COM 375 Assignments 1 & 2

This page is intended to assist students having issues or problems creating or setting up their blogger accounts and figuring out "what is what". First, this Youtube video entitled Blogs in plain English; it serves as an introduction to blogs in the NEWS/JOURNALISM context.
We (the class) will be using blogger - let me first share a link for those who wish to create a new blogger account.
You should be able to register, so long as you have an active account with Goggle, GMail, Youtube, or Hotmail, among others; you will of course need the password to that account in order to authorize yourself.
What Dr. Hedrick will need in order to grade Assignments 1 & 2
Students will need to create a new blog, then send Dr. Hedrick the URL in an an emil to his GEM account: jhedrick@jsu.edu Your URL link should look like this: http://xxxxxxxxxxxx.blogspot.com
If it doesn't, you either (a) have not created a blog post yet or; (b) are sending the wrong URL.
Let me explain: when you are logged in to your blogger account, you might be in one of several different areas:
#1 your Google plus account page
#2 your Blogger profile
#3 an actual blog post you created
#4 your blogger homepage (which has a list of your various blog posts)
Besides the visibles cues (the visible content in the web browser), you should be able to determine "where" exactly you are, based on looking for some "keywords" in the field at the top of the browser window.
Is you can see the word "home", you are probably at #4 (list above)
If it looks like "http://xxxxxxxxxxxx.blogspot.com" with the xxxxxxxxx being whatever you named your first blog, then you are probably on the right page (#3 from the list above)
If you can read the word "profile", you are either at your blogger profile page or your Google Plus profile page; either #1 or #2 from the list above.
For those who wish to be ambitious and create a blog that is separate from either Blogger or Wordpress, watch this great video to start your own.

Online Journalism in a Digital World - Tornado takes 51, 41, then 24

Yesterday, Monday May 20th, 2013, marked what many feared was the worst tornado (devastation-wise) in recent memory. It hit Moore, Oklahoma, a suburb of Norman. Reports initially reported that the tornado hit some elementary schools somewhere around 3pm CST, and that there were children present. The death toll was reported at 51 (including at least 20 children) for the longest time, even as rescue and recovery efforts continued into the night. Just before I went to bed, after 11pm, CNN reported that the death toll was raised by 40, to 91 people dead. The next day when I came into my office, I went online to check, and lo and behold - this death toll number has been revised to 24. Local officials have cited chaos, double counting and other explanations for the inaccuracies.

Media Bias Blog - Cleveland Article about Charles Ramsey

As I prepare for the Fall term and provide examples (for my students) of selective media bias in reporting, I noticed one instance today that falls directly into the category of "deliberately edited" or censored. There was this instance in May 2013 (remember, I am writing this to show to my Fall 2013 class) where one Cleveland station that pulled the story about the criminal past of Charles Ramsey, the man who aided in the escape of Amanda Berry from her "imprisonment", leading to the rescue of two other kidnap victims (Gina DeJesus and Michelle Knight) as well. When the station was "bombarded" with complaints about the online story, they invariably pulled it. It seems that most felt it was inappropriate, or possibly too soon to be addressing any "inadequacies" concerning the man who had assisted Berry. The public (and the media) have postured him as a "hero", and the public did not want to hear any negative commentary about him (just yet). WEWS-TV's action is an example of media bias prompted by pressure from its online audience, the users that visited their web site. Throughout the earlier part of the week, the media were also "struggling" with reportage concerning Michelle Knight, as it appears her abduction had been selectively ignored by both the police and the media - I am sure this was based on her age at the time, as she was an adult (20 years old) when reported missing, as opposed to 14 and 16 for the other two victims. Of course now it didn't matter...all three deserved the same coverage - but they didn't have pictures of her available, as well as a very limited amount of background information, as was accessible for the other two; media bias in the past, when covering the different kidnappings...and assuming Knight's instance was not one.

Media Bias and Coverage: Profiting from Wounded Knee

It is a sad testimonial to the state of affairs in America, as well as to America itself, when someone seeks to profit in a manner such as this. Wounded Knee has historical value, and the site of the massacre should not become a "tourist trap" (which is what I am guessing those bidding on the two parcels are contemplating doing with it). The American Indians would indeed suffer more indignation of the unimaginable variety, if this were allowed to occur. Perhaps this represents an article where media bias is possibly unavoidable?

No, Class Is Not Cancelled!

Contrary to popular opinion, and the fair weather inclinations of several students who have already called me asking if class has been cancelled (or not), Jacksonville State University rarely cancels its classes without good reason. March 18, 2013 will be no exception to this rule...particularly since we have an extra hour of sunshine to assist students in getting home after class ends (6 pm CST) without any worry of accident/other incident directly related to either poor weather or inability to see while driving...
Of course, there are no certainties in life, save the fact that Dr. Hedrick will try to make your life miserable, if at all possible, and this begins by challenging his students to know "THE CODE" and Apple Shortcuts - YES, there is another quiz coming up shortly.

Creating Your Personal Site with Google Sites

You can start by watching this Youtube video
Just like with your Blogger posts, you can validate yourself with a Google, GMail, Hotmail, or other account to begin the process.
Your Professor has created a template fro students to use.
He will share this with in a class demonstration.

Assignments 1 & 2: COM 375 Blogs

This page is intended to assist students having issues or problems creating or setting up their blogger accounts and figuring out "what is what". First, this Youtube video entitled Blogs in plain English; it serves as an introduction to blogs in the NEWS/JOURNALISM context.
We (the class) will be using blogger - let me first share a link for those who wish to create a new blogger account.
You should be able to register, so long as you have an active account with Goggle, GMail, Youtube, or Hotmail, among others; you will of course need the password to that account in order to authorize yourself.
What Dr. Hedrick will need in order to grade Assignments 1 & 2
Students will need to create a new blog, then send Dr. Hedrick the URL in an an emil to his GEM account: jhedrick@jsu.edu Your URL link should look like this: http://xxxxxxxxxxxx.blogspot.com
If it doesn't, you either (a) have not created a blog post yet or; (b) are sending the wrong URL.
Let me explain: when you are logged in to your blogger account, you might be in one of several different areas:
#1 your Google plus account page
#2 your Blogger profile
#3 an actual blog post you created
#4 your blogger homepage (which has a list of your various blog posts)
Besides the visibles cues (the visible content in the web browser), you should be able to determine "where" exactly you are, based on looking for some "keywords" in the field at the top of the browser window.
Is you can see the word "home", you are probably at #4 (list above)
If it looks like "http://xxxxxxxxxxxx.blogspot.com" with the xxxxxxxxx being whatever you named your first blog, then you are probably on the right page (#3 from the list above)
If you can read the word "profile", you are either at your blogger profile page or your Google Plus profile page; either #1 or #2 from the list above.
For those who wish to be ambitious and create a blog that is separate from either Blogger or Wordpress, watch this great video to start your own.