The (In)Famous Debate Memo

Here's the "Memorandum of Understanding" between the Kerry campaign and the Bush campaign. It is 32 pages long and it discusses anything from the height of chairs ("The chairs shall be swivel chairs that can be locked into place, and shall be of equal height") to makeup ("Each candidate may use his own makeup person, and adequate facilities shall be provided at the debate site for makeup.")

"Pleonasm"

Merriam-Webster Online Dictionary & Thesaurus:
PLEONASM = the use of more words than those necessary to denote mere sense. Synonyms: redundancy, roundabout, tautology, verbality, verbiage.

News from The Daily Show?

For those of you who are using The Daily Show with Jon Stewart NOT as your primary source of news, but as an addition to your regular intake of "serious" hard news, here's an interesting article from CNN. Please feel free to comment...

UMass Profile

A Woman in a Man's Game Returns to UMass

A childhood dream slowly became a reality when Amy Apicerno of Wakefield Rhode Island enrolled as a Sports Management major at the University of Massachusetts. Determined to work in the sports industry Apicerno took on an internship doing personal relations with the NFL at the age of 19.

Apicerno said "I was the only woman to travel with the football teams". During these imperative years Apicerno constantly attended sporting events and drove all around tho follow the Red Sox. Apicerno proudly stated, "I am a huge Red Sox fan and huge Dolphins fan, even though they suck right now". Apicerno also used these years to travel. Visiting numerous places, she made sure she had the full experience by sky diving, parasailing, snorkeling and more.

In the year 2001, Amy Apicerno graduated with a bachelor degree in Sports Management. Her next step was graduate school at the University of Rhode Island. At URI she studiedHuman Development and Family Studies with the intention of steering away from public relations and working as a Direction of Relations. Apicerno resided in Rhode Island for three years before making it back to her Alma Mater.

At Umass Apicerno, 25, is now a staff assistant for media relations for the athletic department. Apicerno is currently looking into PHD programs at UMass; her next move in mind is to obtain a higher education position and become a sociology professor. always maing moves and always settings goals for herself, Apicerno seems to know how to play the game of life.

CBS to investigate producer Mapes

An interesting CNN article, to catch you up on the "Bush memos" story, especially from the perspective of journalism ethics.

CBS hit with $550K Super Bowl fine

CNN article: "Viacom Inc. was hit with $550,000 in fines for the Super Bowl half-time show in February that briefly showed singer Janet Jackson's breast. The fine is one of the largest ever imposed by the Federal Communications Commission." Any comments?

Factchecking

Here's a good up-to-date resource on Factchecking. Consult after taking a dose of political bull.

Some abstracts:

* A new Moveon PAC ad implies machine-guns are becoming legal, which isn't true. And it blames Bush, even though Bush said he would have extended the ban on assault weapons.
* Kerry claims Iraq has cost "$200 billion and counting." Not yet, it hasn't.
* Bush falsely claims Kerry voted repeatedly to raise Medicare premiums. Kerry's spot blaming Bush alone for the latest increase isn't much better.

Good Resource on Leads

http://www.notrain-nogain.org/Train/Res/Write/lede.asp

Jenny's Profile

In the fall of 1965, nine year-old Steven Coombs had never met anyone quite like his substitute teacher, Mrs. White. Unbeknownst to Mrs. White when she asked her students to take part in a school play was that this single act would become a defining moment in Steven’s life, allowing him to taste theater life for the first time.
Years later, Steven became reacquainted with theater through his high school drama teacher, Jean Emerson. She was “inspiring” as Steven recalls. And more importantly, she was the instigating force that drove him to the life he now leads today, as a manager of a box office at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst’s Fine Arts Center, and avid theatrical performer.
Born in Vermont on August 2nd, 1956, Steven spent his “wonder bread years” on his family’s dairy farm in Hardwick, Massachusetts. With the exception of his liberal third grade teacher, Mrs. White, Steven led a fairly sheltered life in his small town of 300 people. It was not until 1967 when he and his family moved to the town of Orleans on Massachusetts’ Cape Cod that he became exposed to a world of exciting possibilities.
When he graduated from Nauset Regional High School he decided to try his luck as a college student at St. Lawrence University in upstate New York. After his first year there he came to the conclusion that college was not for him and moved back to the Cape to work at a local theater as a student, performer, and apprentice. Then, in 1978, he decided to give it the old college try one last time, and enrolled at the University of Massachusetts, Amherst (UMASS) as a theater major. He graduated in 1981 and six months later went to work for the UMASS Fine Arts Center’s box office as assistant manager.
Today, at age 48, he lives in Northampton, Massachusetts and is the manager of the same box office. He has spent the past 20 odd years performing for local theater groups, teaching classes at UMASS and working as the Stage Director at the UMASS Fine Arts Center.

