Maureen Onda Comm 303 Blog

Three  Issues:

1. Passive Voice!!!!!!!!!!!

ex: It was posted on Trey Parker and Matt Stone personal website that they will with hold episodes of the popular comedy unless Comedy Central re-airs the series’ 200th episode.

2. Which & That

ex: Ariel took the ________she aced.

a) quiz, which b) quiz which c) quiz, that d) quiz that

3. It’s & Their

ex: The jury reached their its verdict in only 30 minutes.

Related Links:

GMU College of Republicans Blog

GMU College of Democrats Blog

Not Your Average Admissions Blog

College Admissions Blog

GMU Econ Society Blog

The story was told in a research style by an announcer, Joanne Silberner.  The report came from National Public Radio’s website so the report was not a live broadcast. There was an ad that introduced the report and an ad that followed the report. The report started with an introduction to the topic by one of NPR’s host reporters. A brief background of who, what, when and why was used as an introduction to attract the listeners attention. Next there is an explanation of where the information came from, which was from the Journal of the American Medical Association. A connection was then made to the other topic that is going to be discussed in the story.  The host introduces the announcer that will cover the news story in-depth. The announcer immediately starts her story without an introduction of her background. The announcer then introduces her first expert and background of expert.  There is a ten second sound bite of the first expert speaker that continues the announcer’s story. Once the sound bite is finished the announcer goes into more detail about what the expert said and how it relates to her story. Then there is another ten second sound bite of the same expert. The announcer then gives possible answers to what the expert is researching. Then the announcer uses a two second sound bite of a second expert. The speaker discusses the topic more and asks a question that leads into another sound bite of the second expert which answers the question the announcer purposed. The speaker does a good job in briefly explaining the new health care bill and how it relates to the topic of the report.  There is a third expert introduced and a seven second sound bite used. The announcer further discusses her findings. The announcer then signs off by saying her name and the name of the company news organization where she works. A 31 second sound bite of jazz music follows up the report and then an ad for Progressive insurance.

The most important information was delivered right away with supporting information to follow. There were three sound bites used to support the announcers report. It was different from print journalist because there were ads that were announced at the beginning and the end of the report. Another difference is the ability to emphasize certain elements with the volume of the announcer’s voice. The broadcast did not closely follow the inverted pyramid style. Experts are used in both print and broadcast but the ability to hear the sound bites of the expert’s voice placed emphasis on what they had to say. If the broadcast was written by a print journalist the end information about the over findings would have been presented much earlier.

Further information:

http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=125627307

Surgery May Not Be The Answer To An Aching Back

All Things Considered

By Joanne Silberner

April 6, 2010

People.com has an exciting and interesting web package.  People.com is an excellent supplement to the magazine that covers a variety of celebrity news topics. The website is set up in a similar way to the magazine which allows the viewers easy searching; however the website is updated every day unlike the magazine that comes out once a week. There is a column to the left of the home page that gives the “Top Story” and the “Latest Headlines”. The center of the home pages displays the main story of the day photo and the “Star Track”. To the right on the home page gives the must see photos that give a small preview of some of the newest photos. As the viewer scrolls down there are sections for the different tabs at the top. These web links allow the read to see a preview and explore what is behind the tantalizing photos and headlines. All of these web links have a tab bar at the top giving links to “Home”, “News”, “Photos”, “Style”, “Babies”,“TV Watch”, “Games”, “Celebs”, “Video” and “Archive”.

The “Home” page has many types of visual stimulants. There is a constant add at the top of the page that shows a popular show that is to be aired. The shows change day to day and have a link to the show’s website. The home page has many pictures and headlines to lure the reader into clicking to see more.  There are also audio and video clips to enhance the viewing experience.

The second tab is the “News” which gives The Newswire. The Newswire gives the most important or recent celebrity news stories of the day. To the right of the breaking news story are links to the top stories of the week. All of these stories have pictures related to the topic in the story to add interest to the viewer. Also on this page there are polls that viewers can join in or see the results. There is also a tab list of the Top 10 News Categories.

The next web page is “Photos” which is a highlight for me because I can pick what I am interested in reading based on who is in the pictures. The page is set up in a collage format which ads a fun feel to the section. There is also a section of pictures that were posted previously in the week which remain available to be viewed.

The “Style” page is set up in a similar format to the magazine by sectioning off different style related topics like  fashion, makeovers, beauty and much more. There are many different topics that would interest variety readers. The “Style” page is very interactive with voting and polls to take like Last Night’s Look: Hit or Miss?

The “Baby” page is an exciting page for mothers, mothers to be and primarily designed for women. The page gives tips for soon to be mothers and topics like where to find great baby clothing. The page mainly gives updates on which celebrity is expecting or how they are doing post pregnancy. The pictures mainly focus on the celebrities and there are limited photos of children.

The next page is for the reality television lover! The “TV Watch” section gives the latest recaps of what is hot in reality television. There are links to clips as well as videos on the page. There is also a tab list that tracks different shows. A television guide is given to inform the reader what the top shows to watch are and when they can be viewed.  This page is loaded with pictures and stories about all the latest reality gossip.

The “Games” page is not as exciting to me as some of the other pages but every once and a while I will click a game that interests me.  The games that I find interesting are the games where you have to guess to see how well you think you know celebrities.

People.com has a page that is dedicated to being able to select on the celebrity that most interests you and about the newest information about your celebrity. For example if you love Reese Witherspoon and want to read more about her, click on her name. This page archives any information about her that was on their website.

