Russia's New Foreign Policy....While at War

Sunday, August 31, 2008

Needless to say Steffen gave me a wonderful slap of reality during class, pointing out that there are bombs from Russia pointed at us every hour of every day. After this, my interest in the Russia/Georgia War has increased a lot and I am a little taken back and confused by what is going on.

Russia's President, Dmitri Medvedev, has stated that Russia will now follow five specific guidelines for their foreign policy. These include: observing international law, rejecting what Medvedev called United States dominance of world affairs in a “unipolar” world, seek friendly relations with other nations, defend Russian citizens and business interests abroad, And it would claim a sphere of influence in the world.I want to talk to their office's P.R. for annoncing these wonderful ideas while your country is bombing cities and killing people every day.How are they to be taken seriously about being what they claim "a sphere if influence" in this type of situation.

Russians made another checkmark move by calling an emergency meeting of the United Nations where they stated in a short speech that "Georgia and Ossetia need to cease hostilities and to return to the negotiating table." How is Georgia to stop defending themselves while they are in the middle of evacuations and nightly bombings?

So far the United States Defense Department has reported that they have not recieved any official requests for assistance. For our sake lets hope we don't have to join the war. It worries me to think that our country could be involved in two wars at once.

NYTimes links: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/09/01/world/europe/01russia.html?hp
http://www.nytimes.com/2008/08/09/world/europe/09georgia.html?pagewanted=2&_r=1&sq=russia%20and%20georgia&st=cse&scp=1
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Russia's Upgraded Foreign Policy. . .While at War

Needless to say Steffen gave me a wonderful slap of reality during class, pointing out that there are bombs from Russia pointed at us every hour of every day. After this, my interest in the Russia/Georgia War has increased a lot and I am a little taken back and confused by what is going on.

Russia's President, Dmitri Medvedev, has stated that Russia will now follow five specific guidelines for their foreign policy. These include: observing international law, rejecting what Medvedev called United States dominance of world affairs in a “unipolar” world, seek friendly relations with other nations, defend Russian citizens and business interests abroad, And it would claim a sphere of influence in the world.I want to talk to their office's P.R. for annoncing these wonderful ideas while your country is bombing cities and killing people every day.How are they to be taken seriously about being what they claim "a sphere if influence" in this type of situation.

Russians made another checkmark move by calling an emergency meeting of the United Nations where they stated in a short speech that "Georgia and Ossetia need to cease hostilities and to return to the negotiating table." How is Georgia to stop defending themselves while they are in the middle of evacuations and nightly bombings?

So far the United States Defense Department has reported that they have not recieved any official requests for assistance. For our sake lets hope we don't have to join the war. It worries me to think that our country could be involved in two wars at once.

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Politicians or Celebrities?

by: Shauna Agan

Amongst articles concerning who the Jonas Brothers’ newest love interest is, which celebrities are too thin or increasingly gaining weight, and who wore which outfit best, the latest and hottest celebrity gossip is no longer about movie stars, rock bands, or even porn stars. A new uprising group of celebrities has taken over the celebrity gossip magazines; politicians.

Us Weekly is a celebrity magazine generally covering topics of celebrity news, style, and entertainment. So, it is not a surprise that on usmagazine.com there are videos, articles, and photos of celebs such as Michael Jackson, Ashlee Simpson, reality stars Speidi, and of course Madonna. What is shocking to me though is that eight, I repeat EIGHT of the feature stories on the home page of the website is about the presidential and/or vice presidential candidates. Headlines include “Sarah Palin: Former TV Sports Reporter”, “Sarah Palin’s Mother In Law: Considering Voting for Barack Obama”, “Obama’s Speech Tops Idol; Oscars In Ratings”, the “Obama Family [photo] Album”, “Sarah Pain Didn’t Give Birth to Down’s Syndrome Baby?” an article about why McCain chose Palin, an article about Oprah going to see Obama’s speech, and a poll to see who readers think should run our country next.

The next webpage I came across was people magazine’s website. People magazine is a magazine most commonly known for its celebrity and human interest stories. I was not quite as surprised to find three headlines about the presidential hopefuls here, but I was shocked to see the headlines of RollingStone, a magazine commonly known for music and pop culture, saying “How Bush Destroyed the Republican Party”. Even the website contained articles such as “Obama’s Big Night, and “Five Ways Bush Sunk the Republican Party”.

Ultimately the news and media have made politicians the biggest celebrities around. So, John McCain referring to Barack Obama as “the biggest celebrity out there” in his campaign ad really is not that far-fetched. However, McCain needs to take the initiative to realize that he as well is amongst these celebrities.

Politicians being portrayed as celebrities because of the news is not a brand new phenomenon, but it is the latest hype. What will the future of news be when the personal lives of politicians is the only concern of the media?

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Jon Stewart

By Quinn Albrecht

When we filled out the information in class asking the question, Who do you feel is a newscaster, I read Jon Stewart and immediately laughed. I was thinking how can someone on Comedy Central be considered a news caster? I then talked it over with several people who think he is a news reporter. They brought up the idea that he gets millions of college age kids interested in the news.

With those conversations, I kind of laid that topic to rest. Then the next day we discussed the same idea in class. I still defended my theory that he has nothing to do with legitimate news reporting.

When it came time to start thinking about what to say in this blog post I though, what the heck, write about how he doesn't have a news reporting bone in his body. I then went to his web page and scanned around for a while. On his site he gives us the ability to watch clips of episodes, or even whole shows. The more I searched on his site the more I see that he could be considered a news caster. He gives a touch of humor to a situation that most college age students wouldn't even care to listen to. He makes the news fun and easy.

I still have one problem with Mr. Stewart, I can never tell if he is serious about something or if he is being sarcastic. He has this face that says, I am serious, at all times on this show. That makes me uneasy because he says some outlandish things, that are not true, but almost could be. I can be sort of gullible from time to time and I can make myself believe any of those random things he says.

His website makes him look more legitimate than the show on television does. Check out his site.

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Iowa Football's Rollercoaster Ride

This weekend marked the beginning of the 2008 college football season. Along with the first games, journalists are taking advantage of reporting on the poor decisions many of the football players make. Since 2007, 22 crimes have been reported against different University of Iowa football players. There has been speculation that the lawyers chosen to represent the players are giving them special treatment and doing more than what they would do for the average client. I agree with the fact that all of the athletes should be represented in court, but they should not be given different sentences than the average citizen.

Division I athletes are being paid to represent their school on and off of the playing field. They should not abuse this privilege by taking advantage of their higher status. Several cases deal with the alleged rape of female students. The athletes know when they are taking advantage of an intoxicated female and should take responsibility for their actions instead of hiding behind the college’s hired attorney. The article does point out that in some cases the females are trying to take advantage of the athlete for attention, but the players should just avoid the situation entirely. I think that investigations ran by off-campus sources are the best way to deal with situations like these to avoid favoring the athlete or the victim.

