Last month, a Web site called Titan Truth appeared on several computers in the Academic Center (AC). However, the people who set the Web site as the default page on the computers have not been identified and the webmasters of Titan Truth deny any involvement in the incident.

Titan Truth is a false news Web site that includes humorous, often fictional stories about events that happen at Gunn. Three students who call themselves Athos, Porthos and Aramis run the site. Several students came up with the idea for Titan Truth near the end of last school year and created the site during the summer with no definite purpose in mind. "When the site was first being designed, we had not determined what types of stories we would report," Athos said. "After several meetings to discuss the nature of the site, it was decided that the site would be school satirical news. It's really just a fun de-stressing activity for everyone involved." The Oracle contacted the creators of the site through e-mail. The students did not wish to provide their real names.

The webmasters receive stories and ideas from within the site's small group, which consists of ten active writers. The webmasters also encourage students to e-mail them with ideas for stories. The articles on the site range from rumors about the renaming of the Bat Cave to hints about the hidden nature of the Student Executive Council (SEC). However, Athos said that these reports must be taken with a grain of salt. "Most articles are inspired by actual events, gossip and event information e-mailed to us," Athos said. "Some stories will be true. Some are completely false."

Not everyone on campus knows about the site yet, but some, like junior Meghna Dholakia, found it amusing. "I think it's genius," Dholakia said. "It's really entertaining and I feel it tackles some of the issues that The Oracle fails to address, namely humor."

The majority of the administrators seem to be unaware of the site's existence. Even though the site first appeared on campus in the AC, Academic Center Coordinator Chris Schulz has not yet viewed the site's content. However, Student Activities Director Lisa Hall has some concerns about the site, especially the creators' decision to remain anonymous. "By setting up a policy like that, it makes me suspect that there is a plan in place to post something controversial eventually," she said. "It seems like an excuse to put up content that may offend or hurt people without taking responsibility for what was written."

Dholakia, however, does not see the site as a threat to individual students. "Considering it's a one-way street, people can choose to look at it or not," Dholakia said.

Although most of the stories are written from an angle that conveys mistrust in the administration and the SEC, the site contains a disclaimer that the information is not completely factual. The leaders of Titan Truth wish to avoid confrontations with the administration. "With the school's crackdown on seemingly everything, we prefer to remain anonymous in case someone objects to something we publish," Athos said. "But we figure our Web site will just get blocked, just like Facebook."

Titan Truth is currently updating its site and will continue to add stories as time goes on. The organization also plans to expand. "We are very interested in video reporting and plan to expand to cover that soon." Athos said. "We're always looking for anything new [like] reporters, stories, content-expansion ideas, so we really enjoy feedback."

Go to http://www.titantruth.co.nr to view the Web site. E-mail titantruth@gmail.com for more information.