What's in the news? January 28
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Tuesday, January 22, 2008
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Seminar for mass communication majors covering theoretical aspects in the discipline. The seminar topic changes each year, but usually centers on some sociological or philosophical aspect of the media. Students should gain an increased understanding of the complexity of interaction between the media and society, and a greater appreciation for the value of exchanging ideas with their peers.
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Reading the NYTimes in Bemidji
January 29, 2008
1/28/08
‘Sopranos’ Gets a Last Hurrah at SAG Awards
I got hooked on “The Sopranos” only about a year ago when a friend started coming to our house to watch it every Sunday night because we had HBO. He forced us to sit through a couple of episodes. At first, I was repelled by the gratuitous violence, but soon I was hooked on what always draws me in – characters and great scripts. I went to the video store and started with Season 1. My husband and I watched 2-3 episodes a week until we were caught up for the final season. So I was quite pleased to read that they received three awards at the Screen Actors Guild Awards ceremony Sunday – best actor, best actress and best ensemble in a drama series. Wow! This has made me want to seek out more of these excellent long-running dramatic series that are getting second and third lives on DVD. My next choice? “The Wire.” We’ll see.
“Rapid Changes Since 2001 Cloud Outlook for Viewers”
“Direct to DVD Releases Shed Their Loser Label”
There’s something big going on in the media business these days – well, actually many big things are going on. Newspapers are silently dying (and now asking for public funding and non-profit status); movies are being released directly to viewers on DVD instead of being released in theatres; yet theatres seem to be doing pretty well; according to The Times, TV and film companies are belt-tightening; the Writers Guild continues to strike, which affects everything except news on TV. As David Carr notes in “Fox Mashes Up The Supers,” the Super Bowl is “one of the last bastions of mass media in a fractured universe.” As Marshall McLuhan once said, “I don’t care what medium we use, as long as it stays the same for awhile” (or something like that). I don’t know whether to buy an IPod, an IPhone, a Kindle, DVDs, a radio or an LCD or rear-projection TV. Should I get TiVO? Or is cable the best?
As to the belt-tightening, if entertainment is our biggest export, what does this mean for that? Probably not good thing! Where do advertisers go? I’m glad I don’t work in that business now. You have to work harder and harder to reach fewer people – and they’re probably not paying much attention because they’re multi-tasking.
“Races Entering Complex Phase Over Delegates”
This is complicated stuff! We pay so much attention to who “wins” each primary or caucus, but meanwhile the real numbers are being calculated differently. Candidates have two things to worry about, as noted in the article – delegates and momentum. All we’re measuring right now is momentum. We could be surprised at who ends up being the candidates for each party. The party system is on life support anyway, and in recent years it seems their chosen candidates are NOT necessarily those who are most popular with party irregulars, the general public and the independents. Hillary seems to still be the favored one of the Democratic Party, but Barack for the public. With the Republicans it’s even more complicated, since they don’t have any one acceptable candidate, while the Democrats have three – such riches! They can’t agree on one. But there’s still time. Ironically, this front-loading of the process doesn’t seem to speed it up – it just prolongs it. How do these Senators do their jobs? Obviously, they don’t. It’s nice work if you can get it, I guess!
Response to: “Marketers Seem to Think Recession Is Already Here,” Pg. C1: Business Section
I found this article very interesting. This article discussed what marketers and advertisers are doing differently since a recession seems to be “looming” in our economy. I knew the basics of what a recession was, but I gained curiosity to learn more on the topic as I kept reading.
I liked how this article talked about what advertisers are doing to strengthen their campaigns during tough economy times. I was surprised to learn that advertisers are in a weak state, but also a strong one at the same time. The retail of housing should be of no surprise to anyone, yet some categories of advertising budgets have actually risen. Automotive ad budgets have “been going up as sales have been going down.”
Multiple campaigns were mentioned where advertising budgets have been strongly focusing on the fact that a recession is coming. Low prices are stressed, especially at places such as Starbucks and Quiznos, which are two competitive sandwich lines. Nissan is focusing its advertising on showing off the 600 miles it can drive on one tank of gas. Sovereign Bank is gaining customers by offering $100 in gas reward cards if they open up a checking account. It seems that because sales are down, most companies have to have some special offer if they want to keep consumers interested in their product or service, depending on their competitiveness in the economy.
Despite the fact that advertisers “usually reduce their spending during downturns,” it seems as if they are still spending a lot of money promoting their campaigns, which offer items for cheaper prices. Madison Avenue in New York is supposedly acting as if a recession is already underway. Advertising is known to take a downfall according to previous recessions. In 2001, there was a 6.5% drop, while there was a 1.2% drop in 1991.
Marketers, on the other hand, are said to spend the same amount of money during tough times as they do during economic booms. The article states that marketers can never afford to lose consumers. They always need to keep consumers informed, even if the number of shopping consumers is relatively small. Marketers need to be remembered by consumers to stay alive.
