A Not So Relaxing Holiday

By Keri Waterhouse

Not everyone is going to be able to relax and enjoy a three day weekend during this expected beautiful weathered holiday. Many people are still out of jobs and spending their much needed stress free time job searching.

Our nation's jobless rate has risen to a 26-year high of 9.7 percent. It's expected to get to 10 percent this year and keep increasing into part of next year before it goes back down. It hasn't been this high since the post-World War II when it was 10.8 percent, which was in 1982.

The number of people who are jobless is just ridiculous. It is so sad to think about 10 percent of our nation are without jobs. I know that my dad has been laid off since July and it is a stressful thing since my mother is a stay at home mom. Unemployment is nice, but when it's less than half of what you're used to coming home with, things get tight.

How are we supposed to boost our economy and get money back out there if no one is bringing home any or hardly any money in the first place? Hopefully things clear up soon or there are going to be some pretty sad things happening in this world.

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A large percent of Iowa's public schools fail to progress in the No Child Left Behind law

By Michelle Zimmerman

Iowa is commonly considered a state whose education is top-notch, but reviewing the number of Iowa schools that failed to meet the standards of the No Child Left Behind law in 2008-2009, might make one think differently.

With testing scores at an all time low, more schools than ever have landed themselves on a list of improvement. Iowa's goal was to develop a system that would track the skills of students as well as the work of faculty. Although it was expected that if teachers focused more on students struggling in math or reading the rate of absences and drop outs would decrease. But instead numbers have significantly fallen once again.

According to Staci Hupp of The Des Moines Register, if the number of schools on the list continues to increase the next course of action is to lay off current teachers and allow a new batch of teachers to try the system. Although this would be a last resort it seemingly is becoming something of reality for the schools.

While there is a large seriousness on how well students perform on a reading and math evaluation it is important to consider that students' improvements are not considered from year to year and the speculations are based solely on one test created by the state given once a year. So it is understandable that there would be slight frustration from both the state and the teachers of Iowa.

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Some Parents Oppose Obama School Speech

By Laura Reid

How amazing are some citizens of America, where they will risk the education of their children, America's future, to take them out of school because the President of the United States would like to talk to them about staying in school? How Ironic.

Just an exaggeration, I don't think missing one day of school will do alot of harm to the kids, but missing school because someone that "We the People" elected is encouraging them to not miss school and work hard is simply outrageous.

Is this in response to what is going on with the healthcare reform, or are conservatives just being big meanieheads and don't want to listen to the person that is trying to make their lives better? Personally, if I had a child living in a time where I wasn't very fond of out president, I wouldn't punish my child by not letting him or her go to school because someone, and not just anyone, the President of the United States, is going to personally tell them to stay in school. I want my child to join the cult of higher education.

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Survey: 40% of Sports Reporters Bet on Games

By Zach Jevne

Gambling and sports have always gone hand-in-hand, but according to a recent survey, it also extends to the people reporting on the games.

In a poll conducted by the John Curley Center for Sports Journalism at Penn State University, 40 percent of sports reporters admitted they gamble on sports, with 5 percent saying they had bet on the games they were covering. The poll asked 285 reporters who cover sports for newspapers and their web sites. The survey is titled "Sports Coverage: Toy Department or Public-Service Journalism" and will appear in the September 2009 issue of the International Journal of Sport Communication.

The most telling aspect of the survey, according to Marie Harden, who conducted the research, was that those who do gamble on sports were more likely to admit that gambling hurts objectivity in coverage of the games. The report mentions that gambling on sports by reporters who cover them is banned by the ethics codes of some news organizations because of the potential conflict of interest.

Remaining objective after winning or losing money on the game would be nearly impossible. That is the reason these news organizations use an ethics code. Once a person has placed a bet on a game, they no longer view the game in the same light as someone who has no money invested in the outcome. I feel that objectivity is very important in sports reporting. I don't want to read an article by a die-hard, biased fan of the team, who would also have a hard time remaining objective, just as I wouldn't want to read someone who has just lost money on the game.

