Read about the replacement of Ted Kennedy's Senate seat...
Maine teacher brings what to a school!? Read here.
A new green development in your local area. Read the article and obtain more info.
An unanticipated turn in a terror plot investigation: read here Make sure to find out what this original incident in 2008 is (in Mumbai, India), if you don't know about it already!
Check out this article concerning a new role of Twitter! How relevant this is to our past class discussion!
H1N1 still dominates the news, this time with some unnerving story. Watch this.
"This situation is my fault." That's what he said. Read and watch about it here.
As Maine recently discussed gay marriage rights, other parts of the world are also discussing homosexuality from a legal angle. Read what is happening in Uganda, that shocked many.
Busted and fined: Giving the finger after getting "caught up in the excitement of a great day."
Even lobster fishermen think green in Maine! Read about the trading of float ropes in Ellsworth.
A new lunar discovery: Is living on the moon becoming more and more reachable? Watch this.
A step towards the shutdown of Gitmo, or a threat to national security? Read and watch the video about the controversy behind the prosecution of some of the alleged conspirators of the 9/11 attacks.
**Image: Khalid Shaikh Mohammed, one of the conspirators being tried
Image retrieved 17 November 2009 from http://www.nytimes.com/2009/11/14/us/14terror.html
Read the Maine Campus article about the ongoing layoffs at UMaine, one case being that of Mr. Loredo.
A historic rendezvous for a historic event! (I didn't even know Gorbachev was alive!) Watch this video.
A benchmark legislation was (barely) passed by the House of Representatives last Saturday. Read about it, and about the decisions Maine's Congressional representatives reached about this legislation. The ragged road does not end right yet, though...
Read CNN and NYT articles, and find out what happened in a Texan army base, last Thursday.
When will the US economy and labor force see light at the other end of the tunnel? Read about the current situation of the job(less) market...
Get acquainted with your future student representative; check Maine Campus for information on the UMaine student govt. presidential/ vice presidential candidates and their debate, which took place last Thursday.
Read about the war that the Aussie media tycoon--also the chairman and chief executive of News Corporation--is waging against Google!
This should help you locate local courts, their hours, and phone numbers. You must call these courts or contact them in other ways to obtain info on open sessions.
YES, BE PREPARED TO CALL THEM OR GO TO THESE COURTS TO GET INFO ON COURT SESSIONS, IN CASE YOU CAN'T EMAIL THEM!!
The assignment is due on the 20th of November on our syllabus, but since we are one class behind, make that the 23rd.
Additionally, the police beat is due on the 13th, rather than the 11th of November(the 11th is the deadline strictly according to the syllabus).
By the time we get to the sports beat, we would have caught up with the syllabus, so no extended deadline for the sports beat!
LOCAL SCHOOL BOARD AND GOVERNMENT MEETINGS ARE HARD TO FIND!Start looking now, because "I couldn't find any to attend" will not be a legitimate excuse. (Yes, I am heartless.)
If you need help or have questions, come talk to me.
Read the assignment due for next class (about attending a speech or meeting).
The blog post (an article) is due Wednesday evening. The script is due IN CLASS! I stress the HARD COPY!
I am sorry I didn't return some of your broadcast script assignment/ grade. (Those of you who did not give me a hard copy has not received the assignment back yet.)
What I want to remind you are three things:
1) The broadcast script format
Check this link for Dr. Hughes' tips on writing a VO broadcast script.
Make sure to format your script this way. Don't just write "Script: Yesterday was a groundbreaking day in human history...."
Write who the new reader is, when the VO starts, what the video is that you are writing for, definitely include a VO-SOT (since this was a proper interview), remember to include the Total Run Time (TRT) for your VO-SOT, etc....
If you have questions, EMAIL me before hand. It won't be an excuse if you tell me "I didn't understand the assignment." during the Wednesday class.
