“I’m Busy for the Rest of My Life.” by Peter Tunney
Grammar Slammer
19 Jun
photo courtesy of: http://ladadeeda.com/
The grammar lesson we had in class on Wednesday was a mere reminder that I have a lot of studying to do in order to prepare for the grammar exam. Unfortunately, a few of the things we went over in the grammar lesson have vacated itself from my memory in my transition from high school to college. On the other hand, I did remember many of the basic grammar rules so luckily I wasn’t too lost. In high school, I used “this sounds right” or “this doesn’t sound right” as my so-called “grammar rules,” but that’s obviously not going to work in college.
In the grammar lesson, we touched on our knowledge about the different types of verbs, such as: being, transitive and action. These are the basic things that I am fairly familiar with. Apart from that, some of the things I forgot about were clauses, and other complex grammar rules. Additionally, I never new a simple sentence such as “I am a woman.” could contain such complex terms like “predicate nominative,” which I had never even heard of until Wednesday. Fortunately, my memory was refreshed on some of these many grammar rules after going over the numerous examples.
We can all agree that grammar is not the most fun subject, but it is the most necessary. All in all, I thought the grammar lesson was extremely helpful.
My pitch to The Beacon
12 Jun
photo courtesy of: http://www.freshman15.com/
Among the numerous amount of things students worry about when entering college, the infamous “freshman 15” or just gaining weight, period is definitely one of them. But what happens when the University’s cafeteria, which is many of the students main source of dining, isn’t serving healthy food options nor encouraging healthy eating? I think the Beacon should research the food options that are available on campus and decipher whether these foods are healthy in any way.
Miami: A Melting Pot?
1 Jun
photo courtesy of: http://media.tumblr.com/tumblr_liyrcqyUJK1qh443c.jpg
Growing up and living in Miami for nineteen years I’ve seen different ethnicities of people, heard unfamiliar languages, and experienced different cultural customs. In my opinion, these are the things that make Miami, Miami; A flavor-filled city that is like none other. I believe that these differences are also what attract so many outsiders to our wonderful city.
This uniqueness of Miami is what makes Miami a melting pot, in which dictionary.com defines as “a country, locality, or situation in which a blending of races, or cultures is taking place.” I would have to say there is definitely a blending of cultures taking place in Miami. For example, I attended a high school where the majority of the students were hispanic and as a result, many of there cultural customs, such as cheek-to-cheek kisses when you are greeting someone have became apart of me, as well. Although I am African-American and this greeting isn’t apart of my own culture, I often find myself unconsciously acknowledging someone in that manner. This is a case in point that there is some sort of cultural blending taking place in Miami. Face it, this city is filled with differences that are constantly blending every day and it is such a beautiful thing.
Oh, nothing
25 May
Believe it or not, your mind has the ability to take you to wondrous places, while doing absolutely nothing. I can say this because I have experienced it when doing this “nothing” assignment. As I laid in my bed and stared at the ceiling, I began to reflect on my life and the things I have accomplished. I also began to think about my dreams, goals, and aspirations; On how someday I would like to work in the music business, or in some field of work dealing with music, whether its a magazine, television, or label. Laying in this comforting position, I thought of ways I could pursue my goals, not just when I finish school, but the many things I could do starting now, by taking advantage of opportunities that I am presented with.
Some people believe you can’t get anything out of doing nothing, but after completing this assignment, I beg to differ. Honestly, I never would’ve thought I’d have something to write about subsequent to doing absolutely nothing, but I proved myself wrong. Doing this “nothing” assignment made me realize important things, such as what I wanted to do with my future, and on that account, I am truly grateful for the gift of doing nothing.
HIV/AIDS Coverage
18 May
photo courtesy of: nonprofit-day.org
The HIV/AIDS epidemic is effecting more people in society than we think. In fact, it hits very close to home. Miami, FL ranks high in AIDS cases and at one time, had the highest infection rates. In the documentary Lessons from South Africa, we learned about the awareness that has being created around HIV/AIDS and saw how the media covers HIV/AIDS in South Africa and South Florida.
I found that this documentary was extremely informative, positive, and enlightening. It opened my eyes on this serious disease that is effecting the world and my own community. While watching this documentary, I found it intriguing that the people of South Africa were extremely involved with awareness approaches on this devastating disease.
Sadly, there is not enough media coverage about HIV/AIDS. Although in South Africa they used techniques such as radio and talk shows to get awareness out there and educate it’s people, there was still a lack of coverage from news media outlets. However, I believe they are doing a better job with awareness and media coverage than South Florida. It seems that the media in South Florida chooses not to look at this as a problem, even though it is affecting our community tremendously.
For one thing, I am grateful for this documentary, because it brings awareness about HIV/AIDS in a informative and newsworthy way.
The Media’s impact on McCarthyism and the Civil Rights Movement
14 May
photo courtesy of: knowledgerush.com
Joe McCarthy, who the term “McCarthyism” was coined after, was a Senator in the 1950’s, known for his anti-communist movement. McCarthy claimed that there were communist working for the US government. With this so-called “communist witch-hunt”, McCarthy helped Republicans gain office for the first time in twenty-years. McCarthy worked to expose the government and find the truth. The media created this term “mccarthyism” which the dictionary defines as “the practice of making unfair allegations.” Unbiased stories written to attack the democratic party proves that this was indeed advocacy journalism, because it promoted a cause from a subjective viewpoint.
photo courtesy of: lcrm.lib.unc.edu
In chapter 11, we read about Civil Rights movement and the media. That too, is an example of advocacy journalism. During the 1950’s, although slavery had been outlawed, there was still many racists in the south that came up with a good deal of ways to keep blacks in America oppressed. The media and television covered stories from a subjective viewpoint on the oppressed blacks of the south, which were only meant to wake America up and show them what was really going on in the south.
Sam Adams: Objective Journalist or Blogger?
11 May
photo courtesy of: quotationsofwisdom.com
Before answering the question, was Samuel Adams an objective journalist or blogger, we must first know the definition of each. An objective journalist is one who seeks and reports the truth unbiasedly, as well as abiding by certain codes of ethics. A blogger, on the other hand, sometimes exaggerate stories, have no code of ethics to follow, and are often biased and opinionated. Shortly after reading about Samuel Adams’ Journal of Occurrences, I came to the conclusion that he is in fact, a blogger. For one thing, Sam Adams often placed distasteful labels on the soldiers such as “wretches” and “bloody-backed rascals” and according to the code of ethics, a journalist should “show good taste.” Being that a blogger doesn’t have any code of ethics, labeling someone is accepted, because it is their opinion. In addition to this, the text even states that most of Adams’ accounts were not true, and he that “made use of biased phrasing”, which gives him even less creditability as an objective journalist. Though Adams was informative, he could have opted out of inputting his opinions and chose to reveal both sides of the stories, which would have helped him disclose the occurrences in a more efficient, journalistic way.
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