Latest Fourth Estate Articles

Fourth Estate/Sarena Marrisa Sohan

BY SARENA MARRISA SOHAN, STAFF WRITER

Editor’s Note: This interview was initially conducted on April 26, 2024, at Mason Day. Interview edited for length and clarity. 

The opener for Mason Day 2024 was Canadian band The Free Label. The band comprises musicians Josh Daniel, Malik Mungo, Jacob Thompson, Mathew Fantini, Cole Mendez and Jason Martin. The band’s ability to seamlessly blend genres and incorporate old school elements in their music contributes to their unique sound. Prior to the band’s vibrant performance at Mason Day, I met with them to learn more about their story. 

Why do you call yourselves The Free Label?

Fantini: The Free Label really came from when we started the band. We didn’t really want to contain ourselves in one genre. We really wanted to flow through all our influences and put all that into work that we did. And it slowly became that we just didn’t want to be contained by any label. We are completely independent but it really just came from not wanting to be labeled as any genre.

Currently you lean more towards disco and R&B. How did that come about?

Daniel: For the disco and R&B genre, what we did is for the past years we’ve been writing a lot of different styles of music…and we started to notice that a lot of our sound was going toward this disco area while keeping the styles of R&B… so we’re like, ‘let’s mash those two and see how it feels’ and it led to that.

What is your creative process like?

Martin: Our creative process is very different depending on what we’re doing. We all produce and do beatmaking. So someone will write and have an idea and make “the bones” of something and bring it into the band. Then we’ll all put our own little flavors and flairs onto it and work together to make it something special and something that means something to all of us. And then sometimes we sit down and we’re all in a room together and we write something completely brand new and just jam an idea.

“Real Love” has to be my favorite song from you. What is the story behind it?

Mendez: That was our first venture into the disco thing. 

Daniel: Yeah, that’s the first transition song that we were trying to test the waters with disco and R&B. It’s got a lot of R&B melodies on it while the chorus is like super disco. And we worked with our friend, Aaron Paris, who’s done some crazy stuff. He put live strings all over it and brought it all together. 

Mendez: We wanted to do a longer format thing where you hear the first chorus, and the middle section goes [to] a whole different chorus and that’s something that used to happen a lot more in the 70s and 80s. You don’t hear that form as much and so that was something we were trying to bring back. 

Daniel: I think the length of the song is a longer song traditionally from pop and we wanted that cause it’s more something to dance to. You can pop it onto a roller-skating rink and dance to it. That’s the vibe I feel like it gives.

What do you hope people gain from listening to your music? 

Mungo: Happiness, being inspired. Just a better sense of life and just love for music. 

Daniel: Someone just commented on our post saying ‘I was just listening to your song and it gave me hope.’ That’s what we’re trying to do, we’re trying to spread that good feeling energy. There’s a lot of sad things going on and we’re trying to take you outside of really thinking about anything and just feeling good, enjoying yourself.

Mungo: The energy never lies whenever we’re on stage. We’re always having fun and so when people can vibe off of that and they end up having fun, that’s more than we can ever ask for. 

What advice do you have for someone wanting to make music?

Fantini: The best advice is to start and don’t stop. I think that’s the only thing that you can do if you want to make and release music. You have to write the music, finish it and release it. And then, after you finish that song, you’ll realize that you can do much better and you write and release another song and you realize you can still get better than that. 

Mendez: We’re all guilty of starting things and not finishing them. I feel like you only actually complete the learning process by finishing something. There’s no rules to music. You know, I think you got to be really honest with yourself and develop your taste first. And get that by listening to a lot of different music and being critical about other people’s music and your own music.

Martin: I also think you got to be okay with being bad at something or making something bad. And you know, trying to learn from that process because none of us started out being amazing musicians. Like I sounded terrible when I first started playing the drums. You got to be okay with that and be able to work through that.

If you missed the performance on Mason Day, those interested in listening to their music should check out The Free Label on all streaming platforms. 

