No Longer Using This Site

Sorry to confuse you, but I have decided to discontinue using this site. I've recently found that using the MyCourses blogging tool is more efficient for grading purposes. You should now use the blog associated with MyCourses. On the class homepage, there is a link that will take you to it. Please use that link instead.

Farewell

There are no more blogs for the semester. Thanks for all the participation and commentary you've provided. I hope you've enjoyed the class. Don't forget that the April Movie Quiz must be completed by the end of April 21st (Thursday) and the Final Exam is available starting the 22nd and running through the 27th.

Should Teachers Use Facebook

A couple of weeks ago we talked about prisoners who were using Facebook to communicate to the outside world. I asked the question if restricting prisoners' use of social media violated their first amendment rights.

So here's a different situation. In the past few weeks, a number of teachers have been fired or disciplined for commenting on their students' behavior online. As a result, many school boards are now coming up with official policies as to what teachers can and cannot say on social networking sites. Read the following article here and tell me what you think. Are you violating a teacher's first amendment right to free speech if you are now telling them what they can and cannot say online? Are there other professions where speech online should be limited? If you were a teacher and had a bad day in class (for example your students were behaving badly) should you be punished for pointing that out online?

How does your phone impact your life

I'd like you to read the following story by clicking here. Then I'd like you to tell me what aspects of your phone you use the most: just for calls, for games, for music, for web browsing, pictures and video, etc.

This also brings up a bigger discussion that I was having with friends this weekend. How do you think cell phone technology has negatively impacted society today? For all the advantages and ease of communication it creates, how do you think it harms society?

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?

Facebook As Free Speech

I'd like you to read the following article. Read it thoroughly so you can understand all the arguments. Now post your ideas on the following.
1. If a prisoner is allowed to send mail to the outside world (knowing it is monitored), should he/she be allowed to use a prison's computer to create a facebook page (if it is monitored). I'm not talking about using contraband cell phones. What if the prison allowed internet use for some prisoners?
2. Should state laws be put in place that would block outsiders (third party friends/family) from creating facebook pages for people in prison? The article states "Inmates in federal prison and a handful of other jurisdictions also have limited access to e-mail, and typically can only send it to people who have previously agreed to it." If that is the case, should laws ban criminals from having third parties set up the page and fill it with content emailed by the prisoner.
3. What is your general feeling on the article. It's easy to say that prisoners don't deserve access to social media when they are paying their time. That may be totally true. But can you think of ways in which a prisoner's right to free speech may be violated by these laws? Perhaps an even bigger question is whether you think prisoners should have the right to free speech at all?

Spring Break

No post this week as it is Spring Break here on campus. Enjoy your week.

Stealing or Not

The New York Times's ethicist, Randy Cohen, published a column last year in which he stated it was O.K. to illegally download a copy of a Stephen King book if you had already purchased a hard copy edition. Read his argument here. Why do you think the ethicist believes this? What are the implications for other media? You might want to read this article regarding iTunes consideration of making unlimited downloads of purchased music available to customers. Do you believe once you buy a media object online you should have unlimited rights to it in different versions? What are some of the problems that could be encountered with this belief. How could it actually harm the industry?

Look for new post tomorrow

Hey gang,
Today in addition to all my other duties, I'm hosting a job candidate for a position we have here at school. That being said, I will probably not be able to post a new topic today. Check back tomorrow for the new posting.

Why Do We Watch?

As I was looking around for info to blog about today, i ran across this interview with comedian Adam Carolla. Carolla's talking about Piers Morgan (who took over Larry King's interviewing show) and why people expected him to be good at his job. In the middle of Carolla's rant, he hinted at something i've always wondered about. Why do we care about people like The Kardashians, The Real Housewives, or any other reality TV people. If you talk to anybody on the street, they express their disgust and disdain towards these stars. Still, their ratings are big enough that they come back every season. Carolla suggests it is because we, as a society, are voyeurs and that we are so narcissistic that we enjoy watching other's own narcissism. Watch Carolla's comments by clicking here (note there is some harsh language). Do you agree with Carolla? Do we envy these people? Do we secretly wish to be as spotlighted as them? Why do we watch these reality shows?

Newsroom Evolution

An article was recently released regarding suggestions that newsrooms should adopt to make them more updated and fresh. I'd like you to read the suggestions by clicking here. I'd like you to post your reactions to the items. Which suggestions do you agree with? Which suggestions do you think could have unintended consequences and what would those consequences be? Are all these suggestions helpful for newsrooms or could there be problems?

P.S. - Someone used the name "NaturallyDelish" to post last week. I'm not sure exactly how i'm supposed to determine the student's name to award them credit. I'm not qualified to determine who in class is the most "naturallydelish!"

Off The Record

The following comes from Chuck Ross of TV Week:

"Last month, when it became known that Apple CEO Steve Jobs was going to be taking another leave of absence, Time Warner's Fortune magazine ran a story with information that heretofore had not been public: that Jobs had been treated for cancer in Switzerland in 2009.

