2 week plan

27th - strenuously sorted through all 611 photos from my photography session at The Crucible. Got it down to just 9. I'll pick the best from those. I should consider taking a few pictures of Danielle as well since she is almost as featured as Camden.

29th - worked on formatting design and fitting some photos in. Scheduled to take photos of Danielle next week. Will continue with feature design and other art spread.

3rd -

5th -

7th -

my page # for article: 34-35
WSS, pepperall squares (and other: crucible?) page #: 28-29

Design Practice

CARPE - design (blogpost 15.0)

Contrast: This photo is better in black in white because if it were in color it would be too complex to look at. The lack of color gives that contrasting feel but also matches the text on the next page. Also, the size of the text varies. The "god" draws people in because of its size and popular (and contradicting)  ideas.


Proximity: the title and by line fall in line with one another. The text gets smaller as the reader progresses down.

Alignment: The space between the photos and in between the columns are equal. The page numbers are aligned. Both spreads have 3 columns.

Repetition: The four black and white photos on the left are all the same size and color. They are also all close up images. In the first spread: there is one big photo and one big, bolded word.

Eye-line: neither of the above spread have an eye line that extend across both pages. But, the white space is nicely managed. The photos and text are group together. It is organized (and not annoying). Since there is so much purposeful white space, an eye line isn't necessary.

final draft (blogpost 14.0)

Art After High School
by Sam Saucier

The theater is quiet. A group of student actors are scattered across the stage, scripts in hand. They are rehearsing one of the most pivotal scenes in this year’s production of The Crucible. They have been practicing this moment more than any other in the show, making sure their intensity and interaction blends well enough to reenact a convincing courtroom scene from the famously historic Salem witch trials. Among these students is junior Camden Loeser, who is playing Reverend Parris.

Loeser’s favorite part about performing is the anticipation before he enters the stage. He enjoys the nervous feeling that has developed from stage fright into an anxious confidence over years of adjusting comfortably into performance. “Knowing that people are about to see you and be impressed with your talents,” says Loeser, “that’s the best.”

Loeser has been involved in theater since age four when he played a mouse in his first show, Twas One Crazy Night Before Christmas. Loeser’s favorite performance to this day is The Sound of Music, in which he portrayed Friederich in the Ogunquit Playhouse production in the summer of 2010. “When you perform the show as much as I did, you become the character,” says Loeser, who valued the production for its professional experience.

“I guess my dad got me into it,” says Loeser, on his biggest inspiration. “I ended up loving it and kept doing it. The things I do onstage kind of resemble the stuff he did.” Most of the social and theatrical circles Loeser runs in are ones that he was introduced to by his father, David, who was actively involved in local community theater productions. He passed away in 2006 after years of battling leukemia. “He was always really supportive of everything I did. He was always there. He got me into that [theater] world.”

Loeser plans on pursuing musical theater after high school, though he’s worried about the competitiveness of art schools like Wagner and Boston University, just a few of his choices. Applying to these universities often requires a colorful resume to prove how well rounded of an artist the student is. Fortunately, Loeser is what people of the artistic world call a “triple threat”. This term showcases Loeser’s three talents: singing, dancing and acting.  These combined abilities are attractive to art schools and programs, but that does not mean Loeser won’t have to work hard.

“[It’s scary] knowing that there will always be someone better than you,” says Loeser. For professional actors, competition, training and preparing for auditions is an enormous part of the business, not unlike professional athletes. “That’s your entire life.”

It takes incredible dedication to become an artist. With an overflowing wave of young artists, it is difficult to stand out and be successful. Even in the small community of TA students, Loeser is just one of many looking to impress art schools.

“Everyone likes drawing, everyone like photography, everyone likes writing,” says senior Danielle Morin, “It’s hard to excel and get noticed.”

Morin has been drawing since she was very young. “I used to always draw, especially when I went to my grandmother’s house because she loved art.” She recalls enrolling in numerous art classes and camps throughout her childhood, “I wasn’t always good,” but Morin says she only fell in love with drawing last year. Her self-portrait that she drew in Mrs. Merry’s class is her favorite creation to date. “It was in charcoal, which I had never used before,” says Morin, pulling up a picture of the drawing on her phone. The new material presented a challenge to Morin that she proudly overcame.

But for Morin, this doesn’t seem to be the path she will be following. She worries about the consistency of an artist’s career and whether or not that will be enough to financially support her. “My mother comes into play,” says Morin, whose mother is concerned that her daughter may end up “living on the streets” if she pursues a career in art.

