Soft News

Why is Tiger Woods the highlight of most major networks this morning? He crashed his car at 3 am, so what? Shouldn't the news surround things like Obama's war plan that he will be announcing later on in the week. Or what about Copenhagen? Another thing that would be newsworthy is the amount of runoff elections around the nation and how important it is to vote. Who cares if Tiger Woods has a DUI, or if his wife caused him to crash, that is none of our business. This is nothing but soft news and belongs on the E channel, not on CNN. The amount of soft news is ridiculous and I wish news networks would stick to the news!

Can Old White Men Save the GOP?

It's no secret that the GOP is made up of old white men, but with the changing dynamics of society how long can this last? The republicans are still reeling from last years sweep of both houses and the presidency but this is not their only problem, they are also trying to find their voice. Although it is a hard concept to grasp here in the south but, the republican party is divided among two distinct political ideologies. The moderates are more fiscally conservative and liberal on social issues, however the focus is more economical. The conservatives are the ones we are more familiar here at Kennesaw, they are conservative on both social issues and economic ones. This may seem normal to have a divide among a political ideological group but, the more radical conservatives are not as accepting of the more moderate ones. Case in point the New York 23rd district.
The New York 23rd was a district in New York, one in which a democrat had not won in over 20 years and when a moderate republican was nominated, the radical conservatives revolted and entered their own candidate. Even Sarah Palin endorsed uber conservative Doug Hoffman who ran as a 3rd party candidate, the Conservative party. Feeling the pressure the republican dropped out of the race last minute and endorsed the democratic candidate, Bill Owens. Ultimately the district went to the democratic candidate and the GOP is faced with a questionable future.
If the Republican party continues to split what does the future hold? Unless they can come to terms on social issues and the die hards can learn to compromise, this is unlikely. We may be on the brink of a 3 party system if this continues. Party identification has declined in the last 100 years what if it continues? What do you think?

statistics

Last week I opened the KSU Sentential, our student newspaper. I was interested in an opinion ed piece on the effects of Obama and how it is influencing votes. This article focused on the aftermath of the off year elections both New Jersey and Virginia and how both went to the Republicans. The author spoke of how Obama campaigned for the democratic candidate in Virginia and yet this was not effective. He also went on to say that this was a message to the DNC that Obama is no longer "an invincible electoral engine" as he was a year ago. He also went on to claim that Obama and his politics is causing our country to become more republican. I would have to disagree. First, Virginia historically has voted for the party not in power when it comes to gubernatorial elections, even when Regan was in office.
The author goes on to quote a Gallop poll, "40 percent of Americans considering themselves conservative, 37 percent calling themselves moderate and 20 percent identifying themselves as liberal." yet when I researched the article it goes on to say, "Thus far in 2009, Gallup has found an average of 36% of Americans considering themselves Democratic, 28% Republican, and 37% independent. When independents are pressed to say which party they lean toward, 51% of Americans identify as Democrats, 39% as Republicans, and only 9% as pure independents." This shows how easily statistics can be manipulated. Yes Conservatives are the biggest group, yet more people vote democratically.
So if these three elections are predictors in the 2010 races what do you think? Virginia and New Jersey both switched parties in the gubernatorial races. However, the New York 23rd is also important especially since it determined a house seat. Is Obama moving the country to the right? Maybe. Lets not forget that Bush moved our country to the far left and beyond so maybe this is just it's way of fixing itself.

As we were talking about in class on Monday, advertisements can be very influential and not depending upon the person and the message. This is occurs a lot in anti drug ads targeted at teenagers. We also spoke of the MTV movement "rock the vote" which may be the only saving grace the music network has. As many of you well know young voters have the lowest turnout percentage of anyone and are incredibly difficult to mobilize. So, celebrities have started to do PSA that encourage the youngins to get out the vote. The most memorable of these was definitely Puff Daddy aka Puffy aka Sean Diddy Colmbs aka P Diddy (I have no idea what to call him) and his Vote or Die attire. P Diddy has paved the way and many celebrities have jumped on this bandwagon. One of these advertisements I found on youtube was probably the most effective of the ones I saw. Instead of the brash message of Vote or Die, or Rock the Vote young celebrities encourage the viewer to not vote. "Don't vote because you don't care about health care, or the financial crisis or education or women's rights or abortion rights" the list goes on and on. They go on to identify the reasons one might rationalize not voting, but should anyway. The commercial has a sarcastic and even humorous tone. At one point Sarah Silverman says "you can literally register to vote while you poop, if you have a laptop." I enjoyed this ad greatly and I hope it had the desired effect. It is one of the first celebrity endorsement that I have seen that could fulfill its intent. What do you think?

