Paper Topic

I am going to analyze Chimamanda Ngozi Adichie's speech, "We should all be feminists."

Research topics

My first topic I am considering is president obama's state of the union address.
The second would be the controversy of the millennial generation.
The third topic would be the cultural jamming of the perfect body.

House of Cards

Processed Foods and Monsanto/ GMO's

Education and Studying Abroad

Paper Topics

House of Cards: A Political Analysis

Israel and the Middle East

The Presidency: How it's changed 

Media and political rhetoric in war, politics, and economics

My tastes in video range from absolute escapist fantasy, through provocative depictions of often overlooked "facts", to actual recordings of events and/or history. With that said I feel strongly about three documentary/viewpoint videos I have recently seen concerning war, politics, and economics. These include "No End In Sight" and "Inside Job" by writer/director Charles Ferguson and "The Corporation" written by University of British Columbia law professor Joel Bakan, and directed by Mark Achbar and Jennifer Abbott. Many similarities can be gleaned from these films relating to popular media and political rhetoric. I hope to relate one or all to concepts that appear in class readings or discussions but I am unclear at this time of exact links. I will continue along these lines to develop a thesis that meets the suggested guidelines and allows me to add to a discussion of these important forces in our world today.

BLOG POST

In the essay about the Guerrilla Girls, Demo discusses three rhetorical strategies the group uses.  One of the strategies used was strategic juxtaposition.  As stated in the essay, “groups use juxtaposition to remoralize the social order by “placing conflicting commitments of the system side by side.”  I fount this to be very interesting and I came across an article which used this strategy in a different form from the Guerilla Girls group.  While the group relied on opposing pictures and statements, Alison Grimes used the “stark juxtaposition in age” to boost her campaign.  Grimes, 35-year-old women ran against Senator McConnell and referred to home as the “senator of yesterday.  While many people consider her to be young and inexperienced, she used this to her advantage, by strategically inserting the contrast into her campaign. I for one buy into the “senator of yesterday. “  I believed the younger candidate would bee more in touch with the current needs and wants of voters.

http://www.realclearpolitics.com/articles/2014/03/24/grimes_pegs_mcconnell_as_senator_of_yesterday_122033.html

Paper Topic

Guerrilla Girls

Research Paper topics

My first topic I am thinking of discussing is how the media adds to the political talk, how websites like The Onion and Huffington Post can change our minds and bring up new ideas the public would not otherwise notice.

The second topic I am thinking of discussing is millennials and their view towards politics. for example not as many millennial go to church and are politically "independent"

The third topic I may write about is the relationship between political leaders and the public. Analyzing rhetoric used to constantly get us to like them or not believe a scandal they are involved in.

Paper topics

1) Egypt uprising

2) Governer Christie scandal

3) NSA leaks

Paper Topic Choices

Idea 1: How progressive shows like Modern family/Breaking Bad reflect the ideals of the millennial generation...or something to that affect

Idea 2: The effect of viral videos online in the public sphere and how they positively and negatively can change the outcomes/momentum of a campaign. Maybe focusing on Obama's first run for candidacy

The readings that stuck with me the most are the public sphere, millennial generation, and maybe the recent one on race/minstrelsy. Not sold on any one topic thus far though.

Paper Topic Ideas

1) Relating Stephen Heidt’s article “The Presidency as Pastiche: Atomization, Circulation, and Rhetorical Instability” and the idea of fragmentation with when President Barack Obama mentioned in his early year in office that he was going to be in office for one-term.

2) Using McGee’s article about ideography and relating that to President Barack Obama’s 2014 State of the Union address.

3) Analyzing Secretary of State John Kerry’s statement to Israeli Prime Minister Benjamin Netanyahu and seeing how Netanyahu reacted negatively to it and using Kerry as a scapegoat and referring to Kenneth Burk’s article, “Dramatism.”

Paper Ideas

1. The Hunger Games Catching Fire and how the media shapes our perception of what is happening
2.  STFU Conservatives picture of "Im still not asking for it" and how it is more effective than the barbie museum protest.
3. Ride Along and the corruption of the police and government system

possible topics

I'm not entirely sure what I want to write do my paper on but I was thinking about...

-how racism is still not a thing in the past and how it is still around today

-how equality for women does not exist

-how mass media is affecting a child's mental and psychical health more than ever today

paper topic

I'm still not entirely sure what I would like to talk about for my paper, but possible topics that are interesting:
1. Linking media to how people are more aware of what is going on in politics
2. Recent President Obama's interviews with people who are less in the political eye and how this effects his presidency.
3. Advertisements and commercials breaking out and raising awareness to certain situations such as gay marriage, etc.

Still need to think more about topics and how to relate to a theory, but these choices have been on my mind.

Paper topic

Paper topic

The two I'm mulling over is, first, linking Occupy to invitational rhetoric and, second, making the link that shows like House of Cards are ruining politics. In specific, ruining the ideals of the millenial generation. I want to link it to Cultivation theory and mean world syndrome.

I'm liking the second idea more...any thoughts?

Paper topic

1. "Elections" chapter of Stephen Colbert book, America Again

Paper Topic

Armenian Genocide (1915) and Syria's Genocide (Now)

Still thinking about other possible topics...

Gloria Steinem

Today is the birthday of women's rights activist Gloria Steinem. In her early professional years she found herself writing for a newspaper with assignments focused on women...types of stockings, makeup, or babies. In this video I watched, which I will include, she made it kind of clear that her boss saw her as someone who would go to a hotel with him during lunch or merely as someone who would do his secretarial work. It wasn't until she was given an assignment to cover an abortion trial that she realized she needed to create change. She stated that women need a revolution rather than reform, something that rhetoric plays perfectly in to.

Once the women's movement was well on its way her and a few followers decided to create a magazine. They titled the magazine "Ms." and it took off brilliantly, selling out in the first week. She mentioned, in the video, that these injustices towards women are so great that if they were just explained to people..they would get respect and understanding. It might be a stretch but I felt a sense of invitational rhetoric in her words. She knew there needed to be a revolution but she wanted to do it through people willingly siding with her and the movement rather than using certain gimmicks of rhetoric to force them on her side.

Justice is served.... but it took 32 years.

A 74 year old women is released from prison for a crime she did not do. Mary Virginia Jones spent 32 years in prison for a crime her past boyfriend committed. The Post-Convicted Justice Project picked up the case At USC college and won for the justice of Ms. Jones. The case was defeated because Ms. Jones was involved in the murder because she was held against her will. She did not commit the murders, her ex boyfriend did which the USC participants were able to prove.

I personally have mixed emotions about this story. I'm deeply disturbed that Ms. Jones spent three decades of her life missing out on the beauties in life. We only live once. I also am annoyed with once again how the media is presenting this case. I do see the positive that justice is served but it did take 32 years for that to happen. What about the hundreds if not thousands of people without fancy lawyers that are serving time for something they did not commit.

