Issue 12 | Volume 101

Fox News settles lawsuit with Dominion Voting System

Lily Pruitt Asst. News Editor

Fox News has settled a lawsuit with Dominion Voting Systems over claims of fraud in the 2020 presidential election. They settled for $787,500,000,

which is half of the original ask, $1.6 billion.

Dominion Voting Systems claimed that Fox executives, guests and celebrities defamed the company about conspiracies about the past

presidential election.

Dominion CEO John Poulos claimed that the defamation has caused serious harm to the company and its employees.

“Truthful reporting in the media is

essential to our democracy,” Poulos said.

Fox News released a statement after the settlement was announced, claiming that the court’s rulings were false and that the news outlet set-

tled so that they could move forward from the dispute as soon as possible. “I think most news media channels are very opinionated anyways, so anyone can claim defamation,”

said Ansley Walker, a senior criminal justice major. “But I do understand where the company was coming from if it was hurting their company financially.”

DO YOU REALLY WANT TO KNOW WHERE I WAS APRIL 28, 29 AND 30? THE TAYLOR SWIFT ERAS TOUR.

Hannah Adams Asst. Opinion Editor

The Taylor Swift Eras Tour made its way to Atlanta this past weekend, and Swift brought nothing but joy and explosive energy to the Mercedes Benz Stadium. The concert was an experience that allowed for fans to see Swift live once again after a long hiatus. During the concert, Swift paid tribute to each of her albums, devoting attention to each one in different ways.

Swifties banded together during this tour, and unanimously chose

to dress as a chosen album or era for their concert outfit. The outfit choices ranged from

bum through colors and accessories. Some fans even adopted the idea of creating and trading

6:30 p.m., with Gracie Abrams being the first opener to take the stage. Her performance

Next was Beebadoobee, who played a largely instrumental set that set the mood for Swift. Af-

being extremely specific to simply encompassing the idea of an al-

friendship bracelets prior to the show starting. The show began at

was beautiful and sweet, covering a few of her most well-known hits.

ter these performances, it was Swift’s turn, and the superstar took the

GC Baseball loses series, but wins senior day

Emily Henderson

Contributing Writer

GC baseball hosted Columbus State University for their last conference series of the regular season, starting on April 28 and ending the series on April 29. Saturday’s doubleheader honored the 12 seniors on the baseball team.

Game one was a tough battle between the two teams. After being down 0-6, the Bobcats came back to tie it up. The Cougars, however, did not take their foot off the gas, as they scored seven runs

through the sixth and seventh innings. GC never responded, and CSU took game one, 14-7.

The Cougars started game two hot and did not slow down. While CSU scored 14 runs again in game two, the Bobcats only scored two, both off of a Mason Spivey home run in the bottom of the sixth.

In game three, the Bobcats scored first after Ben Tuten stole second base, causing a throwing error that resulted in him reaching home on the same play.

stage at exactly 8 p.m. The concert kicked off with the much-loved “Miss Americana & the Heartbreak Prince’’ and from there, dove into the “Lover” album. The concert started off with a bang, and Swift did not hold back with her energy, costumes and choreography. The crowd was packed with adoring fans, and there was not one person in the crowd that was not overjoyed. Each era was paid special attention to, and she took opportunities between each transition to speak about her life and feelings when writing each album.

Again, in the second, GC extended their lead after a deep shot to right field by Mason Spivey, his second of the day, to make it 2-0 for the Bobcats. Both teams had no trouble reaching base but struggled to produce runs — until the fifth inning, where CSU scored first. An overthrown ball to first started the inning. With runners on second and third, a ground ball to second base allowed one run to score before another ground ball ended the top of the inning.

Opinion

Marissa Marcolina | Digital Media Editor

Hunter Baker batting on Friday April 28.

FOX NEWS

Continued from page 1

Following the end of the lawsuit, Fox News’s biggest star, Tucker Carlson, was fired. Fox News has replaced his segment with a series of rotating hosts rotating and are looking for a permanent replacement. This has left many Fox News viewers abandoning the time slot of Tucker Carlson’s show and some ditching the network altogether.

“That is down 56 percent from the 3.05 million viewers Carlson reached last Wednes-

day,” said David Bauder, a writer for AP News.

The New York Times reported that Carlson’s private messages, deemed offensive by many, may have been a reason for his firing. The Wall Street Journal said that Carlson used the “c-word.”

Shortly after his departure, Carlson released a video on Twitter. In this video, Carlson addresses public disclosure in the media.

“Where can you still find Americans saying true things?” Carlson said. “There aren’t many

places left, but there are some. Both political parties and their donors have reached consensus on what benefits them, and they actively collude to shut down any conversation about it.”

In this video, Carlson did not mention his departure from Fox News nor his next move. However, Carlson told everyone to pray for 10 minutes a day for the future of the country and its people.

“I think Tucker Carlson should have been more protected by the company,” Walker said.

“But under the circumstances, I understand why he was fired because the company was

put under spotlight, and if they would not have fired him, it could have caused a public outrage.”

Fulton County jail’s inhumane conditions

Jennifer Crider A&L Editor

Opinion

Lawshawn Thompson, an inmate at Fulton County Jail, was found dead on September 19, 2022. Michael D. Harper, the Thompson’s family lawyer, is allegeding that he died from being eaten alive by insects and bed bugs.

Harper also alleges that the officers and medical staff had previously noticed Thompson’s health deteriorating; however, they offered him no medical aid until they found his dead body.

In November, the Southern Center for Human Rights released a press release called “Uncontained Outbreaks of Lice, Scabies Leaves People at Fulton County Jail Dangerously Malnour-

ished,” which called for the jail to immediately improve their conditions.

“According to documents obtained through an open records request, medical professionals brought in to assess the September outbreak found that 100% of the people held in one unit had either lice, scabies and or both,” the Southern Center for Human Rights said.

During Thompson’s death, he was being held in the psychiatric wing of the jail.

“That unit houses people diagnosed with mental illnesses requiring treatment; the reviewers also found that 90% of the people in the unit had not been completing their ‘activities of daily living’ — including showering, dressing, getting out of bed, walking, and using the toilet

Editorial Board

Katherine Futch..............

Cale Strickland................

Claire O’Neill...................

Rebecca Meghani..........

Lily Pruitt............................

Hayden Flinn....................

Brennan Schmitz...........

Jennifer Crider.................

William Van de Planque..............................

Abigayle Allen..................

Hannah Adams...............

Anjali Shenoy................

Marissa Marcolina.........

Connor Patronis.............

Robert Trotter...................

William Burke..................

