WEEK 9 POST - NEWS ANALYSIS

I apologize for the formatting of this blog, but apparently you can't attach spreadsheets to this blog site. I have spent far too much time trying to get this to post properly. I now give up.

I decided to analyze the Channel 5 mid-day and nightly news programs individually and together. One might think the two news programs would essentially be the same, but they are quite different. I should state that I do not watch the nightly news, and only occasionally watch the mid-day news. I do however watch the morning news on channel 5. I mention my news watching habits in order to illustrate my lack of knowledge regarding these programs. I admit I had a negative preconceived opinion of the nightly news in that I think those programs are more about sensationalism and ratings than reporting the news in an objective manner. With that being said, I tried my best to look at both programs objectively.

The first mid-day news segment (stories that take place before the first set of commercials) began with a male and female anchor, Art Barron and Vineeta Sawkar, respectively, sitting at their studio desk reporting on the top story / local story – the Red River flooding. The anchors then spoke with Elizabeth Ries who was reporting live from Breckenridge where the flood waters were cresting. This story set the pace (a sense of urgency in the voices) and tone (serious) for the rest of the stories prior to the teaser story before the first set of commercials. The teaser story was almost whimsical as it was about Dancing with the Stars which airs on channel 5. The teaser also served as a time to self promote the station’s website.

The second mid-day news segment started with a serious tone, but not quite the same sense of urgency as in segment one. This segment contained the weather forecast which spent a great deal of time talking about the Fargo area. This tone and sense of urgency again changed when the promotional story (Dancing with the Stars week 3 recap) began. The teaser story before the second set of commercials was delivered in a more serious tone. The teaser also served as a time to self promote the station’s website.

The first three stories of the third mid-day news segment started just like segment two, but changed to a less serious, matter-of-fact delivery for the rest of the stories, including the teaser story, to end this segment. The teaser also served as a time to self promote the station’s website.

The fourth mid-day news segment was more relaxed as the anchors and weatherman used a matter-of-fact delivery to recap the top story and weather. These three were happy and smiling as they thanked the viewers for watching, and talked amongst each other as the show went to promote its website.

The times for the segments were 7:45, 7:25, 2:50, and 1:30, respectively. In addition there was 11:30 of commercials. There were two male and three female reporters used throughout the program. If we count the top story as a local story, then local stories were reported at a rate of approximately 2:1 when compared to national stories. The top three amounts of time for this program are as follows: 38.3% commercials, 27.8% local stories, and 15% weather. National news was 12.8%.

The first nightly news segment began with a male and female anchor, John Mason and Leah Mclean, respectively, sitting at their studio desk reporting on the top stories - the Red River flooding and a MN man found dead in Mexico. The anchors first spoke with Tim Sherno who was reporting from the studio on the Mexico story. Then Jennifer Griswold reported live from Fargo by the Red River, followed by Bob McNaney who was reporting live from the Fargo Dome. These stories set the pace (a sense of urgency in the voices) and tone (serious) for the rest of the stories prior to the teaser stories before the first set of commercials. The teaser stories were delivered in a less serious manner, and tried to entice the viewers not to turn the channel by promoting their special report on superheroes in Minneapolis.

The second nightly news segment began with the special report. In and of itself, this was the story that received the most air time (4:30). Chris O’Connell reported from the streets of downtown Minneapolis where he walked around with several superheroes. The superheroes proceeded to show Chris their weapons (these are legal) that they carried. Then an interview with a Minneapolis police officer was shown. The officer stated that he was worried these superheroes could become vigilantes. The story ended with Chris talking with the superheroes about their various acts of goodwill towards the community. The reporter almost seemed to be mocking the superheroes as he talked with them about their patrols.

The stories between the special report and the weather carried the same less serious tone and pace as the special report, but without the mocking. Once the weather started, the tone got more serious and urgent as Dave Dahl reported on the weather up in Fargo. This tone changed immediately when the teaser stories for the third segment were played. All of these stories occurred in the studio.

The third nightly news segment was devoted exclusively to sports. This segment was reported by Phil Aldridge who delivered the various local professional and amateur stories in an upbeat, enthusiastic manner whilst sitting at the studio desk. There were no teasers at the end of this segment.

The fourth nightly news segment began with the only national news story, followed by the show’s wrap up. The wrap up consisted of the two anchors, Dave, and Phil sitting around the studio desk smiling. Dave gave one last weather report, and the anchors thanked the viewers whilst engaging in happy banter amongst themselves.

