The story I chose was about the hearing of 5 US soldiers being charged with the murder of Afghan civilians, with 7 other soldiers being charged in a cover up of this crime.
CNN: The CNN article focused on the recent hearing-to-be of these soldiers. It discussed the methods in which the killings were performed, mostly grenades. Also, names of the accused were given, and this article talked about how the soldiers actually kept body parts of their victims.
FOX: I couldn't find a recent updated story on this subject, however, I did find a story from about a month ago when this story came out. This article explains the involvement of 7 other soldiers in this conspiracy. It also names all who were involved, and goes into more detail about how the civilians were killed: Shot and had grenades thrown at them.
MSNBC:I could not find the story on MSNBC.
There were differences between CNN and FOX, but mostly because of the time gap. CNN did this follow up story to inform readers of the hearing that is coming up Monday for these US soldiers, while FOX did the initial reporting of the story this summer. I really am not sure why MSNBC did not have this story. When I put it in the search, it only came up with CNN's story. Also, when I went to the Kandahar tab within the MSNBC site, I Couldn't find it there either. Overall, I do believe this is an important story. We need to know how our soldiers are conducting themselves overseas during this war. It reflects poorly on the US as a nation when this type of misconduct is performed. What is important now is the action that the US takes on these soldiers in punishing them for their crime.
http://www.foxnews.com/us/2010/08/25/army-stryker-brigade-soldiers-conspired-kill-afghan-civilians-charged/
http://www.cnn.com/2010/CRIME/09/27/afghanistan.coverup.case/index.html?hpt=T2
Monday, September 27, 2010
Thursday, September 23, 2010
Unsolve Mysteries
So I decided to do this blog on the show Unsolved Mysteries because 1.) my roommates and I are completely obsessed with this show and 2.) I have been watching it ever since I was born. Basically this show recreates crimes such as murders, missing loved one, robbery, amnesia, fraud, UFO's, and ghosts, and then gives info and facts from the crime with the hopes that someone watching the show will be able to identify the persons involved. The show first aired in 1987, and continues to be on Lifetime and Spike today. There have been roughly 1000 cases aired in 260 episodes, and 47% of the cases involving fugitives have been solved according the the website http://www.unsolved.com ! I think my favorite segments are the ones that have either been "updated" or "solved." It's always interesting to see an awful murder case from a previous episode be solved within the next two or three episodes. If you are looking for a great, suspenseful show to watch when you are bored, I highly recommend this one!
http://www.unsolved.com Visit the website for more info!
Unsolved Mysteries Series: Trailer Terror
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Sunday, September 19, 2010
Serial Killer In Leesburg Virginia
http://www.washingtonpost.com/wp-dyn/content/article/2010/08/26/AR2010082605949.html
This article from the Washington Post, is about a native Israeli man, Elias Abuelazam, who is suspected of injuring 18 men, five of those being fatal injuries. The article focuses more on the case of the suspect, discussing trial places/dates, the details of the case, and the sentences that many police/court officials feel appropriate for this suspected serial killer. Facts including in this article are that Elias is a 33 year old Israeli native male who is suspected of killing men in Michigan, Ohio, and Virginia. He was flown from Georgia to Michigan to face charges of assaulting a man in that state. However, police are still trying to link cases in Virginia to the other known cases in Michigan. The only statement made about Abuelazam in relation to serial killers is that he was called an "evil" individual. Authorities most mentioned were the Leesburg police department. Abuelazam's victims ranged in age from teenagers to the elderly. Authorities believe that many of these attacks were racially based; 16 victims were African American, 1 hispanic man, and 1 white man. Finally, the locations all related to where Elias was living at the time. In Leesburg, he worked in a children's center (crazy!).
This article from the Washington Post, is about a native Israeli man, Elias Abuelazam, who is suspected of injuring 18 men, five of those being fatal injuries. The article focuses more on the case of the suspect, discussing trial places/dates, the details of the case, and the sentences that many police/court officials feel appropriate for this suspected serial killer. Facts including in this article are that Elias is a 33 year old Israeli native male who is suspected of killing men in Michigan, Ohio, and Virginia. He was flown from Georgia to Michigan to face charges of assaulting a man in that state. However, police are still trying to link cases in Virginia to the other known cases in Michigan. The only statement made about Abuelazam in relation to serial killers is that he was called an "evil" individual. Authorities most mentioned were the Leesburg police department. Abuelazam's victims ranged in age from teenagers to the elderly. Authorities believe that many of these attacks were racially based; 16 victims were African American, 1 hispanic man, and 1 white man. Finally, the locations all related to where Elias was living at the time. In Leesburg, he worked in a children's center (crazy!).