Unfortunately everyone makes mistakes and these athletes have to deal with the fact that their mistakes will be publicized. I think that if the NCAA creates stricter policies that deal with criminal charges for athletes and supports their policies, sooner or later the athletes will learn make better decisions off the field so that they can remain on the field.

http://www.desmoinesregister.com/apps/pbcs.dll/article?AID=/20080831/NEWS10/808310335

Jessica Hartgers

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Who is this Palin Chick?!?

By: Christina Woldt


In St. Paul, MN at the Republican National Convention, John McCain announced his running mate for the Republican Presidential ticket. His choice was the famous, Sarah Palin from “Middle of nowhere, Alaska.” Has anyone heard of this girl? I sure haven’t and I’d like to think that I’m pretty caught up with my politics and political figures. So who is Governor Palin? Catching up on my daily news fix, I logged onto Nytimes.com and found out all about this wonderful woman. Palin is a mother of five, a social conservative, and "rose to prominence as a whistle-blower uncovering ethical misconduct in the state government.” Palin might have won over Alaska with her charm and hard-assness, but she’s now trying to charm a whole different crowd. Furthermore, Governor Palin knows as much about the World, Foreign policy, and National Security as we know about them and about Governor Palin herself. This does not have me feeling secure about our right-winged friends.

I wasn’t the only one surprised by McCain’s V.P. pick. "Fellow Democrats were considerably less welcoming, and most said they were flabbergasted by what they characterized as a desperate, cynical or dangerous choice, given Ms. Palin’s lack of any experience in national security." Democrats as well as Republicans were shocked by the news. The New York Times article by Michael Cooper and Elisabeth Bumiller reminded readers that, on his campaign trail McCain repeatedly stated that his, “running mate should have the qualifications to immediately step into the role of Commander in Chief.” Being McCain just turned the ripe age of 72; his Vice President may have to take over the Presidency before McCain’s term is over. Governor Palin isn’t the person I’d like to see take over when McCain’s time come.

But, maybe I’m being to critical and to prideful about my left-wing “celebrities” that are hanging out with Obama and all the cool young people. But, It seems like an easy victory for Obama now that the running mates have been chosen. Joe Biden has been at the forefront of politics for more than 20 years and this is his second time getting up close and personal with the presidency. Sarah Palin has only been up close and personal with Alaska, she has barely traveled outside of Alaska, the article by Cooper and Bumiller even added that Palin didn't get a passport until the age of 44 (her current age). Are you kidding? I like the rulers of my country to be pro-choice as well as cultured, and have at least traveled to more then three parts of the world.

There is so much more I could complain about but I need to spare myself the stress even though I really shouldn’t be stressed. I have no reason to be worried, I’m voting for the cool people remember? So, I don’t really care if McCain chose his running mate based on the “eye candy factor” and by the amount of things he can teach Palin about all of the things she should have known before deciding to potentially become the Vice President of the United States of America. Nope I don’t care because I’m rolling with Paris Hilton, Biden, Brittney Spears, Obama, and his pretty family!

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‘Many Eyes’ on the Data

By: Sara Crouse

Journalists and researchers alike often find themselves with needing more than the perfect lead or lift out quote. Only a few decades ago a few reassuring words from top journalists and political figures were enough to calm Americans.

Words no longer hold truth, and we take it upon ourselves to look for it. Today the average American views it as their responsibility to find truth in news stories. Helpful data and graphs can help aid in this effort. I know visual aids are always appealing to me, and seem to be a reassurance of the facts.

Recently developed in 2007, by two IBM researchers in Cambridge, Many Eyes is a data tool that helps compare text from political speeches to interviews and pinpoints the most frequently used words. This has proven to be a very helpful tool in analyzing what issues are truly close the hearts of the presidential candidates.

Who wouldn’t mind this new tool that helps viewers recognize politician’s most addressed themes? No longer do we have to read five page speeches to grasp the most important things at stake. I’ve found this tool to be helpful in my busy schedule, while trying to catch up on the most recent convention speeches.

Finding the truth in the news isn’t as hard and time consuming as one would think. The average American just needs to be aware of biases within news, and be able to recognize them. Many Eyes certainly recognizes various ways to view and discuss data, which prevents from bias.

A New York Times article explains the tool Many Eyes is great for creating conversation amongst those who view its data and, “…when you have a group look at data, you protect against bias. You get more perspectives, and this can lead to more reliable decisions.”

Perhaps we should all take a look at Sarah Palin’s acceptance speech words on Many Eyes, rather relying on liberal reporters taking an automatic offense to her ideas. At least a visual lets me decide my own thoughts, rather than a biased reporter.

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Not Again!!

By Kellie Green

Hurricane Katrina was a devastating catastrophe that happened to Louisiana. Once again mother nature has created another blow that is about to affect the coast of Louisiana, Mississippi, Alabama and parts of Texas. Hurricane Gustav is set to hit Monday. Is is said to have 115 mph winds and surge up to 12 ft high. Gustav, a category three hurricane, is not as big as Katrina, a category 5, but it is still expected to cause damage.

Government officials have ordered a massive evacuation of many parts of Louisiana. It is said to be "the biggest evacuation in the states history." Ninety percent of those ordered to evacuate have fled. Many citizens have left in trains, buses and cars. Officials even changed all the incoming lanes leading to cities that are being evacuated to outgoing, allowing more traffic to leave the area. Anyone left behind will be without any kind of emergency care. A curfew has also became in affect by Governor Bobby Jindal in southern Louisiana. Anyone caught looting will go to jail. Seven thousand National Guard members have been brought in to protect property and sixteen thousand more are on their way.

Hopefully Gustav will not cause the devastating affects that Katrina did. However, with the levees still not completed it is uncertain what may happen. This time around the citizens and government officials seem more prepared and warned. We will all just have to wait to see what is going to happen later this week.

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News Analysis: Helping or Hurting?

By: Pat Tierney

Today the hot topic on any news station is the much contested presidential race. The news media was left stumped on Friday morning with the surprising announcement of Sen. John McCain's running mate, Gov. Sarah Palin. During the morning of August 29th the media was sent scrambling, trying to cover this surprise pick of the relatively unknown governor.

Shortly after the announcement however, the media was already on top of the new candidate for vice president, trying to turn up as much information about her that they could. Immediately, the day's headlines began shouting the Senator’s pick. But as a few hours passed, news sources started to post analysis of the possible Vice President.

This analysis by news sources brings me to my question of whether or not analysis really provides fair and just reporting. NBC news ran a whole section of analysis on the new candidate, showing both sides of the coin, showing her controversy but also what she potentially could bring to the table. To be fair, the section on their web site was indeed labeled analysis, but in a society that often times gives unjustified credibility to the media, is it responsible for them to tell the consumer why this is a good or bad thing?

On one hand, it seems as if the days of just reporting the facts are over, and whatever happened to the consumer making up his or her own mind? While on the other, as a voting American, it can be a pretty useful guide to try and have all this information broken down, in an easy to ingest format.

