All the news that's fit to blog.

Jeffry Ahson, Battle of Midway Vet, dies at 79

2008-12-04T04:01:00.001-05:00

Ahson Obituary/Newell
Jeffry Ahson, Battle of Midway Vet. Dies at 79
By Marni Newell

KALAMAZOO, Mich.---Jeffry R. Ahson former Navy war hero and later car salesman in Kalamazoo, died of emphysema Wednesday at his home. He was 79.
Mr. Ahson served as petty officer in the Navy during the Battle of Midway in June 1942. He was awarded the Purple Heart and Navy Cross for his valor on the USS Emery when he crossed the burning deck to save four wounded sailors and remove a body of a gunner who had been shot down. He also shot down three enemy planes and was later promoted to ensign.
“Ahson was a genuine American hero,” said Jeraldine Fyfe, Navy Lieutenant Commander in a press conference Wednesday.
In 1946, Mr. Ahson moved to Kalamazoo after retiring from the Navy. In Kalamazoo, he developed an interest in the history of firefighters and fire truck restoration, the fruits of his hobby can now be viewed at the Kalamazoo Valley Museum.
Along with serving as a firefighter, Mr. Ahson was Post Commander at the American Legion post 702, a member of the Elk’s Lodge, Veterans of Foreign Wars post 4206, the National Checker Association, and Gideon’s International. He was also an usher at the John Calvin Presbyterian Church in Kalamazoo.
In his later years, Mr. Ahson worked as a new car salesman at Don Seelye Ford in Kalamazoo until he retired in 1985.
Mr. Ahson is survived by his wife Therese Alpert, his three children Richard D. Ahson of Phillibsberg, Kan.; Angela Molino of Omaha; and Lela Stalling of Pipe Creek, Texas, along with five grandchildren and five great-grandchildren. He is also survived by his brother Henry Ahson of San Francisco; and his sisters Judith Eaker of Reidsville, N.C.; and Shirly Solomon of Newark, N.J.
Viewing for friends and family is scheduled for 4-5:30 p.m. and 7:30-9 p.m. on Friday at the Littleton Mortuary. Services for Mr. Ahson will be at 10 a.m. on Saturday at the Littleton Mortuary, immediately followed by his burial at Memorial Park Cemetary. The family has requested no flowers.

--30--

Thai citizens protest Thaksin

2008-12-02T18:32:00.002-05:00

This story can be found at: http://www.nytimes.com/2008/12/03/world/asia/03thai.html?_r=1&hp

Lede: BANGKOK — Thailand’s high court disbanded the ruling party for electoral fraud and brought down the government on Tuesday, prompting antigovernment protesters to declare an end to their debilitating weeklong blockade of Bangkok’s airports.
Summary lede stating place and time. This has been an ongoing and updated story, so it packs in a lot of material: the inital protests, the reason of the protests, when they stopped and why.

Nut Graf: I'm actually a little confused about which paragraph is the nut graf, and also the significance of the nut graf. Here are the next two paragraphs:
Leaders of the disbanded party, People Power, said they would reconstitute the government under another party name and hold on to power, although the count of parliamentary votes was not assured.
But the protesters — who had also occupied the prime minister’s office for more than three months, calling for the ouster of the government — said they would end all their blockades by Wednesday morning.

It doesn't really sound like anything's going to be changed but the name of the political party in power. And even then, "the count of the parliamentary votes was not assured," about that, so the name might even stay the same. I'm a bit confused about why the protestors have ended the blockades.
The next paragraph goes into the history of Thaksin, who was the prime minister before the 2006 coup, and how the current government is corrupt and has ties to Thaksin still.

I found a bit more of an explanation a few paragraphs in: The ruling disbanded not only the governing People Power Party but also two smaller coalition parties; the court found that they had committed fraud during the elections last December that brought them to power. It forced out Prime Minister Somchai Wongsawat, a brother-in-law of Mr. Thaksin’s.

The article switches between a scene in the airport of protestors celebrating and their comments and background information on the protests and the government.

The article ends by giving more history of Thai government, with this little gem: In September this year, Mr. Somchai’s predecessor, Samak Sundaravej, was forced out after less than eight months in office when the court ruled that he had unlawfully accepted payments to appear on television cooking shows while prime minister.

