P10: Class Reflection

In this class, I learned to critically examine the news sources that are available to our generation and how to successfully use your personal news sphere. I also thought more about the role that technology plays in our lives and the influence that it has had on our generation as opposed to previous ones.

I think that in our new world of technology and globalization, that it's important to analyze where you get your news from and what your opinion is. We need to be careful not to be spoon fed our information and opinions because there are now so many media platforms.

I think that using blogger as our main platform for homework was a great idea and that it improves your writing to consistently write small pieces. I liked that this was something that was never too strenuous but always got me thinking. I think that writing for this blog helped me to write for other classes because it helped me get used to consistently writing.

9/11: A Decade of News

  The terrorist attack of September 11th was a significant event that impacted the lives of American citizens in a profound way in addition to being an exceptionally large media story. This event changed politics, economics and diplomatic relations across the world. Yet the impacts on the media realm are often overlooked. This tragedy was reported nearly immediately and has been an important domestic and international political issue, which has engendered discussion throughout the past decade. The role of the media in 9/11, as a source of info that paralleled real time events, was unprecedented and added to the significance of the attack in terms of everyday American life. An event of this magnitude was bound to have important consequences. A closer look at this event, in terms of media importance, shows the long-term impact 9/11 has had on American journalism.

            One of the most important aspects of the media response to 9/11 terrorist attacks was the immediacy with which they were reported to the rest of the United States. Television networks were among the first to report the attacks on the Twin Towers with the first broadcast occurring at 8:48 AM just minutes after the attacks. For example, ABC’s Good Morning America interrupted it’s broadcast to show live coverage of the event with a national correspondent describing the scene after the first attack. Speculation flowed within the first few days of September 11th, as it was unclear, according to ABC reporter Don Dahler whether it was a plane or possibly even a missile that hit the buildings. The attacks on 9/11 show the growing importance of technology, and television especially, as a source of media and news. Newspapers reported the tragedy with special afternoon editions and front-page headlines the following day, but television was the main informant for the majority of Americans. Parents were watching TV before and during work and many kids still remember watching media coverage of the attacks on 9/11 during school. The terrorist attacks of 9/11 contributed to the essential role that television has for our generation to receive news and displays the impact of receiving news so immediately.

Although learning of the attacks was of course important for American citizens, it also had the potential to incite panic and fuel detrimental beliefs about Muslim or Middle Eastern people. This event had important ethical and moral implications for news media due to the sensitive and complex nature of the issue. American support for the US government and current president George Bush skyrocketed on a short-term level in response to such a blatant attack on US soil. According to Gallup polls conducted in 2002 after the tragedy, approval ratings for Bush increased from 57% to 87%. The response of the Bush administration to 9/11 is even now a subject of discussion as the “war on terror” continues. The media story of the attacks on September 11th served an important role in American politics through providing Bush’s presidency a temporary rise in approval and precipitating a change in American opinions on US foreign policy.

Following September 11^th, some Americans chose to point out the flaws of the US government and the potential implications for military response. Others went radically in the opposite direction and called for large scale attacks on the Middle East and the countries suspected of harboring terrorists. Politicians, even today, call upon the events of 9/11 in order to evoke emotional connection and therefore gain support. Even popular comedy shows like Family Guy and Saturday Night Live have made light of the situation with pokes at American inadequacies and the ability of the attacks of 9/11 to incite blind patriotism. Blogger Andrew Sullivan writes in his article “Why I Blog”, “my readers and I experienced 9/11 together, in real time. I can look back and see not just how I responded to the event, but how I responded to it at 3:47 that afternoon. And at 9:46 that night. There is a vividness to this immediacy that cannot be rivaled by print. (Sullivan 2008)” Sullivan discusses the importance of an immediate media reaction and the interaction between the audience and media.  

Each of these different perspectives was featured and promoted on talk shows, nightly news, blogs and other media sources. The attacks on 9/11 were portrayed by the American media in a variety of lights and persist as an important issue that can be twisted and used unethically. This unique and tragic event was given the potential to be seen in multiple lights by the media and continues to be a source of unity or division and controversy for the American people.

            The terrorist attacks of 9/11 had an immediate impact worldwide as airports in the US immediately closed and the US stock market closed on September 12^th. These important US institutions affected the international economy and stalled travel throughout the globe. The European stock markets observed a minute of silence in honor of the victims of 9/11. It was also, of course, the first event in the continuing involvement in the Middle East, which has become a major source of controversy, both for American citizens and from an international perspective. 9/11 caused a dramatic increase in airport security in the United States, complicating international travel, and also changed policies regarding foreign intervention. These literal changes to American views on the international community prompted changes in foreign policy and in international opinion on the United States, which will likely persist for future generations.

