Response to Marshel 08

Marshel 08 makes a great point about the difficulties in finding mistakes in our own writing.  The problem I have encountered is I try too hard to find too many mistakes and sometimes destroy a well written draft by substituting so many fragments and pieces, losing what I was originally looking for.

I think what this chapter fails to mention is that you have to trust your writing at times.  Just because the reading tells us to step back and look for mistakes we would not normally see does not mean your draft is awful and needs to be rewritten.  You may have the best draft in your first draft.  I have another blog over at wordpress.com that I use to write about life, music, and generally anything that comes to mind and interests me.  Here it is a rambling freestyle approach at writing with minimal editing.  Any editing I really look at comes in fact checking and tending to numbers, dates, and events.  Other than that, I let my writing go. I just started the blog and have been pretty good about posting daily but the flu has had me down which will in turn give me something new to write about.  Ok, Happy Halloween to all.

| 14 ampersand 15 |

Chapter 14

I restructured my approach at reviewing after reading Chapter 14.    I was able to say I follow most of the guidelines.  Where I took away the most useful information was on building a positive interpersonal relationship with your reviewers or writer.  Typically I have been on the writing side trying to accept constructive criticism and be open to any comments or feedback that the reviewer may have to offer. 

On the other side of the table, I have been a reviewer a handful of times and have always tried my best to begin with praise but have found myself shooting people down and then bringing them back up.  I thought what I was doing was equally as effective, but starting with praise makes it much easier to approach the writer with encouragement and suggestions.  It is a lot harder than it seems...on either end.

Chapter 15

The reading was very difficult to connect with because I have never been involved in any sort of testing of drafts for usability and persuasiveness.  The one thing I did take away from the chapter that can be used in lots of writing and reading was avoiding biasing your test results.  The five bullet points made all make it clear and easy to see how we can bias our readers or testers unintentionally and obtrusively.  Of the five points made I would stick with remaining unobtrusive and deemphasizing your relationship to the draft.

Response to Vic

I think the ethics in TV journalism vary by market, channel, station, and who you are a subsidiary of. Jesse did point out that ethical decisions have to be made day in and day out, but I would like to pose the argument that many of these ethical questions are repeated...day in and day out. I take this standpoint after watching the news and seeing what the class had to say about the local news as a whole.

It seems that the news is a repeat of a story you have already heard. Death, dying, meth, police chase, economy, etc. How many new decisions are really brought up each day where the editorial staff is left scratching their heads and stressing out about whether they should run a story or not?

To Jesse's benefit, he did preface with the fact that he was a bit unorganized which made the discussion rather unorganized and had me wondering what he was getting at half the time, but his only ethical dilemma he could give us took him a minute to come up with, and then he had an event that occurred years ago. Now this was a good example, but he was not chalk full ethical problems that he faces at KOIN each broadcast.

This may seem harsh, but its just what I got from the Jesse and responding to Vic.

I have not really thought about ethics in TV journalism until hearing Jesse Day’s lecture on the topic. It turns out that producers, writers, directors, anchors and journalists have to make ethical questions on a daily basis. There seems to be a gray area when it comes to making a decision on whether to run a particular story. I was always under the impression that TV news stations are exercising their freedom of speech and press by airing the topics they choose. However, as Mr. Day pointed out that this is not always the case. The attribution of the story has to be analyzed from many sides before airing it.

I believe one of the things that make this country great is the freedom of the press. Many countries have state-controlled media and can only air “approved” topics. Countries such as Cuba, North Korea, China and many South American countries, don’t have the freedom of the press. However, with freedom comes responsibility. For example, a news program can show a victim of a gunshot wound with guts and gore everywhere. Is this ethical? I will leave the answer up to you.

Journalism

When signing up for classes at Los Angeles Valley College in the fall of 2002, I needed a course to fill my schedule. Journalism 101 fit my schedule and that was where it all started. LAVC was located in the Valley, adjacent to North Hollywood, Studio City, Valley Village, and Van Nuys. I had just had an eventful year and a half.

