Everything Relatively Stays the Same

April 4, 1995

April 4, 1995 was filled with various fashion styles, movies, albums, and much more. It was the middle to the end of not just the decade, but the century. During this date, little to anyone's knowledge, I came into this ever grungy atmosphere. The weather was nice and cool with a mere 66 degrees in Fahrenheit and a wind mileage of 9 mph. It was the day right after my mom's birthday and everyone was wearing plaid and listening to Madonna and Nirvana. I was actually suppose to be a boy, due to not having 4D sonograms or any good graphics at that point, and I came out to be a girl.  Though the clothes may change a bit, the technology advances and new great singers come and go, the thing is, everything relatively remains the same.

During  the day that I was born, people were still Photoshopping pictures. When I looked up the Vogue cover for that month, you could clearly see that the girl had an elongated neck with perfectly straight lines, all edited. This finding is pretty sad, but it is true nonetheless, though companies now-a-days are starting to give up this Photoshop parade and go on to a more natural facade.Who were these people that were Photoshopped on these covers? Models, TV stars and pop stars.

Another thing that had stayed the same was pop stars. Pop stars have been around for ages and 1995 was no different. At that time, specifically around April 4th, the biggest pop stars were Mariah Carey, TLC, and Madonna. Madonna's song, Take a Bow, was number #1 during the week of my birthday, according to Billboard. Pop stars will probably never go away, but one thing's for sure, we always seem to get their song's stuck in our heads. 

Speaking of pop stars, the biggest story in my home town of San Antonio was the news about Selena Quintanilla's death. She was one of the biggest Mexican American pop star that was accepted by the Mexicans and the Americans. When she died, people from all over had memorial for her, such as San Antonio and Corpus Christi Texas. Selena's death was not on my birthday, but it was close enough for the nurses to ask my mother if she was going to name me Selena, which she did not. Selena's death can be compared to recent Paul Walker, who's death swarmed the internet and his last Fast and Furious 7 movie was greatly perceived in the box office. I couldn't get the actricle picture from my hometown's archive, because then I  would have to subscribe to them, but I took snip-its of all three title's and beginning prompts (which is all I could see without subscription).

For those that were too cool for main stream media and did not want to include themselves with any type of pop star, there was video games. Video game fanatics everywhere were getting ready for the first E3 that was being held a month later in L.A. In the meantime, GameInformer was still publishing about now-gone game consoles in April 1995, such as Sega, Atari, SNK, and even CD's for the computer, while GamePro was doing reviews on Mortal Combat 2 and Madden NFL 95. Even the covers of these various issues have what was then, amazing graphics. Now looking back, it seems that the video game world has come a long way from where it started. The point is, these video game magazines still exist and people still enjoy playing them. Of course, Atari and Sega are not around anymore and are only seen in the arcades, but we are still nostalgic for their presence. I also wanted to point out that back then GameInformer was only $3.95, now looking at their website, I can get a magazine for $14.99 with GameStop power rewards card. Isn't it funny how people forget these things?

Speaking of forgetting things, the one of the biggest nonfiction best sellers during the week of my birthday was The Hotzone by Richard Preston. I wanted to point this out, because who would have known that years later, an Ebola panic would explode the U.S. and the future city that I am living in now, once held the Ebola victim that caused the panic. Now this book actually came out in 1994, but was still very popular in April 1995. The first nonfiction bestseller on the list was actually the Celestine Prophecy by James Redfield, which is about new spirituality and finding different spiritual and psychological ideas that are within the ancient eastern cultures. This made me interested as will, because that is what I like to do. I like to learn and understand different religions and cultures. Anyways, the idea here is that though ideas and thoughts come and go, eventually they resurface and as the thought of the Ebola virus spreading was on people's mind, so was their thought on reading this book again.

Even though the world you were born in, or I was born in, is not completely the same as it is now, some things still remain the same. Yes, we do not go around wearing parachute pants anymore like in the 70's, but we do wear over-sized plaid like in the 90's. You can't catch the spice girls on the radio, but you can catch 5th Harmony. And people still go see Jim Carrey movies and watch SNL, of course the humor is a little different, but the concept is still their. We all still want the best president in the world, we still are looking for better graphics in games and babies are still being born, on a different day, in a different decade that they wish was another decade, and the people may change, the trends may change, the computers might get smaller, but the stories and the concepts and puberty are still the same. 