I know that it is wishful thinking to think that there is a way to eliminate gambling among reporters, but I feel that it jeopardizes the integrity of the profession. Placing a bet on a sport that you are not covering is bad, but wagering on a game you are reporting on is something that cannot be tolerated.

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A sad day for Internet in Italy

By: Christina Woldt

This past week Eurostat, It was found that the percentage of Italian households with internet access actually declined, marking the first downward trend of its kind in any European country. Although only a 1% drop, Francisco Federico at the European Journalism Centre points the finger at the "digital and cultural divides that plague Italy."

According to Federico a divide exists between the Northern and Southern halves of the country, and many large cities in the southern regions are completely without broadband connectivity. He suggests that a much deeper cultural problem revolving around the reluctance to accept change is the catalyst behind it all.

In this vast technological era the internet is everything. It is difficult to imagine that an entire country could be dragging its feet or even moving backward, essentially, from the direction in which the world is moving. I understand that the Italian culture, like any other, is rich with heritage and tradition, but if I were them I would take caution to these latest figures before the rest of Europe leaves them in the www dot dust.

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Finding a New Sunday Hobby

By:  Christina Woldt

According to a recent report from Pointer Online journalist Al Thompkins, many NASCAR drivers are calling on fans to get in touch with their local Congress members. Why? To urge them to lobby for an auto company bailout now quoted at 34 billion dollars and save their sport.

We can hardly turn on a TV anymore without hearing about the impact of struggling auto companies and talk of a possible bailout, but I for one had not thought about the various long-arm affects that the auto world woes are imposing upon numerous other businesses.

Apparently Honda has already decided to pull out of the Formula One racing world altogether, citing the global economy and a struggling industry as the reason behind it. Should other large NASCAR companies like GM, Ford, or Chrysler begin to follow suit we may be looking at dramatic changes to the sport itself.

NASCAR is often touted as being the most popular "sport" in America. With the millions of dollars counted on annually in sponsorships and parts, many fans (70 million of them Fox says) and owners could be looking for a new way to spend their Sundays.

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Awful start to the holiday season...

By: Katie Schaefer

This Christmas is not going to be like other Christmases. There is going to be a lot more people staying home and maybe even less presents under the tree.

Much like all of this year, money is quite the issue. According to the International Council of Shopping Centers, this has been one of the worst starts to Christmas shopping yet.

With the economy being like it is, shopping is only probably going to get worse. All retail stores are struggling right now excluding Wal-Mart.

Sales in November dropped 7.7 percent, which is the lowest it has been in a lot of Novembers. The ICSC predicts that sales are going to drop 10 percent which could make this Christmas the weakest Christmas shopping on record.

There aren't as many people traveling either. Even though gas prices are starting to drop, it still costs a lot to buy a plane ticket.

Even big name brand department stores like Macy's and Saks Fifth Avenue are struggling. No one can afford the economy right now.

With it beginning to look a lot like Christmas, people are starting to get more and more nervous about how they are going to be able to afford the expensive holiday.

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No signature, no publication

By: Hannah Pickett

There are many times that I open up a newspaper, read an article, and don't necessarily agree with the writer's tone or take on the issue at hand. I take it with a grain of salt and go on with my day. But, if I felt compelled enough to write a letter to the editor about my disgust with the article, I most certainly would not want to sign my name. It would be humiliating and in my opinion, unnecessary.

The truth of the matter is that in many newspapers, especially small town papers, letters to the editor will not be printed unless there is a signature on the letter. I know that at the Winterset Madisonian, if there is no signature or someone willing to take the heat for the letter to the editor, it will not be looked at, let alone published.

How important and necessary is it to have a signature on a letter to the editor? Why does it matter who wrote the letter?

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Jounalism job security?

By: Hannah Pickett

The journalistic world has been hit hard with the current economic crisis. Layoffs are the most obvious result of the crisis.

This week, the Des Moines Register laid off a number of employees. This was not the first time this has happened this year. The typical slogan in layoffs is "last hired, first fired." That's not proving to be the case anymore, in fact, the opposite is proving to be true.

Wednesday, Brian Duffy, an award winning editorial cartoonist, was one of dozens to receive the latest cut. Duffy's cartoons were the highlight on the front page for decades.

