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Archive for December 4th, 2006

What to do with newspapers and their blogs

Monday, December 4th, 2006

The American Journalism Review has an interesting article about newspapers and how they are adapting and evolving to blogs generated for their Web sites and by their staffers, “Blogging Between the Lines” (found thanks to Romenesko). This is a topic that interests me a great deal, and was actually the topic of my final ethics paper last spring.

I particularly found the Dallas Morning New’s blogging guidelines (at the bottom of the article) interesting. (This is partially because I find their editorial blog fascinating.) Reading the article reminded me of what Carl said when he heard I started this site. “Don’t write about your sources.” Duh. But I guess given other journalist’s mistakes, it’s worth saying.

Getting the student body riled up

Monday, December 4th, 2006

Many times I walk through campus and wonder if any of my fellow students care about anything that doesn’t involve iPods, Facebook or drinking. I wonder if they even read the paper, and if they do, what they take away from it.

This past week reassured for me what an important role we play, especially in a community like this. Our president announced recently that he will be changing the graduation ceremony effective next year. Instead of smaller ceremonies in August, December and May, we will have one huge ceremony at the stadium in May. He seems to think this is a great idea. But after running an article about his planned changes, we began receiving letters and comments on the Web site almost immediately.

Students are overwhelmingly (and that might not be a strong enough word to describe it) opposed to the change. The same student body that seems so apathetic about everything else is actually using its voice to speak out against the new plan. Today’s editorial represents those sentiments and asks Lefton to reconsider.

I won’t be attending my graduation ceremony this December. It just doesn’t mean as much to me as it does to many people. But for most people, it’s a very important and symbolic day. I’m glad to finally see students angered about something that matters more than Facebook.

UPDATE! Lefton announced at the Faculty Senate meeting that he is reversing his position and not going through with the graduation changes in part because “recently there was a surge of complaints.” Students and faculty totally stuck up for themselves, and I am impressed that Lefton actually took what the students said and backed off. I hope it helps the student body realize their voice does matter.

How much I (haven’t) changed

Monday, December 4th, 2006

The beauty of the Internet is that it preserves things we would otherwise discard or forget.

I was searching for a poem I wrote when I took poetry in high school. I remembered using it as the splash page to typical a few years back. The poem is still one of my favorites for its simplicity, and I wanted to include it in a chapbook I have to submit as my final for Creative Writing. Luckily, I found it through the Wayback Machine:

Glittering snowflakes *
* Descending steadily from
The sunless heavens *
* Melting as they land on my
Eyelashes so peacefully *

I also came across part of the bio I wrote for that version of typical. I realize that part of it never care true, part of it expresses exactly the same emotions I am going through this semester as I graduate from college and part of it will soon become reality. It’s just interesting how much I feel I have grown in three years, but looking back, how much I’m still that naive girl ready to take on the world.

As a highschool senior this year feels like a season of lasts. Next year I’ll be eighteen by this time. I will be off at college and will come back, like my siblings, to visit only for the holiday season. I don’t know if I should be happy that I’ll finally be the one visiting, or sad that I won’t be able to take for granted the comforts of home any longer.