The article I chose for the New York Times was titled "A Tast of Hope as Somalia's Battered Capital Rebuilds." It was specifically about the Somalian center of commerce and government, the capital city Mogadishu. This city has been virtually in ruins since 1991 when the government was overthrown. Since, a series of warlords have split the city into a myriad of battlegrounds, resulting in mass chaos. Somalia has been the most dangerous country in the world the past twenty years.
As a student of geography and world politics, I have researched the Somalian situation in the past. So when I saw the headline for this article I had to immediately read it. The article gave me hope that a new Somalia would emerge and I feel the in-depth reporting of this article did a fantastic job of painting the new picture for what Somalia would be like today.
Somalia's capital has undergone an unprecedented period of peace that has opened the door for more mainstream democratic principles in the populous and an insurgence of capitalism, not military forces. The non-violent culture is new to all of those in Somalia, and has prompted lots of Somali-Americans to come back to their homeland for a new start.
The article gave many perspectives of those trying to make it in the job market. I feel iron core news reporting stems from an ability to compile a multitude of legitimate opinions on a given topic. This article certainly achieved that task. The author interview a fishmonger, a banker, an artist, a policewoman, and a former assassin.
The fishmonger and banker were very upbeat and were enjoying prosperity that was unfamiliar. Yet, the author also pointed out that for others the process of switching to an entirely new system of life is rather difficult. The assassin, who had killed over 50 people, left his operation when he was assigned to murder his cousin, a pro-government advocate. That was the last straw for him and he escaped the profession, but still has to constantly be on guard for someone trying to kill him.
The article gives the perspectives in a very cohesive and chronological way, and we get the overall theme; Somalia is changing for the better. I call this important reporting. Somalia is a big deal. In many ways it is the microcosm for a collection of failed African governments. So to see this country on the upswing is very promising. I feel that the New York Times making this story a front lead article was important and indicative of the New York Time's ability and will to report on global topics about a wide range of subjects. That is what really constitutes a meaningful news intake experience, because it is more well-rounded. Reading stories about African politics is a very good thing to do because it is not a continent discussed a whole lot on the news.
Amusing Ourselves to Death
This book was a good read. I can't say that I agree with every opinion written by Postman, but overall I totally agree. In class I brought up the point that this is a modern day interpretation of Brave New World. Instead of Soma being the drug that dehumanizes our culture, it is the television that acts as the Soma in today's world. I couldn't agree more.
I most agree with Postman's interpretation of television news. Overall, the argument we get from Postman is that television news is unproductive through a television medium. In a more 'literature oriented' society if you will, a propensity to read for news is favored. I find this a far better medium for obtaining news because when you read something you are much more likely to remember it in my opinion. The current standard for television news is such that we are not typically learning a great amount of pertinent information.
Postman argues that oral, literature, and televisual mediums are all fair in one sense or another. But each has a different realm of the type of news they should contain. Postman and I share the belief that literature for political topics and more concrete, hard news is a far more beneficiary medium.
Overall Postman is warning our generation that the practice of being dominated by the televisual medium needs to end. This is not an effective way to learn and it is a medium the encourages short attention spans. I don't expect our society to become more apt to read the newspaper instead of watching a television news program, but I hope that our generate will become more sensible in obtaining important information through the media.
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