Wednesday, September 15, 2010
Freed American Hiker
I chose to do the rather recent story of the American hiker who was freed from an Iranian prison this past week. The links are:
CNN: http://www.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/meast/09/14/iran.detained.american/?hpt=C1
The Seattle Times: http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/editorials/2012896744_edit15iran.html
NPR: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=129861240
While all three versions of the story had the same basic info/facts, there were some differences. The CNN story went into much more detail about the released prisoner's (Sarah Shourd) feelings and emotions about being released. Included in their story were quotes from not only Sarah, but her mother as well, while The Seattle Times' version was more about the basic facts. All three stories agreed on where Sarah was released to (Oman) and who was there waiting for her (her mother). However, the NPR story talked about her Uncle also being there to greet her as she was released. The CNN and NPR versions of the story also go into more detail than the Seattle Times. I think this is because CNN and NPR are more nationally (and to some extent internationally) based; they have access to more detailed information that locally based newspapers or organizations. For example, the Seattle article discussed how Sarah was let out on bail, while CNN and NPR gave the exact number of that bail: $500,000. Seattle also gave an opinion statement at the end of the article about how a trade deal of prisoners between Iran and the U.S. Another big difference is that NPR goes into much more detail about the bail set for Sarah Shourd. They ask the question, "Who paid for this bail," and then go into detail about the U.S. asking the Sultanate of Oman to intervene in the matter. Overall, I think that the differences in these versions of the story are subtle. I think this is the case mostly because of the access of information that is available to each of these sources.
CNN: http://www.cnn.com/2010/WORLD/meast/09/14/iran.detained.american/?hpt=C1
The Seattle Times: http://seattletimes.nwsource.com/html/editorials/2012896744_edit15iran.html
NPR: http://www.npr.org/templates/story/story.php?storyId=129861240
While all three versions of the story had the same basic info/facts, there were some differences. The CNN story went into much more detail about the released prisoner's (Sarah Shourd) feelings and emotions about being released. Included in their story were quotes from not only Sarah, but her mother as well, while The Seattle Times' version was more about the basic facts. All three stories agreed on where Sarah was released to (Oman) and who was there waiting for her (her mother). However, the NPR story talked about her Uncle also being there to greet her as she was released. The CNN and NPR versions of the story also go into more detail than the Seattle Times. I think this is because CNN and NPR are more nationally (and to some extent internationally) based; they have access to more detailed information that locally based newspapers or organizations. For example, the Seattle article discussed how Sarah was let out on bail, while CNN and NPR gave the exact number of that bail: $500,000. Seattle also gave an opinion statement at the end of the article about how a trade deal of prisoners between Iran and the U.S. Another big difference is that NPR goes into much more detail about the bail set for Sarah Shourd. They ask the question, "Who paid for this bail," and then go into detail about the U.S. asking the Sultanate of Oman to intervene in the matter. Overall, I think that the differences in these versions of the story are subtle. I think this is the case mostly because of the access of information that is available to each of these sources.
Friday, September 10, 2010
Self Harm
http://www.helpguide.org/mental/self_injury.htm
I chose self-harm as my topic on deviant behavior because I have dealt with this behavior through friends who have taken part in it, and because I feel, like many other deviant behaviors, it is misunderstood. This site provides great information as to why a person performs this type of behavior, warning signs/symptoms, how to help a friend/family member, and how to help yourself if you find that you are wanting to partake in these behaviors. Also, this site provides many links for sites that deal with self-injury and suicide prevention and help. In my opinion, we as a culture should spend less time labeling this behavior as deviant, and more time trying to help these people who feel as though they need to harm themselves to find relief. Many people think that this is a suicide attempt. However, from reading these sites and discussing the topic with friends, I have learned that the majority of the time these people do not want to commit suicide at all. I do not know if this type of behavior will ever be "accepted," and personally, I do not think that it should be. Like I said before, I believe that as a society we need to reach out and help, support, and care for each other more, especially when we find ourselves in the presence of those who are going through an emotional crisis.
I chose self-harm as my topic on deviant behavior because I have dealt with this behavior through friends who have taken part in it, and because I feel, like many other deviant behaviors, it is misunderstood. This site provides great information as to why a person performs this type of behavior, warning signs/symptoms, how to help a friend/family member, and how to help yourself if you find that you are wanting to partake in these behaviors. Also, this site provides many links for sites that deal with self-injury and suicide prevention and help. In my opinion, we as a culture should spend less time labeling this behavior as deviant, and more time trying to help these people who feel as though they need to harm themselves to find relief. Many people think that this is a suicide attempt. However, from reading these sites and discussing the topic with friends, I have learned that the majority of the time these people do not want to commit suicide at all. I do not know if this type of behavior will ever be "accepted," and personally, I do not think that it should be. Like I said before, I believe that as a society we need to reach out and help, support, and care for each other more, especially when we find ourselves in the presence of those who are going through an emotional crisis.
