My relationship with technology

My relationship with technology is neither good nor bad. During quarantine especially, I have been on my phone a lot more. I use my phone to communicate with my friends and family. I use my phone to keep up with my online presence and to keep up with other people's lives. I use my phone to read the news so I can keep up with what's going on in the world around me. Technology has changed a lot, even since I was a little kid.

Honestly, technology might be taking too much time in my life which I could be spending on people and more productive things. I find myself sometimes sitting at the dinner table texting someone or Snapchatting someone. I also find myself feeling anxious when my phone is not around me. I feel like the fact that we are so dependent on our phones is not good because it feels like separation anxiety when I don't have my phone right next to me.

Picture retrieved from: Page Design Shop

I can find whatever information I want to find on the internet, but this has its pros and cons. For example, if I want to find something that proves that evolution is real, I can. But, if I want to find something that proves that Christianity saved us and that Adam and Eve were the start of humanity, I can. Either way, I could come across an article that is full of fake information and is misleading me into believing something.

Picture Retrieved From: WSJ

I do worry sometimes that the internet and social media is taking over our lives. However, to me, this is a good and a bad thing. This is a good thing because it makes many things easier. For example, you can send cards to someone on an App on your phone. You can customize the cards for their birthday, graduation, Mother's Day, or anything you want. During quarantine especially, this is very easy and efficient. You can check your grades on your phone, you can meet new people on your phone, you can FaceTime and call people on your phone, and you can keep track of things with your phone. These are all things that make me want to believe that technology is all good. However, it comes with a cost.

Social media has a huge impact on the ways women see themselves. It has painted a picture in the minds of young girls about what they are supposed to look like and how they are supposed to act. 80% of women in the U.S. aren't happy with the way they look. This is mostly because of social media and the images of models who have perfect skin and small waists: two things which are very uncommon among women, but it is the "standard" that is set for them. Everyone has different body types and social media makes it hard sometimes to accept that. 70% of women who have a normal weight want to weigh less and are unhappy when they step on the scale. The only reason for this is social media.
(Information from: MACMH)

Picture Retrieved From: Waldenu

Technology has taken our lives from outside to inside. Instead of enjoying a beach vacation with our family, we are worried about what pictures we are going to post and if we will have WiFi in the hotel. In the Tears For Fears video, it reminded me of New York City and how crowded it is. You walk down the street and just about every person is on their phone. Phones cause distractions. If someone were to be crossing the street and paying attention to their phone rather than to the cars, that could lead to being hit. Phones distract people who are driving. 660,000 people try to use their phones while driving every day. 1 out of every 4 accidents in the U.S. is caused by texting and driving. 1.6 million car crashes happen every year because of texting and driving.

(Information from: Edgar Snyder)

Picture Retrieved From: Flickr

Overall, technology has its ups and downs, similar to just about everything in this world. We can change the way technology is harming us. We can put down our phones while we are driving. We can put down our phones when we are spending time with our family and friends. We can use phones for what they are used for: communication. We need to stop letting technology take over our lives.

Final Blog:(

I wanted to make my last blog as sort of a reflection of this past semester and what I have learned. First of all, I learned that creating and posting media is much more complicated than what I thought. I learned that having a positive online presence is crucial. Especially in the world we live in today, our future employers will definitely be looking for our social media self as well as everything else which qualifies us for the position.

I learned that I really like writing. Something that I will take from this class into my daily life is writing. At first, I felt a little uncomfortable doing "blog posts" every week. However, by the end, I actually enjoyed them. I enjoyed reading about things going on in the world, reflecting on them and writing about them. I took another class this semester called "Women in Writing" which also taught me a lot about the power of writing. I never really thought about how important words are. However, I learned that writing is such a powerful thing and, if used the write way, can create such a positive impact on the world.

A few months ago, I found out that a kid who graduated from my high school a few years before me was arrested for posing as a woman online to get young boys to send inappropriate pictures. He was sent to jail and lost his job as a volunteer basketball coach and a special needs teacher at my high school. Social media is a scary place. There is fake news everywhere. It feels impossible at times to believe anything I read on the internet.