Young Voters

We have continuely discussed the relation that the younger generation has with politics as well as engaging with the public sphere of news. While we have not truly focused on the younger generation and our government, I think that this article truly exempflies the power that our younger generation has on our future. The article dicusses the importance and the intensity of the milliena generation and their ability to change the way our governement is ran. What makes younger voters so crucial to voting is that they are the target audience for campaining as well as the younger voters have the desire to vote. They milliena masses are not jaded by politics nor are skeptic to what is presented before them. The media and the public sphere aids itself towards us, it is shaped to invoke reaction as well as desire within ourselves.
http://politicalticker.blogs.cnn.com/2014/03/21/young-voters-would-be-key-in-a-hillary-clinton-presidential-race-but-can-she-win-them-over/

The search for flight 370

Now about three weeks ago a Malaysian airplane with around 200 passengers disappeared.  This plane held passengers from 13 countries including 3 Americans.  The search has been progressing but with no leads, until now.  The Chinese government in partnership with NASA has no gotten involved.  CNN posted a story about a Chinese satellite that found an image of a floating object about 22 meters in length, floating in the southern part of the Indian Ocean.  The plane disappeared because it had no radar and apparently all communications were down.  Conspiracies about the flight being defective and the pilots planning this landing have been circling the media since the search began.  This is another event, like 9/11, that has now made people afraid of flying.  The truth about the plane is still a mystery as concrete evidence still has not been found.

I want to connect this article to the writings of Habermas and the "public sphere".  The Public sphere is a place where people can have a discussion without the involvement of biases or media persuasion.  Does such a place exist? I think it does.  Over the course of this search for the missing flight people have been all over the internet posting comments, articles and theories of what happened to the missing plane.  Although the internet is a powerful form of persuasion, it is also a great place to start discussions.  People have the freedom to discuss their theories from their own assumptions and beliefs because no major news organizations have posted any conspiracies. People have the ability to discuss what they want, free from biases and media persuasion.  This is a perfect example of the public sphere.

Michigan strikes down gay marriage ban

A Michigan judge struck down the state law banning gay marriage yesterday in response to complaints made by this couple claiming that the law violated their rights under the U.S. Constitution. The aforementioned couple, two nurses from the Detroit area, participated in Michigan's first same-sex marriage ceremony after the ban was lifted.

This story made me think back to the article we discussed about George W. Bush's connection with the LGBTQ community during the 2000 election. Things have come so far for this community since then and numbers of self-identifying members have surely grown - so what are politicians (particularly Republicans) doing today to ensure they make those same connections to this community? What will the 2016 election bring forth for this community?

Minstrel Obama

The title of the blog may be misleading but as I looked for articles to write about, I stumbled across a few political cartoons. I scanned over a couple of them and noticed that the features that are exaggerated on Obama seem to make him look and seem more monkey like. This is problematic because blacks/African-Americans have been compared and likened to apes negatively for hundred of years. It leads me to wonder if these type of blatant exaggerations are done purposefully.

This relates loosely to minstrelsy. It may not be black face but it falls between the depiction of the brute and a Sambo. A sambo was always depicted as dumb, subservient, and as having very pronounced features. I know that these political cartoons/propaganda pieces are to serve as humorous takes on certain political issues but I wonder if anyone takes offense to some of the way minority groups are depicted in these drawings.

And Minstelsy for All

The picture below is of a billboard I recently viewed in a different light. I have been told that the "screen names" of the radio personalities shown are from left to right essentially, "the good", "the bad", and "the ugly". I was told by a co-worker who is of Latin decent that the radio program advertised is cartoonish in its depiction of Latino archetypes and that some are embarrassed by it.

Although the recent reading entitled "Minstrel Politics Or "He Speaks Too Well:" Rhetoric, Race, And Resistance In The 2008 Presidential Campaign" is ultimately about how a legacy of minstrelsy is displayed in current politics I found it most interesting in how the same is displayed in popular culture. The pictured advertisement, and other cultural displays, show an example of a Latino equivalent to the Black minstrelsy described in the article and how it too survives today.

Step in the Right Direction

CNN reported that a federal judge overturned a ruling on Michigan's ban of same-sex message and other statutory laws. The federal judge ruled that the state officials "had lost sight of what the case was really about...people." The case was help overturned by a couple that were fighting for the rights to raise their children. The judge proceeded to say that the decision made was a step in the right direction would it came to affirming the equal rights of all peoples.

This story relates to the article by Jeffrey A. Wilson named the "Republican Rhetoric of Identification." Here the article proceeds to talk about the huge influence that gay/lesbian voters had on elections, specifically George W. Bush. It is needless to say that the state of Michigan was stuck in time by not allowing the rights of gay/lesbians. It is undeniably the future that the community will have just as equal rights as their heterosexual counterparts. The article reminded me that there is an upcoming election, just around the corner and this issue about equal rights for the gay and lesbian community will be a huge factor for all candidate on how they handle certain issues that will be brought up. I see that the overturn of Michigan's ruling is a good sign that change will continue to come across all states for equal rights of all. 

Coordination between reporters and politicans

In an article from CBS Philadelphia reporter Chris Stigall talked to former CBS news reporter Sharyl Attkisson on the trouble reporters have to deal with while covering politicians and the government. The story essentially discussed how most of the questions being asked at the White House press briefing are prescreened and deliberately chosen ahead of time. The article also states how it is more and more difficult for reporters to get controversial stories on air because of the "trouble" it may cause.
This article caught my attention as a result of attending the talk by Dr. Dan Reitter. Last week Reitter discussed the importance of having a press that doesn't blindly follow politicians and White House administration. Reitter suggested that the press needs to always question politicians, and this article claims quite the contrary is actually occurring.

Annexation of Crimea

So if you have not been following the Ukraine crisis, it has taken an even stranger turn. Earlier this week the Crimea region voted to become part of the Russian Federation, this was a "free" and "democratic" election. I use quotes because how free and democratic can an election be if there are armed Russian security forces at the polling stations. The United States has responded by basically cutting off key Russian Banks from doing business with the United States, which needless to say hurts their business. One of the more interesting things i have seen is that FOX news, which normally is extremely critical of President Obama, has not been so during this crisis. I think it highlights that although their political views sharply contrast on domestic issues, when given a common enemy our elected representatives can actually get something done.

Blog Post 6: Selfie in Politics

The selfie, which is a self photograph of someone either alone or with others, is a modern trend where everyone is doing it, even politicians.  In a recent article, it mentions broadly about the “politics” of selfies and that it is used not only to share with friends and viewers what one is currently doing, but it shows that by politicians doing it as well, it gives them credibility.  Politicians taking selfies are making themselves relatable to the common people, which is an advantage to them.  By taking selfies, politicians are reminding the people and the world that they are still humans that like to have fun and fool around despite current events.  There are some disadvantages to selfies as well, because some politicians have posted selfies that caused them to be criticized and because of the negative impression of some selfies, some politicians were unable to participate in some events, like having the opportunity to address an audience for some rallies. 