The “starving artist” image is not always one of poetic desire. It is a rational fear for young artists to be concerned about supporting themselves for the first time. According to the US Department of Labor, 60% of artists are self-employed (2008).

Mrs. Roth is a career counselor at TA and specializes in working with students pursuing a vast array of job types, providing services such as job shadowing. Roth has conducted research studying job availability for the rising generations, and knows the struggle that many young artists will face once they graduate college. “You really have to want it and be willing to sacrifice everything, potentially, in terms of comforts,” she says.

Nowadays, a bachelor’s degree in art is essential for a professional career in many artistic fields. People looking to pursue these career paths should be aware of evolving jobs that are presented with innovative technology and modern applications of art. For example, fine artists have the possibility of creating illustrations for magazines and other commercialized products as well as scientific sketches.

For those looking into theater need to be prepared for short-term guarantee of employment. Only about 50 of 100,000 actors live the highly paid, glamorous life that we are exposed to through the media.

“There are some industries that are pretty hard for Maine kids to get into because it’s all about networking,” says Roth. “Everything distills to relationships. If you’re in a big city you’ve got more people to tap into because that’s where it’s happening.”

Being isolated in the small towns of the east coast, it is rare to have connections to those who pull the strings in artistic business communities. That is why students from these parts must work extra hard to pull themselves into those circles. Many will struggle with steady success in their career.

But many high school students struggle with the notion of what constitutes being successful. Is it yearly salary? Number of tickets sold or books published? “As long as I feel happy in what I’m doing and feel like this what I’m supposed to do,” says Loeser, “I want it to feel beneficial to me.”

“You have to please other people,” says Morin. “You have to be consistently good.”

Unsure about her career in drawing, Morin says she may try photography. But, she will not leave her art behind, “If I get a solid job, I’d like to try and sell my art on the side. You never know because of this economy.”

As for Loeser, “I don’t think I’ll do anything else. I don’t love anything else more than theater enough to want to.”

Debate (blogpost 13.0)

The town hall style Presidential debate took place at Hofstra University in New York on October 16th. President Barack Obama and opposing candidate Governor Mitt Romney went head to head in heated arguments over education, taxation, and womens' rights. The debate was moderated by CNN news anchor Candy Crowley. There were many points of controversy in which the two candidates spoke over each other in an attempt to make the most of their time. Crowley did her best to appease the roar, but that did not stop Obama and Romney from frequently saying "just one more thing". 

One of the more memorable moments from the evening occurred when Romney was asked how he plans to improve equality for women in the workplace. Romney proceded to speak about the cabinet that served him as Governor of Massachusetts. "I went to a number of women's groups and said, 'Can you help us find folks?' and they brought us whole binders full of women." 

This line was widely received, processed, and thrown back in Romney's face by the internet. Within minutes of "binders full of women" leaving Romney's lips, several parody facebook, twitter and tumblr accounts were activated and spitting political satire. 

Obama repeated his past criticism of Romney's unclear tax plan, saying "when he's asked how are you going to do it, which deductions, which loopholes are you going to close, he can't tell you." The Obama campaign even set up this anti-Romney website humorously declaring plan to be purposefully delivered vague. 

But when it comes to statistical evidence, Romney has no shortage. "We don't have to settle for what we're going through," Romney said at one point. "We don't have to settle for gasoline at four bucks. We don't have to settle for unemployment at a chronically high level. We don't have to settle for 47 million people on food stamps. We don't have to settle for 50 percent of kids coming out of college not able to get work. We don't have to settle for 23 million people struggling to find a good job."

Obama waited until his final statement to hone in on Romney's statement about the 47%. "Think about who he was talking about," Obama said, "who've worked all their lives," veterans "who've sacrificed for this country," students, soldiers and "people working hard every day." The president said he wanted to fight for those people "because if they succeed, I believe the country succeeds."

Obama and Romney continuously tried to win over the audience members asking questions. If one candidate gave a seemingly disappointing answer, the other attempted to reassure the asker with information supporting their own possible presidential term, whether or not the facts were true. They battled back and forth about the cost of education and immigration. Both candidates played politics during this debate. According to CNN, Obama is viewed as the overall winner, with 46% of watchers agreeing. 

