Picture worth more than 1,000 words

As a previous photographer for Simpson College's newspaper, I find photo journalism a very interesting topic. I opened the Web site for "The New York Times" today with this in mind and found a very moving picture that represents exactly what all photo journalists are trying to achieve.

The picture that I found is centered at the very top of the Web page just above the heading, "Gunshots, Then Silence: Another Baby Gone." Even before reading the story, I completely understood the tragedy that had impacted the neighborhood where the shooting occurred and the slain person's family who now mourn the death of their young daughter. The picture tells the entire story. It shows the sadness and the emptiness that now inhibit all of these people's lives.

So, take some time to look at this overwhelming picture. The photographer has definitely captured the moment with a photograph picturing a large coffin spray surrounded by a messy kitchen. It tells more about the story than any writer could ever describe.

Ethics of Fact v. Opinion

An article published in the July/August issue of the Columbia Journalism Review brought to my attention a real-life example of ethics in journalism. The story, "The Lives of Others," was written about a young journalist's journey to find herself. Instead, she finds a young woman named Tyeisha who manages to escape from Hurricane Katrina only to be killed a few short months later.

The journalist sets off on a journey to help tell Tyeisha's story and instead becomes the subject herself. This points out that journalists do create personal relationships with their subjects and that there is a certain type of bond within that relationship. However, every journalist must understand how to separate oneself from that relationship in order to tell an unbiased story. The journalist should not let themselves become a part of the story, no matter the circumstances. At least this is what journalists are taught fundamentally.

It is up to each individual to critically read stories in order to separate the emotion from the fact. Obviously, it's impossible to completely separate oneself in their writing from absolutely every opinion or bias that they hold. The question is where that thin line is drawn in every article, story, and picture. Where does a journalist cross the line from reporter to advocate?

Messed-Up Media Coverage

Tonight WHO, www.whotv.com, ran numerous clips of Shawn Johnson in anticipation of the United State's competition with China airing at 6 p.m. in the U.S. There was commercial after commercial on that created such an exciting atmosphere in Iowa for our home-grown star. However, this anticipation for the big competition was completely ruined when WHO aired the winner and loser at the end of their newscast... only a short half-hour before the competition aired.

I couldn't believe that WHO had really ruined the outcome of the entire competition. What was the point in watching it now and cheering on the U.S. when we knew they were going to lose to China? I know that it's the job of the media to present its people with the latest news, but isn't this something that should be kept a secret? Or was WHO just itching to be the one to say the news first?

Despite the news, we watched the competition and cheered our country on. But I wonder how many people decided that it was just a waste of their time. Did the ratings fall for the Olympics tonight in Iowa because WHO couldn't keep its media mouth shut? In my opinion, this was just some messed-up media coverage.

What good comes from negativity?

It is inevitable. Every election year, Americans are bogged down by presidential advertisements that could cause anyone major stress.

Every day I turn on the television to find a new commercial telling me just how good one presidential candidate is and just how bad his opponent would be in the White House. (You can find all of these commercials on youtube.com.) My concern is that each candidate's media focuses entirely too much on the negative aspects of its opponent, rather than focusing on the many positive aspects of its own candidate.

Don't get me wrong. There are many positive media images of each presidential candidate available for supporters. However, commercials never seem to work the same way. It's almost heartbreaking to know that the negativity in our media today is even coming out of our future president's mouth. How about someone stepping up for once to stop these presidential advertisements used solely to slam one another's reputation?

Shawn Johnson: Iowa's All-Star

If one were to interview Iowan's six months ago on who Shawn Johnson was, most wouldn't have a clue. However, she is a common name in our households today. One can't go anywhere without seeing her smiling face or hearing a recent interview about the upcoming Olympics. So, how did she get so popular?

I think that our media has a great deal to do with Johnson's publicity, and they have presented her perfectly to Iowa. More than once, I have heard her referred to as "the pride of West Des Moines, Iowa." And most share in this overall feeling about the young athlete that has pushed her way to the top. Desmoinesregister.com even has a "quick link" to her name on their main page. This is positivie publicity for Johnson and for the state of Iowa. It's great that all kinds of media from print to internet to television have picked up this uplifting story and shown her as the star she truly is.

