I observed the Los Angeles Times on Thursday September 26.  This news outlet covers national and international news as well as local news.  It covers national topics just the same as The Washington Post.  The internet tabs offer more of a selection of news than any other online newspapers that I have read.

The top news that was displayed on the main page was titled, Bionic leg is controlled by brain power.  It was about a veteran that had lost his leg.  The army made a 8 million dollar grant to get a team of prosthetic surgeons and computer programmers to make a artificial leg that could move based on brain power.  When the veteran comes to an obstacle, such as a ramp, all he has to do is imagine what his leg is suppose to do and the prosthetic leg will perform.  This works when the nerves send a message to the technology imbedded in the leg This gives hope to future amputees that they have a chance to lead a normal life after a traumatic body alteration.

Another story that was of interest to me was titled, SAT scores stagnant, many unprepared for college, officials say.  The scores for SAT have stayed constant and it is alarming some officials.  Roughly half of the test takers this past year scored the benchmark setting that indicates most kids are most likely to keep a B- in college.  More students are turning to the rival test ACT which has seen a small increase every year since 2003.  Officials are worried that students are not well equipped before heading off to college.  The other story was titled, Dramatic plane crash near Chicago leaves one dead, one hurt.  Wednesday evening on September 25, 2013 in the state of Illinois  a plane had crashed around 5:15 pm central time.  The passenger was pronounced dead at the scene and the pilot was seriously injured.  No one knows the cause of the crash it is still a developing story.

I think this news outlet would appeal to the average reader from age 16 and up.  This newspapers is much broader in topics than recently observed newspapers.  Students could access this easy on the internet and choose from the many topics it has displayed.  Older adults could access this on their computer at work free of charge as well.  I think appeals to a much broader audience because it has more topics to choose from.

I enjoyed reading this paper.  It has very interesting topics and stories included in them.  The paragraphing is short and word usage is easy to follow.  The stories are short and get right to the point.  This is definitely a newspaper that you would want to read if you are in a rush.  The paper does not seem biased based on the stories that I read.  I would definitely recommend this paper.

I do not like grammar because of all the rules that come along with it.  I do respect it and know it is necessary but it is very tedious.  I do enjoy writing especially the blogs that we are assigned because it gives me time out of my day to sit down and think while I express myself through words.  It is relaxing and I kind of look forward to it.  The most difficult thing part of grammar for me is the punctuation.  I am no genius at any of the other parts but punctuation seems to definitely be my weakest link.  This again has to do with all of the rules that you have to apply while writing.  I know some of the basics of punctuation but there are some that I just really do not understand why.  One of my biggest problems is that I don’t feel like I should have to worry about rules when writing it should just come natural.  I think I would definitely grasp the concepts better if I read more books or newspapers.  I am a visual learner so seeing examples like that would really help me understand when to apply the proper punctuation.  My pet peeves about grammar are when I read mistakes others make because they do not know the proper word usage.  They will use their instead of there or were instead of where.  Those are definitely things that anyone our age should know by now.  Hopefully by the end of this semester I will have grasped the concepts a little bit better.

I chose to pick this subject because it is very interesting situation that we are in.  A bunch of people think we should have strict laws on guns because society is changing and becoming more violent.  Some people that did not want laws before are now pro gun laws.  It also conflicts with our constitutional right to bear arms.  Some people think that our rights as a society means more than our safety.  This seems more apparent as politicians continue to have debates on the subject .  I’m hoping to learn peoples different perspectives on the matter.  Also I would like to understand the law better and know if they do decide to update the law.  I am also hoping to learn how to cover such a story in a biased manner.  This is definitely a story that will need to be reported with out any bias.  The matter is very controversial and it is an important issue that needs to be resolved.  I do not think they will leave this issue alone for ever eventually they will have to make some changes.

My experience interviewing was very awkward.  It was hard to approach people and ask them the question on my topic.  Half of the people interviewed did not really have much to say about it and I had to format the question in a different way to get an appropriate response.  Almost all were reluctant to having their picture taking but after further explanation they were ok.  Definitely that is one of the hardest things I had to do and I have a lot respect for those people that can do it no problem.

Question:

Do you think there will be stricter guns laws because of what happened on Monday?