One brief definition of a recession was stated in this article: two straight quarters of contraction. With all the talk of a possible recession, one might think we were already in one. Americans are beginning to believe that we’ve shifted into a recession due to price-conscious campaigns that we’re being exposed to. After previous year downfalls, these types of campaigns were encouraged. While Americans are already being exposed to these campaigns even before a recession has technically started, we’re being led to believe that one has already come.
A recession is characterized by multiple trends in a nation’s economy including stock market slumps, increasing unemployment, people purchasing less things, etc. It seems as if Americans are in the stage of not knowing for sure if we’re entering a recession or not. Advertisers and marketers seem to understand how to control consumers. One website that I browsed through for information regarding recessions (http://www.howstuffworks.com/recession9.htm) talked about how consumers and producers are the ones responsible for turning recessions around. Even though economic conditions are on a downfall, advertisers and marketers are still paying close attention to their consumers.
1/30/08
Tuna fish editorial A24
Hello, I read the editorials on the consequences of mercury in fish. It was very interesting to read, because tuna can be very good for you, but the mercury in the tuna can be extremely detrimental. Not only does the tuna have mercury in it, but the blue-fin tuna is an over-exploited fish and unsustainable. I did just read that there are safer alternatives to the blue-fin tuna, and sustainable. An example is the Kona Kampachi tuna which is sustainably farmed. The International Commission for the Conservation of Atlantic Tunas is also a good place to go for more info. It is scary, because consumer demand for the blue-fin tuna is high, while so is the mercury levels that they carry because of their size. Most of us, however, are exposed to mercury through dental amalgams.
Here is the rest of the post, just wanted to make sure it worked. Mercury: more toxic than arsenic, lead, and cadmium. "amalgam fillings -Twelve Points on Mercury Toxicity
Written and compiled by Dr. John Whitman Ray N.D., M.D. (M.A.)
I have had the pleasure of testing several hundred patients and students in my field of Body Electronics with the Jerome Mercury Vapor Analyzer. I have found only two people in all my testing who have not evidenced a continual toxic exposure to mercury vapor emanating from silver amalgam dental fillings under normal chewing compression. The amount of mercury vapor emitted under normal chewing compression exceeded in ten seconds what the maximum allowable mercury exposure would be in industry in a 40 hour work week as is indicated by both Russian and U.S.A. standards. This amount of exposure to mercury vapor is totally unacceptable to the scientific mind."
So basically mercury is very bad, it can damage the central nervous system, your endocrine system, kidneys, very bad stuff. So I suggest staying away from blue fin tuna and please be sure to properly dispose of your florescent light bulbs. This way we won't become "Mad as a hatter."
I was also interested in the story about 19 people killed in Kenya due to ethnic clashes with election disputes; 100 people in four days. I always thought of Kenya as peaceful. It is especially concerning with the fact that machetes were used; it's like Rwanda. The politicians on both sides (Kibachi and Odinga) need to work together to end what is happening. Hopefully not another Rwanda, especially with what is happening in Darfur.
Former president of Indonesia (a nation in Southeast Asia, and was a Dutch colony), Suharto, died on Sunday in Jakarta with several organ failures. I didn’t know it happened so fast actually. I mean I knew that he’s engaging with some kind of serious illnesses, but the papers were like “Mr. Suharto is in a better condition” for today, but the next day, “Mr. Suharto is in a critical condition”. It’s like they are not reporting accordingly. So I think it won’t be this quick. It seems like this is the biggest lost for most of the Indonesians. Talking about his background, Suharto was born in the year of 1921. He became political leader and known as the second president of Indonesia, and hold the office from 1967-1998 (32 years). Today’s paper talks a lot about Suharto’s achievements, career and his background. I’m actually quite surprise that his news appeared in New York Times (probably because he actually seeks help from the American-trained economists years ago). But, certainly those articles have their news value. Well, although Suharto was seen as the most corrupt leader (which the United Nations lists him down), but he had brought development to Indonesia. This is because, from what I know about Indonesia, it was actually a very under-developed country or maybe “third world”. Often, there are riots against female or whatever incidents that the turbulent crowd are not comfortable with in that country (One of the pictures in page A20, titled Losing Grip). I mean, they are destitute of knowledge. I have this real case about their discrimination against Chinese women. My friend, who is an Indonesian-Chinese, was being sent to Malaysia by her parents. Other than to get better opportunities to studies, the other reason is that because Indonesian guys are not really happy with Chinese, so they tend to rape those Chinese women. But, it is not the case now. When Suharto took over the place from Sukarno (first president of Indonesia), Suharto ended Sukarno’s policy. At that moment, Indonesia was flooded with problems like inflation and poverty. The transformation from a poor and under-developed country to a developing country was all in Suharto’s hand. Suharto himself was come from a penniless family as well. According to the New York Times, “he was so poor that he once had to change schools because he could not afford the shorts and shoes that were the required uniforms”. He worked with the Japanese in order to gain independence for Indonesia. Well, seems like our dear Mr. Suharto was doing a lot of great jobs for his country. But, does it make any sense that all the charges were being dropped just because of his illness? In my opinion, it certainly isn’t work. The corruption cases that he involved in are not a small number. He had been charged for stolen more than $600 million and later cancelled the charges because of stroke or whatever illness it was. I mean, it is not just a few hundred dollars or thousands, but $600 million. The worst was that he denied that he actually committed in any of the corruption cases, and said that “it’s all empty talk”. In this case, I would say he had picked the right time to leave. He’s able to commit violence or crime cases without being known, and clever enough to keep his name behind the close door.
