Allegations have arisen that Undergraduate Students Association
Council presidential hopeful Jake Strom made inappropriate and
offensive comments during an appearance last Friday on “The
Midnight Yell” radio show on UCLA Radio.com.
Strom denied any wrongdoing and said some of the allegations are
false.
UCLA Radio listeners, staff and other candidates present at the
broadcast say the comments were directed at Jenny Wood, a
presidential candidate with the Student Power! slate and a current
general representative on the council.
Both Alex Gruenberg, the presidential candidate with the Bruins
United slate and the current Financial Supports commissioner, and
Strom, presidential candidate with the Bruin Liberation Movement
slate, criticized the platforms of Wood and other Student Power!
candidates. Due to technical problems with a station server,
Friday’s Internet broadcast was not recorded and no official
transcript of the show exists.
Station logs indicate 11 listeners were connected, said Travis
DeLong, station manager.
Those present alleged that Strom made personal attacks against
Wood.
Show participants and listeners including Bruins United
candidates Ryan Smeets, P.C. Zai and Gruenberg said inappropriate
sexual comments were made.
Comments included Strom expressing that his dislike for Wood had
turned into sexual desire.
Strom said nothing inappropriate was discussed, and that
allegations that he referred to Wood in a sexual manner are
false.
While Strom admitted to saying something to the extent of
wanting to “smash her face into the ground,” he said
that taking his comment literally places it out of context.
“What I say is not to be always taken literally, and
occasionally I do get roused up in some playful banter,”
Strom said. “I mean, I wish no harm on anyone.”
Current USAC president and a Student Power! supporter Allende
Palma/Saracho said he listened to the broadcast and called the
comments “hateful” and “misogynistic” in a
grievance filed with the Associated Students UCLA Communications
Board, which also publishes the Daily Bruin.
The grievance stated that both the content and the premise of
the broadcast were unacceptable, as neither Wood nor any other
Student Power! candidates were invited.
“I think it’s problematic that any sector of UCLA
media is not attempting to contact all of the candidates when
they’re doing coverage of USAC elections,” Wood
said.The grievance was also addressed to dean of students Robert
Naples. His office could not be reached for comment but
Palma/Saracho said he will be following up with his report
today.
While Wood did not listen to the broadcast, she said she is
bothered by what she has heard.
“I do believe in freedom of speech, of course, but when
someone’s threatening another candidate’s safety,
that’s unacceptable,” Wood said.
P.C. Zai, a general representative candidate for Bruins United,
wouldn’t provide specifics but said as the only woman present
during the broadcast, she felt uncomfortable by the comments that
Strom was making in regard to Wood.
UCLA Radio does not have a formal elections policy, as other
media outlets do, because they have not previously been involved in
elections, said Arvli Ward, Student Media director.
Raul Panzar, a third-year philosophy student and cohost of The
Midnight Yell, said his original plan was to just have Strom on the
show “because his whole candidacy fits in with the theme of
our show, just making fun of things.”
“Some off-color jokes were made by live candidates,”
Panzar said. “We’re a live radio show, we don’t
have a delay button, so we really couldn’t have done
anything.”
Panzar’s cohost, also invited several candidates from
Bruins United to appear on the same broadcast. Wood wasn’t
intentionally excluded, Panzar said.
Beau Davis, show cohost, said he wouldn’t comment on
Friday’s show. “I can’t even recall everything
that was said ““ we did the whole evening ad lib,” Davis
said.
As a means of seeking resolution, DeLong hosted Wood on his
radio show, Unnecessary Feedback, Tuesday. Wood discussed her
campaign and the platforms that Student Power! supports.
The Elections Board won’t be taking any action in the
matter, as elections code does not regulate disparaging comments
made by candidates, said Nathan Lam, Elections Board chairman.
Elections Board would only be able to intervene if violent
threats or other legally reprehensible comments were made.
Gruenberg stressed that though he was present, he did not agree
with the comments made during the broadcast. “Strom’s
behavior is simply a testament to his immaturity and
disillusionment with student government,” he said,
acknowledging that they were invited to the show without knowing
who was going to be present and what the exact format was going to
be.
With reports from Saba Riazati, Tyson Evans and Narges
Zohoury, Bruin senior staff.