other co-chairs are Samantha Barton, Callie Kerbo, and Ryan Hawthorne. Student Activities Cosee follies page 4