— or receiving essential medications,” the Southern Center for Human Rights said. “Further medical findings showed that over 90% of the affected people were significantly malnourished, showing clear signs of cachexia – a wasting syndrome leading to the loss of muscle and fat, often seen in people with late stage cancers.”

The inhumane conditions of this facility are due to their overpopulation and understaffing issue. According to a 2022 study done by the American Civil Liberties Union and the American Civil Liberties Union of Georgia, the Fulton County Jail has 728 over-detained prisoners.

This overpopulation is partially due to the fact that Fulton County keeps people charged with misdemeanors de-

tained when they cannot pay bail, as well as the fact that they do not transfer inmates that are able to be placed in alternative facilities, such as halfway homes.

The ACLU study also found that 46.6% of Fulton County Jail detainees have not been officially charged with a crime, 12% could not afford bail and 3.6% were able to be transferred to an arrest diversion program.

At the time of his death, Thompson was being held because he could not pay the $2,500 bail.

This Saturday, protesters gathered in Woodruff Park in Atlanta to protest Fulton County Jail. Many people are calling Patrick Labat, Fulton County Sheriff, to step down from his job.

Thompson’s family is calling for this facility to be shut down; how-

ever, they have not filed an official lawsuit yet.

In response to this backlash, Sheriff Labat has stated that the jail will be transferring 600 inmates to jails in other countries. They are also spending $500,000 to improve the conditions of the jail.

Although this money will help the quality of life in this prison, the prison has not commented on if they will change their policy of keeping people charged with misdemeanors detained. Without these adjustments, the overpopulation and over jailing people will prevail. Transferring inmates to other facilities will just create overcrowding in other jails across Georgia.

Thompson suffered from mental issues, and he clearly was not receiving rehabilitation in

Tucker Carlson

Carlson’s path forward is unclear, but his media career is certainly not over yet.

the psychiatric facility at Fulton County Jail. If the Fulton County Jail would have sent him to a quality mental facility, they could have provided him with aid and prevented his death. Keeping prisoners does not prevent crime. All this does is perpetuate the cycle of crime. Recently released inmates are not given the proper resources to become accustomed back into real life, and so, they retreat back to committing crime. The amendments this prison is making is not enough. The Atlanta Journal-Constitution found that between the years of 2009 and 2022, 64 inmates died, and this is the highest rate of death in any jail in Georgia. The Fulton County Jail must be shut down immediately.

Snapchat rolls out new AI feature

Kate Verity

Contributing Writer

In the 21st century, we live in an era of great technological advancements and constant changes.

From smartphones to electric vehicles, the way that humans live has changed drastically in the last few decades. In terms of creating new technologies, 2023 has not disappointed. One of the biggest and most controversial advancements that this year has brought has been artificial intelligence, or AI.

ChatGPT is one of the most well-known AI systems that anybody can use. ChatGPT was developed by OpenAI. It has been available for public use since the end of November 2022, but it was not until earlier this year that it really started to gain popularity.

In response to ChatGPT’s popularity, many other companies began working to develop their own AI chat models. This includes Microsoft through Bing, Google, Meta — the mother company that owns Facebook, Instagram, and WhatsApp — and other tech companies.

One of the most recent AI developments has put an AI chat right into smartphones across the world. Anyone with Snapchat who has updated their app since April 19 may have noticed the new feature pinned at the top of their Chat page. A chatbot called “My AI” is now available to every Snapchat user. It is powered by

ChatGPT, but it has been tweaked so that it conforms to the Snapchat community guidelines. This new chat friend is being met with mixed reviews by Snapchat users. My AI was previously only available to those who paid for Snapchat+. However, now it is the opposite: Only those who subscribe to Snapchat+ can remove My AI from their app. For anyone unwilling or unable to pay the $3.99 monthly fee, a conversation box with My AI will remain at the top of their feed. Not only are users unable to remove the chatbot, but they also cannot unpin the conversation. This means that it will forever be at the top of the screen, where users used to be able to pin any conversation of their choice.

Emily Moore is a senior political science major at GC, and she greatly dislikes the new AI. She has heard about it from her friends and has avoided updating her Snapchat to keep it off her phone. She said that if her Snapchat were to update with the new My AI system enabled, she would deactivate her account and delete the app entirely.

“Whenever it comes down to the whole Snapchat thing, being able to talk to you on that kind of level, a very personal level, I think that could be very dangerous,” Moore said. “People could self-incriminate themselves on accident, and I think that it can access things on your phone that you wouldn’t want

people to have access to.”

Much of the public’s perception of AI is created from its villainous personas in science fiction. Characters like Ultron from Marvel and movies like Transformers or Terminator have helped to shape what people know about AI, and these perceptions are rarely positive.

Dr. Juli Gittinger is a professor of religion in GC’s Department of Philosophy, Religion and Liberal Studies. Many of her interests lie in studying science fiction, and she explains how today’s AI differs from the villainous AI personas we see in entertainment media.

“It’s not conscious,” Gittinger said. “Conscious means free will, volition, a sense of self-awareness. That’s what we see in science fiction, with, like, robots and androids and, you know, “Blade Runner,” things like that — where they’re robots, but they’re like people.”

Elon Musk was one of the founders of OpenAI, but he resigned from the board in 2018 to avoid conflicts with his work at Tesla. Musk has been greatly politicized in recent years, but he is still inarguably one of the leading technological innovators of our time. He is very wary of AI and recently said in an interview that he believes there needs to be a government regulatory agency that looks into AI technology and sets rules for the industry.

Additionally, in late

March, Musk called for a six-month pause on the development of AI systems to give researchers the chance to introduce “shared safety protocols” for the technological community to adhere to. This letter was also signed by other big names in technology, such as Steve Wozniak, a co-founder of Apple; Andrew Yang, an entrepreneur and former presidential candidate; and Rachel Bronson, the president of the Bulletin of the Atomic Scientists.

Brunswick Pinova plant catches fire

Lily Pruitt

Asst. News Editor

On April 16, 2023, the Pinova plant in Brunswick, Georgia, caught on fire, causing evacuations in the surrounding areas. Many GC students are from the area.

The plant caught fire

around sunrise, which posed no immediate concern. The fire reignited hours later which prompted a shelter-inplace for a one-mile radius surrounding the plant. The shelterin-place then spread to surrounding areas as far as St. Simons Island.

The Brunswick Fire Department is not equipped to handle fires of this magnitude, resulting in surrounding counties bringing in their units, as well as Savannah and Jacksonville bringing units.

