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New York University's independent student newspaper, established in 1973.

Washington Square News

New York University's independent student newspaper, established in 1973.

Washington Square News

New York University's independent student newspaper, established in 1973.

Washington Square News

Off Topic

(Jada Nakagawa for WSN)

Off Topic: Violence has left America too disconnected between power and reality

After the third attempt on his life, President Donald Trump said he thought the sound of gunshots was a tray falling. What do schoolchildren think when they hear the same shots?
Parker Osborne, Contributing Writer April 29, 2026

This past Saturday, the annual White House Correspondents Dinner was quickly brought to an end when a man opened fire at the event’s venue, the Washington Hilton hotel. The shooter,...

(Alex Woodworth for WSN)

Off Topic: Skinny sells — what’s the harm?

As brands profit more from skinny culture, the consumer falls victim to the consequences.
Grace Penny, Staff Writer April 22, 2026

Content warning: This article contains mention of eating disorders. The trend of being skinny is a cyclical one that reimagines itself every few decades. In the 2000s,...

(Courtesy of U.S. Air Force)

Off Topic: Trump’s Vietnam War doesn’t need a draft

Mandatory military service ingrains nationalist programming through the lens of violence, conquest and the preparation to commit it.
Noah Zaldivar, Opinion Editor April 17, 2026

Rob Schneider — former star of the piddling TV show “Real Rob” and currently selling a new book, “You Can Do It!: Speak Your Mind, America.” — recently laid out an...

(Alisia Houghtaling for WSN)

Off Topic: OpenAI’s latest acquisition is merely to save face

The landmark investment requires cautious judgment as more AI companies look to reinvent their image.
Maggie Turner, Opinion Editor April 8, 2026

On Thursday, the screens outside the New York Stock Exchange were lit up with congratulatory messaging I rarely see on my commute home from the Financial District. Earlier that...

(Katie Peurrung for WSN)

Off Topic: Stop blaming Gen Z for social media addiction

The generation has grown up as a trial run for the addictive designs of social media. Now, courts might be finally catching up.
Leila Abarca, Staff Writer April 6, 2026

On Wednesday, March 25, a Los Angeles jury found Meta and Google responsible for harming young users through their addictive design features, ultimately leading to mental health...

(Jada Nakagawa for WSN)

Off Topic: Trump’s climate repeals are a disaster waiting to happen

The Trump administration has rejected the EPA’s endangerment finding, denying the human health risks under laughably inaccurate justifications.
Grace Penny, Staff Writer April 1, 2026

This month, 24 states filed a lawsuit against the Trump administration’s latest contribution to the climate crisis: repealing the 2009 greenhouse gas endangerment finding. The...

(Neil Tawney for WSN)

Off Topic: ‘No Kings’ is not enough

As Trump consolidates more power, casual protest can’t be the only action taken.
Logan O’Connor, Staff Writer March 31, 2026

Last Saturday, more than 8 million demonstrators across the country — roughly 1 in 50 Americans — took to the streets to protest President Donald Trump’s administration,...

(Courtesy of jpellgen)

Off Topic: Defund ICE, refund TSA

Donald Trump’s decision to replace TSA officers with ICE agents lays the groundwork for future abuse of power by the Department of Homeland Security.
Annika Wilewicz, Deputy Opinion Editor March 25, 2026

President Donald Trump declared on Saturday that amid the partial government shutdown — which has left 50,000 Transportation Security Administration agents unpaid — he would...

(Courtesy of Department of Defense)

Off Topic: Regulating AI weaponry is critical

The Anthropic-Pentagon dispute shows why weaponizing artificial intelligence for war necessitates immediate concern.
Gabriel Sachse, Contributing Writer March 10, 2026

Over the past two weeks, the Department of Defense and the artificial intelligence firm Anthropic battled over the use of the latter’s chatbot, Claude, in U.S. military operations....

(Suditi Sircar for WSN)

Off Topic: TikTok didn’t invent ‘looksmaxxing.’ Eugenicists did

The growing community of young men fixated on enhancing their physical features is simply a rebrand of an old, dangerous ideology.
Nancy Lama, Contributing Writer March 4, 2026

“It’s brutally over for you … sorry I can’t imagine any girl staring at you other than for your goofy [looks].” “Death tier mouth to nose ratio. Death tier philtrum...

The U.S. men’s hockey team visited President Donald Trump at the White House on Feb. 24. (Courtesy of the White House)

Off Topic: Trump’s hockey comments reignite harmful locker room talk

The U.S. men’s hockey team’s reaction to President Donald Trump’s joke was a disappointing reminder of toxic masculinity and misogyny in sports.
Serin Lee, Deputy Opinion Editor March 2, 2026

Hockey has recently assumed a distinct spot in the zeitgeist: As the hit TV show “Heated Rivalry” allowed the sport to reach wider audiences, hockey also entered the spotlight...