I found this topic related to “Minstrel Politics or “He Speaks Too Well:” Rhetoric, Race, and Resistance in the 2008 Presidential Campaign,” by Anthony Sparks because he mentions that “Television’s role in popular culture is complex, of course, but in addition to building cultural narratives, it also visualizes certain narratives that already exist” (28).  Selfies function in the same way because the pictures that the people take do form cultural narratives and it is up to the viewers to interpret the pictures and define what cultural narratives they see.  Depending on how the viewers see the selfies as, determines if there is going to be a positive or negative connection between the viewer and the one that took the picture.  A picture is worth a thousand words and a selfie is a good example for that saying because a seemingly innocent picture of politicians together can be read in so many ways where the audience might take it the wrong way.  Also another down side to selfies is that since anyone can interpret the pictures to whatever way they want to see them as, the opposing party or competition can turn that against the one they are competing against.  

Blog #8

With almost three weeks of the disappearance of the Malaysian airline flight 370, it is weird that no reports or findings of the plane have been discovered. The article talks about how the hard drive from the simulator within the pilots house was taken and under investigation and how things were deleted from it starting on February 3. The article also discusses how the U.S. had received profiles of the two pilots from family and friends and neighbors that was given to them by Malaysian investigators. The U.S. is concerned being that it took Malaysian authorities six days to go and search the homes of the two pilots.

I definitely believe that there are some missing strings to this yarn of bull***t. Being that how can authorities wait so long for the search of their homes and two why doesn't Malaysian officials or U.S. officials for that fact hire a team of hackers to recover the deleted items on the hard drive. I totally think on the Malaysian officials are covering something up. The are leaving the public sphere to be blind, including the U.S. authorities who have spent tons of money helping with the investigation. Meaning why are there no answers to anything, everything seems to just not add up properly. I am even more certain that Malaysian officials are even more involved within the disappearance.

Obama on Ellen

Recently, President Obama has been appearing in many interviews that reach certain audiences. His appearance on Zach Galifianakis' show, his phone interview with Ryan Seacrest on his radio show, and this past week he appeared in a video interview with Ellen Degeneres on her daytime talk show. Although I did not watch the full interview, Ellen posted a few of the important clips on her Youtube channel with President Obama. Ellen took the advantage of having the President on video to ask him about Obama care. He informed the audience the importance of health insurance and how important it was to sign up before the deadline. During the interview, Ellen being the comedian she is kept the interview very fun and President Obama cracked some of his own jokes too.
President Obama appearing in these interviews are very important especially right now as the Obama Care sign up deadline is quickly approaching. I believe President Obama is appearing in these interviews aiming towards a certain audience because he knows that it is the best way to inform the younger audience the importance of health care. Zach Galifianakis, Ryan Seacrest, and Ellen Degeneres all reach the younger audience of teenagers and young adults. Coincidentally, these are also the most important people to be reached out about the health care and this is Obama's way of successfully getting young adults to signup. I bring up this idea of President Obama appearing in these interviews as they are linked to the reading of politics in the media. The reading mentions how the television, radio, and internet are now the most used technology of media to be used by a wide spread of people. Young adults normally do not read the daily paper or pick up Times magazine so President Obama had to reach the young adults in a more successful and relatable way. Each interview he has had he never fails to mention the importance of health care and the importance of signing up. President Obama has since been very successful and now has over 5 million people signed up for the health care.

Hillary and the Millennial Vote

CNN released an article stating that in order to win the 2016 election, Hillary Clinton will need the vote of young people.   Although she lost the younger generation’s vote when she ran in 2008, the article states that she has a good chance of winning it this time around since she won’t have such stiff competition again.  The article also states that she will benefit from the fact that young people tend to lean more towards the left due to their stance on things like abortion, gay marriage and immigration.

This article can clearly be related to our reading on the millennials.  Hillary seems to be making more of an effort to attract this generation by visiting college campuses, as well as by having a strong presence on twitter.  Her change in position regarding gay marriage can also be seen as an effort to gain support from millennials.   The only concern the article seems to state is the fact that millennials might be more prompted to vote for a candidate who is closer to their own age.  That said, according to CNN, this might not be a problem considering a recent survey came back proving that most young people believe that Hillary is younger than she truly is.

I still blame aliens

I was watching the news the other day and I noticed a familiar face, Bill Nye the science guy! First thing I thought, are they STILL talking about the debate between Ham and himself? Much to my surprise, they had asked Nye to come on live tv and comment on his thoughts about the missing plane...WHY NOT?! He was very humble about the offer, thanking them for the chance but admitting that his guesses were probably the same as most people, that it is probably in the ocean somewhere. His only suggestion was that we should be checking the ocean for the "beeping" noise the plane will be giving off in the case of a crash. As we are already doing this, we being the people who can do this kind of work (something he says to not give himself credit for the work), I don't feel like his interview was necessary. It is clear they are running out of ideas on how to continue this story but since it is a hot topic no news source wants to drop it.

For me, this links perfectly to a mix of positive/negative face and a little bit about what Jamieson was talking about. First, positive face. I believe Nye definitely built himself up here by kind of making a little crack at the idea of being invited to comment on this issue...even with his background on planes. In addition, he clearly doesn't try and give himself credit for doing any of the work, a clarification when he constantly says "we" which, to me, shows that he appreciates the work being done and doesn't think he should be the focus. Next, in the article by Jamieson she riticuled one of Obama's speeches by saying he should not have done it at all. This, to me, links perfectly to Nye's interview. Although it is true that we all love seeing Bill Nye the science guy on tv but there is not reason why he should have done that interview, a waste of time in my opinion. It was fun to watch but I believe they could have found someone more qualified to make more qualitative statements about the issue.

What the F*%^ has Obama done so far.

This is a great website that highlights what Obama has done so far :).

http://whatthefuckhasobamadonesofar.com/

p.s. No blog post since I am presenting!

Obama

This week, Ellen Degeneres phoned Obama on her show. She asked him various questions for his wife Michelle, such as "did you go to the gym and have you eaten." These are everyday questions that can be asked to anyone. Obama answered with a "yes," but giggled after words. He was very conversational with Ellen and the audience, making the call more personal.

I related this to the article we read this week, "The Republic Rhetoric of Identification." In this article, author Nelson explains how important it is for Presidents to identify with society. Obama is answering personal questions on television, which we all can relate to. We feel more comfortable with Obama when we can relate to him.

IRS Taxes

It's tax season! April 15th is around the corner, so naturally many are getting their taxes done before the deadline. Fox put out an article titled "IRS: $760M owed to people who didn't file for 2010". I appreciate the little warning from Fox, but don't you think the IRS should send out a letter to individuals? At the end of the article Fox states the unclaimed taxes will go to "Uncle Sam", well who the heck is Uncle Sam?

Many left comments about this article, stating uncle sam is Obama. Lots of confusion here: I'm sure they mean the government. I highly doubt Obama sees any of that money. This relates in many fields of our class, misrepresentation from media, how people view the government, and Obama.