The truth of the matter is this. Fresh college graduates are chomping at the bit to land their first journalism job and will bite at just about anything, regardless of the starting salary. Journalists that have served their time in the business have worked their way up the pay scale. This makes it economical to lay off the tenured journalist and replace him with a college graduate who will do the same job for much less.

With this scheme mixed with the unsteady economy, where is the job security in this field?

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Education vs. talent

By: Hannah Pickett

In today's technologically advanced world where we can publish our works and creations with the click of a mouse, I wonder, why spend money on getting a journalism degree?

For instance, I am 20 years old and am the leading sports writer and sports editor at an accredited weekly newspaper. I have worked here since I was 15 years old. At 15, I had no experience whatsoever in the field of journalism. Right now, I simply have the experience gained on the job and the knowledge of some college courses leading my writing and editing, but still no fancy college diploma on the wall.

Sure, going to college is a great idea. I obviously think so otherwise I wouldn't be at Simpson. But, in the journalist world, the majority of jobs are determined based on skill, not education level.

If I were to apply for a position as an anchor or television reporter, the fact that I have a degree from Simpson College is not going to be as important as my demo tape, likewise in print journalism. If I wanted a job at the Des Moines Register, it would be my work, not my education, that would make or break the deal.

My aunt was one of the most popular writers for the Des Moines Register for about 15 years and has since written a book. Her level of education stopped after high school. No one ever questioned her qualifications for the position when they read her column.

So, my question is this: Having a college education is a wonderful asset to most jobs, and sure it gives a bump in the pay scale, but is it really necessary to become an established journalist?

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Women gain recognition

By: Allison McNeal

A new Web site is being launched that aims toward the success of women.

TheNextWomen.com is an online magazine mainly aimed towards highly successful women and their contributions to society.

Linde Wolters, editor in chief, said that the company highlights "women who are [future] founders, chief executives and VCs of internet companies. We write about who these women are, what they do and where they are going."

The site also brings in news from around the world, company start-ups, and lifestyle features.

The difference with this online magazine is that it brings interatnional business news about the internet industy.

There are sites like TechCrunch and Mashable, but they have predominantly male audiences.

Wolters also said that they have a strong focus on the women that are shaping the industry and are making the news, rather than the companies they work for or the technology that drives their business.

TheNextWomen.com uses Twitter as a way of networking, to keep in touch, and to let other women follow articles.

This site is proposed to expand to magazines in the next coming months.

With the question of the economy, the Web site is trying to keep their costs to a minimum and think of alternative ways to get revenue through the site.

According to Wolters, the main message that she wants consumers to know is that "we're trying to provide quality content that will eventually convince people that we really are unique in what we do."

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Blogging comes to Simpson

By Liz Tjaden

Students who have never taken a communication class at Simpson probably aren’t familiar with blogging and the benefits that it provides.

As the Simpsonian reported today, Simpson women’s basketball team player, Emily Smith, was thrown into this unknown cyber world last month by the NCAA.

The NCAA randomly chose schools and players to blog about what it is like to be a collegiate athlete within their division.

It is hard to understand the massive effects that blogging can produce. I think this is a great public relation’s idea by the NCAA to promote college athletics as well as shinning a light on women’s teams.
The blog will give fans an inside look at the experiences of a collegiate team by the athletes themselves, as well as promoting positive role models for young girls.

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Viacom troubles reach breaking point

By: Allison McNeal

Companies such as AT&T Inc., Credit Suisse Group AG, DuPont Co., and Viacom announced job cuts today as the U.S. recession threatens to become the longest in the postwar era.

Viacom Inc., owner of MTV networks and Paramount Pictures, recently stated that it plans on cutting more than 850 jobs, which is about seven percent of the workforce, because of lack of viewership and falling ad sales.

Chief executive Philippe Dauman said that the staff reduction “will better position Viacom to navigate the economic slowdown.”

Last month, Viacom reported a 37 percent drop in third-quarter profit as ad sales declined for the U.S. cable channels.

This quarter MTV’s viewership has declined 22 percent, which is the most of any Viacom network. Compared to a year ago, shows like “The Hills” and “A Shot at Love with Tila Tequila” attracted bigger audiences, Spencer Wang, an analyst at Credit Suisse, said.

