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November 17, 2005
Print Journalism vs. Online Journalism
I was surprised at the huge debate that came about during the discussion of mine and Jenna's presentations. I would have to say that online journalism isn't always bad. One must realize, BEFORE they begin reading a piece of online journalism, how credible the source really is. Not all people are bad and out to the nothing but lies.
The next point is...we can't say that all online journalism is bad because there are the print newspapers who also make their articles available online. These of course are just as credible as the print version.
What we must watch out for is the online forums and blogs where people go just to have their voice heard, usually without any prior education on the matter.
Finally, as Nancy pointed out in class, some professors refuse to accept papers that have online sources. Credibility of the sources is part of the reason for this. The point that I am trying to make with this is that I had a professor here at Seton Hill, who told the class that if we were using online sources, they must come from a .edu site. Now...the Seton Hill Blogs are located at a .edu site, so could I have used these for my paper. OF COURSE NOT! They would be just as credible as a .com site, maybe even less.
I like the point that Denamarie makes on her blog..."Online journalism is made by anyone who has a blog or knows how to work a computer."
As consumers of news, this is what we must watch out for...don't let the average person try to form your opinion on a given subject.
Posted by AshleeLupchinsky at 11:58 AM | Comments (4)
November 15, 2005
Informal Presentation- Ch. 3
Chapter 3 begins by talking about how the rules have changed for both journalists and newsmakers, due to everyone having the ability to create the news.
"Information is an ocean, and newsmaker can no longer control the tide as easily as they once did."
This quote is an introduction to the three new rules for public life:
1. outsiders of all kinds can probe more deeply into newsmakers' businesses and affairs.
2. insiders are part of the conversation.
3. what gushes forth can take on a life of its own, even if it's not true.
Moblogging: mobile weblog or information posted to the Internet via the use of a cellular phone or PDA.
* First post= 1995 by Steve Mann
* Mann wore a wearable computer
* term was coined by Adam Greenfield in 2002
Source: Wikipedia
Freedom of Information Act: (52)
"[Russ] Kirk put Big Media to shame in April 2004 by using the Freedom of Information Act to get the military's photos of America's Iraq war dead-"
* Kirk did this by requesting these pictures...something that no other journalist/newsmaker thought of.
Russ Kirk and Freedom of Information Act
* When I went to this site, by Steve Baldwin, I discovered that people needed to support Kirk (on his site, linked above) in this request because being that he was a "small site owner" the fines that he was going to have to pay would be enough to make him disappear.
"Hacking in an open-source manner": (53)
* Gillmor also explains in this chapter that "hacking" is occurring by the average person, in order to make their technological products better or all together new. This is being done by "word of mouth."
* This type of "hacking" is making it easier for the average person to research how something is made, thus making a similar product of their own.
* The newest piece of technology is the handheld computer with a wireless Internet connection and a bar-code scanner
* This device allows people to connect to the Internet in a store and find out everything about the product that they have just scanned.
Conclusion:
Throughout the chapter Gillmor discusses how journalists/newsmakers must be transparent because the public is demanding it and when they (the average person) cannot see this transparency, they are going out and reporting the news on their own, whether it is true or not.
* By giving the average citizen the ability to report the news, newsmakers/journalists are becoming vulnerable because now the people who they usually speak about are now speaking about them in the same way. (62)
Posted by AshleeLupchinsky at 11:52 AM | Comments (2)
November 14, 2005
Reflections on Court Reporting
Lab: Court Reporting -- News Writing (EL 227)
Posted by AshleeLupchinsky at 09:37 PM | Comments (0)
First impressions of We the Media
We the Media (Intro, Ch 1 & Ch 2) -- News Writing (EL 227)
Posted by AshleeLupchinsky at 09:36 PM | Comments (0)
First Impressions on We the Media by Dan Gillmor
At first sight, We the Media is turning out to be so much better than It Ain't Necessarily So. This book is actually giving the reader information that can be applied. Also, the author, Dan Gillmor seems to be much more qualified than the authors of It Ain't Necessarily So.
After reading the introduction and chapters 1 and 2, I have come to the conclusion that Dan Gillmor is very knowledgeable of what he calls "grassroots journalism." As I was reading I continued to come across this phrase of "grassroots journalism," but I had no idea what it meant. After searching the Internet for a while and only coming up with information on the blog of Gillmor himself, I found that "grassroots journalism" is also known as "citizen journalism." I find this concept very important to our culture because of the rise of citizens who want to have their input into the breaking news of the times.