Words, stories and writing are such powerful things that are too often taken advantage of. Although I am just one person among many who use social media, this class taught me that I have power too. We have the power to write and tell truthful stories and post valid information which people can read and actually believe. We control the future of social media and if that doesn't give everyone a strong feeling of power and excitement for what the future could potentially be, then I'm not sure what will.

COVID-19

The outbreak of COVID-19 is something that absolutely no one saw coming. I had finally reached the point in the semester where I had become used to everything. I was in a routine with my classes and workouts, and was feeling pretty confident about my grades, etc. This is my third semester here at High Point, and I'd say that this was the semester that really made me realize that I can't imagine life at any other school. One day, everything changed. I started hearing about this virus on the news and didn't think much of it, probably because of that "it will never happen to me" mindset. Then one day, we received an email from High Point that classes were cancelled for the semester. I was hoping that the Big South wouldn't cancel our spring season, but they did.

In the matter of a few days, I went from being a normal college student-athlete to an online student. I had to figure out ways to work out from home, which is hard without having the same resources available in a gym or at school. Having to transition to online classes was definitely not easy, either. Some professors expect us to do hours of work every day because of all of this "free time" we have during the day, but in reality some of us don't have as much free time as others. I spend a few hours every day working out, a few hours on homework, and the rest of my time is spent helping my dad at his work or doing things around the house to help my mom. Not to mention, everyone could use a little free time to unwind and relax as much as they can.

All of a sudden all schools were closed, and everyone is stuck at home. Many of us have never experienced something like this before. Everyone has to find new ways to live without exposing themselves to the virus.

During quarantine, many people have turned to the media for comfort. However, different things are being said every day. I personally don't even know what to believe anymore. Seniors in high school won't get to walk at graduation with their friends. People are losing their grandparents without even getting to say goodbye. The worst part is, nobody knows how long this will last. The media doesn't have an answer for us. Doctors don't even have an answer for us.

Social media has taken on a whole new meaning during this quarantine. Many friendships and relationships are relying on FaceTime and phone calls in order to stay in touch. Most kids in high school and even college are relying on TikTok, a social media platform on which funny videos are posted, to keep them busy. Everyone is most likely on their phone or looking at a screen for 90% of the day because what else is there to do?

Restaurants are closed, gyms are closed, and we wonder who will make it out of this quarantine without having to completely close down their business? The economy is struggling. People are struggling physically, emotionally and mentally.

Another thing that concerns me is mental health. Personally, this pandemic has caused my anxiety to be a lot worse. Sometimes I have a hard time sleeping because I worry about all the people in my life who I want to stay healthy and safe. This also makes me worry about people who have anxiety worse than mine. Not to mention, if this doesn't end soon, I am scared that suicide rates will skyrocket. Those people who rely on things like the gym and even social interaction as an outlet no longer have that available to them. In the matter of a few weeks, everyone's lives took a complete 180 turn.

Although I could come up with a million negatives about this virus, I can also come up with many positives. When I come out of quarantine, I will no longer take anything for granted. I will never take weekends at college for granted. I will never take even hanging out with a friend for granted. I especially will not take my family for granted, after watching so many other people lose their loved ones. Most importantly, I'm waiting for the day in 15 years when I hear my kids complaining about how "bored" they are. When this happens, I will sit down with them and tell them about the time in 2020 when there was an outbreak of a virus which resulted in everyone being on a stay-at-home order.

Information from: CDC

Awareness

Awareness is defined as the knowledge or perception of a situation or fact. Someone can be socially aware of what's going on around them. Someone can be aware of when and where the cars are coming from as they are crossing the street. Someone can be aware that they need to be careful while using a cutting knife in the kitchen. However, it doesn't end here.

Picture Retrieved From: Philosophy 

Propaganda is something used by many companies. This is a way of advertising a product or service with bias, and can sometimes even be misleading. For example, President Donald Trump's "slogan" was "Make America Great Again!" However, what does he exactly mean by "great"? Politics is a great example of people using propaganda to get their way, especially with presidential elections. Some people may have read Trump's slogan and thought, I want America to be great so I'll vote for him! However, this may be misleading. I tend to stay out of politics, so I'll just leave it at this: this slogan was created to advertise himself in his campaign which obviously was biased and misleading, much like every other candidate.

