Broadcast Final Feature

In My Humble Opinion #2

In my humble opinion the new state law in Arizona that gives police officers the right to stop anyone they think is an illegal immigrant, is a travesty. This law is prime example of discrimination and racial profile in practice. Basically anyone who is Hispanic can be stopped. This law has angered many around the country including Representative Luis Gutierrez, a democrat from Illinois. Gutierrez responded to the new law by saying "To say that somehow we are all this criminal element and to target us with the discriminatory law is wrong. It has galvanized and unified," (http://www.nydailynews.com/news/politics/2010/05/03/2010-05-03_latino_pol_ariz_law_fires_us_up.html) Basically this law has lumped all Hispanics together and puts them at risk for being targeted by the police.
There are those who support this law such as Republican Steve Poizner of California. Poizner states "I support what's going on in Arizona. They've taken, finally, the power in their own hands to do something about illegal immigration in Arizona,". (http://cbs5.com/local/steve.poizner.voices.2.1670262.html) I strongly disagree with Mr. Poizner. All this law will do is create more problems and will not solve the problem of illegal immigration. The police will end up harassing the wrong people which could then turn into lawsuits against the police department costing a lot of money. Also this law could incite riots in Hispanic neighborhoods. This law goes against every law that has been passed in the last half century that deals with discrimination and civil liberties. Supporters of this law say that this law doesn’t promote racial profiling, but that just doesn’t make any sense. The only people this law will affect is people of Hispanic descent. What police officer would ask a Caucasian person if they are here legally or not. That just wouldn’t happen. The fact that only American citizens of Hispanic descent will be affected by this law makes them second class citizens in their own state. This is unacceptable. Illegal immigration is a very big problem in this country and it does need to be solved. However, it should be solved the right way. All this law does is promote racism, intolerance and divides Americans.

Fish Out of Water

For my “Fish out of Water” activity I decided to attend my friend’s sister’s quinceanera. A quinceanera is a Mexican coming of age ceremony for girls on their fifteenth birthday. The ceremony has two parts, a religious part that takes place in a church, and then a big party for the girl. The party is kind of like a sweet sixteen birthday for American girls.
When I got to the event I realized that what I was attending was actually the celebration after the actual ceremony. The ceremony was apparently held before at a church where there was some sort of religious event that happened for the quinceanera. I was not present for this so I had no idea what went on there.
What I was present for was an enormous party that took place after the ceremony. There was a lot of alcohol and many of those present including myself wasted no time in partaking in the festivities. Since it was my friend’s sister’s quinceanera I did know some people there, however it was kind of awkward that I was the only person of Asian descent there. It was also awkward for me because many of the people there did not seem to know how to speak English. However, even though I could not communicate with many of them I was received with many smiles. Unfortunately, I also think that I was the victim of a number of jokes. Some of the men there said some sentences with the word “chinito” in them, which means Chinese person. After these sentences they would laugh. I assume since I was the only Asian there they were referring to me.
As the night progressed on, a lot of people became very intoxicated. One of the men there, who I believe was one of the birthday girl’s uncles came up to me and started speaking Spanish. I had no idea what he was saying and all I could do was nod along and pretend to laugh at what he was saying. Fortunately my friend came and saved me and took me to another area of the party. There was a huge dance floor and a Mariachi band. The dancing at this party seemed to be traditional Mexican dancing. I learned a little bit of it toward the end of the night. It felt like a quicker version of ball room dancing.
Overall I had a fun and interesting experience. Even though at times I felt like a fish out of water, I would gladly repeat this experience.

Word of the Week #10

1. Nixed
2. Before I'd even thought to ask, one of the two soldiers escorted me, Arkansas National Guardsman Mikel Brooks, nixed the prospect of looking inside the freeze he and another soldier said contained "30 or 40" bodies. Source: Myth-Making in New Orleans from Mass Media Textbook
3. Verb: to veto; refuse to agree to; prohibit
4. After arguing for about an hour with my friend, I stilled nixed his idea to ditch school.

