This week my post is not going to come from the actual news itself, but from an e-mail I received from a friend not to long ago.
As everyone in the world knows, last week on January 20, Barack Obama was elected president of the United States. It was a huge day in America as the first African American president was welcomed into the Whitehouse. For a lot of people, it didn’t matter who won the election, as long as President Bush was out. He may kind of been a goon, but sometimes I couldn’t help but feel sorry for the guy. Could you imagine having his job and knowing so many people hated you?
I thought the e-mail I got was appropriate for this week because it had to do with the media. This e-mail shows how truly bias the media is. The e-mail was pretty short and to the point. The subject read “”You have to Love our Media” and below it listed headlines referring to the inaugurations of President Bush and President Obama.
Headlines On This Date 4 Years Ago:
"Republicans spending $42 million on inauguration while troops Die in unarmored Humvees"
"Bush extravagance exceeds any reason during tough economic times"
"Fat cats get their $42 million inauguration party, Ordinary Americans get the shaft"
Headlines Today:
"Historic Obama Inauguration will cost only $120 million"
"Obama Spends $120 million on inauguration; America Needs A Big Party"
"Everyman Obama shows America how to celebrate"
"Citibank executives contribute $8 million to Obama Inauguration"I thought this was crazy.
Four years ago people were furious at the fact that the inauguration for Bush cost $42 million, but it is not a big deal that Obama’s Inauguration cost $120 million. That is almost triple the cost. Headlines went on about the “extravagance” of Bush in tough economic times, and yet it is acceptable for Obama to spend more because “America needs a party”. The economy is worse off today than it was four years ago, yet some people found it acceptable to spend $120 million dollars on a party??? I understand why the United States needs a morale boost, but was it worth all the cash? Does anyone feel better about the worsening of our economy because we got to watch a big party on tv?
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Here is a professional blog about maintaining reliable sources.
Wednesday, January 28, 2009
Tuesday, January 20, 2009
Funural Webcasts
This week one of our assignments was to pick a beat for our Reporting and Feature Writing class. I looked at our options and the one that really stood out to me the most was technology. In all honesty, I picked technology because I thought it would be really easy to find news articles about advances in technology because it seems like new things are popping up every day. Well, I was right, it was easy to find a bunch of articles on technology, and I found quite a few that I found really interesting and even unbelievable.
What I am blogging about this week is one of the articles I found. The article is entitled Web grief: Funeral webcasts gain in popularity. http://www.boston.com/business/technology/articles/2009/01/20/web_grief_funeral_webcasts_gain_in_popularity/This title caught my eye right away. My first thought was “creepy.” I immediately envisioned thousands of funerals being videotaped and posted on the internet for millions of people to see. As I read on, my opinion changed.
The article discussed the increasing number of funeral homes that have started to embrace the internet. Funeral directors say better technology and cheaper equipment have prompted more funeral homes to offer private webcasting and videotaping services nationwide. According to this article, “ some webcasting companies are also jumping in, offering packages to funeral homes that include tripods, cameras with microphones, and cables and cords, either for lease or purchase outright. Some ceremonies can even be webcast to iPods.” Pretty crazy huh?
Many predict this to become more popular in the future, but it is already catching on rather quickly. The reason? This trend has become popular in the military. Any of us who have loved ones enlisted know how many hoops those guys have to jump through in order to get home; whatever the reason may be. This service is making it possible for those serving overseas to “attend” a funeral for a friend or family member. On the flip side, if a soldier is killed and returned back to the United States for his or her funeral, there is no way all of his or her buddies who are still overseas can return home to attend the funeral. This is a way for them to still pay their respects and continue to do their job. I don’t think anything can replace actually being present at the funeral, but it is a pretty cool alternative.
What I am blogging about this week is one of the articles I found. The article is entitled Web grief: Funeral webcasts gain in popularity. http://www.boston.com/business/technology/articles/2009/01/20/web_grief_funeral_webcasts_gain_in_popularity/This title caught my eye right away. My first thought was “creepy.” I immediately envisioned thousands of funerals being videotaped and posted on the internet for millions of people to see. As I read on, my opinion changed.
The article discussed the increasing number of funeral homes that have started to embrace the internet. Funeral directors say better technology and cheaper equipment have prompted more funeral homes to offer private webcasting and videotaping services nationwide. According to this article, “ some webcasting companies are also jumping in, offering packages to funeral homes that include tripods, cameras with microphones, and cables and cords, either for lease or purchase outright. Some ceremonies can even be webcast to iPods.” Pretty crazy huh?
