header image

Archive for Comm 455

The New Newspaper

Posted by: | September 30, 2012 | No Comment |

How many of you still read the newspaper…any newspaper?

How many of you get your news from it? How many of you get your news from social media? Well, you’re on a blogging site right now for starters. Either for the best or the worst, online news revenue has surpassed that of the print news. Social media is just how we do business nowadays.

But it’s not only ‘social media’ that is controlling the death of newspapers. It’s newspapers, themselves!! Think about it, The Washington Post, USA Today, The New York Times. They all have websites! If someone wants to read a story from one of these papers online, they sure can. If someone wants a full subscription to one of these online, they can do that as well — avoiding ever picking up a paper copy again.

Not only this, but these newspapers’ websites contain links to social media sites like Twitter and Facebook for readers to more easily share stories with the world. So could it be that newspaper giants are helping to destroy their own livelihood?

Maybe, but in reality the answer is ‘NO.’ Social media is the devise that is forcing newspapers to conform to the new norm. Newspapers have no choice but to latch on and ride into the future. If they didn’t, they would go extinct alltogether. Currently, only one thing is for sure. Paper is rapidly being converted to silicon.

under: Comm 455, newspapers, Uncategorized
Tags: , , , ,

First female sportscaster

Posted by: | September 27, 2012 | 1 Comment |

Sportscasting has traditionally been given to the public from men.  One women made it a point to change that.

Jane Chastain.

       

Photo Credit: (left)http://www.chastaincentral.com/content/jane.; (right) https://encrypted-tbn0.gstatic.com/images

Chastain, a more recent photo on the left and a photo of her in 1970 on the right, broke major barriers.  She was the first women allowed on a  major league baseball playing field and in the NASCAR pits.

These accomplishments did not come easy for Chastain.  She had to overcome many obstacles one big one being the locker rooms.  It got so ugly for her that she began to stand outside of the locker rooms and specifically ask for players.  In the beginning, they did not respect her, once they realized she knew what she was talking about and could write a good story the players complied.

Chastain also struggled with, not only not being accepted by males but, not being accepted by females.  At one point, she said she was embarrassed of her gender.  Chastain could not believe that women thought she was out of place for fighting for what she wanted and believed in.  On the other hand, she opened the door for other aspiring women in sportscasting like Donna De Varona, Jeannie Morris, and Phyllis George.

Chastain opened so many doors and started a revolution for women around the country to never stop fighting for what you think is right. She is the reason women are in the industry today and hopefully it only becomes even more fair when it comes to gender and sportscasting.

under: Comm 455
Tags: , , ,

Censorship is unconstitutional…except in the rarest of cases

Posted by: | September 25, 2012 | No Comment |

Freedom of the press is a base principle in our society. However, this freedom was challenged by the government until 1931 when the case of Near v. Minnesota proved that prior restraint (censorship on expression before the expression actually takes place) is unconstitutional.

An issue of the Saturday Press

The Saturday Press was created and run by an anti-Semitic man, Jay M. Near, and a man named Howard A. Guilford, out of Minneapolis. The two wrote an article stating that Jewish gangs were basically running the city, accusing the Police Chief Frank Brunskill (as shown in picture above) of police brutality.

Another man they wrote negatively about was Floyd Olson, who later would become governor. He did not take kindly to these articles and filed a complaint about the Saturday Press, bringing the two men to Hennepin County District Court, citing the Public Nuisance Law of 1925.

This law claimed this press was a public nuisance due to publishing or selling “a malicious, scandalous and defamatory newspaper.”

Olson used Near’s anti-Semiticism against him, regarding his belief in Jewish gangs, something the court agreed with. The judge, Matthias Baldwin issued a temporary injunction on the press, halting all circulation and publishing.

The pair were then taken to the Minnesota Supreme Court on appeal.

The court felt that restricting the publication given the fact that it was producing harmful material to the public was perfectly constitutional to preserve public morals.

Being taken back to the District Court, Judge Baldwin ultimately decided to ban the two from creating the Saturday Press and any other press that produced any malicious or scandalous news. This time, Near, alone, appealed this and was again brought to the Supreme Court.

The Supreme Court ultimately decided that censorship was unconstitutional and that freedom of the press deserved to be allowed for the Saturday Press.