September 11^th impacted foreign views of American policy with sympathy for the victims on one hand and on the other hesitation and suspicion about the response of the US government. International reactions to the “war on terror” and the impact on general opinions of Americans are among the main consequences of the attacks on 9/11. In Tomasz Pludowski’s study of the international media reactions to 9/11 he says “the Guardian and the Irish Times framed British culture as superior to American, and with the Times, posited that a new ideology involving an international alliance of world powers, including the Saudis, might be one of the consequences of the tragedy. (Pludowski 2007)” Predictions ranged from sentiments like this to dire condemnations of American foreign intervention to support for the US government’s decision to invade the Middle East. In this instance, 9/11 can be seen as a media event that shaped international opinions on the United States and was interpreted in a variety of lights by the international media.

The attacks on 9/11 also impacted the realm of media that concerns entertainment. Just as during the Cold War and Vietnam War popular movies portrayed Soviet and Vietnamese villains in movies, the American media has targeted radical terrorists as the new “bad guy” in movies. TV shows like NCIS and Hawaii 5-0 show bearded terrorists countering the heroic American law enforcers and even portrays the possibility of nuclear attack. I think that the media has played on the fears of Americans in some ways and that it promotes stereotyping the enemy into one image of a bearded Middle Eastern man strapping a bomb onto his chest. Negative reactions to the war on terror are also seen in songs like Green Day’s “American Idiot” and are reminiscent of anti-war protests during the Vietnam War in which celebrities became vocal against American foreign involvement. September 11^th and the war on terror also parallel the Vietnam War in the involvement of the media that causes ordinary citizens to have intimate knowledge, often in the form of photos and videos, of the American military’s actions.

However, the American media has also promoted patriotic images of firemen, police officers, and other government workers to a status that was previously less acknowledged. The media has seized on the opportunity that 9/11 presents to call upon patriotic images and situations. The United States experienced a certain immediate response to the terrorist attacks that increased the use of patriotic images and sentiments. Joshua Terry writes in his article “The Impact of 9/11 on Popular Media” that shows like 24, which focus on the hyper-masculine and patriotic character Jack Bauer and his fight against terrorism, would not be nearly as popular if not for 9/11. In addition many documentaries and movies, like Flight 93, World Trade Center, and 911, have been created post-9/11 in order to capitalize on patriotic sentiments. The American media focused on the rise in patriotism to promote images of hardworking officials and foster reflection on the impact of the attacks.

            I believe that 9/11 was one of the most important events of my generation and remember seeing the news broadcasts and media reactions from the perspective of a third-grader. The attacks of September 11^th left a stamp in my memory and I can still recall waking up to see my parents watching the news coverage on TV. I remember feeling confused and scared that something like this could happen in a country that I had always thought of as the most free and safe. 9/11 reminded our country that we were vulnerable and forced us all to consider our role as a hegemonic power in the world. I think that 9/11 had an unimaginable impact on modern media and that it brought to light, the connection between counties and impact Americans have on global issues. The story of 9/11 has evolved in many ways to effect things like entertainment preferences to international opinions on the United States to foreign involvement in the Middle East. In these ways, I think that this story provoked thought and argument in relation to security and international interactions. In the decade following the terrorist attacks of September 11^th, the events of that day have had a profound impacts on politics and international relations but also promoted the media as a conductor for positive and negative opinions on US foreign involvement and general American attitudes on their role in the world. 

P9: Taking an Approach

"And much as many creative artists transform prior texts into new works of their own, so, too, academics often rewrite the approaches of thinkers who have influenced them."
-Joseph Harris 

I would explain "Taking an Approach" as a means of shaping your writing by the influence and styles of previous writers. Harris describes "taking an approach" as acknowledging influences, turning an approach on itself, and reflexivity. "Acknowledging influences" involves recognizing the work of authors whose work you now model your own after or are influenced by. "Turning an approach on itself" is using a key element or question that another author does to strengthen your own writing or develop a new perspective. "Reflexivity" means acknowledging and analyzing your own style of writing and the key elements that you use to construct your text.

I think the New York Times has a unique approach in that its writing is more academic and factual in contrast to other news sources on the web. I don't think the New York Times really takes the approach of other newspapers because it is such a major player in the media. I think that they definitely have a similar style to other media outlets, but is this because they are borrowing from each other? or because they have all grown throughout the century to have a cohesive style of reporting?


I think that DailyIntel has a much less academic feel to it because they will often put jokes into their writing and little snippets of opinion carefully packaged into a parenthesis. DailyIntel has a simple black and white layout that is similar to other news sources that may be an "approach" that is taken. I think that DailyIntel uses a sense of humor to translate hard news stories into the articles that they post and that this makes it more enjoyable to read and more marketable to others.

P8: Literacy in Three Metaphors and New Literacy

I wrote in P1 of this unit about my news sources and the various ways that I obtain news. I mentioned various sources on the Internet, friends, and the newspaper. I mention in the post that "I also learn about a  lot of news through word of mouth. If a friend comes to me with a situation or event I haven't heard of, my first instinct is to search for it online." I think that learning about news events by "word of mouth" can be helpful in keeping up to date but can also lead to miscommunication and misinformation. 


