I know we're a journalism class and we're discussing libel predominantly in terms of journalism, but I found a rare case that was just too interesting to pass up.
The television show "Law & Order" is currently battling a libel case for their supposed representation of a real-life person through a fictional character. Ravi Batra, a Manhattan lawyer who some suspect is linked to a bribery scandal in 2003, is suing the show's creator, arguing that a character featured on the show was deliberately modeled after him. The character featured in this particular 2003 episode was named Ravi Patel, and is a bald, Indian-American lawyer who is seen bribing a judge. Is it just me, or is that strikingly similar to another bald, Indian-American lawyer named Ravi?
Of course, NBC is denying that the character was based on Ravi Batra. In my opinion, Batra's claims are true. But whether or not it's libel, I'm not so sure. This is rare because it wasn't done in print and the man's name wasn't actually used. It could be argued that a televesion program is technically published and therefore could be constituted as libel. It's just a little tricky. Anyone who watches the show and has heard of the scandal that Batra may or may not have been involved with could easily mistake the character's fictional actions as a factual representation of Batra's supposed real-life actions.
I personally think that's exactly what the show was trying to do. A man with the same first name, similar physical attributes, same profession, working in the same city... bribing a judge? Coincidence? I say "HELL NO!" But I think they'll be able to get away with it. In any case, I'll definitely be interested to hear the verdict.
Tuesday, May 13, 2008
Monday, May 5, 2008
Narrated Slideshow: A Deadly Search for Missing Soldiers
I stumbled upon the New York Times website in my search for a narrated slideshow, and found a captivating slideshow by a photographer who traveled with a group of U.S. soldiers to find some missing soldiers in Baghdad. During the trip, he encountered an explosion that left a few soldiers injured, including one who was severely injured and taken away by helicopter.
The pictures are effective enough on their own; there are graphic shots of injured men that may be horrific to some. But having the shots placed chronologically in a slideshow narrated by the photographer himself as he explains the scene in even more vivid detail, all the while accompanied by a sound recording of the actual events as they appear, is ten times more effective.
What I liked most about it was how the ambient sound faded in and out as the narrator was speaking. And even better, the ambient sound was a recording of what was actually happening while the photos were being snapped. It probably would have been nearly impossible to carry a video camera during this mission, so luckily this slideshow is as close as you can get without having actual moving images.
This slideshow was very powerful, and I think it's important to see. It's not often we get to see the troops in action, and it was moving to see an example of the strong comradery that exists between these men.
Check it out here: http://www.nytimes.com/packages/html/world/20070523_SEARCH_FEATURE/index.html
The pictures are effective enough on their own; there are graphic shots of injured men that may be horrific to some. But having the shots placed chronologically in a slideshow narrated by the photographer himself as he explains the scene in even more vivid detail, all the while accompanied by a sound recording of the actual events as they appear, is ten times more effective.
What I liked most about it was how the ambient sound faded in and out as the narrator was speaking. And even better, the ambient sound was a recording of what was actually happening while the photos were being snapped. It probably would have been nearly impossible to carry a video camera during this mission, so luckily this slideshow is as close as you can get without having actual moving images.
This slideshow was very powerful, and I think it's important to see. It's not often we get to see the troops in action, and it was moving to see an example of the strong comradery that exists between these men.
Check it out here: http://www.nytimes.com/packages/html/world/20070523_SEARCH_FEATURE/index.html
Tuesday, February 19, 2008
Lede the Way
Narrative Lead:
"The advice made her head spin: Have the lump removed. No, let them take the whole breast. Chemo? Radiation? Everyone seemed to have an opinion."
-cnn.com (full article at "http://www.cnn.com/2008/HEALTH/conditions/02/19/cancer.coaches.ap/index.html")
Nut Graf:
"Many advocacy groups and hospitals are using "professional" coaches -- trained volunteers or paid workers who can objectively help new patients navigate the maze of information and options."