The times for the segments were 9:10, 9:50, 3:05, and 0:45, respectively. In addition there was 12:10 of commercials. There were seven male and two female reporters used throughout the program. If we count the top stories as local stories, then local stories were reported at a rate of approximately 22:1 when compared to national stories. If the special report is included in the local stories, then the ratio of local to national stories becomes 30:1. The top three amounts of time for this program are as follows: 34.8% commercials, 29.8% local stories, and 12.9% special report. National news was 1.4%.

In order to compare these two programs equally, they would both have to be the same length of time. The mid-day program was 30 minutes long, but the nightly program was 35 minutes long. After looking at the data, it became clear that the big difference between the two programs was the nightly news special report. It seems that channel 5 extended their nightly news coverage by five minutes to include the special report. If the special report and 30 seconds of commercials were removed from the nightly news program, then each program would be the same length of time. This is what I did in the Adjusted Amount of Show column of the comparison table.

The following are similarities between both news programs: (1) consisted of four segments; (2) the top three amounts of time were in the same order; (3) and each spent the same amount of time signing off.

The following are differences between both news programs: (1) there was more than ten times spent on national news stories during the mid-day news; (2) there was no sports report during the mid-day news; (3) even though the nightly news had one fewer teaser, there was twice as much time spent on the nightly news teasers; (4) there were two top stories during the nightly news as opposed to one for the mid-day news; and (5) there was a promotional story for ABC programming during the mid-day news, but nothing during the nightly news.

The above mentioned differences definitely show that the mid-day and nightly news programs are two separate programs, but there are three more differences that really separate the two programs: (1) the mid-day news used more women than men during the broadcast whilst the nightly news used considerably more men than women; (2) the mid-day news had two out of five reporters that were minorities whilst the nightly news had no minorities. I would like to think racism doesn’t exist, especially in the media and entertainment industries, but this makes me think; and (3) the nightly news seemed more concerned with sensationalism.

It seems that the station prefers to use women in more serious roles than men. In both programs, women never did the “softer” stories. Instead, they were anchors, reporting live on the top stories, or representing the national news that ABC was covering. Men were used for less serious roles such as sports, weather, and the special report. I wonder if men are used in these lesser roles because the station is making a feminist statement, which in essence is condescending and discriminatory. As an aside, I have watched the morning news on channel 5 for the last ten years, and have seen two female anchors on numerous broadcasts whilst never seeing two male anchors.

The nightly news seemed to promote sensationalism, especially through the special report. As I watched the special report, it seemed like I was watching a comic book movie. The police are worried about these superheroes becoming vigilantes (this is the premise of Batman, Spiderman, and countless other comic books). There were many interviews with flood victims; showing people in emotional stress, thus supporting my preconceived belief that nightly news is very sensationalized and concerned with rating.

Overall, the mid-day news represents my own personal idea of what news should look like; racial and gender variety along with a more balanced ratio of local to national stories. There was very little sensationalism and thus made me take the reporters more seriously.

WEEK 8 POST - CHATROOM ANALYSIS

After reading the example, I decided that I would use my group’s chat experience as the basis for this week’s blog post. The setting of this chat is through my group’s online chatroom on Web Vista. This chatroom can be accessed by anyone in the class, but it is not available to the general public. Mostly though, the chatroom is only accessed by Erika and me. Chats occur almost every week; Erika and I chat about the given assignments.

The analysis will consist of the following:

Our group’s use of language;
The online chatroom format; and
My personal reflection of this particular chat and the course overall.

Here is the unedited version of last week’s chat regarding media representations (stereotypes):