Japanese Internment Memorial Essay

The Japanese American Internment was the forced relocation and internment of Americans of Japanese ancestry by the United States government during World War II. About 110,000 Japanese Americans living on the west coast were forced from their homes and shipped to internment camps in the Midwest.
In San Jose many Japanese were taken from Japan Town. The Yoshiro Uchida Hall at San Jose State was used as a transfer point that evacuated Japanese residents from San Jose and Santa Clara.
Ruth Asawa was taken along with her family to one of these internment camps. During her time there she learned art and sculpture and would eventually create the memorial for Japanese Internment.
On our field trip to the memorial I saw many interesting vignettes that had to do with Japanese internment. The first vignette that stood out was a sculpted picture of a ship called the Taiyo Maru docking at Angel Island. The ship had Japanese men, women, and children all huddled together on the deck. The sculpted picture also showed the Japanese families coming off the boat. All were still dressed in traditional Japanese attire such as Kimonos. Many of the Japanese had a lost look on their fast as if they did not know where they were going.
Another vignette that I saw was a couple buses that were in a Japanese neighborhood and were loading Japanese people up in them. The stores in this neighborhood had Japanese writing on them. Every person getting on the bus only had a few belongings with them. Many of these people were women and children. The houses in the neighborhood had signs saying “eviction sale” and there was a bulletin put up in the middle of the neighborhood saying “Japanese must report to be interned.”
The third vignette that I thought stood out was of six Japanese American soldiers cooking by a fire. They looked cold so I assume that they were in the European front the war. This vignette symbolized all the Japanese men who enlisted in the army even while their families were being interned. This vignette also showed many graves that symbolized all the Japanese American soldiers that died during the war. It also showed a weeping family that had lost a son in the War and was being told that by an American army officer.
Overall I thought that that visiting this memorial was a good experience and I learned a lot about Japanese Internment. I believe that something like this could happen again if we let fear, prejudice, and ignorance guide us. Hopefully we will make sure that this injustice never happens again.

Word of the Week #9

1. Habituate
2. Gardner explains that when a news story becomes repetitive, people "habituate"-- the technical term for what happens when they no longer take in information. Source: Whatever Happened to Iraq? by Sherry Ricchiardi from Mass Media Textbook
3. verb: to accostom, as to a particular situation.
4. After being homeless for so long he finally habituated to his lifestyle.

In My Humble Opinion #1

In my humble opinion this country needs to greatly reform its immigration policy. For years illegal immigrants have been frowned upon and much injustice has been done to them. For example, if an illegal immigrant has a child in the United States that child is a citizen, but the parents can still get deported. Angel de Jesus Barrera, an American citizen, will be three next month. Angel suffers from a disease that targets the left side of his cranium leaving him with many illnesses. In order to stand a fighting chance at life Angel must stay in this country. However, his mother is an illegal immigrant coming to America in 1995. (http://www.themonitor.com/articles/son-37328-brownsville-consequences.html) Angel’s mother then had eight children in America. If his mother gets deported than he and his seven other siblings have to go with her almost ending his chances of having a good life. Medical treatment in Mexico can just not compare with that in America. Angel would have no chance at recovery in Mexico. In fact the doctors that have been taking care of Angel told Angel’s mother that “he will not live much longer if I take him with me to Mexico.” Sending Angel’s mother and Angel back to Mexico is basically giving Angel a death sentence. Illegal immigrants actually serve a purpose in this country. They are not simply here taking American jobs. In fact they are doing jobs that most Americans do not want to do. In fact Ruben Navarrette Jr. of CNN states “We create the demand for illegal immigrant labor not because of anything we do but because of all the things that we will not do.” (http://www.cnn.com/2010/OPINION/04/09/navarrette.illegal.immigrants/index.html?section=cnn_latest) Are there currently any Americans training to be fast food workers and farm workers for when they grow up? I think not. These jobs are mostly done by illegal immigrants because no one else will do them. What do illegal immigrants get for doing all this work? They get substandard wages and no right to vote and have no health care. Many live in poverty. Immigration policies in this country must change so that these injustices can end.

Word of the Week #8

1. Relegated
2. Should Comedy Central's South Park be relegated to safe-harbor hours? Source: Mass Media Syllabus
3. Verb: to send or consign to an inferior position, place, or condition
4. After he was unable to meet the expectations of his job he was relegated to a lower paying position.

