taking an approach

I would say that I'm still a little rough around the edges when it comes to taking an approach. But I understand it to be similar to forwarding but completely understanding the original source or differentiating between the different types of sources used in one piece. It is also important to think about the influence in a piece. What, if anything, influenced the writer to make one point or another. I think that we see taking an approach in many writings and even in bibliographies. Often times we site sources even if we don't quote them because their writing has influenced what we've shared with others.

I think that Random Stuff is one big approach. Nothing he posts is his own concept or thoughts. He simply finds other peoples thoughts, pictures, quotes, or concepts and shares them with his viewers. He does provide a source though as he should, giving credit to his influencers.

I believe that the New York Times while they source they resources and give credit to ideas used, the concepts in news are not ever specific to one news source. There is always a first source and often that source will not get the credit for "influencing". How often does one magazine run an article and then all of the rest do too? They aren't crediting that first magazine....Just like the New York Times does not credit where the stories often come from. Have you ever wondered how the news knows before we do, how they get their information? Its important to realize that most news articles aren't their own ideas or stories, and they aren't unique to just that one news site.

Rewrite...

I chose to rewrite this post because I thought there was a great opportunity to forward on to others parts of the blog site. I added some information to the middle of the post...its formatted weird so you can tell where!  I think that giving examples about things you find interesting or giving people a source to visit to really understand what you're writing about is beneficial!

The purpose of "Random Stuff" is to educate you on random topics and to entertain you with interesting and sometimes useless information, other times very helpful info. For example one of the "Valentines Day" themed posts today was "7 Helpful Tips on How to Say 'I'm Sorry'". Things like this can be interesting to many different audiences. There are also some posts that are specific to a certain gender and it is specified. There are also tabs along the top that are identified "Women's Stuff" or "Men's Stuff". I like being able to read the random things that everyone could find interesting but also having things that are specific to women. The author is the same for most posts, just one man who writes most of the posts, however here and there there are some different contributors.    For me I enjoy seeing lots of different types of articles, lots of different types of information to read and absorb.  A recent post on Random Stuff that grabbed my attention was "9 Awesome Benefits of Swimming"! As a lifeguard and swim instructor I love seeing positive comments about swimming! Swimming is one of the best ways to exercise and still keep your body in tact! Visit Random Stuff and read the article! http://www.myrandomstuff.se/?p=6786 Like some of the articles we've read in class state, our generation has picked up the pace a bit. Instead of reading long pieces about the same type of info. But I like the vast knowledge I gain through sites like stumble and random stuff because I feel well rounded!

Countering...

I am a debater at heart. I find myself disagree with most of life most of the time. Things people say, things people do, and even things that are heard. One thing I have learned along the way is that you need to fully understand what you are reading, seeing, hearing, etc in order to know how and why you are disagreeing with it. However with this in mind people can see things differently from different view points. I like Harris' countering point because its not always about being right or wrong but just thinking differently. My favorite phrase is, "lets agree to disagree". Why does one person always need to be right and one need to be wrong? What is wrong with thinking about things so differently? I like the idea of countering in writing because it gives the writer the room to be thorough with their points and to introduce new ideas to people. I am typically not one to try to prove someone wrong but I will play devils advocate whenever possible because its so important to me that people are socially aware and take the time to step back and see issues, and situations from all angles. I see countering as just that, writing about an issue from different angles. I think, that just like forwarding, countering can be applied in many other mediums besides just writing. I do think that knowing how to counter well is a good life skill. And to be clear it is much different than arguing. Countering is a sly way of turning the tables and opening up the realm of possibility.
In my blog I don't see a lot of countering because of the fact that the author is posting things such as photography and quotes, sometimes an article or two but for the most part he's not including an opinion in the blogs, just facts. There is however countering when it comes to the comments and replies, people comment on posts and there can be instances of countering seen there.

Forwarding...