For example, on my way up to the mountains for a snowboarding trip a friend in the back seat mentioned that Kim Jong-Un had been assassinated in China. She verified the story online and we all speculated as to who did it and what that would mean for North Korea. I didn't check the news that weekend and when I came back I was shocked to hear that Kim Jong-Un was alive and kicking. It turns out that the story had been leaked by an intern at a news company and had exploded on Twitter. American officials announced that they had no reason to believe the North Korean leader had been killed and that this was all a hoax. 


In this way, "word of mouth" can be detrimental to a news story and can cause confusion. I think that this is also a good example of "word of mouth" on the Internet through social networking. Twitter, Facebook and even Tumblr can be sources of misinformation because things get re-tweeted, re-posted, or re-blogged without any fact checking. I think that this parallels real life because things can often be misheard or misunderstood when transferred from one person to another in conversation; like the old kids game telephone. We live in a complex age of information and with this come many risks. I think that it is important to rely on sources that you trust and to be sure to do your own independent research on things that are especially pertinent to you.

P7: Countering

"To identify what a text fails to do, you need to be clear about what it achieves-or at least what it attempts."
-Joseph Harris

Harris elaborates on the art of argumentation in his chapter on "countering" which focuses on arguing the other side, uncovering values, and dissenting as the main forms. Arguing the other side involves affirming that an opposing belief has merit or noting faults within the argument. Uncovering values involves finding the areas of an argument that have been left out and elaborating on why they're important. Dissenting is finding a common strand within your own argument and the counter argument in order to bring strength to your own. 


DailyIntel published an article titled "Obama's Dumb Deficit Promise" that concerned the Republican argument that Obama has not fulfilled his promise to cut the deficit in half. This article argues in favor of Obama's actions in saying that cutting the deficit would have raised taxes exponentially and been more detrimental to economic recovery than beneficial. The author even concedes that "it’s certainly true that he has broken his promise" but goes on to elaborate on why this is not a bad thing. I think that this a good example of "countering" because the author skillfully points out why this argument is flawed, pinpoints areas that are correct and elaborates on what should be done instead.

P6: Forwarding

"But a text is also an artifact; it is not only something you say but something you make."

-Joseph Harris  

In Rewriting Chapter 2, Harris introduces the idea of illustrating, authorizing, borrowing and extending as forms of "forwarding" a text. Harris utilizes e-mail, a previous metaphor, to describe "forwarding" as a continuation of thoughts and comments as opposed to a simple reply which takes you back to the original work. Each of the different methods of "forwarding" focus on expanding on a piece of text. Illustrating uses text to describe non-text sources like videos, pictures and other media. Authorizing uses direct quotes to authorize an idea or concept the author will elaborate or build off of. Borrowing takes an idea from another author and uses it within their own piece to strengthen an argument. Extending uses an idea and elaborates and changes it to fit their own piece.

DailyIntel had a recent article entitled "Isn't Foster Friess's Bad Aspirin Joke Basically Rick Santorum's Actual Perception on Contraception?" This article concerned the controversial joke that one of Rick Santorum's affiliates, Foster Friess, made in which he declared that the most effective birth control is to "hold an aspirin between your legs." The article directly quotes Santorum and Friess in order to authorize their comments and make the situation clear. Then the author breaks down how the joke was a crude way to say "keep your legs together" or to promote abstinence. Although Santorum obviously wants to distance himself from a vulgar way of advocating for abstinence, the author points out that Friess was actually following Santorum's platform. I think that the use of authorizing greatly strengthens the authors argument and adds to the truth of the story. 

P5: Blogs and the New York Times

Upon first glance, there are similarities between the blog I'm following, DailyIntel, and the New York Times based solely on layout and appearance. I think that the content of the two websites are also similar and that they both have a balance between hard news, like politics, and soft news, like entertainment pieces. However, the New York Times' front page is more hard news focused and keeps the soft news portion of the website tucked under easy tabs like Art and Travel. DailyIntel posts multiples of each type of news a day and makes things a bit less organized. I think that I prefer reading the New York Times to DailyIntel but that there are a lot of silly, interesting stories on the blog that I enjoy as well.


I think that the New York Times is an example of a news source adapting from the old model of news to fit the press sphere. The New York Times now boasts a variety of different content all available at one website. The site also allows for comments on its stories and provides further information about the author, like a short bio or e-mail address, than a newspaper would. I think that there definitely is a press sphere and that New York Times is a major component of this as it is a major media outlet in the United States.


I think that DailyIntel is a component of the press sphere that is smaller than the New York Times but that is still important to the media world. The constant feed of news stories, comments, links to original stories, and the variety of topics shows how news sources have evolved since the era of daily newspapers. I think that despite the DailyIntel not being as widely read as other sources, that it is an important example of non-conventional sources of news.