Picture Retrieved From: DL Granderus 

Disinformation is defined as false information which is deliberately spread with an intention to mislead. An article from Atlantic states that the 2020 election will be a "war of disinformation". Although it is sad, the world today has become too good at spreading false information. We see it everywhere. Nothing can even be trusted anymore. Any news article kids see on the Internet, we are told to not trust. An environment in America has been created where we do not trust the information we receive from one another. In an article from Buzzfeed, a survey was taken based on people and their relationship to the information they find online. 18% of people said they trust news on Facebook most of the time. 44% of people said they rarely, or never, trust news on Facebook. 30% of people said they trust it half of the time. These numbers show that we live in a world where disinformation is spread often with the intentions of misleading the readers or to even stir up some drama.

Information Retrieved from:
Buzzfeed and Atlantic

Picture Retrieved From: Amazon

According to USAGM, the Smith-Mundt Act allows The U.S. Agency for Global Media and the media organizations that it supports to make their content available in broadcast quality upon request within the United States. It supposedly takes modern content platforms that are not restricted by national boundaries, such as the Internet and satellite broadcasting into count.

Information Retrieved from:
USAGM

Picture Retrieved From: River Cities' Reader

Total Information Awareness was a mass detection program meant to gather information about people in order to prevent terrorist incidents from happening. The Total Information Awareness later turned into the Terrorist Information Awareness.

A False Flag is an operation in which a deception is created to create an appearance that a group is responsible for one activity, to take attention away from what they are actually responsible for. For example, there are conspiracies that the COVID-19 outbreak was to distract Americans from what the government is actually doing.

Picture Retrieved From: Dictionary.com

Five Eyes was an intelligence alliance between Australia, Canada, New Zealand, the United Kingdom and the United States. It started during World War II, when the Allies needed to lay out their goals for what they wanted the world to look like post-war. In 2013, documents were leaked revealing that Five Eyes has been spying on each other's citizens and sharing the information with one another.

Privacy, Online & Off

The video about license plate trackers really stood out to me. They store all this information about innocent people, which makes me believe that they are just waiting to be able to use it. The craziest part about it is that I have seen those license plate trackers in my town. I pass them pretty frequently, actually, and I don't think much of it. They took a picture of a man getting out of his car with his children on his very own driveway. To be an innocent man on your own property and have to worry about the government seeing pictures of you is insane.

The next video about telephone surveillance also stood out to me. It's crazy to think about the fact that anyone could be listening to your phone calls. I understand that it is a safety measure, and it's a price that we all have to pay if we want the government to catch the "bad guys". If the wireless connection between 2 terrorists can be intercepted, then so can the wireless connection between by me and my mother be. It also shocked me that FaceTime, WhatsApp and iMessage were the most secure. He actually encouraged people to use these things. Before I watched this video, I would have trusted a direct phone call to someone rather than a FaceTime audio call. 

In the last video, one statistic stood out to me in particular.1 in 25 women say they have been impacted by revenge porn. However, 1 our of every 10 women under the age of 30 are impacted. This all ties back to the media and the lack of privacy. It's terrible how difficult it was for her to get that man arrested. It took months of hard work, expenses, and humiliation to finally be at peace. The takeaway from this video for me, personally, was to be careful who you share things online with. Although she was not in any way at fault, we unfortunately live in a world today where women have to be extra cautious. They shouldn't wear certain things, go out alone at night, or share anything that could one day be used against them. 

Online Presence

I do not have a very large online footprint. Since I have played sports my whole life, I have always had to be very careful what I post. Because of this, if an employer were to look at my online presence, he/she would probably not have anything to worry about. Most of my posts are sports-related somehow.

I do not have Facebook, which might be useful to get one day when looking for a job, since that social media platform is used by a typically older demographic of people. I do have Instagram and Twitter, however I don't use either very much to post. I use them more to keep up with the lives of my family and friends, especially during quarantine. If someone were to look me up online, they would probably find nothing but soccer statistics of highlight films. If someone were to look me up on social media, they would probably find soccer pictures and pictures of me with my friends and family.

