Monday, June 28, 2010

Stranded on an Island

Hello all,
I'm actually at the beach this weekend on vacation and am writing this at the island's local library. Isn't technology neat. However, we had a bad storm here last night and the island went pitch black. Ahh, stranded on an island (kind of). That brings up an old question. The old "what would you take with you if stranded on an island?"

So here's my media related question to you this week. Write a short paragraph on each:

1. If you were stranded on an island, what magazine would you like to wash up onshore every week? And why?

2. If you were stranded on an island, what one movie would you like to take with you (in a portable dvd player, of course)? And why?

3. If you were stranded on an island, what one album/song would you like to be loaded on the mp3 player you took with you? And why?

Good Luck

Monday, June 21, 2010

Keep your head down

So, i was looking for a topic this week and came across this article regarding PBS's underwriters: the companies or organizations that in part pay for a particular PBS program. In particular, PBS's NewsHour, which brings nightly news, has had underwriters in the oil industry, the banking industry, and in the agricultural industry. The tie-in for me is that the article is from PBS's ombudsman, basically someone PBS hires to make sure they are living up to ethical standards in journalism. I have a very good friend who works for the ombudsman. In fact, i'm going to forward this post to her and see if she has any comments. But don't be intimidated or feel like i'm stacking the deck. Remember, their job is basically to be a watchdog (or watchdawg if you're an MSU or UGA fan).

Click here for the article.

So here's the question. Do you think these advertisers could have a serious effect on Newshour, either directly or indirectly. The producers seem to advocate that no conflict of interest exists. What's your thoughts? Do you trust them? Should you trust them? And we're really not just talking about PBS here but all newsorgs. Have you ever thought about how advertisers could impact your local and national news?

Monday, June 14, 2010

Technology and Teens

According to the latest poll from the Pew Organization, about 75 percent of 12- to 17-year-olds in the United States own a mobile phone, up from 45 percent in 2004. This begs the question, "When do we let Teens gain access to their own personal technology?" What do you think is an appropriate age for someone to get their own cell phone? When do you think a child should have their own computer with an internet connection in their room? When should a child have their own television? Also, how many teens out there are sending or receiving sexual material over their cell phone? Some recent polls indicate 1 out of 3. Why do you think this trend, called "sexting" is becoming so popular?

Also, if your userid does not clearly indicate your full name, please sign your post at the bottom so i know who to give credit to. Last week someone named "joy" posted, but i don't know who to give credit to.

Monday, June 7, 2010

Welcome to the Semester

Hello and welcome to summer semester. Every monday (sometimes tuesday when i'm busy) i'll post a new topic for you to respond to. Your job is to respond to my questions with at least a 2 paragraph contribution. You will have roughly a week to do so. You have to respond before i post the next week's blog or you don't get any points. This website tracks the day and time you respond so there is no going back and posting late. Every blog that you respond to will earn you points and those points will build up over the course of the semester.

You'll have to register with the site in order to post. When creating a username please choose something that i can easily associate with your name. That helps me in awarding points. For example, if you choose "soldier3" then i have no idea who to give your points to. So let's begin with the first topic.

Everyone's concerned about the oil spill in the Gulf. But our own governor has been criticized by some as being too "unconcerned" with it. Gov. Barbour claims that the media has made too much about the situation. View his latest appearance on TV by clicking here. Here are my questions.

1. Do you believe the media is over-reporting on the issue.
2. Do you believe the media's coverage is harmful and irresponsible to our state's tourism industry?
3. Do you believe Gov. Barbour is presenting himself in the best interest of our state? If not, what should he be saying to the media?
4. How would you characterize BP's use of the media during the recent spill?