“I think they handled it fairly well,” said Ryan

Brewer, a sophomore criminal justice major. “They got the evacuation orders out fairly quickly, and the Red Cross station was useful and helpful for those who had to leave their houses.”

Fortunately, there were only six employees in the plant at the time of the explosion, and they were all accounted for.

The cause for concern which forced the evacuations was the resin and other chemicals that the plant uses that could have contaminated the air.

The Red Cross set up a shelter for the households who had to evacuate, of which there are believed to be more than 100.

“There is nothing more important to Pinova than the safety of the neighborhood, the safety of the employees and the safety of this community,” said Mark Johnson, an attorney with Gilbert Harrel, the law firm

Frank Richardson is a lecturer of computer science at GC. He explained what he thinks needs to be understood about AI moving forward.

“The biggest thing that I think will need to be done with AI is that the hype that is given to it by researchers as to what it can do and what it is is far from the truth,” Richardson said. “The idea that we can basically simulate the human process — I think you have to understand that there are aspects to the human being that we

which represents Pinova.

“I don’t think there was a whole lot more they could’ve done other than giving reassurances and being seen,” Brewer said.

Many GC students from the area had little concern at first.

“I think it is more of an instructional moment, where they can figure out what went wrong and prevent it from happening again,” Brewer said. “It is not necessarily super surprising, considering their day-to-day operations, and there is always a possibility of a factory that large that something can go wrong.”

“We will learn from this event, and we will do better moving forward,” said Johnson.

Officials closed the F.J. Torras Causeway, stopping traffic in both lanes going to and from St. Simons Island to Brunswick, leaving many either stranded on the island or

don’t fully understand, that you can’t understand in a mathematically algorithmic mannerism.”

As of now, the technological community has mixed feelings on how to proceed with the development of AI. It is likely that the scientists who have been working towards these breakthroughs for years are not going to be eager to halt their research or work under government oversight and regulation, no matter what big-name tech executives call for action.

unable to get back home.

“I think it was more a precautionary thing because of the amount of traffic that would have increased, and it could have caused a little more panic than needed if people had been on it and seen that amount of smoke,” Brewer said. “Precautionary, sure. Overdramatic, probably.”

The cause of the fire is still unknown, and the plant will remain closed until a full investigation can be completed by state investigators and the plant’s own team, leaving many employees jobless for the next few months.

“The plant is not going to reopen until we are 100% sure it can be done safely,” Johnson said.

“I think it’s a big change for Brunswick, and I think it will take a lot to rebuild it and get people’s jobs back,” said J.T. Good, a sophomore MIS major.

Courtesy of Kate Verity

BASEBALL

Continued from page 1

The top of the sixth started with a double for CSU followed by another infield error that resulted in the Cougars tying the game, 2-2.

The Bobcats responded in the bottom of the sixth to break the tie with a solo homerun from redshirt-junior infielder Palmer Sapp.

After an infield single for the Bobcats in the bottom of the seventh, GC produced the big inning that they needed. With one out, the Cougars intentionally walked the bases, hoping to get a double play to end the inning.

The following batter, Sapp, hit the ball down the right-field line to score all three baserunners, giving himself a triple. A single past the second baseman by Mason Spivey scored

Sapp, putting the score at 7-2 for the Bobcats.

The Bobcats took advantage of more CSU errors in the bottom of the eight to extend their lead further.

fielder Brandon Bellflower scored Tuten. Bellflower advanced to third on a fly ball to center and scored after another wild pitch by the CSU pitcher.

The Cougars tried

early in the season, but we know just how to battle through it,” Tuten said. “I think we just have a good group of guys that come out here and fight every day. We

Davis Swenson, Mason

Spivey, Trevor Knowles, Josh Hudgins, Matthew Chester, Palmer Sapp, Trey Felt, Preston Felt and Parker Kauffman.

“You know, having

with a big win at the end against Columbus State, who has an amazing baseball program, makes it just such a special day.”

This series put the Bobcats in fifth place going into the Peach Belt Conference, or PBC, Tournament. The tournament is composed of two double-elimination rounds, with eight teams in the first round and four in the second round.

A lead-off walk followed by a wild pitch put the runner in scoring position. Then, an RBI-single to left field by Tuten scored the runner before another wild pitch allowed Tuten to advance.

Next, a double by out-

to come back in the top of the ninth after a few mistakes from the Bobcats, but the defense held the Cougars to just one run, giving GC their first win of the series, with a score of 10-3.

“We have been kicked

just play for each other, and I think that’s all that it comes down to.”

The Bobcats honored 12 seniors that will be leaving after this season. Those players included Ben Tuten, Hunter Baker, Ashton Sturgell,

NBA playoffs wraps up first round

Drew Bogumill Staff Writer

The first round of the 2023 NBA Playoffs is close to an end, and there is plenty to talk about.

Starting with a huge upset, No. 8 Miami sent No. 1 Milwaukee home after only five games. The Heat’s Jimmy Butler dominated in the series, averaging 37.6 points, 6.1 rebounds and 4.4 assists — including an incredible 56-point performance in game four.

In perhaps the most exciting series of the first round, the Golden State Warriors overcame the Sacramento Kings in seven games. This series was back-and-forth the whole way, but in the final game, the Warriors handled the Kings with ease, as Warriors’

superstar Steph Curry dropped 50 points.

Cleveland also saw the end of their season, coming up short against the New York Knicks. The Miami Heat are facing the Knicks in the second round of the playoffs.

In a very anticipated matchup, the Los Angeles Clippers took on the Phoenix Suns and their new superstar, Kevin Durant. After the first two games, it looked as though the series may go the distance, but Phoenix won four games straight to take the series 4-1.

“I’m very disappointed with how the series went,” said Tucker Sutton, a junior accounting manager. “Kawhi Leonard is my favorite player, and to see him and Paul George having to deal

with injuries right now is very sad because I believe we would have really had a chance to win the series with them healthy.”

In another Western Conference matchup, the No. 1 Denver Nuggets took on the No. 8 Minnesota Timberwolves.

The Timberwolves barely avoided getting swept, winning game four in overtime, but Denver closed it out the next game, with big performances from stars Jamal Murray and Nikola Jokic.

The No. 2 Boston Celtics faced off against the No. 7 Atlanta Hawks. The series proved to be closer than many expected, with Trae Young consistently playing exceptionally well, but Boston finished the series in the six games.

“The series was exciting but did not go exactly as I wanted,” said Jackson Kiser, a sophomore business major. “I am a Hawks fan, so it really hurts to see the season end, but I still had fun watching the series.”

The Philadelphia 76ers went head-to-head against the Brooklyn Nets for the last series in the Eastern Conference.