First Lady Furthers Health Initiatives

It is always refreshing to see politicians interested in nutrition and the obesity epidemic in the US,  as this issue often gets skirted by many other things.  Within the last week, Michelle Obama partnered with Dannon and DelMonte--both large food corporations whose target demographic is children.  This partnership ensures that said companies will reduce their levels of sugar and saturated fats within their products.

These are two of several partnerships that have formed with the Health for America movement.  A recent CDC report has also shown that child obesity reports have fallen forty three percent within the last few years, for which Michelle Obama claims she is grateful to have been a part of.

This topic is consistent with the idea of the public sphere and spreading awareness about the changes that need to be made and how said changes can be made possible.  Partnerships such as this are definitely a step in the right direction.

Pope Francis new changes

When I hear the term Pope, I automatically think of a grey haired old man who stays within the walls of the Vatican and preaches the old words to those that are still willing to listen. I know that catholic religion is spreading throughout the world, however it has never been something to catch my interest, until now. Watching several reports on the new pope has led me to believe that this new Pope Francis can lead  the church out of the closed doors of the Vatican and stop them from being "Obsessed with small minded rules"  that have led to culture wars of abortion and gay rights. He is unlike any other pope the world has seen. Many popes before have claimed to want to be a hands on man with the people but Pope Francis has actually taken charge and gone out to meet the people face to face. In his interview the pope states, "I prefer a church of which is bruised, hurting and dirty because it has been out on the streets, rather than a church which is unhealthy from being confined and from clinging to its own security." I believe Pope Francis came into his role believing that it was time for the church to see a change and he is evident in making it happen. I believe he understands the point of view of the modern world and understands that in order to keep the Catholic faith alive he must unite the people with the church. In order to do that he must address issue that do not solely pertain to the church but appeal to the people as well; after all, that is the role of a leader and Pope Francis is a leader and will continue to bring social change to the Catholic Church.

Missing Plane

As we have been talking about in class, a plane from Malaysia Airlines went missing. The plan was on its way to Beijing when it disappeared from the radar. News stories have been suggesting multiple explanations for the missing plane.

Since we have been talking about the media in class, I noticed how the majority of news stories frame the missing plane incident. Most articles immediately blame the disappearance on terrorist, which does not surprise me at all. Media, especially news, wants to publicize the most appealing piece, so they frame the story by talking about terrorists.

Russia is a threat.....again

The crisis in Ukraine has mounted to a national scale.  Russia recently posted its troops in offensive positions outside of the Crimean.  The Ukranian troops were forced to take defensive positions.  Because the U.S. has ties with Russia and Ukraine, we are forced to intervene.  The United States have a niche for playing the "world police" whenever something bad happens.  This ploy of force and power shows America that, for the first time in a long time, Russia poses a threat.

In accordance with the public sphere and the public screen, the crisis in Ukraine was first brought to our attention when violent images and footage from Ukraine was first played on the news.  The crisis with the Ukranian government has been happening for quite some time, but in America, we didn't know until the protests were shown on the news.

Bad news sells more.  It creates more publicity and gathers more attention.  When violence is brought into the situation, people seem to watch and listen more often,  This makes us and people more thankful that we don't have that kind of crisis in our country.

BLOG 6: DEPOrtation

In our society, there is a point of acceptance immigration. This involves cash flow (for economy),

population, laws, and politics. It is not a question to investigate immigration, but rather a solution. The U.S

has been a country for immigration, and it is provides many groups that are third generation now, and still,

although many say we already have a big population today, it adds cash flow, and a balanced system where

those immigrant who come in take the lower paying jobs, as long as their children are studying and can then

produce for the better of this economy. As President Obama entered his term, in 2010, the statistical prove

shows that he got elected into office by minority groups like the Hispanic vote, and African American vote.

In our readings, we have studied the importance of humor, and I believe we can discuss  this when it

comes to this, we can come to the conclusion that Obama has used this to catch the minority groups. We see

it close in time, as he organized a meeting in congress, and he seems to get others support, as they state,

" He does want to pursue a more humane approach to this and he cares deeply about this". (usa today).

Obama with the very action that he gathered a dozen leaders of groups,tells about his humor that he

wants to communicate unity.

http://www.usatoday.com/story/news/politics/2014/03/14/obama-immigration-white-house-meeting/6428029/

Obama is losing millenials' support

The 18-24 demographic is not turning out to enroll in Obama's Affordable Care Act ("Obamacare") in numbers as high as the administration had hoped. According to this Market Watch article, "Obama administration officials were hoping that one-third of overall signups would be that of the so-called 'invincibles,' young healthy adults who can help spread out the risk for the program." But this demographic has not shown the President the same support they did during his 2008 campaign and in the years shortly after. Dana Milbank argues that millennials have "abandoned Obama" because once he was elected, he did little to engage their generation. Obama tried to garner more millennial support for the Affordable Care Act by participating in a mock-interview on FunnyOrDie with Zach Galifinakis.

This situation ties in with a few things we've read and discussed in class. Milbank's argument that the millennial generation is "unable to remain attached to a cause" is consistent with Stein's and Sanburn's stance in their "The New Greatest Generation" article. The President's attempt to reach this generation through meeting with a celebrity popular among them on a popular media platform connects with our more recent readings about the power of media to reach people and help shape their views on issues (agenda-setting).

Public Option via Public Sphere

In a recent article on the news anthology website "The Week" it was reported that,

"In town meetings across Vermont last week, residents voted in favor of converting the Vermont Economic Development Authority into a public bank. Modeled after a similar bank in North Dakota, the Vermont proposal would create an institution that held and invested the state's funds locally, on the hope that doing so would provide a boost to the local economy and cut out middlemen bankers."

This article entitled "America should have a public option for everything" went on to mention such an option under discussion during the debate over ObamaCare and how it was squashed by health insurance and pharmaceutical company interests. In the comments section of the article I put forth the idea that auto insurance is a prime candidate for such a public option. Somewhere between capitalist and socialist practices may be a good fit for an America that is reeling from the effects of runaway free market ideologies.

I relate this discussion to the articles "The Public Sphere" and "It's Complicated...", both of which allude to the idea that todays public sphere may be evolving into an online based discussion. The former notes that in 1964 the radio, television, and newspapers had become the media of public sphere as opposed to public meetings or discussion. In the latter it is noted that current social media may increase public discussion but too often is a panacea for action. The article I note here, with it's comment section, is an emerging form of news and discussion that we only hope can shed the "slacktivism" associated with social media and add the interactivity absent in traditional news media to further a kind of public discussion that could lead to public action.

Malaysian jet

In a new article on cnn.com about the Malaysian jet's disappearance the investigators are turning to speculations that the jet was purposefully trying to disappear. Since the eight days the plane has been missing the world has been intrigued with the missing jet that just seemed to drop off the Earth. At first there was speculation of a hijacking because of fake passports that were used to board the plane. Then there were reports about the plane just exploding in the air or being at the bottom of the Indian Ocean. Whatever the case is, it is a scary thing that is happening right now since this has never happened before and it is alarming that officials cannot even determine if the plane crashed or not. The story continues to develop as they search the pilots homes and continue to investigate whether the plane was hijacked or not .

