J 201 - Section 305

Online Assignment #2

2012-03-02T02:11:00.002-06:00

1) How well did the journalistic community liveup to its responsibility to present the facts?

Post 9/11, thejournalistic community was not itself. They were caught up in patriotism and wanting to defend theircountry. Therefore, instead of devotingthemselves to searching for the truth behind some of the government’s claimsabout the terrorist attacks, the journalists found themselves more pronetowards backing the president and uniting the country. Therefore, when the press presented theirinformation to the public, they neglected to do dig deeper and make sure thatthey were publishing the truth. Forexample, the government claimed that Saddam Hussein had weapons of massdestruction and the journalistic community failed to see if this was a validclaim.

2) Where they failed, why did they do so?

They failed becausethey are human beings. They are notperfect. They found themselves in adeeply emotional time considering they felt vulnerable after the 9/11attacks. Therefore, a sense of unitythrough patriotism took over, and this developed into community that startedscrutinizing other journalists – a.k.a the “patriotism police”. This led to a journalistic community that wasless focused on questioning their government and a community less focused oninvestigating all of the claims being made by the government officials.

3) What kinds of pressures did news organizationsface?

The news outletsfaced pressure from their sponsors who threatened to cut advertising if thejournalists published stories that shed negative light on the government’sefforts in their response to 9/11. Forexample, they were instructed not to publish stories of soldiers’ deaths on thefront page of the newspaper. Anadditional source of “patriotism police” was that of other news outlets. For example, FOX news claimed that CNN wasanti-American since they took a more balanced approach to their coverage of thewar (relative to FOX news).

4) How did different kinds of news outletscover the issue differently? What was the difference between the outlets?

Different news outlets had different coverage of the issues. For example, FOX news gave favorable coverageto conservative views and focused on finding Saddam Hussein. On the other hand, CNN focused on what washappening to people involved in the war effort and the U.S. militaryoverseas. Therefore, the differencebetween the outlets was that some outlets were more focused on being patriotic,while others were focused on a more balanced approach. Additionally, there was a difference betweensmall newspapers and large newspapers. Small newspapers were somewhat separated from outside pressures and wereable to focus on investigating thoroughly the claims being made by thegovernment. On the other hand, thelarger newspapers were forced to have a more patriotic view of the government.

Online Assignment #2

2012-03-02T01:35:00.000-06:00

1) How well did thejournalistic community live up to its responsibility to present the facts?

The journalistic community was toooverwhelmed by patriotism and an aura of uncertainty to properly report on the9/11 and the war following this event. In a time period where everyone wassearching for answers, preferably the right ones, many chose to simply followthe government’s beck and call with whatever they reported. A lot of theinformation reported came from a united force of journalists dedicated toserving their country, yet this force failed to follow the simple basics offact-checking (i.e. Saddam’s blaming for 9/11 before Iraqi invasion, WMD) in ascramble to find any answer to satisfy themselves and the public instead of theright answer that would benefit them all through the truth no matter howhideous or corrupt.

2) Where they failed, whydid they do so?
Anyonewho dared to doubt or question was scrutinized by the “patriotism police” forbeing too liberal or insensitive or even unpatriotic. This led to thelaissez-faire approach where press would just “get out of the way” at pressconferences or when stories broke from Capitol Hill. Another issue was thetrusting of the large reliance on fabricated and sensationalized information originatingfrom Iraqi “defectors” that struck more fear into the public through storiesthat ranged from the believable to the downright absurd (i.e. secret nuclearbase underneath Sadaam’s home, secret meetings about terrorist intel).

3) What kinds of pressuresdid news organizations face?
News outlets faced pressure from the “patriotism police” to remain optimistic andsensitive to the American conscience. Many couldn’t publish photos of warcasualties (Herald, CNN). or focus their coverage too much on the war without balancingit out with lighthearted stories or a reserved attitude (CNN). This pressurecame from between outlets (FOX News calling CNN “too liberal”), the White Houseadministration, and even advertisers calling in about their concerns with thecontent.

4) How did different kindsof news outlets cover the issue differently? What was the difference betweenthe outlets?
FOX News, a notoriously conservative pro-Republican television outlet, showedunflinching and unquestioning support for the Bush administration and itsdecisions leading up to and during wartime. During 9/11, their stance alignedperfectly with the government’s accusations and charges against the foreign “enemies”in the Middle East. CNN, a more liberal pro-Democrat television outlet, wascharged with being “too liberal” for showcasing stories chronicling the deathand unrest surrounding the ongoing conflict through photographs and videos ofbattle. Newspapers across the country seemed to align in a manner that variedby state, but entities such as Knight Ridder made it their duties to questionand scrutinize government decisions ceaselessly with a whistleblower mentality.

Online Assignment #2

2012-03-01T19:14:00.001-06:00

1) How well did the journalisticcommunity live up to its responsibility to present the ‘facts’?

Idon’t think that the journalistic community lived up to its responsibility topresent the ‘facts’ because it seemed like most of the news outlets wanted toback up the government. The government pushed their agenda of retaliatingagainst the terrorists and anyone who had aided them. The journalisticcommittee helped with this because they rallied the country to stand togetheras one united front, which was great, but they had rallied the country as tofinding out who exactly to blame for the horrific events of 9/11. An examplefrom the movie was when journalists were reporting on Saddam Hussein’s alliancewith Al Qaeda and they didn’t check their facts to support their claims.

2) Where they failed, why did they do so?

Ithink the main point where they failed was not being skeptic enough towards theadministrations allegations and the allegations of journalists reporting thealliance between Al Qaeda and Saddam Hussein. I think that after the attacksand President Bush’s speech on September 20, rallied a patriotic feelingthroughout America, which was good, but that Bush wanted to put forth thePATRIOT Act so fast, without fully checking the consequences of the act. Also,the journalists that wrote about the alliance between Al Qaeda and Hussein didnot check their facts before writing a story that the whole country would see.

3) What kinds of pressures did news organizations face?

Ithink that the main pressures that the news organizations faced were those ofremaining positive and conveying a feeling of solidarity so much that they wereunable to scrutinize the government’s actions after 9/11. I think that sincethe country was under a blanket of patriotism, anything to suggest that thecountry, or its government, was in the wrong about the events following 9/11 wouldseem to be inappropriate at the time.

4) How did different kinds of news outlets cover theissue differently? What was the difference between the outlets?

Asmentioned in the video, Fox News was reporting on more of “getting ready forwar” stance. They were fiery and hostile when talking about 9/11, which isunderstandable, but I felt like they had one opinion and would report on that andnothing else mattered. Whereas CNN had reported on the civilians overseas thatwere being hurt in the aftermath and how CNN was thought of as “un-American”for showing those civilians’ casualties on their broadcasts. I also think thatthe smaller “middle class” papers got away with scrutinizing the government andits decisions more because they had a smaller audience and it would be theirmen and women sent overseas to fight in the war. I think the difference betweenthese outlets were the fact that the conservative Fox News and the liberal CNNwere counted on to side with their political parties’ views and not waver.Whereas with the smaller productions and papers, the views that differed, werenot automatically put down as “wrong”.

Online Assignment 2

2012-03-01T15:38:00.000-06:00

1) How well did the journalistic community live up to its responsibility to present the ‘facts’?

The journalistic community failed to live up to its responsibility to present the facts. After 9/11, the nation was so caught up in the patriotic feelings that was sweeping the country that they would have listened to anything if they thought it was for the betterment of the country and "payback" for what was done. So many were affected by 9/11, and because it was the first time that many had experienced something like it. The journalistic community should have delved deeper into the whole situation and investigated more, which is what every good journalist does. However, this was not the case.

2) Where they failed, why did they do so?

They failed simply because of the huge pressure to throw 100% of their support behind the administration. Nothing like this was foreseen or handled before, and because of the overwhelming pressure to support the journalism community did not to do its due diligence. Anything going against the war would have been labeled as unpatriotic and received massive backlash.

3) What kinds of pressures did news organizations face?

News organizations faced the pressures to make sure they were in line with all the decisions that the Bush administration and the government made, to ensure that there would not be any backlash. Because everybody in the country unified under the American flag and patriotism was at unprecedented heights, it would have looked bad to go against anything, because in the minds of the public that is what was necessary.

4) How did different kinds of news outlets cover the issue differently? What was the difference between these outlets?

News outlets covered the issue differently, and there was a lot of scrutiny involved between them. Fox News is usually considered a conservative news network that many people affiliate with the Republican party, and Fox News fully supported the war and the decisions the government made. CNN, on the other hand, showed casualties of the war and images that were sometimes hard to see from the war, and Fox News attacked them for it, saying they were unpatriotic. It was a very delicate situation for news outlets on how they covered it, because people were so sensitive and they had to be careful on how they presented the issue.

Online Assignment 2

2012-03-01T12:45:00.002-06:00

1) How well did the journalistic community live up to itsresponsibility to present the ‘facts’?

