The News About The News

The cost of the war

Sunday, November 30, 2008

By: Sarah Harl

There are many ways to determine the cost of the current wars in Iraq and Afghanistan. Dollars spent, lives lost, or lives changed.

But what about the media and what they do or do not report?

In a recent blog, Blake Lambert's opinion is discussed. Many times when a war correspondent is taking captive, the media network the reporter works with requests that no outgoing information leave the country in order to ensure that their reporter is returned safely. Lambert believes this to be the wrong solution.

According to Lambert, information should never be withheld from the public, nor should news be used in political negotiations.

The people should know exactly what is happening in the wars that their government is spending money on.

And, apparently it is only necessary to keep journalistic news secret when the kidnapped is a reporter. When a politician, aid worker, or anyone else is abducted, the media is quick to report that abduction, regardless of whether it will jeopardize their safe return.

So maybe what the media withholds from the public to protect their own is another cost of this war.

A public service announcement

By Austin Bates

I was listening to the radio a few days back when a simple, lengthy narrative began playing during the commercial break between songs. Though I cannot find its exact transcript, the narrative ran for about a minute or so, and discussed the current financial crisis affecting the nation, and how Iowa is doing quite well despite it all.

Some of the points it made was that our financial market, including insurance services, is more isolated and better handled than the other companies that failed, and thus, ours are doing just fine. It also pointed out that our unemployement rate is one of the lowest in the nation. In all, it declared Iowa as doing well and remaining strong, despite the collapsing economy.

The message concluded with statements encouraing listeners to relax, go out and buy local services and products, and not worry about the national crisis affecting many others. By this point I was wondering who was paying for this message when the disclaimer came at the end: the Des Moines Radio Group was responsible for the message.

I immediately found myself seriously wondering who was benefitting from the broadcast of the message. How did the Des Moines Radio Group stand to gain from such a message? Who was making a profit off of it? Minutes later, I was still wondering about what alterior motives must be driving the message, mostly because I was shocked that the message wasn't adverising anything specific.

I eventually came to realize that the message was just a public service announcement of sorts; no one stood to profit from it, it was just for the public's benefit. All the same, it's kind of sad that my first thoughts about a radio broadcast assumed it was advertising of some kind. I guess we tend to forget that, even as awash in promotions for private companies all forms of media are, there is still such a thing as interest in the greater good.

The Des Moines Radio Group didn't have to broadcast that message; they could have just filled the slot with another advertisement, in which they could have made money, instead of lost it. But instead they chose to put out a message of hope and encouragement, something to benefit the public. It's nice to see that private companies, even those in broadcast, can still have interests in public well-being, and not just be entirely concerned with profit.

College priorities need rearranged

By: Erin Floro

A letter to the editor in the Des Moines Register expresses my exact opinion regarding priorities of colleges.

A. Frank Thompson, a University of Northern Iowa professor, claims that more emphasis is placed on sports than academics.

At UNI, faculty received zero percentage increase in salaries this year due to lack of funds. Yet, the football coach was awarded a raise.

The Des Moines Register featured an article on the arrest of two of the school's top athletes. Just a week before, 23 students and faculty had been recognized by Omicron Delta Kappa for outstanding achievements in the community, both as scholars and leaders. Where was the media coverage?

Professor Thompson also points out that UNI gives more full time scholarships to athletes than it does to students for academics. I believe this happens at all colleges, both public and private (even though the privates claim they don't give athletic scholarships). I don't think this will ever change.

Blogs and the first amendment

By: Christina Woldt

Today in The Associated Press an article entertained the idea that blogging might be lobbying. As we all know, political lobbyists try to sway public opinion and are supportive of a certain policy or position. Lobbyists try to sway the public to join their "team". The topic of Blogging came into play when discussing the 1972 and 1992 laws on lobbyists. The article described that under the law,

"Lobbyists must register with the state, and submit regular reports about who pays them, how they spend money, and which issues they’re working on. Groups that don’t fit the traditional definition of “lobbyist” also have to file reports, provided they meet certain spending thresholds while leading public campaigns intended to influence public policy."

For popular bloggers such as David Goldstein and his political blog on Horseass.org is all about swaying the public and speaking out about political issues. Isn't this what the first amendment is all about? Goldstein is merely speaking his opinions, it's just to a larger audience. Isn't it safe to say that we all could be considered lobbyists? As much as we try not to enforce our beliefs on others, we all slip up at one time or another. We all can blog, we all are human beings with a voice, so we all are lobbyists, right?

Obama's way is the right way

By: Erin Floro

A local newspaper reporter, Steven Thomma, got an insight into how President-elect Barack Obama will try to solve the world's problems.

