February 22, 2012

Posts Comments

Journalists are Heroes

Journalists are Heroes

The recent things going on in Egypt have taught us a lot about what journalists are willing to endure in order to bring us fair and accurate information about what is going on around the world. Many journalists traveled to Egypt and they put their lives at risk in order to get as close as they possibly could to all of the action. Journalists do this not for the ratings, but because they genuinely care about the rest of the nation receiving the latest and most important news about important topics. When civil unrest erupted in Egypt, those journalists traveled there and then refused to leave because they wanted to be at the forefront of the action and they wanted to make sure that everyone back home had a good idea of what was going on.

Though you may not necessarily agree, it is important to understand that journalists are heroes too. They are putting themselves in harm’s way because they want to deliver the news. They’re not doing it for the popularity or the ratings, they’re not doing it for a pat on the back. They really, genuinely just want to make sure that everyone in the United States has a good idea of what is occurring, even if it means putting themselves in risk in the process. If you ever had any doubt about the integrity of a good journalist, hopefully the recent goings on in Egypt were enough to completely change your mind about the hard work and dedication that they exhibit every single day.

Filed Under: Media Workers, News Tagged With: , ,

Is the Media Telling us Everything? Stay Informed!

Is the Media Telling us Everything?

One of the things that it is easy to worry about when it comes to the war is whether or not we actually know everything about what is going on overseas. We send our troops overseas and we have to rely on the large scale media companies to tell us what is happening over there. Unfortunately, the media loves attention and controversy, and so they are more likely to pad things and tell us it’s a giant mess, but is it really?

It is important that we be able to trust the media outlets to deliver us real news. We need to be able to know what is really happening overseas, especially when stuff happens like what is currently occurring in Egypt. Our friends and family members are over there, risking their lives while civil unrest sweeps the area, and we need to be kept up to date on what is occurring for some much needed peace of mind.

The best thing that you can do is look to multiple different media outlets, online, television, radio and so on to get your news so that you get a fair and balanced look at what is going on. When you have a fair and balanced look at what is occurring, then this is going to allow you to get the best and most well rounded look at the world at large and what is really occurring when the world is at war. Knowing is half the battle, so make sure you have a firm grasp on what is really going on.

Filed Under: Media Workers, News Tagged With: , ,

BBC Arabic Reporter Beaten in Egypt

BBC Arabic Reporter Beaten in Egypt

Over the past two months the situation in Egypt has become extremely hostile. After years of feeling as if the government was not listening to them many citizens took to the streets in protest. As with any story it was up to the international journalists and reporters to bring the story home to those in the United States and the United Kingdom.

While it is generally understood that international journalists are impartial that was not the case in Egypt. The very first example of just how brutal the situation in Egypt was with the case of a reporter for the BBC Arabic Assad Sawey.

Assad Sawey was covering the story for the BBC when a group of Egyptian police surrounded him. The police are reported as saying that they did not care about the BBC and any other organization. They tried to place him under arrest in which he protested. Instead of arresting him the police officers chose to brutally beat him leaving him with a bleeding head wound.

Instead of immediately seeking medical help Assad Sawey when directly on camera in his blood covered shirt and reported to the BBC exactly what was going on and the situation that had happened.

When it comes to reporting international incident journalists and reporters are typically allowed to report within a neutral zone. However, the situation in Egypt spiraled quickly out-of-control which resulted in many police and citizens turning on international journalists and reporters.

This incident regarding the BBC Arabic allow the international community not only to see how hostile things had gotten in Egypt but also allowed the international community to see exactly what international reporters and journalists put online every day and effort to bring the story firsthand to their viewers and readers.

Filed Under: Media Workers, News Tagged With: , ,

An Example of Egypt’s Violation of International Journalism

An Example of Egypt’s Violation of International Journalism

When a reporter heads over to a war-torn or crisis area is generally assumed that their protection is guaranteed by the international law. All journalists and reporters know that by entering the war-torn area they are risking their safety and could potentially be harmed or killed. However, a journalist attack has not happened in many years. That was until this past month when CBS reporter Lara Logan was brutally beaten in the middle of the Egypt protests.

On February 11, Lara Logan and a group of journalists were reporting on the protests and celebrations regarding the exit of the then Egyptian President. The attack was originally reported by CBS is being just a brutal attack. However, new details have been released detailing the attack that happened on Laura Logan. The attack included Laura Logan being stripped, punched repeatedly, pinched and beaten with flagpoles.

Every precaution was taken to ensure the safety of the journalist at the time. Laura Logan was surrounded by Egyptian guards and even a fellow journalist. However, the group was so large that it overtook all the guards and the fellow journalists.

Laura Logan is currently back at home recovering from the assault. While she is recovering the United States and the White House is demanding that Egypt and the new government bring justice for the attack that happened on Logan. In many countries is considered a crime to assault international journalist and even viewed as a violation of international law and public relations.

