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MASS MEDIA LAW

The article Mass Media Laws was very informational. The article started out talking about an incident that occurred in May of 2003 involving a reporter, Jayson Blair, from the New York Times. I was aware of this story because it was the main story on Dateline less than a year ago. I was astonished that a reporter for a very distinguished newspaper such as the New York Times would plagiarize and then deny doing so when he knew exactly what he was doing all along, breaking the law.

It was also interesting to learn about the lawsuit against Amy Heckerling and TriStar Pictures over the film “Look Who’s Talking” and the lawsuit against Steven Spielberg over the release of Amistad. Although Plagiarism is against the law and the reprocutions severe once proven, it is something that happens quite often amongst the very best writers and producers. It is amusing to read that Stephen Ambrose and Doris Goodwin admitted to “borrowing” someone else's ideas and work. Borrowed? That is a nice way to put it. I would say that a better description of their actions is crime. Theft. To “borrow” seems like a relatively elementary concept to me. It’s pretty sad that we live in a world where the very respected educated individuals are committing crime such as plagiarism on a daily basis.

Broadcasting Cable, The Internet and Beyond

I found the article Broadcasting cable, the internet and beyond very interesting. I am one who you might call call "computer illiterate" so when we were assigned to read this article I thought that I would be completely lost throughout the reading. To my surprise I was not. I thought this article was very well written and very easy for individuals like myself to read. I learned a lot of vocabulary that I have heard of but never really knew what specific terms meant, for example, URL's, ISDN's and portals.

I was intrigued by some points made throughout the article such as the statement The Interactive Advertising Bureau reported that Internet ad revenue in 2001 was $7.2 billion as compared to $550 million in 1997. It just proves how much people rely on the internet. Also interesting, currently messenger services account for nearly 90 percent of the estimated 41 million users. A good example of the importance of the internet was 911. Many people turned to the internet as a source of news. I did not have a T.V. at the time so the first thing that I did was turn on my computer. It is amazing how the times have changed. The internet has become a source for school children to research specific topics and get information that they would not be able to find in the school or local library. I also find video conferencing a great way for students to interact with other children all over the world.

It was interesting to learn about the first pioneering information-based services available to the general public such as Teletex, Minitel and CEEFAX and how they changed throughout the years being replaced by companies such as AOL and Prodigy.

I feel as though I am living in the past with my lack of understanding of computers. I wish to someday be able to better understand and communicate in 'computer' language and be able to navigate systems without getting completely frustrated. Technology is only going to advance with the times so those of us who are 'in the dark' must get going! It is articles like this one that help understand the history and future of technology.

Tiffany Clift
tiffanyclift@yahoo.com
last updated May 11, 2005
Plattsburgh State University