We the Media discusses an important concept of the world today. More and more people are using the Internet to get their information on breaking stories or just local stories around them. With the advent of blogging, people are able to discuss their views on certain topics. With this book Gillmor is able to explain who was responsible for making these sources possible to the average person. So far, with the information that I have read, Gillmor seems to be an expert in his field and I only hope that as I continue through, I find out more information about media sources that have affected my life.
Posted by AshleeLupchinsky at 08:21 AM | Comments (0)
Reflections on Court Reporting Lab
I thought that Friday's in-class court reporting lab was very beneficial. When we first started, I was very overwhelmed by the information that I was receiving and I wasn't really sure how I would begin to put it all together. After I actually got to think about it (during the 15 minute recess), information started coming together in an article kind of way.
I think that the way this lab was set up was very realistic to an actual courtroom; aside from receiving information written down for you. I have definitely heard of courtrooms being locked down when a criminal (or alleged criminal) is on the loose and now that I actually think about it, the reporters in that room have to continue to write their story to meet their deadline despite the lockdown.
When it came to actually writing the article, I wanted to include something about the protesters in front of the courthouse, but I mainly wanted to focus my article on the defendant getting away...so I wrote two articles.
In conclusion, as a future teacher, I think that this would be a great lesson or unit for a high school classroom. The students would be able to get the feel of actual court reporting, without being in the courtroom.
Courtroom Lockdown on Third Day of Testimony
The third day of testimony for the Anthony Ide rape case has been delayed, due to the defendant fleeing police custody.
After making a disturbance in the courtroom, Judge Dickerson said, “Officers please escort both Mr. Ide and the gentleman with whom he is conversing out of my courtroom. Ide was then escorted out by officers Jose Lopez and Lewis Marks. According to the county prosecuting attorney James Taylor, Ide had a personal accident on the northwest stairwell as the two officers were escorting him to the men’s lavatory. As officer Lopez cleaned up the biohazardous material, officer Marks proceeded to take Ide to the lavatory. Taylor reported that while Ide was in the lavatory he distracted officer Marks and got away. Fleeing to the women’s lavatory, where he climbed into the ventilation system.
After reading his written statement, Taylor answered a few questions stating that the defendant was at large and all must remain in the courtroom for their safety until further notice.
All of this followed the decision to strike all DNA testimony from the records, due to a clerical error, which resulted in contamination of the blood sample taken from the victim’s right hand.
Final testimonies are presumed to begin at 9 a.m. tomorrow, following a 6 a.m. briefing from Taylor on the whereabouts of Ide.
Protesters March Outside Courthouse
The third day of testimony for the Anthony Ide rape case began with protesters against Ide marching outside of the courthouse.
As crowds entered the courthouse, they passed through a woman, who is simply known as Tammy, and 15 other people protesting against Anthony Ide. Tammy and the other protesters stated that they were rape survivors seeking justice. “Because one in four college-aged women have survived rape or an attempted rape, we’re here today because we want to see justice done,” Tammy said in her speech to the crowd.
A passerby confronted Tammy and said, “Tammy, didn’t you used to date Tony?”
With this Tammy said, “We’re not here to talk about me! We’re here because we are sick to death of being afraid when we walk home! We’re here because one in four is too many!”
The protest was put on hold when the police van carrying Ide pulled up and blocked protesters. Ide was escorted into the courthouse, wearing his orange jumpsuit and handcuffs, by two officers, one of which was recognized as Jose Lopez.
Posted by AshleeLupchinsky at 07:59 AM | Comments (0)
November 10, 2005
Blog Portfolio 3
Coverage:
I think that all of my blogs had to do with coverage because they all dealt with the material that we read for class.
* The Crime Beat
* Feature Articles
* Reflection on crime writing
* Pseudo-Color: Cliches
* The "Template" Theory
* Reflections on It Ain't Necessarily So
* Tomato Statistics
* Penn Trafford Seniors Return
* Statistics: CH. 5
* Statistics and Surveys: Ch. 6 & 7
* AP Stylebook - Libel
Depth:
* The Crime Beat
* Feature Articles
* Reflections on Crime writing
* Penn Trafford Seniors Return
* Statistics and Surveys: Ch 6 & 7
* AP Stylebook- Libel
Interaction and Discussion: I am really disappointed with this blog portfolio because I didn't receive many comments. This may be due to everyone being so busy.
Timeliness: I had a really hard time with getting things in on time for this portfolio because school has been really crazy lately.