Fourth Estate/Nawaal Nackerdien

BY NAWAAL NACKERDIEN, NEWS EDITOR

Hello everyone, 

My name is Nawaal Nackerdien and I am Fourth Estate’s news editor for the Fall 2024 semester. I’m originally from South Africa and am majoring in Creative Writing with a minor in Technical Writing. 

Fourth Estate can serve as a link of public trust between campus and students. This semester, I want to support and improve our community. Establishing a strong connection is one step. I want the Mason community to feel that they can rely on Fourth Estate to update them on campus life. 

I am excited to be the news editor for this semester. Through working with student writers and the Mason community, I will be able to help others and myself grow in our campus careers. In my position, I will share unbiased stories that are truthful and accurate. I plan to hold the utmost integrity in editing and publishing writers’ works.

If there is anything you would like to cover, Fourth Estate is welcoming to all writers with any type of experience. We have capable staff in multiple positions willing to help you improve and have your work published.

Students interested in joining Fourth Estate should email us at eic@gmufourthestate.com. If you have an interest in writing news related content on campus, please reach out to my email provided below.

Sincerely, 

Nawaal Nackerdien 

nnackerd@gmu.edu

Fourth Estate/Brandyn Fragosa

BY BRANDYN FRAGOSA, SENIOR NEWS REPORTER

Mason Votes hosted their 2024 Presidential Debate Watch Party for the Mason community at the entrance of the Johnson Center Atrium on Sept. 10. The watch party showcased the first debate between candidates Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald Trump on topics concerning the American public. 

The community event was facilitated by Mason Votes Advisor Alissa Karton who established the organization in 2007 alongside other Mason students, faculty and staff to “create a university-wide umbrella organization… promoting information around voting and elections.”

Since 2007, the tradition of hosting a presidential debate watch party has allowed members of the Mason community to get involved in the upcoming elections and learn more about the candidates and their stances.

With only 55 days left until Election Day, a large crowd gathered in the JC Atrium to watch candidates Vice President Kamala Harris and former President Donald J Trump debate each other for the first time.

The debate was filmed live and hosted by ABC at the National Constitution Center in Philadelphia, Pennsylvania. The debate was moderated by David Muir, anchor and managing editor for ABC World News Tonight, and Linsey Davis, anchor for World News Tonight Sunday and ABC News Live Prime.

The moderators asked each candidate topics regarding the economy, abortion, immigration and border security, environment, foreign affairs, health care and climate change with each candidate having “two-minute answers to questions, two-minute rebuttals, and one extra minute for follow-ups, clarifications, or responses,” as stated in the debate rules. 

During the 90-minute debate, community members cheered, laughed and groaned as the candidates answered questions and critiqued each other’s time in office.

Among the students watching the debate was Vice President of the College Republicans at GMU senior Jay Shuey, who shared his concern over the lack of questions regarding constitutional rights.

“The one thing that kind of made me a bit concerned was the lack of talk about constitutional rights,” Shuey said. “There was no talk about freedom of speech on college campuses, there was no talk about the Second Amendment… what are you going to do about the Fourth Amendment, are you going to do anything about government spying… these debates are never long enough… we could ask questions about every constitutional amendment and what their thoughts are on them because if they don’t have an answer to that, then it’s like ok, that may be an issue. 

“Let’s talk about Bruen [New York State Rifle & Pistol Association v. Bruen], how that affects everybody because we just had a school shooting last week, why aren’t we talking about that,” Shuey added.

When it came to the candidate’s ability to answer questions, senior Emilee Brewer said, “Overall, I think sometimes there were moments when each candidate did not directly answer a question, but more in generalizations. The candidates spent more time on the blame game than proposing a plan to move forward.

Given this election is looking to pull in higher young voter numbers, I think it would have been beneficial for more in-depth conversations related to the future of this country and the current everyday struggles faced today,” Brewer said. “Where do the candidates stand on policy on gas and grocery prices, campus protesting, social security, tax on tips, etc.? A topic I would have liked covered was voter identification and where each of the candidates stand on that.”

Despite her concerns, Brewer still plans to vote in the upcoming 2024 election.