2) The writing of broadcast scripts
This should be more conversational than writing stories for print. (After all, you are going to be 'speaking' the lines!) Broadcast stories must catch viewers'/ listeners' attention because other than newscast on news websites, one can't rewind to lsiten to stories over and over again. That means you should keep the language simple, sophisticated, readable, simple, concise, direct and.... what was the other one... SIMPLE! Remember that it should be no more than 30 seconds long, when read out loud.
Do you know what 'simplicity' also indicates? ACTIVE VOICE!
3) I said "Try to keep it past tense, except for ongoing concepts" during class today. This may be a good example...
EX:
a) President Obama said ...... on Monday, after a series of meeting with global leaders.
b) North Korea says that Japan ........
Either can work. If you focus on how the script is read on these two clips below (you can even just notice the first sentences the newscasters utter), you will hear that one uses past tense, while the other uses present tense, even though both of the events have already happened technically.
One is about a event that happened. An action that a figure took. = Past tense
The other is about a comment a figure made, AND simultaneously a stance that the government is maintaining (until a contradiction, a change of policy, or recantation is made). = Ongoing = Present tense
Notice this present tense turns back to past tense as soon as past events are discussed.
There was a deadly attack very recently, which was reported to have killed 130 people last night, and which is currently confirmed to have killed over 160.
The IAEA was recently on the move again. The hot spot for their investigation was (again)... Watch the video on the article too.
Read about the recent happenings at the MLB World Series...
Madoff's partner-in-crime has died of a heart attack. Read about it here, and read on about who Madoff is , if you need to refresh your memory...
Look out for a Grammy-winning, former boy band member celebrity who has recently won a restraining order against a stalker...
Is the White House waging war on a new front, other than Afghanistan, Iraq, and the Public Option? Read this.
Microsoft has released a new OS (operating system) succeeding Windows Vista. Read about this topic. (CNN has a good article, fyi.)
Was he asleep? Was he spacing out? Was he carried away while using his laptop? What happened to the NWA flight 188 and its pilot? Read on...
Senior trips are supposed to be fun, but it didn't turn out to be exactly thrilling for some of the senior students of Washington University... Read the article, and watch the video to it too.
An interesting edict proposed by education officials in China: read about it!
Friday, October 23, 2009
I hope some of the questions, types of questions, preparation (knowing the background of the interviewee and the topic of the interview), and proper conduct (or rather the lack of it, in this video!?) will give you ideas.
Don't hesitate to write down questions you want to ask your interviewees, but don't feel constrained to these questions also. Be quick to think of follow-up questions too. BE FLEXIBLE BUT ON-TOPIC!
An example of an interview between Wolf Blitzer and Michael Moore:
The below interview is less heated than the above, but the one being interviewed is no less controversial than Michael Moore. Feel free to compare the two, but remember that, just because the interview is getting heated does not mean it was not a bad interview. If you were listening in class provocative and challenging probes are as important as neutral ones, for example. BE CIVIL BUT GET THE INFO YOU WANT (AND MORE!) FROM THE INTERVIEWEE!
We mentioned in one of our classes that a teenage honor student was brutally beaten to death by fellow school mates, back in September. Read about the latest on this story... Watch what happened to Derrion below. (Viewer's discretion advised.)
Some worrying news for future journalists? Read this... (but don't lose heart!)
A wanted poster on Interpol's website reveals an unexpected situation at Nebraska's Tecumseh State Correctional Institute... Click here.
Review what we talked about last class about the Balloon boy story. Here is the (HILARIOUS) clip of the family, where the father is left speechless after his son's utterance.
Is Pakistan spiraling towards an internal conflict? Read about the latest developments there.
Check the Maine Campus for information about Question 5, for the upcoming general election in Maine. Do some further reading and find out more about the election itself...
And some good news for media freedom, which may at the same time put others in grief.
A Maine plan to contain H1N1 and sickness in general. Like everything else in life, this proposal may create winners as well as losers.
Read the latest on the never-ending electoral battle between candidates Hamid Karzai and Abdullah Abdullah.
The health care bill was voted on by the Senate Finance Committee. Read about it here.
There has been another natural disaster... but not in Southeast Asia, and instead in the US. Read about this Pacific storm, which was predicted to cause series of mudslides.