Some of them might feel sad about this news, but personally, I don’t think that this brutal dictator deserve my respect. Who knows? Some of them might just show their emotion just because everybody does. From the newspaper, I can understand how important this leader is to the Indonesians. “The tears of Indonesia are raining on me”. This sentence alone is enough to show the feeling of those Indonesians. Oh, I’m sorry if what I’ve wrote actually offended some of you guys. May you rest in peace, Mr, Suharto.
The New York Times covered the story of George W. Bush’s plan to boost the economy by disbursing up to $1,200 to 117 million families. The article “Echo of First Bush: Good Economy Turns Sour”, suggests that Bush was too preoccupied with foreign affairs that he let our homeland economy go to crap. This rebate check is his attempt to quick fix the damage that has almost led our country to a recession, if we’re not already in one. President Bush insists that our economy is sturdy and thriving; even though he admits that some things are uncertain. How typical of a politician to say two very different answers for one question. The rebate checks will be looked forward to by millions of families, but that does not mean that they are going to spend it in the future economy, it will probably only help some of these families get caught up financially.
In Russia, the New York Times reports that the government has barred the only worthy presidential opposition from being on the presidential ballot. The article “Russia Bars Opposition Candidate From March 2 Ballot” reports that former Prime Minister Mikhail M. Kasyanov was told that more than 13 percent of his collected signatures were invalid. Isn’t it funny how governments want to portray the image of a free vote, but limit the people who are allowed to be voted for? Kasyanov has not yet decided whether or not to appeal this decision through the courts, but there have been accusations that the courts are largely influenced by the government and wouldn’t make a difference anyway.
There was a small article at the bottom page of A9 called “Tuna Sales Halt Urged”. Conservationists are trying to cease supermarket sales of the Mediterranean blue-fin tuna to help the fish population recover. I found this article interesting because in my World Regional Geography class, we were just talking about the world’s stock and demand for fish. 60 percent of the world’s fish catch is from the pacific, but global demand is twice the amount of the global catch. This is going to be something that will be very critical to the world’s demand for fish. I expect that fish prices will increase and fish will be harder to find if we do not find a way to replenish the fish we take from the ocean. Maybe they should start cloning fish.
In the article “China Now Pays Troops Involved in Nuclear Tests”, China has begun to pay military personnel to improve veteran’s benefits to those who were involved with military nuclear tests. China conducted 45 nuclear tests at Lop Nur and the atmosphere from 1964 until 1996, when they signed the Nuclear Test Ban Treaty. The former test sites are still strictly restricted, although some foreign reporters have reported incidents of cancer and other diseases near the test sites. However, China has not commented on the issue. This article suggests that since the US compensated affected people, that China will do so or should do so eventually; even if the people are not military personnel.
On a lighter note, the article “A Shelter is Built Green, to Heal Inside and Out” is an uplifting story about a homeless shelter that has a solar-paneled roof, hydronic heating, non-toxic paint, and furniture made from pressed wheat. What a beautiful example to set for the rest of the world. More buildings should be built like this, especially large buildings that would consume a large amount of energy. Wouldn’t it be wonderful if all government and educational buildings were not energy dependent?
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Starting off with "With Wink and Whisper, Housing in Cuba Booms." This was an interesting article to read because on one hand, not many students will be able to look at buying a home right after they graduate, on the other hand homes are getting cheaper and cheaper. The dream is out there for young Americans, but it looks like we're the ones being looked down upon. "Officially, buying or selling property is forbidden." This leads to the fact that property ownership is illegal as well. There is a huge illegal housing market in Cuba and its all being done under the table. People trade their homes hoping to usually upgrade, or sometimes simplify things. There's usually money involved. I think this is great because to me, it allows the pursuit of happiness. People have a chance to move up in the world for little to no cost. Interesting enough the government actually tries to regulate this with forms and fees. The idea is to keep track of cubans and their happenings. Cuban's believe that change is coming, what with castro's health and the idea of private ownership coming back. People are looking to get the most bang out what little money their putting in. Estimates of property value say that the value could rise 5x. However, even though we live in a country where home foreclosures are becoming an everyday occurrence, we can be sure that with hard work and mindful spending, many if not all American's can will find a home.
"For Gays, A New Era In Politics" was a short but interesting article. It starts with comments from an impromptu debate by four middle-aged men in a gay bar. We can assume they are probably gay. As they debate over Clinton and Obama, not once did the issues for gay and lesbian rights come up. The article goes on with the idea that the gay and lesbian community are pretty happy with the happenings of politics. While none of the three candidates support gay marriage, they all support same-sex civil unions. The gay and lesbian community in New York appear to be putting their desired rights on the back burner while they jump on the rest of the nation's political bandwagon.
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