June 2001: Graduate from Central Catholic High School. Move to Los Angeles with girlfriend.

Sept 2001: Fly to New York on a whim and attend Hofstra University on Long Island.
(Here I experience hard drugs, promiscuous sexual encounters with wealthy jewish girls, and blue-blood lifestyles)





Dec. 2001: I board a plane at 12:01 am on the 26th of December leaving for Costa Rica to be with my girlfriend for 6 months.

Jan-May 2002: I travel Costa Rica, Cuba, Nicaragua, learn that 19 is too young to fall in love.



June 2002: I return to New York and transfer to NYU. My parents get divorced.



August 2002. I move to Los Angeles, sign up at the junior college, figure the extra journalism course would develop my writing skills to express my feeling over the last year.


I enjoy journalism, teacher recognizes writing, asks me to join the paper. I work my way up from a staff writer to a page editor and eventually win an award from the Los Angeles Times and I am recognized at the 2004 Journalism Association of Community Colleges convention.



There is much more between then and now but this is where it all got started. I have had some hiccups along the way with bad experiences and an awful teacher that made me think,

"I never want to write again."

I was convinced when I started at WSU that I would major in English but after my BA focus on business and seek my MBA. I am still focused on the goal of an MBA and will not finish until complete, but English 402 has revived my love for writing and I am very thankful for this.

Response to Melissa Dawson's News Post

Melissa makes a great point about our parents watching the news when they got home from work. Those were the days. The Baby Boomers and Gen X'ers may be the last generation that really came home to watch the news. I recall growing up in LA, my dad and I would get home from hockey practice, mom would have dinner, the news would be on, we'd watch some stories...usually California Wild Fires, we would wash up, home work, then bed.



The news used to be the staple of American families source of news. I dont think I know a single person that has the joy of living that 9-5 schedule and coming home to a family and a home cooked meal while the news airs in the background. We are constantly changing and adapting to new technologies and getting rid of what now seems a burden...the evening news.

For a better laugh about the news see "Anchorman."

TV News Blog

Excuse my language but...Local TV News bores the shit out of me. Has this always been the case? Yes. I will watch the first five minutes and grab the quick feature stories and usually switch over to Seinfeld or ESPN. I grab most of my news online or in the daily newspaper. I rarely stay tuned for the next bit of local news unless they have a lead into their next story that might grab my attention. I primarily catch the news for the weather, but even then modern technology has posted the weather directly to my phone and is usually pretty accurate.

I did watch the 5:30 news on Tuesday night, actually I recorded it and came back today to watch it, and saw the news about Daimler and the amount of jobs lost. I scrolled through the rest of the news and apart from a poor kid dying after being hit in the throat by a football, it was just mediocre news, some sports and weather.

Call me callous I know, there are some out there that rely on the local news and that is all they get during their busy days. The local news is not poorly written or produced, it just doesnt appeal to me.

Response to MANY of the posts on Freelance writing...

I think a large portion of the class is misunderstanding the idea of freelance writing. It is not necessarily a career but something that gives you the opportunity to write about the things that interest you or simply for some extra cash in your pocket. The only time freelance writing becomes a career is when you have established yourself as a freelance writer and publications are seeking your work.

You can take Chuck Klosterman or Haruki Murakami for example. They both have careers as writers but freelance in a variety of publications on the side because it is what they like to do. Murakami's latest book is memoir he felt like writing based on his experiences with long distance running, while Klosterman speaks of Pop Culture and a variety of amazing analogies he has drawn from observing the media and those he is surrounded by.



Klosterman is now featured in Esquire magazine each month and Murakami occasionally does travel pieces, which he hates, but it pays him well and usually offers him open ended tickets that allow him to roam freely after his assignment is completed.