So in the end is analysis by news agencies responsible for the public, or is it the news agencies telling the consumers what to think? There are some facts, now I’ll let you decide.

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Even a Journalist can be VP!

By: Sarah Harl

In the short time since John McCain named Sarah Palin (R-Alaska) as his running mate for the upcoming campaign, the announcement has been met with either a confident nod in her direction, or a fierce attack on her character and experience. As a voter who caucused for McCain in January, I was eager to find out more about Governor Palin, beyond the media hype.

On December 4th, 2006, Palin was elected the 11th (and first woman) Governor of Alaska. She quickly and forcefully took out an incumbent governor, and had a string of priorities as she took office. Everything from education and workforce development to transportation and infrastructure development.

Palin was also able to overhaul education funding and put a program in place for low income older Alaskans, all while maintaining $5 billion in state savings.

Perhaps most remarkably, Palin has been able to do all of this while maintaining an 89-93% approval rating making Palin one of the most popular governors in the United States. And she continues to have a high approval rating with her family of five children, with whose lives she continues to be involved in.

Many liberal bloggers chose to attack Palin for her lack of "experience", but I would put to those bloggers to answer what constitutes "experience". Palin graduated as a Communications-Journalism major from the University of Idaho, and then worked her way up to the governorship of Alaska, starting as a small town mayor. It seems that through many of these blogs, bloggers mention in a condescending way that Palin is the governor of Alaska, almost as if anyone could be the governor of this state. Or that her experience as the mother of five will in no way benefit her in the vice-presidency. From what I have gathered, she is a woman who has been able to maintain her high approval ratings because she says she is going to do something, and then she gets it done, something the men of Washington seem to be lacking as of recently.

Perhaps what endears me so to Palin is that she is honored to have been picked as a running mate--one of the few genuine statements that I've seen come out of this election so far.

So, she's just a journalism major, and just the governor of Alaska. I'm just a communications major from a little college in Iowa. But that doesn't mean that I haven't taken on some big projects with more "experience" than someone from a bigger school. Experience isn't what you can list on a piece of paper, it's what you can go out and DO, and I think we should all give Palin a chance to put this country back on track.

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Cover Me

By: Adrian Aitken

On the opposite end of the world the best summer athletes gathered in Beijing to be proclaimed the best in his or her event in front of billions of viewers. Unfortunately many events occur simultaneously and coverage on television can become difficult. This year NBC provided a web page in which to enjoy full coverage of each event live. Similarly other media sources are reporting on Gustav with as much eagerness and anticipation.

Al Tompkins, a blogger at Poynter Online, created his own website dedicated to covering Gustav's and the Gulf Coast's progression over the next month. The site gathers information from many other networks, blog sites, and twitter (a microblog site)and compiles the reports together. Much like nbcolympics.com his web page provides minute coverage of the storm and the movements in cities along the coast. Al's main source of information comes from twitter. Twitter which acts as a blog site for smaller posts gives access to phones, so during those hard times when the Internet is down those with working cells can comment on current events.

Tompkins is not the only place to get good coverage of the coming destruction. Colleges and Universities in or around the path of the storm will also be covering how the next couple of weeks unfold. For those students in Journalism or have a hobby of blogging get the chance to experience first hand reporting on a large story. I'm sure there will be no shortage of sources covering the Category 3 hurricane and its aftermath.

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"Even ESPN Leans Left"

by Gabe Gilson

As somebody who describes myself as a moderate in the ways of politics and as an avid ESPN viewer, a recent story on the networks show SportsCenter seemed rather out of place. Today few would disagree that the news is presented in a very liberal format; but why would sporting news have to fall under the same catagory?

SportsCenter, which is a show dedicated to giving highlights of sports related activities from the previous evening as well as sports related stories, decided to interview Presidential hopeful Barack Obama. Anchorman Stuart Scott interviewed Obama about Chicago sports, the Olympics, and his love for basketball. Obama told Scott how he had grown up a fan of Julius (Dr. J) Erving, and they talked about how he loved Chicago sports teams like the White Sox and the Bulls. The story was repeated on SportsCenter for three days, meaning countless viewers saw it multiple times. It seemed rather ridiculous that Obama was interviewed while the Republican candidate John McCain was not.

This brings up quite an interesting question. Does McCain not like sports in the same way Obama does? One would think that with McCain being from Arizona, some anchor could quiz him up on his Arizona Cardinals knowledge, or talk about how Arizona Diamondback pitcher Brandon Webb is having a season worthy of the Cy Young Award. But apparently, Obama is the only Presidential candidate that is enthralled by sports enough for an interview on ESPN. The issue at hand is not McCain being a better candidate that Obama, or vice versa, it is more the fact there are people out there voting for the first time who only watch SportsCenter for their daily “news.” Once somebody who is old enough to vote only sees one person in the spotlight on their show, not to mention sees this candidate look like an outstanding person in the spotlight like Obama did, they will most likely become very partial to that candidate. It seemed as if it was not fair for SportsCenter to only interview him. Also, when watching SportsCenter, people want to see highlights and stories about real athletes at a level above the local YMCA pickup game. Maybe Barack Obama has a good jump shot for a 47 year old dude, but that does NOT make him the type of athlete people want to see a story about. It is too bad that every level of news these days has to lean to the left.

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Newspaper Buyouts on the Rise

By: Allison McNeal

Buyouts. Layoffs. Plunging sales. These are what many newspaper companies around the United States and locally are currently facing due to the increasing advances of the Internet. Online Websites and newspaper companies are starting to gain speed in replacing old-fashioned newspapers that used to be delivered to the doorstep.

On August 14th, Gannett Co., owner of The Des Moines Register, first startled the public that it would be cutting 1,000 current jobs and laying off 600.

Later, on August 29th, other top newspaper companies, such as The Chicago Sun, The Chicago Tribune, and McLatchy Co, which owns The Sacramento Bee and Fresno Bee, announed job cuts and buyouts as well. In south Florida, The Miami Herald, the South Flordia Sun-Sentinel, and The Palm Beach Post stated they would be merging for a three-month period because of the lack of newsroom employees (aol.com).

In this past year, newspaper sales have declined dramatically, leaving copy editors, reporters, and publishing companies to scramble to save their jobs.

According to the Associated Press, "Gannett saw non-broadcasting advertising revenue drop 11 percent year-over-year during the first five months of 2008 [... and] 16.3 percent in June and 16.7 percent in July compared with a year earlier" (aol.com).

Why have these newspaper companies declined so much in such a short amount of time? One reason may be because of online companies like Google Inc., which are finding support from international markets. With the access to different countries at a click of a button, it is hard for newspapers to keep up.

Another reason could come down to how fast news can be posted on the internet rather than in the newspapers. Most individuals want to know what is happening at the exact moment and do not want to feel like they are missing out. When a newspaper shows up at their doorstep, they may already know most of the news, so why would they read it?