Not really a fizzle ending, at least it shouldn't be. If I were to read this story in print and that final paragraph hadn't been there, I wouldn't have enjoyed the article as much.

The Most Important Element of Journalism, Ever. According to Marni.

2008-11-22T22:24:00.003-05:00

On page 106 in the earlier edition of Elements of Journalism, I found the following paragraphs extremely important:
"'Far from hiring in the newsroom being an indicator of where diversity comes from, it's knowing your audience, and to be truly interested in your audience from the top to the bottom, from the left to the right, and from all economic levels.'
The criticisms touch a serious point: To what extent does background influence a journalist's work? If an editor determines who covers what simply by ethnic heritage or skin color, isn't that just another kind fo racial and ethnic stereotyping? It implies that there is such a thing as a single black perspective or a single Asian perspective."

I agree completely with this sentiment, it's stereotyping to expect a black person to give the "black perspective" in a newsroom, or a woman or homosexual or disabled person, it's all absurd.
I watched a bit of Working Girl with Melanie Griffith over the weekend and found it a disappointing perspective of a working woman. Similarly, I got in an argument with a friend over the play Death and the King's Horsemen because he was uncomfortable that white people played the part of Africans confronting imperialistic Europeans. I think there's nothing wrong with a white person taking on the task of communicating an idea of an African, whereas he thought it was an updated version of blackface. To me, these are the same ideas, picking a black Midwestern person to play an African part over a white Midwestern person is more blackface to me than choosing an actor based on their ability to act. Same story in the newsroom, picking an Asian writer to specifically give the guise of diversity and Asian perspective is a form of blackface. It's just a stereotypical facade based on exploitation.
It should all be about ability and, most of all, audience. If they would have picked black people who couldn't act or communicate the same idea as well, it would be counterintuitive. So it goes in the newsroom, if the person can't write as well, they shouldn't be assigned front page stories. The solution, then, is having respect for the audience, making sure the paper includes all of the news and features in all groups and social strata, that's being idealistic, but keeping it in mind does more than expecting a token minority to take care of it. It's all news and everyone's responsibility.

Child mental healthcare sub-par

2008-11-22T21:08:00.002-05:00

This article can be reached Mondays-Fridays 8AM-5PM at the following address: http://www.cnn.com/2008/HEALTH/conditions/11/21/mental.health.kids/index.html

This article uses a recent issue: the drop-off law in Nebraska and the disturbing results, to introduce a larger issue: the lack of adequate mental healthcare for children. Although it only references the first point vaguely, I believe it's the the law that allows parents to drop off children at a local hospital if they can't handle raising them. So, this went over well with parents who proceeded to drop off 35 children, 29 of them being older than 10 years old, something the hospital didn't see coming.

The Carter Center attributes this not to negligence of parents, but of the rates of untreated mental illnesses in children which complicate their moods and make it difficult to raise them. I think that's being very generous to the parents.

Lede: Not so urgent, a softer lede that introduces a longer article, almost featurey.
As mental health advocates, policy makers, practitioners, educators and researchers gathered at the Carter Center to discuss the progress in addressing American children's mental health needs, a drama of sorts was reaching its conclusion halfway across the country.

The nut graf is the fifth paragraph down, a longer one since it has to link the law in Nebraska to the problem of lack of affordable child mental healthcare.
The rest of the article addresses this issue by citing recent shootings and the lack of knowledge about mental health in children.
In the second-to-the-last paragraph, a short quote leads the reader back to the opener about Nebraska, a really nice move. Then it ends with a quote, a really strong quote:
"We need to see this as an opportunity to say 'this is why we need a stronger mental health system,' not that we should only let people drop off the babies. This is a clarion call to say why it is so important that we build a mental health system that supports children and families. Because these are families that are crying out for help, and we are saying there is nobody there."

8-year-old murder case gets even weirder

2008-11-22T20:47:00.004-05:00

This follow up article can be found at: http://www.cnn.com/2008/CRIME/11/21/boy.murder.case/index.html

A boy shoots his father and another man, and authorities are vague and accusatory and no one seems to be fighting for the child's innocence: weird.

The boy's prosecutor asks for some of the charges to be dropped with a one-paragraph vague motion saying, "the interest of justice would be served by such dismissal": weirder.

