Even though a majority of WHAS’ top stories are about things that aren’t actually important on October 16 they covered a very important story on an E. coli outbreak. This story follows the yardstick of newsworthiness; this yardstick is often broken by WHAS. 66% of their top stories were about crime. This was an exception. This story is very relevant when talking about the wellbeing of anyone who had been to Huber’s recently. It not only affected the people at Huber’s but also it was a great public service announcement to help remind people to wash their hands frequently. So good job WHAS for covering a very good story that will help a lot of people and a story that wasn’t about crime!
Thursday, November 14, 2013
WHAS Critique-- Fairness
A story on WHAS was covered on November 13 talks about how schools all over the nation are starting to expand school days so students can work on things that are important but can’t necessarily be fit into the normal school day. These lessons include personalized learning techniques, world cultures, foreign languages, living healthy and things involving the arts and creativity. These lessons are very important to the cultural awareness of students. The article talks about why the superintendent made the changes. They fail to talk to people that the changes really affect: the students in the district and the parents of the students. This breaks the principle of fairness which talks about covering all sides of the story. WHAS fails to mention the people it will affect most which is bad journalism.
http://www.whas11.com/news/education/Longer-school-days-in-store-for-some-in-5-states-231744871.html
WHAS Critique-- The Truth
Over the past two months or so the David Camm trial has been all over the news. Not only is this story not newsworthy and over reported on but it also breaks the principle of journalism truth. The principle of truth talks about how journalists need to fact check what has been released to the public. Instead they are stenographers. WHAS reporters just talk about what happened in court and how people reacted this is not good journalism. The second part of the principle is journalists have to fact check what is said. On October 24 when the verdict for the trial was released they were stenographers. Their story about the verdict was just play by play of what happened in the court room. They also had quotes from family members and some of the lawyers involved in the case. The lawyers and family members don’t hold the facts. This story breaks both components that go into being truthful when reporting. This is not affective journalism. WHAS needs to go further and expand on what has been said.
Ginny's Blog Response
Ginny your blog post about the David Camm trial and how it was over reported about is amazing! I love how blunt you are when talking about how no one should care about the David Camm trial as much as they actually did. The part of your post I agree with most is the very end where you talk about the things that could have been covered that are of more importance than the David Camm trial. Around the same time as the Camm trial the government shut down occurred. This affects the whole country unlike the Camm trial which just affects one maybe two families. The David Camm trial was the top story twice and was covered in depth almost every night that I watched the news. The government shutdown was the top story once and was hardly ever even talked about. This is not ok. News stations need to report on newsworthy topics that’s why they are called news stations! I think you summed it up very nicely when you said that the coverage on the Camm trial was both ridiculous and outrageous. Frankly who cares about this guy anyway? I know I don’t.
Class Response-- Television
One of my favorite discussions all year has been about the effect that TV has on our everyday life. Before the lecture I realized that TV makes people stay inside but I never realized how it has affected politics. Television ads are insanely expensive; and for a television ad to be effective it has to be well made and played often. The repetition of ads gets the ideas they are trying to prove into your head; whether you realize it or not. For example, when you see a McDonalds ad repeated over and over again whenever you pass a McDonalds you will think about how good the ads made the food look and that sways your decision when looking for a place to eat. It works the same in politics the more you hear about a person the more likely you are to vote for them. This theory causes politicians to spend millions of dollars on TV ads or they feel they have no chance of winning. This is a sad truth that I had never realized before this lecture. It really makes me look closer at the type of people who are in office.
Class Response-- The Internet
Today in class Mr. Miller brought up an interesting
topic when discussing the internet. While talking about the impacts of internet
he said that with every story there are two types of people. People X are those
who want news that is interesting but not necessarily true and people Y just
want to know what is actually going on and what is true. One of the impacts of
internet is that it’s harder for the latter type of people to get the truth. As
the popularity of the internet continues to grow it makes it easier for people
to hide behind their computer screen and tell lies about people. The internet
has made it possible for people to either post anonymously or make a fake
identity to post from. Computers act as a barrier between the things people say
and the consequences they face when they do something wrong. The internet is
making people X strongly outweigh people Y. This is not good because soon it
will be very hard to tell whether what someone is saying is true or not.
