Dressed in black jeans and a black button-down shirt embroidered with skulls and red roses, Tim Nekritz crooned a mixture of jazz, blues and country for his hour-long set against the backdrop of a teal and gray porch surrounded by small pink roses, lilacs and green-pink hydrangeas. 

Nekritz, the university’s communications director, sang from the home of his friend Rod Andrews, assistant vice president of admissions and financial aid, equipped with a 1947 Gibson BR6 Lap Steel. 

“I started playing a bit in my teens, then went on a long hiatus,” Nekritz said. “I picked it back up in 2019, right before Covid [COVID-19] and began playing seriously in 2021 with a rock band.”

Nekritz’s gig of was one of 75 local acts congregating on Oswego’s west side for its ninth annual Porchfest. 

The air was full of fresh flowers, fresh water and a diverse array of music. From porch to porch, crowds gathered to eagerly watch all the acts they could. The sizes of the crowds varied as people floated from one house to the next, feeding their curiosity. 

The festival featured many local sponsors, including some food trucks which offered snacks and beverages.

Homeowners provided attendees with chairs, water, beer and snacks to enjoy while performers filled their hour-long slots with covers and original music that spanned from indie folk to jazz.

Between songs, Nekritz’s bright demeanor served as a striking contrast to his somber music, often making jokes, clever quips about his music, or calling out to fellow musicians who stopped by to support him or share the occasional beer. 

Following his performance, he was joined by Gina Mazzoli. The pair recently formed a duo act they call “Whiskey Spirits.” Apart, the two have participated in multiple Porchfests: Nekritz on his own and Mazzoli with her band “The Condescenders.” Both expressed their excitement for their small performances, eager to enjoy themselves playing music and being able to share it with the community. 

Peppered in among his covers of Hank Williams, Johnny Cash and Blind Willie McTell were original pieces of occasionally silly tunes. One such tune was “Runaway Chicken Blues,” about a friend’s chicken that accidentally hitchhiked to Fairhaven State Park and ran amok in the woods before the friend’s daughter was able to catch it.

said they never talked about race because it was a touchy subject vulnerable to accusations of racism.

“Talking about race is not the same as being racist,” Shore said. “Not talking about race is the same as being racist.”

Delancey explored the philosophical side.

“Epistemology…is probably the central issue for what is called media literacy,” Delancey said. Epistemology, the study of truth and determining truth, shaped the direction of the panel, particularly the question of how to identify a reputable source — and whether one should even focus on that.

Delancey scrutinized the idea of media literacy as “how we can identify an authoritative source,” instead arguing that truth derives from “conjecture of debate,” a sharing of diverse perspectives that he says depends on free speech.

But while Mejias agreed that truth is “negotiated and debated,” he cautioned about the risks of leaving truth to public discourse.

“The most media-literate are the sh*tposters and trolls who are manipulators of truth,” Mejias said.

Mejias brought up the “gamification of truth,” a media environment in which searching for and providing knowledge becomes competitive and strategic as a game. When social media platforms incentivize users to post more and gratify their sense of popularity, Mejias argued, they enable the spread of misinformation and uncivil discourse.

College-age students are susceptible to this. A Pew Research survey from March found that 52% of TikTok users ages 18-29 say they use the app to get news, and 48% say they use it to keep up with politics.

Marie Sova, who attended the panel for her opinion-writing class, found the academic terminology hard to follow, but recognized the discussion as important for the current generation.

“I’m a very shy student, so I am always the last to answer questions in a class,” Sova said. “Hearing them say that they want students to actually have these kinds of conversations is a big thing for me.”

Sova said she sees a lot of uncivil discourse in the comments of social media posts.

“It’s important for us to [debate] in a more open setting, and not through the phones,” Sova said. “On social media, you’re hidden, so you can be as rude as you want. In person it’s better because then you can have more of a civil conversation.”

Homeowners provided attendees with chairs, water, beer and snacks to enjoy while performers filled their hour-long slots with covers and original music that spanned from indie folk to jazz. 

Between songs, Nekritz’s bright demeanor served as a striking contrast to his somber music, often making jokes, clever quips about his music, or calling out to fellow musicians who stopped by to support him or share the occasional beer. 

Following his performance, he was joined by Gina Mazzoli. The pair recently formed a duo act they call “Whiskey Spirits.” 

Apart, the two have participated in multiple Porchfests: Nekritz on his own and Mazzoli with her band “The Condescenders.” 

Both expressed their excitement for their small performances, eager to enjoy themselves playing music and being able to share it with the community. 

Peppered in among his covers of Hank Williams, Johnny Cash and Blind Willie McTell were original pieces of occasionally silly tunes. 

One such tune was “Runaway Chicken Blues,” about a friend’s chicken that accidentally hitchhiked to Fairhaven State Park and ran amok in the woods before the friend’s daughter was able to catch it.

Photo by Elena Ehrhart