I have always thought of forwarding as simply "quoting" but Harris' thoughts on forwarding or rewriting fascinated me! I think that the idea of rewriting is so cool! Quoting can sometimes be seen as an easy out but really there are times when you just can't say it any better! I like knowing that quoting isn't a cop out but giving credit where credit is due and that it can also be seen as rewriting or forwarding someones thoughts onto another person. How cool would it be to be an author knowing that your thoughts could very well touch hundreds of people? I really connected with the idea of forwarding. When  you think about it forwarding isn't just a writing tool people forward in conversations, in concepts, in daily life, in business set up (building from concept models), and even in a way religion. Forwarding is everywhere and I took a lot more from Harris' writing than just the information about quoting but maybe I'm trying to push the idea too far.
Often times in my blog "Random Stuff" the author inserts a "source" link at the bottom of posts for the reader to find where he gathered his information from. He also uses many videos and other media sources throughout his website, another way of "forwarding". While we are talking about writing, even posting a youtube video is a way of forwarding!

Press-sphere....

Some of Jarvis’ models are slightly confusing to see, I’m not so much of a visual learner. I feel like there could be better background surrounding the models shown. However I do love the point that the press is becoming the main focus with news and has the control to change a story one way or another. I do think that a lot of what I read on the internet or anywhere anymore lacks truth or legitimacy. I do like blogs however though because they tend to have more interesting topics than the news. Like some of our classmates have mentioned that the news is depressing and I agree, that is why I choose to avoid it and focus on fun blogs like Random Stuff.

            The New York Times is clearly news based, as well as has a bias towards a political party. It also has a lot of political topics because of the upcoming elections. I love reading blogs and in my “press sphere” that is my biggest bubble! 

Purpose of a blog...

   The purpose of "Random Stuff" is to educate you on random topics and to entertain you with interesting and sometimes useless information, other times very helpful info. For example one of the "Valentines Day" themed posts today was "7 Helpful Tips on How to Say 'I'm Sorry'". Things like this can be interesting to many different audiences. There are also some posts that are specific to a certain gender and it is specified. There are also tabs along the top that are identified "Women's Stuff" or "Men's Stuff". I like being able to read the random things that everyone could find interesting but also having things that are specific to women. The author is the same for most posts, just one man who writes most of the posts, however here and there there are some different contributors. 

   For me I enjoy seeing lots of different types of articles, lots of different types of information to read and absorb. Like some of the articles we've read in class state, our generation has picked up the pace a bit. Instead of reading long pieces about the same type of info. But I like the vast knowledge I gain through sites like stumble and random stuff because I feel well rounded!

Random following

I'm thinking about following the blog Random Stuff: http://www.myrandomstuff.se/ I think that the lay out is cool, different subjects each post and I like having different things to look at and not just one set purpose for a blog. I like being able to see many different topics in one place.

Yeah....wish the NYTs was free :)

Post 3

            Ok to be completely honest…I haven’t been regularly reading the New York Times, partly because as discussed in my previous post I read my news through my phone and the app doesn’t work like the web site where you can just keep loading to get it for free and since I don’t have a subscription….well you get the point!

            However, I did just pop open a new tab and went to nytimes.com and WHAT DO YOU KNOW Eli Manning’s face is what pops up. So terribly disappointing. I did switch to the global version hoping for some relief, but holy hell there he is again! Really world?! If I had wanted to see “news” about football I’d go to ESPN. I expect “news” sites to cover newsworthy things, there is a sports tab for a reason. But to be fair most news sites at the moment are probably covering the super bowl.