Now, it's not a secret that Jobs has had cancer. But this particular information had not been made public by Jobs or anyone else. The article in Fortune said the author of the article had been told this information off-the-record by a source. The source had subsequently died, so the information was no longer off-the-record, the article said."

So here's my question. What do you think "off the record" means? Do you think there are any limitations to that? When should something move from being "off the record" to being "on the record?" If the "off the record" source died, does that necessarily mean the information is fair game?

P.S. someone posted last week with the name "eld_school." If this is a classmate who wants points for the blog, you'll have to let me know who you are. There is no way i can guess who "eld_school" refers to.

Positive Aspects of Video Games

Recently, an article was published which found that girls who spent time playing video games with their fathers had better relationships with them. You can read it here.

Most news about video games seem to just state the negative aspects. I'd like you to consider both the negative and positive aspects. So i'd like at least a paragraph on each. 1) What are the negative future consequences of video game play? and 2) What are the positive future consequences of video game play?

Is There Space for Al Jazeera

Whenever a government is threatened with being toppled, one of the first things the dying government does is shut down the press within the country and try to stop international press members from coming in. With the recent political unrest in Egypt, it became clear that access to the story was limited in the first few days. While American journalists were trying to gain access and travel to Egypt, the middle eastern news network Al Jazeera was already in the area.

Al Jazeera has an English-spoken channel. But this network is offered in only a handful of areas across the USA. One concern regarding Al Jazeera has traditionally been that it perhaps has a pro-Muslim bias, although Al Jazeera has constantly responded that it has no political or religious affiliations.

Do you think the recent events show that our national cable and satellite providers should show more interest in providing English-spoken foreign news networks? Or should we trust our own national news networks (ABC, NBC, CBS, FOX, CNN) to report the news? Would you want to subscribe to Al Jazeera if it was offered in your cable or satellite package?

For a more detailed description of the issue, click here. Also, look for yourself. While you might not have access to Al Jazeera on television you can watch a live stream of it by clicking here.

Should It Air?

I'd like you to read the following story. Tell me what you think. Should WDAM be allowed to air the video content? What is to be gained from showing the video? Are there valid privacy concerns regarding the juveniles in the facility? Which outweighs the other: bringing the story more to light or making sure that a juvenile's identity is not released to the public? How do you think the Mississippi State Supreme Court will rule?

Also, there is a person who is posting as Elle B. If you are a student in my class, could you please tell me your full name so I can give you full credit?

(Not Really) "The Tonight Show"

Recent TV ratings revealed that Jay Leno's ratings have gone up since his return to "The Tonight Show" and Conan O'Brien's departure to TBS. However, when you take into consideration that some people record these programs to a digital video recorder (like TiVo), the number of people viewing Conan O'Brien is higher than those watching Leno. Read the story by clicking here.

I am wondering how many of you have a digital video recorder (like a TiVo) and use it regularly? How do you think a technology like a DVR (digital video recorder) will change the way people watch TV? The story seems to hint that "Late Night TV" may no longer truly be late night TV. Do you think the ritual of watching a show at the same time everyday will be broken by DVR's? Would you watch the local TV news more if you could record it and watch it later? Would a DVR cause you to watch more or less TV?

Welcome to Spring Semester

Very ironic that I am welcoming you to Spring semester on what MSU has declared a snow day. Oh well. This is the first blog. Usually I set up a few questions that have some relevance to current media news and you respond with a couple of paragraphs. Here are some quick rules.

1)When you are asked to create a username so you can respond to the blog, please choose a username which allows me to quickly identify your real name. This helps me grade quicker and ensures you get proper credit. For example, if your name on my class list is John Smith, it really doesn't help me if your username is CrazyDawg. A better choice would be something like JSmith, or even JSmith21.
2)Two or three sentences does not a blog reply make. I expect you to give some thought to the topic and add at least two paragraphs for me. If not, then don't expect full points.
3)Part of the reason this blog exists is so that a dialogue can be created among the students. In other words, make sure you read everyone else's post. In some cases maybe you don't have a lot to say on a topic but then realize you have a lot to add in response to another classmate.

With that said, let's begin our first topic. The big story this weekend may have locally been about the snowstorm, but the national story was definitely the Tucson shooting. In addition to the tragic story, the discussion also drifted to whether or not political rhetoric has gotten too heated and out of control. One item mentioned was Sarah Palin's past use of crosshairs on the victim's district and campaign. Personally, I feel that the shooting was an act of a deranged paranoid schizophrenic. While true, that doesn't necessarily mean that the rhetoric of Palin, other Tea Party'ers, and, perhaps most importantly, media pundits (like Glenn Beck or Keith Olbermann) isn't dangerous and irresponsible. The other side of the coin is that in America expressing your political opinion is a freedom of speech issue. In other words, Beck, Palin, and Olbermann have the right to say what they think. Perhaps, they even feel it is their responsibility to say what they actually feel. If Beck feels like America really is on a precipice heading towards failure, shouldn't he be allowed to speak fervently about the matter.

What's your opinion? Has it gotten out of hand? Should media pundits and political figures face serious consequences when using inflammatory speech? What should those consequences be? Is it a violation of free speech?