On the other hand, newspaper publishers and people like Randy Bennett, who is senior vice president of business development for the Newspaper Association of America, believe that newspaper production will turn around and become sucessful again (aol.com).

I also am a firm believer that this cycle of internet reporting will start to dimish. Many online newspapers are making people subscribe to the publications, which could cost more than a standard newspaper.

Also, America prided itself in the invention of the printing press and the newsreel. What will happen to all the dedication that went along with distributing newspapers and the whole-some values that a newspaper could portray?

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Media's Obsession Creates Hype

By: Kelsey Knutson

In what seems to be, so far, one of the craziest presidential elections ever (one that actually hasn't even taken place yet) it must be said that everything is getting pretty old. However, what's new with that? Are we really surprised that the media takes something and runs with it? When hasn't the media come up with something and then run it into the ground?

The new obsession of the media with the current election is obviously Senator Barack Obama. However, do we really need the parallels between this current senator and the senator from Massachusetts in 1960? Patrick Healy of the New York Times printed an article August 28th dedicating the title, "Decades Later, John Kennedy's 'New Frontier' Speech Echoes," and the article to the similarities of former president John F. Kennedy and current Senator Barack Obama. However, what is the significance of this? Let us hear about Obama's policies, solutions, and ideas. Tell the voters across America about the issues of 2008 and not the speaking abilities of a president in 1960. Obama speaks of "hope and change" so let us hear about "hope and change." We've passed the "New Frontier" of President Kennedy and we've moved forward into another era. Obama's speaking abilities and rallying tactics are similar to that of John F. Kennedy, however, let us hear what Obama has to say now in 2008, not what Kennedy said in 1960. 

"Decades Later, John Kennedy's 'New Frontier' Speech Echoes." Lets leave it in that decade and respectfully silence those echoes; let us hear Obama. 

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Ware en the Warld Are the Edditors?

Saturday, August 30, 2008

By Austin Bates

Well, obviously they aren't here looking at my blog, otherwise they would have caught the various misspellings I made in the title of this very blog post! But while I make light of a growing situation in the media world, especially that of newspapers, it is a serious issue, raising questions and concerns for many involved in the news reporting industry. Deborah Howell originally posted her thoughts on the issue concerning the loss of copy editors, especially with the Washington Post, where she reports from.

Of course, it's no secret that the newspapers are steadily, and seemingly, irrevocably, losing sales; NewsBlog reports that newspaper advertising sales were down 9.4 percent last year, according to the Newspaper Association of America, which is the worst it's been since records began in 1950. But of course, some critics would point out that newspapers have consistently had profit margins of up to 25%, which is far higher than any other industry, even the hated and despised oil mining industry. However, I think it's clear newspapers are losing money and conscious of this fact, and their possible future: which is that they may not have one. After all, how many times are youths known these days to sit down and read an old-fashioned printed newspaper unless they have to? Who has time for that, when other concerns, like Facebook and MySpace, are out there?

Regardless, newspapers like The Washington Post are reacting to changing times by dropping many of their copy editors; Howell reports a 40% loss of editors, or 32 of 75 editors have left or been "bought out". Apparently, newspapers are seeing less of a need to have so many people make sure that what they put out is so perfectly refined and ready for consumption. With more and more media outlets becoming 24 hour sources of information and entertainment, newspapers are also apparently attempting to join this trend, and seeing editors as somewhat counter-productive to this goal (one way you can put something out faster is by having less people check, edit, and revise it).

While Howell does a good job providing plenty of testimonials and examples of why copy editors are so important in the newspaper industry, and how many people appreciated their services, one thing she doesn't explore is something I wonder about: what will become of editors in general? What kind of message, or change to society, will having fewer and fewer editors produce? Media as it is already poises itself constantly to find every little mistake that some celebrity, or politician, or president, or government official, or corporate executive might make, and then paste it all over every outlet they have; tabloids make their living off of this sort of thing. So if newspapers themselves are dropping editors, raising the risk that they'll make more mistakes of more types, what message does this send? Further, newspapers are one of the last objective sources of information left, and if they are thinning their methods of maintaining objectivity, what happens to our news? Further, what about what kind of message, and information, this might transmit to youths in this changing media world? What will we be teaching our youth if our newspapers become about as well manicured as most text messages?

Now, some of these concerns may be unwarranted or exaggerated, but surely there's nothing good that will come out of dropping the number of people that will correct newspapers and maintain their integrity on the front line. And having reporters more carefully edit their own material won't work; any one who's had to write any number of essays before can say from experience that you can't catch half your own mistakes, and even after a day or so of rest, many errors may remain overlooked.

Basically, editing is what makes the difference between a poor source of information, and a good one. Validity, at least for me, is first and foremost based in presentation, and that includes whether you took time to make sure your words and sentences are composed correctly. If fewer and fewer people are doing this, how will anyone be able to find a good, objective source of information?

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Citizens or Consumers?

By: Alex Jones


Low voter turn outs across the board, and an overall indifference being felt lately in American Politics, could this be attributed to the poor coverage major news stations are currently displaying? Alarming to me is that the three major broadcast stations in America: NBC, ABC and CBS seem to be down-playing their coverage of the current presidential race and instead focusing more on their ratings.

With these major stations worrying about their ratings, there seems to be no time for the Presidential race. In 2004 NBC aired Fear Factor in place of the conventions where current Democratic Presidential hopefully Barack Obama made his first appearance (Karr). No wonder America has become disinterested, voter turn out, especially in youth has been in a "steady decline" and voter turn out overall is only striking between "50-55 percent" (Karr).  

In my experience it is tough enough for the youth of today and voters overall, to maintain their interest in politics without the temptation of flipping the station to see their favorite reality T.V. show airing at the same time. Journalism should strive to cover all of the political hype, regardless of ratings. It is their job to provide accurate information to the masses. Without the help of these major television stations how are the citizens of America supposed to stay informed? More people continue to tune in to their television sets for their current news. I cannot help but feel that this is an incredibly low blow to broadcast journalism overall.    

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Lack of Information or Lack of Respect?

By: Katie Anthony

In today's society, it seems that hearing about certain deaths become more and more common in any form of media that's available to the public. However, while it is so common, it seems that a few newspapers aren't finding it necessary to print about a local "violent death." The New York Times, The New York Post, and the New York Daily News remained absolutely silent about a death of a man who was found stabbed in his apartment. There was only a brief statement on The New York Sun website with a title that read "Man Found Dead in Bathtub." At the crime scene, it was noted that they found knives, but the police quoted that there was "no criminality suspected."

Though it was thought to be a suicide, the fact that it was very poorly reported, I find to be extremely disrespectful. A professor of journalism at Ohio University says that the reason it was so poorly reported was due to the fact that suicide is a "touchy subject." However, when it was thought that Heath Ledger's death was an appararent suicide, it was all over news mediums, both printed and online.