The “Video” page immediately pops up video ads and interviews. There are many links to different subjects and celebrities. This page gives a lineup of the latest video and does an excellent job to give a variety of information.

The last page tab is “Archive” which links you to different magazines that have been published. The page offers easy searching by date, cover, and year. The section even offers a search by past issues that have similar topics to what is currently in the news.

People.com is filled with pictures, audio, video, graphics, past stories, current news, polls and a massive amount of information about celebrities. I enjoy reading People.com as a way to escape reality and take a break.  I find People.com to give more accurate information then other celebrity magazines which I why I choose to view it the most.

Below is a sample of The Washington Post news alerts that I receive via e-mail.  The news alerts give short headlines to tell the main points and give links to related stories of interest. I enjoy the format of these alerts and think they give good information on breaking news stories. If anyone is having a hard time with figuring out how to write a good lead, I would suggest taking a look at the news alerts.

From	The Washington Post <newsletters@email.washingtonpost.com>
Sent	Saturday, February 27, 2010 5:13 pm
To	monda@gmu.edu
Cc
Bcc
Subject	Breaking News: Tsunami strikes Hawaii

One student remains in critical condition and two others were admitted and released at separate times to a local hospital early Sunday morning due to alcohol poisoning.

Press Martin, from New Hampshire, Al Amalek, from Tennessee and Rob Smith, from Fairfax, were the three students from the Alpha Beta Zeta fraternity, that were involved the recent rise in alcohol related hospitalizations. The current University policy has alcohol banned from fraternity houses located on campus property or within campus environs.

A representative of the University confirmed that the ABZ students were diagnosed with alcohol poisoning. “A number of witnesses say alcohol was being consumed by them. Based on that we are suspending the fraternity and all its activities on campus,” the representative cites. Jan Mize in the university public relations department commented that usually these circumstances results in about a year suspension.

“We wholeheartedly agree with President Smithville that alcohol has no place at fraternity parties,” Interfraternity Council president Bart Addison said in an issued statement. To discourage other students from drinking at fraternity houses the University might increase its police patrols of fraternity houses on the weekends.

Addison is planning on asking for the president’s reconsidering of the suspension. “However, I do not believe that the entire fraternity should be held responsible for the actions of a few,” Addison commented.

Recent rise in drinking at fraternity parties has lead to two student’s deaths, one at MIT and one at LSU, and others in the hospital from alcohol poisoning.  

Early Sunday morning at separate times, three students from the Alpha Beta Zeta fraternity were admitted to the hospital and one remains in critical condition. The current University policy has alcohol banned from fraternity houses located on campus property or within campus environs.

 A representative of the University confirmed that the ABZ students were diagnosed with alcohol poisoning. The representative cites, “Our initial investigation indicates that these young men were at a party in the ABZ house. A number of witnesses say alcohol was being consumed by them. Based on that we are suspending the fraternity and all its activities on campus. We have not decided how long the suspension will last.” Jan Mize in the university public relations department commented that usually these circumstances results in about a year suspension.

Interfraternity Council president Bart Addison issued a statement, “We wholeheartedly agree with President Smithville that alcohol has no place at fraternity parties.”  Addison also commented, “However, I do not believe that the entire fraternity should be held responsible for the actions of a few.”

Addison is planning on asking for President Smithville’s reconsidering of the suspension. To discourage other students from drinking at fraternity houses the University might increase its police patrols of fraternity houses on the weekends.

B.J. Koubaroulis is a sports contributor for the Washington Post and focuses on high school sports. As a guest speaker in my Sports and the Media class he shared his personal experience being a journalist. Koubaroulis described the transformation he had to make as a journalist with the increase in technology. The Mason alumni described his early years as a journalist when he would go to games with a pad and pen and then going home after the game to write the story. Now he brings two lap tops, a camera, and is writing the story to be able to post it right when the game is over. Koubaroulis streams video while reporting the game so his readers can feel like they were at the game.

Koubaroulis is in charge of covering the high school sports in the Northern Virginia area and his contribution to the Washington Post website is an excellent example of a journalists adjusting their approach to fulfill the demands of his readers.

Angry group of 25 committed Christians plan to express their objection over University teaching an evolution class.

The angry group of citizens led by Wilbur Straking, pastor of the Ever-Faithful Church of the Living Water, commented that he plans to, “speak with legislators about this problem,” of teaching evolution at the University next Monday.  Laura Cliff, associate professor of biology, teaches the class that is being objected to by the group of Christians. Both the professor and the president of the university would not comment.

a)      Straight-news lead

http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/02/19/AR2010021905362.html
Government data released Friday showed that a closely watched measure of inflation fell in January for the first time since 1982, potentially giving the Federal Reserve more leeway to keep interest rates at ultra-low levels.

b)      Anecdotal lead

http://voices.washingtonpost.com/olympics/2010/02/win_a_medal_now_what.html

When Julia Mancuso skied to the bottom of the Franz’s Run at Whistler Creekside Thursday afternoon, she looked at the scoreboard, saw herself in first, fell to the ground and began kicking her skis in celebration.

c)      Direct address

http://www.politico.com/news/stories/0210/32298.html

It may say Monday on your calendars, but for Democrats it still feels like Friday afternoon, when President Barack Obama stuck it to Republicans on national television at the House GOP’s Issues Retreat.
d)     Straight news lead

http://www.carrollcountytimes.com/articles/2010/02/19/news/local_news/6_storms_cost.txt