Despite the fact that this attack is a result of a brutally hostile environment is an example of how journalists and reporters put their lives and safety on the line in order to bring the international community the story.

Filed Under: Media Workers, News Tagged With: ,

ABC Reporter Beaten While on the Phone

ABC News Radio

Image via Wikipedia

ABC Reporter Beaten While on the Phone

The media world has been rocked by the hundreds of riot that are happening in the Arab world. The only way the Western world can get the information about these riots and protests is actually send journalists to the heart of the crisis. The problem is that after years of not having Western journalist be attacked while reporting in the middle of war turned in crisis areas the Arab world is breaking the unspoken vow that international journalists are hands-off when it comes to rioting and protests.

In Egypt there are dozens of examples of Western journalists being attacked while he tried to report the story to those of the Western world. This week’s riots in Bahrain brought out one of the worst attacks on a Western journalist.

A reporter for ABC news Miguel Marquez was reporting right outside of Pearl Squa. As Miguel was giving updates over the phone to his New York office a huge gain of thugs pulled out Miguel’s camera and started to beat the ABC news reporter. As the attack was going on Miguel kept phone communication with the New York office which diligently recorded the whole attack over the phone.

While this attack on the ABC news reporter was shocking the most shocking part was the fact that it was captured on tape. ABC news quickly release the attack which allowed the Western world and the rest of the world to see just how brutal reporting from the center of this protest ridden part of the world could be.

Despite the fact that many Middle Eastern and Arab countries have vowed to protect international journalists the right have gotten so out of control that Western journalists are no longer safe in face the major risk of being attacked by major groups of individuals while trying to report the story to the rest of the world. Unfortunately, attacks on Western journalists seem to be a growing trend that could only get worse.

Filed Under: Media Workers, News Tagged With: ,

Social Media and Education

Social media is web based programs that foster communication in an interactive way.  Examples of social media is Facebook, MySpace, or Twitter.  Individuals, businesses, and even presidential candidates use these sites to interact with the public and disseminate information.  These programs are popular among youth.

There has been the usual dirge at the education sites about the negative impact of these type of programs.  It goes something like this it is distracting students, it is causing failing grades, and it too dangerous to use in classrooms. The truth is none of the social medias are evil or negative.  It is a tool people choose to interact with.  Any negativity is the result of a decision made by a human being to use the tool in a negative way.  If there is negative then there is positive.  Positive just does not make the news.

There are teachers using social media for teaching and learning.  This is the 21st century and 21st century jobs and learning demands and requires fluent use of the Internet which social media is a large part.   Many students come to school with the skills to use the media in place.  In other words, they are set up by the culture ready for teaching. Safety issues can be addressed by using sites that are created specifically for education.

Blogs can be used for research and for strengthening writing skills.  Some blogs are written by leading experts in a field and often have comment boxes.  After reading your favorite author’s book, you can go to their blog and ask questions. Political candidates use social media to dispense knowledge on  issues.  Facebook is a place where one can get President Obama’s stand on an issue.  Twitter is used to remind students of approaching deadlines, and pointing out needed resources for projects.

Every change that impacts education nay sayers come out.  In the classrooms, there are groups of yes sayers quietly integrating new technologies into learning, because they see the world as it is and not the way it was.

Filed Under: Educational Reference, Media Workers Tagged With: ,

Learning in the Communication Age

The 3 R’s of learning are known as reading, writing, and arithmetic.  These subjects are around, but the new reality is there are 7 more learning areas one needs to function in today’s society.  Learning today involves interactive communication, relationships, collaboration, creation/publishing, community, continual learning, and participatory culture.

Interactive communication is the bread and butter of our world.  Mobile phones, instant messaging, blogs, video and audio provide avenues of constant communication with anyone anywhere in the world.

Relationships today are about making lasting connections to trusted sources.  These sources are personal or business.  Even though you may never meet a person, there is an intimacy when blogging, chatting, or interacting with a Web tool.  Often very loyal relationships develop between website creators and users.

Collaboration is the key component of this communication age.  People work together on the web to produce free software tools and resources.  Co-creation is the norm. Everyone contributes a small piece to create an entity larger than their collective self.  For example, the Encyclopedia Britannica has a little over 65,000 articles while Internet’s Wikipedia has over 4 and a half million articles in various languages.

Creation and publication is a standard on the Web.  An example would be blogs.  New blogs are created everyday and over 900,000 posting happen daily.  It is estimated that 2 million blogs are updated weekly.

Communities exist for every type of interest one could ever think of on the Internet. Conversations occur locally, but globally,too.  You are not alone you live in a world.

Continual learning is available 24/7.  Education does not finish with school, but continues throughout your life on the Internet.