Virginia Heffernan, a noted New York Times blogger, went on to Google News and typed in the deceased man's name. Only five articles were found. Most of them vague about the cause of death (and any details), due to the fact that nothing "official" had been determined. One of the articles closed with their condolences to the man's friends and family, but the article was found to be so brief that the closing seemed to be the most important part of their article. There was hardly a body to this supposed story.

So, how is the media prioritizing stories? If there was a suicide of anyone in the "public eye," it would make the front page of any major papers. If there was a suicide bomber, who, only ended up killing himselves overseas, I'm sure that that would be in the major papers as well. I believe it to be sad that a death that was noted as "violent" without a true cause of death, got hardly no attention at all.

I believe it to be a sad day once one person is allowed to choose which stories, based on death, they will or will not publish.

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Obama Takes the Cake... Will the Convention's Journalists do the Same?

By: Kathryn Lisk

While politics have always played a large role in society, America seems to be especially interested in November's presidential election. Barack Obama's speech was not only given in front of While politics have always played a large role in society, America seems to be especially interested in November’s election. Barack Obama’s speech was not only given in front of 80,000 people at Invesco Field in Denver, Colorado, but was also viewed by 38 million people from home. This number nearly doubles the number of viewers John Kerry, who had 24.4 million in the 2004 election. With these numbers, will there be more voters than usual? Can McCain match these numbers in his upcoming speech in Minnesota in the next few days?

Furthermore, there were over 15,000 reporters present at the Democratic Convention, each hoping to bring home an original story about where the U.S. was headed and if Obama would become a part of history. Before reading this article, I felt the number of stories produced by this number of journalists may be a bit much. Does America really need 15,000 views of this story? But with the obvious interest in the convention and election, maybe this is necessary. Various writers have mentioned job cuts within the journalism market, including Fairfax, who just laid off 550 Journalists. As long as Americans are demanding stories and information on the election and the candidates, Journalists may still have work.

I hope that as information is given to the American public about the election, Americans decide to participate in the election and vote. I’ve heard quite a few Simpson students talking about their views and I hope to see that they’ll take part in the elections. After all, news is supposed to inform its viewers. Will it?

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To hike... or not to hike? by Sarah Keller

This summer, I read the book "three cups of tea", it was about a man named Greg Mortenson who loved to hike, but after his failed attempt to climb K2, a mountain in Pakistan. he came upon a village named Karakoram and decided to build them a school, after that he built many schools across Pakistan primarily for girls, and made a great impact on their society, all while going through many struggles. All of this came about because of Mortenson’s love for hiking. Which made me wonder what is it about hiking that attracts so many people? In a few instances such as Mortenson good can come out of a hike, but in many cases things can come out bad, even deadly. So I would like to know is it worth the risks?

ABC wrote a story about a five year old prodigy girl named Yunona Bukasov who loves to hike. She has been to 21 national parks in the last 13 months, and has summated some of the highest peaks such as California's Mount Whitney, the tallest peak in the continental United States. Bukasov’s father said that they keep her very safe and do not put her in harms way while hiking, but I can not help but wonder how one can be truly prepared for any obstacle that might come about on a hike.

Yesterday ABC reported Wednesday August 27, Gibson called 911 and told them that he and his girlfriend were trapped at Dana Glacier and had lost part of their equipment, it was not until yesterday August 29 that they were saved. The paramedics believe that the couple will be ok after they receive medical attention.

In the end everything turned out fine for the couple, but that is not always the case for hikers. I do not know if I would be able to put myself in harms way to hike dangerous mountains, that is just me personally. I am however thankful for people such as Greg Mortenson who had the courage to hike because if it were not for him he would not have accidently come upon a small village, promised to build them a school and make a real impact in Pakistan for the women, if it were not for him none of the girls there would be receiving an education.

-the scaredy cat

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Sharing Stories?

Friday, August 29, 2008

by: Jessica Hamell
Isn’t the point of having three different news papers to compete against each other? The Miami Herald, the Sun-Sentinel and The Palm Beach Post announced that they were going to start sharing basic news stories. This kind of threw me off, three different papers would run the same story with the same facts. The good thing about not sharing stories is that each paper would have different facts and information to give the readers. Each paper also has a different demographic to please so they should write there stories differently.
The editors said they would still “preserve” the competition between the three papers but I don’t get how that would be possible. I understand that each paper would still have different stories but the articles about what was going on around their area would be the same.
Two of the Three papers I think would lose business just for the simple fact why buy three different papers when you can read the same story in all of them and still have others that catch your eye. Think about it for a second, why share stories?

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A Career in Journalism? Nah...too hard!!!

By: Lexie Hagerty

After reading the article about the sports columnist who quit due to the decrease in newspaper sales, it is becoming obvious that the way in which are news is being reported is changing. Instead of newspapers, information is being reported through cell phones, the Internet, and television. Many articles have been published about drops in newspaper advertisements. Even larger newspapers like the Chicago Tribune and Los Angeles Times are losing profit due to the decrease in advertising sales. In reaction to this decrease, journalists are losing their jobs and the publishing companies are selling assets. So, basically one would have to have the skills to publish his or her work online to succeed in the journalism world.

I was previously interested in a journalistic career until I interned at Meredith Corporation in Des Moines, Iowa. The majority of the employees worked for the web journalism rather than the normal print magazine journalism. Without proper education and computer skills, it would be very hard to make a career in magazine journalism. Therefore, besides the stress of finding a story and making it interesting to readers, I would also have to have the skills to display it online. Also, it still wouldn't be much of a career after all of this work, since anyone today can publish his or her work online. Basically, the story I worked so hard to write and publish has to compete with millions of others around the world! This is not an easy job to succeed in. With those odds, I might as well take my chances in professional volleyball!

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When is it considered crossing the line?

By LIZ TJADEN

The Summer Olympic Games. It’s every athlete’s dream for a chance to prove to themselves, their country, and their competition that they are the best. But is it more than that? Paul Farhi from the Washington Post has been enjoying the Olympic Games like any other fan but feels like we are missing out on the bigger stories around Beijing and the Games. He talks with Brooke Gladstone from On the Media.

This sparked an interest in me, not only because of my recent trip to China and Beijing, but also because that is how I felt while watching the games this past summer. Where were the stories of the people and their society, the pollution, and protests that have surrounded the Games? I know from experience that China is quick to cover up what they don’t want other people, especially people from other countries, to see. The government has a vision of China that they want to portray to others and they try their hardest to cover up the poverty, parts of their history, and anything that makes them stand out from others.

I noticed that NBC had little segments on the Great Wall, Three Gorges Dam, and the Forbidden City. But they were so small and insignificant. Farhi points out the spot that NBC did on the Three Gorges Dam. The problem with it was that it was only a few seconds long and failed to mention the 1.5 million people who were kicked out of their homes and forced to live on the countryside.

