WikiLeaks Video and the With holding of information

         

            This was one of the hardest videos I've ever had to watch. It was so heartbreaking seeing all of the people on the street running for their lives and these ruthless soldiers are just firing at them constantly. It is especially hard knowing that the riflemen were shooting because they thought they saw the men carrying weapons when they were actually holding cameras. It is really hard to put into words how awful something like this may have been to watch and to witness the corruption within the US as the war is occuring. It is even harder to know that the man who exposed the US for their wrong doing is currently in a maximum security prison being punished for not breaking any laws, but simply using his right to freedom of speech. 

Something that was really hard to hear in the video was how casual the men in the air over the telecoms were taking this situation. Some took a moment to laugh when one of the tanks rode over a body. They were making jokes and acting as though everything was so routine to them when they were taking the lives of innocent people. Finally when people on the ground showed up, they found an injured boy and were able to take him to the hospital. However, so much violence and death could have been avoided had they taken a little longer to examine the situation and seem that the men were carrying cameras instead of weapons. 

The rest of the documentary showed the poor treatment of Julian Assange, the one who published these videos of riflemen taking fire on innocent people. This was also so sad to watch because we know that he is still being tortured for information and punished for something he’s rightfully did. They are throwing case after case at him hoping that the time it takes to go through court will keep him detained for as long as possible. “He has a diverse support base publicly calling for his freedom” (Taylor & Clinch). Assange’s case has attracted a lot of attention and many people, including some celebrities, are demanding for Assange’s freedom. I really hope that Assange is given his rightfully deserved freedom and let out of the UK’s possession.

https://www.cnbc.com/2022/01/24/wikileaks-founder-julian-assange-wins-right-to-take-extradition-case-to-uks-top-court.html

Goodnight and Good Luck

         “Goodnight and Good Luck” was a really great movie that I found very enlightening on what it must have been like to work in the media industry during the red scare. “Goodnight and Good Luck” is a film about CBS-TV and how the producer Fred Friendly (George Clooney) begins to air stories about Senator McCarthy who is running his campaign to rid the US of communists. News reporter, Edward R. Murrow (David Strathairn) takes it upon himself to expose the “investigation” McCarthy is leading. 

The story shows the dedication of the news team to share the truth and uncover any injustice the senator may be committing. I really liked the subplot about Shirley and Joe Wershba who had to hide the fact that they were married in order to be able to work at the news station. Their banter throughout the film is hilarious and a nice break from the more serious tone of the film. 

As the station continues to air their investigation of the senator’s campaign, the heads of the company continually become more aggravated at the producer and decide to give the channel less air time on an hour that people don’t watch much tv. They were trying to censor the press’s voice but Friendly refused to give in. He continues to make segments on the show about the senator and the reported rise of communism in the US. The reporter himself is then accused of being connected to communism in some way and their attempt to stop the mass hysteria of no one being trustworthy is extinguished. However, the fight continues and the channel is finally recognised for revealing the truth everyone has been searching for. 

This movie is very powerful as it has shown the importance of reporting and how seeking for truth is a right that no reporter should be denied. It also shows the importance of being a station that is not willing to compromise for better viewership or to please a certain political party. It is the station’s duty to inform the public in an unbiased manner and to seek the truth above all else. Although the title of the film is never explained, it is obvious that Murrow’s catchphrase after every show means something. I believe that goodnight and good luck means to be aware of all the different sources in which you find your information and good luck in your pursuit of the truth because there's a lot of misleading reports out there. I may be reading in between the lines a lot but within the context of the film it makes more sense. This was a really great movie that was very informative about being informed.

Whistleblowers Blowing Down the House of Cards

     

            Whistleblowers are people in the government who speak against others or share with the public what’s happening behind closed doors. There is one whistleblower in particular that coined the name “Deep Throat” for their scandalous information that brought down Nixon's term as president that eventually led to his resignation. “Deep Throat” was the name of an anonymous whistleblower that gave a reporter inside information on the Watergate scandal. 