Picture Retrieved From: Econsultancy 

I typically do not share my phone number or email with many sites. I used to give out my email in middle school to clothing websites and such to receive coupons online, however I stopped doing that because I ended up having way too much junk mail.

Picture Retrieved From: New York Times

In my opinion, social media sometimes constructs a standard image of women that is unfair. I would definitely say social media could make someone depressed or feel lonely. For example, if someone saw a picture posted of all of her friends except her, she would probably feel lonely and left out. If a young girls saw pictures of Victoria's Secret models on Instagram, she would probably wonder why she doesn't look like them, which is linked to having a negative self-image from a very early age. Although there are definitely many positives to social media such as staying in touch and creating opportunities for yourself, it can be a very very negative place.

Picture Retrieved From: Quora

Diffusion of Innovations

When Snapchat was invented, there are a number of reasons why it spread so quickly. In my opinion, Snapchat is the most-used platform of social media today. Every teenager has it, adults have it, and even kids in middle school have it. It is a way to communicate with people that involves sending "Snaps" (pictures) to whoever you want to. You can also post to your "Snapchat Story" which anyone on your friends' list can view for 24 hours.

Picture Retrieved From: Snap Kit

I believe that it spread so quickly because it is an easy way to communicate. I also think that because there are so many fun "filters" which can be applied to someone's face or their surroundings, this draws people in even more. Another thing which can be seen as a positive is that you can see where your friends are at on the "Snapmap". You can see when they were last on their phone and where they were. This makes it a lot easier to figure out what your friends are up to without having to ask. Even though that sounds creepy, it is helpful for me personally when I'm wondering if my sister is at work or not. All I have to do is check Snapmaps and I could see that she's at work or at her friend's house.

Another positive to Snapchat is that you can personalize who gets to see what you post. For example, if I don't want my mother seeing something I post on a Saturday night, I will probably block her from seeing my story ahead of time to avoid an argument.


There are, however, many downsides to Snapchat. Someone who is too young might not be careful enough who they add to their friends' list. Not to mention, they might not make their location private. If a young girl adds a random person to her friends' list and her location is on, that person can see exactly where she is. This can be very dangerous to kids who aren't mature enough to have this app yet. 

Picture Retrieved From: The Conversation

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Another down side is that it creates unrealistic images of people. For example, although some view the "filters" as a positive, it could also be considered a negative. Someone could look a certain way on Snapchat with a filter on, then look like completely different in person.

Tolerance

Values of Free Expression

The value that I chose was Promoting Tolerance. The reason I chose this was because I recently read a book on the story of Matthew Shepard. He was a college student who was brutally beaten, tortured and left to die in a small town called Laramie. This took place in 1998. A big takeaway from the story was “Live and let live,” which was a motto of the town which wasn’t really followed until this incident happened. 

Matthew Shepard (Pictured Above)

Picture Retrieved From: NPR

I think that there is a huge difference between tolerating and accepting. For example, not everybody can accept gay people. Accepting is coming to terms with who someone is and what they believe in or love. The understanding of someone’s identity is acceptance. That is their opinion, and they get to choose what to believe. However, tolerance is a great policy. A tolerant society is not only a “better” society, but is less violent, more peaceful, and overall a better atmosphere and environment to be in. Tolerance is one’s ability to come to terms with the existence of the person, rather than the person’s identity or beliefs. It is unreasonable to demand that everybody be accepting of others. Although that is a sad reality, it is unfortunately the harsh truth. The ability to simply tolerate someone or something takes no effort and makes a huge difference.

This policy brings peace, saves lives and makes the world a better place. If someone were to decide to adopt this policy into their society, they could watch the hate crimes decrease. They could watch the threats decrease. This leads to an environment and atmosphere where people do not feel like they have to be friends with everyone, but they feel safe and able to express themselves. These people can feel free to be who they are, which is the type of world everyone should want to live in. 