Adam Fitzpatrick > Hello. How did the subbing go? Erika Heltner >> has entered the room. Erika Heltner > Hey. Sorry I'm late. Crazy trying to get out of school today. How are you? Adam Fitzpatrick > fine. how was subbing? Erika Heltner > Oh, it was good. I had fifth graders today. They're such a nice change from high school kids. They're not apathetic yet. They actually like school! Adam Fitzpatrick > Do you have behavioral issues though? Adam Fitzpatrick > not you, the students Erika Heltner > I got it...No, the kids are really good. I sub at Highlands in Edina, and they seem to be pretty well-trained. I wish my kids in Telluride were as good as these kids. Adam Fitzpatrick > Do you sub often? Erika Heltner > I've been subbing this semester once or twice a week. I could probably sub every day if I had teh time, but this college thing is taking up two days of my week. Adam Fitzpatrick > My cousin subs almost all the time whilst waiting for a full time gig. He subs at Chaska and Anoka. Adam Fitzpatrick > What did you think about the reading this week? Erika Heltner > I love subbing! No planning or grading or anything. I wish I could be a full time sub with the same pay as the real deal. Unfortunately, I don't think that's an available job. The thing that was so hard for me while I was teaching English was the grading...ugh! Erika Heltner > Oh. I'm here. Sorry, I just ran to get coffee. I think I already started talking about the reading last week, so I'll try again. We are talking about Media representations right? Adam Fitzpatrick > I've never minded grading, but then I taught science. My tests were more question-very short answer. I also used a lot of multiple choice. Yes. Now we are on chapter 5. Erika Heltner > I thought the reading was fine. I like anything that encourages critical thinking and that encourages kids to try and see through stereotypes. Adam Fitzpatrick > Do you have a particular example of how you did this with your students? Erika Heltner > In the introduction, they talk about the representation of the Holocaust, and I actually do something with that in my tenth grade class when we read Night. The kids watch Schindler's list in history class, and then they watch Life is Beautiful in my class. They look at the two very unique ways of conveying the Holocaust experience. Have you seen both? Adam Fitzpatrick > I've never heard of Night. I have seen some of Schindler's List, but have never heard of Life is Beautiful. What makes LB different from SL? Erika Heltner > Well, Life is Beautiful is often criticized because people thinks it makes light of the situation. I love the movie because it really presents kind of an existential viewpoint. Life is Beautiful is about a man who gets put into a concentration camp with his son. The father makes the entire experience into a game so teh kid never has to realize what is actually going on. It's a beautiful movie, but very fantastical. So, if you've seen any of Schindler's List, you know that movie is very slow, sad, real. The end is uplifting in a tragic sense (so is Life is Beautiful), but both present the HOlocaust in very different ways. You get teh point... Erika Heltner > Night is Elie Wiesel's account of the Holocaust. He was fourteen or so when he went to Auschwitz. The kids always like the book. It's really sad, but really powerful. Adam Fitzpatrick > Is LB based on someone's own accounts or is it fiction? Erika Heltner > Fiction Erika Heltner > I'm trying to decide which "type" to talk about in my blog. I think maybe I'll try adn talk about the portrayal of teachers. The other thing I'm wondering about our assignment is this: what exactly are we supposed to find in another discipline? How teachers are presented in the journal of psychology? Do you understand this part of the assignment? Adam Fitzpatrick > I admit that I don't know everything about SL, but I think it is very powerful because it is true. Do your students ever question the fact that LB is fictional versus SL which is a real account? Have you ever tried cutting and pasting in this box. Not as easy as it seems. Adam Fitzpatrick > I read a few blogs and this is what I have concluded. Base your response on how teachers view themselves vs. how the media portrays them. I did mine on engineers. Erika Heltner > We definitely talk about the difference between fact vs. fiction. We also talk about the power of stories and memory. We also talk about the concept of whether or not it matters if it's true or not, untold or not? What is the intent of the creator? What message was SL trying to convey? What message was LB trying to convey? We usually ahve good discussions on this... Adam Fitzpatrick > Have you responded to 5 other blogs yet? Erika Heltner > Okay, so I write about how teachers are portrayed in movies. Then, I write about how I view myself? Aren't we supposed to look at how teachers are represented in another discipline like psychology or science? No, I haven't looked at any yet. Adam Fitzpatrick > I don't think it is just in how you view teachers. It is more on how teachers view teachers. As far as another discipline is concerned, I thought that at the beginning. But look at what Thom writes at the end - In other words how do those who are, say, farmers or substance abusers or insomniacs and so on..... represent THEMSELVES? Erika Heltner > Okay, I'll figure it out. I hate fuzzy directions. I always need examples. I guess I'll have to go look at some other blogs anyway, so I'll see then. How do you think engineers are portrayed? Adam Fitzpatrick > Well you can read and respond to my blog, since you have to do that for 5 classmates anyways. In short, I don't agree with the media representations. We're not all nerdlingers who retire to our offices just to run numbers on our calculators. We just happen to be in a profession that no one really thinks about. I'm willing to bet that most people don't think about engineers until something goes wrong or something is done that has never been done before. Case in point, the 35W bridge collapse. Erika Heltner > I definitely agree. I'm trying to think of a movie or show or anything wehre engineers are even portrayed. I'll give you my ideas about teachers... Erika Heltner > It seems like all teachers, if portrayed in a good way, sacrifice their entire lives for their kids. It's as if that is the only way to make an actual difference in a kid's life...to give up everything. I always felt guilt about my lack of sacrifice. I wasn't willing to give up my relationships, my passions, my everything for my students. I always thought balance, if possible, was best. Dangers Minds, Freedom Writers, Lean on Me, you know the movies... Adam Fitzpatrick > I know those movies, and I agree with you. I never sacrificed anything for my students except a high paying job for a non-paying student teaching job. I never felt any guilt, just remorse for giving up so much money for a truly crappy experience. It all worked out in the end, so that is good. As I see it, our time is up. Talk to you next week. Erika Heltner > I'm laughing outloud! Good to know it all worked out...love your honesty. See ya! Erika Heltner >> has left the room.

