20/20 Report

1. I don't see how it is ever ok to manipulate photos or videos that accompany reporting. Whether it's altering a magazine photo to make a celebrity appear thin, or photoshopping in more diversity in a college pamphlet, it isn't real. Journalists and reporters should be dedicated to telling the truth, not sensationalizing an issue with an altered photo.
2.I understand that newspapers need readers, and television networks need ratings, but the overexaggeration and hype of headlines is annoying. Sometimes I feel that people may listen to the report, but they find the hype ridiculous. I think if the media actually toned it down, they might be surprised to find some people actually appreciative of it.
3.It always creates a conflict of interest to be accept free gifts from the company your are reporting on. It makes it personal, and I feel it is hard for the reporter to remain objective. It's absolutely ridiculous, and it shouldn't be allowed, but if for some reason a reporter can't afford it, they should be obligated to state in their report that their trip was paid for by the PR company.
4. The media want to report on unusual things, and they know that these outlandish stories will attract people. It's like they said in the video, a reporter gets so attracted to a story that they will do anything to run it. Even if that means ignoring signs that show the story needs more investigating. I think internet news media will be less likely to fall for elaborate hoaxes because on a daily basis there are new internet hoaxes that they need to watch out for. I feel that internet media might be more trained to spot when something is fake. It's hard to say for sure though, it very well might be the opposite.

Linden Lab Announces it's new creation Second Life Enterprise Beta

A virtual workplace solution is what the Second Life Enterprise Beta offers consumers.
Linden Lab creator of the virtual world Second Life launched a secure and flexible virtual workplace solution officials announced today.
Second Life Enterprise appeals to business because the program can be installed behind the firewall to ensure to privacy and protection. Organizations have complete control over the access of information.
It runs completely with an organization’s network, and it provides the same level of security controls as their internet, official said. It enables confidential information for prototypes, information and training materials to be shared securely.
“Second Life Enterprise is built to be security optimized and to be more reliable,” Web Content Strategist Brett Atwood said.
14 organizations are participating in the Beta program, including companies like IBM, Northrop Grumman, and the U.S. Navy.
“Second Life Enterprise Beta is a perfect complement to our existing work offerings, enabling us to offer a virtual work experience tailored to meet the specific needs of a broad range of organizations,” said Mark Kingdon, CEO of Linden Lab.
Along with the launch of the Enterprise, Linden Lab announced the creation of The Second Life Work Marketplace.
Set to launch in 2010, The Marketplace enables customers to browse, test and purchase content from developers.
Second Life Enterprise is designed to be completely immersive and interactive.
Atwood said that Second Life Enterprise has a 3-D spatial aspect that is better than 2-D.
With an increasing globalization of the workforce and high cost of travel, more organizations are turning to virtual worlds to conduct meetings and conferences.
“By 2012 more than 70% of organizations will use private virtual worlds,” Atwood said.
Second Life Enterprise includes features like seven prepackaged virtual regions, including an auditorium, two conference centers and a number of regions where users can test virtual items and practice building, officials said.
Businesses use Second Life Enterprise for virtual meetings, conferences, recruiting, complex simulations and more.

News War

After viewing part III of Frontline's "News War," I have come to the conclusion that the news and media will continue to change, and what the future holds is unpredictable. I found the documentary to be extremely interesting and very relevant to my future. One of the interesting points that was highlighted is the content of the news that runs for audiences. Today news seems to be more and more consumer-driven. Information is not shown unless it's what the public wants.

What i also found interesting was the shift in cable in the year 2000. The documentary says that with the large corporations buying news organizations, the audience base became different. After the precedent of 60 minutes, it was now important for news organizations to make money. As a result of this viewership began changing. It was no longer important to attract as many viewers as possible. With the creation of opinion shows, news organization focused on narrowing their viewers. This has drastically limited the amount of investigative reporting. I feel this decline is doing a great disservice to the public. The sense of public service that journalism provided seems to be dwindling.