· Unfortunately the journalistic community did not live up toits responsibility to present the facts. The journalistic community, like therest of country, was swept up in a swell of patriotism. They, like the rest ofus, were shattered by the events that transpired on September 11, 2001. Thislet sadly let them be spoon fed by the bush administration. The journalisticcommunity did not do enough work to scrutinize and question the reports by thebush administration when they wrongly took us into an unwinnable war in theMiddle East.

2) Where they failed, why did they do so?

· They failed in questioning the decisions of theadministration. They did this because of the enormous pressure to support andheal America after the horrifying terrorist attacks. In the months followingthe attacks, the swell of patriotism was astounding and it was incrediblyfrowned upon to cry foul at the government after what had happened. The war inIraq was presented as a way to avenge 9/11. Who would not want to do that? Thatis why the journalistic community failed.

3) What kinds of pressures did news organizations face?

· News organizations faced enormous pressure to support anyall decisions made by the United States government in the wake of September 11,2001. With the rising tide of patriotism and support for the country, it wasincredibly difficult to go the other way and scrutinize the decisions comingfrom the white house. The media found it very difficult to swim up stream.There was not only pressure from the government but from the people and readersas well. After what had just happened readers wanted more patriotic material,it was not the time or place to criticize the government.

4) How did different kinds of news outlets cover the issuedifferently? What was the difference between these outlets?

· The sizeof the news program was important. Small, local news outlets were able to getaway with scrutinize the government. On the other hand, large news outlets likethe Washington Post and the New York Times were not able to be so critical. Largerepublican news outlets, like Fox news, would criticize fellow broadcasts ofbeing to liberal or even un-American. The most pressing example of this waswhen CNN was showing Iraqi casualties on their news broadcast. This was oneexample of how Fox news and their republican administrative, whole heartily agreedwith their republican counterparts in the white house.

Online Assignment #2

2012-02-29T23:46:00.000-06:00

OnlineAssignment #2

1. How well did the journalistic community live upto its responsibility to present the ‘facts'?

The journalistic community did not live up toits responsibility to present the facts very well at all. In the surge ofpatriotism that followed 9/11, journalists allowed themselves to becomeemotional and lost their objectivity. They allowed themselves to be too easilyswayed by what the government had to say and dutifully reported thegovernment’s messages verbatim with little thought to finding if that was trueor not. They stopped asking questions, which is the very foundation thatjournalism is built on.

2. Where they failed, why did they do so?

The pressfailed as a whole by not investigating what they were given to the fullestextent. They often simply accepted what the government gave them, with littleeffort to find other sources to confirm or deny these reports. In addition,even stories with major red flags, such as the New York Times article on thesupposed Weapons of Mass Destruction, the reporters did not look close enoughto recognize these red flags, much less if any of the story had any truth toit.

3. What kinds of pressures did news organizationsface?

The newsorganizations faced enormous pressure from advertisers and other executiveshigh up in the organizations not to press too hard. These people wanted thenation to be united and pushed against any report that criticized thegovernment. It became an unspoken rule not to be too critical of theadministration, especially during wartimes. In addition, the reportersthemselves felt an strong desire to be “overwhelmingly patriotic” and felt asthough they must do something about 9/11.

4. How did different kinds of news outlets coverthe issue differently? What was the difference between these outlets?

Different news outlets have differentmeans of communicating in the post-9/11 era. One example was how smaller newsorganizations actually did try to pursue the truth and reported on itdutifully. However, because these organizations were smaller, they reachedfewer people. Thus, creating less of an impact. Most of the time these smallorganizations were outshined by the much larger institutions like the New YorkTimes or the Washington Post, both whicheagerly took any information the Bush administration would give out andregurgitated it to the public. Another example comes when Fox News accused CNNof being too liberal simply for putting pictures of civilian casualties on itsbroadcast. Thus showing how even news organizations that had roughly the sameinfluence had very different perspectives on the events happening overseas.

Online Assignment #2

2012-02-29T23:09:00.001-06:00

1. How well did the journalistic community live up to its responsibility to present the ‘facts’

The journalistic community did not live up to its responsibility to present the facts to the public. They focused on how the government wanted to portray the war and spread those ideas to the public. Journalists didn’t do their job to investigate the facts and question every amount of information they gathered. Instead, they used any information they could get their hands on and fed those lies to the public without thinking of their consequences. The government stretched the information they received about the connection of Saddam Hussain and Al Qaeda. Then the pressed relayed this information the public without checking the facts.

2. Where they failed, why did they do so?

They failed by not trying trying hard to find legitimate sources. When defectors gave them information, the press took what they said as fact without checking whether it was a trustworthy source. Journalists also took any information they could get from the Bush administration without confirming or investigating the claims they made. A Journalists job is to find the facts through investigation and relay these findings to the public. As said in the video, journalists served their country by being the best journalist they could be and they failed.

3. What kinds of pressures did news organizations face?

After 9/11 the citizens of the U.S. were terrified of the idea of terrorism, and there was a sweep of patriotism across the nation. The news organizations felt very pressured to abide by this patriotism and express a pro-american outlook in their pieces. If the press did not follow these rules they felt a large backlash from other news outlets as well as the American people. These new outlets were considered unpatriotic if they questioned the Bush administration or the decisions they made.

4. How did different kinds of news outlets cover the issue differently? What was the difference between these outlets?

Different news sources covered the issue very differently. Some news outlets took a more patriotic approach to the news to agree with the public and government view on the war. While other news sources did not follow these strict rules of what to publish. As said in the video, these news sources were criticized for there use of citizen casualties because the public didn’t respond in a good way to this perception on the war. The public wanted to see a highly patriotic view on the war on terror and a good view of government decisions. These news sources took a different approach by showing what was actually happening during the war.

Online Assignment #2

2012-02-29T13:30:00.001-06:00

1. After 9/11, journalists did not live up to their responsibilities to present the facts. Instead, the only source they provided was the U.S. government and the Bush administration. Because of the false and stretched information contributed by news organizations, the American people were misled. Like the reading from last week about a "marketplace of ideas," it is a journalist's job to sift through evidence and manipulated messages and separate truth from falsehood, and journalists did not accomplish this.

2. American journalists failed when they did not collect the necessary research, evidence, and leads to really make a valid argument. An example in the movie was when Chalabi provided the U.S. government with the false information that Saddam Hussein was housing weapons of mass destruction. The press fed into Chalabi, and Chalabi fed into the press. Neither journalists, nor the government, examined Chalabi's claim, and took his word without all the proper evidence. Journalists also made the mistake of not reporting the news on the war, but rather being a part of the "arsenal" of war, as mentioned in the video. By repeating "Al Qaeda" and "Saddam" over and over again, in every news story, they were "selling" this connection. People in the U.S. bought into this connection.

3. News organizations faced the pressure of trying to respond in an emotional, patriotic, and professional manner after 9/11, while trying to balance pressures of the government and advertisers. As mentioned in the movie, there was a pressure for news organizations, especially liberal news outlets, to be patriotic and support the president. If news organizations were to challenge patriotism, the government and American citizens made them feel there was something wrong and dishonorable with that.

4. Different news outlets had different ways of covering the issue, especially in attacks between partisan news. As mentioned in the movie, Fox News focused on how to go after Saddam Hussein, and gave neoconservatives a platform for their ideas on the war. CNN focused on what was happening to civilians and the U.S. military in the war overseas. The New York Times was the newspaper that caught America's attention. Because of its front page article on Hussein's weapons of mass destruction, people believed it and thought that if something is on the front page of the NY Times, it must be considered true. Also, journalists in the U.S. were not as aware as those in the Middle East.

Assignment #2

2012-02-29T11:12:00.000-06:00

1) How well did the journalistic community live upto its responsibility to present the ‘facts’?

As we can tellyears later, the journalistic community did a terrible job to present thefacts. If memory serves correctly one of the main reasons for the war was tofind weapons of mass destruction and the journalists did an excellent job ofconvincing everyone that Iraq did in fact have these. Did they? No. TheAmerican people were misled and lied to by both their government and thejournalistic community.

2) Where they failed, why did they do so?

The main failurewas being blinded by the situation at hand. After 9/11, the American people aswell as the community of journalists were stricken with grief. Most of themtook the information they were given by the bush administration and basicallyjust ran with it and published it as fact.

3) What kinds of pressures did news organizationsface?

The pressure thatthe news organizations faced the most was the pressure to appear pro American,patriotic, and pro war. They were under huge amounts of pressure to show thesoldiers as well as everyone in America in a positive light. One paper showeddead Iraq citizens and got hundreds of complaints for being un American. Afellow paper heard of this and let everyone know that they were not allowed toput this on the front page. They needed to seem as patriotic as possible andsupport the troops as well as the government in this hard time. Ultimately thiswas probably not the best decision.

4) How did different kinds of news outlets coverthe issue differently? What was the difference between these outlets?