Drinking Coffee Elsewhere

The story from Drinking Coffee Elsewhere by ZZ Packer that I chose to read and write about was called “Every Tongue Shall Confess”. This story was about a nurse named Clareese who happened to be a very devout Christian who is disgruntled with her life and her Pastor. She attempts to do god’s will by trying to save patients. ZZ Packer tells this story in a very interesting way. Packer tells the story through a third person narrative through the nurse Clareese. Packer uses quotes when other characters in the story are speaking and when Clareese is speaking to other characters. For example, when Clareese is speaking to a patient Packer uses quotes for what the patient says and then on what Clareese says to the patient. However, Packer does not use any quotes for when she is describing what Clareese is thinking. Packer also uses lots of anecdotes throughout the story. Packer frequently has Clareese think back on events in the past while she is in her current setting. For example, the main setting for story is in a church and while Clareese is in the Church she is thinking of past events that occurred before she got there. Packer also uses a great deal of description to describe scenes. For example, Packer writes “men like Deacon Julian Jeffers, now setting in the first row of pews, closet to the altar, right under the leafy top of a corn plant she’d brought in to make the sanctuary more homey”. This describes the scene perfectly and is only one example of ZZ Packer’s great writing style.

NPR Radio Interview Analysis

The NPR radio program that I listened to was from Fresh Air and was titled “Jesus and the Hidden Contradictions of the Gospels”. This interview featured Bart Ehrman who wrote a book about how the bible contradicts itself by saying different things about Jesus in different parts of the bible. The interviewer seemed to know what the book was about before the interview began. She also knew some background information about the author. The interviewer asked questions that brought out information that was in the author’s book. The interviewer didn’t seem to build up to any questions, but would follow up each question with another question asking the author to clarify what he meant. The interviewer didn’t seem to have much of a strategy except to let the author talk for most of the interview. The author talked for five minutes straight in some parts of the interview. If the author gave an evasive answer the interviewer would ask him to clarify his answer better. The relationship between the interviewer and the author seemed to be professional and it seemed the interviewer was asking questions that was promoting the author’s book. From this interview I learned that a good interview has questions that allow the interviewee to say a lot. A good interview also has questions that are asked to clarify evasive answers. A good interview also has questions that do not offend the interviewee and make the interviewee feel important and that the interviewer generally cares about what he or she has to say.

Word of the Week #7

1. Mawkish
2. By the end of the 19th century, the sensational and mawkish tales of misfortune that were a hallmark of yellow journalism were yielding to the refined sensibilities of those such as Adolph Ochs, owner of the New York Times. Source: Mass Media Textbook
3. adjective: Characterized by sickly sentimentality; weakly emotional; maudlin
4. His mawkish news story poorly stated both sides of the issue and was very biased.

Mystery Character

My mystery character happens to be a man. This man moves fast and talks with a big ego with a deep and loud voice. He wears shorts that look like speedos, but are slightly different. His signature gesture is a raised eyebrow. He uses the word Jabroni a lot and asks if you can smell what he is cooking. He is very tan and has short hair on the side of his head and spiked hair on the top.

Word of the Week #6

1. Apocryphal
2. Apocryphal or not, the era of film had begun, and this new medium's impact on behavior seemed ripe for research. Source: Reel to Reel: Psychology Goes to teh Movies by Eric Jaffe from Mass Media textbook.
3. adjective: of doubtful authorship or authenticity.
4. The story of his apocryphal movie was clearly stolen from a box office hit that was released three months ago.

Word of the Week #5

1. Visceral
2. Page-one placement can spark visceral reactions not only from journalists but also from readers. Source: A Fading Taboo by Donna Shaw from Mass Communications textbook.
3. adjective: characterized by or proceeding from instinct rather than intellect
4. After getting hit by my brother I made a visceral action by hitting him back even harder than he hit me.

Word of the Week #4

1. Quintessential
2. A quintessential Hollywood Moment: a star on a soundstage, the focal point of every person and every piece of equipment in the room. Source: The Hollywood Treatment by Frank Rose from Mass Media Textbook
3. Adjective: being the most typical
4. His quintessential outfit let him blend in to his new school without being noticed.

What Makes it News?

The news story that I selected was about two teenagers at a Colorado middle school getting injured by a school shooting. I got this article from Yahoo news at http://news.yahoo.com/s/ap/20100224/ap_on_re_us/us_colo_school_shooting;_ylt=ArqskxB92fxEbzpsrWC0RPtvzwcF;_ylu=X3oDMTJvbnE0MXByBGFzc2V0A2FwLzIwMTAwMjI0L3VzX2NvbG9fc2Nob29sX3Nob290aW5nBGNwb3MDMQRwb3MDMgRzZWMDeW5fdG9wX3N0b3J5BHNsawMydGVlbnNpbmp1cmU-. This news story is newsworthy because it involves the shooting of children which is something our society needs to prevent and this news story sheds some light on that issue. Some news values associated with this news article are the values of timeliness and conflict. Also it has the news values of unexpectedness and negativity. Too make this story more localized the writer might say something like it what is to stop this event to happening at a local middle school and calling for more gun protection laws.