One could argue that the Olympics aren’t for news. They are for the athletes and the games themselves. But I think one of the great things about the Olympics, no matter what country, is that it gives people a chance to peak into a culture that they wouldn’t normally get to see without going there. Even during the cycling races, when the athletes are competing, they were biking through Beijing towards the Great Wall. I thought it was cool to just see the city and part of the countryside in the background of the race. Actually, I will be honest, it was more interesting than the race itself.

If NBC had taken this opportunity to not only show the games but also use it from an educational standpoint, I think a lot more people would have benefited from it. They didn’t need to bash China or point out everything that was wrong but a little more hard headed reporting wouldn’t have hurt either.

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By: Jessica Hartgers

Wednesday, August 27, 2008

Hi. My name is Jessica Hartgers. I am a junior from Colfax, its a little town between Altoona and Newton. I attended Colfax-Mingo High School and played softball there, and am continuing to play softball here at Simpson.
I have two younger siblings who I can't ever seem to get enough of. My sister's name is Hope and she will be celebrating her eighth birthday in September. Hope loves to ride her bike, play with her dolls, and do tricks on the swing set. My brother's name is Hugh and he is six years old. Hugh is a typical boy, he loves to play baseball, ride his four-wheeler, and get dirty.
My family and friends mean the world to me and without them I would be lost. I love to see my family whenever possible, but sometimes that's not very often. I spend time with my friends in every spare second of my day. I love to hang out with my friends, let loose and just have a good time. I am a pretty easy going person and am very easy to get along with, and at times I am a little shy. That's me!

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Last Minute Inspiration

By SARA CROUSE
Student

Sticking to my true Art major roots, I have decided to wait until the day of class to find my inspiration for blogging. Artists never seem to complete something until the timing is right, and the right reasons are in it. So here I am!

My name is Sara Crouse, and I am enjoying the start of my junior year here at Simpson. I am double majoring in Art and Corporate Communications, with a minor in Political Science. I’m only a junior though, and perhaps my majors will change yet again. I did have an internship this past summer at the Des Moines Art Center. It was helpful to get acquainted with the staff, and also help aid their marketing campaign with local business professionals.

The past two years at Simpson, I have been involved in numerous organizations from SGA to CAB. This year though, I am mostly excited about Greek Recruitment, and continuing my work in the Office of Admissions. There’s never enough time in the day to be involved in all the great things going on at Simpson.

GO STORM!

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QUINN!

Tuesday, August 26, 2008

I'm a junior and a corporate communications major. I was an elementary education major but found out it wasn't for me. I played football but now I stay busy with other activities with my fraternity. I'm from Dunkerton, which is in northeast Iowa by Waterloo. This summer I lived in Indianola and worked customer service for Guthy Renker, the company that owns
Proactiv Solution. Taking phone calls sucked but it paid the bills. Last semester I stepped on a piece of glass and had seven stitches in my foot and I also got shot in the face. There was also record snowfall, record rainfall, and record tornadoes all near my home in northeast Iowa. I'm hoping to have a better semester this year. I like long walks on the beach and candlelight dinners.


Quinn Albrecht

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I'm going to call you Caty...

Hi I'm Katharine, better known by my alias Katie Schaefer. I'm 20 years old and a Junior here at Simpson College. I grew up in a small town by the name of Prairie City. When I was in 5th grade my teacher Mr. Grier use to always call me Katy, so that is why my title is what it is. If you have ever seen the movie Mean Girls, and if you haven't then I suggest you should, then my title will also ring a bell from that too. I live with 3 wonderful roommates that I love. I am majoring in Sports Administration and minoring in Communications. I have an internship with KCCI this fall that will hopefully go well!! After graduating from college I hope to become a sports broadcaster when I get done with college.

Well this has been my first blog so hopefully everyone enjoys it! :)
If you have any questions just ask I'm pretty easy to get along with!

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Hey Everybody

    My name is Taylor Browning and I am a junior this year. I'm majoring in Corporate Communications and minoring in Marketing. I graduated from Valley High School where I spent most of my time in volleyball. Im glad to get back to school but it will be rough considering I just came back from Canada. My summer went pretty well. I spent most of my time working, going to the lake, or going to rock concerts. The tennis coach asked me to play this year, so it will be pretty interesting considering I've never played before. Anyways, that's all I can think of, so see you all in class.


Tay

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I'm The Procrastinator!

By: Sarah Harl

Hello everyone! My name is Sarah, and I am excited about beginning my junior year at Simpson! Originally from Williamsburg, IA, I am a corporate communications major, with a specialization on Sports Entertainment management, as well as a political science minor. I'm very actively involved on campus, holding a leadership position in my sorority, serving as the Panhellenic Council President, the Concerts co-chair of CAB, and am a member of PRSSA. I recently completed my second summer as a counselor at Trail's End summer camp in Beach Lake, PA, and while camp is one of the greatest loves of my life, it falls short to my love for Simpson! Needless to say, I'm very excited to be back on campus, and back into the swing of everything.

See you all tomorrow!

Sarah

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A little about me

Hey! My name is Erin Floro and I am a sophomore here at Simpson.  I am from Ankeny but we are actually in the process of moving to Waukee.  I graduated from Dowling Catholic High School and was involved in just about everything.  I decided to cut back on all the activities in college so right now I'm just very busy with my sorority.  This summer I had an awesome job with Professional Property Management and made some good money.  I'm excited for this class because it seems very interesting!  I'm a procrastinator as well, I have to go do the reading now I will see everyone tomorrow!

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Homework Already?!?

Hi. I'm Shauna Agan, but really if you can't remember my name I answer to anything including "hey you!". I am a sophomore here at Simpson and like Kellie Green, I also went to Lincoln High School in Des Moines. I am a member of the Simpson softball team and love all kinds of sports! As of right now I am a political science major and am planning on adding a Corporate Comm major and an English Comp minor. I have an avid interest in politics (by the way I'm very jealous that Pat got to do a White House Internship!). I have wanted to become a politician since I was five years old but I also love communications so I am hoping to tie them together somehow. After college I want to go to law school and possibly even become a prosecuting attorney or a labor lawyer. Who knows what will happen?!? I am very outgoing and personable so just say hi to me sometime or facebook me! See you all tomorrow!

Oh yeah...I am kind of a procrastinator sooooo needless to say I will be the one doing my blogs right before they are due! See you all later!

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Introduction: Alex Jones

My name is Alexandra Jones, Alex for short. I am a Junior this year and am majoring in English with minors in Journalism and Secondary Education. All throughout high school I was on the Yearbook staff. I really enjoyed Journalism and my teacher was absolutely amazing! She treated her students like adults, we earned our grades and it was not easy. I have to admit I am a weak writer and was more into the designing aspect of the Yearbook. However, I hope to strengthen my writing skills through taking this course. I am very excited to go into teaching Journalism because I believe it is a class that enables students to be more creative. There are no right and wrong answers. My Journalism classes taught me a lot about people and taking responsibility for my actions. 

