Another (Prolonged) Online Absence

 

As the famous fictional late-night editorialist Roseanne Roseannadanna (pictured above) used to say, "it's always something" and that phrase can be used to cover my last four weeks.  Right after promising to end my blogging procrastination (and posting my Herman Cain work), I had a death in my extended family that required me to be out of town for four days. 

Driving over 1200 miles over that span, I returned to face a looming deadline for my end-of-course article that required a one-day extension request for submission (I did get an "A" for the paper and the course).  Add to that pressure my job duties/responsibilities and you can see how I could let the better part of the month of December get away from me.

I'm currently enjoying an extended end-of-year vacation and I will restart my blogging regimen in the next day or so.  One of the things I'll comment on is my trip and I will also post my JOURN 201 final article for your reading pleasure.

A/V: Cain Campaign Visits Dayton

A defiant Herman Cain addresses an enthusiastic crowd at the Dayton Marriott

Despite dropping poll numbers and increasing scrutiny of his personal conduct in the press, Republican presidential candidate Herman Cain wowed a highly partisan gathering during a visit to Dayton, Ohio on Wednesday afternoon.  During this second stop of a day-long swing through the state, Cain stayed on his campaign message, touting his trademark '9-9-9' tax plan and other conservative-friendly talking points to an overflow crowd at the city's Marriott hotel.

Procrastination Strikes (Yet Again)

 
I am trying to get back into a regular posting routine but it is somewhat difficult right now.  For example, I was working on a post last week to commemorate the 48th anniversary of the JFK assassination and how that event helped create the television media we have today but I let it sit too long.  Even when I could have linked in the recent death of Tom Wicker, the New York Times White House correspondent, and his on-scene coverage of that horrific day, I lollygagged on the item and allowed it to lose its 'immediacy' with my readers.  Not meeting even 'soft' deadlines is not a quality for a budding journalist to aspire for.

You're Welcome!

I had a pleasant surprise this morning when I opened up my copy of the Dayton Daily News and saw a 'teaser' article at the bottom of the front page.  Julia Wallace, publisher of the newspaper, announced to the paper's readers that the Sunday circulation for the official reporting period from March-September 2011 had increased, the first such gain in the past 10 years.  She thanked the readership and directed us to go to the above page (AA4), where Jana Collier, the paper's editor-in-chief, explains the recent changes.

Everything Old is New Again

(NOTE: this piece was the midterm assignment for my current JOURN 201 class.  We were tasked to take one of the main historical subjects from our Stovall textbook and compare it to contemporary journalism/communications today.  We were instructed to write a magazine-style article that was limited to 1,000 words.  Mine came in at 994--if the Facebook entry was considered a 'graphic'.  The instructor's comments were "excellent analysis and written well".  So far, so good.  For my Twitter followers, the Williams interview was the one I kept 'tweeting' about back in September.)


Everything Old is New Again
Rapid communication continues to evolve from 19th century inventor’s dream


A patient waiter is no loser -- Samuel F.B. Morse, 6 January 1838

At first glance, these two messages appear to be totally unrelated.   The former is the first telegram transmitted in the United States over a short distance in New Jersey; the latter is the initial urgent posting to a Facebook page created by a 32-year old woman responding to a looming natural disaster in northeastern Pennsylvania.

The 1838 message was an historic moment in the evolution of human communications while the more recent one being a single status update by just one of over 800 million users and groupings residing on the world’s largest social networking website. 

Although separated by over 170 years in time and 120 miles in distance, these disparate dispatches are indeed linked through their respective sender’s aspiration for instantaneous communications in pursuit of their personal and altruistic goals. 

A/V: Their ‘Times Square’ Moment

Family members anxiously await the return of their veteran relatives at the Dayton International Airport

Last Saturday evening, one area of Dayton was intentionally turned back to a bygone era to help say ‘thank you’ to several dozen men and women who did not get this kind of adulation at the conclusion of their military service decades earlier.  A crowd of about 200 gathered at the Dayton International Airport to provide a heartfelt salute to 34 World War II and Korean War veterans upon their return from a day-long ‘Honor Flight’ excursion to the nation’s capital.  Friends, family members and even complete strangers participated in this patriotic ‘Welcome Home’ ceremony in the airport’s main terminal, which came as a complete surprise to many the unsuspecting travelers.

In Memoriam: Andy Rooney

(NOTE: this entry was originally going to be called 'In Appreciation' but, unfortunately, Mr. Rooney died before I could compose the post.  I will use that 'slug' for others deserving thanks for their contributions to journalism and/or the media.)

There isn't much to say about Andrew Aitken "Andy" Rooney that hasn't already been said by his fans, his critics or the man himself.  A fixture at the end of CBS News' '60 Minutes' programs since 1978, he shared his thoughts on a myriad of subjects in those few allotted minutes that drew applause, criticism, or simply just a faint empathy of viewers to the ongoing observations of America’s favorite curmudgeon.

Rooney passed away on November 4th at the age of 92 due to post-operative complications after an undisclosed surgical procedure.  Although he achieved his professional reputation as an essayist, humorist and television writer/personality, he began his long and distinguished career as a military journalist and it is this part of his life that I want to reflect upon here.  Most of what I provide below are from two books about his time in uniform: My War, an account written by Rooney himself; and The Writing 69th, a record of World War II military journalism.

