Newspaper of the University of Southern California
Weather
It will be a little cooler today. Expect the high to reach the mid-80s and the low will fall to the 60s. Rest of the week will look much the same.
Headlines
Good Finney can’t save weak film
Albert Finney does his usual fine job in 'The Browning Version/ but the lackluster direction of Mike Figgis dominates, resulting in an unsatisfying character study.
Diversions, page 10
By Allison Vana
Staff Writer
National Coming Out Week is intended to help gay, lesbian and bisexual students "come out of the closet.” However, two students are already out, and trying to serve as role models for others.
®ut at ’SC
"In the straight community, people have many role models," said Muriel Jones, a fifth-year senior majoring in music. "One of the important aspects of having queer people out there, standing up and saying who they are, is that others now have role mod-
els who are successful and happy in life.
"It is very important for me to be out there as a role model, whatever negative effects come along with that. Books are nice, but there's nothing like a real person to provide information and support," she said.
Jones was the executive director of the Gay and Lesbian Assembly for Student Services, now the Gay, Lesbian, Bi Assembly, during her sophomore year.
Jones first came out publicly about a year ago, she said, after realizing that she was bisexual. Before that, she had to spend time discovering who she was, in order to come out to herself.
She said that she was most concerned about how her coming out would affect others involved with the assembly.
"There was so much love and support when I came out. It was exactly the opposite of what I was afraid would happen," Jones said.
Like Jones, Timothy Brodt, a senior majoring in economics, first came out publicly at USC. The topic of his final project for his education and counseling class in the spring of 1992 was being gay.
"Coming out was one of the most empowering experiences in my life," said Brodt, the executive director of GLBA. "Everything rested on that moment. A bad reaction could have thrown me much more into the closet.
I was scared about people abandoning me, but people actually became closer to me and I felt much stronger personally.
(See Out, page 17)
Selected scholars awarded top dollar
By Huan Le
Staff Writer
Several USC students have been able to defray the cost of attending the university this year with competitive scholarships they have won from the likes of the Truman Foundation and Toyota.
Sam Patmore, a senior majoring in political science and international relations, was recently awarded the Truman Scholarship. He is the 11th USC student to win this scholarship, which is awarded to students with interest in careers in public service.
"Political science and getting involved in student life sort of clicked. I enjoyed it, so I keep doing it," Patmore said.
"I started the House of Public Life. I also studied European Politics in Prague last year and worked at a senator's office in Washington D.C. before that," he said. "So, I have a lot of experience in public service, and the scholarship was looking for that."
The Harry S. Truman Foundation conducts a national competition each year. Up to (See Awards, page 3)
Flyer firebugs fought with flame retardant
New policy aims to do away with past blaze woes
By Jeremy Zink
Staff Writer
The university has found a way to increase the amount of information available to students in campus housing, through the use of a fire-retardant chemical on flyers and bulletin boards.
Last year, Los Angeles Fire Department officials ordered that all bulletin boards and flyers were to be taken down due to the high number of fires that
occurred in campus housing last year.
However, use of the chemical spray has allowed renewed posting of flyers in some residence halls.
"The spray is a fire retardant, not a fire preventer," said Ken Taylor, director of the Office of Residential and Greek Life. "The paper will char, smoke, and blacken, but it will not burst into flames."
Until the fire retardant was purchased from the California State Fire Marshal, university housing officials were faced with the problem of how to relay important information to students.
(See Flyers, page 17)
UOTE
“ (People) probably don’t know that Fm one of the biggest dorks you’ll ever meet”
-	Erin "Kiki” Bailey Sports, Page 20
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October 12,1994 Vol. CXXIII, No. 28
The joy of party politics, part deux
In response to yesterday's pro-Republican column,
Erik Sanjurjo tells us that liberals are more interesting than those predictable and crotchety old conservatives.
Viewpoint, page 4
University hosts media conference
Gay students provide role models
Campus leaders talk about ‘coming out’ and involvement with university
Sunny: 84°
Freshman midfielder Erin "Kiki" Bailey has been one of the main reasons for the USC women's soccer team's success this season, leading the Women of Troy to an 8-3-1 record.
Sports, page 20
Journalists meet to discuss issues of Simpson trial
Kiki just keeps goals coming
By David Thun
Staff Writer
Journalists from both coasts gathered on campus yesterday to wrestle with questions of media ethics stemming from coverage of the O.J. Simpson case.
Discussions during the daylong workshop, "Journalism and Justice: The Media and the O.J. Simpson Case," focused on reporting practices, such as payment of sources and publication of false or unverified stories, as well as alleged racial bias, that have lead to widespread criticism of Simpson case coverage.
"Accountability gives us credibility," said Murray Fromson, interim head of the School of Journalism, in his opening remarks. "There has been a lack of the former among Los Angeles news executives."
'The first casualty of war is truth," Charles Ogletree, a Harvard Law School professor and former head of the legal team that counseled Anita Hill, said
Andrew Puplui / Dally Trojan
A discussion attendee asks the panel a question about media ethics In light of the O.J. Simpson trial.
in his keynote speech.
"In the O.J. Simpson case, the first casualty of reporting is accuracy...So many stories have been generated in this case it is impossible to determine which are false," Ogletree said.
The conference, held at the Annenberg School for Communication, was attended by such prominent local journalists as KNBC News anchor Jess Marlow and Los Angeles Times columnist Howard Rosenberg.
In a roundtable discussion 'during the conference, participants offered arguments both praising and condemning media activities. Rosenberg argued that journalists should consider (See Media, page 2)