Hi y’all!
I’m super stoked to announce a new Youtube video I’ve published today! Check it out here! Today I talk about what Makeup Mixing is and why it’s such a big deal!
Want some insight to what I did?
Let me know what you think! Subscribe for more content soon!
K
Hey all!
I posted a new podcast today! Go check it out! It’s on slacktivism and how it can be seen in today’s social media usage.
Let me know what you think!
The past few days I’ve been delving into the world of podcasts and checking out the variety of podcasts available. This has been a pretty consistent go to through the changes of COVID-19 effecting all ways of life. Consuming media and checking out a variety of podcasts has been a way to cope through it. One of my good friends has taken this time to catch up on old shows, much like myself. Throughout doing so I checked out The Daily, Call Your Girlfriend, The Office Ladies, Serial, and Breakaway Ministries. Each of these podcasts took their own twists around how they approached doing a podcast, yet shared similar elements.
The first podcast I checked out was from The Daily entitled A Historic Stimulus Bill. This podcast took an approach of a news cast production and talked through the recent bill passed by Congress. I listened to this podcast while working on an assignment for another class of mine and was able to mostly speaking get caught up with what was going on in the wake of this outbreak. It helped me to better wrap my head around what has been going on overall in regards to the political sides of things. The podcast took more of an interview approach to it all, truthfully it reminded me more of a 20/20 sort of discussion. In terms of sound production, they incorporated a theme song of sorts and had occasional music transitions. They incorporated sound bites of a variety of news coverage. When the discussion got into if it was questionable, the music playing shifted causing the listener to respond a certain way. There also were a lot of ad sections shoved in, truthfully it overall reminded me of a news cast with commercial breaks.
The next podcast I checked out was Call Your Girlfriend’s Businesswoman Special 2: Podcast Millionaires. Similarly to the first podcast I listened to, I did so while working on other assignments. This podcast talked a lot on the ins and outs of being a podcaster and showing how these specific podcasters do it. This podcast took an approach of being more of a conversational sort of set up. It was less “professional” and reminded me more of a talk show with the personal vibes. They had a 3rd speaker that added in another voice, but otherwise was less of an interview and more of a conversation. They had a theme song, interludes, and ads. The ads unlike others was much more personable and them giving things they liked, but not so much of an ad. It was a longer piece that lasted a full hour.
The 3rd podcast I listened to was The Office Ladies episode The Fire which commentated through the Office’s fire episode. Having seen the episode they discussed helped me to appreciate it further with relating to some things they discussed. I listened to this one in the morning after waking up. It stars the actresses who play Angela and Pam in the Office. This was very much so them just chatting about their experiences. They had a theme song and some music interludes, but mostly conversations. They also were much more involved with their fans. The incorporation of fan’s emails gave more layers to the discussion.
The 4th podcast I listened to was Serial’s Episode 1 on their website. This one was different in it’s set up and location. Most others I had listened to on Spotify, but this one had their own website. This podcast gave a more TV without the pictures. It reminded me of those stories they used to walk through on the radio my mom talked about listening to pretty regularly. It kept engagement and took a different approach of breaking down what exactly had happened within this situation. As someone who really likes true crime shows and videos, this was a field day for me. I thought it was interesting the choices they made with sound bytes and really combing through the case again.
Lastly I listened to a podcast by Breakaway Ministries entitled What’s Up With Christian’s Ignoring Science. I listened to this one while at the gym and was very interested by this. This podcast looked at the ways of Christianity and science intermingling and discussed it extensively. This podcast was based off of a live sermon series at Texas A&M University. The podcast was set up like a sermon for the most part and had an intro and outro song.
Delving into the world of podcasting as a whole has allowed me to explore a lot of different options and honestly interesting discussions. A lot of this related back to seeing the ease of access to podcasts and the application to daily life. When I had discussions with others about the different podcasts I was listening to, oftentimes they had heard of them or listened to them before. Seeing the variety of locations they were found on was also pretty interesting. Most I could find on spotify, but some were specifically located on their own websites.
Podcasts give a human quality to media mediums and allow for an understanding of our society. It gives a variety of understanding to the different topics. I think what I found interesting was the changing set up of the podcasts depending on what the topic was. Some had recorded versions of their podcasts with a video, while others did not. I think the one thing was the overall lack of user communication on this platform. There was a small blurb explaining what each episode was about or what series it falls under.
As I wrap up my final day of news reporting, I found the key pieces of today revolved around the impending coronavirus infections. This has had a major impact on the stock market in the United States and President Trumps response. This seems to be the main headlines surrounding this Friday evening. Both articles are extremely prevalent to the current disasters and questions of the world. Each takes an approach of narrative combined with fact checking, as well as, allowing the inverted triangle to take precedence in their stories.