A new culture has arose.  Consumers are no longer passive receivers of goods and information, but creators and participatory producers of content based on common needs and interests.

There is no end to learning now.  New technologies continue to emerge and new jobs appear. Equally, some technologies fade away.  Flexibility and adaptability throughout life is needed.

Filed Under: Educational Reference, Media Workers Tagged With: ,

Communication in the Digital Age

You daily hear the laments of how kids just cannot learn like the old days.  Have you ever considered that it is not the kids that are the problem, but the system?  Talk to any kid about the computer or Internet and you will find they are reading and exploring the world at light speed.  The world of communication has changed, but our education system has not caught up.  At times schools are preparing children for a world that no longer exists.

Technology saves time, effort, and commands our attention.  It does this most extensively in the realm of communication. E-communication has to be efficient and quick.  Web pages are not read word for word, but are scanned for information.  Titles and headline meaning is more  important than in the past. Articles must be short, clear, and to the point.

There are different types of e-communication. The most familiar to most of us is e-mail.  It is quick, easy, and gives a written record.  The downside is if you are not careful in what you type, you can easily offend someone. It is public, and words written rashly may be words you will have to eat later.  Instant messaging is on many sites.  You can have a real time conversation with anyone in the world with computer access.  Again not being kind and positive has it consequences.  Text messaging on cell phones is similar. There are the fabulous e-presentations such as Powerpoint, Flash, or YouTube.  Images, audio, and texts done in a concise, engaging manners are now some of the most powerful communications available.  There is e-publishing sites.  These sites range from blogs, scholarly research, advertisement, or books.  Anyone anywhere can now be an author whether a publishing house hires you or not.  If you so desire you can have e-meetings.  Web conferences save time and money, but make meeting and collaboration much easier.

Is it the Age of Information or the Age of Communication now?  You decide.

Filed Under: Media Workers Tagged With: ,

Digital Natives Versus Digital Immigrants

Digital immigrants are people who acquired technology skills as adults. Digital natives are those people who grew up with technology.  Different experiences create different brains.  Children are socialized differently. According to Mark Prensky in the article, “Digital Natives, Digital Immigrants,” over the years until adulthood a child is likely to play 10,000 hours of video games, read 20,000 emails or text messages, spend 1,000 hours on a cell phone, 20,000 hours of TV, and perhaps 5000 hours of book reading.

The brain adapts to the environment provided.  Stimulation or lack of stimulation changes the brain throughout your life.  Stimulation restructures and creates new patterns of thinking.  Digital immigrants, in general, process information sequentially.  It is processed one piece at a time, in order.  The process worked well for reading books and the Industrial Age.  Digital natives, in general, process information in parallel. They like several pieces information from different tasks at once.  They have better random access of information. Natives need information fast and prefer graphics to text, love to collaborate, prefer game format for working or learning, and will not wait long term for rewards or gratification.  This process works well for Internet, and digital technology devices.  Watch any teenager on a typical day and you will see this in action.  They can talk on the phone while typing a report while listening to the latest music, and get up several times. They learn best this way.

Institutions that ignore it, lose young people’s interests. Institutions that create programs that cater to shorter attention spans, are interactive, allow time to not pay attention, and present visuals and audio in short bursts attract younger people.  Need more proof.  Check with the United States military and see how they train the enlisted now.  You will find it is simulations and games. If you are a patriotic American, if it is good enough for the military, it should be good enough for the rest of the institutions.

Filed Under: Educational Reference, Media Workers Tagged With: ,

Information Wars

It is not news to anyone that technological advancements are changing the way people interact at an incredible pace. Cell phones have made it seem that everyone is always available, social networking websites have created new ways to think of friendships, and privacy is changing right alongside all of this. It was not long ago that war media was limited to a small amount of productions funded by news sources and designed to tell a certain story. It wasn’t long before that when people saw some of the very first video footage of war zones. For better or for worse, the way the world views war has changed greatly along with advancements in technology and it is continuing to change constantly.

While the citizenry used to be subject to the filters of media outlets and the inadvertent bias of the reporters that covered a story, they can now get a much more raw version of the situation. Communication has moved from the occasional letter and military report to a constant flow of information. Members of the military can now upload videos to the internet almost immediately. They can talk to those back at home through email, or chat face-to-face on the computer. The sheer number of pictures that can come back from a war zone is like never before. With the ease and widespread use of personal cell phones and digital cameras, information has little boundary left to contain it.

This can be good and bad. While it is exceptional that those serving can more readily talk to their loved ones, it can also be alarming how much information is freely distributed. The available quantity of information can make it easier to track troops and predict military strategy, which is dangerous. But, whether we like it or not, the world is changing and war is changing along with it.

Filed Under: Media Workers, War Tagged With: , , ,
« Older Posts