From Lapdog to Watchdog

http://m.nydailynews.com/1.1712043#bmb=1
http://www.dailymail.co.uk/news/article-2574366/American-anchor-Russian-state-funded-news-quits-air-protest-Putins-incursion-Crimea.html

Liz Wahl was a reporter for Russia Today, a state funded network, who quit live on air because the network used propaganda to support Putins' actions. It has been reported that there is millions of dollars put into the network from Russia, in order to help push their political agenda. Liz Wahl has been praised as a hero for standing up and quitting, because she refused to push his agenda and because she stated she is proud to be an American and refuse to support an anti-American reports. 

I want to relate this How the New Media Shape Political Campaigns, Russia Today is funded to give the Russian point of view and the network is actually established there is be a lap dog. I do think is a great the Liz stood up against the propaganda, but the same time the network established to push forward a Russian point of view. I think more effective was her ex co-worker Abby Martin who spoke out against the Russian government in her segment, and stated the military intervention isn't correct in the Ukraine. She spoke out with her point of view, making her a watch dog, but still reported the new with no bias. 

Scott Brown used in the political fight

MSNBC reported that Scott Brown running for Senate is making significant ground to obtain one of the six senate seats in the red Republican states. According to the article, this election years looks really good for Republicans as they have gained more favoritism. The article then begins to talks about the favoritism between President Obama and former president Bill Clinton. According to a poll, Clinton has much more favoritism in the red states then Obama does, and that is why he plays such a vital role in this campaign. His platform is very good for Obama. The article further compared Obama's ratings to the same as Vladamir Putin, saying that his approval rating is exactly the same as Putins.

I related this article to Holihan's "How the News Media shapes Political Campaigns." My first argument is that this article is almost completely one-sided. It tells you all the good things republicans want to do, but then ends with comparing Obama's approval ratings to Putin. Whoever wrote this article is definitely favorable to republicans.  The article states that the "news media shapes the perceptions that are pieced together to form the social reality that motivates the political action" (103). I feel this article is definitely attempting to shape the perception of the reader, proposing that if you are a democrat then this information is reason to change your mind. Media is very powerful in perception but does not always report the full picture. I felt that this information was to benefit the republican candidates, example Scott Brown, as they named him a force in this year's election. The reading stated that those who use the internet for politics will be involved, and this is an important aspect because it shows how useful and powerful a tool that internet is when it comes to shaping perceptions and receiving news.

Jlo sexualizes men

Entertainment Weekly posted an article on March 14 about J.Lo's new video called "I Luh Ya Papi." In the article they praise Lopez for Turing the tables on the classic rap video. The video itself portrays  numerous chiseled men in minimal clothing such as underwear and speedos oiled on dripping with water. The article even asks "sick of all the underdressed ladies that rappers like to have decorating their sets like lawn ornaments?" And boasts that this is what Lopez does in her video.

This reminds me of the medias influence on how we view things. With so much talk about sex and power structure in politics, it seems that women are truly trying to flip that on its head. Women are now pushing forward to bring light to the fact that in so many places there is still large inequality in gender. My question is, are videos like this going to make any difference in the way men and women see the videos they view?

Blog Post 5: U.S. Turns Over Internet Responsibilites To the World

Recently, the National Telecommunications and Information Administration or NTIA, a U.S. Commerce Department agency that manages and oversees a large portion of the internet, claimed that they are transferring their internet management responsibilities and duties to the "global internet community." The Internet Corporation for Assigned Names and Numbers or ICANN, which is a non-profit organization based in Los Angeles and is under contract with the U.S. Commerce Department is responsible for managing .com and other domain names since 2000. ICANN's contract with the United States will expire or get canned in 2015, which is why the U.S. is deciding to end their overseeing management function, because they CAN, but some U.S. officials and businesses are worried about the idea of letting the United Nations, Russia, or China having control over the internet. Some officials like Senate Commerce Committee Chairman Jay Rockefeller, yes the descendant of the great John D. Rockefeller himself, supports the idea of the United States transferring oversight responsibilities of the internet to another organization mentioning that it resembles "other efforts the U.S. and our allies are making to promote a free and open internet, and to preserve and advance the current multi-stakeholder model of global internet governance."

I found this event related to the Kevin Michael DeLuna and Jennifer Peeples "From Public Sphere to Public Screen: Democracy, Activism, and the "Violence" of Seattle" reading because according to them through Jurgen Habermas, "the public sphere denotes a social space wherein private citizens gather as a public body with the rights of assembly association, and expression in order to form public opinion" (128). The internet is an area of the public sphere or it is the public sphere because there are several ideas floating around in the free marketplace of ideas for everyone and anyone to see. By turning over oversight responsibilities to the "global internet community," I think that the United States is promoting the idea of ultimate internet freedom and it makes them look like they are not the extreme watchdogs that monitor everyone's online accounts that several people see them as. Also by doing this, it opens up more views and perspectives to the world that may not have been exposed yet, building on the idea of imagery as discourse. I also find this story related to the cause of the World Trade Organization protests themselves because by the U.S. turning over oversight functions of the internet to someone else seems as if some large unannounced corporations are working a scheme in union to monitor the entire global scale, just because ICANN did it means they CAN do it too.

Deportation Policy

According to the New York Times, President Obama met with Hispanic activists on Friday where he “pledged to refine enforcement of immigration laws.”  The article states that Obama was motivated to meet with this group to ensure that his party does not lose the Hispanic vote in the next election.   The Hispanic activist would like Obama to stop the deportation of illegal immigrants; however Obama does is hesitant to do so.  Although he believes that the immigrants should not be deported, he is incapable of lifting the laws without getting backlash from the Republican party, who would be sure to argue that his lifting the law is illegal. 

This article relates to our reading on the public sphere.  The Hispanic activist are an example of the public sphere, as they have all gathered together to discuss their feelings towards the immigration law and the need to have it lifted.   On a larger level , the millions of immigrants that these activists are representing are also part of the public sphere.   I am sure conversations about this law have and will continue to take place within this group of people, as it effects all of them. 

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/03/15/us/politics/deportation-policy-shift-is-signaled-by-obama.html?_r=0

Millenials Lean Democratic

The article I found refers all the way back to millennial. The piece was written by Jesse Holland. It pretty much just speaks of how people aged 18-33 is leaning more democratic in their decision making. It speaks of how "hipster" we are in not wanting to be labeled. It speaks of how while many may not claim to represent the Democratic party but lean that way despite their "independent" allegiance. Half of the millennial generation share this sentiment. 

I agree with the author. A lot of liberal ideologies are being used as the basis of national progression. The legalization of marijuana, immigration, and gay rights are the main topic of discussion. This/my generation are rebelling against the old notions of church going and young marriages, as mentioned in the article. It is interesting how times change. I even notice how presidency seems to flip flop from one party to the next.