While these shows are still being viewed, individuals are not watching them to the extent that they have when they were first broadcast.

In addition to the job cuts, the company is also suspending senior-level management salary increases for 2009.

With job cuts that are now becoming imminent, organizations are growing weary.

According to Dauman and Chief Financial Officer Tom Dooley, Viacom needs “an organization and a cost structure that are in step with the evolving economic environment."

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CBS radio and Yahoo! join forces

By: Allison McNeal

Along with newspapers that are constantly reorganizing and combining forces with other companies, radio stations and Internet sites are merging as well.

CBS radio recently announced that it will be joining with Yahoo! music’s Launchcast radio, which combines Launchcast’s 150 stations with the more than 150 stations operated by CBS.

According to crainsnewyork.com, a new CBS radio player will become part of the Yahoo! music site and will be incorporated into news and sports sites as well, giving new exposure to stations like WFAN-AM.

Along with Yahoo! music, CBS will sell advertisements to other stations, which could expand their company even more.

“This announcement… reinforces our company’s position as the No. 1 Internet radio company in the world,” said David Goodman, president of digital media and integrated marketing at CBS.

CBS also is looking to combine with AOL radio this coming spring.

Even though these companies are increasing their ad-sales sharing, growth of online radio is continuing to lose advertising dollars to the Web.

According to this article, the current ad recession has intensified the pain for radio and pressured operators to find new revenue streams.

At the same time as the ad recessions, stations like WCBS-FM and WWFS-FM are prospering from Yahoo! and CBS radio’s local ad sales expertise. Internet radio operators have been building large audiences for their online stations, but have not managed to make money from the new medium.

Observers say that Internet and terrestrial radio have reached a point where they need each other. “Both sides are reaching across to see if they can tap into the strengths of the other party," said Paul Verna, senior analyst at eMarketer.

Even though advertising sales are in a slump, CBS and Yahoo! main objective is to be a exponential force in the radio industry.

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Cox Enterprises reorganizes media outlets

By: Allison McNeal

More and more companies are linking newspaper, Internet, and television functions to increase their industry power.

Cox Enterprises is joining these companies and placing its newspaper, radio, and television groups under one unit called Cox Media Group.

Effective Jan. 2009, this new group will have 17 daily and 26 nondaily newspaper publications, including The Atlanta Journal-Constitution.

15 television stations and 86 radio stations and digital media services will also be implemented.

Even with the reorganization, Cox radio will remain a publicly traded company.

Though the company is adding three different mediums, the newspaper, radio, and television units will remain separate.

Placing them under one organization “creates efficiencies that allow us to strengthen Cox for the future,” Jimmy Hayes, president and chief operating officer of Cox Enterprises, said.

According to ajc.com, the move also allows the company to bring different techniques together.

“Our wide array of digital resources that ultimately will lead to enhanced online and mobile experiences for all our audiences,” Sandy Schwartz, the president of Cox Auto Trader, said.

With the joining of different medium outlets, will this company prosper?

Many companies are using this strategy of combining different forms of media to enhance their image and create a "powerhouse" company.

If Cox is wanting to gain this same power and recognition, the company will have to just wait and see how their consumers respond to their message.

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Do Not Disturb

by Peter Merchlewitz

I remember growing up in Winona, MN where I had to help my sister collect dues for her paper route. House after house, I was received with unwelcoming glares and rolled eyes, with some people who would even be on the phone, asking me to come back at a later time to collect the money.

But with the new trend of Internet news becoming so popular, and newspaper subscriptions becoming more scarce, it seems the city of Alexandria, VA might just cut the middleman all together.

Apparently, Alexandria legislation could pass a bill that would create a local "Do Not Deliver" list to help stop unwanted newspaper, Editor and Publisher reports.

Similar to the famous "Do Not Call" list with telemarketers, newspaper circulation managers are likely to be irked by the proposed "Do Not Deliver" list where residents can "make their desires official," and would institute fines for violators.

On the bright side, the bill will help reduce blown away newspaper litter created by most unwanted subscriptions.