The boy admits to shooting his father, but after he found him wounded on the floor, he just wanted to shoot him twice more to stop his "suffering": WTF!?

Lede: Normal summary lede with all the pertinent info and w's
An Arizona prosecutor Friday asked to dismiss one of two murder charges against an 8-year-old boy suspected in the shooting deaths of his father and another man.

This sets up the reader to wondering what the heck is going on with this case, why only one charge dropped? Well, unfortunately, this article, like the first, serves mostly to bring up more questions instead of providing answers. Although, in the author's defense, the circumstances make it so. For instance, the description of the 8-year-old who was sitting cross-legged and who seems to change his story and forget whether he shot his father once or twice. One of the weirdest quotes from this kid is when he's talking about seeing his father dead and he said he "cried for about 30 minutes."
There are so many weird things about that quote I don't even know if I want to get into it. But, I have time, so I will.
1. 30 minutes?! That's it? You just found your dad wounded on the floor and it only takes 3o minutes to compose yourself? And, let me repeat, composing himself didn't mean calling the police, it meant finding a gun and putting his dad out of his misery. This makes me think it was rehearsed, maybe he had some help.
2. He's 8. I almost want to leave that as it's own. I think I will.
3. He can't remember if he shot his dad once or twice, but he has a pretty clear idea of how long he cried.
4. 8-year-old cries for 30 minutes after finding his father wounded and then gets a gun and shoots him. I need a new word since "weird" is losing it's meaning. Confusing?

If the boy's story is true, I find this to be a sad case on many levels, the boy needs some mental and emotional support, and, for pete's sake, where is the mother?!

Long story short, this article confounds me as much as the first. The ending is pretty much a giant question mark, "If the motion to dismiss is granted, it would leave open the possibility that the charge could be refiled." Nothing seems to be concrete in dealing with this case.
It's not even a fizzle, it's like a word version of a shrug.

8-year-old commits two acts of pre-meditated murder

2008-11-08T11:04:00.003-05:00

Article link: http://www.cnn.com/2008/CRIME/11/08/child.charged.ap/index.html

I was interested in this article first for the shock value of it, also the story takes place in Flagstaff, Arizona, and I have a 9-year-old neice who lives there. Then, as I read it, the lede is soft, and I agree, since this is such a tragic story no matter what perspective you take, it should be a bit softer. In fact, I think they could follow this up with a narrative. So, really, they probably could have made this one totally hard news and followed it up with a narrative. Either way, here is the lede:
It's a crime that police officers in a small eastern Arizona community can hardly fathom yet have to deal with: an 8-year-old charged in the fatal shootings of his father and another man.
It's definitely a soft lede, but the rest of the story kind of follows a hard news story, so it's a bit muddy.

It's followed by a quote where the St. Johns police chief is asking "Who would think an 8-year-old could kill adults?"
Then, the nut graf:
The crime that unfolded Wednesday evening sent shock waves through St. Johns, a community of about 4,000 people northeast of Phoenix. The boy had no disciplinary record at school, and there was no indication he had any problems at home, prosecutors said.

The rest of it seems very shocked, and doesn't really give background to why the boy would shoot the two men. All it does is raise more questions. He had no disciplinary background, they aren't saying what sort of relationship he had with his father, they really aren't saying much of anything except for, "I can't believe this happened, and it's really too bad he's going to jail." They have a confession, but his defense attorney says it wasn't conducted properly. The story and the investigation seems all over the place for how precise something like this needs to be.

It all gets even more irritating when the story ends with these two lines:
Brewer, the defense attorney, said the child "seems to be in good spirits."
"He's scared," he said. "He's trying to be tough, but he's scared."

The child seems to be in good spirits? What the heck is up with this story? I feel like there's so much going on that I'm not getting with this account. The whole situations seems absolutely random and it's made even more confusing by imagining the 8-year-old in good spirits. It makes me think he's on the spectrum for autism or was abused by this guy or something, anything to explain why he wouldn't be torn up from losing his father and even more emotional since he's the one who shot him.

Palin a diva?