Newsoutlets that were trusted at the time, and actually ended up apologizing forthe way they reported these issues years ago, all took their information fromthe administration and did very little investigative research into the issuesat hand. The few that did do a bit of research and noticed that the facts didnot add up were rare. One such newspaper was from Knight Ridder. However theissue was that they were just 1 that did not publish war propaganda when manyof the big hitters in the journalism community were doing nothing but. Theiroutreach was not as wide nor as deep as it should have been.

Online Assignment #2

2012-02-28T23:12:00.000-06:00

1) How well did the journalistic community live up to its responsibility to present the ‘facts’?

The media failed to live up to its responsibility to present the facts to the public. There was a pro war mentality after the 9/11 attacks and people were blinded by this emotion. The media was fed information from the government and defectors without making research of there own. There was a failure by journalist link inconsistencies and present the truth.

2) Where they failed, why did they do so?

Journalists failed to clear out the lies from the facts because of fear. People were afraid to ask the tough questions that went against the American war talk. People that did were quickly silenced and labeled un-American. Bill O’Rielly of Fox news said he “will call those who publicly criticize their country in a time of military crisis, which this is, bad Americans.” It was now considered anti-American to ask why. Phil Donahue had his own show that brought up the hard questions but was cancelled not due to ratings but because it brought “a difficult public face to NBC in a time of war.”

3) What kinds of pressures did news organizations face?

After the 9/11 attacks there was a huge amount of American patriotism. People were in fear and anger and wanted revenge on terrorism. There was pressure to be pro war American by competing media companies, pressure by the government, and pressure by bosses, if you did not want to fight this terror you were labeled un-American. This prevented people from asking questions of governments intentions.

4) How did different kinds of news outlets cover the issue differently? What was the difference between these outlets?

Most of the news outlets covered the issues similarly. That is why the truth was hidden. The large news sources bought into the propaganda, which fed into the pro war talks. Only a few news outlets researched on there own like the Knight Rider but they got very little coverage. Anti war material was limited in large newspapers and cut down. The journalists of Knight Rider and reporters like Bill Simon asked questions to the people that would tell the truth; they asked the people that would know. They asked away from the bias and were able to find the inconsistencies, but there material was ignored by the pro war stance of the larger corporations.

Online Assignment #2

2012-02-28T11:22:00.002-06:00

1. In my opinion, the journalistic community didnot do a very good job of living up to its responsibility to present thefacts. As stated in the Marketplace of Ideas reading for thisweek, political and economic influences on the marketplace “affect the abilityof the marketplace to connect political and social institutions and the public,and these can ultimately limit the effective functioning of the marketplace ofideas and knowledgeable participation in democratic society.” This is exactly what happened with 9/11 andthe War on Terror; it is the responsibility of a journalist to seek out thetruth instead of letting these various types of influences pressure them intoreporting a story in a certain way. Ifthe idea in this documentary that Hussein had no connection with weapons ofmass destruction is correct, then the journalistic community did a terrible jobof connecting political and social institutions and the public because majorityof the public, even after the event, believed that Hussein was behind 9/11 andwas housing these weapons.

2. The news outlets which failed made the mistakeof repeating the news they heard, instead of diving deeper into the story and investigatingfor themselves. As mentioned in thethird reading for this week, “a journalist is to question and scrutinizecritically-never to repeat claims uncritically, no matter how highly placed thesources in the bureaucracy.” It may seemokay to repeat the words of the president because he is in such a high positionof power, but in doing this it is possible that many news outlets misinformedAmerica. Those news outlets who didcheck another source, failed to do so in an investigative manner. An example was given in the movie where asource told reporters and administration the same thing, making it seem likethe news was coming from two legitimate sources, when in reality it wasn’t. In this scenario, the news outlets asked theadministration, who verified their claims, and the news outlets then took themas being correct instead of diving deeper into the story (like the reportersfor Knight Ridder did).

3. Since the country was in a state of devastation,news organizations faced immense pressure during the time of the War on Terror,especially closest to when 9/11 occurred. As mentioned in the video, liberal news organizations, such as CNN, wereput under a tremendous amount of political pressure to agree with what thepresident was doing, and when they showed any footage that may make the warseem unnecessary, they were criticized for being ‘anti-American’ and told tostop. Along with these pressures, newsorganizations faced pressure from the citizens of America. It is the responsibility of news broadcaststo inform and calm the people in a time of chaos and despair, and they somehowneeded to find a way to do this while still showing the truth, which was verychallenging in a disaster such as this one.

4. The simplest difference in variety of coverageof stories depended on whether the news outlet was slightly more liberal orconservative. For example, Fox newstended to show more material which would promote the war, and encouragecitizens that we needed revenge, while CNN and Knight Ridder focused more onhow our citizens were being sent overseas and put in danger. As far as investigating stories, KnightRidder was the only news outlet who went about things significantly differentthan the others. In my opinion, theywere also the only successful news outlet during this time because of theircareful and critical investigations. Instead of taking what was said at face value, they were skeptical aboutall incoming information and looked at various federal websites and spoke to the“insiders” working in Washington instead of merely the administration. Where they were suspicious about a story,they spent time delving into it to find the truth, instead of just accepting thelink the president and administration provided to be true.

Online Assignment #2

2012-02-27T23:41:00.003-06:00

1. The journalistic community struggled with its responsibilities to present the facts. Whereas journalists are usually expected to have at least a couple reliable sources, they were often manipulated by the Bush administration and the government into having one, unverified source. This idea of “selling the war” caused the American public to believe that war was the only answer, and that Saddam Hussein essentially caused the 9/11 attacks. The video showed that even after there was evidence to the contrary, polls showed that people still believed that Saddam Hussein was a great part of 9/11.

2. The journalists failed to present information and draw connections other than the little information that the Bush administration had given them. They focused on drilling the ideas of Iraq’s “weapons of mass destruction” and Saddam Hussein’s “support of terrorists” into the collective mind of the American public. As the video said, “the decision to go to war deserves the most serious level of scrutiny that the media can give it.” This entails that journalists do not publish works that are not verified by multiple, reliable sources. Many of these pre-war journalists were too overwhelmed by the patriotic sentiment that overwhelmed the United States; they failed to analyze the politics and the reasoning behind America’s entrance into the war.

3. The news organizations were faced with the powerful pressure of American patriotism. Most Americans were angry after 9/11, and the insatiable hunger for justification swept the nation; there was “little tolerance for political scrutiny from journalists.” In addition, news organizations were greatly influenced by advertisers, big people, and dominant corporations. Reporters were ordered to create the illusion of balance in all of their articles. For example, if the reporters were writing a story about civilian casualties in the Middle East, they were instructed to alleviate these facts with reminders of 9/11, which would insinuate that the violence was justified.

4. The video aims to demonstrate that each media news outlet – TV, radio, print – were all parts of the arsenal of “propaganda weaponry” that the government utilized throughout the early stages of the Iraq War. Most of the larger corporations, like the New York Times, conformed to this pro-war bias and published news that was consistent with the government’s stories. Knight Ridder, a media company that publishes newspapers outside of Washington DC and New York City, was among one of the few news outlets that actually sought validity and accuracy.

"Buying the War" Response

2012-02-27T19:43:00.001-06:00

1) How well did the journalistic community live up to its responsibility to present the ‘facts’?

The majority of the journalistic community failed to present facts. They took information straight from the government, failing to verify the information that was being given by this biased source, a source filled with “neo-conservatives” intent on war with Saddam Hussein long before the 9/11 attacks. In failing to present the facts, the public was on the receiving end of lies, with the cultivation of support for a war based on lies being the consequence.

Where they failed, why did they do so?

The journalistic community failed to use common sense in assessing the information that was distributed by the Bush administration regarding the link between 9/11, Al-Qaeda, Saddam Hussein, and weapons of mass destruction. One of the administration’s main sources of intelligence regarding Hussein’s alleged possession of weapons of mass destruction was Ahmed Chalabi, who was part of the Iraqi National Congress, which was developed in the 1990s to overthrow Hussein’s regime. In addition to this bias, Chalabi was a known con-man. Another source regarding Hussein’s WMDs was Al-Haideri. Haideri claimed to be a Kurd who had been into Hussein’s development facility located directly under his complex. There are two major flaws in this story. One, Kurds were the enemy group of Hussein; and two, it is highly unlikely anyone would put such a dangerous facility directly underneath their residence. Defectors such as Chalabi and Al-Haideri would tell their stories to both reporters and the administration, creating the illusion that there were two reliable sources of the information. Disastrously, both groups failed to notice this ploy. UN Weapons Reports available to the public showed no indication of WMDs in Iraq. The reasons, besides an unfortunate lack in the use of common sense, that contributed to the failure of journalists include the pressures that they faced from multiple sources. (see next answer)

What kinds of pressures did news organizations face?

