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Sunday, July 30, 2006
West Coast Trip, San Diego, California (Day 4)
Some people claim that today's young adults are similar in
many ways to young people from the past, but that suggestion becomes
quickly moot after listening to the talk show, Generation Y University,
or Gen Y U.
Hip hop played in the background as three 22 year olds sat in
a tiny radio-station studio in San Diego and readied themselves
to begin their Sunday evening talk show. Then the show commenced.
Brent Williams and Kris White got things going by teasing their
fellow co-host, John Fiske, about wearing make-up for our visiting
Generation Next camera crew. John pointed out that Brent and Kris
were also wearing a little face powder … as requested by
the crew. But his buddies, with whom he started the talk show
last fall, didn't let up. They told John that he "didn't
need to wear the dress, too." John played along, and said
"it makes me look thin."
They spoke of what happened earlier that weekend. Brent broke
up a fight in a bar where he works. John at one point demanded
to know if his friends would eat him if they were stranded and
dying in Alaska.
This banter followed a couple pitchers of beer at La Playita,
a nearby friendly Mexican-food spot -- and the place where John,
Brent and Kris go every Sunday afternoon to "prepare"
for their show. These three young men pride themselves on showing
up at the studio minutes before airtime, so preparation means
slugging a couple beers and showing up a little buzzed -- to,
you know, keep things spontaneous.
These long-time friends and San Diego natives created the show
last fall for their college radio station. They wanted to talk
about the issues -- and anything else they found amusing -- that
affected Generation Y, from the perspective of Generation Y. Last
February, the San Diego FM radio station KSCF picked up the show,
and now the program director Jim Daniels said it's doing well.
A random sampling of Gen Y U wisdom:
 Brent,
on why his generation is stressed: People in this generation see
celebrities on TV and in music and the movies, making millions
of dollars, but they never see the reality of those who failed.
John: Those TV images make young people feel entitled to have
the same thing, and when they don't meet those standards, they
get anxious. But the people who put that stuff on TV are baby
boomers!
All thee men agree that Iraq is a "mess" -- a place
where young Americans are dying, while young people in the United
States are not listened to by people in power.
Asked whom they look up to in public life:
John, a law student, said Sens. Barack Obama, D-Ill., and John
McCain, R-Ariz., Bill Clinton (in his post-presidency), and Bill
and Melinda Gates for giving away so much money to good causes.
Brent, who attends community college and works part-time, said
Jon Stewart, because he dares to say what no one else does.
And Kris, a college graduate who works for an insurance agency,
said he can't name anyone; there are no more heroes.
-- Judy Woodruff
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