Freelance writing is not as easy as many of you seem to think it is....just my opinion. You have to be able to handle rejection. There are so many people out there that think or most definitely are better writers than you or I may be. You just have to keep writing, practicing, writing, submitting, hoping, writing, writing, submitting, accepting, enjoying.

Freelance Writing not Free Lance Riding

Although I had to leave class early Monday, what I gathered from the freelance writing lecture has been some of the most helpful information I have heard in years. I have been in and out of journalism for some time. Along the way, not a single teacher has recommended what Professor Ricker did during our session. She answered so many questions that had been lingering in my mind for years that I now have answers to. The "Writer's Market" is the next book on my list and I hope to have submitted at least a dozen items by semester's end.

It is clear to see that publications are running dry and everything is going digital. Poor Scott Campbell has to tell his employees at the Columbian that they have to move out of their beautiful multi-million dollar building with river and city views, and head back to their crummy, bright-white building (At least they will be closer to Sunrise Bagels). Before you know it the Columbian will be a sidebar of the Oregonian and all these writers will be doing freelance work trying to get by. It is not a laughing matter but the fact is, newspapers are not what they used to be.

Classic

Nails It!

Response to Melisa Dawson

What Melisa mentions in her Chapter 8 thoughts regarding the contradiction to what she has previously been taught has to be looked at in perspective to the class we are in.  You are learning a new type of writing and although your typical English (literature) class may admire your use of fancy words, this is a reader centered approach.  Not to disagree, just my thoughts...and you were the only person I could respond to because no one else has done the work yet, hahaha. 

In terms of what you said in Chapter 19 and the 'customer always being right,' you are very right, but I would love to disagree. At my last job I argued with the owner that the customer is not always right based on actual numbers from these horrible customers and their contribution to our workplace.  This brought up a huge debate...mostly everybody against me...in this small, profit-sharing, conservative, right -wing minded that stuck to the notion of making money by allowing the customer to always be right.  This may be over analyzing what the chapter talks about but I just thought you would find this reading interesting.  Sometimes the customer is wrong but be cautious...here you go.

| 8 ampersand 19 |

Chapter 8

Do you have your own style? Many of us may think we have our own writing style, but a good point this chapter brings to light is reading your writing out loud and hearing if that is what you really sound like.  The chapter gives you many guidelines to follow was one thing they left out that I have applied to my own life.  

-Listen to how those around you are communicating.

I hear some of my friends, colleagues, coworkers, family members, etc. and sometimes think to myself, "Do I sound like that much of a fucking idiot?"  

Saying things in your own words is a great way to communicate but you should also step back and think of ways to make yourself sound better.  Avoid saying 'like' or 'umm' between thoughts and sentences.  I am victim to this and will continue to do so but reading your work out loud will make you realize how silly you can sound sometimes.  You may be quick to judge others but take the time to judge yourself as well.

As you analyze your everyday communication be sure to avoid the stereotypes that chapter 8 offers.  I consistently stereotype within my social group and have grown far to accustomed to some stereotyping that would typically get me in trouble.  Be careful.

Be careful with bureaucratese as well.  Plain English, as the text mentions, helps people understand what you are trying to say much easier and gets your point across much quicker and much more successfully.  

Chapter 19

When you manage client and service-learning projects, you must maintain order, communication, and always remember the client is always the client.  This chapter is a great way to get to know someone and learn the ropes by offering them a service you can use through your learning.  This especially applies to my marketing class.  One of our group projects is to assess a firms marketing.  We have chosen a smaller firm in which we may be able to develop a concrete marketing plan through all the steps given in Chapter 19.  

We are focusing on Stumptown coffee and they have unique ways of marketing, maintaining customer brand loyalty, financial success, segmentation, differentiation and positioning...all while they are still a private company.  This is a group project but can easily lead to a foundation for their future marketing success. I hope we can be helpful!

So far the most important chapter I will take away from this book and continue to use throughout the semester.