 Picture Retrieved From: Arab News

Is our society tolerant? In some ways, I do believe that our society is starting to tolerate a lot more than we used to. However, this is not always the case. Last summer, my mom walked into my room and told me that someone I knew very well was arrested. A gay man in his twenties was going out to the bar in South Carolina with some friends. When some people found out he was gay, they spiked his drink with drugs. However, these weren’t “date rape” drugs of any kind. These drugs made him break into an attorney’s office and trash the place. Keep in mind, this man is one of the kindest, sweetest, most innocent people I have ever met, and he has the biggest heart. He would never do anything to hurt anyone on purpose. But he was arrested for on accounts for many things which the drugs made him do. He spent a few nights in jail, before my mom drove thirteen hours to bail him out. This is a perfect example of not being tolerant. This man was doing absolutely nothing wrong. He was simply unwinding, having a good time with his friends in the bar after a long week of work. Someone who was simply not tolerant of gay people decided to take everything away from him. He lost his job, a lot of money and his sanity for a little while. 

Picture Retrieved From: Ed Modo

Our society is tolerant, when they want to be tolerant. That is not the kind of society I want to live in.





Information From:

Matthew Shepard Foundation and Wikipedia

Google, iPhones and Drones



I thought this group's presentation was interesting because they talked about Google, iPhones and drones. All of these things are relatively new and change the way we communicate.

Google was founded at Stanford University, which isn't necessarily surprising. It was created by two men named Larry Page and Sergey Brin who actually met when Page was touring Stanford for grad school. It is interesting to think about the moment they met because they had no idea what would become of the idea of a search engine. 70% of people in the world use Google via YouTube, Gmail, Google Chrome, etc. I expected this number to be a little bit higher but taking into consideration the people who didn't grow up around this social media, that number makes sense.

Picture Retrieved From: The Verge

The first iPhone was brought around in 2004. This was Steve Jobs's "Project Purple". In 2007, the first iPhone was released. The first weekend of sales, over 270,000 copies were sold. IPhones changed the way we communicate and browse. It is crazy to think that the idea of not having iPhones today stresses a lot of people out. We can't imagine life without it. This is a major setback of Iphones. They cause dependency on technology for memory, communication, etc. Sometimes people even lose social communication skills because they are so dependent on their phone to communicate.

Picture Retrieved From: I Got Offer

Drones are a newer technology. They are used for military, cinematography, firefighting and journalism purposes. The group said that drones are used for "communication purposes" which I thought was interesting but also true. Drones allow reporters to get more of a "bird's eye view" for bigger, more dangerous scenes. However, it does cause hazard to civilians' property, and has the potential to be hacked and used for malicious purposes.

Picture Retrieved From: Asian Review

I thought Group One's presentation was interesting. I never really thought about the fact that there was a time when Instagram or Twitter wasn't a thing. Instagram began in San Francisco in 2011 and was founded by Kevin Systrom and Mike Krieger. Instagram became the second-most free downloaded app, which really stood out to me. A positive effect of Instagram is that it allows connections to be made and kept throughout the years. A negative effect is that Instagram takes a toll on young women's self esteem and confidence a lot. Social media, especially Instagram feeds, have shaped young women into thinking they need to look like the models they see online, even if the picture is not real.

Picture retrieved from: Twitter

Twitter was designed by Noah Glass and Jack Dorsey came up with the idea. On March 21st, 2006, "I'm setting up my Twitter," was the first tweet ever. Today, there are over 330 million users, bringing in $1.01 billion in revenue. Twitter also has a major impact on the world today. Twitter is a social media platform which allows users to speak their opinions, while their followers like their Tweet, agree with it or disagree with it.

Picture retrieved from: The App Store

 

 

Another topic that interested me was the first camera phone. It was called a Kyocera Visual Phone (J-SH04)The first camera phone could only take 20 photos. Our phones today can hold thousands and thousands of pictures and videos.

Picture retrieved from: Android Authority 

 

 

In 1927, the first TV was invented. It was a primary source of entertainment during this time. After the war, 1% oh households owned a TV, but by 1952, one in every three households owned a TV. Today, there are many sources of entertainment, but back then, TV was the only one.

Picture Retrieved from: When Guide

Group 1 also talked about Cable TV and the first email as topics, which were also very interesting. 