The first article trending is around the infectious ability of the Coronavirus. A patient’s dog has tested positive according to People. This is causing concern over the capabilities of the virus and whether the animal could have caught it or if this was a contamination issue. This piece continued on explaining the new patients that have occurred, including in the United States where someone who has had no exposure prior has contracted the disease. They then went on to explain San Francisco’s state of emergency in recognition of impending outbreak. This journalist did a good job of approaching the facts and explaining clearly what was and was not known. They showed the conversation through other outlets as well and created a space for conversation. This information was mined out amongst the frenzy and false reporting of the cornavirus in recent media.
Continuing the coronavirus theme, briefings have been springing up throughout the United States, but especially regarding the Trump administration. Democrats reported have called out Trump’s administration on their handling of these cases and the preparations. Politico discussed the questions of the handling of the coronavirus issues and how the administration has responded. It also showed the response of other lawmakers and their feelings towards the administration. This allowed for a similar inverted triangle of initial straight information followed by a deeper picture of what was going on. There was many conversations started and information mined out for this platform to allow users to come to further understanding.
Today’s news had a turn of events as things are amping up with the corona virus, an anti-lynching law is finally passed, and as per usual a variety of celebrity gossip.
In wake of the spread of the Corona Virus, the United States has been in decision over who to place as the coronavirus chief. President Trump has since decided to place Vice President Mike Pence as the chief overseeing this. Due to recent spread, the need for a head has become even more apparent. This article broke down the reasons of consideration for the chief, such as the wider spread of it all. Currently Alex Azar, the Health and Human Services Secretary is leading this charge. On top of this, Congress is considering a larger budget toward public health crisis management, which would be the first time for their greater involvement. Recently as well, the DOW has experienced a major drop due to the spreading virus around the world. One big discussion as well looks at the spending of the US on various medicines and the overall budget. A lot of the information gained here was from various tweets, press conferences, and information gather from other sources into the melting pot of the story. It was approached in a sort of narrative style stating facts, but giving a timeline to it. In concern to the roles of journalism, one major one applied here was the role of data miner. They had a solid variety of sources and evidence, while also mining through to find legitimate data and what exactly is going on.
A new anti-lynching bill has finally been passed after 150 years of attempts at this law. The bill is called the Emmett Till Anti-Lynching Bill. The article, written by the New York Times, does a great job of incorporating other sources and applying a variety of ideas. It does a great job of showing the spread of views and facts on this topic. Through explaining both the Emmett Till story and the background of lynching stories, the reader is able to understand a broader importance of this bill passing. There’s also understanding of where the fight has gone and how this point has come about. They do a really great job of also giving a variety of sources with the quotes as well.
That’s a wrap folks, until next time.
Today’s topics especially revolved around the Harvey Weinstein conviction, Katherine Johnson’s death and a flux of entertainment gossip combined with election news. This gossip surrounded Vanessa Bryant’s tribute to her late husband and daughter, her plans to sue the helicopter company that caused the death of them, and the celebration of life that occurred. Today had these two big deal topics occur as an influential woman died after years of service and impact, while also a big name Hollywood star’s name was dragged through the mud and he was officially convicted of sexual assault charges.
I first checked out an article from politico that talked on the Harvey Weinstein conviction. For some background, with the rise of the #MeToo Movement turning “whispers… into a torrent of accusations”. This article on him specifically focused on his trial in New York and the verdict reached. Weinstein was found guilty on charges of criminal sex act and third-degree rape. This is a huge deal within the #MeToo movement and sets the tone for other’s currently being prosecuted/accused of wrongdoing. The writer of this piece took a look at providing plenty of information and understanding on this topic and kept a fact checking system of what exactly had gone down. The generation of traffic on this case was continued and ability for commentary by users was set open after the information was presented. This writer took a narrative sort of way of presenting the information by taking the reader through the trial and giving the information out. It was combined with the inverted triangle method of stating the key facts initially then building off of this.
Katherine Johnson passing today was also seen as a big deal for her great impacts. This one hit a bit closer to home for myself, seeing as Newport News is where I currently reside and her passing just down the street. This piece shows the variety of being kept in the shadows and her many achievements. It continued on through discussion of the film based on her story and the many impacts she had made. There was a large take of being narrative. The piece was written to express her achievements and impacts, followed by a play by play of her story. The piece applies the data miner aspects of digital journalism through sifting through a large amount of information and media to share a cohesive piece on Mrs. Johnson.
Hey all!
I just posted my first article on Medium.com here!
This article discusses the dangers of stalking in the digital era and how it’s impacted. Check it out!
