Monday, September 29, 2008
Tuesday, September 23, 2008
MTV's "Rock the Vote" at Quinnipiac
The highly apathetic Quinnipiac University has been making efforts to increase the political awareness of its students for years, and the student programming board organized “Rock the Vote” on Friday in Alumni Hall.
In total, there were just over 80 students in attendance and about 30 of the attendees were there for a class. The guest speakers were an hour late due to transportation issues, and only approximately 50 students returned after the delay. When asked about the large amount of empty seats, co-coordinator Mark Miller replied, “I thought there would be a bunch more people. I guess Friday night isn’t a great time to have a program.”
“Rock the Vote” is an MTV inspired idea, which uses music and popular culture to increase political awareness among young adults and encourage them to vote. Two guests from a popular reality television series made a special appearance at the event. Cyrus and Brooke, two cast members from MTV’s Real World: Denver, with the help of Quinnipiac Democratic and Republican committees came to explain to students the importance of every vote.
“I honestly came to see Brooke and Cyrus. I don’t know that much about politics, so I figured this was a good way for me to learn a little and meet them. I think most people that are here are here to see them anyway,” said junior business major Laura Murphy.
“I like to get involved with politics here at school, so I thought I would come check it out, but I don’t think people from the Real World are real appropriate for something like this. They got randomly picked for a reality show. If those are the people that students are actually influenced by, that’s sad,” said junior education major Matt Tremper.
www.rockthevote.com
In total, there were just over 80 students in attendance and about 30 of the attendees were there for a class. The guest speakers were an hour late due to transportation issues, and only approximately 50 students returned after the delay. When asked about the large amount of empty seats, co-coordinator Mark Miller replied, “I thought there would be a bunch more people. I guess Friday night isn’t a great time to have a program.”
“Rock the Vote” is an MTV inspired idea, which uses music and popular culture to increase political awareness among young adults and encourage them to vote. Two guests from a popular reality television series made a special appearance at the event. Cyrus and Brooke, two cast members from MTV’s Real World: Denver, with the help of Quinnipiac Democratic and Republican committees came to explain to students the importance of every vote.
“I honestly came to see Brooke and Cyrus. I don’t know that much about politics, so I figured this was a good way for me to learn a little and meet them. I think most people that are here are here to see them anyway,” said junior business major Laura Murphy.
“I like to get involved with politics here at school, so I thought I would come check it out, but I don’t think people from the Real World are real appropriate for something like this. They got randomly picked for a reality show. If those are the people that students are actually influenced by, that’s sad,” said junior education major Matt Tremper.
www.rockthevote.com
Thursday, September 18, 2008
Interactive Narratives
Interactive Narratives is a good site if you are looking for a visual explanation, rather than reading about what happened. Also, it strikes me odd that all of the stories on interactive narratives are from other credible news sources. I suppose that this is good, because people know the news will be reliable if it is from The New York Times and USA Today. I was expecting an online news source that would have articles, written by reporters working for the website, instead of video graphics from other credible news sources, showing or explaining a certain event. It seems as though anyone can do this, so interactive narratives doesn't seem like that good of a news source. However, most people probably understand better if the story is laid out in front of them step by step, with virtual graphics to show what basically happened. An example of this would be:
www.nytimes.com/interactive/2008/05/30/nyregion/20080530_CRANE_GRAPHIC.html#
The story of the crane, which killed two and hurt several others, is fully mapped out by this interactive graphic. The story is shown step by step, with small passages explaining what happened as well. Overall, this is a very good idea to show people the news, but I believe that true journalism is best portrayed with words, not pictures. Interactive Narratives is somewhat effective, but I wouldn't consider it online journalism.
www.nytimes.com/interactive/2008/05/30/nyregion/20080530_CRANE_GRAPHIC.html#
The story of the crane, which killed two and hurt several others, is fully mapped out by this interactive graphic. The story is shown step by step, with small passages explaining what happened as well. Overall, this is a very good idea to show people the news, but I believe that true journalism is best portrayed with words, not pictures. Interactive Narratives is somewhat effective, but I wouldn't consider it online journalism.
Tuesday, September 16, 2008
Monday, September 15, 2008
Presidential Candidates' Policies on Pot
The issue of decriminalization and legalization of marijuana is a small issue in the 2008 presidential election. Democrat Barack Obama and Republican John McCain, as well as the third party candidates, all vary in their policies towards the issues surrounding marijuana.