            To talk about recent stories I’ve noticed though, most of my apps have focused a lot on the Republican candidates, as well as issues we’ve discussed such as the captain who abandoned ship! One that I have personally noticed and now continued to follow was the Susan G. Komen Foundation’s decision not to fund Planned Parenthood because the new assistant director (something like that) is pro-life. I think I noticed this because I have many people in my life who have passed from cancer, are cancer survivors, or are still today battling and frankly the article and decision pissed me off. Thankfully, due to the negative response they reversed their decision, however Planned Parenthood still will not get money this year but will have the opportunity in future years (meaning miss pro-life realized she shouldn’t have made her decision so public). Hopefully Planned Parenthood WILL get the needed money from the Susan G. Komen foundation next year but no guarantees!  This issue was very close to my heart because it is important to realize that Planned Parenthood does so much more for young girls and women than just provide the option of abortions, they give free tests that can prevent breast cancer to women in need something the Susan G. Komen Foundation should have thought of and realized before making such a rash decision. Also being from Nebraska (republican republican republican) Planned Parenthood’s were picketed and given less funding as well as ridiculed because people can be narrow minded, but I have also seen through work with women in need in my local community how helpful and necessary Planned Parenthood is in this country.

            Now that I’m off my soap box J My reading of different news sources and articles hasn’t had much of an effect on my reading or writing but it has broadened my thoughts and I have learned a lot by simply keeping up with the news.

Class Habits...and much more!

Well quite obviously the biggest similarity is that we all get MOST of our news from the internet….shocker. However, another similarity that is important to note is that most of the news is also coming from reliable sources, not tmz, or twitter. Thank god. With this in mind I think we can safely say our class will note become civically illiterate….but that’s just our class.

            I had expected to see that most of us used online news sources to gain our knowledge, what I hadn’t expected was a wide range. I personally turn to AOL or Roadrunners news because that’s where my email is, for yahoo users the same can be said. Some people use times, some use CNN others BBC. To be honest I’m not quite sure what all of the affiliations are but I’m sure that people lean toward the articles that they favor.

            What I did find interesting was that no one else uses their smart phones to check for news. While it’s a form of online news it is still a separate way and one that I use daily. I have the Washington post app, the huffington post, the weather channel (still news!), as well as the Lincoln Journal Star which is my local paper back home. If I’m waiting in an office, or between classes, or anywhere where you want to “pretend” to be on your phone to make things less awkward, the news is what I go to! Or DragonVale a game which all iPhone owners MUST get.

            Another note since it is Super Bowl Sunday…I’m sure that quite a few people who posted on their blogs about not watching the news because they don’t have a tv or don’t watch theirs, somehow found a way to watch the game even though it is so irrelevant when it comes to things of importance in this world (juuuust saying)

No truth in our news..

I get my news from lots of different sources. Primarily, through the newspaper apps on my iPhone. However, when I really think about it I get my news in LOTS of ways. I will catch bits and pieces of things on the radio, I read articles that I see on Facebook, commercials for certain things, billboards, and random conversations with people, as well as in my classes. There are a lot of ways to “get” the news, and there are also plenty of ways that the news gets to you.

I can think of countless times I’ve said “oh I heard about that!” and it was some minor news story here or there. Another important aspect to think of when we’re talking about “getting the news” is who defines what is newsworthy to each and every person. Who decides what news is worth talking about, worth being news. Even just a billboard advertisement can be translated into a news story. You see the ad for “product A” being sold by “company B” and you think to yourself about how much you love “company B” and will probably love “product A”, well if you shared your experience of seeing the billboard ad with someone else who likes “company B” that sight and billboard are now news. Get what I’m saying?

Anything and everything can be “news” in someone’s eyes! And in that sense I get my news everywhere! I am constantly hearing of NEW things or even old things that are new to me. News in my opinion is shared constantly, we are all constantly hearing new things. I will admit when it comes to be up on the “current” issues “important to society” I am not always the first to know what is going on, especially when it comes to politics since I hate them. Our news industry and media in this country are at times so incredibly worthless since if you’ve noticed they are primarily from wealthy upper class educated white males (there are a lot more women now a days). As much as I love to think that our news is fed to us without any bias’s that is simply not true. I’m ready to get my news from everyday people, and hear what the public, the majority, really has to say on todays issues.