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THE NEW MEXICAN Friday, December 6, 2013
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Teens making air waves
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for and by teens
A scene from Frozen, starring Kristen Bell as the voice of Anna, left. DISNEY
MOVIES Eric Dunn, left, and Attyat Mayans record their radio show, Today’s Youth, Tomorrow’s World, at the KSFR studio at the Santa Fe Community College. AARON STEVENS/GENERATION NEXT
Santa Fe radio programs give youth platform to tackle issues and share insight By Aaron Stevens Generation Next
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adio may seem like a dated form of expression to many young people. For others, taking to the airways is a dream come true. “It’s really exciting when they get to be in control,” said DJ Lisa Clark, who is the host of Friday Funk on 98.1 KBAC Radio Free Santa Fe, which frequently has young guests on its programs. Music is not the only area in which teens can shine on KBAC. Clark is particularly proud of her interns, who come from The University of New Mexico, Santa Fe Prep and New Mexico School for the Arts, among other schools, and work in every department: “Marketing, production, even appearing on shows,” she said. She said some Capital High School ninthgraders appeared on a show with the Reel Fathers and Albuquerque poet laureate Hakim Bellamy reading poetry that they had written. For two St. Michael’s High School seniors, airtime is a way to inform and enlighten teens. Today’s Youth, Tomorrow’s World, a show hosted by Eric Dunn and Attyat Mayans, plays on KSFR 101.1 FM at 6:30 p.m. two Wednesdays every month. The program focuses on political and educational issues. “We’ve been talking a lot about executive privilege, but we have a couple of themes in each episode,” Mayans said. “The last time we talked about how learning more than one language or being multilingual already impacts your brain.”
Dunn added, “We’ve talked about U.S.-China relations … U.S.-Africa relations.” Mayans cut in with, “[We’ve discussed] the link between democracy and education. We try to mix it up and make it interesting as well.” The duo’s latest episode — the ninth — which aired Dec. 4, began with a discussion of executive rights and privacy. The show was part history lesson and part discussion, and Mayans and Dunn discussed executive privilege’s usage by presidents ranging from George Washington to Dwight D. Eisenhower to Barack Obama. Of particular interest to the pair was the use of executive power by President Richard Nixon during the Watergate scandal, by President Bill Clinton during his affair with Monica Lewinsky, and most recently, President Obama’s attempted coverup of Operation Fast and Furious — in which the Bureau of Alcohol, Tobacco, Firearms and Explosives allowed U.S. weapons to fall into the hands of gun smugglers, who in turn would lead authorities to Mexican drug cartels. The project backfired when the federal government lost track of some of the guns and, in at least one instance, some of the weapons were used against U.S. Border Patrol agents. The second half of the program covered the use of technology in the classroom including flipped classrooms, Common Core Standards and the use of “holodecks” — interactive classrooms designed to simulate experiences such as the collection of martian soil samples. Researching and the writing the show’s roughly 11-page script is a time-consuming process. “We have to script the show because we’d just ramble otherwise,” Mayans said. That process begins about two weeks before the program airs. “We talk about what we want to do on the
What does the term “Hispanic” mean to you?
Vanessa Miranda, Capital High School “The term ‘Hispanic,’ to me, means that you have Spanishspeaking ancestry, such as from Spain or Central/ South America.”
Grecia Guadalupe Vega, Santa Fe High School “ ‘Hispanic,’ to me, is perseverance. It is Pancho Villa’s leadership and Gabriel García Márquez’s scholarship.”
Yomi Tadfor, University of New Mexico “ ‘Hispanic,’ to me, means someone of Latin descent.”
show, then e-research it for about a week. The next week, we do a lot of our writing,” Dunn said. “We write the script over the course of the week, where we can fit it in,” Mayans said. A couple of days before recording, they rehearse via the video-chat service Skype. Today’s Youth, Tomorrow’s World is recorded at KSFR’s studio inside the Fine Arts Wing of the Santa Fe Community College. KSFR operations manager Sean Conlon handles the technical side of the production. Neither Dunn nor Mayans can hazard a guess as to how large their listenership is. “Occasionally, someone will say to me, ‘How’s the show going?’ and I’m kind of surprised that they knew anything about it,” Mayans said. “We did get some emails after the first show,” Dunn said. Dunn and Mayans are very modest about their radio work. “I don’t like the word inspired, ” Mayans said. Dunn added, “It implies that you think of yourself as an inspirational figure.” Still their reason for producing Today’s Youth, Tomorrow’s World is lofty, to say the least. “I really want people to be able to learn something and do with it what they will,” Mayan said. Dunn agreed: “I believe in the power of democracy and the power of people to make informed decisions, and yet so often a lot of people aren’t making informed decisions. If I can guide just a handful of people into becoming more educated, better citizens in making their political decisions, then [the program] has been a great success for me.” KSFR also airs Warehouse 21’s popular Ground Zero Radio Project, featuring youth DJs and artists, but efforts to reach the producers of that show were unsuccessful.