Class Response-- Movies
I don’t know about other kids but one of my favorite things to do with my friends is go to the movies. I was very excited when Mr. Miller told us we were going to be talking about movies because I love them. After a really bad day I love to sit at home and watch sad movies (I know I’m a loser.) I had never really thought about why I liked going to the movies so much until Mr. Miller asked us why we like to go to the movies. This was an interesting question; it was never something I gave that much thought to. Movies are just something I like to do, it’s a tradition. One of my favorite parts of going to a movie is seeing it before everyone else just so I can brag. It’s fun to see something your other friends haven’t seen yet. This was one of the reasons we talked about in class, the fact that it was a cultural experience. Another thing we talked about was how movies are an immersive experience. The screen is so big, the theater is so quiet and dark and the movie is so loud. These are all things I can’t get at my house with my very active family and very talkative little brother. The last thing we talked about was how movies are a social experience. I love to get a lot of people together to see movies together. It’s kind of weird to see a movie by yourself because society has made it such a social experience. You go with people so you can share the immersive experience with one another. These reasons are so obvious but at the same time no one really thinks about why people love movies. Everyone just goes to the movies without even really thinking about it. It was cool to finally understand why movies have stuck around so long, and why they will continue to stick around, even when newer technologies are invented.
Thursday, September 26, 2013
Peer response-- Jamies blog
Jamie’s blog, jamiefightsbadjournalsim.blogspot.com, about why newspapers are still around is so true. My favorite part of the newspapers is also the fact that it’s tangible. I like how you can save it for years afterward and that it’s non-linear. I felt you made some really good points about everything we talked about in class. My favorite part though was your comic when it talked about a newspaper going out of business because of demassification. The picture was really funny but so true at the same time. Though we laugh about it it’s a serious problem and I really like you how addressed that issue in a light-hearted way.
http://soulclassy.files.wordpress.com/2012/09/newspaper_business_internet_4118851.jpg
Peer Response-- Meghans Blogs
I completely agree with Meghan’s post about demassification, Meghanelizabethjewell.blogspot.com. Before technologies like the internet and TV the radio and magazines and newspapers were at an all-time high. Then they came along and caused all of those to lose a lot of audience members and focus on a niche group of people. I have issues though with the realization that television is becoming demassified. I can’t seem to get it into my head. With all the illegal downloads of shows and the various websites you really don’t need to watch “that episode” that’s going to change the whole plot on TV right that second. You easily could watch it on the internet when it is convenient. What you said about internet becoming demassified is crazy but true. I can’t even imagine what will replace it but I know something will someday. So I guess I’m just going to have to wait and see what crazy invention they come up with next!
Class Response-- Magazines
http://farm5.staticflickr.com/4099/4746394747_13c3e8ee49_z.jpg
Class Response-- Conglomeration
Conglomeration happens in businesses a lot. Monopolies and conglomeration go hand in hand. Recently you have started to see a large increase in businesses that have a horizontal monopoly, which is where one company owns all of one part of production. News Corporation is a great example of this. They are eating up all of the individual companies and they are pretty close to owning all of the parts of news. This is so bad because that is going to cause the news to become biased therefore braking a lot of the principles and yardsticks of Journalism. Conglomeration is a very serious issue. When larger companies eat up smaller companies it gives us less diversity and competition. It also results in a loss of jobs. If we don’t watch out all the little mom and pop companies are going to be taken over.
Class Response-- Books
Anyone that knows me knows that I am really not a big fan of books. That sounds
terrible and I realize a lot of people are going to hate me because of this, I
just don't enjoy them. I am a slow reader and I have issues really getting
engrossed in a book. After our discussion about Gutenberg and how influential
his printing press was it changed my perspective about books. Before I was just
looking at books like textbooks and books that we are forced to read for
school. I never thought before about what books did to the world. Before you
were forced to conform to what the kings point of view was and there weren't
any records about events that had occurred in the past. After the printing
press was invented literacy rates shot up and so did the need for an education.
Afterwards the protestant reformation occurred with the 95 theses that were
posted on all the doors of Catholic Churches. Because Martin Luther had the
audacity to oppose the Catholic Church it started a wave of ideas being spread.
People now spoke their minds and explored the ideas of areas of study like
politics, literature, art, math and science. This caused a large reformation in
society. I am very open about my opinions on society and topics. It's just who
I am. It gets me in trouble sometimes but I wouldn't change that characteristic
about myself for anything. Without Martin Luther and the reform I would still
be living in a society where I would have to conform to the Catholic Church and
their beliefs. There would be no sharing of opposing views and quite frankly
the world would be a very boring place. Even though I am not the biggest fan of
books I couldn't imagine a world without them and without what they have done
for society. So thanks Gutenberg!
Wednesday, September 25, 2013
Class Response-- Recordings
Recordings have truly influenced my life. Though I don’t record
much because of them I do listen to the
end result all the time. I love country music. I love the story it discusses
and though I can't relate to their lifestyle as much I feel like I can relate
to the messages that are talked about in the songs. Most people believe that
country music is just about tractors and getting drunk and dogs. Its so much
more if you listen to the message that the song is its about love and making
mistakes and not caring what people think of you along with being who you are
and not looking back. I make A LOT of mistakes and I have trouble with being
stuck on the past and so worried about the future.
