Why Journalism Is Not Going Anywhere

As I hear from my classmates and family on pretty much a weekly basis, I am apparently in a major that is a dying industry. “Oh, you will never get a job with that degree. There’s newspapers shutting down left and right.”

While it is true that print may be going out the door and many exclusively print operations have gone bankrupt, there are new avenues that make journalism a shifting, not dying field. Blogs are becoming more and more accepted as a professional alternative to print, with a combination of opinion and reader-writer interaction. Bloggers can freelance their work to various media outlets, and working from home can provide a reliable enough income. Some may argue that this is not traditional journalism, but it is becoming increasingly popular amongst online readers and we will need to accept that it is part of the field’s future.

As a kid growing up, I always wanted to have my byline on the top article of the day in a major print publication. I did have that for a while, as a weekly sports contributor for my community newspaper. However, all good things must come to an end, and the struggling economy stole this dream from me. Like many newspapers, the paper I contributed for was struggling to make a profit, and many writers were laid off. I was one of them, and it was the first time it hit me that this was going to be a tougher industry to get into than I originally thought. Since that time, I have contributed online articles concerning sustainability at UMass and blogged on the web a considerable amount. I realize I will need to get used to the electronic future of journalism, although I will still continue to pursue my longlasting goal of being a beat writer for the old-fashioned form of news.

I am excited to hopefully attain a Master’s degree in journalism, and prove that news is not going anywhere and will never die. It may have a different face, but it will still inform the public of what they need to know. There will always be a demand for news, and I hope to fulfill the wishes of readers in any format that may call my name.

My Reaction to Cape Cod Times Scandal

When I go on the internet on my laptop, my first move is to always check the day’s biggest headlines. I generally trust that what I am reading is factual information and none of it is plagiarized or made up. However, the top story on Wednesday night was the revelation of a reporter for the Cape Cod Times who has been found to have fabricated tons of material for several decades. Staff reporter Karen Jeffrey had worked for the paper since 1981, and was found to have fabricated 34 stories, which may add to more as the investigation continues. I found it particularly interesting that the Cape Cod paper is owned by News Corporation, which also owns the recently-exposed News of the World.

I found the story under the Movies section of Yahoo! News, which surprised me as to why it was reported under that category. There was no reference to any articles that may have been fabricated that included film, so it was rather surprising.

I am taking a Journalism Ethics course this semester, and we have just recently covered the cases of Jayson Blair, Janet Cooke, and Stephen Glass. A similar instance that happened just this week really made the studying of those three come to life and prove that journalists like that still exist. This example was not on the high-level readership that their papers’ include, so it is a mystery to me as to why Jeffrey would fabricate people and events. The fact that 69 people have not been able to be located really speaks measures as to how long this went on for, and it would be hard as a reader to continue subscribing to this paper and be able to trust all of its information. If I was an editor for the paper, I would feel more would be needed than just a letter apologizing to the readers. The readers are the engine that make the paper go, and they deserve better than three decades of fabrication.

It is obvious that many reporters who break the journalistic code of ethics go unnoticed, but I feel it will be harder and harder to get away with it as the industry moves to a digital era. As shown here, online research was her downfall after online digitizing of her print articles. I feel bad for the Cape Cod residents who have been reading her stories for 30+ years, and it will be interesting to see if there are any more fabricated stories and events made by Jeffrey that are discovered.

A link to the coverage of the scandal can be found here: http://movies.yahoo.com/news/cape-cod-times-reporter-fabricated-sources-34-stories-203730523.html.

What I Learned From Journalism 300

Going off the discussion our class had in its final meeting this afternoon, I began to think about what I took out of Journalism 300.

I certainly feel like I have been more comfortable with picking up the phone and doing an interview, as opposed to sending an email. It makes the process much quicker and helps with time-urgent writing, such as our final papers. I was not aware of the databases available at the click of a button, and this class revealed some of those to me. The Census database provides a lot of usable information and statistics, while the FBI Vault has many documents that are of interest.

I have always been a fan of original newspapers over the online shift in newswriting. I understand it is getting to be a lost cause as we are at only the beginning of the digital age, but our mark-ups of newspapers in the beginning of the semester was a sense of relief. The different styles in writing between the New York Times, Boston Globe, and Daily Hampshire Gazette became apparent through these assignments. Not all journalism classes give hands-on learning, but this class included that instead of primarily textbook knowledge. The sheer amount of research that went into the proposal of a retail center in my hometown shocked me. We had a very long period of time to complete this assignment, and makes me wonder how some journalists put together a story of this length in a tenth of the amount of time that we had. I had fun through this research process and I feel like I did more interviewing than I have on any other article before.