 “It is so important to vote, especially young adults like myself,” Brewer said. “I want my voice heard this November, as should anyone else.”

As attendees left the JC atrium following the candidates’ closing statements, Karton said, “I hope that [the Mason community has] some clarity and motivation on getting engaged… I hope they get awareness and education and I hope they can have good conversations with their peers.”

To learn more about ways to get involved with the upcoming election, visit masonvotes.gmu.edu for voter guides and information on becoming a registered voter.

“I think if you are able to vote, personally, I think it’s important to exercise that right,” Karton said. “If people fought long and hard to give us that right to vote, I see it as a civic responsibility.”

Viviana Smith/Fourth Estate

BY VIVIANA SMITH AND GABRIEL KING, EDITORS-IN-CHIEF 

This fall 2024 semester, seniors Gabriel King and Viviana Smith will serve alongside one another as co-editors-in-chief. Both communication majors with a focus on journalism, King and Smith have a background and a passion for journalism. 

Stated in a presentation featured during Fourth Estate’s editor-in-chief election process, they hope to “rebuild Fourth Estate on a strong foundation of trust, confidence and high integrity.”

Both editors hope to build upon what they’ve learned throughout their time with Fourth Estate and Mason’s Office of Student Media, wishing to produce quality content for the student-run newspaper. Another key goal is to expose students to more opportunities to hone their journalism skills, no matter their major or study focus. 

This semester, King and Smith wish to develop a welcoming and honest community through the newspaper, inviting writers and readers alike to share stories, express their opinions and be a part of campus history. 

To further express their individual experiences and hopes for the future, personal statements from King and Smith are provided below. 

Students looking to get involved with Fourth Estate may contact the newsroom, or visit us in the Student Media office located at the lowest level in The Hub (adjacent to the mailroom). For general inquiries, comments and questions, email eic@gmufourthestate.com.

Photo courtesy of Benson Park Photography

Hi everyone!

My name is Viviana Smith, and I am delighted to serve as co-editor-in-chief of Fourth Estate this semester. 

As I am in my senior year, I reflect on all the time I’ve spent at Mason studying journalism and gaining a lot of experience through our student-run newspaper. I began as a staff writer, covering short and informative pieces. I worked my way up to news editor, then managing editor, and now I am an editor-in-chief. This new role is something I hoped for when I began writing for Fourth Estate but never truly anticipated. 

Throughout my time with the paper, I’ve learned how important it is to hear people’s voices and share their stories. We can gain from one another if we take the time to seek out information, especially when someone else has a different perspective than our own.

Words have a lot of power– they’ve made us laugh, cry, become angry and brought us peace. I enjoy being a part of the process that brings forth these emotions through powerful words. I hope to encourage incoming and prospective journalists to become powerful storytellers and connect communities through their words. 

Working alongside Gabe King, I know we will do our best to foster an environment that encourages growth for our writers, the Mason community and ourselves. I can’t wait to see how Fourth Estate develops over the next few months. Hopefully, the newspaper can leave an incredible impact. 

Best, 

Viviana Smith 

vsmith26@gmu.edu

Gabriel King/Fourth Estate

Hello everyone!

I am Gabe King, co-editor-in-Chief for Fourth Estate this semester! I am excited to fill this role and continue to provide the Mason community with strong student journalism.

As I begin my final semester here, I aim to continue growing as a writer and editor. When I started with Fourth Estate, I was a staff writer before becoming sports editor last year. One of the qualities I value most when reporting is authenticity. This semester, we will seek to provide the George Mason community with authentic journalism, cover what is important to the students and continue to develop further into truth and accuracy. 

In the past, Fourth Estate has been an outlet for students and the George Mason community to learn about the news that affects them. We will strive to amplify this aspect of our outlet, as it is imperative for the community to be informed.

I am excited for what the future holds for Fourth Estate. Together, Viviana and I will aim to continue Fourth Estate’s growth with our team of talented editors and writers. An exciting Fall 2024 semester awaits, and we hope you will join us on this new journey!

Best,

Gabe King

gking8@gmu.edu