A blog by any other name....

A blog by any other name us just as interesting, or is it? Such is the question that led to my quest to find truly interesting blogs – not just in information, but in presentation. The obvious contenders would be accessible, to their audiences, by many avenues: Twitter, Facebook, Tumblr, and Pinterest to name a few.

The leaders would have “pizazz” and the ability to draw me to stay on their site a little longer.  Thus, the scientific method to my quest was born; winners = number clicks/scrolls I made on their blog sites (supported by the amount of data I used).

In the world of a million blogs I am prepared to announce my top five picks (drumroll, please):

Beer Labels in Motion (http://beerlabelsinmotion.tumblr.com/). A blog created on Tumblr that is essentially the coolest beer reviewer in the modern world. Not only does the author critique up and coming breweries, but he (wait for it) animates their labels! The blog is informative, personal, and has serious cool factor.

Inky Fool (http://blog.inkyfool.com/). Wordsmiths around the world must celebrate this elegant, yet witty site. It uses imagery in a tasteful, yet unexpectedly fun way for a site dedicated to rhetoric and prose. Not your stuffy professor pontificating about their superior use of language, but a delightful way to share the world of words.

This is Kottke.org (http://www.kottke.org/). The blog description says it best, “The editorial direction of the site is all over the place but clusters around a pair of hand-wavy ideas: the liberal arts 2.0 and people are awesome” (Kottke, n.d). Truth is I cannot articulate what this blog is about other than a peek into the coolest (and perhaps bi-polar) mind in the blogosphere. Words, imagery, and randomness nicely collide on this site.

The New York Times, Dot Earth (http://dotearth.blogs.nytimes.com/). A true blog dedicated to quality journalism and professional photography. With story links, sources, and opinion by Andrew Revkin. A site for the grown up in all of us.

The Gameological Society (http://gameological.com/author/johnteti/). This blog made my top five because it pulled me into a world that I have no knowledge or even real interest in learning about. Gaming is a rising star amongst our newest generation of professionals and this site uses pictures and limited descriptions to help the unfocused yet anxious gamers locate information quickly. I have to take my hat off to this site for their use of directional imagery, profanity, insults, and clicks all to help their audience get to the next level. A fun site for the newcomer or serious gamer.

In five blogs you can introduce your friends to the coolest new brew, with a well stated toast, and meet your requirement to bring two topics of conversation to the table with your knowledge of the game world, current events, and complete randomness. Cheers!

References:

Carmick, T. (n.d.). Retrieved from Beer Labels in Motion website: http://beerlabelsinmotion.tumblr.com/

Forsyth, M. (n.d.). Retrieved from Inky Fool website: http://blog.inkyfool.com/

Kottke, J. (n.d.). Retrieved from This is Kottke.org website: http://www.kottke.org/

Revkin, A. (n.d.). Retrieved from Dot Earth website: http://dotearth.blogs.nytimes.com/?_r=1

Teti, J. (n.d.). Retrieved from The Gameological Society website: http://gameological.com/author/johnteti

Blog vs. "Blah"g

I stumbled across a blog that was utterly enchanting and engaging – Nomadic Chick: Roaming the world, sharing stories, inspiring the soul. The author, Jeanie Mark, does several things very well; the blog site is visually attractive and well laid out. Her blogs are in her words, from her point of view, and present a glimpse – with both imagery from word and photo – of the world from a gentle, peaceful place with a tone and flow that allows the reader to connect with her.  She uses a style of writing that is concise, informative, and easy to follow. 

In my opinion (the one I form from my traditional 40 hour a week job, plus family, plus graduate school state of mind) she has mastered the art of the blog. The blog is interesting, visually appealing, honest, informative, and engaging. I do not have to question her integrity nor look for ulterior motives (like getting me to buy something). However, she is giving the reader value – from her blog I can learn about modes of transportation, culture, food, and accommodations without her pushing herself as an authority or a sales representative. These are her experiences and she shares them willingly, leaving the reader to wish to find the courage to live such an interesting and uncluttered existence or at least wishing to be her friend.

Conversely, I also found a blog whose mission is to “share” artwork from old books. I cannot determine if there are any copyright infringements taking place on this website and am concerned about the writing that suggests emails should be sent to “Liam at holoweb dot net” and who appears to have a creepy foot fetish or odd sense of humor. This blog raises all sorts of red flags in my mind and makes me feel like a co-conspirator in a weird black market. It is poorly written, full of “I will sell it to you” language, and questionable in content.