It was interesting to see how the internet has affected the journalism profession. Blogging websites provide a forum for people to post their opinions. Citizen journalism is a great way to get different points of view and sides of story, but there definitely needs to be a clear line between the profession, and outlets such as the blogosphere. Journalists are professionally trained to find stories and report on issues that benefit the general public. Like Nicholas Lemann said, citizen journalism isn't reporting on new information. Journalism is a profession, it doesn't just equal a suit and tie. Individuals are trained on how to deliver the news. I think it's great that people are able to report on issues, and it's a great way to incorporate the internet, but the line needs to be clear between journalism and citizen journalism.

statistics research

For the year of 2006, Pullman had 4 hate crimes occur. Other universities in Washington state also had 4 hate crimes occur. Other cities in Washington had about an average of 4 crimes occur in 2006. In comparison to other cities Pullman has about the same or less of a rate of hate crime occurrences. The hate crimes that occur most frequently are due to race or sexual orientation.

Washington state governor candidate Christine Gregoire received the most political donations. She received $12,002,778 in 2008. The candidate also won the race for governor. Aside from political parties, the industry that provided the largest contribution to the candidates was the Associated general contractors of Washington with a donation of $7,300. The democratic political party was the recipient of the most money donated by the forestry and forest products industry. The republican political party was the recipient of the most money donated by the lobbyists and public relations industry.

Google Patents:
Digital video recorder http://www.google.com/patents/about?id=N7h1AAAAEBAJ&dq=digital+video+recorder
Social Networking http://www.google.com/patents/about?id=aTB4AAAAEBAJ&dq=social+networking
Automobile http://www.google.com/patents/about?id=0IhDAAAAEBAJ&dq=automobile

Let's talk about safety

Every year more than 1 million women and 370,000 men are cyber stalked.

These statistics were shared on Wednesday during a talk hosted by Kintisha Williams to educate the public on cyber stalking and bystander intervention.

Williams is the coordinator of the crime victim service center, which is a part of alternatives to violence on the Palouse. Williams explained to the audience, made up of about 10 people, the specific definition of stalking.

“It’s considered stalking once a person asks someone not to contact them again,” Williams said. “The Washington state law clearly defines the boundaries.”

Williams said cyber stalking is becoming a big problem with men and women in the 18-25 age groups. This means that WSU and U of I students encounter cyber stalking problems frequently.

Williams said she encounters more students from the University of Idaho with cyber stalking problems than WSU. She attributed this to the differences in the law between Washington and Idaho.

In Washington, the first offense is a misdemeanor, but if the person continues to stalk it can turn into a Class C felony, Williams said.

Pam Persoon, who also works with Williams at the CVSC is from Idaho. She said cyber stalking wasn’t considered a felony in Idaho.

“The police are very serious about people who violate a protection order, and they will pick them up right away,” Williams said.

Judges also get very angry at violations. They take it more seriously because people have been killed as a result of cyber stalking, Persoon said.

Williams warned that the internet can be a haven for stalkers because people can make up an identity that is hard to trace.

She suggested that students be careful on social networking sites, keep all personal information off the internet, and to be careful who you befriend or talk to on these sites.

“More and more employees and universities are using facebook pages to determine a person’s character,” Williams said.

Williams also suggested ways that people could intervene in dangerous situations. She encouraged students to become safe, active bystanders.

When there are more bystanders during a conflict, there is less of a chance that someone will step in to help, Williams said.

“It’s as simple as screaming help, or fire, when someone is in trouble,” she said.

During the talk Williams encouraged students to take advantage of the crime victim service center.

The CVSC is a collaborative effort, and it has a lot of resources that are designed to help victims of crimes, Williams said.

Resources include a 24 hour crisis hotline at 800-701-8385, safety planning and financial assistance.

Let's talk about safety

Every year more than 1 million women and 370,000 men are cyber stalked.

These statistics were shared on Wednesday during a talk hosted by Kintisha Williams to educate the public on cyber stalking and bystander intervention.

Williams is the coordinator of the crime victim service center, which is a part of alternatives to violence on the Palouse. Williams explained to the audience, made up of about 10 people, the specific definition of stalking.

“It’s considered stalking once a person asks someone not to contact them again,” Williams said. “The Washington state law clearly defines the boundaries.”