2008-11-02T09:17:00.003-05:00

http://www.cnn.com/2008/POLITICS/10/27/palin.tension/index.html

I found this article sometimes last week and forgot to post an article analysis for it.
First there's an interesting dateline on the lede, but other than that it's a regular summary lede.
(CNN) -- Some aides to Sen. John McCain say they weren't happy that running mate Sarah Palin went off script Sunday and turned attention back to the controversy over her wardrobe.

The next paragraph is the nut graf: The Alaska governor on Sunday brought up the recent reports regarding the Republican National Committee's $150,000 spending spree on clothing and accessories for the Palin family.
It's followed by a partial quote by Palin to explain the nut graf. Then, there's another quote by "A senior McCain advisor."

The next weird and kind of annoying part of this article is that all the sources are unnamed. It makes the story seem made up, or like I'm reading a page of gossip, which is distracting, especially since anyone who doesn't disclose their identity will have a lot cattier things to say than someone who's held accountable for their comments (see Kzoo confessional).

It ends with examples of other political parties who had problems with their candidates: Jack Kemp's aides distrusted the Bob Dole camp and vice versa, and Dan Quayle loyalists had a list of gripes remarkably similar to those now being aired by Palin aides.

Press Release

2008-10-27T12:29:00.002-04:00

This press release can be found at: http://www.fbi.gov/pressrel/pressrel08/hatecrimestats_102708.htm

The press release gives statistics on the frequency of hate crimes in 2007, and then proceeds to break down the frequency of hate crimes against specific races, ethnicities, religions, and other minorities.
At the end it breaks down where most of the hate crimes occur, and after homes, alleys, and highways is colleges or schools. It would be interesting to interview colleges in the area and ask about the frequency of hate crimes. Another source I would interview is a representative from groups like the gay-straight alliance, or NAACP to talk about what these statistics mean to them and how they fit into the larger picture of acceptance and respect within their groups.

Crime Story Freaks Marni Out

2008-10-22T17:19:00.003-04:00

I found this crime story on cnn at the following link:
http://www.cnn.com/2008/CRIME/10/22/childporn.alamo.search.ap/index.html
Follower: Evangelist Alamo had 9-year-old bride

This story starts off being interesting by it's disturbing headline, describing a man taking a 9-year-old for a bride. It them moves into the most current news about Alamo, his trial date and what he's being charged with. After that, the story kept my attention by giving the perverse story of Alamo, who apparently would paddle his followers and sleep with and marry pre-pubescent girls.
It has a few different witnesses and voices in the piece: Decker, Sprinkle, and Ondirseck were the witnesses, along with the prosecutor, the mayor, and the judge. It had mutliple direct quotes, and it did use some descriptive language. When Decker was asked if paddlings were used as punishment, he "paused before saying yes." Which is a good example of providing enough for a picture without getting to flowery, like, "Decker paused, looking down grimly, before he answered" or something.
It has a quick ending that gives Alamo's real name and the sentences his charges carry.
Overall, the story is about a twisted guy and it's written clearly enough to make it interesting without going overboard.

Former Power Ranger Extra Kills 2

2008-10-20T22:08:00.004-04:00

Man found guilty in murder of couple tossed off yacht
I found this article at the following site: http://www.cnn.com/2008/CRIME/10/20/yatch.killings.ap/index.html

The Lede shows it's a hard news story, short, to the point, and answering the most pertinent questions: A jury has convicted a man of murdering three people, including a couple who were tied to an anchor and thrown off their yacht in Southern California.
Actually, the only thing it's missing is an attribution, police said.

Oddly enough there are no quotes in this, possibly because it's just a blurb of about 150 words. There is a nut graf, though, or at least an explanatory paragraph: The jury late Monday afternoon found Skylar Deleon guilty of three counts of first-degree murder and special circumstances for financial gain and multiple victims.
There really doesn't need to be a specific "so what?" paragraph, because two people died for no reason. If you read the article, the guy was an extra in a "Mighty Morphin Power Rangers" episode, and he bragged about it--that, right there, shows his mental instability. If that isn't enough, he tied the couple to an anchor and threw them overboard during a test drive of the yacht so he could steal it from them. The guy definitely has some issues with self-worth and overcompensation.

But, I digress. The article is mainly about a crime that occurred in 2004, so it's just an update to show the police have found the murderer. The ending is kind of a fizzle, but it's an online article, so it doesn't really have the space issue, it just ends with the details of why he killed the couple--for the yacht.