References

http://www.fromoldbooks.org/books-for-sale.html

http://www.nomadicchick.com/my-story/

Press Release

FOR IMMEDIATE RELEASE

January 22, 2012

Joe Paterno, Longtime Penn State Coach, Dies at 85 in State College

Joe Paterno, longtime Penn State coach who won more games than anyone in major college football, but was fired amid a child sex abuse scandal involving a subordinate coach that scarred his reputation for winning with integrity, died Sunday of lung cancer. He was 85 (Schlabach, 2012).

His family announced his death in a statement released Sunday morning. The cause was lung cancer, according to Mount Nittany Medical Center, where he had been treated (Goldstein, 2012). Mount Nittany Medical Center said in a statement that Paterno died at 9:25 a.m. Sunday, surrounded by family members. Paterno died of “metastatic small cell carcinoma of the lung” (Schlabach, 2012).

Two police officers were stationed to block traffic on the street where Paterno’s home stands. The officers said the family had asked there be no public gathering outside the house, so Paterno’s relatives could grieve privately (Schlabach, 2012).

During his 46 years as head coach, as he paced the sideline in his thick tinted glasses, indifferent to fashion in his white athletic socks and rolled-up baggy khaki pants, Paterno seemed as much a part of the Penn State landscape as Mount Nittany, overlooking the central Pennsylvania campus known as Happy Valley (Goldstein, 2012).

Paterno had a career record of 409 victories, 136 defeats and 3 ties. He was surpassed only by John Gagliardi, who has won 484 games at Carroll College in Montana and St. John’s of Minnesota, coaching below the major-college level (Goldstein, 2012).

"As the last 61 years have shown, Joe made an incredible impact," said the statement from the family. "That impact has been felt and appreciated by our family in the form of thousands of letters and well wishes along with countless acts of kindness from people whose lives he touched. It is evident also in the thousands of successful student athletes who have gone on to multiply that impact as they spread out across the country."

Penn State president Rodney Erickson said the university is grieving Paterno's death and plans to honor him for his contributions to the school. In a statement released Sunday, Erickson called Paterno "a great man who made us a greater university." Erickson said Paterno's "dedication to ensuring his players were successful both on the field and in life is legendary" (Schlabach, 2012)

FACEBOOK POST:  Joe Paterno, Longtime Penn State Coach, Dies at 85. A Giant among football coaches who left this earth tainted by the heinous actions of another man. 

References

Goldstein, R. (2012, January 22). Joe paterno, longtime penn state coach, dies at 85. The New York Times. Retrieved from http://www.nytimes.com/2012/01/23/sports/ncaafootball/joe-paterno-longtime-penn-state-coach-dies-at-85.html?pagewanted=all&_r=0

McCarthy, E. (2014, March 27). New emails reveal erickson’s statement on paterno’s death was nixed. The Daily Collegian. Retrieved from http://www.collegian.psu.edu/news/campus/article_6de6b75c-b53e-11e3-9480-001a4bcf6878.html

Schlabach, M. (2012, January 23). Joe paterno, 85, dies in state college. ESPN. Retrieved from http://espn.go.com/college-football/story/_/id/7489238/joe-paterno-ex-penn-state-nittany-lions-coach-dies-85-2-month-cancer-fight

Social Media Tools: I love thee? I love thee not?

In the exciting world of social media I find that the options are limitless to reach countless new audiences and sources of information. So today, I played a game and I called it, "Can you use me?" These are the top three social media tools that are user friendly and useful (according to me).

The first winner is (drumroll, please), "Podcasts" I decide that the Center for Disease Control has some really relevant and useful information in the scary world of Ebola so a podcast from the cdc should be a really good idea. Here it is:
http://www2c.cdc.gov/podcasts/player.asp?f=8633481

This is an excellent and information couple of minutes (exactly 2 minutes and 45 seconds to be exact). It was easy to use, loaded effortlessly, and saved quickly. According to Aids.gov states that of online users, "52% reported viewing and listening to both video and audio within a given month".

The second winner is (again, drumroll) "Blogs" this choice is interesting as I have recently found creating and posting in a blog to be a fairly easy tool, however, I have not used it as way to discover more information about the world around me. In this game, I found the blog of woman who is sharing her journey of living with Aids ( http://www.thebody.com/content/75048/checking-back-in-after-my-long-hospitalizations.html ) it is a personal account and unique perspective.Aids.gov states, "By the end of 2011, there were an estimated 181 million blogs worldwide, up from 36 million in 2006".