Williams said cyber stalking is becoming a big problem with men and women in the 18-25 age groups. This means that WSU and U of I students encounter cyber stalking problems frequently.

Williams said she encounters more students from the University of Idaho with cyber stalking problems than WSU. She attributed this to the differences in the law between Washington and Idaho.

In Washington, the first offense is a misdemeanor, but if the person continues to stalk it can turn into a Class C felony, Williams said.

Pam Persoon, who also works with Williams at the CVSC is from Idaho. She said cyber stalking wasn’t considered a felony in Idaho.

“The police are very serious about people who violate a protection order, and they will pick them up right away,” Williams said.

Judges also get very angry at violations. They take it more seriously because people have been killed as a result of cyber stalking, Persoon said.

Williams warned that the internet can be a haven for stalkers because people can make up an identity that is hard to trace.

She suggested that students be careful on social networking sites, keep all personal information off the internet, and to be careful who you befriend or talk to on these sites.

“More and more employees and universities are using facebook pages to determine a person’s character,” Williams said.

Williams also suggested ways that people could intervene in dangerous situations. She encouraged students to become safe, active bystanders.

When there are more bystanders during a conflict, there is less of a chance that someone will step in to help, Williams said.

“It’s as simple as screaming help, or fire, when someone is in trouble,” she said.

During the talk Williams encouraged students to take advantage of the crime victim service center.

The CVSC is a collaborative effort, and it has a lot of resources that are designed to help victims of crimes, Williams said.

Resources include a 24 hour crisis hotline at 800-701-8385, safety planning and financial assistance.

"Special Leads"

"Even in an era of escalating pop spectacle, Pink’s “Funhouse” tour is going to be hard to top."
This is an example of a contrast lead because it compares Pink's Funhouse tour to the other pop artist performances of today.

Is this the best lead for the story?
The lead is fitting because it compares Pink's performance to other pop artists and makes it stand out. It keeps the reader interested and it makes them want to read on to hear what the reviewer had to say about her show.

Can this lead be improved?
I think the lead perfectly sums what the article is about, and it peaks the readers interest. It has strong, powerful verbs that stand out like escalating. I don't think it needs improvement.

Is a summary more appropriate?
A summary lead wouldn't entice the reader to want to finish the article, the contrast lead functions as sort of a cliff hanger. The reader wants to find out what happened on the tour. If it were a summary lead they would get most of their information in the lead and not be interested in reading until the end of the story.

Would one of the other special leads work better?
I think that if the author added a quote, maybe from the show, it would compliment the contrast lead, but I don't think any other special lead would function better.

http://www.nytimes.com/pages/arts/index.html

Staccato Lead
"Man o'War in the 1920s. Phar Lap in the '30s. Secretariat in the '70s. Dancing Brave in the '80s. The debate over horse racing's greatest ever flat runner has always been as contested as a Breeders' Cup — and it just got hotter."

Is this the best lead for the story?
I think this lead works for the story because it is suspenseful, when it says "and it just got hotter," it makes the reader want to find out why, so they keep reading to learn about the race horse Sea the Stars.

Can this lead be improved?
If the reader didn't know anything about horse racing, it would be confusing and they might not read on. It might have been better to clarify.

Is a summary more appropriate?
No I think it would make the story uninteresting

Would one of the other special leads work better?
I think this lead is very fitting for the story. The other leads wouldn't be able to captivate the reader as this does.

http://www.time.com/time/arts/article/0,8599,1927869,00.html

Rock the CASA

Saturday from one to five p.m. Kappa Alpha Theta hosted their second annual benefit concert in their parking lot at 850 NE Monroe street.

Kappa Alpha Theta sold Rock the CASA tickets for $5, and all of the proceeds will go to court appointed special advocates, or CASA.

“CASA helps children that come from abused or neglected homes, when they are wards to the legal system,” Hannah Fanslow, Kappa Alpha Theta’s current philanthropy chair, said. “CASA makes a child’s life easier, and they provide things like senior pictures, summer camps for kids, or just support in general.”