News organizations faced pressure from the government, corporations, and the American people. The Bush administration formed a group known as the White House Iraq group, which was responsible for “selling” the Iraq War. This included making calls to media outlets that were “too critical” of the administration. Corporations who advertised with media outlets gave indirect threats, as they didn’t want their company being viewed as anti-American. A large portion of the pressure came from the consumers of media outlets, American citizens. In the highly emotional period following the tragedy of 9/11, it was seen as unpatriotic to criticize the administration that was supposedly seeking revenge on the perpetrators. Thus, news outlets ran stories of hope, stories that fit with the administration’s agenda for war.

How did different kinds of news outlets cover the issue differently? What was the difference between these outlets?

The news outlets that sought out the truth, or dared to present it, in this period were rare. Trusted, longstanding news outlets-- The New York Times, USA Today, The New Yorker-- all bought in to the propaganda of the administration. One of the only sources of ethical journalism during these times were newspapers owned by Knight Ridder. They continuously published reports questioning the validity of intelligence used by both the government and the press. The reasoning behind the Knight Ridder’s stance is that their newspapers are not published in Washington and New York. Their newspapers aren’t the ones read by the government, but by the people who would be most affected by the war-- normal citizens, many of them enlisted in the U.S. Army. Other sources of truth during this time included those who had direct observations of what was happening in Iraq, such as Bob Simon, who reported from Iraq for years.

Buying The War

2012-02-27T15:37:00.000-06:00

         The aftermath of 9/11 created an atmosphere of unprecedented patriotism and suspicion in the US, an atmosphere which extended to journalistic community and greatly affected their coverage of the subsequent invasion of Iraq. Buying The War, by Bill Moyers interprets the pro-US and pro-war bias in the press in the years following 9/11 as stemming from the pressure exerted by the American populace, as well as personal biases on the parts of the reporters. The bias manifested itself in the form of deliberate omissions of the effects of the war on Afghan and Iraqi civilians, as well as a dearth of criticism regarding the decision to go to war in the first place.
The bias was also the result however of external influences, both political and popular. The press as a whole was largely influenced and manipulated by senior officials, such as the screening of questions in advance of a White House press conference, as well as instances in which false information was given both to reporters and officials, resulting in erroneous sourcing.
         The journalistic community failed because they were not able to put aside their personal convictions for the sake of accuracy and truthfulness, making them that much more susceptible to outside influence. The facts which they presented were often half-truths, and at times patent untruths. The result of this failure was public support for a war based on falsities, instigated more for political gain than out of any sense of duty or patriotism.
         Not all media outlets covered the war identically however. According to Buying The War, Knight Ridder's media outlets deviated from the uniform support of the war offered by other outlets such as CNN, Fox News, and The New York Times. Moyers portrays the Ridder empire as being willing to openly criticize the other outlets, interviewing two journalists, Warren Strobel and Jonathan Landay, who investigated the people behind the war, finding numerous inconsistencies and instances of bad reporting. The Knight Ridder reporting on the Iraqi War thus offered a contrasting viewpoint to that of the mainstream media, a perspective which was unfortunately drowned in the flood of pro-war editorializing leading up to the US invasion of Iraq. Had its voice been louder, perhaps our memories of 9/11 and its effects would be drastically different.

Research Report- Media That Stir Emotions

2012-02-13T18:11:00.003-06:00

"Media That Stir Emotions" by Glenn Sparks

"Media That Stir Emotions" is a summaryof one study that was conducted among many by Glenn Sparks in thebook titled "Media Effects Research: A Basic Overview." The book examines the different effects of mediaand communications through scientific studies done by Sparks and others. The author then explains the scientific approaches and the results that werefound, and what those tell us about the effects of media through variousoutlets. This particular article focused on the effects about frighteningmedia, and how they impact different age groups in different ways. Thestudy was influenced by Sparks' own personal experience.

Dr. Glenn Sparks is a professor of communications at Purdue University. Sparks' expertise is the effects of media on people, especially violence and the effects of frightening images on children. Along with Will Miller, Sparks co-wrote Refrigerator Rights: Creating Connections and Restoring Relationships, and also wrote the "Seven Temptations of Modern Culture," with both books focusing on the presence of the media alienating society, and how to solve the problem ("Technos Interview- Glenn Sparks", 2012). Sparks is an academic, having earned his Ph.D at the University of Wisconsin, and his keen interest in the subject of media effects and the science behind it was most likely the motivation to write his book.

"Media That Stir Emotions" was published by Wadsworth Publishing for Cengage Learning ("About Cengage Learning,"). Cengage states that they are "a leading provider of innovative teaching, learning and research solutions for the academic, professional and library markets worldwide" ("About Cengage Learning,"). Cengage's desired goal is to "foster academic excellence and professional development, increase student engagement, improve learning outcomes and deliver authoritative information to people whenever and wherever they need it" ("About Cengage Learning,). Based off that, the publisher's audience are academic students, and reinforces the notion that the book is well-written and designed to give students a better understanding of the topic.

I had trouble scrounging up reviews for the book, and there were not many user reviews to be found as well. This could potentially be attributed to the book being published by Wadsworth for Cengage Learning and it being marketed to schools. It also could be a fact that Sparks presents the book in a very factual manner, not leaving much to be argued and questioned. Sparks, being very well regarded in academic circles as a communications expert, particularly media effects, makes it difficult to question his expertise.

Sparks' article is an extremely detailed and well-researched book that clearly demonstrates trends and patterns in frightening media along with other types. His claims are based purely off research and statistics, and this excerpt can be trusted as factual and reliable as to how the media can stir our emotions and its effect on us. It can be definitely looked at as a reliable piece of information that will not make us question both the author and research involved.

References

"Media Effects Research: A Basic Overview (with InfoTrac), (0534629172), Glenn G. Sparks, Textbooks - Barnes & Noble." Sitemap | Sitemap Home | Barnes & Noble. Web. 13 Feb. 2012.

Technos E-Zine "Technos Interview with Glenn Sparks"

Amazon Review

About Cengage Learning

Research Report: "Wounded but Non Slain"

2012-02-13T11:53:00.001-06:00

The piece,“Wounded but not slain: The orderly retreat of the American newspaper”,appeared in a publication titled, “The history of the book in America, vol. 5”.It is a scholarly anthology that hopes to examine the spread of books throughoutthe United States. It provides a history of literacy in American culture andinvestigates the practice of reading in the US. Our piece appears in the finalvolume, volume five, which is titled, “The Enduring Book: Print Culture inPostwar America” this final volume is a collection of publications that showwhere our culture is going after World War II. The book was written to show how the increase in education andtechnology affected literacy in the cold war era and beyond.

Theauthor of Chapter 7, “Wounded but not slain” is James L. Baughman, a facultymember here at UW since 1979. He does a lot of historical work therefore it isimportant to try and read this publication as fact. As a professor at a highcaliber university, he certainly is not trying to shock, surprise, or evenuncover some missing truth, but rather explain to the readers the simplyhistory of what happened in a very dry, but informative academic setting.Baughman is the author of four books, Same Time, Same Station: CreatingAmerican Television, 1948-1961; Television’s Guardians: The FederalCommunications Commission and the Politics of Programming, 1958-67; Henry R.Luce and the Rise of the Modern American News Media; and Republic of MassCulture: Journalism, Broadcasting, and Filmmaking in America since 1941. Hiswork is very informative and historical because he has written extensively onthe history of American journalism and broadcasting. Baughman earned his BAfrom Harvard and an MA, M.Phil. and Ph.D. form Columbia. That being said, Ithink it is very important to read this piece as factual history and not gettoo wrapped up in a search for hidden meaning.

Baughman’swriting is found in chapter seven, of the fifth volume of a greater publicationcalled “A History of the Book in American”. These five books were funded by anorganization called the American Antiquarian Society. They established theProgram in the History of the Book in American Culture (PHBAC) in 1983 in orderto create an interdisciplinary resource on the book in America. The program doesbibliographical research on early printed materials, but also tries to keep upwith current intellectual trends like the Internet, and their effects on booksand other printed objects. The five-volume set was an academic achievement thatreceived high praise. Humanities magazine wrote, “What the History of the Bookseries shows so clearly is that the world we know, the communities to which wealready belong, are reified and reinforced by books. Such is the incredible andincredibly flexible power of this primitive technology. Behold the book: It islimited but perfect." And The New England Quarterly had this to say, “Oneof the great scholarly projects of the late twentieth century and earlytwenty-first centuries. . . .The History is a miracle of extensive andintensive scholarship, sustained over decades and across continents.” Thispublication is extremely extensive and academic, let us read this piece muchlike we read our History textbooks.