The postal service started back in 400 BC. It was first used in Egypt, as Pharaohs used couriers to send out orders throughout the state. Paper envelopes were developed in China in 2^nd Century BCE, allowing for letters and money to be kept in. Considering that the first envelopes were made out of cloth, animal skins or vegetable parts, this was a huge step. 

Picture retrieved from: Hip Stamp

In 1653, Frenchman Jean-Jacques Renouard de Villayer established a postal system in Paris. Not only did he set up mailboxes, but he delivered letters to those who used the envelopes that he sold. However, his business did not last long because his customers were scared away when someone put live mice in the mailboxes.

In 1837, the adhesive postage stamp was invented by Rowland Hill. Because of this, England gained their first postage stamp system in 1840. Hill also created the first uniform postage rates based on weight rather than size. This was very impactful because it made the prepayment for postage possible.

The United States Postal Service started in 1775. Benjamin Franklin, a founding father, was the first postmaster general. Aaron Montgomery created the first mail order catalog in 1872. This was impactful because it made it possibly for farmers who had troubles getting to the big city for commerce, buy goods. 

 Picture retrieved from: New York Times

In 1957, Maurice Levy invented the first automatic postal sorter. This could handle 200,000 letters an hour. This was super important because it was able to keep all the mail organized and was more efficient as well as timesaving.

For many reasons, the postal service altogether has been so impactful. The Universal Postal Union includes members from 192 countries. This allows people to give and receive information about important things that used to take much longer to get to them. The overseas postal system and horses were used to give and receive messages about war, etc. This was extremely important because that information needs to get to the people somehow. Communication needed to happen somehow. 

Over the past few years, newspapers, magazines, etc. give us information on what is happening in the world around us. It is crucial to understand what is going on around us and stay informed on the world’s news. 

However, the postal system is not as impactful today as it was years ago. Social media plays a huge part in the decline of the postal system. In 2009 alone, there was a 13% drop in mail volume. The cause of this is undoubtedly the internet. Instead of sending a letter to someone, you can give them a phone call or send them a text message. Regarding giving or receiving information, it can all be found online.

Overall, the postal system has been huge for the world over the years. Although it is not as relevant today because of technological improvements, it is still used and is the root of information and message giving or receiving. 

The postal service started back in 400 BC. It was first used in Egypt, as Pharaohs used couriers to send out orders throughout the state. Paper envelopes were developed in China in 2^nd Century BCE, allowing for letters and money to be kept in. Considering that the first envelopes were made out of cloth, animal skins or vegetable parts, this was a huge step.

In 1653, Frenchman Jean-Jacques Renouard de Villayer established a postal system in Paris. Not only did he set up mailboxes, but he delivered letters to those who used the envelopes that he sold. However, his business did not last long because his customers were scared away when someone put live mice in the mailboxes.

In 1837, the adhesive postage stamp was invented by Rowland Hill. Because of this, England gained their first postage stamp system in 1840. Hill also created the first uniform postage rates based on weight rather than size. This was very impactful because it made the prepayment for postage possible. 

Picture Retrieved from Amazon.

The United States Postal Service started in 1775. Benjamin Franklin, a founding father, was the first postmaster general. Aaron Montgomery created the first mail order catalog in 1872. This was impactful because it made it possibly for farmers who had troubles getting to the big city for commerce, buy goods. 

In 1957, Maurice Levy invented the first automatic postal sorter. This could handle 200,000 letters an hour. This was super important because it was able to keep all the mail organized and was more efficient as well as timesaving.

For many reasons, the postal service altogether has been so impactful. The Universal Postal Union includes members from 192 countries. This allows people to give and receive information about important things that used to take much longer to get to them. The overseas postal system and horses were used to give and receive messages about war, etc. This was extremely important because that information needs to get to the people somehow. Communication needed to happen somehow. 

Over the past few years, newspapers, magazines, etc. give us information on what is happening in the world around us. It is crucial to understand what is going on around us and stay informed on the world’s news. 

However, the postal system is not as impactful today as it was years ago. Social media plays a huge part in the decline of the postal system. In 2009 alone, there was a 13% drop in mail volume. The cause of this is undoubtedly the internet. Instead of sending a letter to someone, you can give them a phone call or send them a text message. Regarding giving or receiving information, it can all be found online. 