Work Cited:

Miesel, Steven. Vogue. April 1995. Web. 01 Nov. 2015
Madonna. "Madonna - Take A Bow." YouTube. YouTube, 29 Oct. 2009. Web. 09 Nov. 2015.

Danini, C. (1995, April 4). Mexico City's Media concentrates on rites. San Antonio Express-News. Retrieved November 8, 2015.

Garza, T. (1995, April 4). Hundreds Attend Mass in Alamo City - Young and Old Grieve Star. San Antonio Express-News. Retrieved November 8, 2015.
Garza, T. (1995, April 4). Hundreds Attend Mass in Alamo City - Young and Old Grieve Star. San Antonio Express-News. Retrieved November 8, 2015.
GameInformer. Issue: 24. April 1995. Web. 05 Nov. 2015
 Preston, R. (1994). The Hot Zone (1995 ed.). New York, New York: Random House.

News, News, and more news

 Why News?

Personally, I enjoy keeping up with the news and learning about new things that are happening around the world an in my backyard. On a typical day, I look through my twitter feed and look for interesting news articles. Sometimes I use the Facebook "trending" page, but only if it's not about what celebrity did what today with their kids. I also listen to NPR, specifically Krys Boyd's "Think" series, for I find the topics interesting and topics that we should be talking about.. My partner and I watch different local news stations every weekday at dinner time, because it is important to find out what is happening in your state and around your city. Lastly, I really enjoy my school's newspaper and magazine, because you get a sense of what everyone who's in your class might be thinking or what is on our minds. You might even find that something is going on that can keep you busy for the weekend.

What is, or should be news?

When I hear the word "news," What comes to mind is new. New stories that have come up, whether locally or globally, with accurate facts and interesting topics. Finding out that a celebrity is pregnant by their producer is not news to me, or at least real news. When I hear the word "news" I want to find out what is going on in the world. I want to know what people are doing, what new laws or new things are going to affect me. I want to learn something that I did not know an hour ago. I also do not want to be lied to.

Fox News Vs. Dallas Morning News

 

There are numerouse online news sites throughout the internet and they have different ways on how they produce their news online. With a bigger name like, CBS and CNN, people might think that they will have a better website for the news, rather than the more local online news stations. The fact is that they both have their pros and cons. The two that will be focused on for this blog will be Fox News and Dallas Morning News.

Fox:

With Fox News, I really enjoy the variety of stories that they have. As you scroll, there are sections for various news types, such as health, science, and my favorite, odd stories. This lets the viewers know that they are diverse in their topics and that they really try to catch the different interest of their audience. I know that when I go on their online publication, that I will find what I am looking for and  maybe even find out about stuff that I had no knowledge on.

  Another aspect that I find appealing and good marketing, is that Fox News has their other sister stations and their other news outlets on the very top of their website, such as Fox News Latino and Fox News Radio. They even have a link to their mobile app that you pick up on both Android and Apple products. once you click on each of these names, you are immediately directed to that stations website. I feel that news stations should promote the multiple other ways that their audience can listen to them and read about them. They also need to be smart about this and not bombard the audience with all this information, just having it neat  and somewhere easily accessible is the way to go.

Now we go to the not-so-good part of Fox News. One thing that I found that was not necessarily bad, but could be improved is the "Regional News" section. I feel that fox news is accounting for a more broader range of viewers, which means that everyone from around the country are looking at this website. Not everyone lived in New York and I think it would be a good idea if they got a short news gathering from wherever city or region the viewer is looking from. That would also include the weather, because the page also has the weather for specifically New York.

Another aspect that could change is the "Sponsored Stories" section. I am personally not a big fan of sponsored stories, because they are basically advertisements that pretend to be stories. I do not think that Fox News needs these sponsored ads, nor do I think it is right to confuse people who do not know about sponsored stories that are just really ads or reviews on a product.

 

Dallas:

 

The first thing that  I would like to point out about the Dallas Morning News, is that it is a more local news station. The hand up with local stations, is that you can get more local viewers by relating to them and going to the events happening around town and getting more one on one time with people. Dallas Morning News does not disappoint with this, for one of the first aspects of their online website is that they have a section dedicated to finding different needs and wants around town, such as looking up a florist, or restaurants or  even auto sales. Each link, once clicked on, takes you to a google map that has the names and locations of different places around and in Dallas. Once you find a place near you, you can click on the name and it will take you to a picture of the place and a summary of what they do and different services the business offers.