References

Levinson, H. S. (n.d.). UNC Press - AHistory of the Book in America (5 volume set). UNC Press. RetrievedFebruary 13, 2012, from http://uncpress.unc.edu/books/T-8070.html

Program in the History of the Book inAmerican Culture at the American Antiquarian Society. (n.d.). AmericanAntiquarian Society. Retrieved February 13, 2012, fromhttp://www.americanantiquarian.org/hob.htm

baughman | School of Journalism &Mass Communication. (n.d.). School of Journalism & Mass Communication |University of Wisconsin-Madison. Retrieved February 13, 2012, fromhttp://www.journalism.wisc.edu/users/baughman

Discussion: "Media That Stir Emotions"

2012-02-13T01:20:00.000-06:00

In this article, Sparks speaks on the varying effects of disturbing/frightening media on young viewers with a narrowed focus on the paranormal. Sparks devoted his career to the study of the subject after a viewing of "The Twilight Zone" at age 6 left him terrified to the point where he never viewed it again. According to current statistics, 75% of elementary school children report fright from a film or television program.

The studies of developmental psychologist Jean Piaget revealed that perception of fright is based on cognitive development. Children ages 2-7 respond to perception and visual appearance because they cannot properly separate fiction from reality. As they get older, the introduction of more conceptual or abstract thought brings fear to the mind of a child. Can you recollect any frightening images or scenes in those mediums that left you frightened at a young age? Do any of these experiences still haunt you today?

UW-Madison researcher Joanne Cantor used Piaget's theories to later prove that older kids were more fearful of events that are more tangible or possible in reality instead of fiction. This can include events such as abduction, natural disasters, and warfare. Even more interesting, the ambiguity of the paranormal when juxtaposed with reality brings a more intense and lasting degree of fright to children and young adults. What is your position on the realms of the paranormal (real, fake, unsure)? As a moviegoer, are you a fan of the current wave of "found-footage" paranormal films (Paranormal Activity, Cloverfield, The Devil Inside)?

While fear is an important area of study, another prominent viewpoint is the element of "fun" brought forth in the paranormal or fantasy. Some believe labeling media "not real" makes it less threatening. Is this approach an acceptable defense for audiences? Other studies show a feeling of euphoria in the human body when it is excited in such a way. Feelings of negativity are substituted with a high of happiness or elation at the end of a film or show. Does fright bring you excitement or sheer dread?

Discussion: Wounded but Not Slain, Baughman

2012-02-11T14:29:00.000-06:00

In his chapter, "Wounded but Not Slain: The Orderly Retreat of the American Newspaper," Baughman not only writes about the "rules" and ideas of newspapers and how these rules have changed since World War II, but he also writes how and why American newspaper consumption descended. What are these "rules," and how have they changed over the years? He argues, against popular belief, that TV news programs did not make newspaper consumption decline, but rather TV entertainment is to blame for transforming audiences. What was the effect of TV entertainment on newspaper consumers?

Baughman explains that advertisers were attracted to TV because they were forced to pay more money to have ads in newspapers. Why else do you think advertisers were attracted to TV?

Baughman also argues that the Internet is now the greatest threat to newspapers. Do you think all print newspapers will disappear in our lifetime, and we will have to solely acquire the news via the Internet?

Research Report - The Advent of the Media

2012-02-06T14:10:00.000-06:00

“Coda: TheAdvent of the Media” by Paul Starr

“Coda:The Advent of the Media” is an excerpt from the book written by Paul Starrtitled The Creation of the Media:Political Origins of Modern Communications. The book explores the political, social and economic factors that formedthe rise of American media. Starr arguesthat America’s constitutional framework, ideologies and decisions - more sothan any natural resource, economic advantage or technology - produced thecommunications network that exists today. The excerpt features thoroughly researched material that is intended tobe an authoritative account of the advent of American media.

Paul Starr is aprofessor of sociology and public affairs at Princeton University ("Paul starron," 2011). His work TheSocial Transformation of American Medicine won him the 1984 Pulitzer Prizefor General Non-Fiction ("1984 winners and finalists," ), and his work from which the reading was drawn,The Creation of the Media, won him the 2005 GoldsmithBook Prize ("Goldsmith book prize," 2012). Starris an intellectual, an academic and is focused establishing a solid argument onthe subject matter presented in the book. His presentation of the subject matter should therefore be trustworthy.

The Creation of the Media was published by Basic Books ("The creation of," ). BasicBooks claims that it is a “renowned publisher of serious nonfiction by leadingintellectuals, scholars, and journalists” ("Aboutbasic books," ). It is their stated purpose to “shape publicdebate by publishing award-winning books in psychology, science, politics,sociology, current affairs, and history” ("Aboutbasic books," ). Thus the book’s intended audience is that ofintellectuals and scholars and not that of the general public. This indicates that the details of the thesisof the book should be well researched and backed by statistical evidence.

Reviews of the book weregenerally favorable, and there were only a couple negative reviews. A reviewer from the New York Times gave a positivereview noting that Starr “powerfully demonstrates” his thesis. Another reviewer gave analogous praise, notingthat “This thesis is well-argued, and Starr providescopious amounts of statistical evidence” (Scheuer ). On the other hand, one reviewerof the book stated their main grievance was that Paul Starr was an “Americanexceptionalist” ("The creation of," ). They arguedthat Starr was so determined to prove his point that at times he ignored certainpieces of evidence and at times contradicted himself. While there seemed to be no points ofcontradiction within the excerpt (which was 15 pages out of the 402 pages ofthe full book), the author was focused ondemonstrating how America made choices that led its communications networks to spread more quickly and moreefficiently than its European counterparts.

Starr’s book is a thoroughlyresearched, scholarly work in which he argues that America’s politicaldecisions were largely responsible for shaping American media. Starr’s arguments and ideas are based onevidence and statistics, and this excerpt can provide trustworthy insight intowhat has shaped American media.

References

1984 winners and finalists. (n.d.). Retrievedfrom http://www.pulitzer.org/awards/1984

About basic books. (n.d.). Retrievedfrom http://www.perseusbooksgroup.com/basic/home.jsp

Goldsmith book prize winners. (2012). Retrieved from http://www.goodreads.com/award/show/755-goldsmith-book-prize

Paul starr on american health care reform. (2011, November 01). Retrieved from http://yalepress.wordpress.com/2011/11/01/paul-starr-on-american-health-care-reform/

Scheuer , J. (n.d.). The creation of the media:Political origins of modern communications. Retrieved from http://www.jscheuer.com/mediacrit/starr.htm

Starr, P. (2005). The creation of the media:Political origins of modern communications. Basic Books.

The creation of the media: Political origins of moderncommunication. (n.d.). Retrieved from http://www.amazon.com/Creation-Media-Political-Origins-Communication/dp/product-description/0465081940

Discussion. The Unbeautiful Game

2012-02-06T13:35:00.000-06:00

The Gopnik article, “the Unbeautiful Game”, is about observations of football through different viewpoints. In the article Joe Namath says that you don’t see the game the same when you watch it on T.V. compared to on the field. Gopnik goes on to talk about different views of the game either from an athlete’s position, writers, analyst, or a kid behind a videogame screen. We all consume media differently whether it is sports, social entertainment, or political which gives us our viewpoint. Do you think you think each source of media does a good enough job telling the story as it is “on the field”, or do you think it is sensationalized? Do you think people should consume more diverse news to see from a different viewpoint?

The article briefly touches on the fact that a professional athlete has to worry about early career injuries that end careers and their future salary. As fans and spectators we see plenty of injuries during the game and many times those athletes will not be able to return to the field ever. As for one professional long snapper “had the bad luck in the Ravens camp to recover before he got cut [for] if he had still been injured, the Ravens would have had to pay him compensation.” We also hear on the news of athletes charged with crimes of violence often correlated to untreated head injuries during their careers. Do you think that there should be some sort of program that provides these athletes with long-term recovery plans that also help them get other jobs? Do you think professional sports have become to focused on money and less on the well being of their athletes?

Research Report - The Unbeautiful Game

2012-02-06T00:52:00.000-06:00

“TheUnbeautiful Game” by Adam Gopnik

“The Unbeautiful Game”is an article written by Adam Gopnik which appears in the January 8^th,2007 edition of The New Yorker. This article explores the various waysprofessional football can be considered unbeautiful, despite the way it can be glamorouslyportrayed on television. He suggeststhat watching a game on television and from the stands provide two verydifferent viewpoints. This articleencompasses many ideas and was interpreted in various ways by readers. It was influenced by Gopnik’s own experiences,and its intended audience was those who read The New Yorker.

AdamGopnik has been writing for The NewYorker magazine since 1986. He hasbeen an art critic for the magazine, which could be what motivated him toinclude the information in the article about the aesthetics of ballgames. Outside of the magazine, he is a successfulwriter of novels and essays (Adam Gopnik 2012). Because he was already an established writerwhen this article was produced, his motivation was probably to share hisviewpoints and entertain his audience.

The New Yorker magazine and someinformation about Gopnik’s life have an influence on this article. The first issue was published in 1925 with afocus on the social and cultural life of New York City, along with humorousarticles. This magazine gradually expandedto include more articles about current events (The New Yorker 2012). Gopnik’s article is a blend of the original humor of the magazine andthe current effects of economics on football. The article begins with comments from Joe Namath and reporters at a Jetsgame; this is because Gopnik is a Jets fan. Since Gopnik resides in New York and the magazine has a New York based audience,Gopnik chose to include evidence and examples from New York and the surroundingarea (The New Yorker 2012).