I like that we covered an array of topics, including a crime story, planning issue, obituary, and spot story. The time-crunching of the midterm and in-class stories gave me a sense of what the professional newsrooms are like. My group and I had trouble getting an interview with the UMass Police Department, despite in-person and phone efforts. This was a lesson to us that stories may not always come as easy as they seem, but there is no waste in trying.

I certainly took a lot of practical gain out of Journalism 300, and I am glad I waited until my senior year to take the class. I will use what I learned from this class when I get out into the reporting world. Except I might have to resort to email every once in a while when a source doesn’t answer their phone.

Michael Jackson in the FBI’s “Vault”

It is widely accepted that Michael Jackson was one of the greatest, if not the greatest and most influential pop star of all time. He did, also, run into some legal issues during his stardom concerning sexual relations with children at his Neverland ranch.
From searching his name under the FBI Vault, I came up with an array of results concerning his investigations in the 21st century. Listed under ‘Michael Jackson 305 File Part 01 of 01’, I found that an investigation was opened on 9/14/2004
By 12/9/2004, a document written asked for the case to be closed due to a lack of evidence or outstanding leads. This was only one of several investigations into the King of Pop, but this was the first of his sexual allegations that were pursued and it is interesting to ponder what further could have came out had Jackson not passed away recently.

I originally believed that this document was the initial research into the allegations against Jackson, but further looking into the Vault revealed a document entitled ‘Michael Jackson 252 File Part 01 of 01’. This was dated 3/1/2004, more than five months before the previously mentioned document. This information was striking, mainly becuase of the language involved in the evidence found for child molestation charges. This document, which involves the Santa Barbara County District Attorney’s Office, states a ‘sheer volume of evidence in this matter.’ The three parts of the 62 file includes lettersw from the 1990’s and British newspaper articles that claim Jackson as having made suspicious phone calls to a young boy. In all of these documents, the young boys’ names are erased, which I would expect in a sensitive matter such as this. Although there was no conviction of Jackson in these charges, it certainly was interesting to see where these charges initially stemmed from and what was not seen in articles and coverage of his scandal.

There are six total documents relating directly to Michael Jackson in the FBI Vault, and this website is very good tool for information and copies of documents that could be used in stories.

An Interesting Smart Growth Find

Upon searching “smart growth” under Google news, I found many interesting stories covering the proposal and completion of several projects throughout the country.

One interesting story I found was entitled, “Commission to weigh NJ growth plan”, which described the plan for economic growth and how it will affect land distribution in the Garden State.
A link to the story can be found here: http://www.northjersey.com/news/179054451_Commission_to_weigh_state_growth_plan.html.

I found the lead to be very comprehensive and summarized what would be described in the rest of Juliet Fletcher’s article for NorthJersey.com. The author introduces the importance of the State Planning Commission and funding for towns in their effort towards smart growth. This project will include university expansion, including a hope for a linking between Rutgers University and pharmaceutical firms in the New Brunswick area. It also proposes up to five flagship economic projects in the state in hopes of linking industry and university. One area of concern I found interesting was the fact that this major project focuses much of its effort on growth in environmentally devastated areas from Hurricane Sandy, and does not build on already existing smart growth areas.

Journalistically, I thought Juliet Fletcher did a very good job with her organization on a story that included a lot of information. The second paragrpah developed her lead, and her quotes from both those supporting and arguing the project helped developed both sides of it and did not leave it as an article promoting the project. Fletcher uses descriptive language throughout to describe the proposed project while remaining informative and not getting too bogged down on the less interesting details that may lose readers. I like the wrap-up she did in her concluding paragraph, which gave a list of key figures in the State Strategic Plan. These included the secretary of the state and overseer of the State Planning Commission and the new head of the Economic Development Authority. Though this story is not as long as the story I plan on writing on Rivertowns Square, it certainly gave me a good model of how to organize the large amount of research I will get about the project.