Our group’s use of language is mostly common everyday English. By this I mean that we write what we say, which most of the time is in complete sentences. I don’t think we use instant messaging or texting word structures, but occasionally we use abbreviations. We always write in a respectful manner, limiting profanity, especially since we write what we say.

The online chatroom format is a bit frustrating for both of us. It may not be evident from this chat, but in general it is a bit frustrating. Specifically, we are not always writing in synchronization. The following is an excerpt illustrating this point:

Adam Fitzpatrick > What did you think about the reading this week? Erika Heltner > I love subbing! No planning or grading or anything. I wish I could be a full time sub with the same pay as the real deal. Unfortunately, I don't think that's an available job. The thing that was so hard for me while I was teaching English was the grading...ugh! Erika Heltner > Oh. I'm here. Sorry, I just ran to get coffee. I think I already started talking about the reading last week, so I'll try again. We are talking about Media representations right? Adam Fitzpatrick > I've never minded grading, but then I taught science. My tests were more question-very short answer. I also used a lot of multiple choice. Yes. Now we are on chapter 5.

As can be seen, we are not communicating in an efficient manner. This tends to happen with us due to two primary factors (1) because I am not that fast at typing, and (2) we are both trying to read what the other one is writing whilst trying to type a response. This was clearly evident in our first chat, where neither of us could keep up with the other person. Since then, we have slowed things down a bit, and the results have been a more efficient chat.

My personal reflection on this chat will conclude my analysis. This chat starts off with Erika writing about her day. She was subbing that day, so our chat had to be pushed back 30 minutes from the suggested starting time. What I like most about our chats in general is that Erika shares her personal teaching experience with me. Usually I feel out of place, since I have only student taught, but this time I actually had something to contribute. Not only did I get to write about the assignment for the week, but I also wrote about my limited teaching experience.

Overall, I feel out of place in this class. I am not a teacher, and even if I was, it would be in science. I still feel that I have done an exemplary job in this class by being one of the first people done with the assignments and following through on every instruction of all assignments (Check week 3 where everyone was supposed to post a link to their commercial analysis along with a preview paragraph. Only Erika and I posted). I am thankful that I have Erika as a group partner because I get a glimpse of a non-science teacher’s perspective on teaching.

WEEK 7 POST - MEDIA REPRESENTATIONS

I’ll compare the media representation of engineers to the self described representation of engineers. I’ll start with the physical description. The media paints a picture of a man with glasses dressed in a shirt, tie and dress pants as the image of an engineer. If they represent a female engineer at all, the female will be dressed in a business suit, and probably wearing glasses. Two media sources one can readily find to illustrate this point are: the comic strip Dilbert and by typing “engineer” into Google images.

Next is the intellectual and social description. Every movie or tv show that depicts engineers in some capacity shows them as smart, hardworking people. This seems to be all Hollywood shows of engineers, implying that engineers are completely dedicated to their work and have no social life. Most of the time you probably don’t even pick up on engineers in movies or tv shows as they are usually background characters. No excitement surrounding them.

I am an engineer, and have been in the engineering field since 1997. Whilst I can confirm that some engineers match the media’s physical representation, most of us don’t. This assignment got me thinking about all the engineers I have ever met or worked with. Most of the male engineers I know dress in jeans with either a polo shirt or a tee shirt. Most of the female engineers I know wear jeans and a nice shirt, but nothing I would constitute as a business suit. About half do wear glasses though.

As far as the intellectual/social representation goes, this is just as ridiculous as the physical representation. I have run across some lazy engineers. As far as the social life is concerned, engineers are just like everyone else. Some are thrill seekers, some are family oriented, and some are athletes. The point is that there is more to life than work, and I can’t think of a single engineer that wouldn’t agree with this comment.

When I read various engineering magazines, the emphasis of the articles and subsequently the pictures, are on fun, innovative projects. If pictures of the engineers are shown, they will most likely be in jeans and a tee shirt working out in the field. I tend to agree more with this type of representation which seems to rebuke the media representation of engineers.

I know several engineers who have played in bands, participate in all sorts of different athletic events such as triathlons and marathons, and are extremely family-oriented.