The 76ers, backed by superstars Joel Embiid and James Harden, swept the

my family here makes it, obviously, a very special day,” Sapp said. “To get to have your family see the special day we had and get to be here and celebrate. It has been a long baseball career, so it was very special. Coming out

Nets and are now facing the Celtics in round two.

The No. 7 Los Angeles Lakers took down the No. 2 Memphis Grizzlies in six games. There was a lot of talk around, and in, these games, especially involving Grizzlies guard Dillon Brooks. Brooks talked a lot of trash at the beginning of the series, but was quickly hushed by the king himself, LeBron James.

After Brooks’ comments, the Lakers won three

“We just have to continue to do what we always do,” said head coach Nolan Belcher. “If we show up to practice, work hard, concentrate on the little things and prepare the right way, then, hopefully, that will translate to good success in the tournament.”

The Bobcats will play Columbus State again for the first game of the PBC Tournament on Friday, May 5, at Georgia Southwestern University.

of the next four games.

“I really want the Lakers to win the whole thing,” said Alex Paparo, a sophomore philosophy major. “Seeing LeBron get a fifth ring would be awesome, and it would officially cement him as the greatest basketball player of all-time.”

The 2023 NBA Playoffs have already been full of excitement and surprises. Fans can only speculate as for what’s to come next.

Marissa Marcolina | Digital Media Editor

Hunter Baker and Matthew Cassandra bump helmets after scoring versus Columbus State on Friday April 28.

GC golf finishes off an unideal season

Christian Castillo Staff Writer

The Bobcats did not have the time they hoped for on the links this season. However, next season will bring new opportunities for a talented young roster that has gained experience and been taught lessons by the strong yet few players on this year’s team that will not return.

GC showed promise in some tournaments but ultimately struggled to find consistency. Due to this struggle, the team found themselves fighting to finish in the top half of the leaderboard.

The Bobcats played their best golf in September and October, when they grabbed two fourth-place finishes. The more promising of the two was at the Matt

Dyas Invitational hosted by the University of West Georgia. After day one at the par-71 Oak Mountain Golf Club in Carrollton, Georgia, GC was sitting in eighth

the second round was highlighted by both senior Isaac Samples and freshman Parker Houck posting a score of 73. While this lack of consistency was frustrating,

them with days of high scores or vice versa. Next year’s team will know that if they can keep their foot on the gas, for either both rounds or three rounds of the event,

finished in eighth place at the event and did not play great. Seniors Nathan Moore and Samples led the Bobcats on the leaderboard at the event.

“The PBC champion-

source of motivation for next season. GC will trust the process and go out much stronger next year. Returning players will want to go out and ensure better finishes.

“It was a challenging season, but I believe it shaped the team in a way that will prepare them for success in coming years,” Samples said. “The last two years were very much rebuilding years for our program, but this season helped us learn to put the pieces in place to go forward.”

place — out of nine.

On day two, the team played to their potential and fired themselves back up the leaderboard.

Three Bobcats ended up finishing top 20 for the tournament, and

it shows a good aspect of next season, in that GC can play some good golf. The team would have great days, finding fairways and rolling the rock to go low, but, unfortunately, would follow

they can find themselves in a good spot.

The toughest stretch of the season, unfortunately, fell on GC towards the end, and at the Peach Belt Conference, or PBC, Championship. The team

ship did not go as we had planned, but we battled the entire time,” Samples said. “I would say the PBC championship reflects our season as a whole.”

Poor performance in the final event is a great

Although this year was no success, expect GC to make some noise on the course next year and have much better finishes and scores to stand on. The Bobcats are going to work the most so they can play the least, or at least hit fewer shots.

Baseball’s Jaxson Weatherford wins Bobcat AOTW

Owen McDaniel Staff Writer

Junior first baseman

Jaxon Weatherford was awarded Bobcat Athlete of the Week for the week of April 1118 for his outstanding performance over the four games during that timespan. Weatherford batted .438 during that four-game stretch, blasting three home runs, driving in seven runs and scoring four times.

Weatherford’s contributions helped the Bobcats win three out of four of their games that week, including a three-game sweep over Claflin University.

In the second game of the series against Claflin, the Bobcats’ chances were looking slim after Claflin scored four runs across the seventh and eighth innings to take a one-run lead. However, Weatherford saved the

day, hammering a threerun homerun with one out in the ninth inning to lift the Bobcats to victory.

Weatherford believes that his improvement of his hitting mechanics contributed to his recent success.

“[I’ve been] having a better plan in the box,” Weatherford said. “[I’ve been] working on my load and just trying to have my foot down when the pitch is coming.”

Although receiving honors like Bobcat Athlete of the Week do not impact Weatherford greatly, he still appreciates the recognition.

“It’s not bad to get a couple accolades along the season,” Weatherford said. “It gives you some confidence, and it’s really important to have confidence inside the box.”

“Jaxon is a really good hitter,” said Brandon Bellflower. “I realized that when he came in

over the fall, but when Jaxon catches fire, it’s really something special to watch. The amount of power he can bring to the table, and at the end of the day, still control the barrel, still find singles, he’s very important for us.”

Bellflower sees Weatherford as a “silent leader” on the team, meaning a player who speaks with his work ethic rather than his words.

“He doesn’t say much,

he comes to the field every day, gets his work in and does all the right things to prepare,” Bellflower said. “I don’t think he’s one of the guys who is going to ‘rah-rah’ you to death, but he’s definitely a silent leader.”

Head baseball coach Nolan Belcher pointed out how Weatherford’s hot streak provided a spark for the other players.

“I think it energiz-

es everybody,” Belcher said. “The whole team knows he’s a good player, and when he starts to play well, it energizes the dugout.”

The GC bats were certainly energized during their series against Claflin, in which they scored 39 runs across the three games, forcing two mercy rules.

The Bobcats faced Columbus State over the weekend for their fi-

nal regular season home series of the season. They came up short in the series, 2-1, and fell back to fifth place in the Peach Belt Conference. They will have to play Columbus State once again to begin the PBC tournament as the four seed faces the five seed.

Round one will take place on Friday, May 5, at 2 p.m. The game will be played at Georgia Southwestern University.

Marissa Marcolina | Digital Media Editor

Redshirt-junior first baseman Jaxon Weatherford swings hard at the plate versus Columbus State.

Courtesy of GC Athletics

Junior Austin Quillian watches his shot

Women’s World Cup summer 2023

Rebecca Meghani

News Editor

With less than 100 days until the 2023 FIFA Women’s World Cup, people around the world are gearing up to watch Australia and New Zealand, this year’s host countries, to prepare for what is expected to be the biggest Women’s World Cup yet.