“For these reasons we hold the statute, so far as it authorized the proceedings in this action under clause (b) [723] of section one, to be an infringement of the liberty of the press guaranteed by the Fourteenth Amendment. We should add that this decision rests upon the operation and effect of the statute, without regard to the question of the truth of the charges contained in the particular periodical. The fact that the public officers named in this case, and those associated with the charges of official dereliction, may be deemed to be impeccable cannot affect the conclusion that the statute imposes an unconstitutional restraint upon publication.” – Supreme Court decision

 

under: Comm 455
Tags: , , , ,

Martin Luther and the birth of viral media

Posted by: | September 25, 2012 | No Comment |

When the word “viral” is used today, we tend to think of a popular Youtube video before we think about the kind of infectious contagion that such videos derived this title from.  Most of the time, viral videos are exercises in the extreme, whether it’s an extremely cute dog or an extremely annoying music video, and everything in between.  A (seven-month old) chart of some of the most viral videos ever can be found here.

However, Youtube videos are not the first examples of the viral phenomenon.  Almost 500 years ago, Martin Luther wrote up his famous “Ninety-Five Theses,” a written protest of what Martin Luther saw as abuses of clerical power in the Catholic Church.

He posted the first copy on the door of the Castle Church of Wittenburg and sent copies to the Bishop of Brandenburg and to the archbishop Albert of Mainz, who was responsible for the sale of indulgences – a seriously bold move in his day.

Copies of Luther’s theses (which can be read here) had spread throughout Germany in just two weeks, and throughout Europe in two months. Gutenberg’s printing press made this incredibly quick dissemination of media possible.

The extremely controversial nature of what Luther had to say is what ultimately made his writing spread like wildfire, and the printing press allowed those interested in reading it to gain access to it quickly.  It spurred the Protestant Reformation and had a tremendous impact on the world of Christianity from then on.

Without the printing press, it is hard to say whether or not Luther’s writing would have had the impact that it did.  Word of mouth might have helped spread his ideas, but without the printing press, it would have never spread as far as it did nearly as fast.

While viral videos are a relatively new thing, viral media isn’t.  When one reads “The Ninety-Five Theses,” they are looking at the sixteenth century equivalent of “Kony 2012”, but with a lasting impact.

under: Comm 455
Tags: , , , , , ,

The demand for unbiased election coverage

Posted by: | September 25, 2012 | No Comment |
Fox News

(photo credit: funnyordie.com)

By: Jessica Farley

An election year means a multitude of things for the masses: less than personable campaigners pestering you during your lunch breaks, an overflowing influx of “politically active” celebrities, red and blue cardboard signs peppering the side of the highway, and in recent years, the demand for unbiased media coverage.

It seems that, with the growth in popularity for 24-hour news sources like Fox News or MSNBC, the American public’s trust in media integrity has diminished. A recent poll concluded that “seventy-seven percent of those surveyed by the Pew Research Center in the fall said the media “tend to favor one side” compared with 53 percent who said so in 1985.” (Washington Post)

Take for instance this news clip from Fox News, a source that prides themselves on being “fair and balanced” in their coverage. The clip is a prime and irrefutable example of promoting the tea party, despite their non-biased platform.

With advertisements and other endorsements already promoting such strong pulls to both the right and left wings, the American public has grown thirsty-desperate, even- for a source of unbiased and simply factual news.

Petitiononline.com currently features a petition demanding unbiased media coverage of the election. As the petition states, “This petition has been drafted, to ensure that the mainstream media is held accountable in its promise to present ‘fair and balanced coverage,’ ‘unembedded journalism,’ ‘complete election coverage,’ and every other exorbitant but empty rhetoric that has been used as a bumper sticker throughout – and beyond – this electoral season.”

If the American public can’t even trust the news, who can they trust?

under: Comm 455
Tags: , , , , , , ,

The Evening Journal and upcoming war

Posted by: | September 25, 2012 | No Comment |

I enjoyed the history of the Albany Evening Journal, solely because of its transformation from a party newspaper to a proponent for the Civil War.  

Thurlow Weed started the production of the “Albany Evening Journal” in New York as a medium to promote the Anti-Masonic Party, the first single-issue “third” party in the United States, back in 1830.  Weed made the “Evening Journal” the leading and most highly circulated political newspaper in the U.S. during the 1840s.   The Evening Journal became an organ for the Whig Party and after 1856 a Republican newspaper.