Word of the Week #3

1. Cacophonous
2. For two centuries before the arrival of television America had a wild, cacophonous, emphatically decentralized media culture taht mirrored society itself. Source: The Massless Media by William Powers from Mass Media textbook
3. Adjective: having a harsh or discordant sound.
4. The old piano sounded cacophonous, making the song being played on it very hard to listen to.

Fly on the Wall

For this assignment I decided to go to Patxi’s Chicago Pizza, a small restaurant that serves Chicago style pizza. The first thing I noticed was that this place had eight different tables. Four of them were lined up on the right side of the restaurant and seated four people each. The other four were meant for two people and were lined up in the middle of the restaurant. All of these tables were made up of a darkish-brown wood. On the left side of the restaurant there was a bar with five seats. At the backend of the restaurant there was a kitchen that was open for all to see. Since it was 1:00 PM on a Monday the store was not busy. I sat and heard the waiters talk on the phone behind the bar. They were asking a customer on the phone if they wanted takeout or delivery. I also heard three kitchen workers talk in Spanish about something. The smell of the place was also interesting because it smelled like a mixture of wood and buttered bread. There was also a hint of tomato sauce smell. I decided to order a slice of pizza. The pizza I ordered looked more like a pie. It had tomato sauce on the top with a layer of cheese under it mixed with pepperoni, pesto, and onions followed by a layer of baked crust. It was very good and all the ingredients complemented each other in my mouth. After I finished eating I decided to touch the tables and see what they felt like. They were extremely smooth but had some hints of pizza crumbs. Some of them even stuck to my hand as I lifted it off the table. Overall this was a good experience and I enjoyed eating and being there.

Word of the Week #2

1. Gamine
2. She is undeniably pretty-- flowing black-coffee hair, sparkling eyes, gamine physique, broad smile-- but beauty alone can't account for her celebrity. Source: Almost Famous by Jason Tanz from Mass Media textbook
3. noun: a diminuative or very slender girl, esp. one who is pert, impudent, or playfully mischievous
adjective: of or like gamine
4. Her gamine look allowed her to look good in her new small dress.

Word of the Week #1

1. Waft
2. Strains of Martha and the Vandellas' "Dancing in the Street" waft thinly from Rambin's iPod speakers. Source: Almost Famous by Jason Tanz from Mass Media Text Book
3. Verb (used without an object): to float or be carried, esp. through the air.
4. The slow music wafted throughout my house providing me with a chance for relaxation.

My Favorite Writing

One of my favorite pieces of writing is Dr Seuss's Green Eggs and Ham which was written by Dr. Suess and was published in 1960. It was one of the first books that i read by myself when i was a child and has been one of my favorites ever since. It showcases writing that is simple but interesting and can hook readers at any age. Here is an excerpt from the book which i got online.
"I do not like them in a house.I do not like them with a mouse.I do not like them here or there.I do not like them anywhere.I do not like green eggs and ham.I do not like them, Sam-I-am."
I think that this is a good example of writing because it has a lot of rhyming and word repitetions which makes it interesting to read as well as entertaining which is why I liked it so much as a child. I think this piece of writing is a classic that every child should have the chance to read. Though it is made for children it still showcases good writing style which should interest the average reader. Even though I am not a child anymore this piece of writing still interests me today.

About Me

My name is Alexander deLeon. I am an advertising major and and a third year student. On my free time I like listening to music and hanging out with friends. One of my favorite shows is Family Guy because it is funny and always entertaining. My favorite color is red and i will occasionally play basketball or football. I like Thai food alot and since my mother is Thai I get to eat a lot of it. I also like filipino food and since my father is filipino it works in my favor.
What i want out of this class is to improve my grammar and to learn to write better. Having a blog is also cool because I never thought I would have one. I am not good at putting together essays so hopefully this class will help me with that. I usually have good ideas, but i have trouble writing introductions. Once i get an introduction written i can usually make my essay flow together well. I thought my grammar was good but after taking the grammar assessments test realize i still have much to learn. I look forward to learning new things in this class and hopefully i will get a lot out of it.