Fairy Tale Leads

1. Prince Charming's kiss awakened Aurora from a deep sleep after spending many years in a dragon guarded castle.

2. A local mermaid made a deal with an evil sorceress to become a human and almost lost everything.

3. A local girl saved China from the Huns and restored her fathers honor with the help of a dragon named Mushu.

Word of the Week #4

1. Impalpable

2. I found this word while reading the poem, "If You Forget Me" by Pablo Neruda.

3. Sentence where word was found: ...if I touch near the fire, the impalpable ash...

4. Definition: Unable to be felt by touch; Part of speech: adjective.

5. My sentence: The sun's rays became impalpable as the clouds rolled over the horizon.

News Story

Tuition Hikes Still Affecting SJSU Students

Word Count: 207

With the school year at San Jose State University more than half way finished, tuition increases implemented before the fall semester are still taking a toll on students.

The idea of tuition increases is not something new to SJSU students.

For more than two years now tuition has steadily increased anywhere from 10 percent to 12 percent annually.

Many people choose to attend SJSU because it offers a quality education at a reasonable price, but within a few years this will not be the case.

With uncertainty around every corner, "It makes education nearly unattainable for poor people," said Brendan Lien, 20, an engineering major at SJSU. "That being said however, I understand the university needs to increase tuition to cover costs that the state of California is no longer funding."

Despite the drastic increases in tuition, the quality of education at SJSU seems to be diminishing.

Departments have cut out entire courses and laid off many professors as well.

As tuition continues to rise, "You would think that all of this extra money that we are paying would affect our quality of education, but in reality it has actually been noticeably worse," said Shawn Niknam, 20, a biology major at SJSU.

With no sign of hope in the future, something must drastically change in order to alleviate rising tuition fees for students at SJSU.

Blog #3 - Comparing Media

Word Count: 321

"Linsanity" is the hot topic in the NBA right now, but unfortunately Asian-American point guard, Jeremy Lin, has become a target of racial profiling as well as a victim of racial slurs within the media.

In comparing coverage of the racial slur made towards Lin amongst three different types of news media, it is easy to spot a few key differences.

The New York Times released an article today, which outlined the details tied to the racial slur posted yesterday on ESPN's mobile site as well as a similar slur made by ESPN anchor, Max Bretos.

The article consists of five paragraphs with a length of 287 words, which explain the contexts in which the racial slur was used and the consequences of those actions.

Both ESPN and Bretos are quoted regarding the slur directed towards Lin.

Each source gave a direct apology to Lin and the Asian community.

Because this article is short and direct, it contains no charts, graphs or photos.

When comparing online news coverage of the same story from a Yahoo Sports blog, noticeable differences include a picture of Lin and an additional video clip embedded on the blog.

Textually speaking, the blog is equally as long as The New York Times article with a length of 273 words .

The same two sources, ESPN and Bretos, are used in this piece as well.

The mix of text and video in this piece creates a feel similar to that of broadcast coverage.

A television segment was released by ESPN today as well, which issued a direct statement concerning the racial slur directed towards Lin.

The story lasted a mere 35 seconds and only included ESPN as a source.

Compared to the newspaper article, this short television segment only gave the main details of the story and made no mention of Bretos whatsoever.

Unlike print journalism, broadcast news coverage must be concise and timely in order to deliver information fully and efficiently.

Sources:

http://espn.go.com/video/clip?id=7591994

http://www.nytimes.com/2012/02/20/sports/basketball/espn-fires-employee-for-slur-in-lin-headline.html

http://www.thepostgame.com/blog/daily-take/201202/espn-fires-lin-headline-writer

Word of the Week #3

1. Antiquated

2. My friend, Brendan, used this word while we were having a conversation.

3. Sentence where word was found: These computers use an antiquated form of technology now.

4. Definition: old-fashioned or outdated; Part of speech: adjective.

5. My Sentence: Sending letters has become antiquated in an era dominated by the internet and e-mail.

Blog #2 - Your Favorite Writing

Word Count: 310

The world is comprised of an infinite set of decisions and choices that directly affect even the smallest areas of our lives.

One of my favorite pieces of writing, "The Road Not Taken" by Robert Frost, is a true testament to this statement.

Written by Frost in 1916, the poem examines the predicament of either taking a path untraveled or a path that many have already taken.

I enjoy this piece of writing very much for a few reasons.

Being a poet myself, I enjoy reading the works of other writers because it allows me to draw inspiration and examine writing styles that differ from my own.

Frost uses language that expresses what it truly means to be a human being.

He takes a very simple situation and breaks it down into finite components, which can then be applied to the human decision-making process.

The illustration of the two roads is beautiful because it is timeless.

These roads are ever-present and will therefore remain in place for every human being who must choose a path to follow.

I enjoy the message of this particular poem very much because I tend to think a lot about the decisions I've made, the decisions I'm making and the decisions I'm going to make in the future.

Each of these decisions is plagued by consequences that I reflect upon in the back of my mind.

Like Frost, I too understand that the path less traveled is the path I wish to take.

It is a path that is not only fresh and exciting, but also expressive of who I am as a person.

One of my core values is individualism, which is why I make it a point to set myself apart from the crowd.

At times the road may seem lonesome, but I certainly do not plan on taking a different path anytime soon.

Robert Frost, Mountain Interval (New York: Henry Holt, 1921), pp. 9. Original publication date: 1916.

Word of the Week #2

1. Exacerbated

2. Found in my Intercultural Communications textbook.

3. Sentence where word was found: And conflicts may be exacerbated by power differentials, with some values privileged over others.

4. Definition: To make (a problem, bad situation, or negative feeling) worse; Part of speech: verb.

5. My sentence: Staying up to study all night exacerbated the cold I caught a few days a go.