* The Crime Beat
* Reflection on Crime writing
* Pseudo-Color: Cliches
* Penn Trafford Seniors Return
Xenoblogging: Again, it was really hard for me to find time to comment to others, but here are a few:
* Reflections on The Crime Beat : by Jenna O'Brocto
* Statistics Don't tell the Entire Story: by Nancy Gregg
Wildcard:
* Penn Trafford Seniors Return
Comments:
* My Uncle Dropped Me Off: by Mike Diezmos
As I mentioned above, I really am disappointed with this portfolio because I didn't have a lot of time to do my entries or to comment on those of my peers. Hopefully the next one will be better.
Posted by AshleeLupchinsky at 10:44 AM | Comments (1)
AP Stylebook - Libel
As I was reading this section on libel, I became very intrigued. To feed my curiosity, I called my cousin, who is an Assistant District Attorney. I wanted to ask her all about libel issues in Pennsylvania. When I finally got her on the phone, she told me that in Pennsylvania one can only be sued for libel...they cannot be prosectued. When we hung up she continued to do a bit of research. She finally got back to me and told me that at one point, maybe in the 1800's, one could have been prosecuted for libel. I'm not really sure what site she looked into, but she told me that the only cases she could find that dealt with prosecution for libel dated back to the 1890's. I found this to be quite amazing.
I think that the reason why I was so intrigued by this reading was because it talked about the laws in other states, but never mentioned anything about Pennsylvania.
Posted by AshleeLupchinsky at 10:38 AM | Comments (3)
November 09, 2005
Statistics and Surveys : Ch. 6 & 7
Although I find this book to be quite boring, some of the information that is given can be very informational. For example when we see a statistic in a newspaper or magazine, we only see the number such as 3 out of 10, but what we aren't told is, where was this survey done and what was the representation of those who were taking the survey. As a personal example, last year I was pulled out of one of my education classes, along with 4 of my peers (also from that class) to complete a survey. We were told that the survey was going to show how college/university life was represented across the United States. Now, my problem with this, is that if this survey was to be a representation of college life ACROSS THE UNITED STATES, then why were FIVE students surveyed from ONE class? It doesn't seem like a very fair representation.
One statement that I found interesting was on page 101:
"The lesson seems clear enough: don't trust a poll's answers unless you can examine the poll's questions. In particular, unless you see the poll's questions, don't trust a poll commissioned by an organization that uses the poll to support its own predetermined position, since the questions may well have been rigged to reach the organization's desired conclusion."
This is so true! I'm sure that all of us have been a member of a survey group at one time or another. For example, the little cards that you get when you go to a restaurant. Are these questions really an unbiased way of asking about your experiences at that restaurant? Of course not, they are asking you specific questions that they have written in the best way possible for them to get the desired answer that they want.
After reading this chapter, I am definitely going to start to take a better look at the surveys that are placed in front of me.
Posted by AshleeLupchinsky at 12:40 PM | Comments (0)
Statistics: Ch.5
"Statistics are not as "straight-forward" as they appear, they can get very ambiguous. Is the glass half empty or half full?- it really depends on your perspective/interpretation":
I found Mike Diezmos' presentation about statistics to be very interesting. As we can all see, statistics at times get to be very out of hand. In this case of Mike's presentation, people would have liked to vote for more than one color, but as Mike directed, only one color can be chosen. Was the color that you chose, in fact your favorite color?
Going back to the quote that I have at the beginning of the entry, I think that the main problem with statistics, is in fact how they are interpreted. As the quote says, you can have one person who is optimistic, thinking that the glass is 'half full' or you can have the pessimist on the other side.
In reality, I found this chapter to be the most boring of all because of the statistics, but the most informational because of the reasons that they gave for why statistics can be biased.
Posted by AshleeLupchinsky at 12:29 PM | Comments (0)
Trib- Penn Trafford Seniors Return
As a future teacher, I tend to become outraged when I find that teachers have gone on strike. Although they may want more money or better benefits in their contract, this is no reason to hurt the students. In reality, teachers should be choosing this career because they want to make a difference in the lives of their students, but do they realize what they are doing to the students when they go on strike.
Now that I have gotten that out...after reading the article, I have to give the administrators credit for going into the classroom and teaching the seniors, so that they are able to graduate on time. Although it was great for the seniors to be able to return to school, what is going to happen to the students in grades K-11? In the article one parent, who has a child who is a senior, but also has younger children. This mother, Karen Mannella, also states that her son was among the 100 students who convened for class in the cafeteria. We hear all the time about college classrooms with 100 students or more, but really what can a student in high school learn when there are 99 other students also trying to comprehend and retain the information that is being presented? In my opinion, they won't be learning...they will just be going through the motions in order to graduate on time.