“No, because it happened on a military base, and there’s always guns there”- Laura Knowles Class of 15

“Of coarse it is.  I mean, what else are they going to do? They have to have stricter gun laws.  It happens every time.”-Mallory Cicchillo Class of 15

“I don’t think this will affect gun laws.  The debates will run on, but the majority still want guns so that’s that”- Aaron Gladstone Class of 15

“No, there will not be a change in gun laws. What’s the difference between this and events prior to this one.”- Joridin Garret Class of 16

“No, because people have been committing crimes since guns were invented.  People do not want strict gun laws and they don’t want anyone in office that could threaten there right.”-  Travis Watson Class of 14

“I think towards people buying guns just not want kind of gun you purchase.  So doing more intense background checks.”- Sherman Dumars Class of 14

“I think it will be more strict in back ground checks and research people for mental stability.”  Samantha Adams Class of 14

I read a story from the lariat today titled, Flash floods stalled cars on University Parks Drive.  The story talked about cars that were being stalled out because of the standing water collecting on University Parks Drive.  I think that the quotes were used in a effective manner to give the story confirmation.  The police chief commented, “Police officers rescued three people from their vehicles but there were no injuries.”  It shows that the writer did not just make the article up just because it is raining heavily outside.  The quotes used in the story also make it seem more surreal as he later commented, “we’re asking drivers to use extreme caution.”  It shows that this is a real and serious situation that should not be taking lightly.  I would want to be quoted in a news story to give the article more confirmation on the matter.  It helps when you use quotes in stories because it gives the reader a sense of this really happened, as opposed to it could be made up.  I think all stories in newspapers should have some quotes to give the reader something to think about.

9/19/13

This week I observed the Huffington Post on Thursday September 19.  It is very similar to The Washington Post I have read weeks prior.  It covers much of the same things like: politics, entertainment, technology, business, etc.  On the internet the it I noticed it has a front page tab which is something the Post does not have.

The top story was titled, Obama Takes On Coal With First-Ever Carbon Limits.  President Obama is planning to impose strict laws on the power plants that release carbon dioxide emissions.  It is not going to affect the power plants already in use but for future ones being built.  The is a step in using fuel sources that are more environmental friendly.  The EPA has to start enforcing the act by next summer of 2014.  This proposal has been trying to get passed since 2011.  Obama will give a press release Friday September 20, 2013.

Two other stories I thought were of interest was in the entertainment and Business sections.  The first was titled, Miley Reveals Her Mantra In Trailer For ‘Miley: The Movement’.  The young actor will have her own MTV behind the scenes reality show airing later in the fall this year.  The young actor has collaborated with Brittney Spears which has been featured in some of Miley’s songs.  Both of these women were once Disney child stars that have taken an opposite direction since leaving the Network.  It makes you wonder what is Disney putting in the water.  The second article I thought was of interest was, Finally, JPMorgan Admits The Bank Broke The Law.  JP Morgan had broken the law by not keeping watch of its traders.  The traders had altered documents to hide huge losses by over valuing the portfolio.  They are having to pay 920 million dollars for their mishap.  Although this seems like a lot of money it is barley a dent in just their quarterly profits.

This outlet mostly appears to older adults and young adults in their mid 20’s.  It has several stories and topics that these generations can relate to.  Some younger people such as kids in high school could relate to some of these stories such as the entertainment and technology sections.  Still the younger generation are mostly like to get their news from TV and internet sources.

I like the Huffington Post when it comes to style of paragraphs.  They are shorter and seem to flow easier.  But for the content and coverage I lean more towards The Washing Post.  Both are great papers but if I would recomend one it would probably be the Washington Post.

The news source I looked up for a story was The Washington Post.  The story I choose related to the unfortunate event that happened on Monday in Washington.  It explains and questions some of the details that had happened below are some of the good writing rules the story exemplified.

First I noticed that the story uses short paragraphs throughout the story. (rule 7)  It makes it easy to read and follow what the writer is saying.

ex,  Alexis, a former Navy reservist who struggled with mental-health problems and other issues, used his secret-level clearance Monday to gain access to the secure Navy Yard compound, where he fatally shot a dozen people before being killed by police.

Second, I concluded that the writer got to the point quickly (rule 5) of what had happened and what was going to be discussed in the following paragraphs.  The writer does a good job of explaining who the person is and the significance of this person in a few short sentences.

Third, I noticed the story does not use complex words that would puzzle the reader.  Using short and easy words can help the reader understand what is going on.(rule 2)  Below the writer uses mental-health problems to describe the condition the man was in.  The writer could have used a much more advanced medical term.

ex, Alexis, a former Navy reservist who struggled with mental-health problems and other issues

Lastly, this news story did not contain unnecessary wordiness.  This particular story will have some big words because it deals with a national/governmental issue but those words are only used when needed.  The sentence below is short and does not contain a bunch of words that explain the writers point of the sentence.  This would apply to rules 1 and 3 in Good Writing.

ex, Many military officials also want to be careful not to dissuade those in need of help from seeking counseling

www.washingtonpost.com/‎

Writing leads in an inverted pyramid style was very hard.  You have to know what is the most important information and discuss that in one sentence that summarizes the central message.  The hardest part for me was writing the main points in a shorter format.  It was actually fun it reminded me of putting together an important puzzle.  I can now read a news paper and follow the inverted pyramid style that writers use when writing the stories.