Article Assessment: Global Warming vs. Economic Crisis

2008-10-13T07:56:00.003-04:00

This article can be found at: http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20081012/ap_on_bi_ge/meltdown_global_warming;_ylt=AsUKXu3sKpo6VCa4YhlOeIYPLBIF

The lede to this article is a summary lede, but is a bit toned down since this story isn't focused on the timeliness, but a gathering of current opinion that probably won't change over the next week.
WASHINGTON - The economic free fall gripping the nation may bring down one of the main environmental objectives: capping the greenhouse gases that are blamed for global warming.
The lede doesn't need exact dates or quotes, it draws people in who are interested in climate change.

The next paragraph is the nut graf, giving more background on climate change being a goal "next year" as we now try to face the economic crisis:
Democratic leaders in the House and the Senate, and both presidential candidates, continue to rank tackling global warming as a chief goal next year. But the focus on stabilizing the economy probably will make it more difficult to pass a law to reduce carbon dioxide and other greenhouse gases. At the very least, it will push back when the reductions would have to start.

Then a good quote that adds to both the lede and the nut graf to further state that climate change isn't as important right now:
"Clearly it is somewhere down the totem pole given the economic realities we are facing," said Tom Williams, a spokesman for Duke Energy Corp., an electricity producer that has supported federal mandates on greenhouse gases.

The article continues with the legislature of cap-and-trade where greenhouse gas emitting companies would have a cap of how much they could emit, and if they emitted less than they were allowed, they could trade with fellow greenhouse gas-emitting companies. The article says Obama thinks the economic crisis and climate change can be tackled at the same time by auctioning off the cap permits and using the money for alternative energy. Although, I'm not sure who would be auctioning them.
The problem I see with both of these approaches is the companies emitting greenhouse gasses won't actually have to reduce them, they'll be able to go over cap by trading with other companies or buyinig more permits at auctions. It's just adding more bureaucracy to the problem, which doesn't ever help. It's almost like a game of Monopoly or Pit, a commodity trading game, only in the end everybody loses.

The end of the article is a quote from a Sierra Club leader:
"I really wish that the science of global warming would look at the newspaper, and say we have an economic crisis so the Earth will stop warming," said Dave Hamilton, director of the Sierra Club's global warming and energy program. "But that is not going to happen."

I had to read over this quote two or three times to really get what Hamilton was trying to say. I'm not sure if he would like this quote at the end, after all of the bureaucratic garble that precedes it, because he almost comes off as a left-wing nutter butter. It probably seem that way moreso because he has a strong opinon about what's happening and it's fueled by his concern for the environment as opposed to his concern for the election.

Article assessment: Simpson on trial

2008-10-06T07:13:00.002-04:00

This article can be found here: http://www.cnn.com/2008/CRIME/10/05/simpson.juror/index.html
Simpson Jury: we relied on tapes, not witnesses.

The lede to this is short and strong, a succinct summary: The jury that convicted O.J. Simpson of robbery and other charges relied mostly on audio and video evidence -- and very little on testimony from prosecution witnesses -- jury members said Sunday.
All the good stuff is right in front, and the date and attribution is at the end. It gets right to the point of the article based on the headline and it keeps me interested.

The lede is followed by a killer quote that also backs up the lede: "We honestly felt we could not rely on that witness testimony," said Michelle R. Lyons, one of seven jurors who spoke to reporters in Las Vegas, Nevada, on Sunday. "There was not one decision we made that was based only on witness testimony."
It adds to the lede in a quote, which is naturally more fun to read than a block of text.

The quote is followed by a nut graf for the the article, explaining a bit more and giving an answer to "so what?": Jury foreman Paul Connelly said some of the prosecution's witnesses didn't seem trustworthy. At least three former Simpson co-defendants who cut deals to testify in the case had criminal records
I actually wasn't sure if this was the nut graf or the one written two paragraphs later that explained why Simpson was on trial. I decided that the paragraph about the Jury foreman gave the nut graf for this specific article while the other paragraph gave a nut graf for this chapter of the Simpson saga, adding background to bring readers up to speed who hadn't seen previous articles stating why Simpson was on trial.