fort hood

Regan had the Challenger Expolosion, Clinton had the Oklahoma City Bombing, Bush had 9/11, and now Obama has Fort Hood. The speech was incredible, just like all of his speeches. He spoke of not only honoring our grandfather's generation, but our own as war heros. "This generation has more than proved itself the equal of those who have come before. We need not look to the past for greatness, because it is before our very eyes," the President said. He also talked about every one of the victims as individuals. I do not doubt the President's sincerity however, its hard to really trust him. A person in class commented that Obama is all talk and that it is hard to believe what he says, because so many focus on his words and his promises only to be let down. Obama is a charasmatic leader and it is easy to get caught up in his words. However has only been in office for 11 months and I have been satisfied with many of the choices he has made. What do you think?

Mormons Do It Again

As many of you remember the Proposition 8 referendum that overturned the legislative decision to allow same sex marriages. Many believe that the reason No on 8 was struck down is because of the money donated and the ads used to persuade the impressionable voters to vote yes on prop 8. In California contributions totaled over "$83 million from over 64,000 people in all fifty states and more than twenty foreign countries, setting a new record nationally for a social policy initiative and trumping every other race in the country in spending except the presidential contest”. Political leaders and religious groups became deeply involved in both sides of the issue, however the main religious group that contributed the biggest amount was the Church of Latter-day Saints." It is estimated that “about 45% of out-of-state contributions to ProtectMarriage.com(and no on 8 interest group) came from Utah, over three times more than any other state. ProtectMarriage, the official proponents of Proposition 8, estimate that about half the donations they received came from LDS sources, and that "eighty to ninety percent" of the early volunteers going door-to-door were LDS. The LDS Church produced and broadcast to its congregations a program describing the opposition to the Proposition, and describing the timeline it proposes for what it describes as grassroots efforts to oppose the Proposition. Advertisements such as
These ads were countered with a quote from the State Attorney General who said” the law would have no effect on what is taught in schools.” As for contributions for these attack ads, an investigation by the state ethics commission has began and many believe it is Mormon activists considering very similar ads to those shown in California. I do not know who is behind these ads and if that is important at all. What is important is that he voters in both states where they were given the opportunity to vote on these referendums denied them. I would be interested to see a poll to see if these ads are what caused people to vote yes on the referendums. What do you think?

What Killed the McCain Campaign

One of my most favorable moments from the 2008 election was McCain during the debates wandering around like a senile old man. It reminded me of the famous Kennedy-Nixon debate and how that was the tipping point that ended Nixon’s chances in 1960. In my personal opinion any Republican candidate would have received bad press in last year’s election. It was almost impossible to follow Bush and be seen as favorable, so many saw McCain and thought “four more years”. This fear that the liberals instilled in the public that McCain was just another Bush plus the media’s portal is what killed McCain in the 2008 election. However it is generally agreed that no Republican candidate would have won. As someone in class said, McCain was not as pretty as Obama, and that does have something to do with choice, however I believe the media portrayal is what killed his candidacy. Fox and other conservative media outlets saw McCain as too middle of the road, too moderate, and liberal outlets cried Bush several times. During the race the media would latch on to many bad sound bites such as McCain wondering around it made him seem as though he was not fully capable of running a country. He seemed disconnected and once Palin was introduced as his running mate it scared many people because they questioned McCain’s life span and it became an reality that Sarah Palin could be running our country. She was the tipping point for the downfall of the McCain campaign. Sarah Palin at the time had never been out of the country, and was more inexperienced than Obama. The media was quick to judge her and her personal family drama as well as her annoying accent, which even furthered McCain’s bad press. Some critics said that McCain’s choice was fueled by an attempt to gain distraught Hillary supporters, but many of those felt as if Palin was a mockery of a powerful female. Many of the Hillary supporters although unhappy with the choice of Obama, still voted for him over the McCain-Palin ticket. All in all I believe that the bad press coverage John McCain received specifically after selecting Sarah Palin as his running mate killed his chances as President of the United States. Comment away!