Althoughthere were few responses to this article, they varied. One blogger agreed with the two viewpoints ofthe sport, but disagreed with the suggestion that players have become dull andthe game has lost its joy because of the distribution of wealth amongplayers. He argued football has alwaysbeen “here today, gone tomorrow” for the players, and the economics of the sporthaven’t changed. Another blogger thoughtGopnik made good points, but had a rather cynical view of football (Poole 2007). The final review agreed with the idea thatsports are a way for fans to be happily absorbed in another’s ability, and theblogger thought this is what motivates many athletes and contributes to thebeauty of sports (Robinson 2011).

Gopnikcompares the two ways of viewing football and discusses his viewpoint about whatthreatens the beauty of football. Heconcludes by comparing his views on fandom and life; there is alwaysdisappointment. However, he explainsthat football provides an outlet to organize and analyze emotions and it givesa sense of hope for something more. Gopnik is definitely a writer whose ideas and evidence can be trusted,but this article provides many ideas for the reader to think about and some ofthem may not be unanimously agreed upon.

References

AdamGopnik. (2012). Retrieved February 1, 2012 from

http://www.newyorker.com/magazine/bios/adam_gopnik/search?contributorName=adam

%20gopnik

Poole, Gary Andrew. (2007 January 4). Review: AdamGopnik’s “The Unbeautiful Game” [web

logcomment]. Retrieved from http://garyandrewpoole.blogspot.com/2007/01/review-

adam-gopniks-unbeautiful-game.html

Robinson, Jeremy. (2011 March 6). Reflection on “TheUnbeautiful Game” by Adam Gopnik

[web log comment].Retrieved from

http://jbiochem.wordpress.com/2011/03/06/reflection-on-the-unbeautiful-game-by-adam-

gopnik/

TheNew Yorker. (2012). Retrieved February 1, 2012 from

http://www.britannica.com/EBchecked/topic/412609/The-New-Yorker

Discussion Leadership- The Advent of the Media, Paul Starr

2012-02-05T17:26:00.002-06:00

Starr talks about the “advent of the media,” the media’s rise to power in the 1920s and 1930s in America. The media have no doubt increased their power since that time. Do you perceive the media as being too powerful today? Has the power of media ever had a negative, or perhaps positive, effect on your life?

Starr defines our “public life” as a “hybrid of capitalism and democracy.” Would you agree that in our current times this balance has been upset, with the influence of capitalism outweighing that of democracy? Could media have been a factor in this shift in balance? How?

Walter Lippmann is described as emphasizing a need for “expertise” and a “sense of evidence” and “accountability” in media. As the power, and extent, of the media grows in time, do you think it has overall become more, or less reliable?

Starr states that by the early 1930s, “advertising men were already saying that the public had become saturated with messages.” With the spread of social media and other communications technology, advertising infiltrates even more parts of our lives. How much of an influence does advertising on your choice in purchases?

What did Walter Lippmann define as the “manufacture of consent?”

2012-01-31T23:55:00.000-06:00

Assignment#1

Name and Hometown: Derek Rayburn- Evansville, WI

Possible future job? Anyone in the job you admire now? The two jobs I would love to see myself doing in the future would be owning my own company or being a high manager in a big firm. A person I admire a lot right now is my dad who grew up in a small town in Indiana and now he's risen up to top a pretty big company.

Do you consume "news"? If you do, what are your main sources? Yes, I consume news sometimes and most of the time I would say it comes from the yahoo front page.

What kind of music do you like? I like a wide range of music from country to rap. Some of my favorite artists are chip the ripper, gary allan, Los, and John Mayer

Favorite online video? I'd have to say this is one of my favorite videos around solely because I find it amazing. . http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=5MeiwLLZjDo

What recent Pop Culture expressions do you find yourself using? I like to use quotes from Will Ferrel movies especially Step Brothers.

2012-01-31T11:54:00.001-06:00

Research Report on Michael Schudson

Michael Schudson is a welleducated; deeply rich and sociologically based mind when it comes to the topicof journalism. Now currently working at Columbia University in New York in thefield of journalism, Schudson, originally from Milwaukee, Wisconsin, began hisacademic career at Swarthmore College where he received his B.A. and laterHarvard University where he furthered his education to a M.A. and P.H.D insociology. Schudson has denoted most ofhis post collegiate career towards teaching young minds the importance andevolution of Journalism at multiple colleges including the Universities ofChicago and California San Diego, as well as Columbia University. However, hehas also used his brilliance to write 6 books and has written many op-eds fornewspapers and magazines, including his novel Discovering the News: A Social History of AmericanNewspaper in which we have chosen to read the first chapter.

The firstchapter of this novel focuses primarily on the evolution of journalism duringthe early 19^th century, primarily that of the late 1820s and 1830s.Main focuses within the chapter describing this evolution include the changetowards a more socially based, neutrally opinionated newspaper through thepenny press as well as a change towards a more egalitarian society. Theinteresting thing about Schudson’s background in both sociology and journalismis that he is able to break down multiple factors towards the evolution andhistory of journalism. He does this through the comparison and relationshipbetween the penny press and egalitarianism.

Schudsonwrote this first novel with the intention of furthering himself within theacademic society, as well as providing a neutrally opinionated look at thehistory of journalism and the newspaper with many references to other leadingminds’ opinions regarding different factors to this evolution . This can beseen throughout the first chapter as Schudson would state the selected person’sclaim, state that of the opposition or that of a different reason/cause, andpick apart and compare both to determine the true sociological reasons behindwhy exactly things happened the way they did. This novel has been widelyaccepted as a great impartial view on the history of journalism and has beenused by many Universities as an example/ reference within their respectiveschools of journalisms.

The onlygreat response to this novel comes from Howard Owens, a Managing Director,Co-Head of Domestic Television and Head of Digital

Reveille. His analysis and response to the novel was thatthe novel was a fantastic depiction of the history of journalism through anon-biased approach providing multiple arguments on the causes and effects ofthese actions. He claims it is a great place to start when looking at thehistory of journalism.

Schudson’swork commonly is, and should be considered reliable when regarding the societalfactors causing the evolution of journalism as well as its overall history.Schudson holds a non-biased opinion throughout the chapter allowing personalprospective to form. Schudson has proven throughout his career he is reliableand that he is a leading mind in journalism.

Economist story (Luther)

2012-01-30T18:18:00.000-06:00

Okay, so since I need to lead discussion and am not really sure how this is going to work I am going to try and give you all some thought provoking questions to think about.

1. Back in the day the pamphlet was the instant hit and main way to spread information. What do you think the "hit" of today is? Other than the internet, can you be specific?

2. In Luther's day, many people were illiterate. That seems to be one of the reasons that the "news ballad" became so popular. Do you think that this form of media is prominent today and if so why?

3. The piece ends with the author commenting on present time social networks. "Today's social media systems do not just connect us to each other: they link us to the past." In what ways do you think they link us to the past and why is this important?

Schudson Reading- Discussion Post

2012-01-30T12:37:00.001-06:00

In this article, Schudson talks about how the penny press was revolutionary for news and society as a whole. He claims that the penny press turned newspapers from only editorials and politics to actual news and current events. My question is how did this happen? What did the penny papers include/ not include to make them so successful across the budding nation?

Also, can penny papers be credited to helping literacy span across America in a time where it was common for only the elite to be able to read and comprehend such ideas as politics and world news? If they are, or aren't, what are some other ways that literacy spread across America in such a brief amount of time?

Assignment #1

2012-01-30T09:03:00.001-06:00

Name and Hometown: Ransom Boyd - Middleton, WI

Possible future job? Anyone in the job you admire now? The two jobs that I am thinking of going into are either in computer science or information systems management. I do not know of anyone who currently has a career in those fields.

Do you consume "news"? If you do, what are your main sources? Yes, I try to read the Sunday newspaper every week. I also watch whatever news is on tv. I also do a fair amount of reading news online.

What kind of music do you like? I like to listen to a wide variety of music: classical, rock, pop, some rap, country, dubstep. I don't spend a ton of time listening to music right now and don't have a favorite artist either.

Favorite online video? I really got into playing Starcraft2 over the summer and have been watching the replays of tournament games. Also I like to watch movie trailers that aren't on tv yet like the movie Iron Sky. I just remembered a great video I saw a bit ago, kind of like a TED talk about language and it's use in society; here.

What recent Pop Culture expressions do you find yourself using? My roommates and I have the tendency to say "shred the gnar" way too much whenever we start talking about Hoofers SnS trips.

Assignment #1

2012-01-29T23:36:00.001-06:00

Name and Hometown: Alyssa Wild - Weyauwega, WI

Possible future job? Anyone in the job you admire now? The two jobs I'm most interested in right now are working in public relations or becoming a speech and language pathologist. I can't think of anyone in either of these professions that I know.