Many predict this to become more popular in the future, but it is already catching on rather quickly. The reason? This trend has become popular in the military. Any of us who have loved ones enlisted know how many hoops those guys have to jump through in order to get home; whatever the reason may be. This service is making it possible for those serving overseas to “attend” a funeral for a friend or family member. On the flip side, if a soldier is killed and returned back to the United States for his or her funeral, there is no way all of his or her buddies who are still overseas can return home to attend the funeral. This is a way for them to still pay their respects and continue to do their job. I don’t think anything can replace actually being present at the funeral, but it is a pretty cool alternative.
Thursday, January 15, 2009
Soldiers Returning Safely to North Dakota
The 191 Military Police Soldiers returned home safely on Wednesday into Fargo, ending a year-long deployment in Iraq. The 191st MP Company, based in Fargo, with detachments in Mayville and Bismarck, mobilized in October 2007 and was sent to Iraq in January 2008. Its members come from 40 different cities around North Dakota.
The 191st return home has been on the news the past couple of days. The unit’s demobilization process took them a little longer than expected, but they finally made it home to good old North Dakota.Many Family members and friends were at Hector International Airport in Fargo on Wednesday to greet the returning soldiers. The soldiers were greeted by cheers from the crowd and finally hugs and kisses from their loved ones. It was an emotional experience for everyone.
While overseas, the Military Police Soldiers completed almost 1,300 missions. They aided in 74 detainee releases, and helped train the Iraqi police. The soldiers feel as though they left their place of deployment in better condition than it was before they got there. “Mission accomplished,” said one soldier, with a large grin on her face. According to http://www.grandforksherald.com/articles/?id=101688§ion=homepage “During the mobilization, the soldiers earned 21 Bronze Star Medals and 153 Army Commendation Medals. Two of the Commendation Medals were for specific acts of heroism with “V” device for valor, and 72 soldiers earned Combat Action Badges to recognize their direct participation in combat operations.”
My friends Nate and Bobbi Jo returned home with the 191 and I am so glad they made it home safe and sound! They are happy to be back, and they don’t even care that it is nearly 40 below zero. They both said that their trip made them realize how good we have it here in the United States. “I will no longer be taking a lot of things for granted,” Nate said, “I am so thankful to be home. I missed all my friends and my family.”
I kept tabs on my friends mostly through Facebook. Besides sending messages and writing on each others walls, there is a Facebook group dedicated to the soldiers of the 191st. http://www.new.facebook.com/profile.php?id=29414264&v=info&viewas=29414264#/group.php?gid=25353060288&ref=ts
This group was updated frequently with news about the soldiers. It was also a way to keep in contact with those within the unite who have Facebook, and to let them know that I was thinking about them. The internet definitely made this deployment easier for soldiers and their families.
The 191st return home has been on the news the past couple of days. The unit’s demobilization process took them a little longer than expected, but they finally made it home to good old North Dakota.Many Family members and friends were at Hector International Airport in Fargo on Wednesday to greet the returning soldiers. The soldiers were greeted by cheers from the crowd and finally hugs and kisses from their loved ones. It was an emotional experience for everyone.
While overseas, the Military Police Soldiers completed almost 1,300 missions. They aided in 74 detainee releases, and helped train the Iraqi police. The soldiers feel as though they left their place of deployment in better condition than it was before they got there. “Mission accomplished,” said one soldier, with a large grin on her face. According to http://www.grandforksherald.com/articles/?id=101688§ion=homepage “During the mobilization, the soldiers earned 21 Bronze Star Medals and 153 Army Commendation Medals. Two of the Commendation Medals were for specific acts of heroism with “V” device for valor, and 72 soldiers earned Combat Action Badges to recognize their direct participation in combat operations.”
My friends Nate and Bobbi Jo returned home with the 191 and I am so glad they made it home safe and sound! They are happy to be back, and they don’t even care that it is nearly 40 below zero. They both said that their trip made them realize how good we have it here in the United States. “I will no longer be taking a lot of things for granted,” Nate said, “I am so thankful to be home. I missed all my friends and my family.”
I kept tabs on my friends mostly through Facebook. Besides sending messages and writing on each others walls, there is a Facebook group dedicated to the soldiers of the 191st. http://www.new.facebook.com/profile.php?id=29414264&v=info&viewas=29414264#/group.php?gid=25353060288&ref=ts
This group was updated frequently with news about the soldiers. It was also a way to keep in contact with those within the unite who have Facebook, and to let them know that I was thinking about them. The internet definitely made this deployment easier for soldiers and their families.
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