The ending is a quote from one of the jury members that sums up the arguments for the jury in response to Simpson's explanation that he was just retrieving stolen merchandise: "Under Nevada law ... even if you're recovering your own stuff, you can't do it in the manner that they all went in and did it," Pettit said.

Other interesting points: Simpson's lawyer is trying to bring up race again, as if he's being targetted again because he's black and there are 11 white jury members. It would be hard for me to write this article or be an objective juror, so I can see how he might feel at a disadvantage. Fortunately, the case seems transparent enough, with video evidence of his robbery, that claiming this as a race issue is just grasping at straws.

Biden Vs. Palin's Economics: Take Care of Middle Class

2008-10-03T11:59:00.003-04:00

By Marni Newell
Kalamazoo, Mich---
Biden and Palin spent the first half of the debate on Thursday arguing over semantics of tax increases, both claiming the other was advocating taxing the middle class.
In regard to McCain’s economic policies, Biden stated, “It doesn’t make John McCain a bad guy, it just makes him out of touch.”
Palin claimed Obama voted for tax increases, including taxing small businesses, saying businesses that paid more taxes couldn’t hire as many people.
According to Biden, Obama’s plan wouldn’t tax any household or business making less than $250,000 a year, which includes “95 percent of small businesses.” Biden also disapproved of McCain’s healthcare proposal, which would supply families with $5,000 for health insurance, but would go straight to insurance companies, which he described as the “ultimate bridge to nowhere.”
The debate often strayed from the specific questions Moderator Gwen Ifill asked, sometimes sparking laughter from the moderator’s frank statements, “Neither of you answered the question.” Gov. Palin prefaced some of her answers candidly, “I’m not going to answer the question, instead I’d like to tell you about my track record.”
Meanwhile, Biden had distractions of his own, shown in one speech with the repetitive statements about McCain and Palin’s plans being the same as the Bush Administration’s. Biden’s approval ratings peaked in his description of current Vice President Cheney as, “The most dangerous vice president we’ve had in history.”
Palin maintained her smile during discussions of energy plans where she alluded to her opinion of global warming by saying not all effects of climate change can be attributed to man. She ultimately kept the conversation away from her skepticism of global warming saying “but I don’t want to talk about the cause, I want to talk about the solutions.”
Overall audience approval ratings by men and women stayed consistently above average for both candidates, a contrast to last weeks presidential debate.

State Police Bans Ray Guns, Cancer Research to Follow

2008-10-02T09:48:00.003-04:00

By Marni Newell
Kalamazoo, Mich---
Meridian, Conn. State Police Department ordered a ban of hand-held radar guns yesterday over concerns of troopers developing cancer from the radiation waves emitted by the device.
The research started two months after three municipal police officers in Conn. filed workers’ compensation claims, saying they developed cancer from using hand-held radar guns.
The move is considered to be the first of its kind by a state police agency.
“The feeling here is to err on the side of caution until more is known about the issue,” said Adam Berluti, state police spokesman.
The ban affects 70 radar guns, which will be withdrawn from service. State troopers will continue to use radar units with transmitters mounted on the outside of their cruisers.

The Lamp

2008-09-30T09:55:00.000-04:00

The lamp provides light for most of the room, despite its size. It plugs into the wall. The lamp shade is made of a frame decorated with jewels and beads, all made of plastic. The lamp shade does not connect to the base, but instead it balances in grooves. Because of this, I am grateful the jewels and beads are plastic so they don’t shatter when I knock the lamp shade down in the dark. The lamp is activated by rotating the knob on the chord, which can be frustrating when I can’t see and am fumbling around the neck and base of it. The base shape is similar to a vase. The bottom of the base is lined with velvet so the lamp won’t leave marks on tabletops. The lamp could probably fit into my backpack or shoulder bag. Recently, I knocked the lamp over while it was on and when the lamp shade fell off the bulb hit the wall or the desk and broke the wire inside. I don’t have any replacement bulbs, so now the lamp is just for decoration. Unfortunately, it does not match the rest of my room so without its function, the lamp just stands as a reminder of my clumsiness.

Obama soars in audience approval

2008-09-26T22:04:00.000-04:00

Audience reactions were united in approval when Senator Obama depicted the United States as a country that has lost respect since 9/11, but is still "the greatest country on earth." Meanwhile, McCain's approval ratings flatline.