Happy Election Day!

Depending upon a journalist's specific 'beat', type of reporting, or medium of communication, election days can be one of their busiest of the entire year.  Today, many hours of national and local coverage on television and radio outlets will be dedicated to analyzing exit polls prior to the end of the assigned voting periods, and all will try to be the first to announce these results once they are officially determined.  I work most evenings so I will have to rely upon another media venue, the internet, to keep apprised of the electoral goings-on.

On Film: "The Year of Living Dangerously"

(NOTE: after my very busy October and the submission of my JOURN 201 midterm article on Saturday, I finally had some time to watch one of the movies I've 'queued' through Netflix to augment my formal journalism education.  Hopefully, these viewings--along with posts to this blog--will be more frequent.)

"We'll make a great team, old man. You for the words, me for the pictures. I can be your eyes.'" -- Billy Kwan

I must admit that I had never heard of this movie prior to putting it on my Netflix DVD queue back in September.  Released in December 1982 this was during a period when such a film would not have been my first choice for an evening of Hollywood-created entertainment.  At the time, I was a 21-year old male Air Force member serving in the United Kingdom and action/comedies were my then-favorites.  In the near 30 years hence, I am sure that I had dozens of chances to watch it but never made the conscious decision to do so until this afternoon.  Nearly two hours later, I sat back in my recliner and asked myself why I avoided it for so long because it turned out to be a very good movie.  As I warned readers for my other movie review, I will be providing items that may spoil the experience if you have not seen the movie before.  If you fall into that category, I recommend you stop reading now.

Guest Papers: Catch-Up Edition

October has been a very busy month for me so I'm adding a few papers here to catch up on this feature.  The first two were from a trip to Columbus at the beginning of the month.  The third one was our local daily from last weekend.

A/V: Wright-Patt Says Farewell to a Giant Partner

Attendees viewing the C-5A ‘City of Fairborn’ prior to the start of the ceremony.  The 445th Airlift Wing flew the Lockheed Martin aircraft for nearly six years out from the southwest Ohio base.

On a near perfect autumn afternoon, approximately 100 people came to say goodbye to a familiar friend of the Wright-Patterson Air Force Base community for over the past six years.  Last Friday, the base’s 445th Airlift Wing held a farewell ceremony for the C-5A Galaxy transport aircraft, the largest in the US Air Force’s fleet.  Wing commander Colonel Stephen D. Goeman hosted the event at Hangar 4016 near the base flightline and tail number 00047—dubbed ‘The City of Fairborn’—served as the backdrop for the event.

Interview: Jeff Stahler

Columbus Dispatch editorial cartoonist Jeff Stahler addressing 

the Columbus College of Art & Design audience

Sometimes opportunities just sort of jump up into your lap and this past Saturday happened to be one of those times.  I was attending the Columbus College of Art& Design’s annual Family Day and Homecoming weekend and it was during this event’s kickoff meeting that I found myself in the presence of a widely recognized journalist of the editorial cartooning variety.  Jeff Stahler, a CCAD alumni, was serving as moderator of a panel of recent graduates describing their lives after leaving the school.  An award winning cartoonist, Stahler draws regular panels for the ColumbusDispatch and a worldwide audience through Universal uClick (he also produces a daily freestyle panel called “Moderately Confused” for that same syndicator).  

Al Qaeda Propagandist Killed During US Drone Strike

Samir Khan, in Charlotte, NC in 2008 (courtesy Associated Press)

As someone who works in an intelligence-related profession, I have been trained not to talk about such subjects in a public forum.  When I first heard about the recent news concerning the killing of Anwar al-Awlaki, the American-born Islamic cleric who reportedly motivated militant Muslims to commit acts of terrorism against the United States, I had mixed feelings.  While the mission was a success (via the current campaign of using unmanned technology to undertake tasks considered extremely hazardous for humans), not bringing al-Awlaki to court to demonstrate America's adherence to the rule of law will make him a martyr in the eyes of his followers and does damage to our nation's image on the world stage.  This would be a good topic for an opinion piece pitting civil liberties against national security and I am not ready to post my personal positions here just yet.

Guest Paper: Air Force Times

Front (and second front) pages of the publication

As an Air Force retiree (and a current worker on the local military base), I sometimes pick up a copy of the Air Force Times, a weekly periodical geared exclusively towards that service and its members.  Published by the Gannett Government Media Corporation, the journal is one of company’s 12 military/defense-centric journals that focus on news and information generated within or applicable to those specific audiences.  Copies are available for purchase in various base outlets as well as the adjoining town’s lone newsstand that carries it for the convenience of its high population of former Air Force members.  Its continued appeal current and potential readers is that it caters to the entire Air Force community (active duty, guard/reserve, and retired members) and can follow them over a decades-long career right up through their ‘golden years’.  

A/V: "Occupy Wall Street" Movement Comes to Dayton

About two dozen boisterous protestors turned out for the anti-Wall Street rally

Two weeks and one day into the New York City protests against corporate greed in America, many cities across the country have begun to hold their own rallies in support of their efforts.  In the shadow of the Key Bank building in downtown Dayton, approximately 25 protesters took to the street this morning to let their voices be heard on this initiative to passing vehicles and pedestrians near Courthouse Square.