Media Portrayals Influence Opinion of Rape Investigation

Media portrayals constantly influence public opinion. The University of Iowa rape investigation that has exploded into national news is no exception. An article published in The Iowa City Press Citizen on July 19th explains it all... or does it?

The investigation has resurfaced in media, as the article explains, because the alleged rape victim's mother wrote a letter to the University of Iowa regarding how poorly U of I reacted to her daughter's situation. The letter was also sent to The Iowa City Press Citizen, which consequently wrote a long article on the mother's behalf. Since then, the story has ran in all national media types, who have based their opinion and story off of the original article published.

So, the question of truth remains. Was the investigation handled properly, as Kirk Ferrentz holds to be true? Or does the media have it right? Was this alleged rape victim forgotten for the sake of football? Either way, it seems to be happening again. Media has set a bias for all public opinion.

Print Media... Dead?

My Sunday afternoon was spent, as usual, searching online (Iowa Realty's website) to find the mass of open houses in the area and then visiting each one by one. Also, as usual, none of the houses sparked any interest with my husband and I. However, the realtors that we met did. One of the men showing a house in Valley Junction turned out to be very curious about how we were searching for houses in our hunt to find the perfect home before September. He confessed that he had been trying to convince his company to give up print advertising all together and use advertising strictly online. This definitely got me thinking.

Why do realty company's still advertise in print media? And is it really working well for those that do? I can't even remember the last time I opened a newspaper to search for a home, and my husband and I have been house hunting for a number of months. I also can't imagine the type of person who would look through a newspaper to find that type of advertising. The majority of the people who read the paper on a regular basis are older adults... a group of people who are not typically in the house buying stage of their lives.

Once again, I come to the conclusion that print media is slowly dying. The World Wide Web has just trumped over print, and there's no stopping it in this category. My advice? Get rid of the house ads in the Sunday paper and find a new place to present them on the internet, where you can post pictures, virtual tours and up-to-date information. The web just has this type of advertising in the bag. It's quicker, more efficient and much more informative.

If TV news disappears, what will happen to print?

In an article written by Deborah Potter, Executive Director of NewsLab, it was brought to my attention that local TV news is slowly dying. There are layoffs and buyouts occuring that few of us rarely hear about. However, these are happening, and they are happening for a reason. Local TV news is being taken over by the internet. Sound a little familiar? Print news has been running into this same problem over and over since the internet showed readers news actually happening that very minute.

Potter proposes what I see as a the ultimate solution to this problem: reinvention. Newspapers have yet to do a complete reinvention, and TV news should see what is happening to them. Print news is still dying. They have yet to think of a more creative and up-to-date way to give the news to the masses. I predict that print news will still be around in 50 years, but it will definitely not be the prominent news source that it has been in the past unless it reinvents itself. Take a hint TV news, the same thing will happen to you. We are now a world that is used to being connected 24 hours a day. Print and TV news just can't serve it up to us like the world wide web.

Personal Blogs Creating Controversy

An article posted on www.ajr.org has reminded me that freedom of speech is not all that it is cracked up to be. The article explains numerous cases in which journalists have lost their jobs and essentially their careers because of their personal blogs posted outside of their work environment.

Nadine Haobsh, a journalist, lost her current job with Ladies Home Journal and also lost her upcoming job where she was already scheduled to work at Seventeen Magazine. Haobsh was writing a personal blog of simple beauty tips from an editor's point of view. Little did she realize that this would actually compromise her job.

So, this begs the question. Should journalists like Haobsh be stopped from writing thier opinion? And when does a journalist's blog turn from a simple point of view to showing insider information or jeopardizing the face of thier company?

I believe that we, as news readers, should not be deprived of the actual good writing that is out there. We should be able to log on to not only newspaper sites, but also to blogs, and find a well-written, thought-provoking piece of writing from someone who can actually write. We should be able to read one's opinion without their company's peering eyes. News articles are supposed to be unbiased, so how else are news journalists supposed to get their views out there?