Saturday’s concert included the performers Cassie Correlle, All Hands Point Up, Sight vs. Sound, and Brett Hite. Papa John’s sold pizza at the event for $2 with 20 percent of the profits from the day going to CASA.

Last year was the first time the sorority put on the concert because before they had a different philanthropy event.

“We used to make calendars of the men of WSU, and along with that we held a flag football tournament for teams to participate in,” said Erin Ehrmantraut Kappa Alpha Theta’s previous philanthropy chair.

Ehrmantraut said that the cost to make the calendars was more than the money they actually raised for CASA.

“I think we raised maybe $3,000 selling calendars, and when we put on Rock the CASA last year, we raised over $5,000,” she said.

Because Rock the CASA was so successful last year, Fanslow said she felt pressure to put on a good event.

“I think the philanthropy chairs set the bar really high last year, and I felt I had to make the event just as successful if not more,” she said.

Fanslow said she thought Saturday had a turnout bigger than last year.

“There were a lot of things that have been improved upon this year,” said Katie Ireland, Kappa Alpha Theta’s other philanthropy chair from last year.

Ireland and Ehrmantraut agreed that getting a local band this year was a great idea, and it helped greatly with the turnout of the event.

Even though the concert was considered a success, Ehrmantraut said there is always room for improvement.

“The concert had exactly the same setup as last year, and I think we should strive for some more variety,” she said.

Fanslow said she has some tips for the pair that takes over the position of philanthropy chairs next year like making sure there is communication and that they work together.

“I felt like the work between the two philanthropy chairs seemed very one-sided,” Ireland said. “It’s a lot of work because so many things have to be taken into account.”

“Planning a concert is a lot harder and more detail-oriented than I thought,” Fanslow said. She also said the services in the CUB were helpful since Kappa Alpha Theta is a registered student organization.

Theta not only revamped their philanthropy to raise more money, but also to get the community more involved, said Ehrmantraut.

Fanslow said people from the community and family members of the band came this year.

“Our event isn’t exclusive to the Greek Community and we hope to expand it so even more people want to get involved,” she said.

The women hope that they can expand Rock the CASA and make it bigger and better each year.

“We hope in the future CASA will get big enough on our campus for more well-known bands to play,” Fanslow said.

Second-Day Lead

It has been 24 hours and Angela Melissa Norton is still missing with no new reports on her whereabouts.
Police are questioning the babysitter and parents. They have also knocked on every door in the six-block area in the Norton's neighborhood to see if anyone has seen or heard something.
Maria L. Norton, the mother or Angela, issued this plea when she met with reporters.
"We are begging anyone who might have seen our daughter to please call the police or us," she said. "She has never been away from home without us, and we are certain that she must be terrified not to be in her own home."

Al Jazeera

1.How effective do you think the Internet will be for Al Jazeera as it attempts to reach a U.S. audience?

I think that the internet is an extremely useful venue for Al Jazeera to reach an American audience.First of all, one is able to access the news station at any time with it's streaming of videos.Having that luxury is extremely convenient for anyone with a busy schedule that doesn't have time to tune into news channels. The internet is a growing venue that many Americans easily have access to. Even though Al Jazeera doesn't have the backing of any networks, I still think their voice will be heard over the internet.


2. Based on your own observations, do you think that Al Jazeera English should be allowed to broadcast in the U.S.?

Based on my watching of the news channel, I don't see the harm in airing Al Jazeera on American t.v. I think that as Americans, our news is very slanted, and I didn't even realize the lack of world perspective that we had in our news until I watched some Al Jazeera. When talking about Obama's speech on peace between Israel and Palestine, Al Jazeera gave perspectives from people in both Jerusalem and Palestine. I feel like sometimes we are lacking a world perspective. I do understand that sometimes the perspective of AL Jazeera can be skewed against Americans, but it is impossible to be completely unbiased about issues, and the only way for people to make up their own mind, is if they are offered many different perspectives.

3.What, if anything, do you notice about Al Jazeera's approach to telling the news? How is it different than the U.S.-based TV news outlets that you have experienced?