Glenn Beck Slams Obama Encouraging Volunteerism: "Almost Like We're Living In Mao's China" (VIDEO)

Glenn Beck said earlier last week that volunteerism would be encouraged throughout sources of the media, and according to Beck this is due to Obama's influence over the media. Beck says during his show "Are we running out of volunteers in this country?... Are we trying to fix a problem that doesn’t exist? Are we creating a problem that doesn’t exist? To have an emergency that doesn’t yet exist? Or is it just a coincidence that all of this falls into line with President Obama’s Corporation for National and Community Service.” Beck even had an actor dressed as chairman Mao sitting next to the "whitehouse phone line".

Beck is upholding his job as a political watchdog, but is this really news worthy information? To discourage volunteerism? As well as delivering soft news, Beck uses all dramatization and authority disorder to address Obama's call to acton. Beck uses his show as a forum to introduce his conspiracy theory of Obama controlling the media.

Beck went on to say “President Obama has called for a new era of responsibility… recognition on the part of every American that we have duties to ourselves, our nation and world to serve others,” Beck read sarcastically. “It is the price and promise of citizenship. In response, our television community with the Entertainment Industry Foundation will launch a multi-year campaign to inspire action and promote a new way of thinking about service. “ What he fails to mention is that the EIF program, called “I Participate” morphed out of a bi-partisan call to action by then-candidates Barack Obama and John McCain.

Why would Beck discourage people from volunteering and discourage a President who want our youth to become involved in the community. As far as the entertainment industry is concerned, why would they not want to latch on to this idea, it is inherently good. Would it really hurt our nation if more people volunteered?

ads

Due to the impending mayoral election in my home city of Atlanta, I thought I would take the time to analyze some of the ads each candidate has aired.

One of Mary Norwoods:



Norwood takes on a working for Atlantans persona in this ad which focuses on her personality more than issues. This ad also shows her interacting with a specific race, as to attract the black vote since she is running against three African Americans. It is an action spot, one that shoes the candidate in action, talking to constituents, and all while in her small Buick. Toward the end of the ad she says that there is no need for her to own another car, proving that she is just "one of the people". This is of course done to attract voters because she is attempting to steer away from the stereotype that politicians become are flashy. I have a biased view of Mary Norwood, I feel as if she is weak and it bothers me that in the last mayo rial debate she could not recall if she voted for Bush in the 2004 elections. I also disagree with her policy stances as such to track all the repeat offenders using tax dollars through a program in which she could not even explain herself. I honestly believe Norwood is a wolf in sheep's clothing, trying to keep herself from the stereotype of a republican. if anyone is following this election please comment.

soda tax?

It is no secret that childhood obesity is on the rise and in response to this a excise tax on sugary beverages has been proposed. It would add a few pennies on to sodas that contained less than 70% of fruit juice, and no diet drinks would be effected. The revenue from this would benefit expanding the health care system. The Congressional Budget Office estimated that adding a tax of three cents per 12-ounce serving to these types of sweetened drinks would generate $24 billion over the next four years. Those in favor say the tax would lower soda consumption, reduce health problems and save medical costs. Plus, at least a dozen states already have some type of taxes on sugary beverages.
As expected this tax has many that oppose it, those including lobby groups that represent the big two soda companies, Coca Cola and Pepsi co. They claim that this tax will hurt only those with a low income.
Once a tax such as the soda tax is announced it is hard not wonder what will be taxed next. Cigarette taxes were just added, but why not taxes on companies that use excess amount of trans fats or a tax on alcohol. A tax on things that are unhealthy is understandable especially if the revenue brought in went to benefit health care or education programs to teach children how to be responsible adults. Maybe if the soda was just a few more cents than the healthier fruit juice more people would buy healthier products. I think a big problem with our obesity epidemic is that the food that is bad for you is much cheaper than the food of high quality that is healthier.

and the Oscar goes to....

