Monday, September 27, 2010

Is there a place for satire in Congress?

Recently, Stephen Colbert was asked to testify before Congress regarding undocumented immigrants working in America. Colbert participated in an event where Americans were asked to come work in a job that was typically done by illegal immigrants. Colbert worked in a field for a day. Since Colbert was one of only a few that participated, he was asked to talk about his experience.

But Colbert, being a comedian, turned the table. He chose to speak in character, as the pompous blowhard commentator he is on his show. He wrote his testimony the night before and handed it over to the committee. Many were upset that he was going to speak "in character." Both democrats and republicans stated it was inappropriate. Some however did not have a problem with it.

So here's my question. Even though Colbert's testimony was, on its face, part of a comedic act, is there value in what he did? Or was it a waste of time? His celebrity certainly brought out the cameras. Many congressional members said there were more cameras there than normal.

For clips of the event, click here.

Monday, September 20, 2010

What's Your Opinion

So, TV Azteca reporter, Ines Sainz, has been in the headlines lately regarding harassment in the NY Jets locker room. I'd like you to read some of the following articles and watch some of the following videos and give me your opinion. One key point in the whole debate is whether Sainz should have expected the football players to make the rude comments they did given the way she dresses when attending practices. Read the following link describing the incident. It includes what Sainz calls a typical outfit she wears to practice.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/09/12/ines-sainz-azteca-jets_n_713843.html

Some have commented that she should expect such things when she dresses that way. Here are some comments made backing that opinion.

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/09/16/brian-baldinger-ines-sainz_n_719745.html

http://www.huffingtonpost.com/2010/09/17/jenn-sterger-ines-sainz_n_719960.html

http://content.usatoday.com/communities/gameon/post/2010/09/rush-limbaugh-ines-sainz-bootylicious/1

Yet some argue that regardless of her dress, Sainz does not deserve to be treated without respect in the locker room. For an example, watch the following.

http://mediamatters.org/mmtv/201009190010

So what is your opinion on all this? Who was to blame for the incident? Should Sainz have to dress more modestly at practices? Or were the football players out of line?



Monday, September 13, 2010

New Survey Results

The Pew Center recently released the results of their study on the people and the press. I'd like you to read the overview, which can be found here. I'd like you to post with two findings that you thought were surprising and what social implications could result from them.

Monday, September 6, 2010

Was Fox Wrong?

So, even though I try not to talk about Fox News all the time, I pick on them often. There's a host of reasons but probably the biggest one is that they are a ratings giant. They, head and shoulders, beat other news channels in the ratings. Therefore, they should be seen as the "flagship" for broadcast journalism. They set the bar.

Recently you may have heard about Fox's parent company donating $1 million to the republican governor's association. If not, you can read a quick bit about it here. I read the story last week but decided not to use it for the blog.

Then, another story surfaced showing that the Democratic Governor's Association was going to sue Fox for illegal campaign contributions. Apparently, Fox interviewed an Ohio gubernatorial candidate and allowed him to state where campaign contributions could be sent. This often happens on air. The big difference was that Fox showed a graphic revealing the candidate's website while the donation pitch was being made. The DGA claims that showing the graphic while the candidate was asking for money was basically free publicity amounting to nothing less than an advertisement. There were some other arguments made by the DGA as to why the interview should be considered an "in kind contribution" to the candidate. Read the full report here.

So here's my question. Do you think Fox is acting illegally? Do you think Fox is crossing an ethical line here in promoting republican candidates over democrats either through this latest claim or through the $1 million donation?

P.S. - please remember to write your name at the bottom of your post so i can tell who is who. Also, i've discovered that a spam filter on blogger has "zapped" some of your comments. If you are posting, but not seeing it online, please let me know so i can give credit and address the issue. Thanks.