Just as every year, the Labor Day weekend gives students an early break during the fall semester, the Verge returns after a summer hiatus in hopes of helping students make entertainment decisions.

In the coming weeks, you’ll notice a few changes in the Verge.

We will still review the latest DVDs, CDs, movies, books, etc. And we will still profile people around campus who make Eastern’s entertainment landscape what it is.

But we hope to become the place you go for entertainment information, by expanding our area to cover more extensively places outside of Charleston that lie within a short drive – hello, Champaign.

Charleston will, of course, get preference as there is a lot more to do in Charleston and on campus than at first glance.

But giving you options is priority No. 1.

Along with this, we will have a consistent look so you know exactly where to look.

Page 3 will always have music, Page 5 will have features and Page 6 will always have movie-related content. This doesn’t mean we will neglect Page 1, of course. Entertainment-related features will inform and entertain.

And occasionally, we will even tell you how the news and entertainment interact.

Which brings us to the first bit of news.

Last Saturday in Springfield, Barack Obama finally announced his running mate.

Many Eastern students made the trip and for good reason. College students throughout the country seem to be paying quite a bit of attention to this year’s election.

Obama has turned many people who might not have cared in the past into political junkies.

But when Obama introduced Delaware Senator Joe Biden as his vice president, he might have accidentally slapped a large group in the face.

Biden, 64, is a leader in the fight against international piracy, as a founding member of the Congressional International Anti-Piracy Caucus.

According to the Hollywood Reporter, Biden’s emphasis is on countries like China, Russia, Mexico and India. A welcome quest in the eyes of producers and artists whose work is reproduced illegally overseas.

But Biden has also been at the forefront against file sharing.

This goes against the Internet crowd, most of which has embraced file sharing as a huge part of today’s digital age.

The ramifications could be bad for Obama, with the blogosphere already blowing up with people claiming they might change their vote because of the announcement.

That might be a bit dramatic but it’s been thrown out there nonetheless.

If cooler heads prevail, Obama will be fine. If not, however, a small bump away from Obama – a big deal right now considering many polls have McCain and Obama tied -could result. And that could be devastating to the campaign.