Wednesday, September 8, 2010
Media Article
http://www.nytimes.com/2005/07/31/books/review/31POSNER.html?_r=1&pagewanted=all
This article specifically criticizes television news media. The one main point made in this article is that news media has become politically one-sided. Personally, I believe this to be true, because if you look at news stations such as Fox News, it is obvious where they stand on the political spectrum. Secondly, this article brings up the fact that the media today has become more prone to scandals and less accurate. I think that this article does a great job in not only explaining the differences in the media today compared to previous times, but in asking the questions like "why are these trends happening?" The answer given in the article explains that households today are able to have more access to more channels for less money, and that there are less restrictions on what can go on television. Whereas a hundred years ago there may have been two newspapers in a city, today there are dozens of television stations dedicated to "news." Competition is not as fierce because these stations can reach millions of people with little effort. The city with two newspapers would tend to have one for liberal audiences, and the other for conservative. However, large number of people who fall in the middle must be reached as well. Because of this, neither paper would be too liberal nor too conservative. Cable news stations don't have as much of a problem with this. If someone doesn't fall into a liberal or conservative category, they can find another news station that seems more neutral, which, in turn, puts less pressure on the reporters to get accurate information.
I think that this critique makes several strong points concerning the problems with the news media today. People today are focused too much on whether they fall under the liberal or conservative side, instead of focusing on the facts of the story. Political "sides" influence not only what goes into a story, but how the story itself is portrayed. As we talked about on Monday, all someone has to do is watch a news story on CNN and then switch to FOX to see how different the same story will be. With that said, it is up to the "consumer" to look at a variety of news sources to get the "facts" about any particular story minus the political polarizations.
This article specifically criticizes television news media. The one main point made in this article is that news media has become politically one-sided. Personally, I believe this to be true, because if you look at news stations such as Fox News, it is obvious where they stand on the political spectrum. Secondly, this article brings up the fact that the media today has become more prone to scandals and less accurate. I think that this article does a great job in not only explaining the differences in the media today compared to previous times, but in asking the questions like "why are these trends happening?" The answer given in the article explains that households today are able to have more access to more channels for less money, and that there are less restrictions on what can go on television. Whereas a hundred years ago there may have been two newspapers in a city, today there are dozens of television stations dedicated to "news." Competition is not as fierce because these stations can reach millions of people with little effort. The city with two newspapers would tend to have one for liberal audiences, and the other for conservative. However, large number of people who fall in the middle must be reached as well. Because of this, neither paper would be too liberal nor too conservative. Cable news stations don't have as much of a problem with this. If someone doesn't fall into a liberal or conservative category, they can find another news station that seems more neutral, which, in turn, puts less pressure on the reporters to get accurate information.
I think that this critique makes several strong points concerning the problems with the news media today. People today are focused too much on whether they fall under the liberal or conservative side, instead of focusing on the facts of the story. Political "sides" influence not only what goes into a story, but how the story itself is portrayed. As we talked about on Monday, all someone has to do is watch a news story on CNN and then switch to FOX to see how different the same story will be. With that said, it is up to the "consumer" to look at a variety of news sources to get the "facts" about any particular story minus the political polarizations.
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Sunday, September 5, 2010
Media Fast
I chose to do my media fast on Saturday because I had work most of the day, as well as some other plans throughout the remainder of the day. At 7 I woke up to go to work and did not turn on the radio on the entire 20 minute drive to work. I must say that I think this was the hardest thing to give up because I have made it a habit to turn on the radio to help me wake up and ignore some of the idiotic behavior on the roads. After returning home from work at around 4, I decided to take a nap instead of watching T.V. or getting on the computer. This was probably the best part of the media fast! After my much needed nap, I went out to dinner with my roommate and her family to a very nice restaurant in downtown Harrisonburg. It was so nice to actually sit down with people and not have to worry about phone calls, texts, computers, etc. We ended up having a regular conversation (one without phone interruptions that is) for about three hours. I definitely learned a lot about my roommate and where she comes from. The media fast opened my eyes to just how much I rely on the media in my life. This was so incredibly hard to do, but there was no cheating!
Wednesday, September 1, 2010
Media Log for August 31, 2010
Media Log for Tuesday August 31, 2010
Television
Watched an hour of news on TV before/while getting ready for class. I also watched about two hours worth of DVD television shows while working on some homework online.
Radio
I listened to music on the radio in my car while driving to class, home from class, and on the way to and from work.
Internet
I spent about a half hour on Facebook before going to class this morning, and then another half hour or so after returning home from work.
Cell Phone
I know for a fact that I used my cell phone for media purposes a ridiculous amount. Throughout the entire day I not only texted and/or talked to someone on the phone, but I checked weather, facebook, and email from my phone. I also talked to a friend from home later this night for nearly 3 hours (I know, excessive!)
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