PressEthic

When asked about Iraq last week, President Bush replied, "Absolutely, we are winning," as quoted in The Times. In the same speech, Mr. Bush asked the American public for patience and to disregard negative press regarding the war. But once more it appears he is not being forthright with Americans.

Philadelphia Magazine’s most recent front cover story on a surge of murders in the city (and it’s accompanying graphic) has hotel owners concerned over how it will portray the city to visitors, and Ed Grose, executive director of the Hotel Association has asked managers to refrain from outfitting their rooms with the issue.

I recently read an interesting article in Monday’s USA Today that discussed a case regarding ‘partial-birth’ abortion rights and limits. The article discussed how Ilene Jaroslaw, a 43-year-old lawyer from New York City decided to undergo ‘partial-birth’ abortion after finding out the fetus she was carrying had a fatal spinal cord injury. What is specifically interesting is that Jaroslaw had the abortion as Congress was debating its ban on ‘partial-birth’ abortion. The Partial-Birth Abortion Ban Act of 2003 essentially restricts certain medical options for women, which is something that the media fails to cover when discussing pro-life and pro-choice.

What media-related checks and balances govern the general manager for two TV stations in Bangor, Maine, who banned the broadcast of global warming stories?

More than merely an example of student activism, recent protest at Gallaudet University could also illustrate the influence of bloggers in an ever-changing world of print journalism.

Blogger and Gallaudet graduate Ricky Taylor calls himself “arguably the most controversial deaf blogger in America,” reported National Public Radio on October 25th. Taylor claims the traffic on his site to have quadrupled since the protests began.

“Protesters demanding the resignation of the new president at Gallaudet get much of their information from Taylor and dozens of other deaf bloggers. Deaf people rely heavily on e-mail and the Web,” said Joseph Shapiro of NPR.

Senator John Kerry spoke to a group of students at Pasadena City College yesterday and told them in so many words that they'd better stay in school or they would run the risk of getting stuck in Iraq. (Which is a true statement) President Bush and other republicans are jumping on the bandwagon saying that Kerry's comment was disrespectful to the troops now serving in Iraq. I strongly disagree. Kerry said what most of the troops are saying- no one wants to be in Iraq, the American people do not want our troops there and our troops themselves want to come home.

The Republican National Committee has put out a commercial of footage from several Osama bin Laden and Al Qaeda interviews. With the elections creeping closer and closer, it seems as if the Republican party has become so afraid to lose their seats in Congress that it has stooped to scaring the American population into voting for them.

The ad readers must sit through in order to access Salon.com for free has moved from its front page prominence to the more covert location within partial text of the articles.

CNN publishes stories from "America's Finest New Source" on their website.

With the advent of budget and staff cuts at newspapers and magazines in America as well as across the Atlantic, British papers are taking a novel and, some say, radical approach to journalism.

Dick Cheney recently said that he believed the surge in violence in Iraq to be an attempt by insurgents to affect the upcoming American election. After all, they have access to the internet as well.

Now, I realize that my ability to tap into the "insurgent" mind is rather limited. One significant reason being I don't speak Arabic. So I went searching around English language Arab sites for some coverage of the midterm elections. What I found falls far short of a provocation to bomb a crowded marketplace for the detriment of Republicans, but it was interesting nonetheless.

The fervor surrounding all things political has created a situation where few can see outside their line of tunnel vision. And yet the climate of the moment also grants political enthusiasts a unique opportunity to capture the passion of the people and create a politically conscious community, which is too often lacking.

With the ongoing conflict at the Los Angeles Times breeding speculation on possible outcomes, there is a tendency to categorize the possibilities as either good or bad.

Chevrolet recently unveiled a new advertising campaign for their Chevy Trucks that features a song by John Cougar Mellencamp entitled "Our Country." The commercial includes a montage of historical anecdotes, from the Vietnam War to Hurricane Katrina and even 9/11. Has Chevrolet gone too far?

As a graduate student in the journalism department at New York University, I know that on some level I am delaying the inevitable: finding a job. I knew the discouraging state of the industry when I enrolled in school. Yet, I’m no delusional idealist. Someone will give me a job within the profession that I love. Right?