A scientist has been accused of contributing to a terrorist enterprise, in Europe. Read about it here.
You've seen the ads, you've heard about it in the community, and you've even seen it in one of our quiz items. Read what Maine Campus has to say about Question 1.
Read about a recent Nobel Peace Prize winner. Many claim that the individual has been awarded not for things he has done already, but to encourage him to put words and intentions into action...
It has not been a great week for the New England sports teams, for instance the Boston Red Sox. Find out what happened to the team during their play-off on Sunday.
Chicago was unfortunately voted off as a candidate to host the 2016 Olympics. Read about it. (The Economist has a good article on the hosting city.)
After a meeting between US Secretary of State Clinton and Russian Foreign Minister Lavrov, Russian reactions to a possible sanction against Iran took the US officials by surprise. Read about the latest development here.
On October 23rd, a special guest speaker will be visiting UMaine. Find out about this topic on our good ol' Maine Campus.
Check out what took place last week during Banned Books Week. The most banned book's sales has surged on Amazon.com since then!
The war in Afghanistan seems far from being over... Check the latest casualties.
A prominent movie director has been detained for a crime he committed 32 years ago. Watch and learn more.
What is Question 1, in relation to the debate over same sex marriage in Maine? Read and watch about how Question 1 ads are being accusd of misinforming viewers...
Check out news from the end of last week, and over the weekend!!
* Colonel Gaddafi visited the US recently for the UN General Assembly meeting in New York. While his entry into the US was a controversy in itself, he also camped out his grand tent on Donald Trump's estate. That wasn't it for the Libyan leader, who also stole the spotlight (and some yawns) during his General Assembly speech...
*President Obama chaired the UN Security Council as the first US President to do so. Read and watch about it here. Ironically, the resolution that was passed came about before the discovery of Iran's covert uranium enrichment facility!
*Gurney's affidavits have helped to make solid confirmations regarding the Sarnacki killing of May 2009.
*Thought the swine flu had taken center stage in the medical world? Think again, and read about this revolutionary development...
*The Black Bears had a tough game this weekend... Keep yourself updated with on-campus happenings!
*Read about the interim appointee who will be taking over Ted Kennedy's position.
*Which South American political leader appeared as a guest on Larry King last Thursday evening? He was also quite outspoken at the UN General Assembly speech as you can watch below...
* Know of any (tragic) news related to classic movies like "Dirty Dancing" and "Ghost"?
Find out events that happened this weekend! (largely from NY Times, Bangor Daily News, and Maine Campus!) I will not be giving 10 hints this time around... so all the best!
The assignment for next Monday, as in the syllabus, is:
Watch a newscast to see how reporters write to their video. Are they describing what you’re looking at, or using their narration to add context and meaning? What difference does that make to your appreciation or understanding of the story? Evaluate the use of active voice in the same story. Post your assignment to your blog. Your entry should be between 300-800 words and formatted for online.
As I mentioned at the end of class, this is not directly connected to 'writing a lead'. Please watch another newscast and see how the video connects to the narration. Does it simply describe the image you see, or does it enhance the context and meaning?
Remember the S-V-O construct that is commonly used when writing leads. See if you can observe this in the narration during the newscast. This is called the active voice: the subject of the sentence performs the action expressed in the verb.
Example of active voice: (red is the subject that has active voice--> the action it performs is blue--> the passive voice is in orange)
Scientistshave conductedexperiments to test the hypotheses.
Pay attention to the lead used in the newscast too, as we will discuss leads again on Monday!
This is one view on what media consolidation is, and its effects on journalism.
Peter Hart is a media analyst from FAIR, a national media watch group. Be aware of the fact that this is not clear of bias--it is merely one personal view regarding media consolidation. It's a pretty interesting opinion though... in my opinion :)
**Health care reform: How are the Maine senators handling the issue?
**Times are a-changing: Our own UMaine Department of Communication and Journalism will be undergoing some changes...
**Caster Semenya has been under the media spotlight for a while now. While still under investigation, watch what has been revealed so far regarding her gender.