Rivertowns Square: Final Environmental Impact Statement

My final project will cover the potential construction of a retail and residential complex that will lie on the eastern edge of my hometown, Dobbs Ferry, NY. Upon looking for a document to cite information from in my final report, I came across a Final Environmental Impact Statement listed on the Dobbs Ferry village official website.
The link to the report can be found here: http://www.dobbsferry.com/Rivertowns-Square/97-rivertowns-square-complete-final-environmental-impact-statement-for-proposed-project.html.
I chose to focus on the section that covers traffic and parking in the proposal, which has been a major area of concerns of those against the project. ‘3.6 Traffic and Parking’ gave me a lot of eye-opening information as to just how extensive and widespread the efforts are going to be. The streets mainly affected by Rivertowns Square would be Stanley Ave., Danforth Ave., Livingstone Ave., Ogden Ave., and Lawerence St. In the Final Environmental Impact Statement, these roads and potential solutions are addressed.

Chauncey Square, the already-existing retail center that will be adjacent to Rivertowns Square if completed, has nearly quadrupled traffic along the Saw Mill Parkway and Ogden Ave. since its 2008 completion. I have witnessed this firsthand from traveling these roads frequently, and it can only be imagined how much more congestion will be created with another retail outlet in the vicinity.

Under ‘Other Roadway Modifications’ in the FEIS, it is suggested to create a traffic signal at the corner of Ashford and Ogden Avenues to better regulate the increased traffic. I agree with this suggestion, as the intersection is already dangerous and often results in traffic backup on Ogden Avenue. One of the two main goals listed in the FEIS is the ‘Reduction of traffic along local streets through re-programming of the retail uses.’ Many of the sections propose traffic signals, expanded sidewalks, and a bike path in the area of Rivertowns Square. There are many more sections to this final report, but I chose to focus on traffic impact, as that has been the most crucial factor in determining if this retail center will pass.

Increased congestion along these residential streets will continue to be an area of concern for those opposed to the project, but there have been several practical propositions as listed in the Final Environmental Impact Statement. As more and more public hearings continue, will it be big business or longstanding small village ideals that will prevail?

Zoning Proposal in Amherst

The issues discussed in the article, “Rental issues top Town Meeting agenda in Amherst,” by Scott Merzbach, are ones that affect us directly as off-campus college students at UMass. I myself live off-campus, and I know the process it took to get approval and complete all neccessary paperwork to fill my rented house.

I think there needs to be a more open line of communication between both students and Amherst residents to make this a process that does not make each other feel like they are the enemy. There can be a fair balance struck so that both parties are happy and both feel respected in where they live. Residents are upset about absentee landlords purchasing properties in Amherst before renting them to students and having no real interest in the town, while students generally have the conclusion that this is a college town and parties can be expected. Merzbach described one Fearing Street resident as saying the situation is comparable to a “brush fire”, as it is growing more and more out of control.

A zoning amendment to the renting procedure of a single-family home to now require a special permit would certainly make off-campus living a harder procedure for students. Only four unrelated residents can live together in a home, and a special permit procedure may not be obtained by some landlords in Amherst. These homes may then go to families not wishing to rent, and this would decrease the number of areas where a student could consider off-campus.

I sympathize with both parties on both sides of this debate, and I feel there should be a zone around the university where student rentals can be available. The closer the students are kept to the campus, the less families that would be affected that do not live within a one or two mile radius of the university.

It will be interesting to follow this proposal at it develops, and I hope the university and Amherst residents can create a plan that will satisfy the issues of both sides.

Some Interesting Census Facts About My Hometown

The first interesting fact I found about my hometown, Dobbs Ferry, NY, were the number of those that spoke a Spanish or Indo-European language and the age groups they coincide with. My village has a total population of 10,875 of those over age 5 as of the 2010 Census, while 20.2% of it speaks another language. I was surprised at how high that number was, as I have not been familiar with many bi-lingual residents. As expected, the elderly that speak one of these foreign languages has a lower percentage of Speak English “very well”, but I was surprised that only 71.0% of those ages 18-64 spoke English “very well.”

Another interesting figure I found was the number of households that have children under the age of 18. There are a total of 3,822 households in Dobbs Ferry, and 1,317 of those have children under the age of 18, or 33.8% of the total number of households. This was surprising to me, as I thought the percentage would be higher than 33.8%. There are three public and four private schools in my town, and I would have thought that there were more households with children under 18. A possible factor may be the number of households that have multiple children under the age of 18.

