Thanksgiving Travel
Students are getting ready to head home for the Thanksgiving Holiday but the short break is making it difficult for some students to get home. See USD’s academic calendar in comparison with other schools.
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The Supreme Court revisits affirmative action
Affirmative action is a program conscious of students’ race when individuals apply for college. Race is considered in the application process, because by – recognizing it — this program is acknowledging the racial barriers students may or may not have faced in their educational endeavors. Beginning in the late 1960s and 1970s, universities started to implement affirmative action into their admission decisions.
Read more‘The bird is freed’
Elon Musk, founder of companies such as Tesla and SpaceX, bought Twitter in a $44 billion deal finalized on Oct. 27. Following this acquisition, Musk fittingly changed his Twitter bio to “Twitter Complaint Hotline Operator,” as many Twitter users were vocal about their grievances.
Read more‘Women’s Work: How Culinary Cultures Shaped Modern Spain’
Dr. Rebecca Ingram of the USD Languages, Cultures and Literature Department recently published a scholarly book entitled “Women’s Work: How Culinary Cultures Shaped Modern Spain,” in which she shares the culmination of her years’ worth of academic research and personal interest in the subjects of gastronomy (food studies), Spanish language and culture, gender studies and politics.
Read moreInside USD’s school shooting precautions
Recently, school shootings are alarmingly present within the media. On Oct. 24, a school shooting at the Central Visual and Performing Arts High School killed two people and injured seven in St. Louis. A movie released in late September on Netflix, “The Luckiest Girl Alive,” featured a woman traumatized by a school shooting in her past.
Read moreCrowd stampede leaves 154 dead in South Korea
Over Halloween weekend, tragedy struck South Korea when 154 people died and 149 were injured from a massive crowd stampede in the Itaewon neighborhood of Seoul. Of the 154 deceased, at least 19 were foreigners, including two Americans. According to Yonhap News, a South Korean news outlet, the incident occurred on Saturday, Oct. 29, with the first reports reaching police authorities at 10:15 p.m.
Read moreLa City Council Scandal
A top city council member in Los Angeles resigned after tapes exposed her making racist remarks with colleagues in a private meeting. Hear what students have to say about the dilemma.
Read moreThe Taylor Swift Phenomenon in San Diego
The Taylor Swift Phenomenon
in San Diego
Students react to new album and Swift’s legacy on Generation Z
KARISA KAMPBELL
EDITOR-IN-CHIEF
From a young age, Taylor Swift has captivated audiences through her heart-felt lyrics and raw ability to put words to the feelings of growing up, falling in love, being heart-broken and everything in between. Now in the wake of the debut of her 12th studio album, Midnights, Swift’s remarkable ability to engage an entire generation must be recognized.
Some find it interesting thatTaylor Swift was able to completely transform her sound from a country artist into a pop artist. Swift’s debut album, Taylor Swift, as well as her subsequent albums Fearless and Speak Now featured traditional country twang as well as introduced Taylor’s ability to capture the essence of being a teenage girl through her lyricism and storytelling.
Red marked the beginning of a new era for Taylor Swift. This album combined the pop-country lyricism with a new, purely pop sound that Swift began to dip her toes in with this album. Pop Swift continued through her next three albums 1989, Reputation and Lover. Sister albums Folklore and Evermore, released less than six months apart from each other in 2020, combined Taylor’s roots as a country artist with her newfound identity as a pop icon.
Midnights, Swift’s most recent album released on Oct. 21, 2022 ,focuses more on her pop sound, collaborating with artist Lana Del Rey to create a new, slightly softer pop sound for Swift.
With such a variety of music and sound, many in this generation have an ability to connect with Swift, whether it be through her sound or her lyricism.
USD junior Evelyn Shettzline shared why she loves Taylor Swift and her music.
“Taylor Swift has a song for literally every emotion I’ve ever felt before,” Shetzline said. “Happy, sad, angry, in love, heartbroken, betrayal, she has it all. She covers every emotional base.”
USD first-year Tyler DeGuzman also shared similar sentiments regarding his love for Swift.
“Her music is super story-telling,” DeGuzman said. “I love going on morning walks to just listen to her music. It just hits.”
Additionally, with such a variety of music, Swift has been able to reach a variety of people through her different albums.
Shetzline shared her favorite Taylor Swift album.
“I love Folklore,” Shetzline said. “Her lyrics, vision, and cohesiveness are simply unmatched in this album.”
In contrast, DeGuzman has a different favorite album.
“I like Red. It just has much more of a variety of songs on it than any of her other albums.”
As a born again Swiftie, Shetzline described how, while she took a break from Taylor Swift’s music for a while, she still fully supports the singer.
“I started listening to her after Speak Now, but I took a Taylor Swift hiatus until she started re-releasing her albums,” Shetzline said. “I still listen, because this woman is a true star; she’s an incredible performer.”
Other students, such as USD sophomore Kate Peterson, have been long-devoted fans of Swift.
“I have been a Swift fan for as long as I remember,” Peterson said. “I have really good memories of when I was eight at a Taylor Swift concert with my mom. I still would consider that concert to be the best concert of my life because of the memories I made with my mom that night.”
Now, with the release of her newest album, Swifties reflect on the album with respect to her past work.
Shetzline has mixed emotions on Swift’s new album.
“Midnights reminds me of a mixture of 1989 and Reputation. She shows her rebellious side and uniqueness well in this album,” Shetzline said. “ As a whole, I didn’t absolutely love the album, but I can appreciate the meaning and message behind it and I did enjoy listening to it.”
Deguzman, on the other hand, thoroughly enjoyed the newest edition to Taylor Swift’s Discography.
“I thought Midnights was really good. My favorite song was ‘You’re On Your Own Kid.’ I like calm songs like that. I wouldn’t say it was her best album, but it was still good.”
Peterson shared these sentiments with DeGuzman.
“I love her new album. Right now, I really like ‘Lavender Haze’,” Peterson said. “It’s so good, she’s so talented. It’s crazy.”
While some may not enjoy Midnights as much as others, the impact that Swift has made on our generation continues to show through the excitement and discourse around her new album, regardless of how people perceive this album in relation to her other work. It is evident that Taylor Swift has made a lasting impact on Generation Z through her lyricism abilities, and lasting presence in pop culture throughout the lives of this age demographic.
Read moreVoting conspiracy theories threaten midterm elections
Since President Joe Biden won the presidency in the 2020 election, former President Donald Trump used social media to ignite people’s beliefs that the election was rigged. Amid COVID-19 and quarantine, it was highly advised for citizens to utilize their mail-in ballot options for the presidential elections.
Read moreUSD Students Join Iranian Protests
We share the latest updates on the human rights protests in Iran. Also, students talk about their experience and what it means to be involved.
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