In 2004, Obama said, “In terms of legalization of drugs, I think the war on drugs has been an utter failure. I think we need to rethink and decriminalize our marijuana laws. But I’m not someone who believes in legalization of marijuana.” With regards to medical marijuana, he believes that it can be necessary, but only if it is scientifically proven to have a positive effect. Obama is also against the incarceration of current medical marijuana users, and believes that medical marijuana should be subject to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
While McCain agrees with Obama on the issue of the arrests of medical marijuana users, he is entirely against all reformation of marijuana laws, as well as medical marijuana use. McCain strongly frowns upon marijuana, and believes that there are other, healthier alternatives to relieving pain.
Libertarian candidate Bob Barr believes that the issue of marijuana use should be determined on whether or not America wants a government that is so powerful that it can tell you what to do in the privacy of your own home.
The Green party candidate, Cynthia McKinney is for legalization of industrial hemp and all its uses, and the decriminalization of all victimless crimes, which includes possession of small amounts of marijuana.
Independent candidate Ralph Nader believes that marijuana is less dangerous than alcohol and tobacco and that it should be “brought into a system of regulation and taxation”, which “would provide greater control over purity, potency, labeling, health warnings and age restrictions than the current ‘war on marijuana’ approach.”
In 2004, Obama said, “In terms of legalization of drugs, I think the war on drugs has been an utter failure. I think we need to rethink and decriminalize our marijuana laws. But I’m not someone who believes in legalization of marijuana.” With regards to medical marijuana, he believes that it can be necessary, but only if it is scientifically proven to have a positive effect. Obama is also against the incarceration of current medical marijuana users, and believes that medical marijuana should be subject to the U.S. Food and Drug Administration.
While McCain agrees with Obama on the issue of the arrests of medical marijuana users, he is entirely against all reformation of marijuana laws, as well as medical marijuana use. McCain strongly frowns upon marijuana, and believes that there are other, healthier alternatives to relieving pain.
Libertarian candidate Bob Barr believes that the issue of marijuana use should be determined on whether or not America wants a government that is so powerful that it can tell you what to do in the privacy of your own home.
The Green party candidate, Cynthia McKinney is for legalization of industrial hemp and all its uses, and the decriminalization of all victimless crimes, which includes possession of small amounts of marijuana.
Independent candidate Ralph Nader believes that marijuana is less dangerous than alcohol and tobacco and that it should be “brought into a system of regulation and taxation”, which “would provide greater control over purity, potency, labeling, health warnings and age restrictions than the current ‘war on marijuana’ approach.”
Thursday, September 11, 2008
Only-Online Journalism
Online journalism is a great means of distributing the news to a worldwide audience, on a constant time-frame. Anyone with computer could find out what is happening in the world at any given moment, and that accessibility is necessary for this ever growing and ever changing world. Another positve factor of online journalism is that it helps the environment, which is presently a big concern in the 2008 presidential election. However, despite the positives of online journalism, the idea of only-online journalism doesn't seem like a reliable media business, simply because there is no means of making money besides advertisements. It might be able to work in a small, moderatley wealthy suburb, where almost everyone has a computer, but the small town paper might not be able to have enough advertisements to pay the employees. I big city would most likely not have a problem with advertisements, but the news would not be fairly distributed, because of the large amount of people without computers. Cyberjournalist.net does a good job of laying the news right in front of you, but there are too many people out there without computers. Also, it doesnt seem like there are enough ads to make enough money to pay the writers. Even people in poverty need to read the news, and reporting the news is more about dispersing the facts to everyone than making money.
Obama and McCain on the Legal Drinking Age
Changing of the legal drinking age is becoming a relevant issue up for debate in the upcoming presidential election between Barack Obama and John McCain. Since 1984, the legal age to consume alcohol has been 21 years of age, and now there is a possibility it will be lowered to 18.
“What is the difference? Most 18 year olds drink anyway. It isn’t fair that I can die for my country in a war, but I can’t have a beer with my father,” said Brendan O’Connor, a 19 year old junior at Quinnipiac University.
While McCain is in favor of lowering the drinking age, Obama is strongly against is, and he has plenty of reasons why. In a recent year, people aged 16 to 24 were involved in 28 percent of all alcohol-related driving accidents, although they make up only 14% of the U.S. population.