The tournament has already sold over 650,000 tickets, and it is projected to sell 1.5 million tickets total.

“FIFA’s mission is to organize the biggest and best Women’s World Cup in history this year,” said Fatma Samoura, FIFA’s secretary general.

This year, each federation’s kits are inspired by what makes their country unique, which is meant to showcase the diversity in every country. The United States Women’s National Team’s, or USWNT’s, kits are inspired by abstract expressionism, an art movement that began in New York in the 1940s that shifted the art capital of the world from Europe to the U.S., like how the U.S. women’s team did for soccer. The USWNT away kit’s uniqueness is represented through stars, stripe print and red blades meant to look like

the tip of stars, and their home kit features a drippaint-technique pattern.

“The FIFA Women’s World Cup is the absolute pinnacle of the sport capturing the imaginations of both current and new fans across the globe,” said Sam Handy, vice president of product and design at Adidas Football. “With the tournament being held in Australia and New Zealand, two countries with iconic landscapes, we want to create a common theme throughout our kits, in celebration and appreciation of the wonders of the natural environments that can be found around the world.”

Other federations feature their natural diversity. Germany’s kits showcase green woodlands, Sweden includes their glacial rivers and Columbia has the many colors of its Caño Cristales river.

There is much to be celebrated about this year’s World Cup along with celebrating the diversity of each country, like this year being the first Women’s World Cup to have more than one host.

The United States women’s team has immense support and excitement behind them, as the hope for a third straight consecutive tournament win builds.

The U.S. currently holds four world titles, with the most recent being 2015, in Canada, and 2019, in France. Currently, the U.S. is leading in the FIFA world rankings, with their total points being 2091.38, followed by Germany, Sweden, England and France, respectively.

While the excitement has been high, FIFA has not been without its faults in preparing for the World Cup. Controversy continues to follow the organization, including its previous plans to have Saudi Arabia’s tourism authority be named as an official sponsor of the tournament.

In recent years, Saudi Arabia has been investing in sporting events as a way to “sports wash” its reputation. The country has been accused of issues like human rights. The World Cup host countries have expressed that they are not comfortable with it.

“Football Australia has consulted on this matter with key stakeholders, including government and commercial partners, and it was an overwhelming consensus that this partnership does not align with our collective vision for the tournament and falls short of our expec-

tations,” said Football Australia Chief Executive James Johnson.

Players around the world have also disagreed with FIFA’s course of action on this front.

“If we want to push women’s sport on, we want it to be supported by people who share the philosophies and the views that we share as players and as a game, which is supporting women, which is a high-level sport, high-level football, fully inclusive,” said Lucy Bronze, England fullback and Barcelona player.

“We welcome everybody to our sport. So we’d like to think that the people that support us and are pushing the game have similar views and interests and opinions as we do.”

To have a country with women’s rights abuses, the use of the death penalty and imprisoning women’s rights campaigners, having Saudi Arabia as a sponsor has been called an exploitation of the sport.

“Obviously we want the best and we want inclusivity, but equally it’s not about going there and being political at the same time,” said Keira Walsh, England midfielder and Barcelona player.

The US Soccer Fed-

eration, or USSF, said it would also voice concern, while Amnesty International has already spoken out. FIFA has since dropped this proposed plan but still remains faulty.

Brazilian Adriana Lima was named a global ambassador meant to develop, promote and participate in global initiatives prior to the World Cup. FIFA former council member Moya Dodd described this as tone-deaf.

“When a girl plays football, the world sees her differently,” Dodd said. “Instead of being complimented on her nice looks of her pretty dress, she is valued for her game-saving tackles and brilliant goal-scoring, shes admired for what she can do, rather than how she looks, putting her on more equal footing with her brothers in a way that can alter the whole trajectory of her life’s ambitions, in a FIFA world cup year, that’s the message that should be ringing loud and true around the world. Where a supermodel fits into this is truly baffling.”

Considering Lima’s public image, many have found it a confusing move for FIFA, an organization that claims to empower girls and women.

Additionally, there is

a new qualifying tournament that will fly 10 teams to New Zealand to decide the final three places at the tournament.

“I’m sure FIFA will say they’ve done it to help the women’s game grow,” said Diane Caldwell, Ireland and Reading defender. “Of course, we all want the game to grow, but it can be done in a sustainable way and not by flying 10 teams from different continents to New Zealand to compete. I think it could definitely have been avoided.”

While FIFA has been dealing with its conflicts, there have been independent issues in participating countries. Canada, Spain and France have each had disputes between players and federations.

Fern Whelan, former England and current Brighton & Hove Albion defender, expressed her worry of the turmoil in international football but that the rapid development of the game has brought issues to the forefront.

Though many issues have risen through this year’s World Cup, it has not hindered the excitement and anticipation for this summer. All eyes are on New Zealand and Australia as we get closer to July 20.

ERAS TOUR

Continued from page 1

Although every single era was given the same love and energy, getting to see “Reputation” live was extremely exciting and had the crowd going wild. It was also sentimental to be able to see early albums like “Fearless,” “Speak Now” and “Red” performed once again, especially

for those that grew up with Swift. Each of her songs and albums represented a different time of life, and for many young women today, Taylor Swift’s songs played a pivotal role in their ability to heal and grow from heartbreaks and first life experiences. She became like a big sister to a generation, and seeing her relive these moments in concert was a life-chang-

ing experience for many.

It was also an incredible opportunity to hear both “Evermore ‘’ and “Folklore” songs performed live, as these albums were recorded and released by Swift during quarantine. While she has performed a few songs from these albums live since, neither one was able to have its own concert or tour. Swift delivered with a huge

theatrical flair, dressed whimsically in a beautiful dress and elaborate dance numbers complete with fire, diving into a mysterious pool and climbing onto a table. It truly was the experience of a lifetime.

One of the most notable aspects of Swift’s character is always evident when she speaks candidly to her fans. In-between many songs, Swift

took the opportunity to speak a bit to her fans and show her gratitude by expressing her love for her audience. She spoke about her thankfulness to her fans for always having her back and her desire for her fans to be able to have a personal connection to her music.

Every concert was rewarded with two surprise songs, and during the Friday performance,

the people of Atlanta got to hear “The Other Side of the Door” from the “Fearless” album and “Coney Island” from “Evermore.” It was an extremely exciting surprise to hear “The Other Side of the Door,” which is not one of the most well-known of the “Fearless” songs.

Is Bud Light trying to be “too woke”?