At a news conference held at the Hilton-Chicago, reporters were seated on opposite sides of the room. Press sections were labeled Cubs and White Sox, named for the city's major league baseball teams.

Thomma, a diehard White Sox fan, was seated in the Cubs section. He jokingly complained to Obama's staff who in turn told the president-elect.

Obama, also a White Sox fan, called on Thomma for a question at the next day's meeting. He issued a humorous apology and told Thomma that is how his administration plans to do business; by admitting a mistake, then correcting it.

Free online

By: Lexie Hagerty

I love the TV show One Tree Hill but tend to miss the show every Monday night due to sorority activities.

I was talking to my roommate about taping the show, but she said I could just watch the episode on the internet. This seemed very interesting to me, considering it is free and I can watch any episode I have ever missed.

With that, I began to search the internet and sure enough, there were several Web sites that allowed me to watch any TV episode for free. These websites include WorldTVPC and Project Free TV.

As much as I like the ability to watch the episodes I have missed, isn't this free TV cheating? Once again, I see the media changing so much that everything is available online and normally for free.

Soon, there isn't going to be anything other media sources than the internet, because why pay for a media source if you can get it for free online?

Webcams gone to the dogs.

By: Sarah Harl

The most recent Internet craze is Puppy Cam, which allows viewers to watch in on 6 growing Shiba Inu puppies.

The operation is really quite simple: The owners positioned their web cam to look on the puppy pen, allowing bored web surfers to check up on the pups anytime they have a free second.

What started as a simple way to let family and friends see the new litter of pups, quickly turned to something of a cultural phenomenon.

Why would everyone from little girls to company executives be taking a break from their day to see what the pups are up to?

They tune in because unlike other reality shows, this cast doesn't deal with the shallow drama so often seen on television.

Perhaps the lack of drama is what surprised the news outlets who reported on this as a story.

And maybe it is a lesson that the media needs to learn. It doesn't always have to be back-stabbing, glitz, glamour, high-speed chases, and gossip.

Sometimes the simplest things are the most entertaining.

WARNING: Graphic Images

Saturday, November 29, 2008

by Pat Tierney

Recently the terrorist attacks in India have been dominating the headlines of newspapers and web pages across the country and the world.

The homepage of Fox News is no different.

On the front of their page are links to related stories about the terrorist attacks. One of the most striking was a photo essay about the attacks that specifically said, WARNING: Graphic Images.

In our class we have talked a lot about censorship and whether it is a good or bad thing.

Yes, these images are graphic, but the event itself wasn't exactly a pretty sight.

Is it responsible for the media to show photos that may be graphic in nature, to the world.

Personally and professionally I believe yes.

The world can be a harsh place, and often times people don't always see the reality of everyday life around the world. Living in the mid-west it is so easy to be sheltered from the harsh realities that are sometimes taking place around the world, but I think journalists can do a good job of sharing these experiences with the world.

Fox News is just one example of a news organization that is doing this, taking a story (no matter how hard to handle) and share it with the world.

Twitter saves the day...maybe

By: Katie Anthony

While many would argue that the journalists strive to show, rather than tell, I believe there to be a fine line between showing what's necessary and showing it all.

By now, everyone knows that I'm not a huge fan of negative news-though I've become used to it because that type of news is the majority of the news.

Yet, when I was looking for a blog topic this week, I stumbled across "Citizen Journalists Provide Glimpes Into Attacks."

This article falls back on the information that was put on Twitter the day that the Taj Mahal Palace and Taj Hotel were attacked.

Many reporters tapes, cell phones, and any other means of information were confiscated after the attacks for evidence, yet some citizens-now seen as "citizen journalists"-were able to keep their cell phones that held short recordings of the burning of these buildings.

In situations like these, the line is truly fine, and I think the line was crossed in this case. While the public had a desire to be informed, I don't think that a minute-by-minute picture of burning buildings is the most effective way to get their message and information across.

In fact, I'd argue that just replaying the pictures/video the news have, would be more than sufficient as long as they're relaying new information as its given to them. That's how they informed the public about the 9/11 attacks, so I think that in the case of the Mumbai attacks, the same rules need to be applied.

Obama merchandise hawked by papers

By: Erin Floro

After the recent election of Barack Obama newspapers are trying to make money off this historic event. Since revenues are down at most newspapers, it sounds like a good idea to me.

The Washington Post, The New York Times, and the Los Angeles Times are selling memorabilia such as t-shirts, coffee mugs, and key chains with Obama’s image. Big items now are reproductions of the Nov. 5 front page headlining Obama’s victory. A framed edition front page with brass plating can be yours for only $299 plus shipping and handling from the NY Times.