This man’s real name was revealed by the reporters once he had passed. The man was William Mark Felt, a former FBI deputy director who was feeding information about Nixon to the press, exposing Nixon’s knowledge of the scandal. However, some speculate that Felt was making some of the information up as Nixon stood in the way of his promotion to Director of the FBI. In this case and many others, reporters and journalists need to be careful about using whistleblowers and anonymous sources. 

When someone doesn’t feel the pressure of attaching what they say to their reputation, they may take advantage of their freedom to say whatever they’d like without consequence. Whistleblowers may try to use their position to bring others down or help themselves rise above their rank. It is a very gray area that many reporters have fallen victim to. Some have printed what the whistleblowers have told them and their reputations are ruined when the information is found to be inaccurate. 

However, on the other hand, a lot of information received about the government and what’s going on behind closed doors is given because of the anonymity. Reporters can get inside information and uncover major issues or corruption because of these sources. It is important to build a trustworthy relationship with your sources because if they don’t trust the journalist to keep their identity hidden, they won’t reveal any information, in fear that they could lose their job or that it would put a target on their backs. Whistleblowers and journalists have a relationship that benefits the both of them as long as both parties uphold the trust and understanding of their agreement. The presentation on whistleblowers in class was really interesting because i’ve always seen whistleblowers as a negative term but it was fascinating to learn how in some cases they can be really helpful in giving information.  

https://www.history.com/news/watergate-deep-throat-fbi-informant-nixon

https://www.newworldencyclopedia.org/entry/William_Mark_Felt

Emily Faithfull: Women's Employment Activist

    

    Emily Faithfull was a well educated woman who was a strong activist for women’s right to education and employment. To her, that was the most important cause to believe in, as women were bright and capable but overlooked. Emily was born in Surrey, England where she was homeschooled until the age of 13. From the ages of 13-21, Emily attended a boarding school in Kensington where she learned to write and so became passionate about women's rights to employment. Emily moved to London after boarding school and formed a womens publication with a group that called themselves the Langham Place Circle.   

The publication, known as the “English Woman's Journal” ran for 6 years. The publication’s goal was not only to inform readers and be activists on women’s rights but to also create jobs for women as not many male employers were hiring women at the time. While involved in the Langham Place Circle and working on the English Woman’s Journal, Emily was also involved in several women’s societies. She was in the Society of Promoting Employment for Women and the National Association of Promotion of Social Sciences. In the NAPSS, Emily met a woman named Bessie Rayner Parkes, who introduced her to the printing press. As soon as Emily learned that the printing press could be made and operated by women, she jumped at the opportunity to have women in control of every stage of publication. She opened “The Victoria Press,” a publication that ran for 20 years, until it was bought out. Along with this, she also created “The Victoria Magazine” which published 35 volumes. Lastly, Emily wrote a tragic love story about a woman’s need for education. 

In the last few years of Emily’s life, a scandal came out about Emily being the mistress of the Admiral’s wife. Charges were dropped but the scandal dragged Emily’s name through the mud and tarnished her reputation. Emily was shunned by the Langham Place Group and the Victoria Press. Emily continued to publish articles however and spoke at conferences and conventions on women’s employment. She continued to be an activist of this cause until she died in 1895. Emily was an inspiration to women everywhere and her legacy and activism lives on. 

The National Press Club

    The National Press club was the ultimate boys club of male journalists who wanted to relax, unwind after a busy day of work, or help each other out with articles, leads, or sources. It was a place where men could be men, where they could drink beer and play darts or have a smoke. It was founded by two journalists who wanted a common space to work. They gathered up 30 other journalists who also wanted a place to work, and they found a floor of a building for an affordable price. The club grew and grew over the years to thousands of members. A lot of presidents and celebrities have stopped by the club and made announcements, speeches, or just appearances. Taft was the first president at the club and since then the club has been visited by Roosevelt, Wilson, Truman, Coolidge, Reagan, Carter, Bush, and Obama. George Clooney joined Obama on his visit to the club. 

In 1971, women were allowed in the club. In 1919, Women had made their own press club and later merged with another club and became a rival to the National Press Club. However, in 1971, The National Press Club merged with the Woman’s National Press Club. To make sure there was enough room for all of the members that the NPC now housed, they needed to move to a larger location. The NPC built their own building where they have the club and several conference rooms that they rent out to people for special events. 