Biased piece (aka: Why I Am Moving to Sweden if Romney is Elected): 

When it comes to some politicians these days, it seems their policies reflect their own beliefs, rather than the interests of the American public. This gets in the way of good, clean politics. In fact, the words "good" and "clean" hardly seem fit to describe politics any more. Most campaign ads are designed to shoot down the opposing competitor instead of build one up. Politicians scuttle around details of their plans to cover up what may be controversial. But these controversial details are the ones that we, the American people, need to be aware of if we want the next 4 years to be as successful as possible. 

Presidential Candidate Mitt Romney is no exception. Romney's campaign party has maneuvered around tax plans and teetered on the fence of telling media exactly what Romney's stance on issues like abortion are. This untruthful approach to Presidency makes me uncomfortable and fearful for what might come should Romney be elected in a week and a half. 

Let's talk about an issue that has been presented, faulted, denied, covered-up and restated again and again. Romney has issued a statement(s) that, should he become President, he would cut funding for Planned Parenthood. 

“I’ve said time and time again, I’m a pro-life candidate, I’ll be a pro-life president. The actions I’ll take immediately are to remove funding for Planned Parenthood. It will not be part of my budget."

I would like to remind Governor Romney that Planned Parenthood is not an abortion factory. They also specialize in cancer screenings, vaccinations, sexual health education, STD testing, adoption referrals and so many other services that both women and men depend on in the United States. 

But just because a law is passed or funding is cut, that will not stop some women from performing unsafe, unsanitary abortions that could be permanently damaging and potentially lethal. Abortion was unaffordable or even illegal, sure, some people would have children they didn't ask for, and perhaps are not ready for. That is another mouth to feed, a mind to school, a bed to occupy, a job to give. Is that beneficial to your economy plans, Governor Romney?


Something needs to be clarified here: Romney isn't cutting Planned Parenthood for money/tax/economy issues. Romney wants to cut Planned Parenthood because he, personally, does not believe that abortion should be legal. This is a perfect example of politicians enforcing their beliefs on citizens. It is, in a way, an abuse of power. Their beliefs should not be treated as our beliefs. 

I've never been fond of the categories entitled "pro-life" and "pro-choice". Since I am pro-choice, it makes me feel like I am categorized, somehow, as anti-life. I am the furthest from. I understand the fragility and sacredness of the life that these politicians are trying to protect. But here is what I want to protect: the stability and happiness of people who are alive right now. I believe that no one has the right to enforce anything on someone's body, whether that be a fetus or a politician. Abortion is a personal choice, and no one should have the right to take that choice away. 

Current event: Things Romney Says

Back in June, Presidential candidate Mitt Romney encouraged business owners to attempt to vacillate their employees' political views, saying that it was peremptory that they should pellucidly state their personal preferences in regards to the upcoming election.

Romney apparently believes that the will of the business owner should interrupt how the employees desire American businesses to be run. This patronizing treatment of workers is not exactly archaic. It is an axiom that those in power tend to abuse that power, even if they do not realize it. It is considered an iniquity by many to usurp more than just a business or a position of power, but the people who then fall subject to said position.

Romney is perspicacious when it comes to manipulating words. He is abstemious in answering exactly what is questioned of him as to only prove the points he wants to prove, and expurgate his more muddled plans as a Presidential candidate.

More recently, in the Presidential Debate on tuesday, Romney made a comment that is making its rounds on the internet. When asked to address gender inequality in the workplace, Romney gave a personal account of his experience as Governor of Massachusetts in which he was brought "binders full of women" to hire out of. This comment was meant to showcase Romney's care of womens' equality and rights, but has not sat well with the online community and has become the joke of week.

Hearing the not-so-dulcet voice of our next possible President make ignorantly misogynist comments about women in the workplace is not reassuring. Granted, Romney has recently become the scapegoat of conservative republicans and probably wishes for a talisman to protect him from the constant questions and having every word that comes from his mouth go into a recording device.

In the mean time, the internet is an atelier for "Romney's Binder" jokes, with numerous facebook, twitter and tumblr parody accounts already high functioning from the moment Romney said "binder".

Quickie Monday: Felix Baumgartner's Fall From Space

Yesterday, after years of planning and two and a half hours of rising into the sky in a space pod, Austrian skydiver Felix Baumgartner jumped from 128,000 feet (over 24 miles) in the stratosphere, breaking five world records.

The fall to Earth took four minutes and 19 seconds (just 17 seconds shy of breaking a sixth world record) while zooming down at 834 mph, faster than the speed of sound. Baumgartner wore a specially made pressurized suit to keep his body stabilized as he tumbled through the air at low oxygen levels.