The reporters were very careful with the way they worded things. The mention of Barack Obama was completely neutral, so there was no positive or negative spin on his speech. They also didn't show the opinions of American politicians about his speech. I feel that oftentimes a network will report on a speech by the President and then show a clip of what the political opposition has to say about it. Al Jazeera does a much better job of staying neutral because they don't have the pressure from sponsors and networks' political convictions.


4. While on the Al Jazeera site, be sure to check out the network's published Code of Ethics. Based on your own observations, do you think they are adhering to them?

After reviewing the code of ethics, I think Al Jazeera does a good job adhering to them. As I have stated before, I think that it is impossible to be completely objective on an issue, and it was evident in some of the reporters, that they had opinions and biases. That aside, I think Al Jazeera did an excellent job at "distinguishing between news material, opinion and analysis to avoid the pitfalls of speculation and propaganda."

Summary News Lead

"Four months after a torrent of water from a broken city water main rushed through her rental house in Ravenna, Lynn Potthoff is still negotiating with Seattle officials over damage costs."

This is an example of a summary news lead because it is a single paragraph consisting of at least 35 words. The verb in the lead, "rushed" expresses the what of the story. It conveys to the reader that this woman's house was flooded. The verb is also placed toward the beginning of the lead. The verb is in active instead of passive voice. The lead also gives the reader an indication of the "who" in the story is by listing the name of the woman affected by the flooding. The lead also gives the reader the "what," "why," "where" and "how" of the story.

What- Potthoff is negotiating with Seattle officials damage costs of her home

Why- Her rental house was flooded

How- A city water main broke causing the flood

Where- Ravenna

3 Pitches

Here are three wonderfully creative ideas for my first story assignment in J-305:

1. Greek Centennial week- It is the 100th anniversary of Greek life at Washington State University. For my story I would like to find out exactly what this means for the Greek community. Why is it such a big landmark? What has Panhellenic and IFC done to commemorate the event? Do they feel it will be successful?
Contacts: Elizabeth Boss: VP Media Relations and Brittany Koehler VP Programming

2. Project Give: ASWSU has decided to give back to the Pullman community by getting WSU students involved in a campus-wide community service project. I want to find out the exact plans for this project. How do they think they will get students to participate? What makes this community service opportunity so unique? I also want to get the inside story from the new director of philanthropy and community outreach, since last year he was at first denied his position by the ASWSU senate. Now that he has been approved I want to know if it affects what and how he does his job.
Contacts: Edison Kent director of philanthropy and community outreach, Jay Hendrickson, ASWSU VP

3. Rock the CASA: Kappa Alpha Theta holds a benefit concert for their charity, Court Appointed Special Advocates. Last year was the first time holding the concert, and I want to find out what this year will be like. Are the people in charge of it nervous that it won't be as successful? What were some of the challenges of planning it? Why will students enjoy the event?
Contacts: Hannah Fanslow, philanthropy chair this year, Katie Ireland philanthropy chair, last year.

Traditional Journalism

Watching both videos on the Chevron Texaco Ecuador lawsuit, it became very clear how one issue can be presented in vastly different ways. While I found the 60 minutes clip to be much more credible and less biased than the second, I still don't feel that traditional journalism is represented in either of the videos.
Traditional journalism is defined as remaining neutral at any cost. It should be noted that the 60 minutes video does present both sides of the issue and makes an effort to interview people within the Chevron company, but it is still very clear throughout the video that they have some bias toward Ecuador.
The other video cannot be considered traditional journalism because it isn't even real journalism. As pointed out in the New York Times article, the video was posted on youtube, not a credible website, and it was a reporter hired by the company who investigated for the video. It is more of a PR campaign than a journalistic piece. The video doesn't even pretend to be neutral, it is so completely biased. Only Chevron employed scientists, environmentalists...are interviewed, and not one person from the opposing side actually talks to the reporter. It is the same story skewed in a completely different way.
I am not sure traditional journalism can ever be followed because it is hard to be completely unbiased about any issue, but the 60 minutes video clearly presents both sides of the issue, while the second video fails to do so.