Paige Blakemore Staff Writer

Recently, Bud Light, an American beer company, sought to be more inclusive by featuring trans TikTok influencer Dylan Mulvaney in an advertisement.

Mulvaney posted a video on the platform dressed as Holly Golightly from “Breakfast at Tiffany’s” while promoting a sweepstakes challenge for the company as well as Mulvaney’s face on a can of beer.

The video received widespread backlash, with many far-right conservatives threatening to boycott the best-selling beer company and accusing the brand of not recognizing its audience.

Some have even gone as far as to post videos of themselves shooting their already purchased cans of beer, including singer-songwriter Kid Rock.

Within recent years, Bud Light has experienced a decline in sales, as younger consumers have turned to popular seltzer brands, such as White Claw and Truly.

“We never intended to be part of a discussion that divides people,” said Brendon Whitworth, CEO of Anheuser-Busch, Bud Light’s parent company.

Since the controversy happened, Bud Light’s vice president of marketing, Alissa Heinerscheid, has taken a leave of absence, as has An-

heuser-Busch marketing executive Daniel Blake.

Bud Light and Anheuser-Busch have failed to show further inclusivity amidst the backlash.

Many are left questioning how companies strive for inclusivity and how it can exclude other groups during the process.

Similarly, in 2018, Nike experienced a boycott campaign when featuring football player Colin Kaepernick in an advertisement after he kneeled during the national anthem to protest police brutality. Since then, Nike’s stock has risen 51%.

“Not being inclusive is also taking a stand, almost,” said Mikkel Christensen, an assis-

tant professor of strategic communication at GC. “I don’t know how huge companies can really prepare themselves for such backlash.”

Christensen is interested in seeing how the backlash affects Bud Light’s future sales.

“The perception of so many is that they have done wrong, and that’s what they have to face,” Christensen said. “That’s where the boycott comes in. Usually, those things go back to normal, but once in a while, there are exceptions. I think it will be really interesting to see what happens.”

According to CNN, Bud Light’s sales fell 17% during the week of April 15. During the

same week, rival beer companies Coors Light and Miller Lite experienced an 18% increase.

“It’s so scary that one little advertisement is causing a multi-million brand to not only lose money but have to deal with crazy people sending death threats,” said Grace Greer, freshman public health major.

Greer believes, because of social media’s wide reach, modern advertisements attract far more hateful individuals than those seen on cable television.

“Since TikTok is a huge form of media now, it reaches all different types of communities rather than your normal advertising,”

Greer said. “I hope this doesn’t dampen the future of inclusivity, but it really could. I don’t think it’s a beer problem; it’s a bigotry problem.”

Despite the backlash, some felt that Bud Light was making progressive steps forward and should continue to do so.

“It’s not fair when everything is just a cis white man everywhere, because then people of other cultures and sizes don’t feel like they can participate or feel included,” said Gini Peña, sophomore exercise major.

“Companies like Target and Aerie do it very well.”

Courtesy of Hannah Adams

Rebecca Meghani, News Editor, at Eras Tour Night 3

Cale’s cinema critics: “Beau is Afraid” (dir. Ari Aster)

ed horror,” can fall into.

Cale Strickland General Editor

All of Ari Aster’s films are, in one way or another, about family.

His first feature, “Hereditary,” is a story of a family’s grief, and subsequent dissolution,

iety. Although his mother, Mona Wasserman, played by Patti Lupone, is a business mogul, he lives in a cramped, dingy apartment in a crime-ridden city. At the outset of the film, his therapist, played by Stephen McKinley Hen-

leaving the door open behind him. He comes back. His keys and suitcase are missing. Wondering if he should reschedule his visit, Beau calls his mother and asks for her advice. Audibly disappointed, she leaves her son with a cryptic

ute “chunks” Aster boxes the three-hour epic into.

For the next two-plus hours, Beau finds himself on a mind-bending journey equal parts terrifying and laugh-out-loud funny.

Aster has described each of his films thus far as “nightmare comedies,” but “Beau is Afraid” genuinely fits the bill. I went to a near-full screening, and people were downright cackling during a couple of scenes — which says something.

films’ third acts. With “Beau is Afraid,” Aster holds the camera on a paranoid protagonist while the world closes in and collapses on him; I have heard a lot of people comparing the film to Darren Aronofsky’s infamous “mother!” For better or for worse, that is the wavelength Aster is operating on here.

following the death of its matriarch. His follow-up, “Midsommar,” chronicles a young woman’s search for a sense of belonging after losing her sister and parents in a murder-suicide.

His latest, “Beau is Afraid,” follows a middle-aged man for whom visiting his mother is a nightmarish, psychedelic odyssey.

Beau Wasserman, played by Joaquin Phoenix, is riddled with anx-

derson, prescribes him a new, experimental drug because his current medication does little to nothing for the inescapable dread which clouds his consciousness.

But he has to visit his mother.

So, Beau decides he is going to will himself to Washington, D.C. He hastily packs his bags and rushes out the door before realizing he forgot his floss. He runs back into his apartment,

message before hanging up: She knows he will make the right choice.

Within 24 hours, Beau has a bodega clerk threaten to call the police on him, his apartment invaded and trashed, a man fall on top of him mid-bath, a police officer hold him at gunpoint, a naked man stab him — multiple times — and a car hit him.

The film cuts to black, marking the end of the first of the four 45-min-

I saw Aster’s previous, “Midsommar,” in theaters as well. The people of Bethlehem, Georgia, did not know what they were getting themselves into. Aster’s work does not shy away from blood and gore; in fact, he often lets the camera linger on the horrifying imagery he has painstakingly crafted. A handful of people were visibly upset. I can distinctly remember seeing a middle-aged couple rushing their school-aged son out of the auditorium, covering his eyes from the horrors unfolding on screen.