Courtesy of antiqbook.com

Over the years, the newspaper began reporting and responding to events that involved the issue of slavery.  In 1857, the “Evening Journal” published articles and editorials about the Supreme Court decision in the Dred Scott case.  The newspaper wrote in one editorial, “All who love Republican institutions and who hate Aristocracy, compact yourselves for the struggle that threatens your liberty…”

The editorial on the raid of Harper’s Ferry on Oct. 9, 1859 described the attempt at a slave revolt by John Brown and his men an act of treason against the U.S., but also went on to say that “those whose sense of justice was blunted by deep passion could fail to see that they were committing a crime…”

Shortly before the raid of Fort Sumter, the “Evening Journal” published a feature story on April 11, 1861 about the conspiracy of the assassination of President Abraham Lincoln.  An entire story on how conspirators, who supported the secessionists and depended on day labor, were caught attempting to kill the President elect at the time.  The last big story on the slavery issue before the Civil War broke out four days later.

In my opinion this was the defining moment of the “Albany Evening Journal”, since the party journal became testimony of the Free states for the abolition of slavery during its greatest era.

under: Comm 455
Tags: , , , , ,

Sensationalism in America

Posted by: | September 25, 2012 | No Comment |

Sensationalism in the United States began with the creation of The Penny Press. Like the name suggests, penny press papers cost one penny per paper. This made news accessible to the lower class for the first time. It didn’t take long for journalists to realize that this new “penny-audience” was not interested in the same kind of news that their educated American counterparts were interested in. In an attempt to increase readership, the Penny Press began to cover crime, divorce and other court stories. This was they type of news that interested the “penny-audience,” or the middle and lower class.

The next rise of Sensationalism can be seen in the 1890’s with the start of the Spanish-American War. This war is seen as the first “media” or “press-driven” war in America. Sensationalized news stories about the conflict between America and Spain increased American support which propelled the conflict into war.

Perhaps the most common form of sensationalism, the tabloid, was created during the 1920s. These tabloids were composed of scandalous crime, sex, and money articles that relied heavily on photography rather than quality writing. This is most similar to the sensationalism that is seen in modern-day journalism.

Photo courtesy of StepAsideShow

 

under: Comm 455, Uncategorized
Tags: , ,

The importance of vocal reporting is replaced by pen and paper

Posted by: | September 25, 2012 | No Comment |

Are you a story teller, or a story writer? While some would argue they possess both qualities, this is one instance in which we know the chicken(spoken word) came before the egg(written word).

Stories, whether hard or soft, were first heard. They were heard, and then told, and eventually written. Today we use Greg’s Shorthand. Introduced in 1888, Greg’s shorthand replaced Benn Pitman’s earlier style. Shorthand, formally known as stenography, translates to ‘narrow writing’ in Greek, and has its origins there.

The introduction of shorthand into contemporary journalism brought forth a new obstacle for journalists, and also relieved them of the pressure to remember. As we’ve discussed in professor Steve Klein‘s class, “strong shorthand replaces a formidable memory as a job qualification.” The advent of stenography as way to record events in history came with its strengths and pitfalls.

Shorthand was a new technology to the Europeans. They were no longer responsible to call up entire speeches from memory, but they did have to learn how to adapt to stenography. It is a possibility, then, that much of the early reporting based on shorthand missed several important details. Written word also has a tendency, as we know, to alter or reposition the tone of a story.

Early journalists probably greeted shorthand with open arms, but I’ll keep using my voice recorder, because the the truth and voice of a story starts at the source, and I think most journalists and writers alike are glad technology didn’t end with pen and paper.

Introduction of light-line shorthand

Similar to Benn Pitman's shorthand, yet all of Greg's symbols are 'light-line'

 

under: Comm 455
Tags: , , ,

Obama and Black media

Posted by: | September 25, 2012 | No Comment |

Having a Black president has reawakened the ethnic press. While in past presidencies, politics weren’t very prominent in Black publications, the reign of President Obama has had African-American media outlets clamoring to report first on his every move. The president noticed back in 2010, right in the middle of his term that he needed to continue his impact in informing the Black community  by talking to news outlets that catered to them.

“The media is changing so rapidly that websites, like you guys do every day, do two things. Number one, it allows us to reach audiences that may not be watching Meet The Press. I’m just saying, it might be a different demographic.”