Jenny's Fire Article

Toaster Disaster Sets Franklin Dining Commons up in Flames

At approximately 12:10pm yesterday the Franklin Dining Commons went up in flames. There were no serious injuries, according to head of campus security, Tamar Stevenson, but serious damage was done and the building will have to be shut down.

Nicholas Johnson, a 21 year-old student running from the fire, says that he was “Stunned, shocked. Things were exploding everywhere. I thought that the whole building was going to burn down.” The fire, believes Nicholas, can be attributed to a student putting cheese in one of the toasters.

Campus security has hired investigators to assess the damage, locate the origin of the fire and find the fire’s instigator. John Santana, the Dean of Students, says the fire will have the unfortunate impact of temporarily displacing the students that frequent the Franklin Dining Commons, to other Commons on campus.

Sara's Fire Article

NOW SERVING CHAR-GRILLED BUILDING

The Franklin Dining Hall went up in flames today at around 12:00pm. Severe damage was caused to the building but no one knows how bad it really is nor if anyone was seriously injured, according to Tamar Stevenson, the chief of security.

“I was stunned, shocked and scared. I thought the whole building was going to burn down” said Nicholas Johnson, a 21 year old student from Umass. Nicholas thinks the fire occurred when he was waiting in line at the dining hall to use the toaster when, “some kid put cheese through the toaster and set it on fire”. Investigators are being called in for further investigation on how the fire truly started.

Till then, the Dean of Students, John Santana, said that the dining hall will not be open for use because of safety reasons and the reopening of the building is unknown.

Jon's Fire Article

Fire in Franklin

A blaze tore through the Franklin Dining Commons at 12:00 p.m. yesterday, causing serious damage and leaving several people injured, according to Tamar Stephenson, head of campus security.
According to UMass student Nicholas Johnson, an individual put cheese through a toaster which caused the machine to catch on fire. “Things were exploding everywhere. I thought the whole building was going to burn down,” Johnson said. “I feared for my life.”
Stephenson assured reporters that proper procedures were being followed. “We’ve called investigators, and people are currently being taken care of,” Stephenson said. “It seems the building might be unsafe and will probably have to be closed down for a long period of time,” she added.
Dean of Students, Jon Santana, discussed the immediate impact that the fire will have on the UMass campus. “The students are going to have to use other Dining Commons for an extended amount of time,” Santana explained.
There are currently 11,000 students who have campus meal plan.

Jon's Profile

Service With a Smile; 27 Years and Running

When entering the Berkshire Dining Commons, the students of Southwest can always count on a beaming smile and friendly welcome from 46 year old Nancy M. Drake. Drake, who is an Amherst native, has served on the UMass Auxiliary Food Service Staff for 27 years. Drake has more years of service than all but one of her colleagues in the Auxiliary Department.

Born in Holyoke, MA, Drake is the oldest of five siblings, having four younger brothers. Upon moving to Amherst as a child, Drake graduated from Amherst High School in 1976, and has resided in the area ever since.

Throughout high school, Drake worked at the local McDonalds, Stop and Shop, and at various Pizzerias. Shortly after high school, Drake began working at UMass with Auxiliary Services as a line server. She has since garnered several promotions, and currently serves as the supervisor at the Berkshire Dining Commons.

“I take pride in the fact that I started at the bottom and worked my way up to the top,” Drake commented. With 27 years of service, Drake laughed when asked how she ranks with the careers of her co-workers. “Well, I’ll say that I’m ranked second with the most years of service in the Auxiliary Department. But, I do think I’m technically tied for first,” she said with a smile.
In talking with Drake, it was evident that she enjoys what she does for a living. She spoke highly of both her co-workers and the students she interacts with on a daily basis. “It’s the people that make it easy to come to work everyday,” said Drake.

Andrew: In reference to the 'political future market' article

Research has shown that, in times of increased government spending, investors are more likely to profit from trading tangable assets (commodities).(www.dailyfutures.com). While the general public has become increasingly aware of US spending, some investors may sight, what is in essence, a reallocational characteristic of recent US government spending (c-span) as incentive for investing in a ripe 'futures' market. Most recently, google 'exploded' on the scene making an incredible splash in the world of business news, which may have also cornered the market for investors who are willing to risk the instability that comes with a lack of tangable assets.