SPEAK OUT
Kodi Richards, Santa Fe High School “ ‘Hispanic’ means close families: People being connected to their roots. Family means a lot in Hispanic culture.”
Janessa Lashley, Academy for Technology and the Classics “Someone with Spanish decent.”
Zack McAlister, St. Michael’s High School “The term ‘Hispanic’ is not just an ethnicity, but a way of living a Spanish lifestyle. It means you’re not afraid to embrace the Spanish culture.”
COMPILED BY ELIZABETH SANCHEZ/GENERATION NEXT
‘Frozen’ will melt hearts By Nana Park Generation Next
In traditional stories about heroes saving the world, the protagonists usually traverse through lands far and wide to defeat evil before returning home to be lauded for years to come. In a stereotypical Disney princess movie, the girl also falls in love with a Prince Charming at first sight, and together they live happily ever after. Sleeping Beauty, Cinderella and Snow White — as well as myriad others — all follow this basic storyline almost to the point of being too predictable and dreary to watch. However, the Walt Disney Studio’s newest animated film, Frozen, is an exception to this rule. It follows the adventure of Anna (Kristen Bell), Kristoff (Jonathan Groff) and a snowman named Olaf (Josh Gad), and tells how the kingdom of Arendelle is saved from an eternal winter created by Elsa the Snow Queen (Idina Menzel). After hearing the summary from my siblings, I admit I did not have high hopes. But Frozen has taught me to not judge so hastily. The animation, imagination and artistry shown throughout the film is absolutely stunning, and the snowy, ethereal depictions of the winter setting are enough to send shivers down your spine. Complementing the tone and development of the plot, the musical numbers vary from catchy and lively to nostalgic and heartfelt. The soundtrack, which features the voices of Menzel, Bell and Demi Lovato, among others, is impressive both in musicality and style. Neither overbearing nor deficient, the humor is enjoyably silly. Another unique aspect of the film is that its story does not focus on finding true love, unlike most of its predecessors. Rather, Frozen underscores the importance of sisterhood and family. While not entirely perfect, this movie is so endearing that the flaws can be easily overlooked. Though the main characters’ journey is fairly typical, the essence of the journey and the plot twists are not. Riddled with humor, energy and panache, with a story fit for the whole family, Frozen may make its mark as one of the greatest fairy tales of the 21st century. Nana Park isa senior at St. Michael’s High School. Contact her at santafesian@gmail.com.
MY VIEW
Focus on mental health to help prevent mass shootings By Austin Tyra Generation Next
ext Saturday, Dec. 14, marks the one-year anniversary of the tragic Sandy Hook Elementary School shooting, which appalled the nation. This brazen act of gun violence took the lives of 20 elementary school children, six school employees and the mother of the shooter and sparked a massive debate on gun control and the laws surrounding that issue. However, while the entire nation feuds over the impact of guns and gun control, surely something must have happened in the interim to ensure that such a terrible act of violence against children would
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never happen again. But perhaps not. Looking back at the melancholy days following the Sandy Hook shooting, it seems that many individuals were far more concerned with whether they would be able to keep their guns rather than working toward uncovering a way to prevent similar tragedies in the future. According to a recent Huffington Post news article, there have been 16 mass shootings since the Sandy Hook incident, each claiming four or more victims. For me, that article dispelled any doubt that the topic of gun control overshadows the real problem are nation faces in the midst of the anguish. Regardless of your own personal
view on the issue of guns, there should be a common belief that we must do something to completely stop such horrific mass shootings, particularly in schools. And this is where the debate gets complicated, with suggestions rousing from all sides regarding what the correct course of action should be. Some believe we should place restrictions on gun ownership. Others call for mental health screenings before someone is allowed to purchase a gun. In my view, it is a gross misinterpretation of the Second Amendment to allow regular civilians to arm themselves with military weapons that allow for mass shootings to take place. To those who think that such gun con-
Section editor: Adele Oliveira, 986-3091, aoliveira@sfnewmexican.com Design and headlines: Carlos López, clopez@sfnewmexican.com
trol will limit their Second Amendment rights, I would like to point out that when our forefathers adopted that amendment to the Bill of Rights in the 1790s, they had just successfully led a war to secede from the most powerful nation in the world. That said, I have lost faith that any consensus on gun control will be reached anytime soon. However, our nation should continue to move forward to prevent more mass killings. I believe that the most appropriate avenue to accomplish this is to ensure that our nation has a stronger mental health program for screening and support. New evidence indicates that the young killer in the Sandy Hook shoot-
ing — 20-year-old Adam Lanza — was mentally unstable from a very young age. Perhaps the right intervention could have prevented the shootings. I have heard one interesting point from pro-gun advocates, which is that “guns don’t kill people, people kill people.” At a glance, this is a reasonable point, but guns are still the tools that make it much easier to kill a lot of people. If we are not able to reach some sort of compromise on gun control, then we should make sure that those who are in possession of guns are mentally healthy. But we should also find a way to provide the right care and support for those who need it as well. That intervention may just save lives.
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