The most surprising comparison was that of the number of people over the age of 25 that hold a Bachelor’s degree compared to a Graduate or Professional degree. Of the 7,164 people age 25 or over, 1,856 people, or 25.9%, hold a Bachelor’s degree. 2,091 people, or 29.2%, hold a Graduate or Professional degree. This correlation seems rather confusing and improbable to me, as I would think a Bachelor’s degree would have to be attained before a Graduate degree.

I have never thought of my village as a rather wealthy village, but the higher percentage of 6-figure household incomes than 5-figure surprised me. The highest percentage of total household income was that of $200,000 or over, which was 740 households, or 19.4%. A decent portion of my population lives on our main streets that are generally smaller apartments, but there are many larger houses that lie on the border of our neighboring towns, which may be included in the Dobbs Ferry census. I would have figured the mean of household income would lie in the range of $150,000 to $199,999, but that only accounted for 507 households, or 13.3%.

I used to volunteer at my village’s community center, where the elderly would go during the day for meals and a time to socialize. There was always a huge turnout, especially considering they would have to commute to the center, so I thought that there was a good percentage of the population that was over the age of 70. I found through the fact finder that of the 10,875 people living in my town, 1,224 were over the age of 70. This was on par for what I thought, but the number of those over age 85 or older and their gender was surprising. I remember generally all males showing up at the community center, some in their late eighties. According to the fact finder, there are a total of 380 people age 85 or over, with 281 being female and only 99 being male. I do not generally see many elderly women in the town, so their almost 3:1 ratio of those 85 or over was surprising.

 

Is the iPhone Really Changing Our Lives?

After reading Martin Lindstrom’s op-ed piece, “You Love Your iPhone. Literally.”, in The New York Times, I remain skeptical that the groundbreaking technology is a form of love and not a type of addiction. I could certainly relate to what Lindstrom calls “Phantom vibration syndrome”, where you may feel what seems like a vibration in your pocket when there really is not one. I do this frequently, and it drives me crazy when I am wrong on what I thought was a notification.

I did not like the experiment that was conducted with 20 babies between the ages of 14 and 20 months. They were each handed a Blackberry, and the author claims that they all tried to swipe the phone as if it were an iPhone screen. First, babies this young are not sure of what they are doing. Second, he does not give an exact number of how many babies did that motion, which makes me skeptical of this part; humor involved on his part or not.

I also do not know where Lindstrom got the idea that his subjects between the ages of 18 and 25 were demonstrating love by visualizing what comes with the sound of a new text or hearing what comes with the sight of a new message. Though their brains did not demonstrate the classic form of addiciton, I do not consider this on the same level as responding to a significant other. I found this an interesting op-ed piece, but I do not think there is enough clear evidence that the iPhone creates a feeling of love over an addiction.

I absolutely think that the iPhone has changed the way we notice or now don’t notice our surroundings and leaves its owners constantly waiting for a fulfillment when they receive a new text, email, or notification. I can relate to this, but I do feel it is more of an addiction rather than love. When I do not have my iPhone or the battery is dead, I feel like I need to know if I am receiving any new information, not wanting to see the potential texts I cannot see. For this reason, in my own case, I see the iPhone as an addiction rather than a device I truly love.

Reaction to “The Choice 2012” and the 2012 Election

The aspects of multimedia journalism really made this a much more interesting piece than the election previews I have seen on television. The extras that included stories from those who personally know both candidates and the not well known facts about both of their lives really make this a complete piece. I did not know Obama was a poet, and it showed one of the biggest political figures in the world as a down to earth, everyday man at one point. The open comment board at the bottom of the page was very different than some of the comments I have read before on websites such as CNN.com or Foxnews.com. The comments were very intellectual and drew directly on what was stated in the piece without becoming bias or downright offensive in what was said. These not only surprised me, but also helped me better under some points of clarity in the video.

My only problem with this piece was the clear favor it had for Obama. There was a lot of time spent on Romney’s changing abortion stance and it seemed to stray away from much of the areas that Obama have come under fire for during his first four years in the Oval Office. However, this was just my opinion of the multimedia package, and there is often a subtle bias among television political reports.

I personally think that this was one of the most monumental elections in history, whether it seems like it or not now at this time. The 2008 election will always remain in the minds of Americans because it was the first time we elected an African American president. The 2012 Election featured the re-election of a president that has come under fire for his handling of an economic situation he was elected into, and was shown to be what was supposed to be a neck-and-neck race. The popular vote spread and especially the runaway in the electoral college surprised me very much, and I think it had a lot to do with the high turnout of young and female voters.