After searching the LA Times Web site, I came across other items available for purchase such as buttons, dolls, clocks, and even bobble heads. This paper reports $686,000 in sales of Obama merchandise.

I think this is smart of the newspapers to make additional revenue. As a consumer I would personally buy an item from a newspaper before I would a t-shirt or souvenir shop. These items would be of quality material and appropriate.

College newspapers suffer from poor economy

By: Erin Floro

The increasing decline of print advertising revenue has hit newspapers hard all over the United States. College newspapers are no exception.

The economy has nosedived so badly that papers have had to make cutbacks in such areas as frequency of issues, size of paper, and number of pages. Other papers have had to reevaluate their budget by trimming expenses such as travel and dining.

Many financial and consulting firms that normally recruit through advertising have cut back or stop doing so altogether.

National companies that target college students as consumers are cutting their own costs by reducing advertising. They probably figure a college student doesn’t have much extra money to spend on their product. So why advertise in a college newspaper?

I’m sure our very own paper, The Simpsonian, has also felt the crunch. Lets hope that it can continue to be the nations longest running college newspaper.

NPR's vlog

By: Callie McBroom

NPR announced the launch of a new type of blog today. It is called a Vlog, which is a video blog. Wikipedia says that vlogging consists of regular entries embedded with video or video links that also employ text and still images. Vlogs can also be distributed by RSS feeds, allowing "automatic aggregation and playback on mobile devices and personal computers."

NPR's vlog named "Open Mike" is set up on a YouTube channel called Weekend Edition.

Scott Simon, the host for Weekend Edition Saturday held his first interview with NPR News Analyst Juan Williams. Liane Hansen will soon be holding her first interview on the vlog as the host for Weekend Edition Sunday.

NPR is also asking its readers for suggestions about future guests for the vlog.

Abusive blogs

By: Callie McBroom

Blogs have become very popular with many different people who use them for very different reasons. But now, this popularity and the tendency for blogs to be posted anonymously is causing problems.

Both John McIntire and Words at Work have recently been discussing the need to have some sort of control over what is said in blogs. This issue has surfaced because some bloggers are abusing others over the internet.

This is not only a problem for the abused bloggers, however. Annoying and abusive posts can also deter other people from posting a comment, for fear that they will receive the same treatment. This defeats the purpose of blogging.

Now the question remains, who will decide what should and shouldn't be said? And, who will make sure that First Amendment rights are upheld while protecting bloggers from unnecessary attacks?

No job? Blog!

Friday, November 28, 2008

By Liz Tjaden

In celebration of my upcoming graduation from Simpson in a few weeks without a job, I would like to shed light on a blog that can help journalists who have been laid-off.

According to Lost Remote, a blog has been launched by Six Apart called the "TypePad Journalist Bailout Program". It allows journalists to post stories and new events. They don’t promise the blog to be a full-time replacement for a lost job, but it does provide a place for journalists to post their opinions and news in a public forum.

Plus, this service is free so people don't feel the burden of shelling out money they don't have in order to get their work out.

With layoffs and bailouts consuming the media news, it is nice to hear about people, especially journalists, being “saved” by the help from others.

Newspapers endangered

By: Hannah Pickett

Scientifically speaking, in the animal kingdom when a species starts to trail off they go on the endangered species list, a precursor to extinction. If journalism careers were categorized the way the animal kingdom is, newspapers would be dubbed endangered.

Many small town newspapers throughout the state of Iowa, and around the nation are having to close shop. There are many different reasons for the newspaper's endangerment. Some say it's the economic crisis, others say it's the internet phenomenon. This doesn't just pertain to small town papers, however. In the past year, the Des Moines Register laid off much of its staff.

Newspapers can survive on a skeleton staff. For example, in Winterset, the newspaper staff is four people to put out a 22 page paper weekly. It can be done; it just requires hard working employees. The point is, however, if major newspapers are cutting staff, some who have worked their for many years, what does that mean to the college journalism student?

If the current jobs are being cut right now, imagine what it will be like in a couple of years when college graduates are looking for jobs. Regardless of the reasoning behind small town papers folding, right now it is a really scary time to be a journalism major with no job security foreseeable in the future.

Eventually, newspapers will probably be taken over by the internet. Until then, where are the jobs?

Activists use Internet to get word out

Thursday, November 27, 2008

By: Allison McNeal

Social activists are distributing their message to a new audience: the Web.

Nonprofit groups have recently started to construct demonstrations on YouTube and use social networking sites like Facebook to get the word out.

The different strategies the groups have implemented are the use of animated 3-D characters to protest the global shortage of drinking water and having Web companies that allow individuals to create their own charity.

WaterPartners International is one of the companies to incorporate a global safe drinking water campaign.