This event opened a new idea for the President’s Leadership Program in having a trilogy of speakers plus the president of the school. The biggest takeaways surround the understanding that a leader is one who chooses morals about money, that has good character, and is a team player. Leaders are called to choose common good over money or fame. Unfortunately this isn’t such a common practice for many leaders nowadays.
8:04pm: Trible wrapped up “what unites us is far greater than anything that divides us” to conclude the speaker session of this evening.
8:02pm: Divides this country faces and ways to fight through them was asked about. The issues of hacking and “fake news” were addressed. The politicization of things instead of facts and figures. How to get beyond that? “The people in this room, you’re a lot more tech savvy than we are… repair the damage, try to achieve the benefits of technology and limit the downsides which are undermining the pillars of our democracy” – Bonker
7:58pm: Trible spoke on the hardness of when everyone says to not do something, yet the right thing seemingly is to do it. Slattery responded speaking on his hardest vote knowing that men would die potentially. Arguments both being reasonable, but he spoke on our generation having to make decisions about addressment on ideas that have reasonable ways to address and respond. He mentioned climate change, economic inequality, and the wide variety of things. His main point was the importance of finding courage and information to base decisions on.
7:51pm: students now have the opportunity to ask questions. “Having to choose between right and right” in which Nelson responded expressing that decisions are decided on a variety of factors instead of a simple this or that. That ones values are the key elements to decide how one decides what they do.
7:49pm: “I didn’t see religious divisions, and I didn’t see racial divisions and I didn’t see political divisions… we are all in this together. We are all citizens of planet earth”
7:47pm: Nelson spoke on his experiences of being an astronaut and spoke of “[knowing] you’re in over your head”. He spoke on the beauty, color, and the nothingness around.
7:43pm: Trible speaks on a change within the Regan administration and the differences in backgrounds yet common ground for common interest. Followed by wrap up statements regarding a variety of speeches from each of the men. Next up is a questions section where students who have submitted questions have the opportunity to ask the speakers anything they’d like.
7:39pm: Nelson continued sharing about friends over the years and stories of leadership. “Humility… being prepared… working hard…” were all key aspects of leadership he spoke on.
7:34pm: Nelson spoke on Willberforest, a gentleman who pursued abolishing slavery in England. Who “stuck to it” and worked hard.
7:28pm: Bonker spoke on his hope being in “the people in this room” for this country as he wrapped up his speech. His last remarks were very moving and pushed the students to choose character over money to make a difference. Next up is Bill Nelson
7:23pm: Moral courage was what started Bonkers opening remarks. This opened the doors to discussion of character and what a leader should look like. I had to agree with these points Bonker made, especially when looking at how ones character does effect what I believe of one person or how I define a person specifically. He spoke on the political forces around us and those recently elected in, how one is to cast a vote and the questions of morals versus beneficial ideas, whether one goes with an agenda or the national interest. This is something that frustrates me personally, because unfortunately often people choose money over the best interest of people. His definition of who you are to be is a very convicting question.
7:18pm: Pursuit of the truth amidst these broad challenges coming was the main point of Slattery’s opening remarks. His points were clear, understood, and made one have an opportunity to think and reflect. Next to speak is Don Bonker
7:16pm: Discussion of the importance of meeting the needs of others. This was a key point and definitely important. I agree, the need for servant leadership and to looking for the best of the community is necessary. “Pride comes before the fall” was quoted and the need to be weary of this so as to not fall into it. He pushed for surrounding ones self with those who will be honest and straight with you. The need for objective truth and straight honesty instead of what we want to hear.
7:11pm: Slattery spoke on a variety of views on leadership. He quoted “leadership is the ability to motivate others to do what they do not want to do so that they can achieve their long term goals” which was said by his high school football coach. He compares the art of leadership to sports training, academic training, and successful leadership.
7:07pm: This evening is approaching to look differently as each speaker will have a moment to speak including Paul Trible followed by speakers. Jim Slattery is first up to speak.
7:02pm: “In spite of our differences we came to know each other, care about each other…” the importance in this showed that despite difference we can be friends. Trible spoke on the importance of breaking the divide through friendship with one another.
7:00pm: President Paul Trimble of Christopher Newport University began his opening remarks. This followed a similar fashion to most speaker series events in which he introduced the speakers. This time though a bit different with all three speakers joining him on stage.
6:14pm: Students began arriving for check in and seating. Ready for a different setting of the night as students are able to ask questions ahead of time to open the door to discussion that’s mediated between student and speaker. This technology allows for the staff to get questions from students that can be placed on a PowerPoint for speakers to answer from.
