Television replaced radio’s spotlight a few decades ago because the shows that families were listening to suddenly had actors that they could see. Since then TV has pretty much been on top of the electronic totem pole, but now the internet is changing that. Many of the shows that are available on television are now also available online, without time restraints, and without commercials. You can also get your news and music online which makes the idea of watching television fade into the back of our minds.
The reason that this change is coming about is convergence, the combining of two or more different kinds of electronic devices into one mechanism (example the iPhone). This idea has been expanded to the internet, and it seems likely that computers will soon bring serious problems to television if some sort of action isn’t taken soon. One big problem is commercial revenue. If the internet becomes a large source of entertainment, then businesses aren’t going to want to publicize on TV stations anymore since the majority of the population are going to be using the internet.
I believe the big question is ‘what are the television companies going to do’ because convergence with the internet is inevitable. Just like radio had to become something it wasn’t used to (music based) TV needs to change in order to survive.
I am not into blogging… to be completely honest, I had no idea what a blog was until I was told to make one for this class. What I have discovered is that I absolutely love it! Having the ability to put my opinions out for everyone to read is amazing, and since I am double majoring in communications (public relations) and journalism, this project is by far my favorite from any class up to this point in my educational career.
When I was told that I had to write about a blog, I was at a total loss. I had never read a blog that wasn’t from Professor Falk or one of my classmates. While I went searching for a blog that I liked, I stumbled across an author named Aida Falzic. She has her degree in public relations and is fluent in three languages. However, what caught my attention is her ability to discuss serious topics as well as lighthearted ones.
My favorite post on her blog is her first one: “You Can’t Sit With Us!” The reason that I love this particular post is that it is so true. She discusses cliques and that they don’t stop after high school and even after college. She claims that it is still a problem in the workplace. I think that what makes her writing so successful is using a quote or example from a popular subject like a movie in her posts. This draws you in and is usually humorous. She doesn’t use any other types of multimedia components, but I still like her style of writing, and I think that it speaks for itself. She writes from the heart and personal opinion, so she doesn’t really need other forms of multimedia to make her point.
I hope that my writing has the same impact on others as hers has on me, for she makes me think with everything she writes. I encourage everyone to read a few of the posts on her blog.
Presidential debates are usually long, drawn out, and if you pay close enough attention you will notice that all candidates for President and Vice President turn every question so that they talk about a totally different issue than was originally being discussed. If the question was focusing on how an issue should be handled in one country, another country is immediately brought up with only a vague description of the original issue, if that issue was mentioned at all. When a candidate is questioned about their personal views, they automatically attack their opponent’s views. The Vice Presidential debate between Senator Biden and Governor Palin was no exception to this trend. While the debate was typical, there was another aspect that I focused on.
I personally am not the biggest fan of either set of candidates, believing that we need a new party… but since I can’t do anything about that, I instead focused on something completely different about the debate. How would Governor Palin present herself to the masses? Think about it, she is the first republican women to make it to the final leg of a presidential election, so how would she portray women? When you take the time to really think about Senator McCain’s surprising choice for a running mate, he was pretty smart about it. Not only is Sarah Palin family oriented, a Governor of a large state, a Republican (important for the fact that he is of the same party), and gorgeous (which for some reason is important to some people…), but she also doesn’t have the same kind of political baggage hanging over her head that most politicians in Washington do.
In the debate Senator Biden claimed that she didn’t have enough experience, but she retorted that just because she didn’t participate in the same kind of political ‘activities’ as the politicians didn’t mean that she was inept. She sold herself as the new kind of candidate, one that was experienced in leadership and could bring completely new things to our country’s government on a national level. She also didn’t pretend that she agreed with John McCain on every issue. While Senator Biden was saying that he backed Senator Obama in every issue, Governor Palin was stating that she and Sen
ator McCain didn’t agree on everything, but that is what made them a good team, that they would have to come to compromises instead of the Vice President rolling over and playing dead. This shows that more than one side will be supported in a lot of issues, and I think that in general that is something the public likes to hear.
Now put your individual thoughts and beliefs aside, and think about her as a person. She didn’t back down when hard questions were presented, and more importantly she was never intimidated. If you forget the issues and look at Governor Palin you will see a strong woman who is more than capable of making decisions. If nothing else, Sarah Palin showed that a woman is more than capable to be in office, whether or not she is elected for the job.
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