At first I had a problem with the fact that the nut graf was six blocks into the article, but then I scrolled down and realized that this article is over 1,000 words long. I can't imagine a writer attempting to use any other type of a lead than a narrative for an article of this magnitude. Actually, this type of lead is completely necessary, because the article is practically a story about a woman named Bernie Brann(the "her" in the lead), who utilized the services of a "coach" while battling cancer.
This article could have been extremely shorter if the writer had taken a different, more "newsy" approach, but the article would lose the factor of personality that made it so interesting. Sure, I could read a short, straight-forward article about people who choach cancer patients through their process, but I would much rather read about an actual cancer patient who is going through the struggle and can tell about the ups and downs of having one of these coaches, which would be much more effective for other patients. And from my perspective, as someone who doesn't suffer from cancer, how else can I begin to understand or relate to how difficult it is? That's why I feel that the narrative approach the writer took was the perfect way to go about the subject matter he/she was writing about.
It's long, but if you have time you should read the whole article. It's pretty good.
"The advice made her head spin: Have the lump removed. No, let them take the whole breast. Chemo? Radiation? Everyone seemed to have an opinion."
-cnn.com (full article at "http://www.cnn.com/2008/HEALTH/conditions/02/19/cancer.coaches.ap/index.html")
Nut Graf:
"Many advocacy groups and hospitals are using "professional" coaches -- trained volunteers or paid workers who can objectively help new patients navigate the maze of information and options."
At first I had a problem with the fact that the nut graf was six blocks into the article, but then I scrolled down and realized that this article is over 1,000 words long. I can't imagine a writer attempting to use any other type of a lead than a narrative for an article of this magnitude. Actually, this type of lead is completely necessary, because the article is practically a story about a woman named Bernie Brann(the "her" in the lead), who utilized the services of a "coach" while battling cancer.
This article could have been extremely shorter if the writer had taken a different, more "newsy" approach, but the article would lose the factor of personality that made it so interesting. Sure, I could read a short, straight-forward article about people who choach cancer patients through their process, but I would much rather read about an actual cancer patient who is going through the struggle and can tell about the ups and downs of having one of these coaches, which would be much more effective for other patients. And from my perspective, as someone who doesn't suffer from cancer, how else can I begin to understand or relate to how difficult it is? That's why I feel that the narrative approach the writer took was the perfect way to go about the subject matter he/she was writing about.
It's long, but if you have time you should read the whole article. It's pretty good.
Sunday, February 3, 2008
Classmate interview: Rommel
Rommel Conclara is 22 years old and currently lives in Daly City. He has been taking journalism classes with his eye on a possible future career in broadcasting, and hopes to eventually transfer to San Francisco State. Rommel is working hard to move forward academically and is interested in State because of the school’s prestigious reputation for journalism. “Right now I’m most passionate about school,” he said.
When he’s not attending class or studying, Rommel works two jobs and works out whenever he gets the chance. He enjoys taking trips to Vegas with his group of friends, which he referred to as the “Ocean 11-type group” (where he very humbly accepts the role of Brad Pitt or George Clooney).
Rommel also enjoys music, and puts hip hop at the top of the list. “I’ll listen to pretty much anything,” he said, “as long as it’s real.” To use his example, “50 Cent is bad, but I like Lupe [Fiasco].” Rommel’s tastes in music are a bit more eclectic than that, though, listing John Mayer, Nas, and Rage Against the Machine as some of his favorite artists.
Going to school and working two jobs is not an easy task, but Rommel gets it done, still managing to squeeze some fun in. He attributes his grandmother – his “second mom” - as his greatest inspiration.
When he’s not attending class or studying, Rommel works two jobs and works out whenever he gets the chance. He enjoys taking trips to Vegas with his group of friends, which he referred to as the “Ocean 11-type group” (where he very humbly accepts the role of Brad Pitt or George Clooney).