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Hi! I'm Allison McNeal

Hey! My name is Allison McNeal, and I'm a transfer student at Simpson this year. I transfered from DMACC in West Des Moines, so this is definately a change! I'm a Junior with my major being journalism. I haven't decided if I want to do a minor in French or what I'm going to do for sure yet.

I've really enjoyed my time here at Simpson so far and love how nice people are! I'm hoping to do some extra-curricular activities, like joining a club or organization of some sort. I would also possibly like to join a sorority next year.

I'm a pretty nice person, but am kind of shy sometimes. I do like meeting new people, so I can't wait to meet everyone in the class!

See you guys tomorrow!

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"my introduction"

Hello, this is my first experience with blogging- I know, that's crazy seeing as I'm a sophomore in college and my life revolves around the internet (ex. email and facebook) However, I'll give this a shot so please bear with me. 


My name is Kelsey Knutson and I am a sophomore and I am enjoying every minute of it. I'm from St. Charles, Iowa, which is only twenty minutes south of Indianola... I know, I made a big move. I play softball here at Simpson and plan on leaving here with some sort of communication major. I love writing and journalism is obviously a main interest, however, like many college students I'm lost and confused when it comes to making life-altering decisions. I know, if I'm going to be successful I should probably figure out what I'm going to do. Who knows- it may come down to a coin flip. 

I'm pretty easy going and love to meet new people so I'm sure everyone (you, whoever is reading this, haha) and I will get along well. I'm excited to start the new year and I'm really looking forward to this class- I'm sure it will be fun! And hey, I've already done something new.. I've "blogged!"  

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Hello there

Hey, my name is Gabe Gilson and I am currently a sophomore here at Simpson College. At this point, I am not quite sure what I am majoring in but it will most likely be something in the Communication field. At Simpson, I play football which basically takes up any amount of free time I have. It also keeps me out of too much trouble which is a good thing. I come from Prairie City which is about 20 miles east of Des Moines. I graduated from PCM high school and of course I am pround to be a Mustang alum. In the summer, I work without a shirt as a lifeguard. Lets just say, the job has its benefits. Overall, I have an extrodinary sense of humor and I am always trying to crack jokes. I often laugh to myself at things the average person would not find remotely humorous. This class excites me because I find the journalism field very interesting and someday I would like to be a broadcaster on ESPN. All I need is some brains to go along with these looks! (joking). Hopefully this class gets myself, along with everyone else on the right track for their future in writing.

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Hi! I'm Pat!

Hi! My name is Pat Tierney, and I'm a sophomore here at Simpson. I haven't quite officially declared a major yet, but communications is probably where I'll end up. I'm a big fan of photography but figured out really quick that in the photography profession it’s more about your portfolio than your degree - so we'll see where that leads me. This is my first semester back at Simpson after spending just under 5 months working in the White House. I worked in the Photo Office while I was there, which really proved to be one of the best experiences of my life. I'm excited to be back on campus this semester and definitely ready to return to the good life of a college student. Outside of the everyday hustle and bustle of college and classes, I’m a huge sports fan, landing a job at ESPN would be a dream. I’ve also found a lot of fun in entering road races across the mid-west. With any luck I might have a marathon under my belt one of these days.

That’s the basic scoop on me. I’m a pretty laid back easy going guy and really excited for the next 9 months here at school. I know each classes has it’s own ups and downs and new opportunities and I’m excited to see where this class takes us.

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Hello, Hello!

Monday, August 25, 2008

Hey, there!


I'm Kathryn Lisk and I'm excited to be back on campus and starting my junior year. I am finally decided on a major, which is Corporate Comm. with a possible minor in Environmental Science. I love theater, but have found that it's more fun for me to take part in it as a hobby than a major. I spent the last 8 months in Orlando, Florida working as a character performer at Walt Disney World. It was an amazing experience because I got to make little kids' dreams come true every day. However, the Florida heat and humidity was exhausting so I was excited to spend a few days at home, in Boulder, Colorado with my family. 

It feels so great to be back on Simpson campus and I'm actually ready to start learning again! I know very little about the news writing world, but am excited to take in whatever I can. 
-Kathryn

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Just Me, Lexie Lu

Hello! My name is Lexie Hagerty and I am a sophomore here at Simpson. I am excited about this class because I like to write even though I don't think I am very good these days. I play volleyball for Simpson and love it. Unfortunately, it takes up a lot of my time and I miss a lot of class. However, I shouldn't have any problems with this one since it is only on Mondays and Wednesdays. Some of you might know one of my sisters. There are four of us total and we all are or have attended Simpson. Besides volleyball, I am also active in FCA. I love to sing and therefore take private lessons with one of Simpson's awesome instructors. I also like to take part in theater, but am unable to do so due to volleyball. Besides my activities, I also love to attend every Simpson event I can.
As I said, I am looking forward to this class and getting to know just a few more people at this college. You will come to learn that I can be very random and love different kinds of people, different attitudes, different dreams, and different points of view. So all that I ask is that my classmates speak their mind and are willing to make this class more than just an obligation!

Until Wednesday:)

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Sup!

Hey, my name is Adrian Aitken (with a silent t) and am a Junior majoring in corporate communications with a bio minor. The minor I guess is more like a hobby than useful. Born and raised in Moline, Il I graduated from the city's high school with some college acceptances. One of those being a university in Hawaii. I am asked why I choose simpson over paradise and I always come to the same conclusion. I just say its easier to concentrate on school work in the midwest because there isnt much else to do. What I am really thinking is that the living costs are too high and this place was my second choice. I enjoy taking part in many extracirricular activities including being a member of CAB, Lambda Chi Alpha, and participating in the intramurals. Staying active is what gets me through those awsome Iowa winters. This is my first class in journalism and also my very first blog if excluding facebook.

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Introduction

By: Jessica Hamell


Hello, My name is Jessica Hamell. A lot of people call me Ham so you can if you want I guess. I am a sophomore here at Simpson majoring in Corporate Communications. I went to high school in Carlisle which is about 20 minutes away. I played softball, basketball, and ran track in high school. I also played softball here last year and this year I have decided to run track. I have 3 brothers (1 real and 2 step) and 2 sisters (1 real and 1 half) yea my family is kind of hard to explain to people. I am pretty shy until you get to know me then I can be a little loud. I haven’t had a class like this yet so this will be a pretty interesting experience

- Jessica Hamell

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About Christina...

Hi everyone!
My name is Christina Woldt! I'm a senior and am soon to be graduating with a Degree in Elementary Education. This class will help fill my Speech/comm./theatre endorsement! I am active in my sorority on campus as well as Greek life and Education club.
This summer I went to Pheonix, AZ, Mackinac Island, MI, and Okoboji. Summer was fun but I'm ready to get back into the swing of things!

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Here We Go Again..