Do you consume "news"? If you do, what are your main sources? I don't as much as I should...I will occasionally turn on the news when I watch TV, otherwise I just look at the main headlines on websites I visit, or on Facebook. I'm hoping to start reading Time or The Badger Herald as suggested for this semester.

What kind of music do you like? I like many different types of music: pop, alternative, rock, rap, indie, and a few singer/songwriters. My favorite artists right now would probably be Florence and the Machine and Coldplay, although I also like the new songs by Jay-Z and Drake. Basically, I listen to a little bit of everything.

Favorite online video? This is one of my friend's favorites, and I watched it the other day and found it kind of funny. I think everybody feels this way about exercise sometimes. http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Xg1oszADX04

What recent Pop Culture expressions do you find yourself using? I have a tendency to say 'legit' ever since I watched the movie Hot Rod. The Office is one of my favorite shows, so I occasionally use 'that's what she said' as well.

Assignment #1

2012-01-29T18:08:00.002-06:00

Name and Hometown: Michael Hill -- Oregon, WI

Possible future job? Anybody in that job you really admire now? I have no idea, but I'd really like to use my Portuguese and/or Spanish, so possibly working with an NGO or something in Latin America.

Do you consume “news”? If you do, what are your main sources? Mostly through the Facebook pages I've liked (NYT, CNN, Huffington Post, etc)

What kind of music do you like? Mostly alternative rock. I love Arcade Fire, Sufjan Stevens, Radiohead, The Decemberist's, The National, Muse....anything along those lines.

Favorite online video? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ABzMAuI1vj0

What recent Pop Culture expressions do you love? "A dollar makes me holler, honey boo boo!" (from above video)

Assignment 1

2012-01-29T17:04:00.000-06:00

Assignment #1

Name and Hometown: Josh Varghese, Eagan MN

Possible future job? Anybody in that job you really admire now? I love sports and everything about it, so being involved in sports and entertainment marketing or sports journalism would be great. Bill Simmons of ESPN is my favorite columnist, he's hilarious and knows his stuff, and his job just seems awesome.

Do you consume “news”? If you do, what are your main sources? Yes, I think that I consume news. I use twitter and Facebook a lot, so that is a source of a lot of my news. Just perusing other sites like CNN and Google News are my other sources.

What kind of music do you like? I like a wide variety, a lot of Christian contemporary music and lots of alternative, like The Fray, John Mayer, Lifehouse, and Boyce Avenue. On the other side of the spectrum I enjoy rap like Lupe Fiasco and Big Sean, and even country music like Hunter Hayes and Brad Paisley.

Favorite online video? http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=L1Gwl3cd7zs

What recent Pop Culture expressions do you love? My roommates and I definitely quote our fair share of Will Ferrell lines, especially Step Brothers, and a lot of various other movies like Take Me Home Tonight ("when it rains it pours," and "don't think, only do.")

Research Paper-The Economist

2012-01-29T14:38:00.001-06:00

“How LutherWent Viral”, an article printed in The Economist in the December 17^th,2011 issue explores the parallels between the use of social media throughouthistory and its uses today. It was written by Tom Standage, the Digital Editorat The Economist. The author does a very good job of researching theReformation, which enables him to draw many strong comparisons between the 16^thcentury and the 21^st century. He does however gloss over some largedifferences between the two time periods, such as the lack of instantaneoustransmission of news.

TheEconomist was originally a newspaper, founded in London in 1843. Aimed atan audience consisting mainly of corporate executives and intellectuals, itboasts an average weekly circulation of roughly 1.6 million readers. Themagazine is known for its pro free-trade and globalization views, making it alikely proponent of the unhindered spread of information though social media.

The authorof this article, Tom Standage, has written several books on the history oftechnology, and is described in his bio at The Economist.com as having a“particular interest in the Internet’s cultural and historical significance.”He is also the Digital editor for The Economist. These qualificationsmake him the most likely candidate for an article dealing with historicaltechnology and its connections to the present. The article is quite relevanttoday, given the increasing use of social media in authoritarian nations, afact referenced in the article, as well as the growing importance of media suchas Facebook and Twitter in our daily lives. This timeliness may however createan incentive for an overstatement of the facts in order to express theimportance of social media to the human condition.

There areseveral points in the article where Mr. Standage rests weighty arguments ontenuous threads. He does not address several looming differences between thetwo time periods, for example the much slower speed of transmission during the16^th century, as well as well as the inability for the common peopleto make their comments and opinions heard. Both the author and the publication havean incentive for a slight stretching of the truth. The author’s stated interestin the significance of the Internet may lead him to create parallels which donot exist, and The Economist is able to promote its ethos ofglobalization by highlighting the importance of social media throughout history

Thisarticle nevertheless made a very compelling point which is not refuted by minoroveremphasis. . Comments made by readers online support this view of the article,praising its concision and use of examples with no critiques of its factualclaims or arguments. Mr. Standage offers a well-researched picture of theReformation and the role of new technologies within it. The connections whichhe reveals between the Reformation and the Arab Spring undoubtedly exist andgive insight into the continuing role of social media in our culture.

Sources:

1. Wikipedia. “The Economist” Wikipedia.com. The WikimediaFoundation. 28 Jan. 2012. Web. 28 Jan 2012. http://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/The_Economist

2. The Economist. Media Directory. The Economist. TheEconomist Newspaper Limited. Web. 28 Jan. 2012. http://www.economist.com/mediadirectory/tom-standage

Assignment #1.

2012-01-29T00:50:00.002-06:00

Name and hometown: Michael Penn II. Washington, D.C. (by weigh of Fort Washington, MD).

Possible future job? Anybody in that job you really admire now?
Something in the realm of journalism that involves the music community (i.e. radio personality, magazine/online columnist). If I were to choose someone to emulate, it would be personalities such as Elliott Wilson (RapRadar), Peter Rosenberg (Hot97), or even Sway (MTV News).

Do you consume “news”? If you do, what are your main sources? 98% of my news consumption comes from the Internet. This encompasses everything from online news databases (CNN, MSNBC) to social media platforms (Twitter, Facebook). The other 2% can be attributed to television news which dilutes and filters all of the important stuff anyway...

What kind of music do you like? (It could appear in lecture.)
My iTunes is currently filled with 35 days of music. 95% of it is hip-hop. My current favorites include Kanye West, Jay-Z, Kendrick Lamar, A$AP Rocky, ScHoolboy Q, Danny Brown, Tyler, The Creator, Drake, Curren$y, Rick Ross, MF DOOM, Blu, Childish Gambino, Jay Electronica, KiD CuDi, J Dilla, Defcee, Lil B, Juicy J... and plenty of others. The other 5% is rock, alternative, and electronic such as Radiohead (the best band to ever exist in existence), Grizzly Bear, Arcade Fire, Clams Casino, Flying Lotus, Shlohmo, Washed Out, araabMUZIK, Toro y Moi, and the Gorillaz.

Favorite online video (link to it):
The Gentlemen's Rant: Hipsters.

What recent pop culture expression do you love (or find yourself using)?

Swag.
Trill.
Thank You Based God.
That Sh*t Cray.

2012-01-28T10:45:00.000-06:00

Name and hometown: Grey Satterfield IV. Cincinnati OH.

Possible future job? Anybody in that job you really admire now? I want to be a political campaign manager in a presidential election. David Plouffe held this position for president Obama during the 08 campaign.

Do you consume “news”? If you do, what are your mainsources? I try to read every story posted on www.grantland.com. I also try to watch CNN whenever I have time.

What kind of music do you like? (It could appear inlecture.) I'm not very picky when it comes to music. However, there are two types of music I cannot stand, contemporary country, and Bruno Mars. Right now, my favorite song has to be Helplessness Blues by Fleet Foxes.

Favorite online video (link to it): My favorite online video has to be NBA Forever. It was a commercial on TNT that aired at the beginning of this season on Christmas day. It includes fabulous video editing and a great song by Drew Holcomb.

What recent pop culture expression do you love (or findyourself using)?Any quote that appears in a Dom Mazzetti video instantly becomes apart of my vocabulary. "My life is like the Otis video on repeat"

Assn #1: Hi, this is Jacob!

2012-01-27T12:11:00.002-06:00

Name and hometown: Jacob Swan. Milwaukee WI.

Possible future job? Anybody in that job you really admire now? Professional lottery winner. No one I know personally.

Do you consume “news”? If you do, what are your main sources? I glance at the front page of nytimes.com on occasion.

What kind of music do you like? (It could appear in lecture.) Electronic Music

Favorite online video (link to it): Ha Ha

What recent pop culture expression do you love (or find yourself using)? From the Netherlands, I like the expression of calling something "fat" (positive connotation). It only makes sense in a dutch accent though.

Assignment #1

2012-01-26T14:11:00.000-06:00

Name and Hometown: Ashley Berg. La Crosse, WI

Possible future job? Anybody in that job you really admire now? Well, I am a big reader of magazines so my goal is to work for one in the future. I also like the idea of writing for a type of online magazine some day.