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Gannett layoffs

By: Callie McBroom

Amy Gahran from PoynterOnline reports that Jim Hopkins, a former Gannett reporter and editor, is publishing a blog about the recent layoffs at Gannett.

Hopkins is asking Gannett employees for information about how many layoffs are taking place at specific Gannett papers across the country. He is keeping a running tally of the number of layoffs and the number of papers that are doing the layoffs.

There are some concerns about this process, however. It is not completely accurate as some of the comments that have been posted contradict the numbers that have already been reported.

Most of the employees' information is submitted anonymously so Gahran is concerned about the anonymity harming the credibilty of the numbers as well.

Still, Gahran calls this project "a powerful window on a difficult situation."

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It's Just My Type

by Peter Merchlewitz

The Baltimore Sun's Jay Hancock posted in his blog on November 25 that there is an HTML program called Typealyzer, which scans the text of a blog page, and analyzes the dominant words in the blog with a specific brain activity resulting in in learning styles, preferences and thought-processes of individual people.

Here's the analysis of my favorite blog, You Don"t Say:

The logical and analytical type. They are especially [sic] attuned to difficult creative and intellectual challenges and always look for something more complex to dig into. They are great at finding subtle connections between things and imagine far-reaching implications.

They enjoy working with complex things using a lot of concepts and imaginative models of reality. Since they are not very good at seeing and understanding the needs of other people, they might come across as arrogant, impatient and insensitive to people that need some time to understand what they are talking about.

And here's what it says about The News About The News:

ISTJ - The Duty Fulfillers

The responsible and hardworking type. They are especially attuned to the details of life and are careful about getting the facts right. Conservative by nature they are often reluctant to take any risks whatsoever.

The Duty Fulfillers are happy to be let alone and to be able to work int heir own pace. They know what they have to do and how to do it.

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Follow the links

By: Callie McBroom

Daniel Luzer from the Columbia Journalism Review is Linked Out. He recently decided to follow the hyperlinks in various stories for a whole day.

Luzer was interested to see if hyperlinks are an incidental addition to news, or actually changing the way people consume information. He began his experiment on Oct. 15, the day after the last presidential debate.

He felt that hyperlinking made it very hard to finish reading any articles. Also, the parts of different articles he did read were distracting and didn't really relate.

Luzer discovered that different media organizations have different strategies for hyperlinking. Many use corporate media hyperlinks, which link the reader to other pages within the site. He points out that these links avoided distracting the reader, which ended up boring the reader.

Even though Luzer felt that he knew what was going on, he stressed that he didn't really understand what was going on. He also felt overwhelmed with keeping up with the news.

In the end, Luzer found that many of the articles he read just weren't that good. He says, "If journalists don’t really know anything, they can’t link their way around the problem."

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Politico brings in new members

By: Allison McNeal

Content sharing networks are forming at rapid speeds and signing new members as they are starting up.

Politico has recently signed up more than 100 clients, including 67 newspapers.

Among those are all 27 advance publication daily papers, including The Times-Picayune of New Orleans, The Indianapolis Star, and The Des Moines Register.

The linking of these companies are creating a positive buzz, which could produce more companies to join in the near future.

"The more people who hear about it, the more they come to us," said Jim Vandehei, Politico's executive editor. "We have government news, analysis, and they get the content they like and share the revenue."

Politico's success is in part of The Associated Press's lack of consumers.

Newspapers that have associated themselves with the AP are now pulling their companies from this organization.

Even broadcast outlets are now creating other means of getting information to the public.

CNN, for example, meanwhile, created its own new wire service called CNN Wire, which can release national and international news, as well as local news.

According to EditorandPublisher.com, "newspapers and broadcast outlets utilize the content for their Web sites in exchange for placing advertisements provided by Politico, with revenue shared by both."

Beth Frerking, an assistant management editor for Politico, said different content packages are available that provide between five and 15 Politico items per week. The more content the client uses, the less their share of the ad revenue.

"We sell ads for the entire network and the revenue is based on how much you use, either 50%, 40% or 30%," she said. "Rather than charging you for it, it works like this."

With more newspapers joining Politico, this company will have the opportunity to expand and increase content sharing networks in the future.

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