Blog#7

A elderly couple was enjoying there mid-afternoon "Scrunch" a cross between lunch and supper, when they were approached by a very rude employee who told the elderly couple they needed to move so that he or she could clean the floor where they were sitting. The wife of the elderly couple said no we are not leaving. A manger then approached the couple stating, "you two need to leave your half hour is up." Although the couple said they did not realize that there was a time limit at McDonalds!!!! They then wrote a letter to the corporation who then only sent the couple a coupon for TWO FREE SMALL COFFEES the wife sent back the coupons!! Although there letter did not go unnoticed by a BBQ Smokehouse who offered the World War 2 vet and his wife, FREE "Scrunch" one day a week for life!! 

If I was the elderly couple I would have done the exact same thing. McDonalds is a LARGE corporation who makes BILLIONS of DOLLARS, and they only offered the couple a two free small coffees, WHAT?!  This presents negative face by not only McDonalds as a whole but also this specific franchise. The owner of the franchise apologized to the couple saying the manager is still in training and wants the elderly woman to come and help out with his training. That owner must be crazy, instead of offering her to help train the rude manager, throw the couple some free cheese burgers instead. Because of the incident that occurred they no longer will be giving business to that franchise. And this also shows positive face because of the BBQ Smokehouse owner being so kind to the couple when the incident did not occur at his restaurant. Goes to show there are still very nice people out there! 

President Obama and Humor

President Obama recently did a live phone interview with Ryan Seacrest on his on air radio show on 102.7. Seacrest mentioned Obama's past interview with Zach Galifiankis on his show "Between Two Ferns". He asked how that experience was with Zach and how Zach asked and responded to some questions. Obama mentioned his kids who were shocked and excited to hear that their father was going to be on a show with Zach Galifiankis because they have watched his previous shows. President Obama kept the interview very humorous, but also well informed. He used his opportunity for being on a live broadcast radio to reach out to the audience about his political views and especially about healthcare.
As we discussed in class after watching President Obama's interview with Zach Galifiankis, we shared the ideas of how President Obama kept his humor well appropriate as well as still aiming for political talk. Obama still made it a point to mention the Affordable Care Act in both his interview with Zach and Ryan. The video of the interview "Between Two Ferns" reached over 15 million views and Obama mentioned to Ryan that many people have signed up and heard about healthcare ever since then. Obama still wanted to keep it professional and use all his opportunities to reach out to the younger audience that might not know much about the act or politics in general. President Obama's choice and professional skills resulted in perfect results because since he has done these interviews, the audience has heard and acted on the Affordable Care Act.

Biden and Positive Face

In class we discussed the idea of humor in the Presidential primaries, specifically talking about the debates. We watched a video that showed Biden and Ryan having their debate, one which included much more humor and one liners. It became evident that Biden was much more willing to use his humor and one liners to degrade the arguments, which often seemed false, of his opponent Paul Ryan. I really found this to be interesting because we made the connection between this debate and that of one between Obama and Romney in saying that the humor was not as funny. As a class we made the assumption that this was due to the fact that the individuals running for president were scrutinized more and the person running for VP could get away with more.

Relating this issue to one of our past readings, this reminds me of negative and positive face. For me, the Biden and Ryan debate instilled an idea of positive face in Biden. How so? Seeing Biden express his humor in the ways he did really allowed me to relate to him and want him to be the person to assist in running our country. Being someone who tends to use humor to express themselves it really helped me relate to him on a personal level because I could understand his personality and understand the way he thinks. His actions which instilled, in me, a positive face reaction made him likeable, whereas, had an effect on Ryan that had a negative effect and made me not like him even more...giving him the negative face effect.

Word Choices by Media...

Two traumatic events have taken place within the week. The first is the disappearing plane and second the 2 killed and 20 inquired explosion in New York. In the disappearing plane article, 277 people were abroad the plane. I find the words that the media outlets choose to use as interesting (annoying too). "Disappeared" is used in the article title, when I read "disappeared" I feel like the media source is trying to soften the tragedy by not creating imagery. The word disappear gives me hope that maybe the plane reappears. If the title consisted of "Lost communication with Airplane, possible 277 passengers dead" I would feel more emotion. In the article for the New York explosion, the title clearly states 2 were killed and 20 injured. Accidents like the plane and explosion are absolutely tragic, I don't think media sources should make light of any situation. They should be clear that the world has lost 277 people due to a communication lose with a plane, just as they were clear that 2 individuals were killed in an explosion.  I don't want to be left out of the dark about what is going on and the media has done a great done making sure we don't know much about what's going on. It may not be with the "disappearing" plane but it's definitely an example.

I think this all relates back to what Brandon said in class earlier this week, (I believe it was Brandon) The government knows more than they tell us. Whether it be aliens or not, I think it's annoying that media will try to make light of certain situations. Whether it be 2 people killed or 277 people, we are humans and we've lost a significant number of people due to tragic events. I think they should be more clear. 

Other group topic ideas

For those of you still struggling, here are some other suggestions:
Media coverage of women in politics
Sweatshop protest movements
Olympic protests
Celebrity influence on campaigns
Campaign ads from PETA
Immigration protests
Occupy Wall Street
Anonymous
Get out the vote campaigns: Helpful/hurtful

My Submission For Group Topics

Suggestions for our group.

1. Examination of representation of Political Communication depicted in film.
2. Examining the Perot, Clinton, Bush Sr. debate for the 92 Presidential Debate.
3. Examination of problems and perception of Obama's inherited problems in 2008.

Possible Topics

Group: Spencer, Lanie, J.J.

-Prop 8/ Gay Marriage Law
-Security or Privacy
-"Stand your ground" law and its effects

Possible topics for Jeff, Xavier, Edmund, and Philip...

We don't have a strong commitment yet but we have discussed the following:
1. "Stand your ground" laws and their implications
2. Campaign reform legislation and concepts
3. Entertainment vs news value of Fox News

Presentation Topic

Kony 2012


Brandon
Maria
Shaun
Tess

Hillary Clinton Advocates Gender Equality

ABC posted an article yesterday "Hillary Clinton: US Still Working Toward 'Womens Full Political Participation'". Hillary is advocating for equal women's rights and even calls it the "great unfinished business of the 21st century." She talks about how there is no country in which all women participate in politics, and she urges women to do this. Also, that she wants this not just for America, but globally.
According to the United States Census Bureau from February 2012, women are the majority of the United States population. Rolling in at about 157 mil compared to men's 151.8 mil women take the majority by 5.2 million people! They are also the leading majority in education with 30.7 million women over 25 with bachelors degrees or higher. Men only came in at about 29.2 million with a higher education. This made me think of the article by Tocqueville "Democracy in America." He speaks about how the majority of a population typically, due to sheer size, will rule out the minority vote. So it made me wonder why we have not elected a woman president, and why there is still so much gender inequality in the workplace in regards to power and income. So my question is, if Tocqueville is right about majority vote in America, why are we still behind with gender equality? And when will the women's majority vote, take power and make a change?

http://www.census.gov/newsroom/releases/archives/facts_for_features_special_editions/cb12-ff05.html

http://abcnews.go.com/blogs/politics/2014/03/hillary-clinton-us-still-working-toward-womens-full-political-participation/

Possible Presenation Topics

1. Healthcare Reform and how if affects women's health accessibility.
2. U.S. government spies on its citizens (privacy issues) in relation to internet and cell phones.
3. Unmanned Drones for Airstrikes; Violation of Human Rights.