Though Baumgartner broke the record for most views watched on a YouTube live stream, a surprising amount of TA students and faculty missed this historical moment. When asked what they thought of the fall from space that took place yesterday, the most common response was, "Somebody fell from space?"

The few who could give an opinion, were amazed and terrified by the incredible height, but had little to say about the momentous feat that had just taken place.

What does this mean for modern generations? Are we bombarded with too many world records and technological accomplishments that we've become apathetic to them?

RD (blogpost 10.0)

observation/description of subject on stage ie: The theater is quiet. A group of student actors are scattered across the stage, scripts in hand. Among them is junior Camden Loeser, who is playing [character's name] in this years production of The Crucible

“[My favorite part is] the nerves before you go on stage,” says Loeser. “Knowing that people are about to see you and be impressed with your talents.”

Loeser has been involved in theater since age four, when he played a mouse in his first show, Twas One Crazy Night Before Christmas. Loesers favorite performance to this day is The Sound of Music,  in which he portrayed Frederic in the Ogunquit Playhouse production in the summer of 2010. “When you perform the show as much as I did, you become the character,” says Loeser, who valued the production for its professional experience.

Loeser plans on pursuing musical theater after high school, though he’s worried about the competitiveness of art schools. “Sometimes you’re hard on yourself and feel like you should be able to do what everyone else can do.”

It takes incredible dedication to become an artist. For many graduates, art is created on the side in conjunction with a day job. With an overflowing wave of young artists, it is difficult to stand out and be successful.

“Everyone  likes drawing, everyone like photography, everyone likes writing,” says senior Danielle Morin, “It’s hard to excel and get noticed.” (story on danielle either before or after this quote)

Nowadays, a masters degree in art is essential to a professional career in many artistic fields.

“[It’s scary] knowing that there will always be someone better than you,” says Loeser. For professional actors, competition, training and preparing for auditions is an enormous part of the business, not unlike professional athletes. “That’s your entire life.”

But what constitutes being successful? Yearly salary? Number of tickets sold or books published? “As long as I feel happy in what I’m doing and feel like this what I’m supposed to do,” says Loeser, “I want it to feel beneficial to me.”

“I don’t think I’ll do anything else. I don’t love anything else more than theater enough to want to.”

end connects back to beginning




RD is incomplete. I haven't gotten interview w/ Danielle or much observation from Camden. Waiting for camera to complete the latter so I can kill two birds with one stone. So I haven't a solid lead. What I have completed, I believe, is done well. I just need to expand and elaborate on my ideas.

Vocabulary (blogpost 9.0)

https://apps.facebook.com/wpsocialreader/?fb_source=bookmark_apps&ref=bookmarks&count=0&fb_bmpos=2_0

Millions of interlocutors across the world have joined Twitter, a social media website that allows a carte blanche of free thought and opinion sharing for anyone with internet access. Some people believe that the internet is a stygian place that condones or even encourages contemptuous behavior. This sophistry argues that social media is a place rife with procrustean individuals with no regard for others or their own responsibility and has caused quite a donnybrook from a generation so acclimated to these tools. The internet offers a virtual, cosmopolitan lifestyle because of easy access to global information and experience. Today, there is only a vestige of people strewn across the earth who haven't been affected in some way by social media.

Twitter and its other rivalry networks are attempting a metamorphosis in how users are evaluated in terms of popularity ratings. These social network sites are concerned with how their users are able to view their popularity. On twitter, users can "retweet" (internet nomenclature for post again or share) what someone else posted, creating a sort of incantation of one person's thought. Twitter is beginning to consider that retweeting may more accurately portray a user's success, because their tweet has been sent to more than just their own followers.

I am nonchalant about the way twitter tracks it's users. As long as an internet brigand or hacker does not steal my account from me, I'll be all set.

Quick Story Mondays (blogpost 8.0)

Perks of Being a Wallflower Movie

by Sam Saucier and Sarah Beth Campisi

On September 21, 2012, the long awaited film Perks of Being a Wallflower premiered in select theaters. Perks of Being a Wallflower is a novel by Stephen Chbosky published in 1999.

Jill Kehoe, the librarian in Thornton Academy’s Library and Academic Commons, read the book several years ago. “I read it at the same that I read Catcher in the Rye, because this book was supposed to be the contemporary Catcher in the Rye,” Kehoe said. “You really can’t compare. I guess [Perks of Being a Wallflower] was okay.”

Perks follows the story of high school freshman, Charlie, an introvert with a troubled past who is just trying to blend in.