I like how this article showed the point of view of the students who were able to return to class. This is a very important point of view that hasn't been shown that much through the whole strike ordeal. One senior, Nathan Bober said, "In any event, I find it disappointing. We are pawns in this whole ordeal." Again, I have to say that as a future teacher, the fact that a student has come out and said that he feels like a pawn in the school districts hands, is a very bad situation. A student should be able to feel that they are receiving the best education that can be given to them. That is not to say that the administrators aren't doing their absolute best, but the students have gone from a regular classroom teacher, who had all of their lessons planned out, to an administrator who is just thrown in by the Department of Education, to teach a group of 100 students, in order for them to make up the time that they have missed.
In conclusion, I hope that the teachers return to their classrooms soon, so that these students can get the education that they deserve.
Posted by AshleeLupchinsky at 12:06 PM | Comments (2)
November 07, 2005
Tomato Statistics
Murray, Schwartz, and Licter discuss tomato statistics as being
"cases in which news reports call attention to alarmingly high numbers of criminal incidents by obscuring the crucial differences that make a few of the incidents far worse than the vast majority of others." (59)
I found this point to be very interesting because I have recently been able to see how different people have different definitions of issues such as rape, sexual harassment, illnesses, etc... (I wish that the authors could do more of their writing in this book like this.)
The authors make a very good point, that readers need to watch for biases among news stories containing statistics. Mainly because how many of these statistics are in fact true and accurate. Who is deciding that a particular event should be described as a rape, when maybe it was just sexual harassment or not a rape at all.
with these overwhelmingly high statistics that we oftentimes see in newspapers, one begins to wonder, just where are these reporters getting their information and who is providing the information to their source.
With these high statistics, I look at how many people are being victims of misjudgment, where someone is said to be a rapist, when in fact they are not because it was consensual or it didn't happen at all.
Posted by AshleeLupchinsky at 08:31 AM | Comments (0)
Reflections on It Ain't Necessarily So
When I was asked how I felt about the authors (after reading the first chapter), I wasn't very sure because I didn't think that I had read enough to base an opinion. Now that I have read a bit more, I am totally turned off by these authors. They seem to be writing this book to get out their complaints with newspapers. None of the information is interesting to me because it seems like I am reading the same thing over and over again.
I think that the major reason why I am turned off of this book is because of the overabundance of statistics. If the authors wanted to prove their points about the issues of which they are complaining, then they should be discussing more issues, rather than just taking statistics and research that other newspapers have done.
Of course this looks like my way of complaining about the book, but actually, I am just trying to understand why these three authors felt that they should write this book?
Posted by AshleeLupchinsky at 08:25 AM | Comments (0)
The "Template" Theory
In chapter 1 of It Ain't Necessarily So, Murray, Swartz, and Lichter discuss the idea of news writers using a set format for their writing.
The authors quote Amanda Bennett, Wall Street Journal Atlanta bureau chief, saying, "what editors and other people who are not on the ground have decided is The Story," in reference to the "template" theory (29).
When I originally saw the title of this section, I thought that the "template" theory was just going to be a certain outline that news writers use when writing articles. This "outline" (or template) would in turn restrict the writers to writing exactly as the template is laid out.
For example, they must:
1.start with the lead
2.interesting fact about the article
3.quotes
4.more quotes
5.another interesting fact
6. wrap-up
Of course as I continued to read this section, I discovered that my idea of the "template" theory was in fact incorrect. The authors and Amanda Bennett basically describe this theory to be what others (or the editor) think that the readers will want to see. One of the examples given in the book is about AIDS. The authors believe that if a newspaper writes an article about the decline in AIDS, readers will be less likely to continue reading through the article. Rather, readers want to see that AIDS is getting worse and more people are becoming infected.
This of course is a great way to think if you are the financial advisor for the newspaper, but if all of a newspapers stories are turned at the alternative angle, then why should anyone even pick up a newspaper containing so many biases.
Posted by AshleeLupchinsky at 08:11 AM | Comments (0)
Pseudo-Color: Cliches
After reading chapters 9 and 10, I began to think, "That is exactly how I have been writing." I think that for each of the articles that I have written for this news writing class, I have used at least one cliche that I have seen written in a local newspaper.
Reading these two chapters helped me to see that these cliches do in fact turn a reader off. The example cliches that are given at the end of chapter 10, can really show a novice news writer what not to do.
I hope that in the future when I write my articles, that these cliches stay at the back of my mind, rather than in my article.
Posted by AshleeLupchinsky at 07:52 AM | Comments (3)