 Another thing that I like about the Dallas Morning News, is that they have an events calendar, which entails the major events happening in and around the Dallas area. I like that they have this, because it gives people who either live in Dallas, or who are visiting Dallas, an idea of what they can do in the city that weekend or that day. By conveniently doing this, it really helps promote the different events going on and helps the viewer get information faster. I know, from being new here to Dallas, I am always looking for different things to do on the weekends and sometimes it is tedious to find when things are going on and how much they cost. When you click the links, they directly take you to where you need to go and find all the information that you need.


Now that we have gone through a couple of good aspects of this online newspaper, we will now look at the bad. One thing that I would recommend to the Dallas Morning News is to get a little more worldly news. Yes, I know that this is supposed to be a  local publication, but a little worldly news wouldn't hurt. knowing what is happening in the world, even if it is just a small section, not the whole publication, would be good for viewers, especially those who realie on this online publication for their input.

Another aspect would be the emphasis on sports. There are a handful of sport related articles and topics on this online publication. Even though the Dallas Cowboys are a big part of this city, they shouldn't have to have various article on them. I believe that talking about other things going on in Dallas would be more effective and informational, rather than what is going on with the Cowboys, but that's just me.

 

Which one is better?

 I would say that each online news source has both it's strengths and weakness. There were elements and aspects that I liked and disliked in both publications. In the question of which publication I would choose between both of them, I would base my decision off the quality and relatively of the articles and how easy it is to navigate through the online base site. If I had to choose, I would go with Dallas Morning News, for I can find exaclty what I want and find a more diverse viewpoint and credibility.

When reading the Dallas Morning News, I know that I can find what I want when I go to Dallas, as you can find in almost any local online news publication. I just find it more attractive for viewers, because they are up-to-date on what is happening in the city and where to go that night. The viewing is easy and everything is straight to the facts. You can't get that in a more broader online news source.

Another thing is that I like the unbiased notion that Dallas Morning News tries to portray. I feel that with bigger publications, such as Fox News, they have a bigger reputation for being biased when it comes to politics and  the viewpoint of different situations going on. When  reading a news article, we should want to see the facts, so that we can make a conventional choice on my own. With a more local news source, you can either get that unbiased opinion or you get straight biased. When reading through a couple of articles, we can get a sense of facts being put out, rather than the writer's opinions.

The last aspect would be credibility. Yes, it is harder for the Dallas Morning News to go out into Syria and find out what is going on, but when it comes to the city, they are on the scene getting what they need and writing what they see. Knowing this, we can feel more trusting of the publication. With Fox, there have been instances where you wonder if they just copied something else someone has said, just because they think that it is the topic of the day and they want to be up to speed with other news publications. They have been notoriously known for not credited their sites and tip-toeing around by saying lines such as "Some people say."

At the end of the day, news will forever be news. It is up to the news stations to find out how to attract their audience and try to accommodate everyone. When looking for news site publications, make sure to find if the article is credible and how bias it really is. Look for the reasons on why you might like it and find the news that is right for you.

Smosh Posh

 In a decade not too far away, there was a website and that website was called YouTube, and in that YouTube, there were two gentlemen who made a funny video, thus the laughter began.

Smosh, who is made up of Ian Hecox and Anthony Padilla, has been a big hit with YouTubers since the beginning of YouTube. The first video that they uploaded was named Power Ranger Theme, which was basically the two guys doing weird stuff with the Power Rangers theme song in that background. After a while, their videos started getting a little longer, their camera got a little better and their comedies got a little funnier. More and more people started viewing and subscribing and by the time they knew it, almost all of us knew them.

The famous duo can probably owe their success to how current and how attention grabbing their humor is. For example, in their one video called Boxman's Girlfriend, the main guy, who is boxman, is writing a letter that goes, "Roses are red, Violets are not, compared to Hilary Clinton, you're pretty HOT." The time of this upload was February 9th of 2008. This was around the time elections were going up and Hilary Clinton's first campaign to become president was going around. With doing this, these guys show that they are up-to0date with current events, even if they don't talk about them, but make fun of them. Making fun of current things that may be a little serious and turning them around and making them funny, can be part of why we keep coming back for more. Another thing that no one can never get enough are their Pokemon videos. Pokemon is very popular, even today, with all the youths and adults. They know what people like and putting some humor in that can definitely make people share and have their friends watching and subscribing over and over again.

