Five stories that have North Texas talking: Texas A&M’s student wants to meet with Rick Perry; Dallas bookstore uses clickbait to get people to read the classics; how to contact your representatives; and more.
Texas A&M’s soon-to-be student body president wants to meet with Rick Perry before he takes office next month after the former governor of Texas questioned the legitimacy of his victory.
Bobby Brooks was elected by A&M students this month — making him the first openly gay student body president in the school’s history. His opponent Robert McIntosh was disqualified, even though he secured 4,977 votes to Brooks’ 4,214, The Texas Tribune reports. McIntosh violated election rules — specifically, failing to include the purchase of glow sticks used in a video in his campaign finance report.
That got the U.S. Secretary of Energy’s attention. Rick Perry, an A&M alumnus, challenged the outcome in an opinion piece in The Houston Chronicle Wednesday. According to the Tribune, Perry “suggested that the A&M administration wouldn't have allowed the results to have been thrown out if the top vote winner were the potential first gay student body president.”
McIntosh, who’s the son of Dallas-based Republican fundraiser Alison McIntosh, said through his attorney that he might have lost the election because he is a "heterosexual, white Christian male" and that he's considering a lawsuit,The Dallas Morning News reports.
In a letter signed by Friday, Brooks said: "It was heartening to see that you described yourself as 'proud' that the student body at your Alma Mater will be led for the first time in our history by a member of the LGBTQ student community.” Brooks extended an invitation to meet with Perry, but it's unclear if he has accepted. [The Texas Tribune, The Battalion, The Dallas Morning News]
- The best way to reach out to your state representatives depends on who they are. The Texas Tribune has provided information to help make your voice heard at the Texas Capitol as lawmakers zero in on several bills that would “expand school choice funding, limit increases in college tuition, strip funding from sanctuary cities and regulate public bathroom use based on a person’s ‘biological sex.’” Not all of state representatives are active on Twitter — Rep. Rafael Anchia, (D-Dallas) appears to be the most interactive. But, there are others ways to reach out to them — by attending a town hall, inviting them to your organization’s meeting or simply, calling their office. [The Texas Tribune]
- Some basketball viewers Friday night watched commercials thanking some Republican House members for repealing Obamacare. Airing the ads from American Action Network, a conservative-leaning advocacy group, was, of course, a mistake. The effort to repeal and replace the Affordable Care Act was abandoned Friday because House Republicans didn't have enough support from within their own ranks to vote on the American Health Care Act — the GOP replacement. According to NPR, U.S. Rep. WillHurd’s district was one of four across the country where the mistake ads ran Friday night during the NCAA March Madness tournament. [NPR]
- The Wild Detectives is getting buzz for using clickbait on social media to get people to read literary classics. The Bishop Arts District bookstore held a “Litbait” campaign last September. The book business would post links on its Facebook page to articles from its Medium account with headlines like “New synthetic drug is turning Londoners into violent maniacs”. When users would click that headline, it took them to a Medium post with the full, copyright-free text of “The Strange Case of Dr. Jekyll and Mr. Hyde”. The “Litbait” posts read: “You fell for the bait, now fall for the book.” The Wild Detectives’ campaign grabbed the attention of AdWeek this month. [AdWeek]
- Aaron Aryanpur, son of an Iranian immigrant, doesn’t ignore race in his standup, but he’d rather talk about family life. Aryanpur of Little Elm has been a comedian for more than 15 years. He’s appeared on Comedy Central, toured with Maz Jobrani and released an album. He headlined the Dallas Comedy Festival this weekend. “I feel like I’m very nondescript,” he says. “If I walk down the street, you’re not going to say, ‘There goes the Texan.’ ‘There goes the guy who’s Iranian, the Jewish guy.’ You’re not going to notice me at all.” Ironically, he got his first real break because of his ethnic background. Read about Aryanpur’s path in the Artist Spotlight. [Art&Seek]
The High Five is KERA's daily roundup of news stories from Dallas-Fort Worth and across the state. Explore our archives here. And sign up for our weekly email for the North Texas news you need to know.
