Final Thoughts

Initially when I signed up for this class, I was unsure what expect, other than what the course catalogue said. It turned out to be a lot more than what I expected (in a good way) and the most interesting part for me was applying all of what I experienced in this class to other classes I am taking. I enjoyed the group discussions and how it is truly the study of the media in our world today, not necessarily like other journalism classes that teach you how to produce news stories. It is just as important to know about the media you are going to enter once you graduate as it is to be able to write a news story.

If there were aspects about the class I would change, it would be to shorten the amount of group discussions and have more of the material presented by the professor. I always questioned whether or not I was getting accurate information about the presentations, because it wasn’t the professor presenting the material. Don’t get me wrong, I think that group presentations from your peers is very beneficial, but maybe not as lengthily.

I think that the journal assignment was very interesting, and that when taken seriously could teach you a lot about another country. It was also interesting to see how the media functions in another country and compare it to our media.

Overall I think that this class was good, and I have definitely recommended it to people. One aspect I like about the class is that the curriculum changes along with what’s going on in the world, and that there is always something to be discussed. I think that maybe this class should not have a text book and just have articles off of e-reserves and have parts of the book from there. It seems to be somewhat counter productive to have to many articles outside the book, and not have many chapters in the book assigned.

The Internet

This section is all about the internet, without it, I wouldn't have this blog. This is just one example of how the internet has transformed our lives and the way we communicate. For me, it is hard to imagine what college would be like without my laptop, let alone life without the internet. I am definitely the generation that grew up with the internet, and it is interesting to see, looking through a different lens, as how the internet has truly changed the world.

People talk and talk about the pros and cons of the internet, but I think that when is comes down to it, the internet could be the tool to bring the media back to its roots. Newspapers began in our country being completely partisan and people could read the other opinions and debate and discuss. The internet provides an open forum for many voices to be heard, debated and discussed.

Dutch Soldiers Under Investigation

Dutch soldiers are under investigation about the presence of an "electric weapons stick" in the interrogation of a Saudi in Iraq in 2003. The interogation will take place in the CPA house (Coalition Provisional Authority - the temporary American administration after the fall of the regime of Saddam Hussein in 2003). The weapon in question was not official equipment at the time.

I understand why they may be under investigation about the weapon in question, but what I don't understand why the US is in charge of it. We have had questions brought up about our interrogation techniques, so why should we be in charge of it?