Hello to all! My name is Kayla Miller, now a sophomore at Simpson going into the fields of Sports Admin and Communication. I hope this will take me into a career related to sports advertising. I am absolutely in love with sports! I played every sport I could in high school including basketball, softball, golf, and volleyball all four years at Odebolt-Arthur (yeah... you probably have never heard of it). I miss them all... except for golf, and that is because I am currently a Simpson golfer. I am really outgoing once you get to know me. I may be a little on the shy side at first, but don't be afraid to talk to me!! Excited to see you all on Wednesday!

Buh-bye
Kayla Miller

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Introductions...

By Hannah Pickett
Hello everyone, my name is Hannah Pickett and I am a junior at Simpson College, majoring in journalism and mass communications. I transferred to Simpson my sophomore year from Central College. I know that sounds terrible, but, the truth is that Central stopped carrying my major and I wanted to be closer to home. I am from Winterset, which is only about 25 minutes away from Indianola, so I commute to Simpson. I am the sports editor and main sports writer at the Winterset Madisonian newspaper. I have worked there since I was a sophomore in high school and have just gradually taken over. This is my fifth year working for the Madisonian. This past summer went by really fast for me. I nannied all day, worked at the paper at night, ran in the Race for the Cure, and spent time with my 8 month old maltese puppy, Berkley. When I graduate from Simpson, I hope to go into the broadcast journalism field, preferably as a reporter or anchor. I interned at WHO-Channel 13 over Mayterm and loved it!

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Am I doing this right???

By: Kellie Green

Hey Everyone~
So as you can see my name is Kellie Green (yes I know my name is a color). I am a junior theatre major with minors in women studies and journalism and mass communication. I really enjoy theatre and everything about it. I hope (cross my fingers) that some day I will make it big. I am from Des Moines, IA and went to Lincoln High School. I have two sisters. I really love the color green! I recently got a new tattoo on my foot, so now I have three. I think that I am a fun person, outgoing, dedicated and a good friend. I have a lot of things that I want to do with my life. One of those is joining the Peace Corps when I graduate. I really want to help people and teach others the knowledge that I have about Theatre. I have wanted to be in the Peace Corps for as long as I can remember. It is just another thing that I am going to add to the list of dreams. LOL See everyone soon!!!

Kellie Green

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About Liz...

Sunday, August 24, 2008

Hi everyone! My name is Liz Tjaden. I will graduate in December with a degree in Music and Communications Speech/Rhetoric and a minor in HR. I want to go to grad school for Student Affairs in Higher Ed so we will see what happens!
I love music, any kind really, just depends on my mood at the time. I bought a guitar about a year ago and I'm just now starting to learn how to play it. But don't ask me to play, because I'm still really bad but I also started to write some songs too! (Which are probably worse than my playing!) I have a blog that I use to write about things that are going on in the world or in the news. I like blogging because it allows me to speak my mind and I don't have to see my critics. :) I like to debate but I'm often shy and quiet at first until I feel comfortable around people and then I'm embarrassingly loud....
See you soon!

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Introductions, Please . . .

By Austin Bates

Hello, my name is Austin Bates, as you might have incurred from the by line. The simple stuff first: I'm a junior this year, and have attended Simpson all three years of that time. This year I live in Weinman Apartments, and beginning this semester, I major in journalism, but have a wish to specialize in photography, something I have some adeptness at, and finished one class with flying colors (despite the fact it was black and white photography; yes, that was a joke).

As for personal things, I love rock and roll music, especially heavy metal, and this refers to bands like Breaking Benjamin, Metallica, Disturbed, Slipknot, Linkin Park, Killswitch Engage, and Fear Factory, amoung others. I've worked at OfficeMax for the last two years, and continue to do so during classes. I have a love of debating and arguing people on many things, and my beliefs are rather strongly held, so this can cause some conflicts on occasion.

If you wish to know anything more about me, I point you to these websites:

http://www.515comics.com/: A locally created and maintained website, as the name suggests, contributed to by various local artists. I have an interest in the forum that is part of the website, where many of the contributors are avid Warhammer 40,000 players and fans.

http://www.bungie.net/Stats/Halo3/Default.aspx?player=Anubis+Setab: I'm an online gamer through and through: this is my stats page for Halo 3. However, I do play other games, such as Gears of War, Call of Duty 4, Guitar Hero 3, Mass Effect, and various others.

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Out of My League!

Friday, August 22, 2008

Hello Everyone,

My name is Callie McBroom. I am a senior management major with a double minor in corporate communications and marketing. I have been a part of the Women's Chorale for 3 years, and will most likely be again this year. I have been interning with Meredith Corporation all summer and will be working there during the school year as well. This keeps me pretty busy when you throw in school work, and it sounds like there will be a lot of it this year! I am also a pretty shy person until I'm comfortable with my surroundings. That doesn't mean, however, that I'm hard to get along with. I have never done anything like this, so this class will be a new (and scary!) experience for me. I am looking forward to meeting everyone very soon.

Callie McBroom

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Next runner up

Wednesday, August 20, 2008

Hello everyone, I hope you have all had a great summer! I decided to be the next person to post. My name is Sarah Keller, I am going to be a sophomore. I am a very busy person , I am on the dance team, I am going to be a destination leader for Art 101, I write for the Simpsonian, and I am involved in various Religious Life Community activities, as well as being a member of APO and a Wesley Scholar. I tend to be shy and timid when you first meet me, and I will most likely be the silent girl in the class until I get warmed up to everyone, but once you get to know me well, there is no shutting me up. I am majoring in art and either communications or journalism. I am pretty easy to get along with and I am looking forward to meeting everyone in the class that I do not already know!

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Taking the plunge

Monday, August 18, 2008

Hello to all. I figured that I'll be the brave one to post first, even though it's fair to say I have absolutely no idea what I'm doing...on that note, I suppose I should introduce myself. My name is Katie Anthony and I'm a freshman this year. I'm planning on Journalism and Mass Communications as a major and I'm thinking about Psychology as a possible double major. I like to view myself as being extremely outgoing, so don't be afraid to come up and say hi! Odds are, I'll be the one in class voicing my opinion, asking too many questions, and talking far too much. In regards to the journalistic part of who I am, ever since I can remember I love writing, I love the fact that I can write something that can, perhaps, make an impact (hopefully a positive one) on society. Ultimately, what it comes down to with me, is that writing is my passion...as strange as that may sound.



I look forward to meeting you all and I'm, surprisingly enough, even looking forward to class.



Feel free to facebook me :-)



-Katie Anthony, class of 2012

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Welcome to The News!

By BRIAN STEFFEN


You're reading the first post on The News About The News, our class blog to which all class members of the Beginning Newswriting and Reporting sections at Simpson College will contribute in Fall 2008 and beyond. Rather than have students create their own blogs, which sometimes creates confusion among those who had trouble keeping track of all the blogs in the class, we'll have just one blog and show everyone how to contribute to it.

In other words, this blog will be a truly community effort.

So let's get the conversation started.


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