The risk of death for drivers in single-vehicle crashes with a high Blood Alcohol Content (BAC) is 385 times that of a zero-BAC driver. For male drivers, the risk is 707 times that of a sober driver, according to estimates by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS). Fortunately, driving accidents have been declining among young people, and deaths associated with young drinking drivers (ages 16-24) are down dramatically, having dropped 47% in a recent 15-year period.
“As long as the kids aren’t driving, it usually isn’t a problem. 21 is too old. I think kids are drinking less than when they first changed it,” said Sgt. Sean McCarthy, 48, of the NYPD.
Although underage drinking rates have lowered over the past 20 years, the problems that result from it still plague America. The upcoming election will determine whether or not the legal age changes, and hopefully, the right decision will be made.
“What is the difference? Most 18 year olds drink anyway. It isn’t fair that I can die for my country in a war, but I can’t have a beer with my father,” said Brendan O’Connor, a 19 year old junior at Quinnipiac University.
While McCain is in favor of lowering the drinking age, Obama is strongly against is, and he has plenty of reasons why. In a recent year, people aged 16 to 24 were involved in 28 percent of all alcohol-related driving accidents, although they make up only 14% of the U.S. population.
The risk of death for drivers in single-vehicle crashes with a high Blood Alcohol Content (BAC) is 385 times that of a zero-BAC driver. For male drivers, the risk is 707 times that of a sober driver, according to estimates by the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS). Fortunately, driving accidents have been declining among young people, and deaths associated with young drinking drivers (ages 16-24) are down dramatically, having dropped 47% in a recent 15-year period.
“As long as the kids aren’t driving, it usually isn’t a problem. 21 is too old. I think kids are drinking less than when they first changed it,” said Sgt. Sean McCarthy, 48, of the NYPD.
Although underage drinking rates have lowered over the past 20 years, the problems that result from it still plague America. The upcoming election will determine whether or not the legal age changes, and hopefully, the right decision will be made.
Tuesday, September 9, 2008
Tuesday, September 2, 2008
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=wQr9ezr8UeA
Barack Obama is often criticized for his inconsistent and sometimes unclear responses, and this video shows that. However, he isn't in favor of the outright legalization of marijuana. He believes that America has not done a good job handling marijuana's consequences and punishments. Obama will fight for stronger decriminalization, without making it officially legal. While other sources report that John McCain is out to legalize marijuana, he is the candidate who hasn't provided a clear answer to this question.
http://www.boston.com/news/nation/articles/2008/03/09/alcohol_industry_ties_may_test_mccain/?page=2
Some would say that John McCain's opinion on the issue of the legal drinking age is biased due to his ties with the Anheuser-Busch company and distribution plant. His wife is chairwoman of the board, his son is the company's chief financial officer, and even McCain himself served as the chief publicist. George Hacker, director of the alcohol policies project at the Center for Science in the Public Interest, fears that federal regulators might become aware of McCain's industry ties and therefore go easy on beer distributors. McCain originally claimed that he was divided on the issue of lowering the drinking age. He brought up the fact that people can fight for their country at 18 but can't drink legally until 21. Like Obama, McCain now feels that the drinking age should remain at 21.
Monday, September 1, 2008
http://my.barackobama.com/page/community/post/johnadriatico/gGBbRv
Barack Obama is a man who sticks to his beliefs and principles. In an MTV News interview with 23 year old Army Veteran Earnest Johnson, when asked about lowering the legal drinking age Obama replied, "I know it drives you nuts, but I am not going to lower the drinking age." He later went on to explain how much a few years difference can drastically lower the drunk driving incidents. Many would argue that the legal drinking age being 21 is unfair because of the numerous activities youths can take part in that supercede the maturity level of consuming a few beers. Citizens between the ages of 18-20 can purchase a firearm, drive a car, vote, serve in the military and take part in nearly every civil obligation. The problem with American youth is that they tend to binge drink. Many American teens go on trips to foreign countries simply because they are of the legal age to drink. Obama feels that having the drinking age at 21 is better than 18, because a bunch of frustrated teenagers is better than a bunch of dead ones. In my opinion, if I can fight for my country and kill someone, then I should be able to have a drink. Obama shows little faith in a generation that he could be sending off to war. Although his desicion may seem unfair, it appears to be the safest at this point in time.
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