Picture Retrieved from Social Media

Overall, the postal system has been huge for the world over the years. Although it is not as relevant today because of technological improvements, it is still used and is the root of information and message giving or receiving. 

Where I got my information from:

 Britannica

Journals.UChicago

ThoughtCo.

Time

• 
  

When a fight between an 18-year-old and a 17-year-old broke out in a high school cafeteria, the news spread like wildfire throughout the school. After a teacher was involved, resulting in a head wound, both students were charged with assault. A short story was posted on their website the next day. Before the journalist posted the story, he was told he was not allowed to use the name of the 17-year-old in the story because he was a minor. The journalist then contacted SPLC (Student Press Law Center) for more guidance on what to do.

In 1979, the U.S. Supreme Court ruled that the First Amendment protects journalists who use the names of minors in "newsworthy" stories as long as what they are publishing is truthful and lawfully obtained. Other courts have ruled that the First Amendment protects journalists who use the names of minors in articles in circumstances like these:

A minor is charged with unauthorized use of a motor vehicle and hit-and-run driving, the name of a 7-year old boy who was brutally beaten, the name of a high school student viciously attacked by his classmates at school, the name and photograph of a 12-year-old who was charged with the attempted murder of a police officer as well as many more so-called "newsworthy" stories like these.

Picture retrieved from:  The Punniest Newspaper Headlines of 2019


In my opinion, I feel like this comes down to morals. As a minor, your parents make most of your decisions for you. For example, if a minor is involved in a beating and the parents of that minor do not want their name published for personal reasons, I feel as though their wish should be honored. As an adult, many things change. You become capable of making many life-changing decisions, but you can also be arrested and go to jail.Your parents are no longer responsible for you. In cases involving adults, I feel like their name should be able to be used in articles without permission.

I also feel as though it is not morally correct to release the name of a twelve-year-old who was charged with attempted murder, without the permission from the parents. To me, it doesn't matter how "newsworthy" or terrible the crime is. This is a child. Journalists should be able to accept and honor the parents' wishes.

Picture retrieved from:  Bill on children’s rights to be brought before Majlis: MP





Article:                     Naming names: Identifying minors

Workers in California are being told that they aren't allowed to speak to reporters when asked to. Instead, they are supposed to refer them to a supervisor. However, the question is now being asked, "Does this violate their First Amendment right of Freedom of Expression?" The answer is simple: absolutely. By denying these employees to speak to reporters, they are taking away their right to express themselves. For example, if something was going on in the company, these employees may want to be honest to the public about it. They are not as worried about covering things up to make the company look better. However, the supervisors may be looking to twist things a little bit to make them not seem as bad. They don't want their employees saying anything about the company that may hurt them, although what they say might be truthful.

The California Department of Tax and Fee Administration, located at 450 N St. in Sacramento. Rich Pedroncelli AP file photo, 2014
Picture retrieved from https://www.sacbee.com/news/politics-government/the-state-worker/article238958093.html

Read more here: https://www.sacbee.com/news/politics-government/the-state-worker/article238958093.html#storylink=cpy

 Simply by accepting these government jobs, it is not right (or constitutional) in any way for these employees to be giving up their American rights. Not only are these restrictions unconstitutional, they may be problematic. For example, let's say an employee was to speak up about a maintenance problem at their workplace that their supervisor did not want the media to know about and the supervisor punishes the employee by firing them. This brings up many other issues, which the company should be punished for, not the employee.
Although in some cases, it may make more sense for a supervisor to speak about something. If reporters are asking questions about something that the supervisor has more access to information about, it may make more sense for the supervisor to speak on it. However, this does not mean that the right for the employee to speak on it should be revoked. They should have the choice, as an American, whether or not they want to express themselves.

Picture retrieved from Why Freedom of Expression Still Matters


Article Link:

Gag clauses for California state workers, public employees might violate First Amendment rights

Read more here: https://www.sacbee.com/news/politics-government/the-state-worker/article238958093.html#storylink=cpy

Kobe Bryant was one of the most influential and inspirational people in the history of the sports world. This past Sunday, Bryant was involved in a helicopter crash. The helicopter ride quickly took a turn for the worse when it crashed into a foggy mountain near Calabasas. The "high energy impact crash" killed Bryant and eight other people.
Retrieved from: New York Times

It was later discovered that Kobe Bryant's thirteen-year-old daughter was also killed from the crash. January 26th will always be known as a tragic day in America. Athletes all over the world lost their role model and, even worse, his daughter on that day.

