I would say that student activism received so much media attention because all of the above - because they were vocal, because they challenged the silent majority, because they were willing to question authority in an attention-getting manner, because their protests often ended in violence and disorder.
When someone makes reference to a familiar story or cultural reference, such as Ulysses and Achilles from Homer's "The Odyssey", it is considered an allusion.
To establish setting and context