Do not get me wrong. “Beau is Afraid” is disturbing, just not in the ways in which Aster’s other films are. The grief and anguish which fill the atmospheres of “Hereditary” and “Midsommar” are literalized by brutal, graphic violence in the

I am a “mother!” defender. As someone who came to politics through the lens of environmentalism, I loved what Aronofsky was after: a visual manifestation of ecological suffering, of the “hell” eons of human destruction have created. But I also understand its criticisms. It is abrasive. It is underwritten; its metaphor is painfully obvious, especially for Western audiences. Anyone who knows — of — the Bible can predict Aronofsky’s plot, frame for frame, from the opening shot. What sets Aster’s film apart from Aronofsky’s, though, is its commitment to humor. It is a three-hour movie; a lot of shots run a little long. But Aster paces himself, throwing in enough gags to let his audience breathe, even if just for a second. Aronofsky is deathly serious; Aster is, to a degree, at least, aware of the pretension he, and all other filmmakers working in “elevat-

In addition to his newfound lightheartedness, Aster has stretched himself as a filmmaker and an image maker. One of the film’s 45-minute quarters takes place in the forest and features a traveling theater troupe. Beau stumbles upon the group on the opening night of their production. He is welcomed with open arms and offered a costume; one of the troupe’s members says the group enjoys blurring the lines between the audience and the players. As he watches the play, Beau begins to see himself in the story, an account of a farmer’s struggle to find his family in the aftermath of a natural disaster — unfolding on stage. Audiences are transported into Beau’s mind as he imagines years and years of a pastoral lifestyle for himself. Large portions of the sequence are animated, and Aster’s attention to detail is downright mesmerizing.

Aster’s images are always memorable but rarely pleasant. “Beau is Afraid,” although disturbing, is lighter — “lighter,” not “light” — on its feet than anything else Aster has made thus far, and a breath of fresh air in the young filmography of one of today’s rising auteurs.

Coachella performance did not go as expected

Grace Robertson Staff Writer

Frank Ocean fans were excited to see him perform this year at one of the most anticipated music festivals, Coachella.

Ocean was announced to headline the festival in January — for his first performance in years.

Ocean previously announced his involvement with the festival in 2020 but was forced to cancel due to concerns related to the COVID-19 pandemic.

As one of the most acclaimed singers of his generation, the performance was con-

Ocean was set to perform at 10:05 p.m. PST. Fans were worried due to Ocean’s secretive nature and YouTube’s swift announcement to no longer live stream the event.

Ocean arrived at the main stage one hour late, leaving fans confused and disappointed. As the set began, Ocean was barely visible to the crowd, and most of his performance included lip syncing and remixes.

Ocean spoke about his decision to headline the event as a tribute to his family.

“You know, these last couple years, my

dust out here, I always left with a respiratory infection or what have you. So, I would avoid coming, but I would always end up here.”

The singer’s brother, Ryan Breaux, passed away at 18 years old in 2020 from blunt-force head injuries in a single-vehicle collision.

The set ended quickly with an abrupt exit due to the star’s worries of a curfew fee.

“I feel like that’s not OK, because it’s his job,” said Michelle Crumbley, a freshman environmental science major. “He should have been prepared, especially because he was paid so much to do it.”

As soon as Ocean’s set ended, rumors flew.

Out of all the criticism swarming social media, one artist made sure to stick up for Ocean on Instagram: Justin Bieber.

“I was blown away by

hours before due to an ankle injury he suffered in the previous week.

After rumors and stories filled the news, Variety’s Shirley Halp-

out of necessity,” Halperin and Aswad said.

Soon after, the festival announced that American rock band blink-182 would re-

sidered the most anticipated of the three headliners, which also included Bad Bunny and BLACKPINK.

On Sun., Apr. 16,

life changed so much,” Ocean said. “My brother and I, we came to this festival a lot. I feel like I was dragged out here half the time because I hated the

The Festive Owl, a trusted source for insider festival information, explained that Ocean was initially meant to perform with an ice-skating rink and set of skaters, but the deconstruction of the set was demanded shortly before the performance was planned to begin.

Frank Oceans Coachella performance,” Bieber said. “His artistry is simply unmatched, his style, his taste, his voice, his attention to detail.. I was deeply moved. It made me want to keep going and get better as an artist. He continues to set the bar high and gave me a night I will never forget! Thanks Frank.”

The singer allegedly intended to cancel the set

erin and Jem Aswad confirmed that Ocean made the decision to pull out of Coachella’s second weekend.

“After suffering an injury to his leg on festival grounds in the week leading up to weekend one, Frank Ocean was unable to perform the intended show but was still intent on performing, and in 72 hours, the show was reworked

place the headliner for the second weekend.

According to Billboard, Ocean was initially set to be paid $8 million for the two performances, but the disappointing cancellation led to his salary being cut in half.

The performance, and cancellation, allegedly cost the festival millions due to the loss of interested fans, cost of the ice rink and curfew fees.

Frank

Ocean’s set was highly anticipated as it was his first performance since 2017

Frank Ocean photographed before the music festival.

-Michelle

Crumbley

He should have been prepared, especially when he got paid so much to do it.

Ari Aster’s latest feature film was released April 14, 2023.

Milledgeville’s Earth Day festivities

Shaw

Coggin Staff Writer

Earth Day was Saturday, April 20, and the city of Milledgeville had a few activities to do their part in taking care of the environment.

One of these events was a clean-up day hosted by Central State Hospital and Keep Milledgeville-Baldwin Beautiful. The event lasted from 9 a.m. to noon and started at the historic Powell Building.

A few other events that were hosted include the Eve Puckett Giving Tree Planting, which

took place on West Campus Drive; the Huley Park cleanup; Earth Fest, which was on the GC front campus; Lake Sinclair Clean-up Day; as well as a Greenway Clean-up Day. All of these events were successful, with many GC students and community members showing up to do their part in helping the environment.

Doing your part is not just something people do for one day, though, as many GC students implement things in their day-to-day lives that help out the environment.

Gus Faulkner, a ju-

nior exercise science major, lives in a house near campus, and though his housing does not provide any recycling system, he and his roommates take it upon themselves to have a bin that they use to recycle some of their trash.

“I have a recycling bin that we use at my house,” Faulkner said. “I also reuse plates, bowls and cups.”

Though Faulkner does put in effort to do his part, he said that there are areas where he feels like he could do better.

“I think I could use less single-use plastics and paper prod-

ucts and things like that,” Faulkner said.

Bryan Schwartz, a freshman MIS major, lives in Adams Hall and uses the school-provided recycling bins regularly. He has also implemented protecting the environment into his hobbies and pastimes as well.

“My mom and I like to plant trees,” Schwartz said. “Occasionally, we’ll plant flowers as well.”

Recently, students have seen the effects on the local environment that graduation traditions and parties held near campus can have.

“I was outside, tak-

plastic cups on the side of the street, so I feel like we can do better.”

Campbell Porter, a sophomore marketing major, lives in an apartment complex near campus.

“I use plastic plates and silverware a lot, just out of pure laziness, with

no regard for what it does for the Earth,” Porter said. “That’s something

Porter also said that he

EARTH DAY FEST

“Cutting down on plastics and recycling more would be two things that I’d implement more into my daily life so the world would be a better place in the future,” Porter said. “I hope people can look at me as an example instead of my wrongdoings in the past.”