 Picture retrieved from TMZ.com 

https://www.tmz.com/2020/01/26/kobe-bryant-killed-dead-helicopter-crash-in-calabasas/

People around the world are sending their prayers and condolences to Vanessa Bryant (Kobe's wife) to get her through this time, after losing her husband and daughter. TMZ, a news company, actually released an article with the news of Kobe Bryant's death before the family could even be informed. The identities of those who also passed away were not yet confirmed when TMZ released an article, notifying people of the basketball legend's death. “It would be extremely disrespectful to understand that your loved one … perished and you learn about it from TMZ,” Villanueva, a LA County Sheriff, said. “That is just wholly inappropriate.”

News is news. People want to know what's going on in the world; sometimes they even need to. However, TMZ should have had the respect to wait until their family could at least be notified about the death of their child, sibling or parent. The article that TMZ posted spread like wildfire on the internet, instantly. Within minutes, thousands of people were reading this article, heartbroken over the accident. Although I don't know exactly how Vanessa Bryant (Kobe's wife) felt when she read the article, I can imagine how terrible it would be to find out that way. The other families involved who found out from this article must have felt so confused and shocked.

Picture retrieved from Twitter.com.

In my opinion, what TMZ did was not only disrespectful, but it was incredibly selfish. They wanted to be the first place people read the news from, which is exactly what happened. They sensationalized the fact that these families are now without mothers, fathers, children and siblings. This was all for selfish reasons. With intentions to gain publicity for their own company, they minimized the emotions that not only their families were about to feel, but the rest of the world as well. 

Information: WGNTV

Freedom of Speech is something that Americans pride themselves in. It seems nice from the outside and compared to other countries, being able to speak your mind. Facebook for example, is a major social media platform for people of all ages. They preach Freedom of Speech, but no one talks about the Fourth Amendment: “the right of the people to be secure in their persons, houses, papers, and effects, against unreasonable searches and seizures”.

It is almost impossible for us to be able to speak our minds when we know that nothing is private. The government has access to everything we say and every action we take on the internet. Although it is easy to talk about Freedom of Speech and how amazing it is, we must take a look at what our own government is doing. If the people do not have the privacy they want, they will not feel free to speak their mind. Something will always be held back. In my opinion, the only circumstance in which the government should have access to our private information is if there is reason of suspicion.

The erosion of privacy completely defeats the purpose of Freedom of Speech, which is all about allowing people to feel safe to say what they want to say. This feeling of safety is stripped from these same people. What is the point of having Freedom of Speech if the people using social media platforms do not feel comfortable enough to utilize that freedom? A majority of the people using social media censor what they say. Censoring what you say is justifiable in some cases. However, social media is a means to express one's self and their values and beliefs. The idea that the government has access to everything said or done online is in total contradiction to our First Amendment.

Resource: Wikipedia

 https://thenextweb.com/podium/2020/01/18/facebook-and-zuckerberg-keep-getting-freedom-of-expression-wrong/

My name is Sam Gerhart. I'm from Lebanon, Pennsylvania and grew up with two sisters and two amazing parents. I graduated from high school a semester early and came to HPU in the Spring of 2019 to major in Media Production and Entrepreneurship. After college I hope to make commercials for a company related to sports (Nike, Under Armour, etc.). The goal is to one day have a job which I am passionate about and to be happy. Outside of school, I am on the women's soccer team. I have always been very passionate about soccer. During the 2019 season, I was named Freshman of the Week twice and was later named Freshman of the Year. However, every other girl in my class deserved it just as much as I did. It was the support from my teammates and coaches that pushed me to better myself in all aspects of life. Soccer has played a huge role in my life, has taught me many things about life and contributes to who I am as a person today. Something interesting about me is that my dad played in the NFL for the Philadelphia Eagles.