Take Charge Assignment

1. I'm not sure whether or not I like this assignment. It is definitely nice to have the freedom to choose what topic I want to do, but its so hard to pick only one topic that i want to do. Sometimes I find it easier when the assignment is given to me straight forward. I hope that this assignment will make the class more lively because right now the class is so boring. Our teacher never cracks any jokes.

2. For this assignment I would like to do something either on the media's focus on celebrities, or on reality TV shows vs. REALITY. I find it really interesting the way reality TV shows are so far from what reality really is. I think that TV shows glamorize life and add so much drama. It is so obvious that these reality TV shows are in fact scripted. For example in the TV show called "The Real World," 7 strangers share a house, don't go to work, complete silly little tasks, and party every night. I'm not sure how other people live, but my life is definitely not like that. I also find it really interesting how there are probably more young people who vote for American Idol, than there are young people who vote for our president. I know that when I turn on the TV to the news station, I'll probably change the channel if they start to talk about whats going on in the world, but if they talk about Lindsay Lohans latest arrest, or Paris Hiltons stay in jail, I'm not changing the channel just yet. I think that it is horrible how much we care about celebrity lives. Another thing that fascinates me is the paparazzi. I am truthfully shocked at some of the pictures that the paparazzi get, and furthermore how much these photographers get paid for these candid photos. These two topics would be great to do the assignment on and would also be fun to talk about in class.

Which Media Do You Trust?

1. The article was ok. It was well written, and had a lot of statistics to make the authors point plausible, but it took me a few read through's to really appreciate it. At first when I started reading this article I found it hard to stay focused because the author was throwing too many facts and statistics at me. But then when I read it for a second time, I knew where the author was going with the evidence, so I was able to understand his reasoning for choosing each statistic. When I watch TV or read an article I tend to trust Forms of media on a case-by-case basis. I don't think that one faulty news article will make me distrust one specific form of media.

2. The article "Which Media Do You Trust" written by Mark Glaser, makes the claim that people are losing trust in the media for the wrong reasons. People should not completely trust any one segment of the media, but should rather trust each story on a case-by-case basis. Furthermore, people should not make assumptions on the reliability on any one form of media if they have never used it before. One of the strengths of this article is that it presents a lot of evidence to support the case. The author includes many statistics measuring the public opinion of the media, and uses these statistics to argue his point. The evidence used in this article is from a "10 nation survey by GlobeScan about how people trust various types of media." The statistics show the relationship between what percentage of people trust the media and what percentage trust the government. The statisitics also show what form of media is most trusted. Mark Glaser takes most interest in the public's lack of trust in internet blogs. He points out that over half of the people who took this survey have never seen a blog, yet they still don't trust them. He uses this piece of evidence to argue his point that a person will often lose trust in a segment of the media without good reason. I believe that Mark Glasser made a good point, but if I were to propose a counter argument, I would argue that people may not trust blogs because there are some bloggers who abuse the privilage of expressing their opinion by being too obnoxious.

test blog

this is a test blog. I hope it works!!