Hanna Langley, a sophomore, says that Perks is “a really great story and I cried reading it.” Anxious to see the film version of her favorite characters, Langley is most excited for actress Emma Watson’s take on the character Sam. “She’s amazing,” Langley says, beaming.

Students are curious to see how the cast list turns out, worrying (as any fan would) about who will take on and foster the personalities of the characters they care about.  “I figured they’d end up butchering it,” says senior Nathan Morris. “It’s my favorite book because I can relate to Charlie so much.” Morris said that Perks is on his list of things he would save if his house were burning down.

"It's relatable,” says Sydney Curran, junior. “Everyone feels like that awkward kid.”

Perks will summon all the wallflowers into Maine theaters on October 6.

verb: to be
connect interviewees to story

The Lead (blogpost 7.0)

On writing news story leads: 

• A news lead typically written in 40 words or less
• starts with the main point of the article 
• the most important questions to answer are who and what
• could start with where then answer the who? and what? and other questions if appropriate
• could start with why then answer who? and what? etc
• present participle: starting with answering "how"
• begin with a prepositional phrase (no subject or verb) (ex: after two years of discussion...)
• start with a gerund (ing verb) in order to narrate 
• start with time period (temporal clause)
• Feature fact: the most important fact that should be featured in the lead
• vignette lead: storytelling approach to report major issues in order to bring them to a personal/human level. Paragraphs start long then become more traditionally short, newswriting form to bring facts to a close. Used in features.
• Descriptive or background leads: gives details of settings leading up to the story. Could include dialogue.
• start with a question that will hone in a reader's curiosity

Photography (blogpost 6.0)

This photo was taken in 2010 by Chris Jones.
The photo is of a chair found in an abandoned building. This photo meets the requirements of fantastic lighting, color, and gives a good angle. It also follows the rule of thirds. Aside from the aesthetics being pleasing, this photo makes me want to read the story that may or may not go along with it. It makes me question the existence of that chair, why is it facing the window? Why is it the only piece of furniture in this abandoned room? Why is the room abandoned in the first place? If this photo was featured in a story, it would pull me in and make me want to read. 

This photo was taken in 2008 in Sagarmatha National Park in Nepal by Joao Paulo Barbosa (from Brazil).

This photo has a lot of depth in the landscape as well as a neat perspective: the angle looks through the prayer rags and the himalayas sit in the background. There are many colors in the photo and well as interesting light and contrast.


Should I write my story on art after high school, I have to be careful with how I photograph my subject. There are many typical photos leaning over the shoulder of students as they draw. I need to find a way to make the pictures more personal.

Progress (blogpost 4.0)

Vocabulary 1 (blogpost 5.0)

https://apps.facebook.com/wpsocialreader/?fb_source=bookmark_apps&ref=bookmarks&count=0&fb_bmpos=2_0

"Don't Ban Big Gulps"

A mayor in New York has proposed a moratorium on the sale of 32 oz sodas. Opposers of this seem to be ubiquitous, organizing protests against the ban. According to a poll, 60% of New Yorkers are in opposition. The article quotes the US to be, in vernacular terms, "the fattest nation on earth", quite a casual statement that hits you in the oversized gut. It is true that America is replete with overweight persons. The jokes made about this issue are interminable. Americans are always sought out to be the punch line of some other country's joke because we are so young and powerful but frankly, can be quite stupid. It is lugubrious that healthy foods are so often priced higher that unhealthy foods. Unfortunately, Americans are zealous about prices, always trying to get more for less, but that often compromises the health of the decision. It would helpful if politicians and the economy would form a camaraderie on the issue of highly taxed healthy foods. This is not a new issue. There have been a litany of issues  about food prices linked to obesity. The only way to truncate the list of complaints is to comply. It must be especially hard for people living in a city like New York City to eat healthy because not only are prices high, there is a complete lack of arable land to home-grow foods. It is true, the issue of taxes in America is a frangible one. Everyone is sensitive to the topic and it must be approached with great care as it seems to be a wrenching concept to some. It's a natural response, though. Nobody likes to have their wallets desiccated...figuratively, of course.

Maybe someday, we can handle a situation about soda sizes with more equanimity.