In the
song “Life ain't always beautiful” by Gary Allan (Yes I realize how terrible
the grammar is) it says “But the struggles make you stronger and the changes
make you wise and happiness has its way of taking its own sweet time. Life
ain't always beautiful tears will fall sometimes. Life isn't always beautiful
but its a great ride.” with school, friend drama and stress for the future put
on my parents and myself this song truly relates. Though life isn't always
beautiful and tears will definitely fall when I feel like nothing is going
right it’s amazing to find a song that sums up your feelings. This is made
possible because of recordings. Before recordings you have to go to a concert
to hear music. You couldn't just listen to songs that fit the mood you are in.
also when you did go to concerts your parents had to be rich. For a while after
they were created you and your parents had to agree on the type of music that
would be played in the house. My parents don't like country music or really any
of the music I listen to so that makes it hard to get the same experiences that
we have today. After the personal record player was invented and was cheap
music really took off. This caused a larger generational gap in what ages
listen to what music. It also caused a wider variety of music to be produced.
All of these innovations helped music get to where it is today and help
influence peoples lives.
Monday, September 16, 2013
Media Critique
The situation in
Syria has been making the front page for a while now, talking about the
chemical attacks on civilians. The most recent story has been discussing Russia
and America’s attempt to compromise a deal on whether or not to take military
action. On Saturday September 14 the tabloids exploded with the news of a
compromise between the two nations. CNN, The Aljazeera and The New York Times
reported very similar stories except for one key aspect, whether or not Syria
was moving chemical weapons into Iraq and Lebanon. The Aljazeera and CNN both
reported that Syria had indeed been moving weapons into these countries. While
the New York Times said they had no indication of this.
An
anonymous American official reported to The New York Times “There was no
indication that any of Syria’s chemical stocks had been moved to Iraq or
Lebanon… We believe they are under regime control.”
Whereas
“the Syrian Military Council claimed that Assad’s forces have been moving their
chemical weapons arsenal to Lebanon and Iraq over the past few days” this was
reported on by the Aljazeera.
The
General Salim Idriss told reporters in Istanbul “We have information that the
regime began to move chemical materials and chemical weapons to Lebanon and to
Iraq.” This was reported to by CNN.
CNN later said that they couldn’t verify the sources that they had cited in the
article but were trying to. The New York Times has a history of not having very
reliable sources. The NY Times did try to get some verification of their
sources in the article. The Aljazeera though has done nothing to try and verify
its sources. This breaking the principle of journalism that talks about making
sure sources are verifiable. This is an issue because now the public is trying
to figure out what is true and what isn't.
Sources
“US and
Russia Form A Plan On Syrias Chemical Weapons.” Chappell, Bill. National Public
Radio. September 14, 2012. Article. September 14, 2013. http://www.npr.org/blogs/thetwo-way/2013/09/14/222397967/u-s-and-russia-form-a-plan-on-syrias-chemical-weapons
“John
Kerry: US, Russia Reach Deal On Syrian Chemical Weapons.” Heilprin, John. Lee,
Matthews. The Huffington Post. September 14, 2013. Article. September 14,2013. http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2013/09/14/us-russia-agree-deal-o_n_3925636.html?view=print&comm_ref=false
“US, Russia
agree to framework on Syria chemical weapons.” Smith-Spark, Laura and
Cohen, Tom. CNN. September 14, 2013. Article. September 14, 2013. http://www.cnn.com/2013/09/14/politics/us-syria/index.html?hpt=hp_t2
“US and
Russia Reach Deal to Destroy Syrias Chemical Arms.” Gordon, Micheal. The New
York Times.” September 14, 2013. Article. September 14, 2013. http://www.nytimes.com/2013/09/15/world/middleeast/syria-talks.html?hp&_r=0&pagewanted=print
“US
Russia reach agreement on seizure of Syrian chemical weapons arsenal.” Gearan,
Anne and Wilson, Scott. The Washington Post. September 14, 2013. Article.
September 14, 2013. http://www.washingtonpost.com/world/us-russia-reach-agreement-on-seizure-of-syrian-chemical-weapons-arsenal/2013/09/14/69e39b5c-1d36-11e3-8685-5021e0c41964_print.html
“US and
Russia agree on ‘framework’ to remove Syrain chemical weapons.“ The
Aljazeera. September 14, 2013. Article. September 14,2013.http://america.aljazeera.com/articles/2013/9/14/us-and-russia-seeplanforremovingsyrianchemicalweapons.html
“Rebel
Leader: Syria moving its chemical weapons into Iraq, Lebanon.” Krever, Mick.
CNN. September 13, 2013. Article. September 16, 2013. http://edition.cnn.com/2013/09/12/world/meast/syria-rebel-leader-accusation/
Subscribe to:
Posts (Atom)