Rommel also enjoys music, and puts hip hop at the top of the list. “I’ll listen to pretty much anything,” he said, “as long as it’s real.” To use his example, “50 Cent is bad, but I like Lupe [Fiasco].” Rommel’s tastes in music are a bit more eclectic than that, though, listing John Mayer, Nas, and Rage Against the Machine as some of his favorite artists.
Going to school and working two jobs is not an easy task, but Rommel gets it done, still managing to squeeze some fun in. He attributes his grandmother – his “second mom” - as his greatest inspiration.
Friday, February 1, 2008
I am Paul
What's up everybody? My given name is Paul Nathanael Sieger. People call me Paul, and my friends call me Paul too because my name doesn't give much leeway for nicknames. But I'm ok with that.
ANYWAY, this is my first official blog, although I do tend to write "notes" on Facebook every once in a while. This is a blog for my Journalism 120 class at Skyline, and I've never had to do anything like this for a class before, so I'll milk as much excitement out of it as I possibly can. This is my first semester at Skyline. After I graduated in '05, I got accepted to Cal Poly Pomona, and spent three days there only to end up coming home and working for a year because of some ridiculous "Fatal Attraction"-type relationship problems(don't ask). I spent a semester at USF in the fall of '06 to major in architecture, like I had intended to do at Cal Poly. By the end of the semester, I pretty much went from being interested in architecture to being almost repulsed by it. Because I was academically lost and dishing out way too much money, I moved to CSM and did two semesters there. And now here I am at Skyline, five minutes away from home and taking classes with friends, and I'm finally feeling pretty good about my situation.
I switched my major to journalism for this semester, because I decided that's what I want to do with my life. My dad did the same thing in college and became a sports writer, and still freelances to this day. I guess you could say he's my inspiration for this.
But enough of this academic crap. What I'm really into is hip hop. Ever since I fell in love with it when I was 14, I pretty much have found a way to revert any and every conversation into a conversation about hip hop. So don't talk to me if you're completely disinterested in how The Wu-Tang Clan relates to nuclear physics. So, it'd be nice to eventually write officially for a hip hop magazine, or at least do some freelancing in that area. When I'm not verbally destroying mainstream radio rap, you'll find me with my friends, trying as hard as possible to avoid video games but failing miserably, and driving around unable to think of anything "cool" to do.
So that's about all I have to say. I'll catch you next time.
ANYWAY, this is my first official blog, although I do tend to write "notes" on Facebook every once in a while. This is a blog for my Journalism 120 class at Skyline, and I've never had to do anything like this for a class before, so I'll milk as much excitement out of it as I possibly can. This is my first semester at Skyline. After I graduated in '05, I got accepted to Cal Poly Pomona, and spent three days there only to end up coming home and working for a year because of some ridiculous "Fatal Attraction"-type relationship problems(don't ask). I spent a semester at USF in the fall of '06 to major in architecture, like I had intended to do at Cal Poly. By the end of the semester, I pretty much went from being interested in architecture to being almost repulsed by it. Because I was academically lost and dishing out way too much money, I moved to CSM and did two semesters there. And now here I am at Skyline, five minutes away from home and taking classes with friends, and I'm finally feeling pretty good about my situation.
I switched my major to journalism for this semester, because I decided that's what I want to do with my life. My dad did the same thing in college and became a sports writer, and still freelances to this day. I guess you could say he's my inspiration for this.
But enough of this academic crap. What I'm really into is hip hop. Ever since I fell in love with it when I was 14, I pretty much have found a way to revert any and every conversation into a conversation about hip hop. So don't talk to me if you're completely disinterested in how The Wu-Tang Clan relates to nuclear physics. So, it'd be nice to eventually write officially for a hip hop magazine, or at least do some freelancing in that area. When I'm not verbally destroying mainstream radio rap, you'll find me with my friends, trying as hard as possible to avoid video games but failing miserably, and driving around unable to think of anything "cool" to do.
So that's about all I have to say. I'll catch you next time.
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