The third winner in today's game is photo sharing sites. If  a picture is worth a thousand words, so imagine the stories that are told by just photo journalism alone. A good representation of photo journalism can be found at  http://facing.aids.gov/gallery/  The images of humans living with or choosing to create awareness for Aids is truly eye opening, it is not a discriminating disease. I am suddenly aware, more than ever, that everyone I meet and know has their own unique story and struggles, we should interact with each other with respect and compassion.

These three are the winners, in my book, because even the novice social media user can access these tools without creating accounts, remembering passwords, or downloading specific apps. These are tools that deliver solid information (if that is what the creator intends) and is easily accessible.

There is no longer an excuse for not having enough time to research a topic - in two minutes and 45 seconds you too can understand a world crisis like Ebola, find compassion for a woman brave enough to share her journey with Aids, or understand that all communities are facing Aids. We are better consumers for the ability to use these social media tools.

So don't wait to be invited to "come on down" to your favorite game or topic - just podcast, blog, or photo share your way there.

References

Arnold, L. (2014, September 30). Checking back in after my long hospitalizations. Retrieved from The Body website: http://www.thebody.com/content/75048/checking-back-in-after-my-long-hospitalizations.html

Facing aids gallery. Retrieved from Aids.gov website: http://facing.aids.gov/gallery/

New media tools. Retrieved from Aids.gov website: http://aids.gov/using-new-media/tools/index.html#tool-podcasts

(2014, August 8). Ebola virus disease. Retrieved from Center for Disease Control and Prevention website: http://www2c.cdc.gov/podcasts/index.asp

Finding myself in a cynical mood this morning, I decide to correct my attitude by distraction. I then turn to the web to discover some good news in the world. I specifically look for articles about Scotland’s vote to become independent from the United Kingdom, much to my delight I find an article entitled Scotland heads to the polls to vote on independence.

After reading this five paragraph article I am back to being cynical. Naina Bajekal writes a difficult (sloppy) to read article that is published on Time.com.  A quick google search of the author’s name and I discover that she is a graduate of the University of Oxford with a B.S. degree in English and Modern languages and has held a variety of jobs, her current being an intern at Time Magazine’s London location.

This concerns me as the article is not impressively written. So, I decide to learn more about this writer that Time has hired; her LinkedIn account shows that she can speak four languages (English, French, Spanish, and Hindi), but then again, perhaps proper journalism isn’t the focus of a language degree? But then I see that she was actually an editor of a magazine – for seven months. I decide that the seven months was probably six to many, but that’s the magazine’s problem not mine.

I quickly realize she is not anymore a subject matter expert on Scotland than she is on journalism. She is however, representing Time. Time magazine is an authority on world events, is it not? It is certainly a familiar magazine and full of worldly articles, so I decide to google search “Is Time magazine a reputable source?” and in 41 seconds there are 158,000 responses, the entire first page of results is opinion based, so is the second, third and so on. I determine that Time is a popular periodical, not an undisputed reporting authority. I am now a more discerning reader.

So I return to researching the author and I find I may be expecting too much, this is only her second published article. Perhaps Time magazine uses their website as the testing ground for potential good writers? They should put a disclaimer on the articles; much like my checkbook has a number at the top, to indicate number of articles the author has published.

Particularly distressing to me is the number of unclear sources the author pulls information from:

“While one member of the Scottish parliament praised the vote’s ‘precious democracy’ and early participation rates,” I have to ask who? Which member?

“Concerns over rising hostility in the independence campaign led one senior pro-union Better Together source” Again, who? Which senior pro—union Better Together source?

“The official in charge of the referendum vote counting told The Guardian she had ‘no concerns’” This is getting redundant, who? What official? Why am I reading an article that references another article without citation?

“…told The Guardian” Here is this odd reference again.  Is this your article or The Guardian’s article?

As convoluted and distracting as the article is, I did find the information I really wanted,  “Results from the first local authorities will start rolling in at 2 a.m. local time, but the final announcement is expected between 6:30 and 7:30 local time Friday morning” Wait, which local time zone?  Ugh… I assume it is Scotland's time zone and not my own local time. Either way I’m sure more experienced, credible writers in the world will be reporting on the outcome of the vote tomorrow, or so I hope.

Bajekal, N. (2014, September 18). Scotland heads to the polls to vote on independence. Retrieved from Time.com website: http://time.com/3397258/scotland-independence-vote/

Are social media sites reliable for obtaining credible information?