Do you consume “news”? If you do, what are your main sources? Yes, I would say that i consume most of my news, if not all of it, online. I usually use twitter or some other type of social networking site to learn of it.

What kind of music do you like? I listen to a lot of alternative music or rock. Some of my favorite bands would have to be Jack's Mannequin, The Maine, All Time Low, and Band of Horses.

Favorite online video? I watch way too many Youtube videosto have a favorite, but one that I've seen recently is of these animals from BBC.

What recent Pop Culture expressions do you love? I would say that I quote Mean Girls sometimes and I reference a lot of internet memes.

Assignment #1

2012-01-26T12:58:00.000-06:00

Name and Hometown: Sam Cusick. Afton, MN.

Possible future job? Anybody in that job you really admire now? I would love to go into some type of journalism. Although, my dream job would have to be a sideline reporter for the NFL. Honestly, if I could be Pam Oliver someday, I would be a happy girl.

Do you consume “news”? If you do, what are your main sources? Yep. I use Facebook a lot, and the new online newspaper apps on there are pretty cool. Also, I follow AP on twitter, so I get a lot of my news through there too.

What kind of music do you like? I will listen to pretty much anything, although I am a big fan of country and rock.

Favorite online video? How do you pick one favorite youtube video? I guess I'd have to pick a classic, Harvard Sailing Team. Any of them are hysterical, but Boys Will Be Girls is probably my favorite.

Recent Pop Culture do I love? Well, it's not really recent, but my friends and I still say, "You're killing me Smalls!" Sandlot, classic movie. Otherwise, I hear a lot of abbreviations, although personally I try to avoid them! (for example, defs, probs, totes, etc.)

Online Assignment #1

2012-01-26T12:47:00.000-06:00

Name and hometown: Anna P., Chicago and MN

Possible future job? Anybody in that job you really admire now? I would love to work in advertising or journalism. Although, my dream job would be working at an art museum in downtown Chicago. I admire Don Draper from Mad Men...he is oh so classy, confident, and handsome. I also admire my mom. She works as a graphic designer/artist/photographer. There's really nothing artistic that she can't do. She is one of the reasons that I might go down the art history road.

Do you consume “news”? If you do, what are your main sources? I don't have cable, so I consume most of my news via the internet. I try to stay away from the biased political news on both CNN and Fox. I enjoy reading Time.

What kind of music do you like? I like all kinds of music (besides rap/hip hops stuff), but mostly alternative. It really depends on my mood. My favorite bands are The Killers and Coldplay...I would love to see them live.

Favorite online video (link to it): Anything with dogs! Boston Terrier Being Tickled

What recent pop culture expression do you love (or find yourself using)? "P.O.C." (Pop of color) - Brad Goreski

Assignment #1

2012-01-26T11:42:00.000-06:00

Name and Hometown:

My Name is Chase Loken. I am from Eden Prairie, Minnesota.

Possible future job? Anybody in that job you really admire now?

Future real jobs I do not know yet. But if I had a few chances at life I think it would be real cool to be a professional surfer because it seems like a laid back lifestyle. It would be cool to get paid to do something crazy and outside.

Do you consume “news”? If you do, what are your main sources?

I do consume some news but not much during school. If I do I will usually go online to CNN, Wall Street Journal, and follow links from Facebook.

What kind of music do you like?

I enjoy many different types of music. I really enjoy going to live music events. I mix in everything it just depends what mood I am in.

Favorite online video?

I don't have favorite online video because there are so many good one, but here is one that is pretty funny. Its the Cookie Monster Rap - 99 Problems.

What recent pop culture expression do you love (or find yourself using)?

I have caught my self saying "howdy" recently. Also I have been saying "true" in response to most things in conversation.

Online Assignment #1

2012-01-25T23:07:00.000-06:00

Name & hometown: Paige Costakos. Milwaukee, WI.

Possible future job: I have definitely had dreams to do drastically different things. Throughout my childhood, I dreamt of becoming an astronaut, a veterinarian, and even a white water rafting guide. More realistically, though, I would love to have a career in either sports broadcasting, sports journalism, or work on behalf of our environment for a magazine like National Geographic. I admire the women in the sports journalism field because they are paving a path for females striving to develop a career in a field dominated by men.

Do you consume news? What kind?: Unfortunately, my news knowledge is pretty much limited to Sports Center, The Daily Show, The Colbert Report, and National Geographic. I should read more newspapers.

What kind of music do you like?: My favorite all time bands are U2 and The Beatles, but I'm all about country music. Shania Twain, Garth Brooks, Kenny Chesney, Johnny Cash, and Toby Keith, just to name a few.

Favorite online video: Living with an English Mastiff

Pop culture expression: I find myself referring to "the peanut gallery" a lot.

2012-01-25T19:47:00.000-06:00

Name and Hometown:

I'm Nikki Francois! I'm from Sun Prairie, Wisconsin, which is right next to Madison. Yeah, I know, I went super far from home.

Possible future job? Anybody in that job you really admire now?

I really am not sure! This is my current dilemma. I think I'd really love to do something in advertising. I'd love to work for a magazine as well.

Do you consume “news”? If you do, what are your main sources?

I do! When I was home for winter break, I read my mom's subscription to the Wisconsin State Journal. However, I mostly read articles online, such as on Yahoo.com and msn.com.

What kind of music do you like?

I like a lot of music from All Time Low to Taylor Swift to Mumford & Sons to A Day to Remember. I'm the girl who goes to tons of concerts all the time.

Favorite online video?

I watch way too much YouTube movies so this is super hard to chose! I'd have to say my all time favorite is Shoes because my friends and I used to always quote it and make fun of it. However, I really love watching Jenna Marbles's videos. She's hilarious!

What recent pop culture expression do you love (or find yourself using)?

I say bro/brah way too often. I've also been using "perf" and "awk" a lot lately, but only when I text/on Facebook.

Online Assignment 1

2012-01-25T19:19:00.000-06:00

I'm Claire Jennings and I'm from Blair, WI. I don't know what my actual job will turn out to be, but my dream job would be working as a speechwriter. The person I've always admired is Ted Sorensen (JFK's speechwriter) because he helped write some of the most influential and important speeches in American history.

When I consume news, I use the MSNBC and the Today Show apps on my iPod.

I've listen to a lot of ADELE.

My favorite online video right now is the Ultimate Dog Tease.

The recent pop culture expression that I am guilty of saying sometimes is "OMG", but I'm trying to stop. :)

2012-01-25T18:09:00.000-06:00

I'm Sarah, and I am from Belleville, WI, which is a very small town about twenty minutes south of Madison.

I'm not entirely sure yet what particular job I'd like to have in the future, but I do know that I would love a job that allows me to travel, help others, and have new experiences everyday. My ideal situation would be not to have a "job," per-say, but rather a passion that pays. I just can't picture myself stuck in an office building.

I check msnbc.com regularly for local, national, and world news. I also look at espn.com to catch up on sports, and people.com is sort of a guilty pleasure.

I listen to all types of music: Vampire Weekend, Foster the People, Mac Miller, Blink 182, Eric Church, Beach Boys, and The Doors.

My favorite online video at the moment is a little girl singing "Super Bass," by Nicki Minaj.

I tend to say "like" more than is necessary, even though it really bothers me when I hear other people do it.

2012-01-25T14:54:00.000-06:00

Name and Hometown: Nathaniel Scharping, and I'm from Milwaukee.
Possible future job: I've loved reading National Geographic from a young age; the pictures of exotic places and enthralling articles captured my imagination and inspired a desire to travel. Writing for NG would be a dream job for me, allowing me to visit the places that I once read about and then share my experience with others.
News: The only form of media I read regularly is The Onion, one reason that I love living in Madison is that I can pick it up every Thursday. As far as serious publications go, I enjoy the New York Times, and of course National Geographic.
Music: Favorite band at the moment is The Black Keys, but I like most blues and indie rock.
Online video: The Black Keys actually have some pretty funny music videos, Howlin For You is a good one.
Pop culture expression: Definitely 'haters gon hate'

1

2012-01-25T11:03:00.001-06:00

Name and Hometown:

Neil Lassen. Mount Horeb WI

Possible future job?Anybody in that job you really admire now?

In the future I hope to either be an investment banker or a corporate attorney.

Do you consume “news”?If you do, what are your main sources?

Yes I consume news. I do almost all my reading online and am a big fan of a website called Reddit.

What kind of music doyou like?

I am not very big into the music of my generation. Instead, I prefer the classic rock and metal of the 60's and 70's.

Favorite online video?

I would have to say that the music video to the Metallica song One would be my favorite. It evokes the emotions I most associate with war.

What recent popculture expression do you love (or find yourself using)?

I am not very big into recent pop culture so I can not really say that I love any of them. However, an expression that I think is much to overused in today's culture is the word "like". Everyone seems to be injecting this word into every other sentence that is spoken. I myself tend to fall into this trap at times.