Bill Nelson, Don Bonker, and Jim Slattery are the speakers for tonight’s PLP speaker series. PLP aka the President’s Leadership Program, is an esteemed and established leadership program at Christopher Newport University. Throughout the course of the semester, students are invited to come hear a variety of speakers to speak on the ideals of leadership and their own experiences with it.
All 3 will be speaking on leadership and their experiences this evening. Each having a variety of experience will give an interesting take on this topic.
Darren L. (2019). Addressing social media dangers within
and beyond the college campus. Communication Education. (68):3. 371-380. DOI: 10.1080/03634523.2019.1607885
This source spoke on the accessibility of social media profiles and how people communicate. I focused in on the stalking and sexting section where there was specific discussion over the case of Facebook which can also be applied back to other apps like Instagram or Twitter. For students especially they spoke on the significant portion of student activity on Facebook being a variety of social surveillance, including stalking. These sites open the door to an “exposure of personal information of the part of users”. This relates back to the conversations of digital stalking and concerns over it through discussion of accessibility and commonality of stalking. It also shows the availability for one to stalk another, especially on a college campus.
Kanakaris, V., Tzovelekis, K., & Bandekas, D. V. (2018). Impact of anonstalk (anonymous stalking) on users of social media: a Case study. Journal of Engineering Science & Technology Review, 11(2), 126–134. https://doi.org/10.25103/jestr.112.18
This article looks into how intelligence and stalking go hand and hand. It discusses social media as a platform for getting information out there and sharing media. One specific example they give is in the case of Instagram. Instagram is discussed as a place that “offers users to get a photo, edit and share by publishing location information”. This is relevant to the topic of digital stalking in regards to the access given by media platforms. Having a focus on one’s ability to access these location information pieces allows stalking to occur. It also opens the door of discussion of how easily accessible are these points and whether one can find someone or not. This is especially prevalent in a generation of college students that constantly document their lives.
Kircaburun, K., Jonason, P. K., & Griffiths, M. D. (2018). The dark tetrad traits and problematic social media use: The mediating role of cyberbullying and cyberstalking. Personality and Individual Differences. (135). 264-269. https://doi.org/10.1016/j.paid.2018.07.034
This article associates the dark tetrad within cyberbullying, cyberstalking, and trolling. They discussed the ideas of PSMU, also known as problematic social media use, and went on to describe each of the three main ideas. Specifically with stalking, the discussion of what cyberstalking looked like in their context was discussed and the ideas of surveillance and unwanted contact was elaborated on. This helps to give more insight into the negative effects and darker side of what digital stalking is and can become.
Yesterday was the 54th SuperBowl in which the San Francisco 49ers played against the Kansas City Chiefs in a neck in neck game that resulted in a win for the Chiefs 31-20. It was an incredible game that went one way to another. One couldn’t know who was going to win as the lead switched and points were received. Throughout the game I had the opportunity to live tweet, engaging with the larger Twitter community in conversation over the game, performances, and advertisements.
The interactions themselves were one of interest. As I continued to tweet, tag, hashtag, and respond to others, the interactions increased. The incorporation of gifs especially helped to expand my engagement to a new level. I was able to community with various platforms and companies, which I truly was not expecting to be able to do. I think one of the funniest moments was an interaction with State Farm:
I also received a tweet back from Hyundai:
Overall my experience was very good and filled with some funny conversations, especially about avocados:
There was some controversy over the halftime performance by Jennifer Lopez and Shakira. Political themes, cultural discussions, and much more was a conversation hitter. I found it especially interesting seeing all the sides. I haven’t had a chance to fact check too much of it, but according to tweets online some of the dances were based in a Middle Eastern traditional fashion. I plan to check this out more and come to a better understanding for myself.
There was also a political undertone to the performance, specifically to illegal crossings of the border and detention centers of many children and families.
One of the funniest situations of the evening was following the actual Bowl. U.S. President, Donald Trump tweeted in congratulations of the Chiefs win stating them to be from the “great state of Kansas”, yet the Chiefs are a Missouri team. This in and of itself was a big deal over the need for fact checking and thinking before tweeting. Since then President Trump has changed the Trump to say Missouri.
Disney also debuted their upcoming continuation of the Marvel universe in which everyone, including myself, freaked out with excitement over Twitter.
Overall my experience kept me much more engaged in the entirety of the game and helped me to seek out more understanding . I truly enjoyed it. While I have not been an avid user of Twitter, I do enjoy the accessibility to others and a better understanding of the events going on in this world. SO much of the culture for today is indeed found on Twitter and other media platforms where we get our news. While this is not my absolute favorite, I have come to support it.
A Journey Through College: My Experience 