Wrestlers lay the 'Smackdown' on voting
Joseph Pezza
Issue date: 9/21/06 Section: News
Amanda Plakias, junior, Orange, found the Smackdown rally to be effective in properly addressing voting issues in relations to the student body.
"The set-up was very welcoming," said Plakias. "Sacred Heart did a wonderful job of spreading the political message by including two WWE superstars in the rally.
"[Nowinski and Benjamin] were very lively and not the typical type of people you would expect to run into with politicians. It made me appreciate the WWE industry more so overall I feel it was a positive and very rewarding experience."
Plakias felt that the Smackdown Your Vote rally makes her want to vote because she finds that information is knowledge and knowledge is power.
But was it more effective to have Christopher Nowinski and Shelton Benjamin speak instead of political figures like Al Gore and Rick Santorum?
Individuals in the SHU community like Plakias and Rose, feel that in a college setting, these WWE stars exert a wider range of influence because a younger audience can better relate to their age and aspects of their lives.
"Sports celebrities, like actors, command a great deal of attention today and young persons do listen to what they have to say about politics," said Rose. "Harnessing the efforts of wrestling celebrities, or other celebrities for that matter, can only be viewed as an advantage with regard to mobilizing political interest among young persons."
Even though the Smackdown Your Vote event attracted an audience made up of more political representatives than younger individuals interested in upcoming November elections, students were open to listening to what the wrestlers and other speakers had to say.
Some individuals registered to vote right after the rally which means new voices in the political arena.
Victory for Nowinski and Benjamin. Next stop, the wrestling ring.
from several
"The set-up was very welcoming," said Plakias. "Sacred Heart did a wonderful job of spreading the political message by including two WWE superstars in the rally.
"[Nowinski and Benjamin] were very lively and not the typical type of people you would expect to run into with politicians. It made me appreciate the WWE industry more so overall I feel it was a positive and very rewarding experience."
Plakias felt that the Smackdown Your Vote rally makes her want to vote because she finds that information is knowledge and knowledge is power.
But was it more effective to have Christopher Nowinski and Shelton Benjamin speak instead of political figures like Al Gore and Rick Santorum?
Individuals in the SHU community like Plakias and Rose, feel that in a college setting, these WWE stars exert a wider range of influence because a younger audience can better relate to their age and aspects of their lives.
"Sports celebrities, like actors, command a great deal of attention today and young persons do listen to what they have to say about politics," said Rose. "Harnessing the efforts of wrestling celebrities, or other celebrities for that matter, can only be viewed as an advantage with regard to mobilizing political interest among young persons."
Even though the Smackdown Your Vote event attracted an audience made up of more political representatives than younger individuals interested in upcoming November elections, students were open to listening to what the wrestlers and other speakers had to say.
Some individuals registered to vote right after the rally which means new voices in the political arena.
Victory for Nowinski and Benjamin. Next stop, the wrestling ring.
from several
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