**"Arrested for what?!" Read what unfolded in Sudan last week.
**There is general fear that the fall season may exacerbate the spread and intensity of swine flu. Know the facts and keep yourself safe!
**There is a right time and place for everything. That includes Coast guard drills.
**The NBA legends--one of them my own personal hero--join the Hall of Fame-rs as the Class of '09.
**Powerful factions may have an overwhelmingly huge say in the future of federal elections...
Sorry we didn't have time to discuss this today, but for your Friday Grammar quiz, go through some sound-alike words and homophones (words that sound the same, but with different definitions). These are some examples...
cite-site-sight
affect-effect (n)-effect (v)
two-too-to
Make sure you know some of basic examples of such words, as well as what the differences between the sound-alike words are. Some of the simplest words are the trickiest!
I have put up a link list on the sidebar of useful blogs, consisting of your fellow classmates' blogs, as well as Dr. Hughes' and Adam's (the other TA) for CMJ 236.
Try to check them out--I believe it'll be helpful for all of you. You can even leave comments on people's entries, in case you haven't noticed, so go ahead and comment away!
Please make sure you didn't change some default settings to keep you blog pages concealed or inaccessible. If you haven't done so yet, please also email me your blog page link (not of your profile page but of your actual blog).
Your first entry should be a Welcome/ A little something about me Page!
I have already sent an email about this, but this is also just a test to see if you are checking my blog regularly.
We have 2 assignments due on Wednesday. As written on your syllabus:
Assignment 9/2:Create a blog entry that discusses at least three contemporary media law issues in journalism.Be sure to cite and link to the articles your use for your entry.Your entry should be between 300-800 words and formatted for online.
-Assignment 9/4 :Create a blog entry that discusses a morale issue in journalism.Be sure to cite to your reference articles/sources. Your entry should be between 300-800 words and formatted for online.
Please have these done by Wednesday, otherwise you won't be able to get credit for them. We wouldn't want that. Feel free to refer to Internet articles, newspapers, news reports, even the textbook chapters we covered, and our class discussions for the discussions. If you have any questions, please contact me through First Class.
1) Go Salmon, Go! The Salmon in Maine are getting a break. Listen to the MPBN audio story.
2) Same Sex Marriages Begin in Vermont See the article in the Portland Press Herald for details.
3) Utah has passed legislation to crack down on drivers who text while driving. Now, a video comes out of Wales that graphically depicts what happens when you are driving. Be sure to watch the video and plan the interactive game at the New York Times Website.
Hi everyone, thanks for coming to class yesterday! (Full attendance!)
I just wanted to give you an update on some things. I've been able to set up my First Class account, so you can now all reach me at <raiha.sagawa@umit.maine.edu>. Feel free to email me anytime, if you have any questions (soon I will be creating a conference folder for CMJ 236 too, so we can keep our emails all within that folder. will keep you updated).
Please remember to get the textbook required for the course ASAP (latest by next week):
Melvin Mencher's News Reporting and Writing (11th Ed.)
The other book (AP Stylebook), as I mentioned in class, will be available soon... I hope...
Sentence Diagram Assignment for next lesson: Choosing a sentence from an article in the New York Times, and making a sentence diagram from it.(Have this written down in your notebook, memorized, etc-- any way in which you could demonstrate it in front of the class tomorrow)
Unfortunately we only hadsome few minutes to go over the sentence diagram structure, but here is a useful link for you:
I hope you all had an awesome summer, wherever and however you spent it. I'll be seeing you very soon for our first session this coming Monday (8/31) for CMJ 236!
You can probably tell that I'm pretty new to this blogging culture, with the rather dull layout and empty contents on this blog, but make sure you check back on the blog as there will be some interesting/ necessary info being posted up. (as soon as I figure out how to navigate through this site myself!!)
Feel free to contact me through First Class if you have questions. My First Class is having some issues now, but it should soon be back on track :)
(Image retreived from NY Times)