Is he attempting to re-enact Russell Crowe's performance in "A Beautiful Mind", except instead of brilliant theories, all he manages to comes up with is mis-spelled paranoid garbage?
http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=l92Rldafp_U

H1N1

I was reading an article on Tuesday where Dr. Gupta gives advice to parents regarding the media's coverage of a swine flu outbreak. The media has taken this idea of massive pandemic and blew it out of proportion, especially toward the end of last years flu season. Gupta says, "People were scared, more than I had seen in a long time. And, health care professionals were blaming the media -- accusing them of being alarmist". This is true, the media was giving swine flu a lot of air time, describing the symptoms and claiming that as many as 50% of our population will contract swine flu. Some outlets going as far as to call this the next major pandemic.

Dr. Gupta, in response to all the hype, decided to observe an pediatric emergency room, because children are particularly susceptible. According to Gupta, ER attendance is up almost 2-3x more than normal. My mother, who is the Director of Infection Control at Piedmont Hospital agrees. She has seen ER attendance that is considerably higher than before and the majority of patients are there complaining of flu like symptoms, and claim they have swine flu.
The media loves to comment on the death tolls, symptoms, and projected outcomes of this flu. However, they concentrate on the bad cases ones that involve those with weakened immune systems, like the elderly and infants. Instead of educating, I feel the media has crossed the line, they would much ignite fear in the hearts of the public.

Gupta had some advice for those about swine flu which I found interesting and very true. Basically Swine Flu is the flu, and can be solved by taking a few days to sleep and drink plenty of fluids. If you think you may have Swine flu, call a doctor, don't go to the ER unless, you can't breathe, your fever lasts for longer than 3 days, you can't urinate, or you are sick enough that you would normally go to the ER. Gupta debunked one more myth, "Yes, hearing between 30,000 and 90,000 could die from H1N1 is scary, but keep in mind -- around 40,000 people die from the regular or seasonal flu every year. The numbers may not be that much different, yet there is not panic about the regular flu. As things look now, H1N1 is causing only mild to moderate illness, not the widespread deaths people are worried about".
I am more than pleased with this form of journalism, it is informative yet it does not strike fear in the hearts of millions. This is what good media is all about.

Fairness Doctorine version 2.0?

Along with the conservative fears that America is headed for socialism, they also seem to believe that the Fairness Doctrine will be reinstated. "We want to serve notice with the Broadcaster Freedom Act that we as Republicans are drawing a line in the sand and I hope this won't just be Republicans," DeMint said. "We're looking for Democratic co-sponsors, but we are not going to allow this rule to be reenacted either by the FCC, by the Obama administration or by Congress.
"There is evidence in the past that administrations of both parties have used the Fairness Doctrine to go after people they oppose by threatening their licenses when those licenses were up for renewal," Walden said. "And that's the core of the issue here - is that government bureaucrats will decide whether a broadcast station owner gets his license or her license again - or is somehow punished for not having exactly the right other view on the airwaves."

Is this really a rational fear? Is the Obama administration really going to go around and shut down every radio station that opposes their views? As discussed in our debate on Wednesday I believe that it is the media's job to check government and sometime oppose what our government is doing. However conservative radio stations are making a killing during these times, striking fear in the minds of Americans everywhere. I honestly do no t believe that this bill will see the light of day, I honestly believe that it opposes the first amendment and that this is just another fear tactic.

Hello! I'm Laura, a 22 year old Political Science major. I only have a year and a half left which makes me ecstatic, however I am still unsure of what I will do after that. In addition to school, I also work as a nanny for autistic child during the week, and wait tables on the weekend. Last summer and fall I worked for the Obama campaign which was a lot of fun. I would really like to intern for a politician in the next year, maybe for the gubernatorial campaign that is up and coming. I have heard great things about this class, and am excited to read everyones blogs!