Pulitzer Prize Inspiration (blogpost 3.0)

http://www.tampabay.com/features/humaninterest/article750838.ece

My choice of the Pulitzer Prize winning articles was The Girl in the Window by Lane DeGregory. The article is of a severe case of child abuse centered around a girl named Dani, who was found in a closet when she was seven, covered in maggots and her own feces, unable to speak or communicate. I can tell it won the Pulitzer Prize for a reason; it was possibly the most compelling and captivating article I've ever read. After reading, I found myself reading other articles on Dani. I looked through photos of her and read up on more of her history because Lane DeGregory found an incredible story that is not only easy to care about on it's own, but is so skillfully written that it was difficult to break away from my computer screen while reading.

So, what makes a good story? One that pulls the reader in so quickly then wins Pulitzer Prizes? (Okay, there might be some steps I skipped here and there, but what are those steps?). I've examined Lane DeGregory's writing for evidence. I found 3(ish) major things that Lane McGregory does to make the story leave an impact on the reader.

1. Her descriptions. McGregory paints a wonderful scenery to set the story she is telling. When reading The Girl in the Window, I visualized every moment vividly, whether I wanted to or not (some images were upsetting/disturbing, but that means she's that good of a writer to be able to achieve such things)
 
     1a) Zooms in on details to pull at emotions of reader. McGregory often describe the Dani's eyes and how they never seemed to look at, but through. Dani's lack of basic human understanding as a result of her abuse was described in little moments, like her inability to laugh, to understand peek-a-boo, to nod yes or no. All these are basic and natural concepts to us that it's hard to fathom not having them.  These details register certain ways with humans to make us sympathize. So the reader is pulled in.

2. Examines all sides and people within story in order to give a broad perspective with many sources with play off of. McGregory interviewed with Dani's adoptive parents, her birth mother, policemen, court officials, Dani's school teachers, doctors and psychiatrists; all of which added rich detail and insight of Dani's background.

     2a) Thoroughness; the story spanned over 3-4 years of time and manages to pull the reader in enough so that they want to know as much as possible.

3. McGregory picked a specific, intriguing story to discuss a broad topic. Child abuse is a widely spread issue that is (unfortunately) common to hear about and happen. Dani's case was not only a specific case of child abuse, but an especially extreme one that some say is the worst they'd ever seen. Dani's physical and mental health is permanently damaged because of what happened to her. This is the type of story that makes people feel something. It makes people sad and frustrated and angry and can ultimately influence a person to take action against a pressing issue such as child abuse. That's why The Girl in the Window is a good story. It educates and inspires.

My Story and First Interviews (blog post 2.0)

Before Interview: purpose. Become familiar with subject and think of questions. Contact interviewee (explain why you want to interview them and set up an interview date)
During: ask informational and direct questions. Don't ask the hardest questions first. Be objective. Have materials ready (recording devices, papers, pens)

My story: Nerdfighters: nerdfighTAria. Vidcon, project for awesome, kiva, what it means to be a nerdfighter. youtube/vlogging. relations to social media, interview: Liz Park, Mike and Alex (if they come to TA), and Jennifer Pinches. Esther.

Pepperell Squares: interview Adam Glynn, Forrest Tripp, Aaron Lockman.

Why is it so hard to be an artist? after high school and college it is difficult to make a living with art. Why do artists have to be the best of the best? What about those students who want to be artists but don't follow through because it's "impractical"? What about those students who are successful? What constitutes being successful?

story (my perspective): 9/11 and future generations. How will 9/11 be remembered/taught in schools? This generation's grandchildren will think of 9/11 as ancient history, similar to how we know of WWII through our grandparents. Will September 11th become just another date that history teachers through out to pop quiz students like they would with pearl harbor or Gettysburg? Someday, 9/11 will be remembered by students as statistics and facts. Has 9/11 had such a significant impact that it changes the way history is taught? Does our modern documentation help the way it could be taught?

write something on gender issues

It's Elementary, Dear Reader (blog post 1.0)

Today, the subject of my attention was a radio piece on ALS and an article about a man who writes postcards to strangers from his home in Maine (both pieces from the Salt Institute). Or at least, those are the topics of the two pieces. 

What I learned today was possibly the most essential tool that should be used not only for journalistic purposes, but for any piece of writing: personals and emotions, the heart of the story. It's human nature to connect with stories on a personal level. It's important to the writer to bring out the emotional conflicts of a story as to pull in the reader and bring them down to a level they can connect on, while simultaneously providing a window of information that will open eyes and broaden perspectives. 

These intriguing moments of a piece come from the details. Personal relationships belonging to the subject, their past, the environment they reside in; little anecdotes that may seem to stray from the topic but have overall influenced the story into what it is. These miniature stories within the larger picture make the reader feel like they can relate to what the author is conveying.