Presentation topics

1.Ukraine and political response
2. Political campaigns from the upcoming 2014 midterms
3.

Extra Credit Opportunity Next Week!

I hope you're having a great weekend!  I wanted to let you know about an extra credit opportunity coming up next week.

Dr. Dan Reiter, a political science professor from Emery University, will be on campus next Wednesday discussing deception and truth-telling in American foreign policy.  I'd really like to go, but I have to teach at CSULA at this time.  Please go and report back!  The event will take place Wednesday, March 12th, 4-6 PM in the Aronstam Library. 

Even better: By attending this event and writing 1-2 page summary that loosely links the event to class (similar to your blogs), you will receive 5 extra credit points.  Woohoo!

We will talk about this more on Monday, but I wanted to send the word out this weekend to help you all plan accordingly.  As always, let me know if you have any questions!

Presentations

1. Guerilla Girls
2. Ron English and PopGanda
3. FreeMasons

Media's Power & Range

              As all of you may know, this weeks class discussion have focused on the ability and power that media has over our life now. We spent last class lecture discussing the negative aspects in which media has altered our way to gain information and we explored the depths in which companies agenda set the stories we receive. Yet, we did not really focus on the range that media has over our society. In this article I found on US NEWS it elaborated on how media has fundamentaly changed the world. It listed examples on how the media allows us to engage and be apart of change. Whether its through donations or awareness the way we can stay one hundred percent in contact with others is astonishing. The article then expands on the "five" new ways that media is changing politics and our environment. Media has become a powerful tool in connecting with the world. Whether you can "like" "share" "connect" or customize your own news page, the depth in which media can supply information is what changing our world for the better. We are now being offered news, at any point in the day, on any website and on any channel on the radio. Whether its political or entertainment the ability to get the news at an expedite rate is for the better.
http://www.usnews.com/opinion/slideshows/5-ways-new-media-are-changing-politics/5

Chinese Train Station Massacre

It never ceases to amaze me the amount of senseless violence that occurs in this world. Today a group of over 10 people in black clothes and masks ambushed citizens at random at a train station in China. After a shootout between authorities 29 people were left dead, and 130 people were injured. The interesting part to me comes because in the media this incident is being branded as China's 9/11. One thing they have discovered through the investigation is that the perpetrators originated from Xinjiang, which is the home of the Uighurs, an ethnic group present in Western China. 

The reaction is what truly fascinates me because it is reminiscent of the anti-Japanese sentiment during World War II, and also the post 9/11 view on Islam. According to the article there has been a recent pattern in violence in Xinjiang, but much like most Muslims are not going to fly a plane in to a skyscraper in order to fulfill Jihad, the Uighurs are simple and quiet people who are being persecuted now as a result of their misbehaving terrorist brothers and sisters. It has been reported that even apartment building and condo owners are reporting resident Uighurs to the police even without suspicion. If something doesn't happen to curb the occurrences of violence in China as a whole, the Uighurs and other tribes associated with Chinese revolutionaries will surely run to the aid of the country to preserve their reputation.

http://www.businessweek.com/articles/2014-03-02/after-train-station-attack-labeled-chinas-9-11-a-search-for-culprits-focuses-on-minority-group

"How the White House softened Hilary Clinton's image" (blog 4)

A recent article from ABC news highlighted the various ways in which the White House attempted to "soften" Hilary Clinton's stern and serious image while she was the First Lady. In order to "make her involvement in policy seem 'less extreme'", Clinton's advisers pushed her to be more "real" and offered a number of suggestions for doing so, like appearing on the then-popular television show "Home Improvement", harnessing the Internet, avoiding the national press in favor of meeting with local press. They advised her to answer reporters' questions in a conversational rather than defensive style, suggested she participate in a 20/20 interview with the President and Barbara Walters (one framed around their 20th anniversary, so that it would not seem too political) and even gave style advice.

This story reminded me of this week's reading. The media is an extremely powerful force, due largely in part to its reflexivity - as the reading states, it does not only inform us of what is going on in the world, but has a creating/"forming" function as well. It shapes our perceptions of reality, and therefore our opinions. Clinton's advisers used this to their advantage, harnessing the power of television and the Internet to reach as many people as they could. I was young during the Clinton presidency and do not know whether these attempts did anything to "humanize" Hilary or shift public opinion about her (the article does not mention the effects), but my guess is that they did not affect her image too much - or she would not be a contender for the presidency today. I am curious to see how the news media will portray her in the years to come.

Congress pushes for Russia sanctions, Ukrainian aid

The article was about the situation currently going on in the Ukraine. Over the weekend Russia's parliament authorized the use of troops in the Ukraine. As a result of this President Obama had a 90 minute phone conversation with Russian President Vladimir Putin, where he emphasized further political and economical isolation if he continues to intervene in the Ukraine, Obama also noted that he would boycott the upcoming G-8 summit in Russia. After the conversation with Putin, Obama gave a speech on the situation claiming the russia would face "costs" for intervening in the Ukraine. The article then goes on to discuss U.S. Representatives and Senators opinions on possible sanctions against Russia.
I relate this article to the reading by Jamieson because Obama used deliberative rhetoric when he addressed the people about Russia's involvement in the Ukraine. This is similar to when Obama addressed the nation on the S&P downgrade and the gulf oil spill. His response was more deliberative rhetoric than epideictic rhetoric.  

Tone it down, Hilary Clinton

In an article on abcnew.go, there is an interesting post about "six ways the white house tried to soften Hilary Clinton" meaning six ways the white house tried to make Hilary Clinton seem less involved in politics and more feminine and unaware of the real business side of the white house. She was told not to appear defensive, and to be ready to answer questions such as "have you ever done drugs" . Of course she has an image to live up to being the first lady, but why does she need to seem less politically involved?!
    The White House first suggested she appear in "Home Improvement" which was the most popular American television show at the time. They wanted her to seem more like-able and said this would do the trick, but she declined noting that it would diminish the seriousness of her role as first lady. They also suggested that the Clinton's 20th wedding anniversary be publicized, and that they should do an interview for it, since it would not be too political of an event.
   Other suggestions for Clinton included looking for "opportunities for humor" while making public appearances, and to always have a conversational tone of voice as to not seem like she was giving a speech.
     This all goes hand in hand which politics and how people in power market themselves a specific way in order to get a certain reaction from people. It is all staged and their every move is mapped out. This article reminded me of Kathleen Hall Jamieson's article criticizing Barack Obama and his choices . She critiques a eulogy he made for a funeral, and says the setting and pace he spoke changed it into more of a speech. These small elements are very crucial for politicians and impact their image greatly. In Hilary Clinton's case, instead of them trying to make her seem more professional and correct as they do with presidents such as Obama, they were trying to make her seem more aloof and unaware unfortunately because she is a woman.