The NPC isn’t just a place to relax and unwind with fellow journalists, it is also a place of community and support. A lot of journalists have turned to the National Press Club to network and make connections for career advancement. Some journalists come to get sources or story ideas. The NPC is a great place to gain new information or stories before anyone else does because a lot of announcements are made there. One example of this is when a former president announced his campaign for presidency at the club. The National Press Club is a really great organization that works to support and inspire young and blossoming journalists. 

No Longer Loyal to the Loyalists

    

    We are far better breaking off from the country that held us captive for so long than still letting them have a grip on us. It’s unbelievable that there are people who still want their parents to make decisions for them. Why does the motherland feel the need to have their influence over us after we have clearly put 3000 miles between us. Without their influence, we can make the government we’ve always wanted. We can decide who has the power and how things will be divided up between us. We get to choose how the economy is run and trades are handled. This is our chance to get all of the things we disagreed with the motherland on right. 

Not only did we feel like we were being unfairly taxed, but there were several religious issues that arose, and political division that really lit the match. We have been unjustly treated for years and it’s time we take what is rightfully ours, freedom. The church of England should not require everyone to fulfill certain requirements or perform rituals that don’t align with a person’s beliefs. Religion should be a relational and personal experience that isn’t required to conform to a specific church’s practices. We believe that breaking off from the UK entirely will be in the best interest of the colonies. 

This decision is not something that we are making lightly. It is in the best interest of all of the colonists that we cut our ties with the UK. We have taken the right measures to ensure that our society is run the way we want to run it, the way we can best run it. Taxation for no reason is not acceptable and I believe that if we are a separate island to the UK, we shouldn’t owe anything to them. We also believe that when it comes to religion, we should not interfere with people’s personal connections with God and force them to conform to practices that aren’t discussed in the Bible. Taxes for the church should consist of Tithes and other donations. There shouldn’t be any payment to get people out of purgatory, like how the catholics run things. The protestant reformation is about standing up for our beliefs and doing what is biblical and not societal. 

My Top 5 News Sources

     

    My top 5 news sources have changed a lot over the years and my preferences will probably be very different to someone a few years older than me. What I mean by this is with the rise of social media, the outlets where I search for news and updates have only existed for a decade or so. One of the main news sources I use is snapchat: Stay Tuned stories to stay up to date on major events going on in the world. 

    I also use the Apple News app on my phone to check out breaking news headlines and read some stories from a range of different news outlets that are posted on the app. This is one of the fastest and most convenient ways to get information on what is happening in the world. I remember in my senior year of high school, I was walking through the hall to my first class of the day. The hall was empty because I was a few minutes late but there were two guys a few steps behind me. I heard a buzz and checked my phone to see what the notification was. It was an Apple News notification informing me that Matt Lauer had been fired from the Today Show for sexual assaut allegations. I heard one of the guys behind me say “Dude, Matt Lauer just got fired.” I don’t know why but that memory is so clear in my mind. Probably because I had grown up watching the Today Show in the morning with my mum. 

The next news source that I use is, sorry I should say used, because after this class I haven’t trusted it again. The New York Times. I read this paper until professor Smith told us in class that they had been lying about a story for 2 years. Since then, I have not trusted them as a reliable news source. Instead, I have turned to the Washington post for my news. They are more reliable and are very well known for some of the ground breaking stories they have covered. I would read the new yorker but that's almost the same as asking someone to summarize the news from yesterday to me. It’s confusing and outdated. 

The fourth news outlet that I use is BBC news on instagram. I really like that they put the headlines of stories in the instagram story so I can quickly tap from one story to the next. It is quick and efficient. I also believe that staying in touch with my home country and what’s going on there is equally important as informing myself about the country I'm currently in. Especially since I am still a British citizen. Lastly, I still watch the Today Show with my mum. It’s a fun routine we have in the morning when I'm home. It’s more relaxed and lighthearted which I really enjoy and it’s a great way to start the morning. All of these outlets have been really helpful in informing me on what is going on in the world. I believe that they are all really reliable and are packaged really nicely.