The reason I think that Smosh is very different from other YouTube channels and stars is because they are always coming up with original ideas. They have been making random videos and weird music videos since they began. They also make time for their viewers by reading out their fan mail and even making that really funny. They are as classic as Austin Powers, because you never get tired of watching their interesting antics, or their hair. I know that I continue to watch their channel, because they keep on making me laugh. Sure I watch other Youtubers, but Smosh is like an old friend that I can trust to make my day better.

Do I think that Smosh would have been a big success without YouTube? Well I think that because of YouTube, they are who they are. Without the power of YouTube, no YouTube star would be very big, because it is harder to seek someone's website out, rather than just YouTube surfing or seeing what the popular videos are of the day.

All-in-all, I am happy to say that Smosh is still here today, making me and millions of others laugh almost everyday. Here is one of my favorite videos that I always laugh at and quote and is still on my iPod touch 2.

An oldie but goodie :)

To Retweet or not to Retweet

The world is filled with a variety of stories every day, whether it’s someone from America who went to France and ate a snail, or that the president made a big decision that day, or simply another funny cat video. Every day there are tons of people tweeting what they find, retweeting events and different news. When I go one my Twitter, I know there are things that I find completely worthy of retweeting, while other times I just keep on scrolling. Below are few examples of both.

Good Tweets:

Here is a tweet that I felt the need to retweet. There are a couple of reasons why I chose this article to retweet. For one, I find history to be very interesting and usually I find my history tweets from the History Channel Twitter account, but this time it was the New York Times. There's something nice about a news account that posts something historical, or something a little different from the usual. I also like that there is a picture tot his tweet. Putting a picture, especially when it’s an older picture, I find is intriguing. The article itself was very good and it was something different.

This is another tweet that I found was really retweet worthy. First off, the tweet states a fact that I did not know, thus getting me to want to read more about it. Another thing is that when I was scrolling down, the “BMW” part really had me stopping to look.  I just thought it was a fun fact that most people probably don’t know about, so I felt like sharing something a little different on twitter.

This tweet caught my attention a while back, because it puzzled me. I found that the tweet grabbed more of my attention, because it has to do with part of me when it says, “Western ideas.” I also find it sad that this is happening. Another attention grabber is the word “Communism.” I retweeted this for the sake of just making people aware that things that seem like their just in the movies, is actually happening in real life.

While there are tweets that I find that I should retweet for the sake of knowledge or for a laugh, there are those that I just don’t feel the need to do so. 

Not so good tweets:

My first example of a tweet that I deemed to not retweet was from the San Antonio Current. I understand that they want to stay “hip,” but using cuss words in a tweet, can be seen as unprofessional. I would not want to retweet this, for the sake of not letting my followers or maybe even future employers, to think that this is what I stand for. If the wording was different, I might have retweeted it, because it does sound interesting. Maybe rewrite it to say, “How did three drunk women even get on a school bus?!”

Here is another tweet that I just did not deem retweet worthy. For one thing, this isn’t anything new; snakes have escaped from plenty of places even before we had electricity. Yes, there is a nice picture of the cobra, but I just don’t find this to be interesting. Nothing about this really catches my attention, other than the cobra. I feel like you have to have a more interesting story line in order to make it grab the reader’s attention. Maybe something like. "King Cobra on the slither from authorities in the Orlando, Fla area."

I would not retweet this, because there is no relevance. There is a heart popping emoticon and picture of a side of shoes, most likely Nike's. This tweet make it more materialistic and “look at what I have,” which is something I do not want to tweet. I do not think that anyone should retweet everything they buy. Yes, they look like they could be nice shoes (if I could see the whole picture). Maybe if she was doing a review on this type of running shoe and show a bigger picture of the shoes, I might be more inclined to retweet this, because it is informing the public if they should get these for running or not.

All-in-all, you will always have those tweets that you don’t even notice and you have those that could really educate people and make more people aware. The tweet is up to you!