 

Just last week at the White House, the president made a special shout-out a few heavy-hitters in ethnic press to “pump up” their readers about his upcoming re-election. His press audience included reporters from News One, Black Planet and The Urban Daily.

It’s nice to see the Black media focus on something other than rappers, football players and crime. It’s a nice change (no pun intended), but one can only hope that the political focus will  still be there even if we don’t see another term from President Obama.

under: Comm 455
Tags: , , ,

Martin Luther: scribal vs. university culture

Posted by: | September 24, 2012 | No Comment |

A scribal culture is dominated by religious doctrine and authority, while a university culture generates knowledge through education and innovative thinking.

Martin Luther, a highly prolific figure that we have studied lately, came of age during a time when university culture was immerging. As he underwent a spiritual transformation from within, so did most of Europe. Luther’s way of thinking was radical for his time. Through much agony and soul-searching, Luther came to the conclusion that the path to salvation was not through the Catholic Church, by gaining power or paying for the forgiveness of sins, but must be found within oneself.

This ignited what is now known as the Protestant Reformation. To this day, Christianity is still divided into many denominations and sects. The core beliefs of Christianity, as we now know it today, can be attributed to Martin Luther.

What aided Luther and other scholars of his time was literacy, another drastic contrast between university culture and scribal culture. Because he could actually read the Bible himself, he was able to formulate his own interpretations. Not only was he able to read, but he was an eloquent writer as well, which can be seen in his exposee on the Catholic Church entitled 95 Theses. This manifesto generated quite a buzz, and traveled by word of mouth across the continent.

Education, literacy, and the brilliant mind of one man proved to be a deadly combination for the Roman Catholic Church, and scribal culture as a whole. But it was the dawning of a new day in religion and the spread of ideas and information.

under: Comm 455
Tags: , , , , ,

Jane Grey Swisshelm

Posted by: | September 24, 2012 | No Comment |

Born over 100 years before women even received the right to vote, Jane Grey Swisshelm was an influential figure in the 19th century. She worked as an anti-slavery advocate and was a proud supporter of women’s equality. Swisshelm fought for women’s right to own property, leading to the proposal of the Pennsylvania Married Woman’s Property Law. Although this law did not pass, Swisshelm soon became successful as the first woman correspondent for the New York Tribune.

After returning to Pittsburgh from Louisville, Ky., Swisshelm began to write about the horrors of slavery that she witnessed while living so close to it. She began to submit stories to Pittsburgh newspapers as “Jennie Dean.” She started her own newspaper, the Pittsburgh Saturday Visitor, in 1848.

On April 22, 1850, Swisshelm became the first woman to cover a story in the press gallery in Washington, D.C.

Photo Courtesy of Minnesota Historical Society

Swisshelm left her husband and moved to Minnesota in 1857. She soon became editor of the St. Cloud Visiter.  Her work was so outspoken and controversial that in 1858, a group of angry citizens destroyed her printing press and threw the type into the river. After this, she established the St. Cloud Democrat, continuing to voice her feminist and anti-slavery sentiment.

Although Swisshelm used journalism to fight for women’s rights, she was supportive of the extermination of the Dakota Indians after a group of them attacked white settlers in 1862.

Swisshelm died in 1887, three years before the Pennsylvania legislature passed a law allowing women to own property.

under: Comm 455
Tags: , , ,

William Caxton: the father of the English press

Posted by: | September 24, 2012 | No Comment |

In 1476, William Caxton (1421?-1492) established the first printing press in England. Upon viewing the wonders of the printing press from his extensive travels in Europe, Caxton realized the value of this modern marvel. Soon, with the patronage of the Royal Family, Caxton would be running off books in both French and English.

William Caxton BBC

After setting up his new press in Bruges, Caxton produced the first translated book printed in the English language: The Recuyell of the Historyes of Troye. Caxton, a linguist in his own right, would go on to translate dozens of books and make great strides in the English language.

In regards to Caxton’s contributions to journalism, he is credited with standardizing the English language, which was, in the late 1400’s, still very far from the English which is spoken today.

At the end of the day, someone had to be the first person to bring a printing press across the Channel. William Caxton: businessman, diplomat, traveler, would be the first Englishman to add the title “printer” after his surname.

 

under: Comm 455
Tags: , , , ,

« Newer Posts - Older Posts »

Categories