It really helped hearing other class mates by getting better examples of how to format lead sentences.  It taught me what to look for and certain words to use that work with the topics.  After hearing others leads and reading how to write them it is much clearly and easier for me to write the leads.

This week I observed The Washington Post on September 11, 2013.  It is a nationwide newspaper that covers: top stories, politics, sports, technology, entertainment, jobs, and other subjects.  It will give the top stories or discoveries in each of these subjects

The top story today was a story titled, U.S. weapons reaching Syrian Rebels.  The story covers the status of the aid the U.S. is trying to provide to Syria.  The Central Intelligence Agency is now in charge of supplying the rebels with lethal equipment.  The U.S. is just now providing them with non-lethal equipment that was promised several months ago.  Obama’s biggest concern with delivering advanced weaponry into the war zone is that it could wind up in the hands of Jihads.  Although the U.S. is lagging behind it is slowly getting the necessary equipment needed in Syria.

There were to others stories that caught my interest more than others.  The first was about Lamar Odom and his drug allegations.  Lamar, a NBA player, has been admitted to rehab for an alleged drug issue.  The star was charged with driving under the influence on August, 30.  He is not a free agent looking for a team to take him in.  Another story that I thought was interesting was complaints about the new IPhone.  People are worried about the new way to unlock your phone is through finger print scanning.  Some are worried that Apple will have all of the finger prints in a central data base and hackers could obtain them for criminal use.  Apple has said it has no type of data base for obtaining the finger prints, and that the special feature is just unique to that phone.  Although Apple has explained the new feature some are still very skeptical of the new phone.

The audience for this type of news outlet is middle aged and older individuals.  Middle aged and older people are more like to read the newspaper versus a college student or younger adult who will mostly get their news from the internet.  The news that is contained in this outlet appeals to individuals 20 years of age and up.  Younger people still in high school would not likely find anything in this particular news outlet appealing to them.

The media news outlet did appeal to me. Although I do not read the newspaper every day, I might start subscribing to the electronic version on the internet.  The stories were well crafted and seemed unbiased on any of the topics that I skimmed over.  I would recommend this news outlet to others who enjoy reading the paper.

 September 4, 2013

 The New York Times

For my second blog I read some stories from The New York Times.  I read this on September 4, 2013.  It is a major newspaper sold nationally that covers different topics that are occurring in the world.  It covers world news, movies, music, technology, and business.

The story that made front headlines was Drawing a Line On Syria, U.S. Eyes Iran Talks.  This story covered the latest news with the United States’ involvement with Syria.  President Obama is debating on providing air strikes to help the Syrian people in their desperate time of need.  He has gained supporters in favor of the air strike including Secretary of State John Kerry.  The Iranian government has said that if the U.S. strikes Syria it will be viewed as an attack on all of Iran.  Some are worried what will happen if America does not intervene.  People are not only worried for Syrians, but for Americans as well.

Another story that caught my interest was titled Sharks and Nature Cooperate For Solo Cuba-to-Florida Swim.  It was about a lady that swam from Cuba to the shores of Florida.  The swimmer’s name is Diana Nyad and she is 64 years old.  The journey lasted for 53 hours.  She had attempted this challenge two other times before achieving it on the third try.  She is the first to complete the journey without the assistants of a shark cage.  The last story that seemed of interest to me was a story titled Young Programmers.  Dr. Marina Umaschi Bers is leading a project that is teaching children how to program software at the same time they are learning to read and tie their shoes.  The experiments are taking place in Massachusetts schools.  The program will guide the young users with pictures of instead of words.  With technological advances being made every day, the project is gaining considerable amount of support.  The program will be available in 2014.

I think the audience for this news outlet is between the ages of 30-65.  More people at this age are more likely to read world news and buy newspapers.  Younger adults who are in college usually get their news from the T.V. or internet.  I enjoyed looking through and reading The New York Times.  It had many interesting stories and did not seem to be bias on any of the findings or latest news.  The stories presented both sides of the issue in equal weight.  I would continue to read the paper if it was offered on campus.