Another incentive for this type of trading would be the assurance of a short-term timetable. Of course, certain subsections of the investing world are still a bit squeemish from the dot com era. These three incentives could make for profit in the "politcal future" market. The general irony of future investment is that maximized profit results from an influx of money from increased trading that balances with a limited number of investors who actually profit. The down sides are obvious. I've researched hard and soft money donations and campaign finance reform prior to this article. Certainly this could make a splash in certain political arenas. In theory, it ensures public participation in the democratic political system. Most importantly, though, with cries already being herad from the epicenter of public politics, the presidential election, about the "Florida" recount and campaign financing, this type of investing could prove to be very detrimental. Nobody wants to see a Vegas/Venezuala/Enron-type conspiracy theory mixed with point "shaving" scandals. With all the different types of "betting", it's concievable that certain candidates for public office could go to jail for "point shaving" scandals as a means of raising money for party donations.

It has been said by many that baseball holds an important place as a Patriotic, American pastime. Combine Nixon, Clinton, Kennedy and Bush and somebody's gonna uncover something that resembles foul play. Perhaps, presidential elections will soon match the 1919 White sox World series? Just some thoughts.

Works cited and research included:www.biz.uiowa.edu/iem/ and www.dailyfutures.com. c-span television. All searches thanx to www.google.com.

Andrew's article

Fire in Franklin Dining Commons

At approximately 12:10 p.m., yesterday, a fire broke out in the Franklin Dining commons. The Franklin Dining commons will be closed indefinitely pending the release of a full and official damage report. The Dean of Students has advised all students to use other dining commons throughout campus until further instructed. Fire dept. officials were unable to comment but will release official information when appropriate.

Tamar Stephenson, the head of campus security, reported that no serious injuries had occurred as a result of the fire. With the fire occurring at such a crowded time in the day, Stephenson’s comment does not eliminate the possibility of unreported, minor injuries.

According to Nicholas Johnson, an eyewitness to the fire’s origin, who was evacuating the dining common; the fire had started at a toaster oven.

This has been the first such incident on campus this semester. However, last spring semester, a small dormitory fire did occur in a hallway, and was attributed to arson.

As always, students are advised to strictly follow campus rules and procedure to prevent any accidents from occurring.

This newspaper will continue to cover the news of this fire until official damage assessments and further instructions are reported.

Monday meeting in Engineering Library!

On Monday, Sept. 20, we will NOT be meeting in Bartlett, but rather in the electronic classroom on the third floor of the Integrated Sciences and Engineering Library (ISEL), which is located in the low-rise portion of the Graduate Research Center (Lederle). The class will run between 11:15 a.m. - 1:15 p.m. If you need help finding the room ask at the reference or circulation desk in ISEL, located on the 2nd floor, when you get there. See you all there at 11:15!

First chance to write in the blog

As soon as you can, I would like everybody to take some 5 minutes and write a phrase or two about what journalism means to him/her. Why are you considering going into journalism? (BTW, are you?...). What do you like about the profession? What do you dislike about it? What kind of journalism do you see youself as doing? (print/online/TV/radio, news/investigation/ features, photojournalism, newspapers/magazines, etc.). Based on your answers, I will tailor at least some of the course material so as to match your interests. Therefore it's really important that you think about these things and share them with me (and the rest of the newsroom, of course). Thank you.

Two sites about politics

As aspiring journalists, I strongly hope you are interested in (American) politics! Here are two web sites that you might find interesting:
- An interactive electoral map based on the latest public opinion polls.
- An MSNBC article about "political future markets" (as abstruse as it sounds, it's an interesting concept).

The Power of Blogs

"Web Diarists Are Now Official Members of Convention Press Corps" from The New York Times (you may need to register to enter the site - it's free). Comments on this or other articles are strongly encouraged (and appreciated at the end of semester when participation in factored into the final grade :).

For Monday

NEWS:
* The course books are available for purchase in the Textbook Annex, on campus. The Mencher book is in its 9th edition, not the 8th, as stated in the syllabus. Please purchase the books till the end of this week. Over the weekend, please familiarize yourselves thoroughly with the Associated Press Stylebook (works like a dictionary). When you come to class on Monday, you should be able to use that resource quickly and efficiently at my request.

REMINDERS:
* Please get OIT accounts ASAP so that you can log into the lab computers. Also, bring with you the Zip disk.
* Please type your assignment on a piece of paper with your name on it.
If you have any questions, please email me and I will reply immediately.