Arizona Gov. Veto

 In Arizona, there was a recent bill that was vetoed that  would have allowed the right to deny service to gay

and lesbian customers. As an issue that has been seen a lot, I found it interesting that the news will focus on

something that will have to do outside of California, in a  state that will focus mostly in deportation and

immigration. It is also interesting to see how large corporations "surged the oppositions".In other words,

oppositions seem to be something one will never fully have something that will ever change because a

majority vote will always get in the way. The senator who vetoed this bill was Jan Brewer, and she states, "

Religious liberty is a core of American and Arizona value. So is nondiscrimination". With this stated, I feel

like Americas values keep being used, as a center of decision, that seem to always be impacted by the bills

that are highly controversial, such as who to accept and who to treat less.

Facebook: Not As Innocent As We Think

It can be assumed that most people are active Facebook users.  Within the last year, Facebook has introduced a new app called "Facebook Messenger" that allows for an easier messaging experience.  Though this idea seems simple and convenient, recent investigations have shown that this app is far more invasive than one may think.  For example, in the terms of conditions agreement, it states that upon accepting, you are granting Facebook access to not only your personal information, but it can call numbers, take pictures and videos, and most shockingly, record audio from your phone at any given moment without your permission. 

Not only is this highly invasive, it is pretty scary.  Though there are some advantages to this access, such as tracking a suspected individual or using said data as evidence in an important case, this level of invasiveness seems a little bit much.  This strongly correlates with the reading about the ideograph in that it examines privacy versus security.  At which point does one become more important/necessary than the other? 

Ukraine

Well the Ukraine saga just got even crazier. Russia has sent troops to the Crimea region of Ukraine. Putin has said they did this in order to protect Russian interests in the region, the region itself has been very pro-Russian throughout the political upheaval. President Obama had issued a statement saying that any military action would have its "costs". Well the card are all on the table now, the United Nations had an emergency meeting discussing what actions need to be taken.

Governor Brown For One More Round

According to the New York Times, Governor Brown is seeking yet another term as Governor of California.  If elected, this will be the fourth term that Brown serves, as he first took office nearly 40 years ago. While the article does mention Brown’s two opponents, Neel Kashkari and Tim Donnelly, the mention of the two men is is only done so in passing, by simply stating their names and titles.

This article can be related to our reading on “How News Media Shape Political Campaigns.  The reading states that the news gives us Information, which in some cases can be edited, and we use that information to make decisions on things.  After reading this article, and not having much information on the Governor to begin with, I am left with positive feels about him, since the article mainly states positive things, such as the fact that he has brought the state from deficit to surplus, as well as that his approval ratings are at an all-time high.  The article also incorporates quotes from the Governor.  These quotes help build his image as a strong leader. Being that this is one of the only articles that I have read on the Governor, I admit that I am very much uninformed on his politics.  That said, my encounter with this article serves as the perfect example of how news media can shape political campaigns.  Although I would never let one article define my perception of a politician, there are many people out there who would.  In such cases, the shaping of political campaigns begin.

http://www.nytimes.com/2014/02/28/us/brown-to-run-for-re-election-as-california-governor.html

Foreign Aid, who should receive?

According to the New York Times, the Ukrain is in desperate need on "billions of dollars" (1). That without this money immediately the country is bound to fall very badly. The government will be forced to make changes on the foreign aid is administered which would include, "government cutbacks, higher energy costs and structural changes" (1) that has not been previously accepted by the Ukrainian government. The United States is already in progress of planning to send immediate aid to the country in hopes that it will make the necessary changes. However, the worry is presumed by many that the country will use the money to have an alternate agenda and ultimately face turmoil upon not being able to deliver what is requested.

This article related to the "Comparing the Foreign Aid Policies of President Bush and Obama." The article did state that once the aid is administered that the follow through cannot be established by the United States, instead the money is now in the hands of the country in need and sometimes is used to put the country into more turmoil. I also do not think the Ukraine has the intentions that were laid out in the guidelines to seek the aid, however since they are in a very serious crisis, the United States will take the responsibility and assist them with a ton of money and very heavy aid package. I stated in class that whose priority is it to assist what country? It really shows that the Ukraine has some stake that the United States values while other countries that face similar crisis and do not get the aid, are not necessarily as valued according the U.S. perspective.  Also the N.Y. Times article did not speak about the individual human rights of the Ukrainians, and that was a criticism our class article had on how foreign aid did not necessarily recognize human rights. There is a massive human rights violation occurring in the Ukraine and attention needs to be on that first.  

Hope and Expectation as Presidential Rhetoric

On or about February 4, 2014 President Obama was quoted as saying during a nationally broadcast address, "We may disagree about gay marriage, but surely we can agree that it is unconscionable to target gays and lesbians for who they are -- whether it's here in the United States or ... more extremely in odious laws that are being proposed most recently in Uganda". Statements attributed to Secretaries of State Hillary Clinton and John Kerry have also spotlighted the United States liberal stance on gay rights and the extreme anti-gay law, now recently approved, in Uganda. This liberal stance is reflected in the recent veto of an Arizona "gay rights vs Christian rights" law by the governor of said state and the growing trend toward adoption of many pro gay rights legislations in several other states.

Although this issue deserves more attention than I could muster here I will simply relate the afore mentioned remark by President Obama to the class reading entitled "The Contextual Presidency: The Negative Shift in Presidential Immigration Rhetoric" by Damien Arthur and Joshua Woods. This article specifically addresses the issue of immigration rhetoric but also speaks of how presidents use their rhetoric to bring about desired, but as yet unrealized, results. In the opening paragraph of Arthur and Woods' article they write, "The rhetoric is supposed to bring about a desired result...presidents “go public” with their requests with the hope that it will translate into policies". President Obama's remark deftly sidesteps the issue of state's rights concerning marriage and instead focuses on human rights in hopes, I surmise, to influence foreign and domestic policy.

This issue has sparked debates concerning tolerance, state's rights, human rights, legal precedent, and more. One of the more interesting sources I reviewed spoke of the United States as being founded on the principle of a morality of rights rather than a morality of ends as per the following excerpt; "Writing in the wake of Europe's religious civil wars, the liberal thinkers who most influenced the American constitutional framers (John Locke and Montesquieu) treated disagreement about ultimate ends as the normal condition of social life, and then sought to find common moral ground shared by every faction within society, regardless of the ends they pursued. That common ground turned out to be a belief in individual dignity and rights to life and liberty that flow from it" (Linker, Damon. How conservatives lost the culture war. The Week.com)

For those that enjoy a dramatization of some of the issues I offer the following link:
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=jYaewOBGybw

For those that prefer stark reality:
http://www.towleroad.com/2014/02/here-is-the-text-of-ugandas-anti-homosexuality-law-read-it.html