Five Things You Need to Know: April 6

Columbia University Releases Report on Rolling Stone Article

The Columbia University School of Journalism released a report today on the journalistic ethics of Rolling Stone’s “A Rape on Campus,” written by Sabrina Erdely. The article, published Nov. 2014, describes the rape of a student at the University of Virginia called “Jackie.” A letter from the editor was published several weeks later stating that several of the articles facts were being called into question. The Columbia report investigates what went wrong with the article, including lack of effort in fact checking. Because of the report, Rolling Stone has officially retracted “A Rape on Campus,” without any punishment for those who worked on the article.

California Suffers During Historically Devastating Drought

The state of California has been suffering through one of the worst droughts in its history. The four-year drought has has caused reservoirs to shrivel, crops to wilt, cow herds to thin and hydropower dams to produce less electricity. This past winter, the drought has had an even worse effect on the state, even causing historically low levels of snow to come down on the Sierra Nevada mountains. This drought is the worst in the state in 1200 years, and although the situation is beginning to turn around, Governor Jerry Brown has already placed water restrictions on the state’s population.

“Mad Men” Begins Final Season

Last night, AMC’s “Mad Men” aired the first episode of the second half of its final season. The TV show has received critical acclaim for its writing and the performances of leads Jon Hamm and Elisabeth Moss. “Mad Men” follows Don Draper (Hamm), the suave Creative Director at the Manhattan advertising agency Sterling Cooper. The show has won 15 Emmys and numerous other awards for directing, acting, writing, casting, hair and costume. The show will end its eight-year run after only seven episodes, following the first half of its seventh season, which premiered last year.

KC Royals Begin Spring Season

Today at Kauffman Stadium, the Kansas Royals are playing the first game of the season. The Royals are up against the White Sox. The beginning of the season for the Royals has also traditionally been the same day as East’s senior skip day. Many seniors typically skip school on this day, but also face the consequences of of being marked down for unexcused absences, and thereby being unable to skip any of their finals.

Johnson County General Elections To Occur

The spring general election for Johnson County will take place tomorrow. Elections for city, school, community college, water district and drainage district officials are held the first Tuesday of April every other odd-numbered year. The only position to be voted on in Prairie Village is that of Mayor Laura Wassmer, who is running unopposed.