For the purposes of this blog I logged onto facebook to see what I could learn and ran across a re-posting with the comment, “Why isn't this on all the radio and TV stations?”  I wondered what could be so upsetting.  I then notice an image of an african american male and he is accused of killing someone. 

Ahhh, I have figured this out – this is a hoax to get people to click on the link and infect their computers all in search of some inflammatory racist event on the heels of raw emotions coming out of Ferguson, MO. As I am on my work computer, I roll the dice and decide to take the gamble that work has enough virus protection for me to learn more.

Here is the byline:

Suspect says he murdered New Jersey teen as revenge for U.S. military killings in Middle East:...

Ali Muhammad Brown is accused of killing a 19-year-old in New Jersey and three men in Washington...

m.nydailynews.com

I immediately assume this article is baseless sensationalism based on the link – it starts with a “m” and then is followed by what sounds like a legitimate source (virus creators are clever). The author is Meg Wagner, perhaps  Meg is the “m” and that makes her the  author/owner of the link and article. The article is dated 21 August with no year – I quickly determine that this is citizen reporting at its finest!  She even references such fine sources as NJ.com (which I was afraid to click on for fear of virus). I can only assume that I now actually have a virus on my work computer.

But then I decide to be as accurate as possible and google the name of Ali Muhammad Brown and discover that News 12 New Jersey (http://newjersey.news12.com/news/ali-muhammad-brown-suspect-in-brendan-tevlin-murder-accused-in-2-seattle-murders-1.8973456) has an article that was updated on August 5, 2014. I then start to wonder, could this be a real event? However, I cannot report the author’s name or relevant information as the site states that this “This content is exclusive for Optimum, Time Warner, Comcast, customers with access to News 12” only. Nor can I ascertain the legitimacy of this article because of the media stranglehold by a corporate few.

So I then search the victim’s name, Brandan Tevlin, and discovered that a cloud based radio show – 99.5 PLJ discussed the tragedy. https://soundcloud.com/#wplj/955-plj-todd-show-brendan-tevlin-wplj  and a social media news feed called heavy.com (http://heavy.com/news/2014/06/brendan-tevlin-shot-dead-west-orange-new-jersey/) published an article entitled Brendan Tevlin: 5 Fast Facts You Need to Know, by Matthew Guariglia, on June 27, 2014, that outlined the tragedy.

I read the article and there is a phone number for witnesses to call; I verify the phone number in the article and it does indeed go to the Esssex County Prosecutors Office. I also verified that Matthew Guarilglia has written several articles on current events at local and national levels. I am suddenly saddened that this is indeed an actual, awful, senseless, horrible event in our world. What I thought was an illegitimate piece of news reporting takes a sad turn and becomes true. My heart hurts for the family that lost their son, and I too have to think, “Why isn't this on all the radio and TV stations?” or rather "Who decides which murders the public at large get exposed to and which get buried in social media reporting?"

Blog 1 Influence of Media

What forms of new media do you use daily?

Ahh, let me count the ways: Facebook - to make sure that my virtual personal resume is well liked by my friends; Instagram - to ensure that my children's personal resume's don't collide with my carefully orchestrated Facebook page; email - I have to be the first to see the LivingSocial deals or know that Sperry Topsider has just released 200 new pairs of shoes; internet - for headlines and short sound bites so that I sound current and interesting while networking.

How has social media influenced your perspective of events?

I can be grievously incorrect about current events due to media's rush to be the first to report cutting edge news without fact checking. I can react emotionally, impulsively, and outrageously on a global platform without fear of judgement because the next distraction for my audience is only one and half seconds away!

I can also be aware of the world all around me - from the celebrations of the upcoming Oktoberfest in Munich, Germany to the devastation of an earthquake in Japan and the impending tsunami taking place now. These events unfold in real time, right in front of me, wherever and whenever I choose. They allow me to drink beer, offer prayers, donate money, or (most likely) do nothing at all.

Are these positive or negative influences?

The creation of a global neighborhood will allow us to break down prejudice as we become aware of other cultures (such as the understanding of the rich Mayan culture of the indigenous people of Mexico). However, sensationalism driven reporting can create intense and rapid prejudices as seen in Ferguson, Missouri.

A news media without accountability, or in the very least an unbalance presentation of events, can create ignorance and stoke the fires of raw emotions all for the price of getting the most re-tweets and hits. 

The true upside is that more people, globally, are aware of the world around them. We have global unity at our fingertips and, therefore, can perhaps lessen the disparity of income gaps, decrease infant mortality rates, increase literacy rates all by our ability to transfer knowledge, skill sets, interests, and financial support via new media.