This company could have promoted their campaign by visually showing the effects of safe drinking water, but instead used the Internet as their means of communication.

According to Nicole Wickenhauser, a company spokesperson, said that it saved time and money by putting their campaign online and through animated, virtual characters built from actual people.

As a result, daily Web traffic doubled at WebPartners site during the campaign and also attracted support from around the globe.

With Web based activism, it encourages ordinary people to start up their own campaigns.

Another campaign that has started up is Yourcause.com.

Yourcause.com has allowed citizens to create their own charity and is similar to sites like MySpace.

According to cnn.com, "the new site allows a person to do everything a charity traditionally does [like] raise money and awareness and recruit support."

Matthew Combs, the site's co-founder, said his site designs Web pages and vets charities for people who don't have the time or expertise to do it themselves.

Other social network sites like MySpace are starting to support activists and have an "impact" page that connects users with political and charitable causes.

YouTube has also recently launched a "Nonprofits and Activism" channel for consumers.

With these new technologies, the Web has become a crucial source for nonprofit fundraising and has shown how involved Americans are.

$550 million has been donated online in 2001, and the number grew to $10.4 billion in 2007.

Online companies have shown that social activists can help reach a larger audience and that change can be imminent in the near future.

"Real change is most often accomplished by committed individuals working together for a cause they feel passionately about," Wickenhauser said. "Whether they work together virtually or in person is less important."

Catholic priest honored by Jewish paper

Tuesday, November 25, 2008

By: Erin Floro

The Forward, a national Jewish newspaper, included a catholic priest, Rev. Paul Ouderkirk of Postville, in its annual list of 50 most influential people in Judaism. The list usually includes only Jews.

Ouderkirk was honored for his work with former workers of Agriprocessors Inc. In May, federal agents raided the company and 400 workers were arrested on illegal immigration charges. The company is the largest producer of kosher meat.

The 75-year-old retired priest, who speaks fluent Spanish, served the Guatemalan and Mexican immigrants who sought help after the raid. He aided workers and their families in obtaining food and shelter.

The editors of the paper considered the Agriprocessors controversy a top story in Judaism in 2008.

Health web sites

By: Lexie Hagerty

An article in the International Herald Tribune reported that the Kaiser Family Foundation is hoping to start their own Web site to cover the health issues that are being pushed aside by other media who's budgets are going down the drain.

The family thinks that even with the economic downturn, their website will succeed, because of the need to stay aware of all health related issues.

I think this is a good idea. The Kaiser Web site will be a good source for any person who wants to know the latest in any health issues. The Web site also hopes to be connected to other news organizations as well.

I think that with the frightening and sketchy health issues of today, it is important for anyone to stay connected to health news. It allows people to stay aware and what to look out for, especially in this winter season.

Plus, there are lots of things that people can do to prevent the spread of diseases. Hopefully, these new health Web sites will keep people updated and not push the issues aside.

Update your Web site!

By: Shauna Agan

Recently, an article on CNN.com was posted about the 25 best cities to find a job. Four of these cities were in Iowa. They were Ames, Iowa City, Des Moines, and Sioux City.

These figures were based on this year’s unemployment rate compared to last years and job growth.

Checking out DesMoinesRegister.com, there are many interesting articles, but none about this particular find.

It is surprising to me to find that a local newspaper that most of Iowa reads has not yet reported something this important. Four of the cities in Iowa are listed as top cities to find a job during tough economic times.

This is significant for Iowa. It shows that Iowa is doing something ‘right’ economically, but why hasn’t the Des Moines Register reported it yet?

As a local newspaper, one duty is to be aware of significant things such as these. Reporters should constantly be checking larger media outlets to make sure they have not missed anything significant.

If just one of the reporters had checked CNN.com, this story would be posted on the Web site of the Des Moines Register. Regardless of the fact that this story will more than likely appear in the Des Moines Register tomorrow, I believe it should have been reported on the Web site tonight.

This is big news for Iowa, but if Iowans follow local news via the Internet, this story is nowhere to be found. An update of the DesMoinesRegister.com Web site would be favorable.

Who cares?

Monday, November 24, 2008

By: Adrian Aitken

The Politico published a story about the extracurricular activities that Barack Obama partakes in. They focused on what Barack does during his Sunday mornings. According to the article the president elect has missed church the past few weeks to workout at the gym instead.

I don't understand this what so ever. Shouldn't the media be more focused on what our future has in store rather than Barack's religious habits. The article then compares Obama to President Bush.

Apparently George W. Bush has also missed a few services. I cant say for the publisher of the paper but I can forgive the president for being too busy to attend church. The Politico is being too shallow in reporting during such important times in America.

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