Photos by Anjali Shenoy

The Environmental Science Club and other community organizations celebrated Earth Day on GC’s Front Campus with games, tie dye, plant potting, and more.

Claire O’Neill | Art Director

Why are politicians so untrustworthy?

Hannah Adams Asst. Opinion Editor

It is in the nature of a politician to learn how to manipulate the public and skew their opinions towards a certain direction. They know how to play on emotions, intel-

Overtime, it can begin to feel foolish to place good faith in these politicians. It is common knowledge that they tend to have an ulterior motive in the back of their minds. Political jargon is a game, and it is a sad

to wonder why our government is founded upon a premise that those in power should be trained to be deceitful and skilled manipulators.

These realizations also beg one to question how politicians gain these

Noggles’s article “Manipulation in Politics,” the ideology behind political persuasion is explained.

“It appears that the term manipulation can be applied to two rather different ways: by influencing the state

a deeper look, how dangerous to society these tactics can truly be. It puts people in an uncomfortably vulnerable position of not being completely sure of when those they vote for are trustworthy or just exercising a ma-

itician succeeds in gaining a position of power based on their principles during their campaign, only to reverse those ideals once they are in their desired position. For the most part, one would like not to

Implicit bias challenged, if not debunked

Adam Lamparello, J.D. Asst. Professor of Criminal Justice

In recent years, the concept of implicit bias – the belief that all individuals harbor unconscious biases that affect their choices and actions – has been embraced by many law schools and the American Bar Association. In fact, the ABA passed a resolution requiring law schools to provide some type of bias training. But there is one problem – implicit bias research is deeply flawed and, in fact, so flawed that its validity is now in question. Below is a summary of the flaws in implicit bias theory.

1. The Implicit Association Test (IAT) is deeply flawed.

The IAT, developed by researchers at Harvard University, purports to measure an individual’s implicit biases. The problem is that there is little, if any, evidence that IAT scores actually measure unconscious bias. As one scholar states:

The IAT is impacted by explicit attitudes, not just implicit attitudes, . . . It is impacted by people’s ability to process information quickly on a general level. It is impacted by desires to want to create a good impression. It is impacted by the mood people are in. If the measure is an amalgamation of many things (one of which is purportedly implicit bias), how can we know which of those things is responsible for a (weak) correlation with behavior?

Furthermore, individuals who take the IAT are likely to achieve different scores if they take the IAT multiple times. One commentator explains as follows:

The IAT, it turns out, has serious issues on both the reliability and validity fronts, which is surprising given its popularity and the very exciting claims that have been made about its potential to address racism” … That’s what the research says, at least, and it raises serious questions about how the IAT became such a social-science darling in the first place.

Indeed, “much murkiness surrounds (a) the proper causal explanation for alleged IAT effects, (b) the psychological meaning of IAT scores, [and]

(c) the statistical generality and potency of alleged relations between IAT scores and actual behavior.” To be sure, Tony Greenwald, who co-created the IAT, acknowledged that the IAT should not be used to predict biased behavior, stating that the IAT is only “good for predicting individual behavior in the aggregate, and the correlations are small.” Put simply, the “IAT provides little insight into who will discriminate against whom, and provides no more insight than explicit measures of bias.”

2. There is insufficient evidence that implicit bias – or results on the IAT – predicts biased behavior.

Empirical studies suggest that implicit biases do not necessarily cause biased behavior. As one commentator explains:

Researchers from the University of Wisconsin at Madison, Harvard, and the University of Virginia examined 499 studies over 20 years involving 80,859 participants that used the IAT and other, similar measures. They discovered two things: One is that the correlation between implicit bias and discriminatory behavior appears weaker than previously thought. They also conclude that there is very little evidence that changes in implicit bias have anything to do with changes in a person’s behavior. These findings, they write, ‘produce a challenge for this area of research.’

Importantly, these researchers examined “63 studies that explicitly considered a link between changes in bias and changes in actions . . . [but] they found no evidence of a causal relationship.”

3. There is no way to quantify the impact of implicit bias on biased behavior, particularly given the presence of explicit biases. Assuming arguendo that implicit bias exists, there is no reliable way to quantify its relationship to biased behavior, if such a relationship even exists. For example, how can one distinguish between explicit and implicit biases? And how can scholars quantify or measure the impact of implicit biases when explicit bias has a demonstrable relationship to biased behavior?

These and other issues have led some scholars to question the validity of implicit bias as a predictor of biased behavior: As one scholar states:

Almost everything about implicit bias is controversial in scientific circles. It is not clear, for instance, what most implicit bias methods actually measure; their ability to predict discrimination is modest at best; their reliability is low; early claims about their power and immutability have proven unjustified.

Resolving these issues in an intellectually honest manner is critical to determining whether implicit bias bears any relationship to biased behavior.

4. Implicit bias training is ineffective.

Not surprisingly, implicit bias training is not ef-

fective in reducing biased behavior. For example, a study in the United Kingdom concluded as follows:

2017 meta-analysis of 494 previous studies of racial sensitivity training programmes found that ‘changes in measured implicit bias are possible, but those changes do not necessarily translate into changes in explicit bias or behaviour’. The Equality and Human Rights Commission published its findings in 2018, stating that ‘the evidence for [unconscious bias training’s] ability effectively to change behaviour is limited’ and that it may cause a ‘backfiring’ effect, actually making people more biased. And last year the Chartered Institute of Personnel and Development (the UK’s main HR professional body) said ‘unconscious bias training has no sustained impact on behaviour’.

Indeed, “while implicit bias trainings are multiplying, few rigorous evaluations of these programs exist,” the fact remains that “to date, none of these interventions has been shown to result in permanent, long-term reductions of implicit bias scores or, more importantly, sustained and meaningful changes in behavior (i.e., narrowing of racial/ethnic clinical treatment disparities.”

Of course, these facts have not stopped the American Bar Association from requiring law schools to conduct training on implicit bias, a proposal that was rightfully met with resistance from established scholars. Perhaps this is because most law faculties are so overwhelmingly liberal that groupthink, rather than critical thinking, precludes a principled assessment of implicit bias’s validity.

Without such an assessment, claims that implicit biases impact biased behavior will continue to lack empirical support. As such, the efficacy of implicit bias training remains dubious.

Ultimately, eradicating bias and discrimination from all facets of society is a legal and moral imperative, but scholars should question seriously whether a focus on alleged implicit biases is an effective way of doing so. And in so doing, scholars should be committed to intellectual honesty to ensure that their own biases do not influence their findings.

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